prime minister imran khan. hamas has released two more hostages, elderly women in poor health. these are pictures of their arrival at a hospital in tel aviv after they were handed over to the israeli military. soldiers carried the women into the medical facility soldiers carried the women into the medicalfacility on the medical facility on stretchers. nurit cooper and yocheved lifshitz were taken in the hamas attack two weeks ago and held hostage in gaza. this is the moment on egyptian state news that the pair were transferred to ambulances at the rafah border crossing with egypt. while i cannot put into words the relief that she is now safe, i will remain focused on securing the release of my father and the 200 innocent people who remain hostages in gaza. the release brings the total number of hostages released to four but israel says more than 200 are still

being held. released by hamas after more than two weeks in captivity, yocheved lifshitz and nurit cooper were taken out of gaza into egypt. freed on health grounds, hamas said — no longer hostages but survivors. both were kidnapped by hamas gunmen from their homes in nir oz, the scars of looting and destruction still mark the empty kibbutz. this was what they lived through. the vision of home they took to gaza, just three miles away. and this was what they lived through there. israeli air strikes, more than 300 a day, caught between their army and hamas. many palestinian civilians feel the same.

gaza's hamas—run government says israeli strikes killed more than 400 people in a single day. hope, draining from the chance of peace, still surfaces in the chance to save a life. ibrahim from blackpool is trying to leave gaza with his mother and three siblings. they have been living here for a year. buildings very close to us on our street, destroyed. we had to flee the house, flee our flat where we were living, and go to khan younis, and stay with family members. there were 43 of us staying in one flat. 0n the israeli side of the border, they have already left. in the town of sderot, 90% of the residents have gone. rocket attacks here in recent weeks, early warning signs of a wider war.

shalom already has ptsd from a rocket attack on a building here in 2005. seeing hamas gunmen running through the streets was unreal, he says. translation: it's like a bad dream and i want to wake . up and not be here. i am frozen. i don't want to be here. the whole building was shaking last night and we spent all night in the safe room, again. it's the same thing over and over again. as we were speaking, a taste of what life is like here now. translation: it was - a rocket attack from gaza. now you've experienced it live. it happens all the time. sderot is less than a mile from the border, so close you can see the explosions from israeli air strikes inside gaza.

the geography here is local, the politics are global. as israel's prime minister juggles visits by world leaders, his army is waiting to go in. rockets were still being fired into israel today. and israeli air strikes fired in. hostages complicate a ground offensive — pawns in a conflict that israel vows it will end. barbara plett usher has been reporting on the hostage release. state department officials said hamas didn't get anything in return for releasing hostages. inaudible.

hamas reportedly asking for a ceasefire in order to set free more hostages. there have been reports that the us has asked israel to delay its ground invasion of gaza to give more time to get more hostages released. administration officials have not confirmed that there has been a direct request, and we understand that if it was made, it probably would have been done through military channels. the us is advising israel on its military operations and and on its concerns... if the tanks start rolling into gaza, the window of opportunity to get more release will almost certainly close. another big concern is the attacks on us interests in the region. us troops in iraq have come under attack from militant groups backed by iran. about 2500 us troops in iraq. and 900 in syria. where there are shia militant groups backed by iraq. the us is concerned about this escalating, notjust into a wider war,

but into more attacks against american targets. they want more time to prepare. they are sending more missile systems, they have redirected an aircraft carrier strike group to the central command, which covers the persian gulf. and they have also ordered families and non—emergency staff in diplomatic missions in iraq to depart. the safety of us troops abroad is a concern. i spoke to a military analyst. how do you perceive the threat to the us at the moment? it seems iran, which backs hamas and hezbollah, and terrorist group, has put out... has been waging a slow and sneaky war against israeli and us interests in the middle east. what they are trying to do is provoke, i believe, the us into overreacting, to create a david versus goliath situation that they can live off through propaganda.

by attacking american troops through their properties in iraq and perhaps other places, they are trying to widen the war in the middle east for their own gains. is there a likelihood that might happen? it's hard to know. the only law of warfare is the law of unintended consequences. whether it's the peloponnesian war, 2500 years ago, world war i or the iraq and afghanistan wars, they all started small, we'll get it done quickly and efficiently, and it expands into a quagmire that kills a lot of people. there's always the possibility that it will become a regional conflict that sucks in iran, israel, the us and the middle east, into a wider conflict. that's the worst case scenario. not necessarily the most

probable scenario. if we look at israel's place in all of this, obviously the atrocities committed by hamas two weeks ago, the retaliation bombing since and the mass loss of life in gaza. what strategy is israel employing? israel has a deep conviction to uproot hamas once and for all. and the only real way to do that is to go in, to pound the gaza strip and go in, boots on the ground like stalingrad, and clear it out. and because hamas as a terrorist group, is disguising itself as civilians, that means there will be lots of potential collateral damage, a lot of civilians dead. if that happens, what we are seeing strategically around the region is a duality between the united states, eu and israel on the one side,

and middle eastern countries on the other side. as we saw this saturday in the cairo peace summit, where middle eastern countries are saying, hey, us, israel and the eu, you are hypocrites. when putin does this in ukraine, you say it's a human rights abuse. but when israel does it in gaza, that's self defence. so we are seeing the fissures in the middle east start to take place right now. the question is, can it be contained and controlled? you mentioned the ground operation. we have heard from prime minister netanyahu that the troops are ready to go in. that would likely mean further bloodshed and a further rising of emotion in that region. would that achieve what israel are trying to do? israel, despite the 200 hostages, and it's deeply against the grain to sacrifice them, i think there is

an overwhelming concern that israel needs to go into gaza into gaza and square it away, once and for all. and yes, where that leads, that is the question we are all discussing right now. any possibility of a ceasefire, do you think? i am not optimistic that there can be a political settlement at this stage. given how much the biden administration has backed israel, and as we mentioned earlier, that kind of moving around of the us military troops, do you see any situation where there could be american troops on the ground in israel? absolutely. the us has already mobilised troops to go in that region. they have put two aircraft carrier groups. you will remember in the 0bama administration, the infamous red lines in syria... the problem is, if you go to a fight and you pull a gun and say, don't or i will shoot you, and somebody does it,

then you've got to shoot them. does that mean we're going to take aircraft planes and bomb lebanon, syria, iran? and if we do that, where does that lead? but if we don't do that, where does that lead? when secretary blinken says we put all these military weapons in the region, for deterrents, what happens if somebody calls the us�*s bluff? that can suck in a war, because americans, again, if they see 300 marines get killed... in an election year, could that force more mobilisation? this is a very hot situation. is there any chance of a de—escalation based on what you are saying? there's a lot of hope for that. the past weekend in cairo,

several world leaders met for a de—escalation brief, but tellingly, there is no joint document signed. so i think there's a lot of intention and desire for it, so i wouldn't lose hope that it's a foregone conclusion. 0ngoing air strikes are leaving entire neighbourhoods flattened. the gaza health ministry says more than 5000 people have been killed since israel began the retaliatory air strikes two weeks ago. inaudible. humanitarian aid has been crossing into gaza over the past few days. 20 trucks crossed on monday... 3a trucks crossed on monday... 3a trucks crossed over the weekend. the number of internally displaced people is estimated at 1.4 million. shelters run by the un

have reached more than two and a half times capacity. 0ur gaza correspondence rushdi abualouf brings us more within the territory. there is still some sort of a negotiation going on with israel on how in which ground and who is going to handle... the little fuel that came from an oil tank near the border and also about 40 or 45 trucks carrying medicine, food, water. distant explosion. yeah, there's been intense air strikes tonight as well. this is the third or fourth one just close to the hospital. so another night of heavy bombing in southern gaza, khan younis. this is the area where israel asked 1.2 million people to come in. they said it's safer for you to be south. but as you can see, every night, there is airstrikes here in this area. but in gaza city, i think

tonight, hamas local authority said that israel is committing massacres. as they said, they destroyed three houses over the heads of their people. more than 20 people killed and dozens other injured. this is bbc news. let's look at other stories in the news. us senator bob mendez has pleaded not guilty to a new indictment charging him with conspiring to act as an unregistered foreign agent for egypt. the newjersey senator and his wife were charged with accepting bribes in cash and gold bars. inaudible. he denies all the allegations. members of a militia in brazil have set fire to 35 buses after one of their leaders was killed by police. he was second in command of the largest

paramilitary group in rio state. they were initially formed in the 19905 to combat drug gangs but they have evolved into organised crime groups. a new climate 5tudy groups. a new climate study report there is no way to stop the giant west antarctic ice sheet from melting, even if emissions are controlled. it is expected sea level in the region will surpass estimates. expert5 region will surpass estimates. experts say the other side of antarctica can still be saved if carbon emissions are cut. more stories from the families of hostages following hamas�*s 5urpri5e of hostages following hamas�*s surprise attack on israel two weeks ago. the wife of a captive witnessed the murder of her daughter by hamas shooter5. anna fo5ter spoke to this family who had to shelter in their home close to the gaza border, and a warning her report contains di5turbing footage.

a terrified family. held at gunpoint by hamas. they are shooting u5? no! it's shocking and upsetting to watch. but they wanted us to show their ordeal. just out of this picture lies the lifele55 body of 18—year—old mayan, their oldest daughter. her father's hands are still covered with her blood. translation: it was always the nightmare of nightmaresj and suddenly it was real. a war is going on around my house, and they're inside. gunfire. the family isn't whole any more. tsachi is being held hostage in gaza. # and i try to explain,

when i do he turns away... and mayan is dead. # from the moment i could talk, i was ordered to listen... - # and i know that i have to go away. as the same song from that happy day plays, she's laid to rest. but her beloved dad is miles away. translation: he is broken. he saw his daughter die. - he saw her getting shot in her head and die. next to him, his daughter that had just celebrated turning 18, the house is full of balloons and congratulations and blood. she invited us to be here and film this.

she wanted you to see this moment. but also the message behind it. that she is doing one of the hardest things she's ever had to do — burying her daughter mile5 from home and without her husband here by her side. what was he doing, he was in his pyjamas and it is covered in his daughter's blood. i don't think he has the opportunity to mourn. i want them all to come back here, now — not tomorrow, not the day after tomorrow, i want him here now. tsachi is one of more than 220 people still held in gaza and the message is simple — in his family's darke5t moment, they need him.

a5 negotiations continue to pray more hostages, we spoke to a senior intelligence officer in the middle east who helped secure the release of an israeli soldier in 2011 in a prisoner swap. thank you for joining us on bbc news. inaudible question. the situation is really tragic in general terms. with regard to the hostages in a particular way. i am very sceptical, frankly speaking, concerning a benign outcome. we are possibly seeing a kind of release of maybe three dozen hostages possibly. the rumours point to that direction. it won't solve the basic issue of still 150, 170 hostages. theirfate hinges, depends on the further development

on the military grounds. what makes you sceptical? look, hamas abdullah _ what makes you sceptical? look, hamas abdullah -- _ what makes you sceptical? look, hamas abdullah -- hamas - hamas abdullah —— hamas abdullah did these hostages to force their will upon israel. israel has started to wage a veritable war on hamas. hamas in turn uses, or mis—the hostages. that's the bottom line, first of all. it's quite clear that at least a substantial part of the hostages will be misused as this kind of human shield, life insurance, blackmailing assets, as you want to depict them. israel's defence force says it carried out a strike on a hezbollah target in lebanon. it says it targeted their

infrastructure including a military compound. it comes as the un says more than 19,000 people have been displaced in southern lebanon. inaudible. as cross—border attacks continue, top officials in the us and israel have warned neighbouring countries in the region against intervening in the conflict. israel has also evacuated several communities bordering lebanon. it was another violent day with cross—border attacks between groups in lebanon, including hezbollah and the israeli army. it intensified in the last week, but so far the violence has been contained. during the day we visited villages along the border, many residents we might have left, one village were completely deserted, which gives you a sense of how tense the situation is, how concerned

people are, many still remember the devastation of the 2006 war between hezbollah and israel. in lebanon, all eyes on hezbollah, this powerful military, social and political group, supported by iran. it is considered a terrorist organisation by the uk, the us and other countries. hezbollah has been behind most of the attacks... inaudible. against israel. israeli officials, western officials have been warning hezbollah and iran against escalating the situation, and the israeli prime minister said if hezbollah... israel would give a harsh response, describing it as a response of unimaginable magnitude. pakistan's highest court ruled that military trials of civilians are unconstitutional. the trials of over 100 people accused of attacking... inaudible.

they are officially null and void. imran khan and his deputy were indicted in leaked documents cases. his sentence was overturned but he was kept in custody on more a serious charge of sharing state documents. this report from rawalpindi. the centraljail of rawalpindi, this is where former prime minister imran khan and the former foreign minister have both been indicted on two charges, they will stand trial on charges relating to leaking classified documents. imran khan... inaudible. at a rally he waved a piece of paper that he said was a letter from a foreign power that suggested a conspiracy against his government. the rumours were that all would be forgiven... inaudible.

the charges that the prosecution have levied against both of them, firstly they leaked classified documents, and secondly that by doing so, there was an impact on diplomatic relations. although imran khan didn't mention the foreign power, he was repeatedly critical of the us, the american government's involvement. the first charge, they say he leaked these documents, that holds a maximum sentence of two years. but the second charge, impacting diplomatic relations, that maximum sentence can be life imprisonment or even the death penalty. in his defence, imran khan said he never revealed the exact details of the letter, but instead he talked about the gist, and secondly it did not have an impact on diplomatic relations. imran khan's party heavily critical of the fact that kate is happening inside the jail where journalists are not able to attend. they say

thatis not able to attend. they say that is in violation of human rights. we know the case will continue inside the jail, and we know the next court appearance will be... inaudible. stay with bbc news. hello there. we've started this week off on a fine note, but things are turning more unsettled now for tuesday onwards, and by the end of the week, it'll be turning windier with plenty of blustery showers. so, rain at times over the next few days, but there will be some drier, brighter, sunnier moments at times. the pressure chart for tuesday is pretty complicated. we've got a mess of weather fronts across the country, so generally cloudy, i think, today with variable amounts of rain. i think most of the rain, persistent at times, will be across northern and eastern england — areas that really don't need any more rainfall, so we have a met office yellow warning in here in force for tuesday up until around 4pm. elsewhere, there will be some sunshine around,

best of it, scotland, maybe southern england, but even here there'll be a few showers as well. temperatures 10—15 degrees and winds will remain light and variable for many. now, as we head through tuesday night, that area of low pressure starts to push back in towards the northeast and we could see some rain for eastern scotland, northeast england — again, areas that don't need the rain. another pulse of rain running across southern britain thanks to another area of low pressure. but in between, drier spells with clear skies, variable cloud, but a milder night to come — temperatures 5—8 degrees. for wednesday, again, we're in between weather systems. with light winds, we'll start off with some rain perhaps across the southeast. it could linger here through the day, and that weather front across the northeast will still push some cloud and rain in towards eastern scotland, maybe northeast england — again, areas that really don't need any more rainfall. but elsewhere, from northern ireland, down through much of england, wales, we should see some sunshine around. the highs of 14 or 15 degrees, but then it starts to turn wetter and windier

in the southwest later in the day, and that's because this much larger area of low pressure will dominate the weather scene for thursday and friday and even into the weekend, bringing plenty of showers and strong winds, particularly towards the south and the west. so, the winds picking up across western areas through thursday. band of rain spreads northwards again bringing rainfall to areas that don't need it. but for much of the country, northern ireland, the rest of england, wales, sunny spells, scattered showers. some of these will be heavy and thundery in places, particularly towards the southwest. temperatures reaching 15 degrees. if we factor in the wind, might not feel that mild. similar story on friday and into the weekend — low pressure sticks nearby with further showers or even longer spells of rain. take care.

it was almost like a bereavement. it was a major blow, really, and one we haven't really still come to terms with. the overriding feeling of the players was we were kind of hung out to dry a little bit. to see a third club go out of the league was shocking really, and you kind of wonder about the state of rugby. i'd like to think we're at rock—bottom, we're trying to move ourselves out.

ijust think it hurts a lot of people and hurts the game by obviously unfortunately what's fallen to the bottom of the pile like worcester. club owners, investors, were taking a long—term view, but really, as soon as the pandemic hit, the risk that they were having to manage became totally unmanageable. it was not a surprise that a rugby club was in danger. it was a surprise how quickly and how devastating the fall of the clubs was. tv: it was a season that shook fans to the core as english and european professional rugby faced its biggest crisis in three decades. the world cup here in france is a global celebration of the game and its challenges. the final here at the stade de france puts an international spotlight on a sport that world rugby says has grown 11% this year alone.

but it comes at a time where the future of the professional