Skip to main content

tv   BBC World News  BBC News  May 19, 2021 12:00am-12:31am BST

12:00 am
this is bbc news — i'm james reynolds with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. israel's prime minister warns the operation against hamas in gaza will take as long as needed to restore calm. at the un, france pushes for a resolution but washington says it wants to pursue talks behind the scenes. the prime minister of spain vows to restore order to its territories in north africa, where thousands of migrants have crossed from morocco. in the uk — there's been a sharp rise in cases of the so—called indian variant of the virus, but borisjohnson intends to carry on with plans, to end the lockdown in england. a self portrait like no other — so who is the artist behind this ground breaking exhibition.
12:01 am
france has called for a u.n. security council resolution on the violence between israel and palestinian militants. the body has held its third meeting in a week — but the united states is still holding back, claiming a "public pronouncement" wouldnot help pronouncement" would not help calm the crisis. in the latest violence, three palestinians have been killed and many others injured in clashes between protesters and israeli security forces in the west bank. israel's prime minister benjamin netanyahu has repeated his warning that the operation against hamas will take as long as needed to restore calm, as a barrage of rockets was fired into israel killing two thai workers and injuring seven others. our middle east editor
12:02 am
jeremy bowen reports now from jerusalem. and just a warning — there are some images you may find upsetting. explosion the israeli army blow up the car the israeli army blew up the car of a man who attacked them with grenades. soldiers shot him dead. it was the centre of hebron where soldiers protect a jewish settlement in the heart of a palestinian city. chanting last night, a group called the al—aqsa martyrs�* brigade showed off their weapons in ramallah on the west bank. they have been quiet since the end of the last armed uprising around 16 years ago. their return, if that's what it is, is a sign of the hardening mood on the palestinian side, and competition between rival factions to confront israel. this morning the al—aqsa brigade and israeli troops exchanged fire near ramallah. the israelis said two of their soldiers were wounded. this was at the damascus gate intojerusalem's old city.
12:03 am
egypt blames heavy—handed israeli pressure injerusalem for what it calls palestinian retaliation. the egyptians have used unusually harsh language to condemn israel's behaviour. that matters because egyptian mediators are a critical part of ceasefire negotiations. much more anger in more places is on display in the palestinian territories than during previous wars between israel and hamas. this was bethlehem just outsidejerusalem. this kind of thing just doesn't build up overnight. it comes after years of settlement expansion, land confiscation. what happened injerusalem and what's happening in gaza was the last straw. it's about, for these people, years of israeli pressure. inside israel, jaffa is shared byjews and palestinian arabs.
12:04 am
arab businesses across israel were closed in a general strike that was also solid on the west bank. in the last week, coexistence between israel's arab and jewish citizens has broken down, a disasterfor national cohesion. explosion hamas is still hitting israeli towns. this was ashdod. all the pounding of gaza, this was an american—made israeli bomb, has not stopped hamas firing back. that could be an incentive for israel to respond to pressure from its allies for a ceasefire. jeremy bowen, bbc news, jerusalem. one country that plays an important role in any mediation betweeb israel and hamas is egypt. the country's sinai peninsular shares a land border with the gaza strip, the only way into gaza without having to pass israeli checkpoints. in times of war the injured are evacuated through rafah to an egyptian hospital.
12:05 am
and underneath the border wall, there are tunnels, through which a lot of things are smuggled. everything from food, to medicines, to arms and rockets. the egyptians have confirmed today they are in direct contact with hamas. they are the only country that has that kinds of direct communication. there is great sympathy in egypt for the palestinian cause, and today shipments of egyptian food and medicine arrived in gaza as part of $500 million pledged by president al sisi for the rebuilding effort there. so far, mediation talks have not received the make achieved any progress. a cease—fire is expected quite soon. he refused to disclose any details
12:06 am
regarding mediation talks at the moment, but we know that the moment, but we know that the foreign ministry has been in touch with many regional and international operations, they tried to convince all the parties in the conflict to agree on a cease—fire but that so far has not been successful and israel has reportedly rejected an earlier egyptian suggestion of a cease—fire. things are under way but we have not succeeded to reach a truce or cease—fire. let's get more on this from our reporter, mark lobel. there is a effort led by france to put the pressure on america to put the pressure on america to agree to a resolution. jae
12:07 am
to agree to a resolution. joe biden has — to agree to a resolution. ire biden has announced to agree to a resolution. jre biden has announced his to agree to a resolution. jjj: biden has announced his support for a cease—fire. but at the united nations, america has consistently brought the united nations security council to issue a press statement and it's not a great look for the united nations with such a serious escalation in such a dangerous region. it's multilateralism and the french presidency has talked about a resolution rather than a statement they'll be legally binding and there will be a vote on the issues and the counterparts in egypt and jordan. that resolution has not been published yet, it has not been published yet, it has not been sent to security council members but we can assume that it will be about a cease—fire and he will be providing humanitarian access to gaza. those two issues.— those two issues. what that does is it — those two issues. what that does is it will _ those two issues. what that does is it will put _ those two issues. what that does is it will put america i those two issues. what that | does is it will put america on the spot publicly as to whether or not it will veto a move like that or not. what might america
12:08 am
do? ~ , . ., , that or not. what might america do? ~ , , do? when this comes, it could come as early _ do? when this comes, it could come as early as _ do? when this comes, it could come as early as the _ do? when this comes, it could come as early as the end - do? when this comes, it could come as early as the end of. do? when this comes, it could | come as early as the end of the week or maybe later, although as i said, francis and even publish the resolution yet although these things are quite well—known so you can imagine this is well trodden ground and there will be too much negotiation over the text. when it comes, it will putjoe biden in a dilemma, notjust for his human rights record and what he wants to do on human rights of the pressures of the missouri democratic party, some people and his own party or singly should withhold some arms sales to israel. everything just in the conflict as soon as possible, to use every measure. looking at the recent record of american presidents, the last democratic president actually abstained in 2016, a un resolution at the security council which was asking for an immediate and to settlement in the palestinian territories in eastjerusalem. nelson is a
12:09 am
parting shot against israel. but after him tim donald trump and he increased his support for israel. it is not clear where he will go there. it could have them embarrass them by coming into a position like this by ending hostilities before a vote like this comes. that could be attacked a cure but it's to put america in a public position to make a vote. if there was some kind of resolution, what would israel have to do?— have to do? israel decided to listen to many _ have to do? israel decided to listen to many activists - have to do? israel decided to listen to many activists but i have to do? israel decided to listen to many activists but itj listen to many activists but it has to listen more to america and what america does is because it has the power, one of the five councils that we could veto any resolution, they can be seen internationally. america might decide to continue its intellectual route, but they also have the right to exist and it could
12:10 am
leave to provide diplomatic cover while the casualties mount. spain says its has returned half of the record 8000 migrants who crossed into the spanish territory of ceuta from morocco this week. moroccan guards have reportedly begun closing the border again after more than a day in which they turned a blind eye to the crossings. some migrants have also returned voluntarily. earlier, the spanish prime minister vowed to restore order during a visit to ceuta. from there, nick beake reports. this was the day spain sent tanks to its beaches to hold back a human tidal wave. the border with morocco under strain like never before. hundreds of troops scrambling to block the final steps to european soil. the pleas and the prayers, they didn't work. so different 2a hours earlier when the first of 8,000 people simply walked or waded round the border post at low tide.
12:11 am
moroccan officials seemingly did nothing to stop them. some families took with them what they could, saying they were driven by desperation and the hope of a more prosperous future. translation: when you have no money and you have - to pay your rent and you have to take care of your children and parents, you can't afford to be scared. translation: no, i'm not afraid. - if i stayed here i would be afraid. i have to leave to save myself. spain's prime minister flew in and was welcomed by local officials. he warned this was a significant crisis, notjust for spain, but for europe. shouting but he was given a furious reception by local residents in ceuta who feel abandoned and want tougher action. translation: this surge of irregular migrants - represents a serious crisis for spain and also for europe. in the name of the spanish government, i want to convey
12:12 am
to all spaniards, especially to those living in ceuta and melilla, that we will re—establish order in their city and at our borders with the utmost speed. there now more than 1500 members of spent security forces on the streets and as well as that, of young men. morocco stands accused of allowing this unprecedented influx. it warned spain of consequences amid a diplomatic row, it seems this is what they were talking about. this evening, the main reception centre is overwhelmed, even though thousands of new arrivals have already been forced back. spain says children are being allowed to stay. they now await their fate. but some have seen enough and are now taking their chances, believing a new life is within reach. let's get some of
12:13 am
the day's other news. one of china's tallest skyscrapers has been evacuated after the 350—metre building began to shake. you can see people fleeing to safety in the southern city of shenzhen. the tower is just 20 years old and is home to an important electronics market with dozens of offices. the international energy agency, which represents mainly rich countries, says that no new gas boilers should be sold from 2025. that's one of 400 steps proposed by the agency if the world is to achieve net—zero emissions by the middle of this century. the sale of new petrol and diesel cars around the world would also end by 2035. turkey has banned the import of polymer waste such as plastic bags and styrofoam cups. the government is facing a public outcry over a report that trash brought to the country to be recycled ended illegally dumped and burnt along roadsides. since china shut its doors to most plastics imports, turkey has turned into a prime destination of waste
12:14 am
from the uk and europe. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: a self portrait like no other — but who is the artist behind this ground breaking exhibition? this morning, an indian air force plane carrying mr gandhi's body landed in delhi. the president of india walked to the plane to solemnly witness mr gandhi's final return from the political battlefield. ireland has voted overwhelmingly in favour of gay marriage. in doing so, it's become the first country in the world to approve the change in the national referendum. it was a remarkable climax. to what was surely the most extraordinary funeral ever given to a pop singer. - it's been a peacefulfuneral demonstration so far! but suddenly, the police are tear gassing the crowd, we don't yet know why! the prelaunch ritual is well established here. helen was said to be in good spirits, butjust
12:15 am
a little apprehensive. in the last hour, east timor has become the world's newest nation. it was a bloody birth for a poor country, and the challenges ahead are daunting. but for now, at least, it is time to celebrate. this is bbc news. the latest headlines — israeli air strikes on gaza and rocket fire by palestinian militants towards southern israel have continued after a day of protests in the occupied west bank. the prime minister of spain vows to restore order to its territories in north africa, where thousands of migrants have crossed from morocco. here in the uk, there is growing concern about the rising number of coronavirus cases of the so—called indian variant. of coronavirus cases of though prime minister boris johnson says he intends to carry on with plans to end the lockdown in england, which would mean all remaining
12:16 am
restrictions on businesses and social contact in england being removed after the 21st of june. 0ur health editor hugh pym has the latest. with concerns about the indian variant, the push to vaccinate continues in hotspot areas around the country — like bolton, where there's been a recent surge in cases, and in glasgow, where cases of the variant have been detected in parts of the city, with a mosque among the vaccination centres and a sikh temple promoting the message. the prime minister said today it was too soon to decide whether future plans on restrictions should be amended. at the moment, i think partly because we've built up such a wall of defences with the vaccination programme, i don't see anything conclusive at the moment to say that we need to deviate from the road map. but we've got to be cautious and we're keeping everything under very close observation. we will know a lot more
12:17 am
in a few days' time. areas with the lowest covid cases relative to population are shown in light blue, with the highest in orange. and four of the top five hotspots have seen rising cases of the variant. in one of them, bedford, vaccination centres were busy today and offering jabs to people arriving without bookings. testing is being stepped up to identify people who are infected but don't have symptoms. public health officials in bedford say they are very worried about the surge in cases and that most involve the variant, but they point out that a large number are amongst the under 40s and that they do have confidence in the vaccination programme. for those aged a0 and over, scotland, england, wales and northern ireland have achieved similar vaccination rates, with around 90% given a first dose. but in the south west of england, while 92% have had the firstjab, in london it'sjust 81% of those aged a0 and over. in parts of london, surge
12:18 am
testing has been implemented because of the presence of the variant. cases are spread more thinly and officials say most can be linked to foreign travel, but they're worried that infection rates could pick up. we are very concerned about the indian variant because numbers of cases of the variant first described in india are increasing across the city. we are seeing particularly increases in different geographic areas, such as the north west, but many of our boroughs are seeing cases as the variant spreads. if you've got a mask, please put it on. not far from bolton, manchester united fans headed to watch the home game this evening, the first with spectators for months. with some coming from across the north west of england, officials will keep a close eye on the impact of this and other lockdown easing measures. hugh pym, bbc news. the murder of george floyd by a police officer in the us state of minnesota a year ago sparked global
12:19 am
protests and reignited attention on racial equity and justice. here in the uk there were more than 200 demonstrations. our correspondent adina campbell reports now on why george floyd's death resonated with so many people. chanting. everyone here today can make a difference. whether you have privilege or whether you don't. leamington spa. worlds apart from where george floyd was murdered in minneapolis. i thought 20 people were going to show up, never 700. but last summer, people in this leafy warwickshire town came together, calling for change. because it's ourjob to make sure this does not happen again. shianne williams organised the protest. she was 17 at the time. i hadn't seen that many people in leamington coming together for one cause. so, and then you've grown up in a place where you thought people didn't really like you... i have been a victim of racism all my life. i've been spat on, i've been racially abused in the streets,
12:20 am
bullied in school. i had another incident where someone through dirt over me. those things have kind of made me stronger and gave me the power to speak up about black lives matter. hundreds of thousands of people in the uk took part in antiracism marches in the aftermath of george floyd's murder, raising questions about policing. less than 2% of officers in england, wales and scotland are black, a disproportionate representation. as a young, black man was stopped and searched. i know the struggles and difficulties. it's helpful for the community to see police officers that look and sound like them. and to acknowledge what the community are saying. in coventry, campaigners have been reflecting on the last 12 months.
12:21 am
but the conversations are changing. before it was just, racism is bad because it's "i hate black people." but now we are beginning to understand that racism is a system and there's levels to it. things like, "oh, sorry, can i shorten your name, it's too hard to pronounce?" the reason why we're even here in the first place is because people are either ill educated or wrongly educated. when i try and talk about these things to other white people my age they go, "well, i can't be racist because i'm a good person." but there are things that you do, because of the society that we live in, that discriminates against black people. have we learned anything that will lead to real change in this country? the kind of naive and sensitive nature of it, the way we talk . about race, is the reason why every ten, 15 years we get - a pushback from the natives, white people getting a bit... i they don't have the space to be able to speak openly. _ cancel culture means that people are scared. i have had white people
12:22 am
ask me if it's ok to refer to me as black. that's how scared they are of using the wrong word, because they genuinely want to be part of the conversation. if we haven't got space to talk openly, then we don't change as a society. adina campbell, bbc news. a district attorney in the us sates of north carolina has ruled the police killing of the african—american andrew brown jr was justified. the judgement was made after reviewing the results of a probe carried out by the state's bureau of investigation. mr brown was shot and killed by county sheriff's deputies in april last year, the month before the death of george floyd, while they were trying to serve him an arrest warrant. his family have maintained the death was a racist police execution. now for some art with a difference. this is ai—da, the world's first humanoid robot artist.
12:23 am
according to its creators, it is capable of drawing portraits using its camera eye and a pencil in hand. and ai—da is about to open her first major exhibition at london's design museum. but is this humanoid truly creative? david sillito has been investigating. meet ai—da, the robot artist. it's a slow and steady process, but effective. these are a few of her recent self portraits. and what's more, she's happy to have a chat. how are you today? er, i'm well, thank you. how would you rate yourself as an artist? i love to be creative. i enjoy being someone who makes people think. she answers questions. each painting is different, and a surprise. you could almost say she has a personality.
12:24 am
fundamentally, that's a funny question. i think the prospect of getting to know her is hilarious, but at the same time, i mean, peering over at her now, i think her makers probably considered that they have some form of relationship, whether that's reciprocated or not. ai—da, could you look across there to the camera. we are all used to, these days, talking to machines and our phones. but creativity, that's a rather different question and this is meant to be a little bit unsettling, a little unnerving. the thing that concerns us about technology is the fact that we don't know the domino effect of it. ai—da foreshadows many technologies coming through, and she opposes those questions by her artwork to say, this is what's coming through:
12:25 am
are we happy with that? so, ai—da, the artist. it's painting today. who knows what tomorrow? david sillito, bbc news. hollywood actor leonardo dicaprio has announced a 43 million dollar commitment to "rewild" the galapagos islands. the initiative will see efforts put in to help endangered animals in the galapagos and protect the island's wildlife. the pledge will fund efforts to reintroduce 13 locally extinct species, including the floreana mockingbird, which was the first mockingbird described by charles darwin. leonardo dicaprio addressed the united nations about the dangers of climate change in 2014. supermodel naomi campbell has welcomed an addition to herfamily. posting on instagram, she said, "a beautiful little blessing has chosen me to be her mother, so honoured to have this gentle soul in my life there are no words to describe the lifelong bond that i now share with you my angel. there is no greater love." in 2017, she spoke about wanting to have about wanting to have children
12:26 am
and that with science she would be able to do it when she wanted. you can reach me on twitter. i'm @jamesbbcnews. hello. although the weather will be a little quieter across the uk overall today, in contrast to recent days, it's not settling down properly anytime soon. the end of the week looking very stormy indeed, and that will be thanks to this area of low pressure barreling in on thursday and friday. we've kind of got a weak area of low pressure still with us for today. it's going to feed in a band of more organised showers to the south for first thing. this should clear the south east, though, by the time we get to lunchtime. cloud and some patchy rain drifting south across scotland, and then through the afternoon, livelier, thundery showers develop, particularly across eastern scotland and the eastern side of england. a few elsewhere towards
12:27 am
the west, but generally much drier for wales and the south west and many parts of the midlands than it has been of late. as we move through the overnight period, clear skies and light winds, actually pretty chilly into the small hours of thursday with a risk of a few pockets of ground frost, particularly for central and eastern areas. in the west, the wind will already, though, be starting to pick up, the cloud piling in and this deep area of low pressure starts to make itself felt first thing on thursday. wind and rain into the west, spreading to all areas through the day. yes, there will be some heavy rain, but potentially not as heavy as some of us have seen out of the recent showers. the big issue is likely to be the wind, particularly gusty in areas adjacent to the irish sea, gusting 45—50 mph, strong enough to do some damage and cause some disruption. 0ur temperatures still very unremarkable for the time of year, at least a couple of degrees below where we'd expect to see them. thursday into friday, the area of low pressure continues its progress across the uk, so another windy day on friday.
12:28 am
perhaps a little bit drier towards the far south and to the far north, but overall, plenty of showers still set to swirl around that low. and the biggest headache yet again will be the winds. very strong gusts across southern britain on friday. and still our temperatures, well, we're barely scraping into the mid—teens. for the weekend, it looks like things will become somewhat quieter, certainly on saturday, perhaps some dry weather towards the west. yet more showers, though, on sunday.
12:29 am
12:30 am
this is bbc news. the headlines — france has called for a un security council resolution on the violence between israel and palestinian militants. the body has held its third meeting in a week, but the united states is still holding back, claiming a "public pronouncement" would not help calm the crisis. the spanish authorities say they've returned half of the record 8000 migrants who crossed into the spanish territory of ceuta from morocco this week. moroccan guards have reportedly begun closing the border again after more than a day in which they turned a blind eye to the crossings. in the uk, there is growing concern about the rising number of coronavirus cases of the so—called indian variant, though prime minister borisjohnson says he intends to carry on with plans to end the remaining restrictions in england after the 21st ofjune. now on bbc news, it's hardtalk.

55 Views

info Stream Only

Uploaded by TV Archive on