president biden says he's overjoyed at the release of an american mother and daughter, who were among the 210 people hamas abducted from southern israel. storm babet continues to sweep across the uk — with three "risk to life" flood warnings in derbyshire and widespread travel disruption. a red weather warning for northern eastern scotland will be lifted this evening. we begin with our breaking news — the first aid trucks have been crossing into gaza after the rafah crossing partially opened this morning. these live pictures show the first trucks entering, loaded with food, water

and medicine, which are desperately needed by civilians inside gaza. it's not clear how long it will remain open. israel has agreed to let 20 trucks through. it sealed its borders with gaza — imposing a total siege on the strip 12 days ago. the rafah crossing between egypt and gaza is now the only way to allow vital supplies in. one big question is whether foreign passport holders and dual nationals — at least 600 of whom are thought to be american — will be allowed to leave. for more on this, here's an update from our reporter at the rafah crossing, rushdi abualouf. yes, the convoy is just behind me, 20 trucks loaded with medicine, food, but most important from the un

official here that they are having mobile operation room that is needed in the hospital which is now the main hospital, serving two thirds of the gaza population. this is rafah crossing, back to back egyptian trucks. food, medicine and we understand from senior officials that there are more coffins for dead bodies among those trucks because the health ministry is saying that we have 1,000 more coffins for the dead bodies among those trucks because bags needed for bodies. most important, this humanitarian corridor that gaza has been

waiting for two weeks, those people down there in this area are waiting for these trucks to get the order and to start moving to somewhere. now i can see they will escort the 20 trucks to a warehouse now i can see un cars will escort the 20 trucks to a warehouse and they will start to distribute them to the hospitals, to people who are evacuating in un schools. 20 trucks isn't enough but this is just the beginning, as we understand, from the egyptians, from un, and even from the hamas senior official who said they are aware of this corridor, we are not going to involve in distributing or observing or do anything. they have the right

to come and they have said that rafah crossing is between egypt and gaza. they say they welcome any kind of aid or assistance to the people in gaza, hamas will not be part of this. un will decide which hospital. behind this wall, there is more than a500 trucks waiting. if the mechanism works, then we should be able to have more and more of what the people need. do you have any news of other tracks that may be allowed in? do you have any news of other trucks that may be allowed in? because the figures are huge, the number of injured, wounded, displaced and the fact there has been no fresh water supplies at all, no food on top of that. as you say, 20 trucks. the un has been describing it

as a drop in the ocean. are you hearing about others that may still cross today or tomorrow? i'm not sure about that, but this is the hope. this is a window that is open and that had been closed for two weeks, it will give people a bit of hope and on the ground, we noticed less israeli strikes, less israeli activities and no hamas rockets for the last three hours. there is no ceasefire announced. we are not aware of any ceasefire but we believe that this is the escalation going on to allow this mechanism to work. there is a huge pressure on everybody to allow this because people are really starving. i have been sitting in the hospital talking to people. people are begging for water, begging for food so they need it. once these trucks are in, so the mechanism will be

there so they knew that israel is happy with the arrangement, egypt is happy with the arrangement and those who are in need of this are receiving aid, i think once everything is certain and everything is confident about this mechanism, the other trucks will be crossing. so the most important part now, according to all people involved in this, is to get those 20 trucks behind me down to the people that need it and most important, the operation room that most need it in the hospital. there is such a weight of responsibility on the shoulders of the aid workers who will be observing and organising the handing out of this aid. first of all, their security has had to be guaranteed. some aid workers have already died in the last couple of weeks.

israel is insisting that hamas will not divert any of the supplies and of course hamas governs gaza. and is armed. how do aid workers decide, with only 20 trucks, who gets this food, who gets this water and who gets the medical supplies? very little details about the agreement what has been discussed over the past few days. what we understand from hamas, senior official, the highest level of hamas, has just told bbc that they are not going to involved in any sort of distributing or monitoring or anything. in the crossing here, we understand that the un is escorting this convoy and they will be involved and thr un, every month since very since very long years, are feeding around 900,000 families. they have the capacity,

they have the warehouse, they have the stuff to deal with this and hamas always, even when hamas is in authority in gaza the last 17 years, the un was always able to work independently. they have their own places, they have their own contacts, they have some sort of understanding with the local authority and they know how to do it. the main issue is that once these trucks start to move, whether enough or not enough, definitely there is not enough. but this is a good test. if the mechanism works, then i think more is to come and everybody will be allowed to send more aid. we know that the airport is operating so any country is ready to know, once the road is open, egypt told me this morning that we want sustainable, humanitarian corridor to be open

all the time and we are testing this mechanism today and if it works, then humanitarian crisis in gaza should be at least eased, if not finished. that's the bbc corresponded inside gaza on the southern border with egypt were the first aid trucks have been arriving today. 20 trucks only today and he was telling us how desperately they are needed. for more practicalities on aid trucks and where they can be delivered, this is part of the deal that was brokered by us presidentjoe biden with egypt and israel. 0ur reporter meghan 0wen has been looking at developments and the significance of this crucial crossing. these latest images show a flurry of activity at the rafah crossing, with aid vehicles rolling into gaza at around 11am on saturday morning, local time. let's just remind ourselves of why this crossing is just so vital. on this map here, we can see the erez crossing in the north

of gaza and kerem shalom, which is a commercial goods crossing in the south. now these are both currently closed and they both border israel, which leaves the rafah crossing. now, this is the only one that doesn't border israel. in fact, it borders egypt, and the only current potential route to get humanitarian aid into the gaza strip. now, let's have a look at that in a little more detail on this satellite map here. 0n the right, we can see gaza, on the left, we have egypt. here is customs. here we can see the access road running through and here is the borderfence. now the rafah crossing has been closed since the conflict began. this is cctv footage of an explosion at the border, which has been verified by the bbc. but its reopening will come as welcome news to the thousands of civilians who have been waiting desperately at the border to get across to egypt. and on the egyptian side, we've seen hundreds of aid

to lorries waiting to deliver those supplies to people in gaza. at the moment, it's a potentially dangerous place to cross. the us embassy in israel has warned that there could be chaos and disorder on both sides of the fence. at the moment, we don't know for how long it will be open and there is hope that foreign nationals could soon also be able to cross. the former uk ambassador tojordan and libya, peter millett, spoke to the bbc earlier about how effective peace talks for the region will be. there is a peace summit at the moment ongoing in cairo. yes. i think it is regrettable, particularly the americans are not going to be there to high level because they are the country who have the most influence across the region. but i think this is an opportunity to bring together very senior people from the arab world and for europe

to send a number of key messages. and i think those messages should include, first of all, condemnation of the terrorist attacks by hamas. secondly, a call for the hostages to be released. thirdly, a call for a ceasefire. there are a lot of countries, a lot of politicians who are calling for a ceasefire to prevent the humanitarian outrages and atrocities that we've seen in the past. so underlining also the welcoming, the opening of the rafah crossing, the humanitarian corridor, underlining the importance of continuing that. and finally, the importance of respect for humanitarian law and protecting the rights of civilians. so those are all short term messages, but i think it also needs to look at the longer term, because this conflict between israel and palestine has been festering away for so long. it needs to look to the future in terms of the future governance of gaza. clearly, hamas cannot

govern gaza in the future, nor can the palestinian authority. so some sort of interim arrangement for gaza, but in the long term, a homeland for the palestinian people. now, i'm not naive. i don't think this peace conference will come up with all of those messages. but that's the wish list that i would go into that conference with. on your wish list there, if we keep it being called that, you were talking about the importance for humanitarian law to be respected. the rules of war. the rules of war say that a party like israel in this case has the right to defend itself. you mentioned those unprecedented attacks on israeli soil two weeks ago today, the massacre of moo people, over 200 people, including the elderly and children taken into the gaza strip as hostage. how is that right? balanced out with taking care of civilians. gaza is often described as one

of the most overcrowded places in the world. israel insists it aims its aerial bombardments at hamas personnel and hamas infrastructure, but the civilian casualties have been so high. the palestinian health ministry saying it's now over 4000 in these last two weeks. yes. and we've seen schools, hospitals, churches and others being hit. it is an incredibly difficult balance to strike, which is why i think de—escalating the fact that two hostages have been released, that humanitarian access is starting, shows that there is still room for diplomacy, there is still room for the back channels which have been working away between qatar, the united states, the egyptians, thejordanians and others. there is still room for that before this threatened ground invasion starts, because the ground invasion will certainly lead to humanitarian catastrophes and deaths,

no doubt among idf soldiers on one side, but many other palestinian civilians. and that will lead to even greater outrage in the region. we've seen huge demonstrations yesterday in amman, in cairo and tunis, in turkey. that outrage is going to be difficult to control. and i think the further risk of miscalculation and drawing in other, whether it's hezbollah or others, this is at a crossroads at the moment and diplomacy still has a role to play. i mean, as you say, there's so much unrest and heightened tensions across the region. we've just received new travel warning from the united kingdom today, advising its nationals not to make any unnecessary travel into the gaza strip, which is always limited, but at the west bank as well, or close to the border with lebanon. so as you say, at this peace

conference, there will be talk about the immediate situation between israel and hamas, the plight of palestinian civilians in gaza, wanting to stop the spread in the wider region. but also, you say, a longer term diplomatic effort. surely arab leaders will be key in any of that of any kind of peace could be brought to this region. yes, i think the arab leaders, particularly those who have established links with israel and particularlyjordan, i mean, i was ambassador injordan. jordan has a major interest here and a major opportunity to influence the americans, the europeans and the israelis. i think maintaining that diplomatic contact and that diplomatic outreach is absolutely crucial at the moment to avoid miscalculation and this whole situation becoming much, much wider and much more serious, not only in gaza, but in the wider region as well.

the uk former ambassador to jordan and the uk former ambassador tojordan and libya. he held out hope for diplomacy still. the first aid trucks, not enough say aid agencies, the first aid trucks arriving in gaza and two out of the 210 hostages left in the gaza strip, to released overnight. from us injerusalem, that's it. back to rajini in the studio in london. some breaking news that has come in to us from gaza health ministry which is controlled by hamas and they say now that at least 4385 people have been killed in gaza strip since israel's bombardment began. that figure includes 1756 children and the health ministry there also says that a further

13,561 people have been wounded since those israeli air strikes began on the 7th of october. breaking these coming in from the hamas controlled health ministry in gaza, at least 4385 people have been killed. before the current crisis, 100 trucks entered gaza every day. aid agencies say the 20 trucks allowed to cross today are nowhere near enough to help the 2.2 million people in need in the besieged strip. we're joined now by fatima sator from the international committee of the red cross. an incredibly busy time for your organisation. just bring us up—to—date to what you can tell us about those tracks and how many they might have received now? we

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needs at the moment? when my colleagues tell me is _ needs at the moment? when my colleagues tell me is that - needs at the moment? when my colleagues tell me is that the - needs at the moment? when my i colleagues tell me is that the knees are huge. the situation is disastrous. people have been walking tens of calamities, sleeping on the floor —— kilometres. hospitals that are still functioning don't have medicine, not clean to operate. the situation right now is really disastrous.— situation right now is really disastrous. ., ~ , ., , . situation right now is really disastrous. ., ~ , . ., disastrous. thank you very much for takin: disastrous. thank you very much for taking time — disastrous. thank you very much for taking time out _ disastrous. thank you very much for taking time out of— disastrous. thank you very much for taking time out of what _ disastrous. thank you very much for taking time out of what must - disastrous. thank you very much for taking time out of what must be - disastrous. thank you very much for taking time out of what must be a l taking time out of what must be a busy day to help us get a better understanding of what is happening in gaza. let's take you live to their rafah crossing. 20 trucks have been allowed to cross today. that comes after days of negotiations and

talks including following a visit of us presidentjoe biden there. but as we have been hearing from the international committee of the red cross and many other aid agencies, 20 isjust a drop in the ocean and the un are saying they will need at least 100 trucks a day to deal with that ongoing humanitarian crisis in gaza. we will keep you updated on that story but as you can see, some glimmers of hope today. there is live pictures from the rafah crossing, those trucks entering gaza from egypt. three �*risk to life' flood warnings have been issued around the river derwent in derbyshire. these are the latest pictures coming to us from our reporter out in derby. a red "danger to life" weather warning is also in place in north east scotland — but that's due to be lifted at six o'clock this evening. storm babet has already claimed at least three lives, and more torrential rain and high winds are forecast

across much of the uk. hundreds of flood alerts are in place, and travel is being badly disrupted. 0ur reporter louisa pilbeam has the latest from the newsroom after yesterday's heavy downpours, it is continuing to rein in chesterfield. what has changed is that this road which resembled a river yesterday now looks like a road and traffic is flowing again. but what you can see if the damage caused by the flooding here yesterday. the road service has been damaged. you can see debris on the pavements and on the roads. you can see tarmac that has to come off but you can also see the clean—up operation. we still got sandbags out there but also, we had yesterday around 60 people who were rescued from this area. this is the brampton

area of chesterfield in north—east derbyshire. they were offered the opportunity to go to a rescue centre. some chose to do that, some chose to go to homes of friends and family. i spoke to a couple this morning who had stayed with their daughter. she said that she was terrified when the river flooded here and the water satin coming into here and the water satin coming into her property. she said she is now waiting for insurance companies to work out how much to do now because she can't stay here. around 100 people are in a similar situation. i'm told around 400 properties are inhabitable here and the situation isn't necessarily going to get any better because derbyshire fire and rescue service have declared this a major incident yesterday. they say to expect more of the same. we have this yellow warning the rain and

wind. the damage or the potential issues may not be here in this chesterfield area that it is moving south. they are still warning drivers not to go out onto the road because of the debris on the floor because of the debris on the floor because that's the damage cars, it could cause issues. they want people to stay at home if it is not absolutely necessary for them to go out here in this kind of weather, in these conditions. let's ta ke let's take you to central london, where you can see live pictures there as crowds are gathering. this is what is being described as the national much the palestine. —— national much the palestine. —— national march for palestine. gathering in central london, showing

solidarity for palestinians. stay with us. hello there. storm babet has brought widespread disruption up and down the country, but especially across the midlands, wales, northern england and across scotland. now, many of the warnings have been dropped for england and wales today, but we have a renewed red warning for parts of eastern scotland, for further heavy and persistent rain here which could exacerbate flooding issues. the area of most concern is this amber area that stretches from aberdeenshire down towards perthshire and within it, the red warning, parts of angus and south—east aberdeenshire. we also have an amber warning for the north highlands. the rain relentless through the afternoon here. strong gale force winds battering north sea coasts. further south, much of south of scotland into northern and england and wales' conditions will be improving, sunshine will develop across western areas and slowly push eastwards. but we'll see a line of showers moving in to

the south—east of england. strong, fairly gusty winds through the channel there and into the south—east. very strong winds across the north of the uk and it will be quite chilly as well. temperatures in single digits in the far north of scotland. up to around 15 or 16 in the south—east. as we move through tonight, though, the showers clear away from the south—east of england and finally the rain pulls away from the north and east of scotland. so conditions turning drier here, clearskies, lighter winds and clear spells. so it will turn quite chilly, temperatures in single digits for most. with lighter winds, we could see a bit of mist and fog too. part two of the weekend, we're in between weather systems. a much quieter, much more settled day to come. we'll see storm babet, the low pressure system, move northwards, away from the north of scotland. so a vastly, much better day across the north and east of scotland, with some sunshine. plenty of sunshine for northern ireland, england and wales. just the chance of a few showers developing out west through the afternoon. most places will stay dry. winds will be lighter but after that chilly start, it will be a slightly cooler day.

temperatures of 10—15 degrees. it doesn't last, though. as we head into next week, we'll see further low pressure systems hurtling in off the atlantic to bring us further spells of wet weather but the difference is, with these low—pressure systems, they should move through faster, so unlike storm babet, they remain almost in situ, bringing relentless rain. so an unsettled outlook for much of next week, with low pressure nearby, but there will be some sunshine at times as well. see you later.

this is bbc news. the headlines. these are live pictures of the rafah crossing, which has partially opened, allowing 20 trucks to enter gaza from egypt, carrying desperately needed aid. it's not known if any foreigners will be allowed out. un secretary general antonio guterres joins arab and european leaders at a summit in cairo to discuss the gaza crisis. egypt wants a roadmap to end the humanitarian disaster and revive the path to peace. relatives of the two hostages released by hamas express theirjoy and relief. judith and natalie raanan are the first to be freed after this month's deadly attack on israel. at least 210 people are still being held. storm babet continues to sweep across the uk — with three �*risk to life' flood warnings in derbyshire and widespread travel disruption.

a red weather warning for north east scotland will be lifted this evening. now on bbc news, unspun world withjohn simpson. hello and welcome to unspun world. at a time when, in the words of anthony blinken, the american secretary of state, the middle east is in danger of slipping into war or as king abdullah ofjordan put it even more starkly, the whole region is on the brink of falling into the abyss, how worried should we be? if there are shocking scenes, heartbreaking, even more heartbreaking than now coming out of gaza, they will feel honour bound to do something.