welcome to bbc news. i'm david eades. our top stories: new dangers for western forces in iraq — drones carrying explosives — we have a special report on the game—changing new threat. a massive, smart, global sting — the fbi masterminds the arrest of hundreds of alleged criminals after monitoring their communications. kamala harris makes herfirst overseas trip as vice president and says she's got a plan to tackle the migrant crisis on the mexico border. and the french presidentm emmanuel macron, is slapped in the face while on an official visit.

hello and welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. armed forces from the us and other western nations are facing a new threat in iraq. on two occasions, american air bases have come under attack from iranian—made drones fitted with explosives. that follows earlier rocket attacks on western forces, but commanders say the drones are a game—changer in terms of threat. iran denies involvement, but its proxies in iraq — the shia militia — have been growing in strength. our middle east correspondent, quentin sommerville, has been to north—eastern syria and iraq, and he sent this report. american troops have grown used to being in iraq.

still watchful, they move between here and syria, almost as if the border didn't exist. they came to help fight the islamic state group. thatjob�*s almost done, but another war is taking place here, mostly in the shadows. we're the only people operating in this part of the world. the louisiana national guard have been operating here in north—eastern syria for about as long asjoe biden has been president. the number of americans here and in iraq keeps shrinking. there's about 2,500 of them now. their mission here, their enemy, is the islamic state group, but that's far from the greatest danger americans face here. us air bases have been targeted twice in recent months by iranian—made, military—grade drones. this is the aftermath of a drone strike which destroyed a cia warehouse in erbil.

and in baghdad, iran's proxies are running rampant. here they are cutting off the city's diplomatic green zone after one of their leaders was arrested. inside, the united states remains mostly silent. it's focused instead on its nuclear negotiations and is fearful of giving fuel to hardliners in iran's elections. from the us, there has been no military response yet to recent attacks. beyond this fortress, a terror campaign is underway. if you're western forces, you're fighting the islamic state group, you can be here in the centre of baghdad and you can be relatively safe, but the situation outside these walls is far more grim. and the people out there and all across iraq don't have the luxury of that protection. chanting

young iraqis took to the streets to protest, among other things, foreign interference in their country. and they have been slaughtered. almost 700 have been cut down. they blame pro—iranian militia. and they chant, "who killed me?" please, have a seat. ali mohammed wants to know who it was that shot dead his brother, amjad.

across the middle east, iran and the united states continue to face off, but the victims in this shadow war are rarely americans, nor iranians. they are, once again, the people of iraq. quentin sommerville,

bbc news, baghdad. kamala harris says she's made progress in tackling the root causes behind the rise in the number of migrants heading towards the united states during her first overseas trip as vice president. speaking in mexico city, she said her tour had been a success. the agreements that we have reached, again, are the result of all of the work leading up to this week, and they are very tangible and very specific. do i declare this trip a success? yes, i do. it is success in terms of a pathway that is about progress. we have been successful in making progress. i'm joined now by our correspondent will grant in mexico city. she would say it is a success, thatis she would say it is a success, that is understandable. but what will that success, in her eyes, actually look like? she

ointed eyes, actually look like? she pointed to — eyes, actually look like? she pointed to a _ eyes, actually look like? she pointed to a variety - eyes, actually look like? sue: pointed to a variety of eyes, actually look like? sie: pointed to a variety of things. she started off in guatemala, where her two day visit began, and she said they had managed to agree to establish an anti—corruption task force and antitrafficking task force and anti— smuggling task force. corruption is endemic in guatemala and one of the root causes of migration north, she says that mac she held a bilateral meeting with president ober door, and looking to find ways to work together, where one does welcome the other does well, she said. this entire trip has left a bitter taste in people's mouths on this side of the border. she arrived with a very stark warning. do not calm.

that ——do not come. that was met with resentment. she that --do not come. that was met with resentment.- met with resentment. she is really pinning _ met with resentment. she is really pinning the _ met with resentment. she is really pinning the blame - met with resentment. she is really pinning the blame on. really pinning the blame on those countries for that? i think that is a good analysis. i think that is true. and what it also means is while they will not stop finding efforts to prevent people from leaving, it also needs to be recognised that people will not stop leaving. conditions in central america are such that hunger is such an issue, climate change, the fallout from covid, gang violence, minors being recruited into gangs, when you put those things together, it is very hard to be persuaded to stay in guatemala or honduras or el salvador because of what the vice president says. thank ou, will

the vice president says. thank you, will grant. _ there is no hiding the fbi's sense of achievement. it is calling this international sting a "massive worldwide takedown" of criminal syndicates. with the active participation of europol and forces in australia, lithuania, sweden and the netherlands, gangs were tricked into using a secure messaging app, which had actually been developed by agents who then monitored tens of millions of messages about drug dealing, money laundering and planned murders. our security correspondent, gordon corera, has the story. a shipment of tuna cans coming from ecuador into europe with more than 600kg of cocaine hidden inside, all discovered by law enforcement. more cocaine wrapped up with a batman label, a picture of it sent on a phone that criminals thought was secure, but which was really a trap. that trap was sprung today... sirens ..as law enforcement around the world made their move, with a wave of arrests against multiple organised crime groups.

criminals believe that using a system called anom secured their communications. the problem was that the person behind it was an undercover informant for the fbi. they started by giving 50 devices to criminals in australia, people like this man, hakan ayik, now on the run, who in turn recommended it to others, unwittingly helping the authorities. so, how did it all work? the system was run by the fbi and australian federal police, who were able to access communications between 10,000 devices. 20 million messages were intercepted from more than 90 countries. details about drug deals, money—laundering and planned murders were accessed. it was effectively a wiretap on the criminal underworld around the globe. the biggest users of the device were in germany, spain, the netherlands, serbia and australia. there are some investigations in the uk, although the device was not widely used here. the amount of intelligence that

we received was staggering. from seizing drugs, guns and millions of dollars in multiple currencies, to addressing more than 150 threats to life. in australia, there've been more than 200 arrests. police say the information even helped thwart a machine—gun attack in a cafe. and in europe today, there was more evidence of the operation's success. for nine months, we have been receiving intelligence to build criminal cases, and we have also had information that has helped us to prevent more than ten planned murders within sweden. this operation has dealt a serious blow to organised crime, not only because of those arrested, but because those still at large will not be sure who or what they can trust. gordon corera, bbc news.

we can now speak to fbi special agent in charge, suzanne turner. agent turner is from the fbi san diego field office which led the investigation named 0peration trojan shield which resulted in many arrests worldwide. trojan shield could hardly be a better name, could it, but you must have felt anxious about keeping it going and it not being rumbled?— keeping it going and it not being rumbled? yes. and cue, david, being rumbled? yes. and cue, david. for _ being rumbled? yes. and cue, david, for having _ being rumbled? yes. and cue, david, for having me _ being rumbled? yes. and cue, david, for having me on. - being rumbled? yes. and cue, david, for having me on. yes, | david, for having me on. yes, we would have liked to keep the operation on for as long as possible, but with the amount, the magnitude and scope and amount of transnational crime organisations using this for drugs, guns and violent crime, we work with international partners to take it down. but we did have to work to keep it encrypt it and as close as

possible. encrypt it and as close as possible-— encrypt it and as close as possible. encrypt it and as close as ossible. ., ., possible. how easy was it to create anom _ possible. how easy was it to create anom and _ possible. how easy was it to create anom and get - possible. how easy was it to create anom and get the i possible. how easy was it to l create anom and get the help possible. how easy was it to - create anom and get the help to do it in terms of getting out all the right people, if you can call them that?- all the right people, if you can call them that? this was an evolution from _ can call them that? this was an evolution from phantom - can call them that? this was an | evolution from phantom secure, which my office in san diego did and we dismantled in 2018. we had a app in development which we utilised to set up the platform, and we work with australian federal police, who at the technical capability to help us decrypt those messages. then we sat have a platform and work with international partners worldwide, and had international agreements where we reviewed those messages and disseminated them.— disseminated them. phantom secure was — disseminated them. phantom secure was the _ disseminated them. phantom secure was the app _ disseminated them. phantom secure was the app of - disseminated them. phantom i secure was the app of choice, which you managed to pull down, which you managed to pull down, which give you the opportunity to create a new platform. the scale is staggering. but i guess, to a certain extent, it also means this operation is

done, and you go back to square one? w done, and you go back to square one? i, i, done, and you go back to square one? ., ., . . done, and you go back to square one? ., ., ., ., ~ one? no, not at all. ithink this isiust_ one? no, not at all. ithink this isjust the _ one? no, not at all. ithink this isjust the beginning. i i this isjust the beginning. i think what we have shown criminals worldwide, one, we work together across the globe with all of our international partners and we have shown we can infiltrate current companies and establish our own company. we have left the criminals wondering which company we will infiltrate next and which company they may use which is in fact run by the government. it which is in fact run by the government.— which is in fact run by the government. which is in fact run by the covernment. . , . , i, government. it was a five year programme — government. it was a five year programme in _ government. it was a five year programme in all _ government. it was a five year programme in all from - government. it was a five year programme in all from its - programme in all from its original inception. five years is a very long time in the criminal world, is a very long time in the criminalworld, isn't is a very long time in the criminal world, isn't it, and an awful lot of crime must have taken place during the build—up of your own networks, of getting the information, of getting the information, of getting all of the access to people you have then pulled in? where there are moments where you felt you should have gone sooner? ., , ., ,

sooner? no, the five years incorporated _ sooner? no, the five years incorporated the _ sooner? no, the five years incorporated the phantom | incorporated the phantom secure, which we dismantled, like i said, in 2018, and then we opened up and started our actual platform, anom, in october, 2019. we have reviewed all of these messages and if there were any threats to life, we immediately got those to the appropriate countries so they could mitigate threats as you heard, and that has happened across multiple countries across multiple countries across the globe we were not concerned. we work well with partner agencies to be able to action the intelligence and arrest the individuals we arrested more than 300 before the actual takedown, so we were able to make an impact on going during the five years. i able to make an impact on going during the five years.— during the five years. i don't want to bring _ during the five years. i don't want to bring this _ during the five years. i don't want to bring this too - during the five years. i don't want to bring this too much | want to bring this too much down to persons and the impact, but when you saw some of the material coming back to you, you know, photos of consignments of the sooner for example, the tuna tins, you knew exactly what you are looking for. there must have been an element of glee within the team?—

the team? well, yes, i think that - how— the team? well, yes, i think that - how brazen _ the team? well, yes, i think that - how brazen they - the team? well, yes, i think that - how brazen they were i that — how brazen they were showed they believed it was a secure communication. there was no hiding their conversations, there were no codes that mac we knew whether shipments were going and who was meeting them. so, yes, it was a great eye into those criminal organisations that believed their communications were secured. i their communications were secured-— their communications were secured. . i, , secured. i have all the figures in front of— secured. i have all the figures in front of me, _ secured. i have all the figures in front of me, i'm _ secured. i have all the figures in front of me, i'm not - secured. i have all the figures in front of me, i'm not going l in front of me, i'm not going to run through them all in terms of the tonnes of cocaine and marijuana, the number of firearms, everything that has been pulled together, huge amounts of money as well. there is also a reality that that is sort of a drop in the bucket of this organised criminal world we live in? it sort of feels that my but the impact across the world has kept many citizens safe and has made an impact in multiple countries. it made an impact in multiple countries.— countries. it shows we will work together _ countries. it shows we will work together to - countries. it shows we will work together to disrupt . countries. it shows we will i work together to disrupt the criminal organisations. thank

ou ve criminal organisations. thank you very much _ criminal organisations. thank you very much indeed - criminal organisations. thank you very much indeed for - you very much indeed for joining us. you very much indeed for joining na— stay with us on bbc news, still to come: security alert after president macron is slapped across the face in south east france. the day the british liberated the falklands. and by tonight, british troops had begun the task of disarming the enemy. in the heart of the west german capital, this was gorby—mania at its height. the crowd packed to see the man who, for them, has raised great hopes for an end to the division of europe. it happened as the queen moved towards horse guards parade for the start of trooping the colour. gunshots

the queen looks worried but recovers quickly. as long as they'll - pay to go and see me, i'll get out there and kick 'em down the hills. - what does it feel like to be the first man to cross the channel by your own power? it feels pretty neat. it feel marvellous, really. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: iran denies its behind the latest threat for western forces in iraq, drones carrying explosives. one of the largest international police operations has resulted in hundreds of arrests and the seizure of tens of millions of dollars. in the last hour, canada's prime ministerjustin trudeau has been addressing a vigil in london, ontario, being held

for four members of a muslim family who were run down and killed by a pick—up truck. police have charged a man with murder, saying there's evidence that it was pre—meditated. here's a little of what mr trudeau had to say: you should not have to face that hate in your communities, in your country. we can and we will act. we can and we will choose a better way. when someone hurts any of us, when someone target any parent or child or grandparent, we must all stand together and say, no. no to hatred and to islamophobia, no to terror and to racism. applause. the former bosnian serb commander, ratko mladic, has lost his appeal against a 2017 conviction for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity.

un judges upheld mladic�*s life sentence for his role in the killing of around 8,000 bosnian muslim men and boys in srebrenica in 1995. residents of a district of ethiopia's tigray region have told the bbc that they've run out of food and are on the verge of starvation. locals say bandits have plundered their property and animals, leaving them with nothing to eat. the un's humanitarian chief has warned of the imminent risk of famine in tigray, where ethiopian government forces have been battling regional authorities since november. the french president emmanuel macron has been slapped in the face while on an official visit to the south—east of france. two men have been arrested over the incident. courtney bembridge has the details. emanuel valence saw the crowd and spontaneously approached the crowd. —— president macron.

here it is again from another angle. the man reportedly shouted, down with president macron. as police dragged him away, the president continued his visit seemingly unperturbed. later taking selfies with crowd on the street. he later said we must not let ultraviolent people to cover the debate. translation: it is deplorable.— it is deplorable. translation: it is deplorable. translation: it is deplorable. translation: it is 'ust it is deplorable. translation: it isiust not _ it is deplorable. translation: it isjust not done. _ it is just not done. translation: it it isjust not done. translation: , ., , ., translation: it is a question of reapeet. — translation: it is a question of respect, respect _ translation: it is a question of respect, respect for - translation: it is a question of respect, respect for the - of respect, respect for the function at least. it of respect, respect for the function at least.— function at least. it is not the first _ function at least. it is not the first time _ function at least. it is not the first time akrotiri - function at least. it is not the first time akrotiri hasj function at least. it is not - the first time akrotiri has had a running at a public event. a teenager in 2018 was swiftly told, it is president macron to

you. the far—right leader marine le pen tweeted... being accessible to the public carry significant risks, as politicians and other public figures around the world well known. translation: for the security services _ known. translation: for the security services it _ known. translation: for the security services it is - known. translation: for the security services it is always i security services it is always a complicated exercise. these are moments of stress and anxiety. are moments of stress and anxie . , ., anxiety. sometimes though, -ublic anxiety. sometimes though, public figures _ anxiety. sometimes though, public figures fight _ anxiety. sometimes though, public figures fight back. - anxiety. sometimes though, | public figures fight back. this was the pipe into thousand 19. a woman grabbed his hands and pulled it before he slept it away looking none too pleased. and the uk's then negative prime minister visited wales was hit and responded by punching the man. this was the aftermath. punching the man. this was the aftermath-— aftermath. people are getting attacked- -- —

aftermath. people are getting attacked... than _ aftermath. people are getting attacked... than in _ aftermath. people are getting attacked... than in 2019, - aftermath. people are getting attacked... than in 2019, an l attacked... than in 2019, an australian — attacked... than in 2019, an australian teenager - attacked... than in 2019, an australian teenager and - attacked... than in 2019, an australian teenager and a i australian teenager and a politician. he was punched and tackled to the ground but became an internet sensation, now forever known as egg boy. courtney bembridge, bbc news. here at bbc news we've been keeping you updated on the progress of a herd of wild elephants, who've been moving through southern china. they've now reached the outskirts of kunming, a city of more than eight million people. their journey has fascinated the entire country and made them social media superstars, as the bbc�*s tim allman explains. if you just want more than 500 kilometres, you might fancy a bit of a lie down as well. spread out like some giant jigsaw puzzle, the elephant of yunnan province take well and rest, well, most of them. week

after week, rest, well, most of them. week afterweek, month rest, well, most of them. week after week, month after month they have much relentlessly on was with the occasional spot of help from the authorities. translation: we help from the authorities. translation:— help from the authorities. translation: ~ , ., ., , translation: we use excavators to make dental— translation: we use excavators to make dental slopes _ translation: we use excavators to make dental slopes on - translation: we use excavators to make dental slopes on both - to make dental slopes on both sides of the river. they were walking back and forth for several hours.— walking back and forth for several hours. ., several hours. the whole thing has loecome — several hours. the whole thing has become big _ several hours. the whole thing has become big news - several hours. the whole thing has become big news of- several hours. the whole thing has become big news of social| has become big news of social media. hashtags, fanart and memes are flourishing. but each elephant and the citizens of southern china are not necessarily a good mix. in china necessarily a good mix. i�*i china now, most of the country people are getting back to normal so there are no covid restrictions in place and they have been cases in the past where elephants could actually kill somebody.— kill somebody. hundreds of local officials _ kill somebody. hundreds of local officials have - kill somebody. hundreds of local officials have been - local officials have been assigned to protect the public to keep the elephant away from population centres. the

ultimate goal, encourage the animals to pack up their trumps, to metaphorically speaking and had back home. tim allman, bbc news. ifi if i told you 95% of mars have been mapped and only 5% of our oceans has, you may understand this footage. this is the pacific ocean near ireland under threat from climate change and rising waters. this is a foundation bringing us these pictures from a ship. it is to help work out exactly what is down there. there are some corals within view. very hot luck for us because these are live pictures but a fascinating of coral structure

in the foreground. we are a couple of kilometres below the ground. all of this on world oceans day. hello there. for many of us, the temperatures are going to continue to build as we move through this week. both by day and it is going to feel warmer and muggier at night as well, as we start to import some very warm and humid tropical air right across the uk. but further north and west, we will continue to be played by low pressure and some weather fronts, so thicker cloud with some patchy rain at times. so for today, we've got higher pressure to the south, low pressure out from the atlantic, pushing these weather fronts into the north and the west, which will bring thicker cloud at times for scotland, northern ireland, western parts of england and wales. anywhere here could see the odd spot of rain, and some of the rain could be quite heavy for a time across northern ireland and scotland. turning a little bit lighter into the afternoon. some brightness for the northeast of scotland, where it will be warm. but by far, central, southern and eastern england,

which will see the sunniest of skies, will see the highest temperatures — 25 or 26 degrees. but even further west, with the cloud, it's going to feel warm and muggy. and as we head through wednesday night, tropical moist, humid air spreads right across the uk. so it's going to be a pretty muggy night for all areas. lows not falling below 1a to 16 degrees for many of us. now, as we head on into thursday, we've still got low pressure to the northwest. more isobars on the chart, you'll notice. so it is going to be a windier day for scotland, northern ireland, and it's here where we'll have most of the rain. the western isles and the northern isles could be quite wet. further south, more cloud around generally, even into england and wales. but again, the best of the sunshine will be towards the eastern side of england. a breezier day for all. windierfurther north. those are the mean wind speeds, gusts will be higher than that. and it's going to be another warm and humid day but because there's a bit more cloud around, i think highs of 22 or 2a degrees. now, on into friday, similar picture again, could see quite a bit a cloud around here and there. a little bit of drizzliness across the western hills,

where it will be quite misty. best of the sunshine to the east of high ground, and another warm and humid day to come, particularly for england and wales — 25 or 26 degrees. something a little bit fresher for a time across scotland, you will notice — 15 to 18 or 19 degrees. but as this area of high pressure builds back in for the weekend, it pushes the area of low pressure and these weather fronts back out into the atlantic. so it looks like things are going to turn more settled again for the weekend, with increasing amounts of sunshine, so temperatures will respond, and it's going to turn very warm or even hot in places, as temperatures across central and southern england could be close to 30 celsius.

this is bbc news. these are the headlines: the us military and troops from other western nations are facing a new threat in iraq. american air bases have come under attack from iranian—made drones fitted with explosives. commanders say the drones are a game—changer. iran denies involvement. hundreds of suspected criminals have been arrested in a global sting operation organised by the fbi. gangs used what they thought was a secure messaging app — developed by the authorities, who were able to monitor messages about drug dealing, and planned murders. kamala harris says she's made progress in tackling the root causes behind the rise in the number of migrants heading towards the united states during her first overseas trip as vice president. speaking in mexico city, she said her tour had been, as she put it, a success.