than 25,000 people have now been killed since israel began its offensive against hamas. the us blames iranian—backed militants in iraq for a ballistic missiles strike on an airbase used by american troops. a new storm is set to hit the uk with gusts of wind of up to 80mph and a risk to life. republican hopeful nikki haley questions donald trump's mentalfitness — after he appeared to confuse her with the democrat politican nancy pelosi. we have a country in disarray and a world on fire, and we need to know that we are not giving our kids options of two 80—year—olds going into a presidency. hello, i'm lewis vaughanjones.

we will head straight to the middle east. these are live pictures, the view from southern israel, a cross over into gaza and the reason being, we just have in the last 90 minutes, two hours or so, the latest figures have been released by the health industry in gaza. saying that over 25,000 people have now been killed since october seven in gaza. these figures released by the hamas run health ministry there, hamas is a prescribed terrorist organisation by many countries including the uk and the us. israel disputes the numbers provided, by hamas, but doesn't provided, by hamas, but doesn't provide its own. those are the latest figures we have, 25,105 palestinians killed in gaza. 62,681

injured. both of those figures since october seven. injured. both of those figures since 0ctoberseven. let's injured. both of those figures since october seven. let's get the latest 0ctober seven. let's get the latest on the attack on the air base in iraq used in the us. the uss iranian backed militants were behind the attack, it involves multiple lytic missiles and some intercepted by air defences. this happened at the al—assad base, a number of iraqi servicemembers wounded, and a number of americans being increased are assessed for brain injuries. this latest incident was hours after this, an air strike hitting the capital of syria, damascus. iranians were killed here and iran said that it would not go unanswered. the president of iran blamed israel and

israel has not commented. more comments from benjamin netanyahu saying israel should retain security control over all of the palestinian territories, gaza and the west bank. he said this condition was "contrary" to a future palestinian state being established. his comments on saturday defied pressure on his government from the us and others to commit to a two—state solution. 0ur correspondent mark lowen injerusalem gave us his analysis of benjamin netanyahu's recent comments. well, once again, it puts him at odds with the us and many of israel's western allies. lewis, who have been increasingly exasperated by his repeated public rejections and rebuttals of attempts by israel's western allies to restart diplomatic talks on a long term sustainable solution that can end these constant, endless cycles of violence between the israelis and palestinians.

the hope was that the current gaza conflict could sort of shake both sides into talks on a meaningful two—state solution. benjamin netanyahu has repeated throughout his political career that he's opposed to that and he's now saying that very publicly, as he's under pressure from israel's western allies that are trying to get it to to rein in its offensive in gaza. he's under pressure from here in israel, from families of the hostages, for example, who are saying that he needs to do more to try to bring the remaining 130 or so hostages back home. and so he has in a sense sort of staked his political survival on his hardline anti—palestinian statehood position, which he believes chimes with the majority of israelis at the moment, and israeli public opinion, which is still too traumatized by the attacks in october to countenance the idea of a future palestinian state next door. and mark, bring us up to date with the latest on the ground there in gaza. well, the focus of the fighting is still in the south of gaza, around khan yunis,

where israeli defense forces believe that some of the top hamas leaders are holed up in or probably beneath that city. but actually, there has been renewed fighting in the north as well around jabalia, where it is believed that as israel was trying to move its tanks and troops further south, palestinian fighters tried to seize an opening there to launch renewed attacks. now, we're almost three months into the ground invasion of gaza. and yet israel, whose army is vastly superior, of course, in equipment and numbers to hamas, is still facing significant challenges and significant resistance across gaza. and that is, coupled with the fact that israel has yet to capture or kill any senior hamas leader in the north of gaza is kind of fuelling frustration here that israel has not yet achieved its war aims. israel is also saying that it has discovered another tunnel in southern gaza in khan younis,

that is 830 metres long, was booby trapped, has blast doors and also, crucially, they say, contained cells. and they believe the israelis believe that that tunnel was being used to hold around 20 israeli hostages. they've released photos of the tunnel with mattresses and children's drawings as well. but they say that when they discovered the tunnel, no israeli hostages were there. the uk defence secretary, grant shapps, has been asked about those comments from benjamin netanyahu rejecting the idea of a palestinian state. he's been speaking to my colleague laura kuennsberg. i think it's very disappointing that benjamin netanyahu has said that. it's not in some senses a surprise, he spent his entire political career against a two state solution. but the point is, which other route is there to seriously resolve this? palestinians deserve a sovereign state. israel deserves to have the ability

to defend itself, its own security, in other words. and unless you pursue a two state solution, i really don't see that there is another solution. now, you will get a lot of different views within the israeli government, of course. it is a rainbow coalition. so, we very much distinguish between the views of individuals and our overall support for israel as a country. here's fawaz gerges, professor of international relations at the london school of economics who explained the significance of the airbase attacks in iraq. this is part of the reverberations of the gaza war. you have attacks in iraq. attacks on the red sea. attack on the northern front between hezbollah and israel. you have israel basically killing

top iranian leaders and hezbollah military commanders. you have the houthis in yemen, a pro—iranian basically government in sanaa, attacking shipping in the red sea. the big point here is that the middle east is extremely volatile, more volatile and more unstable than any moment in its modern history. and the longer the conflict in gaza continues, ifear that the region is heading towards a wider conflict between israel and its allies and iran and its partners. and is that a very real worry of yours now that we're having these proxy battles, but a direct conflict between israel and iran? if you ask me, it's really 50% plus.

what's happening now, we're seeing really more escalation by the hour. i think israeli prime minister is besieged at home. he has failed to achieve his military objectives in gaza. he's pushing hezbollah and iran to the limits. frequently, israel is killing top iranian and hezbollah military commanders and generals in syria and lebanon. so far, neither hezbollah nor iran want all out war. but the question is, can iran afford to bleed so much without responding? it would really take a major miscalculation to basically ignite a wider fire. i mean, the question, lewis, here, the war has expanded. the war is escalating. the question is, will the low intensity conflict that we are witnessing in lebanon, in the red sea, in iraq, in syria, basically remain a low intensity conflict or escalate into a wider regional conflict?

this is the challenge and ifear unless the conflict in gaza ends, that the chances of a wider conflict really increase by the day. i see. well, let's move to the direct conflict then. israel, gaza. what do you make of netanyahu's apparent refusal to embrace the idea of a two—state solution? look, lewis, i mean, are you surprised? i was surprised. netanyahu has spent most of his political career opposing the establishment of a palestinian state. in fact, he has repeatedly said that he feels proud of the fact that he sabotaged the establishment of a palestinian state. what's new about this is that the timing of netanyahu's announcement, the timing is very important because to tell the israeli public, look, i'm the only

strong leader who can defy biden and my western allies, i can really say no. and also he realizes the american presidential elections had just begun and neither biden nor the republicans really will exert any pressure during the presidential elections because look, and i probably am exaggerating here, lewis, netanyahu is a manipulator in chief of the american political system. he realises both biden and the republicans are in a bind in the next year. and that's why he's pushing very hard because his political career is at stake. once the guns fall silent in gaza, he and everyone in israel knows there will be public reckoning against netanyahu. well, just on that, on exactly that point, then, if an apparent rejection of a two—state solution by netanyahu and his own political future is bound up in the end of a conflict, how do you see this ending? well, that's why. .. i mean, i think there

is a race against time between the status quo and escalation, military escalation. the americans and the western powers, in particular the uk and germany, are trying to really give israel the time and space to complete the mission in gaza. but the mission is almost impossible, impossible to eliminate hamas. hamas is not a conventional army. it's deeply anchored in its society. but what's happening now is that netanyahu is really pushing very hard to basically provoke hezbollah and iran and prolong the war. and that's why the americans are very terrified that this really could easily become, gaza, could become a time bomb that destroys the existing whatever remains of the political system in the middle east. storm isha is set to batter the uk with wind and rain during a "rare" weather cycle.

i'm joined by bbc weather presenter matt taylor. so, where is the storm right now? git the moment it is out in the atlantic, i will show you the satellite imagery. you will see a clump of cloud which started in the us, it brought a lot of heavy snowfall to the north—east united states but it is now approaching us in the uk and ireland, which will be hit by strong rain and winds rather than snow, it will approach today. so that is when it will hit and where it is, what is the likely timeframe as it comes across the uk? most of the uk is going to see rain developed during the rest of today, coupled with snowmelt, we have had a lot of snow recently, they could be flooding around. you can see the area of low pressure, it is deepening past the north of scotland. the peak winds in the uk will be through tonight and into the early hours of monday morning so it will be a night feature which is good news in some respects, they will not be as many people on the roads. unlike the storms we saw over

christmas, this one, the strong winds will be felt quite widely. 50 or 60 miles an hour across the whole uk. but for some, or 60 miles an hour across the whole uk. but forsome, particularly uk. but for some, particularly across uk. but forsome, particularly across parts of the north and west, where the met office have and the weather warnings in place, these are the areas that are most likely to feel the impact where we could see winds up to 80 miles an hour. in western scotland beyond midnight, we could see wind above 90 miles an hour which could have a big impact on what we will see through tomorrow. in on what we will see through tomorrow— on what we will see through tomorrow. , ., ,g, g tomorrow. in terms of the impact, when ou tomorrow. in terms of the impact, when you get _ tomorrow. in terms of the impact, when you get wind _ tomorrow. in terms of the impact, when you get wind speeds - tomorrow. in terms of the impact, when you get wind speeds up - tomorrow. in terms of the impact, when you get wind speeds up to i tomorrow. in terms of the impact, l when you get wind speeds up to that speed, what are we looking at in terms of potential damage or travel disruption? set terms of potential damage or travel disru tion? ,, g, g, terms of potential damage or travel disru tion? ,, ., g, , disruption? set in the area is marked with _ disruption? set in the area is marked with the _ disruption? set in the area is marked with the amber- disruption? set in the area is - marked with the amber warnings are the ones at greatest risk of storm damage. some structural damage. we have the potential for power cuts, they could be problems with mobile phone signals if masts come down. and the added flooding, the rain with the snowmelt on top of it, and into the morning with all of that around, a busy monday morning rush

hour, we could see some travel problems just about anywhere across the uk. probably worse to melt across parts of scotland, which could experience the strongest of the winds through the night. we have had it for a while, _ the winds through the night. we have had it for a while, but _ the winds through the night. we have had it for a while, but the _ the winds through the night. we have had it for a while, but the naming - had it for a while, but the naming of storms, this is storm isha, how does that come about, how does that name come about?— does that come about, how does that name come about? three metallurgical auencies, name come about? three metallurgical agencies. irish. — name come about? three metallurgical agencies, irish, dutch _ name come about? three metallurgical agencies, irish, dutch and _ name come about? three metallurgical agencies, irish, dutch and uk - name come about? three metallurgical agencies, irish, dutch and uk come - agencies, irish, dutch and uk come together, they set out an a to z of names male and female. and it's up to each office, they think there will be a storm which will impact their neck of the woods, they give it a name. . g their neck of the woods, they give it a name. ., ~ ,, the russian aviation authorities say a chartered ambulance plane has disappeared from radar screens over afghanistan. six people including two russian nationals were thought to be on board the russian—registered flight that was travelling from india to moscow, via uzbekistan. taliban officials in northern afghanistan said they had received reports of a plane crash in a remote

part of the badakhshan province and that a search team had been despatched to the location. we will get continual updates on that and when we get we will bring that and when we get we will bring that to you. uk police say they're not looking for anyone else in connection with the deaths of four members of the same family, in norfolk. the bodies of two girls, a woman and a man were found at a house in costessey on friday. norfolk police has referred itself to the independent watchdog, saying it didn't respond to a 999 call from the property. greg mckenzie reports. 45 year old bartlomiej kuczynski, seen here in this photo, was found dead at the property near norwich on friday morning. the two young girls who died at the same house are believed to be his daughters. police say a fourth person, a woman aged 36, who also died, had been visiting but did not live there.

police have revealed at 6am on friday morning a man called 999 from the property but officers were not deployed. an hour later, a member of the public contacted them. the police responded by forcing entry where the gruesome discovery of the four bodies were made. officers say all four people who died were found with injuries. the local vicar says there is an overriding feeling of shock and sadness in the community. we wanted to do something that provided people an opportunity to come together. i've been the vicar here forjust over a year. it's a very close knit community and providing an opportunity for people to come here, light a candle if they'd like to, to pray, to be on their own, to talk to me or someone else if they'd like to. certainly a lot of people, i think, may value the opportunity to talk and look to support one another. norfolk police has referred itself

to the independent 0ffice for police conduct. it is the second referral it has made to the iopc following the deaths. its officers were also called to the same house on the 14th of december as part of a missing persons enquiry and said that particular investigation would now be re—examined. detectives investigating the deaths have told the bbc they are not looking for anyone else in connection with the incident. postmortem examinations will be held today to establish cause of deaths for the man and woman, followed by the two young girls on wednesday. greg mckenzie, bbc news. earlier i spoke to our reporter maria veronese who was at the scene and told us the latest. well, as you can see, there is still a very big police

presence here in costessey. they are still investigating the deaths of four members of the same family from here. we are starting to hear a little bit more about what happened at the end of last week. the police have told us that at six o'clock on friday morning, they received a 999 call from a man from the house. they apparently did not respond to that initial call. then a member of the public called an hour later at around seven o'clock, worried about the welfare of the people inside the house. police came at 7:15am, they made a forced entry, and they discovered the bodies of a 45—year—old man, a 36—year—old woman, and two young girls. that man has been named locally as bartlomiej kuczynski. it is believed he lived in the house of the two young girls with the two young girls

and they were his daughters. the woman apparently was visiting. norfolk police has referred itself to the police watchdog on two counts, the first focusing on that emergency call, and why they apparently did not respond to it. and the second relates to a missing persons report that they investigated on the 14th of december. so the watchdog will be looking into both of those counts. a postmortem examination is starting today to determine the cause of the deaths, and flowers and messages are starting to be laid here outside of the cordon. people here this queens hills estate understandably very shocked and disbelieving at what is happening. i have got a friend who lives there, she tells me that it's normally a really friendly place to live, with neighbours pulling together during times of need like covid and of course now.

now to the us republican party race to choose its presidential candidate. donald trump and his closest republican rival nikki haley are criticising each other as campaigning ahead of the new hampshire primary on tuesday. ms haley questioned the former president's mental fitness, after he confused her with the democrat nancy pelosi during a campaign speech. here's mr trump's slip up followed by ms haley's response. nikki haley is in charge of security. we offered her 10,000 people, soldiers, national guard soldiers, whatever they want, they turned it down, they don't want to talk about that. these are very dishonest people. these things happen because, guess what, when you're 80, that's what happens. you're just not as sharp as you used to be. this is not personal. y'all know i voted for him twice. i was proud to serve in his administration. this is the fact that we have a country in disarray and a world on fire, and we need to know that we are not giving our kids options

of two 80—year—olds going into a presidency. i've been speaking to andrew rudalevige who is a professor of government at bowdoin college in maine at this point nikki haley is the last woman standing, ron desantis is making his last stand in south carolina which is the next big stop on the electoral calendar. at this point you see the themes that are beginning to play out as trump tries to assert his dominance and wipe the slate clean before super tuesday in march and haley try to establish herself as the non—trump candidate and took advantage of her 52nd birthday yesterday, noting the contrast in her age between herself and trump and president biden. remind us of the whole process here for selection, and why these

specific mini campaigns within the campaign matter so much. writes, well, we started _ campaign matter so much. writes, well, we started in _ campaign matter so much. writes, well, we started in iowa _ campaign matter so much. writes, well, we started in iowa last - campaign matter so much. writes, j well, we started in iowa last week, thatis well, we started in iowa last week, that is a caucus, which means that people go out to a sort of central meeting place at night and supposedly talk about their choices and come to some conclusion. new hampshire is a primary where normal election, the polls are open all day and people go and vote so the turnout will be a lot higher in new hampshire and then it was in iowa. they are very different states. the primary process has developed over the last 100 years but became really important after the 1960s with a press towards giving ordinary people a bigger choice in the selection process. it's not very well organised, states decide when they want to hold their primary, new hampshire has traditionally been first, in fact they have a state law which says they have to be the first primary so that tradition continues on the republican side, though the democrats have been trying to under

my bed recently, they argue that new hampshire is not very diverse, it is small, very very white, very rural and they think there should be a different way of doing things but that has not caught on. is different way of doing things but that has not caught on.- that has not caught on. is there an one that has not caught on. is there anyone predicting _ that has not caught on. is there anyone predicting anything - that has not caught on. is therel anyone predicting anything other than a trump victory when all is said and done? t than a trump victory when all is said and done?— than a trump victory when all is said and done? i think there are a lot of peeple _ said and done? i think there are a lot of peeple in — said and done? i think there are a lot of people in the _ said and done? i think there are a lot of people in the so-called - said and done? i think there are a l lot of people in the so-called never lot of people in the so—called never trump camp which will hope for a haley victory which will show she is a clear alternative. the polling has been pretty good so far in this campaign, it's likely trump will win and a close second to finish by haley is what her camp are pushing is an expectation, and that would establish her as the leading non—trump candidate, both for her and ron desantis. what they are both hoping for it to be able to stick around in the race long enough that trump implodes in some way. for his legal troubles, trump implodes in some way. for his legaltroubles, most trump implodes in some way. for his legal troubles, most likely, that they can be around for example if he is convicted or a felony at some

point, perhaps they can be there to pick up the pieces and grab the nomination. it is unlikely that they can beat him head—to—head. trump's rally last night featured a lot of greatest hits as they usually do but he brought out a lot of south carolina officials, that is haley's home state, she was governor there, trump is trying to show that he is more popular than she is even in her home state. and that is his calling card, that he controls the republican base, the republican party had been remade really in his image, and everyone else canjust give up. that doesn't tell us much about the november election. we are talking about a minority of the american electorate but nonetheless allowed one as we saw. that american electorate but nonetheless allowed one as we saw.— allowed one as we saw. that is it from me. — allowed one as we saw. that is it from me. i _ allowed one as we saw. that is it from me, iwill— allowed one as we saw. that is it from me, i will be _ allowed one as we saw. that is it from me, i will be back- allowed one as we saw. that is it from me, i will be back with - from me, i will be back with headlines in a couple of minutes. this is bbc news.

hello. another winter storm is on its way, the greatest impact set to be felt by storm isha being through tonight and into tomorrow morning. heavy rain quite widely, but it is the strength of the wind and how widespread it is which could have some of the biggest impact. here it is, a developing area of low pressure which moved from the us, coming towards us, starting to approach at the moment and bringing more widespread rain to the rest of the day across scotland, heavier. still staying wet in northern ireland and increasingly so across northern england and wales, with temperatures up into the low teens for one or two and snowmelt across the north and west, coupled with the rain, we could see some flooding. it will stay dry with hazy sunshine for much of the afternoon in central and eastern england but even rain will move in here tonight. the wind is of the greatest concern, widely 50 or 60 miles an hour gusts that this is where the amber warnings have been issued and where we could see winds overnight into tomorrow morning into

80 miles an hour and beyond midnight western scotland could see 90 miles an hour as the southern flank of this area of low pressure storm isha passes to the north. the strong winds, isobars across the board, a disturbed night sleet for many with impacts lasting into the rush hour tomorrow morning. temperatures as we start the day is six to 11 degrees. potential structural damage, trees down and potential flooding. potential structural damage, trees down and potentialflooding. there could be problems on the roads and ferries tomorrow morning, check out travel news on bbc local radio and bbc breakfast is the day gets under way. still a very blustery day across the board tomorrow but a day of sunshine and showers, more sunshine more of you with sunday. showers most frequent across scotland and northern ireland maybe with hail and snow mixed in ever higher ground. more sunshine and showers towards the east, fresher

with the strong winds continuing. a cold night to take us into tuesday morning but the next area of low pressure starts to push its way in which will bring widespread rain across the country later in the day and again, with the ground becoming saturated, more snowmelt mixed in, we could see flooding on going from tuesday to wednesday. a very mild day and the weather quieting down a touch later in the week.

this is bbc news, the headlines... the health ministry in gaza say that more than 25,000 people have now been killed since israel began its offensive against hamas. the us blames iranian—backed militants in iraq for a ballistic missiles strike on an airbase used by american troops. a new storm is set to hit the uk with gusts of wind of up to 80mph and a risk to life. welcome to the programme, i am lewis vaughanjones. the political map in the uk has changed a lot in the last few years, not least in scotland where the scottish national party has lost its lead in the polls. supporters fear it could lose half its seats in the general election. laura kuennsberg has been talking to the first minister

of scotland humza yousaf and asked him what the snp's plans for the election are. the ambition and the aim is twofold, to be the biggest party in scotland and to what the tories of the map and to what the tories of the map and the fact that we are second place in every tory seat in scotland, if we want to make scotland, if we want to make scotland totally free, must wait for the snp. , ., the snp. the truth is the more labour mps — the snp. the truth is the more labour mps the _ the snp. the truth is the more labour mps the more - the snp. the truth is the more labour mps the more likely - the snp. the truth is the more| labour mps the more likely the labour mps the more likely the labour government on the more likely it is to get rid of the tories or wipe them off the map as you put it. keir starmer is 20—25% ahead in the opinion polls, he is going to be the next uk prime minister, i don't think you can point me to a single poll that suggests it is marginal. keir starmer does not make scotland to win. it keir starmer does not make scotland to win. , , , , ., g, to win. it is deeply misleading to eo - le to to win. it is deeply misleading to peeple to suggest _ to win. it is deeply misleading to people to suggest you _ to win. it is deeply misleading to people to suggest you know - to win. it is deeply misleading to people to suggest you know keir| people to suggest you know keir starmer will be prime minister when we are probably months away from an

election. hf we are probably months away from an election. , ., u, we are probably months away from an election. i. , ., we are probably months away from an election. , ., , ., ., election. if you can show me a sinale election. if you can show me a single opinion _ election. if you can show me a single opinion poll _ election. if you can show me a single opinion poll that - election. if you can show me a l single opinion poll that suggests this is a marginal election i would love to see it. i would say it is undoubtedly the case that keir starmer does not need scotland to win, he will be the next minister of the uk and we all know that but i say to voters in scotland, but for what you believe in, a party that stands for scotland, if you believe in our values that are all values, scrapping prescription charges on tuition fees, generous offers of childcare, if these are your values help us protect them and when it comes to keir starmer being the next prime minister of the uk which i think he absolutely will be, i should say on to work with an incoming labour government, ithink there's plenty we can work on. there be disagreements, perhaps constitutionally but there is plenty of areas we can work on. hage constitutionally but there is plenty of areas we can work on. have you soken of areas we can work on. have you spoken to — of areas we can work on. have you spoken to him. — of areas we can work on. have you spoken to him, are _ of areas we can work on. have you spoken to him, are you _

of areas we can work on. have you spoken to him, are you planning i of areas we can work on. have you | spoken to him, are you planning to talk to him?— spoken to him, are you planning to talk to him? i've written to him and invited him — talk to him? i've written to him and invited him to _ talk to him? i've written to him and invited him to edinburgh _ talk to him? i've written to him and invited him to edinburgh for- talk to him? i've written to him and invited him to edinburgh for a - invited him to edinburgh for a discussion and i would like to speak to him as the man he will undoubtedly be the next prime minister of the uk and particularly on the issues of tackling child poverty. i think we need to work together in order to tackle child poverty across the uk. i think keir starmer should commit to lifting 250,000 children out of poverty across the uk and 15,000 children here in scotland. let's scrap the bedroom tax which is keeping too many people in poverty. what bedroom tax which is keeping too many people in poverty. what are you su: caestin many people in poverty. what are you suggesting in — many people in poverty. what are you suggesting in terms _ many people in poverty. what are you suggesting in terms of _ many people in poverty. what are you suggesting in terms of the _ suggesting in terms of the discussion because when we last spokeinjune discussion because when we last spoke injune he seemed to believe a hung parliament was likely and you said you had set out some conditions if you were ever to land snp mps support if he did not have a majority for himself? shp support if he did not have a majority for himself? snp mps will work with him, _

majority for himself? snp mps will work with him, when _ majority for himself? snp mps will work with him, when i— majority for himself? snp mps will work with him, when i speak - majority for himself? snp mps will work with him, when i speak to - majority for himself? snp mps will| work with him, when i speak to keir starmer and i hope it takes me up on the invitation, to me that will be the invitation, to me that will be the responsible thing for him to do, i will advocate for a second independence referendum because i've got all of the reasons why i think our mandate has been ignored over the years and i hope he will take a respectful approach to listening to the voice of scotland. [30 respectful approach to listening to the voice of scotland.— respectful approach to listening to the voice of scotland. do you accept a -a as the voice of scotland. do you accept a pay as prime _ the voice of scotland. do you accept a pay as prime minister— the voice of scotland. do you accept a pay as prime minister he - the voice of scotland. do you accept a pay as prime minister he will- the voice of scotland. do you accept a pay as prime minister he will not l a pay as prime minister he will not offer you another independence referendum on four voters, it will be on the ballot again but he promised voters in 2017, did not happen, and in 19 it did not happen again, in 2022 supreme court said she did not the power to make that happen again. yet do you accept independence and another referendum will not happen anytime soon? i do not accept this for two reasons in june and i have spoken about this. you gotta create the political conditions in the popular support in the conditions for popular support,

the conditions for popular support, the political conditions is by the snp won the general election and i want that to happen to send a really strong message to westminster but scotland will not be ignored and we will be very clear on page one, line one of the manifesto... but will be very clear on page one, line one of the manifesto. . ._ will be very clear on page one, line one of the manifesto... but you know ou're on one of the manifesto... but you know you're on track— one of the manifesto... but you know you're on track to _ one of the manifesto... but you know you're on track to lose _ one of the manifesto... but you know you're on track to lose seats. - one of the manifesto... but you know you're on track to lose seats. must i you're on track to lose seats. must create the conditions for a consistent majority. for create the conditions for a consistent majority. consistent ma'ority. for that to ha en consistent ma'ority. for that to happen you — consistent majority. for that to happen you must _ consistent majority. for that to happen you must persuade - consistent majority. for that to i happen you must persuade people consistent majority. for that to - happen you must persuade people that you are a good and effective government so let's turn to the impact of some of your policies and the billionaire businessman tom hunter is a programme on sunday and has a question about your higher rate taxpayers because they pay significantly more than people in england and has questionnaires given scotland has six different tax bands are supposed to three in the uk do you see this as an incentive for start—ups dry to grow businesses and talent to set up in scotland? there is a major business voice unhappy

about yet making it much more expensive in some ways for people to do business?— do business? first and foremost, i have not do business? first and foremost, i have got a — do business? first and foremost, i have got a lot _ do business? first and foremost, i have got a lot of _ do business? first and foremost, i have got a lot of time _ do business? first and foremost, i have got a lot of time for - do business? first and foremost, i have got a lot of time for sir - do business? first and foremost, i have got a lot of time for sir tom l have got a lot of time for sir tom hunter but he and i will not always agree but he is an important business voice and me engage on a number of occasions. the majority of taxpayers will pay less in scotland than taxpayers elsewhere in the uk but in terms of the top 5% of owners that we are asking to pay a little bit more like the first minister and mps salaries, they will be asked to do that so we can continue to provide policies like free tuition, free university education, scrapping prescription charges.— prescription charges. despite those decisions there _ prescription charges. despite those decisions there are _ prescription charges. despite those decisions there are still _ decisions there are still significant problems with waiting lists and education at... shatter significant problems with waiting lists and education at... after two to ears lists and education at... after two to years of _ lists and education at... after two to years of touring _ lists and education at... after two to years of touring austerity - lists and education at... after two to years of touring austerity that i to years of touring austerity that has seen her budget for by hundreds

of millions of pounds, we're not just munching but doing incredibly well to make sure accident and emergency departments are open... i think probably recognise we have privatised public services over tax cuts for the wealthy and undoubtedly thatis cuts for the wealthy and undoubtedly that is a political choice but i stand with it.— that is a political choice but i stand with it. , ., ., . ., . , stand with it. they are all choices and dimension _ stand with it. they are all choices and dimension education - stand with it. they are all choices and dimension education several| and dimension education several times but during the smp tenure, scott dominic scottish schools have slipped back in the melting, and the education they get is behind the education they get is behind the education english children get but are you proud of that? i education english children get but are you proud of that?— education english children get but are you proud of that? i said at the time the study _ are you proud of that? i said at the time the study stats _ are you proud of that? i said at the time the study stats came - are you proud of that? i said at the time the study stats came out - are you proud of that? i said at the time the study stats came out that | are you proud of that? i said at the | time the study stats came out that i did not think it was good enough and that's why one of the first things i did as first minister was wrote them into international studies which we will do but that tells one part of the story. look at the progress we have made in relation to reducing literacy and numeracy, the progress

we have made in terms of young people achieving hires and that is making progress on a number of areas. ., ., ., , , ., areas. scotland has slowed in the international— areas. scotland has slowed in the international figures _ areas. scotland has slowed in the international figures that - areas. scotland has slowed in the international figures that matters j international figures that matters to scottish parents and discover standing in the rest of the uk and you say it's not good enough but you have been in charge of health, education, many different things and on many different measures, actually, the record does not look pretty. and in any way, there are several parallel between the snp and what's happening to the conservatives across the uk? let them in powerfor a long time, popularity has slipped back and the silly thing about incumbency, people kind of think you are out of ideas. the accept that? i can point the fact that the issue that i say will be the defining mission of the

government i lead, we had in 2319 thousand fewer children in poverty. when it comes to our health service we can demonstrate there are challenges but we have not lost a single day of the nhs to strike action which is different to wales and england and when i look at our other public services we have a recorded crime record at low levels. last night, you will one of the uk politicians who call for a ceasefire in gaza so why do you think of yourself hesitated before doing that? i yourself hesitated before doing that? 4' yourself hesitated before doing that? ~ , ., yourself hesitated before doing that? 4' , ., ., . ~ yourself hesitated before doing that? 4' , ., ., that? i think it is a lack of leadership _ that? i think it is a lack of leadership and _ that? i think it is a lack of leadership and moral - that? i think it is a lack of- leadership and moral courage, ifi leadership and moral courage, if i am being frank and this is a classic example of i think people understanding what keir starmer stands for. why has he not shown appropriate leadership on the issue of gaza and i did not know the answer to that but i do not know how anybody could that see that level of death and destruction and not call

for an immediate halt? do death and destruction and not call for an immediate halt?— death and destruction and not call for an immediate halt? do you think sometimes people _ for an immediate halt? do you think sometimes people place _ for an immediate halt? do you think sometimes people place a _ for an immediate halt? do you think sometimes people place a different| sometimes people place a different value on palestinian lives?- value on palestinian lives? without a shadow of — value on palestinian lives? without a shadow of a _ value on palestinian lives? without a shadow of a doubt. _ value on palestinian lives? without a shadow of a doubt. talk - value on palestinian lives? without a shadow of a doubt. talk to - value on palestinian lives? without| a shadow of a doubt. talk to anyone who is palestinian, they feel that palestinian blood is very cheap. first minister, thank you very much indeed. that was laura kuenssberg asking the questions. health experts have warned that shortages of some medicines are putting patient safety at risk. pharmacists say they sometimes experience abuse and anger from frustrated and anxious members of the public. medicines to treat wide—ranging issues, including epilepsy, adhd, cancer and hormone replacement therapy, are in short supply. live now to james davies who is the director for england at the royal pharmaceutical society.

thank you for coming in the programme so could you tell us why these shortages exist? titer;r programme so could you tell us why these shortages exist?— these shortages exist? they are caused by a _ these shortages exist? they are caused by a variety _ these shortages exist? they are caused by a variety of _ these shortages exist? they are caused by a variety of issues, i these shortages exist? they are caused by a variety of issues, a | caused by a variety of issues, a difficulty with the supply of raw materials and we are seeing some challenges on the demand side, certain conditions, adhd is a good condition you mentioned, demand for that medicine around the world has gone up significantly and as a result it is leading to acute shortages and people in this country are struggling to get access to medicine. i are struggling to get access to medicine. ., ., . ., , are struggling to get access to medicine. ., ., _, , , medicine. i mentioned a couple but worth reiterating _ medicine. i mentioned a couple but worth reiterating thought _ medicine. i mentioned a couple but worth reiterating thought or- medicine. i mentioned a couple but worth reiterating thought or some i medicine. i mentioned a couple but| worth reiterating thought or some of the drug affected here?— the drug affected here? there's a varie of the drug affected here? there's a variety of different _ the drug affected here? there's a variety of different drugs - the drug affected here? there's a variety of different drugs but - the drug affected here? there's a variety of different drugs but i - variety of different drugs but i think if you think about some of the disease categories affected, hrt medication effective for many people, some of the diabetes medications, for epilepsy, there is some epilepsy medication in short supply at the moment and some

specific treatments for areas such as scabies treatment again is in short supply. it as scabies treatment again is in short supply-— as scabies treatment again is in short supply. if you are watching this sun fall— short supply. if you are watching this sun fall into _ short supply. if you are watching this sun fall into one _ short supply. if you are watching this sun fall into one of- short supply. if you are watching this sun fall into one of those . this sun fall into one of those categories what should you do? i categories what should you do? i think there's a couple of things people should do and we recognise what you are short of get medication especially for complex and long term conditions, it's incredibly stressful for you and your family if you cannot access the medications so that the first thing to do is speak to your pharmacist. and understand whether your medication is in short supply or knock. if it is, they may be able to help guide you towards alternatives or give you a shorter course until the supply comes in. the second thing everyone can do even for those medications not in short supply as people taking repeat medication for chronic conditions, make sure they repeat those repeats as early as possible on the toes like using the nhs up or making the

requests in the surgery which gives doctors on the pharmacy enough time to try and make sure they get adequate supplies.— to try and make sure they get adequate supplies. given that it is difficult to ramp _ adequate supplies. given that it is difficult to ramp up _ adequate supplies. given that it is difficult to ramp up production - adequate supplies. given that it is difficult to ramp up production of. difficult to ramp up production of these things for technical reasons, are there any changes that you would like to see to try and manage the situation better? i like to see to try and manage the situation better?— situation better? i think there's a coule of situation better? i think there's a couple of changes, _ situation better? i think there's a couple of changes, at _ situation better? i think there's a couple of changes, at the - situation better? i think there's a couple of changes, at the first. couple of changes, at the first level we would like to see the government suppliers, supply chains coming togetherfurther government suppliers, supply chains coming together further to make sure we understand solutions out there to stop shortages happen. beyond that, when shortages occur, we would like to see more powers given to pharmacists to be able to solve though so for example if you in with a prescription for a 50 mg tablet, i could have a 30 and a 20 mg next to me but i could not supply those to you without making a change to the

prescription and if you were in hospital i will be able to make the substitution but we would like to see the pharmacist community being able to make those changes to be making it easier to get them access to the medicines they need. james, thank you- — ac milan's win at udinese was briefly suspended on saturday after alleged racist abuse from fans towards ac milan goalkeeper mike maignan. he told the referee before leaving the pitch after the half—hour mark, followed by his team—mates. the serie a match was restarted after about ten minutes. fifa president gianni infantino has called for implementation of an automatic forfeit of games for teams whose fans commit racist abuse. live now to daniele verri, a footballjournalist in italy. thank you for coming in the programme. thank you for coming in the programme-— thank you for coming in the programme. thank you for coming in the rouramme. ., ~ a ., ., programme. thank you. what do you know about — programme. thank you. what do you know about what _ programme. thank you. what do you know about what happened? -

programme. thank you. what do you know about what happened? mccain | programme. thank you. what do you - know about what happened? mccain was susended know about what happened? mccain was suspended for — know about what happened? mccain was suspended for about _ know about what happened? mccain was suspended for about minutes _ know about what happened? mccain was suspended for about minutes after- suspended for about minutes after racist abuse facing the goalkeeper and then it was resumed, we got to the end of the game, unfortunately this was not the first time this happens to him in person, in 2022 versusjuventus, it was already up. i think we in and week out, in every football stadium, racism is a cultural aspect that belongs to society in general, to the entire society in general, to the entire society for sure and it gives us a way to explain ourselves in third body food study. but that does not be happen in italy, for sure. but riven be happen in italy, for sure. but given that _ be happen in italy, for sure. but given that it _ be happen in italy, for sure. but given that it does have their what are some of the ankle —— answers

about gains being forfeited? are some of the ankle -- answers about gains being forfeited? there are rooms at _ about gains being forfeited? there are rooms at the _ about gains being forfeited? there are rooms at the moment. - about gains being forfeited? there are rooms at the moment. there l about gains being forfeited? ii—urr are rooms at the moment. there will be an investigation taking place for sure in order to identify those who were abused online, on the web, and extending lifelong bans at a moment an athlete there can be a monetary fine day monetary fine or they can be one or two games played with a specific sector of the stadium closed, the chanting the abuse of the game is in the one specific sector. what is possible now, at the moment, every time an event this happens, stakeholders, the italian

football federation, they all express their unhappiness, so to say. about these things. this has been happening several times in italy without much changing. maybe this is the time for the stakeholders to intervene and maybe change the rules and try to stop this but you will not stop racism in my opinion as such. you might stop it heaving such pressure on football stadiums but the progresses and as part of society, and it will remain there, even if a game is lost or not. . g there, even if a game is lost or not. ., ~' , ., there, even if a game is lost or not. ., ,, i. ., there, even if a game is lost or not. ., ,, ., ., , while christmas may be a distant memory for many, the armenian community injerusalem has just held its celebration. but this year, it's been overshadowed by the war in gaza and a new threat to the survival of the community because of a contested real estate dea that could see them lose 25% of their land in their ancient

quarter of the old city. 0ur middle east correspondent, yolande knell reports. this is a christmas like no other forjerusalem's armenians. their holiday is always at a unique time, and this year it's been marked in an unusual way, with a sit—in in a makeshift tent. for two months now, members of the 2000—strong armenian community have been guarding this plot around the clock. they faced bulldozers and attacks by armed thugs since they pressured their church leader to go back on a land deal. he'd secretly signed it with a jewish—israeli developer. this may look like a car park, but it's incredibly valuable real estate in a place of huge religious significance. and it's now at the heart of a closely fought battle. armenians have been in the holy city since the fourth century. activists point out that the murky

lease agreement could now mean losing homes and a seminary. a quarter of armenian property here. everything was put in danger with this deal. whoever wants to take away our rights and endanger our presence and our lives here, we will stand up against them and defend our rights till the end. sacred to three religions, jerusalem's old city, with its holy sites, was captured and occupied by israel five decades ago, and it's at the core of its conflict with the palestinians. jewish settlements are widely seen as illegal under international law. but settler groups are committed to taking over more and more of the land here. it's alleged they have links to the armenian takeover. creating a settlement in this area is part of very far reaching aims of settler organisations who basically want to jew—idise completely the old city and again with their eyes on the temple mount,

al—aqsa mosque, and that's very concerning. the armenians have now begun a legal challenge in the israeli courts to try to hold onto their land. but as the community comes together, they know their struggle may go on for years. yolande knell, bbc news, jerusalem. pakistan and iran have spoken of the need to normalise relations at the end of a week in which each carried out deadly air strikes against the other. the skirmishes targeted areas close to the border, where local people say they fear for the future. bbc urdu's sahar baloch has more from turbat in southern balochistan. this is turbat city of balochistan province. the situation in this particular city is tense. it is closer to the city of iran, which was recently targeted by pakistan in response to iranian strikes. for two consecutive years, pakistan is not only facing an economic crisis, but also a political one at home.

there's been an increase in militant attacks across the country and also souring of relations with another neighbouring country, afghanistan. amid all of this came the tit for tat strikes between iran and pakistan. now the question is, who are the baloch groups the two countries claim to be fighting? the baloch are the indigenous people of the balochistan region of sistan and baluchistan, the pakistani province of baluchistan and a small area of afghanistan. the insurgent groups in pakistani province of balochistan and the militants in the southeastern province of iran claim to fight for the larger autonomy of their respective countries. the people on both sides of the border are caught in a war they cannot control. experts say that social and political deprivation in both countries has fuelled armed resistance, which may increase due to the recent strikes. people on both sides are not only linked by marriage and similar cultural values, but also barter trade.

this border provides livelihood to millions of people in both the countries, and any form of closure of this border would mean starvation for people. there are reports of two regional countries trying to prevent further escalation between iran and pakistan. also, recent statements shared by the foreign offices of both the countries suggest that there is a willingness to move towards dialogue rather than confrontation. this recent development is seen as a sign of relief by the people of the two countries. there are thought to be around 1,500 pairs of peregrine falcons in the uk — and their eggs can be a target for thieves looking to sell them for thousands of pounds. derbyshire is believed to be one of the hotspots for such thefts. this week, a man was jailed after taking eggs from a bird nesting in a quarry in bolsover. simon hare reports.

an adult peregrine falcon sits guarding its nest, which is thought to contain three eggs. then the bird is startled by a rope from above. and a few moments later, a man has abseiled down. he then proceeds to take the eggs and place them in a box he's carrying. it happened at bolsover moor quarry near bolsover in derbyshire in april last year. the footage was captured by investigators from the rspb trying to combat the persecution and taking of peregrine falcon eggs and chicks. effectively, these are birds that are being laundered as captive bred individuals and it is something that we see on an annual basis. nests failing in suspicious circumstances. and i think this is the third case that my team has caught on camera in the last few years. the man on the end of the rope was 34—year—old christopher wheeldon from darley dale seen here at an earlier court hearing in derby. he admitted disturbing the nest of a protected wild bird and taking eggs along with a string of shoplifting offences.

jailing wheeldon for 18 weeks, the districtjudge, stephen flint, told him that, "seemingly even the birds are not beyond "your thieving grasp. "you may conceive these as just eggs, but they are protected. "this was a deplorable thing to do." it's not very often that we get a conviction, let alone a sentence. so that's really positive for us. yeah. and how big a problem is it in derbyshire? it's quite a big problem in derbyshire. it's quite significant. it's a bit of a hot spot. the districtjudge also ordered the forfeiture and destruction of wheeldon's ropes and other equipment. it's believed the eggs would have been hatched out in an incubator before the birds were sold abroad as captive reared. simon hare, bbc news. nasa says it has re—established contact with its tiny helicopter on mars after communication was lost during a flight on thursday. the us space agency

said ingenuity, a drone weighing under 2 kilos, was able to renew contact with the perseverance rover with the help of commands from earth. ingenuity was landed on mars aboard perseverance in 2021, flying dozens of missions as a scout for the rover as it looks for any ancient sources of life. take a close look at this — these are some of the best images of our world from a micro perspective — recognised at this year's close up photography of the year awards. now heading into its sixth year, the global competition draws thousands of entries from those who share a passion for life's smaller details. stay with us here on bbc news.

hello. another winter storm is on its way with the greatest impact set to be felt by storm isha being through tonight and into tomorrow morning. heavy rain quite widely, but it's the strength of the wind and just how widespread it is, which could have some of the biggest impacts. here it is, a developing area of low pressure which moved off from the us, coming towards us, starting to approach at the moment and bringing more widespread rain through the rest of today across scotland. heavier too, still staying wet in northern ireland and increasingly so across parts of northern england and wales with temperatures up into the low teens for one or two, and snow melt across the north and west, coupled with the rain, we could see some flooding. it'll stay dry though with a bit of hazy sunshine for much of the afternoon in central and eastern parts of england. but even rain will move in here tonight. but it's the winds that's the greatest concern, widely 50, 60 mile an hour gusts. but these are where the met office amber warnings have been issued and where we could see winds

overnight into tomorrow morning gust 70 to 80 miles an hour, and beyond midnight parts of western scotland could see even higher than that, 80—90 miles an hour as the southern flank of this area of low pressure storm isha passes to the north. the strong winds, isobars you can see tightly packed right across the board. it will be probably a disturbed night's sleep for many with impacts lasting into tomorrow morning's rush hour. temperatures as we start the day at around 6 to 11 degrees. potential structural damage, trees down, the risk of flooding as well. there could be some problems on the roads, the rails and of course the ferries first thing tomorrow morning. check out the latest travel news on bbc local radio and of course, on bbc breakfast when the day gets under way. as for monday itself, the strongest of the winds from overnight will have eased down, but still a very blustery day across the board. but a day of sunshine and showers, more sunshine for more of you compared with what we've seen on sunday. showers most frequent across scotland, northern ireland mainly of rain, but some hail mixed in with some snow over the higher ground, more sunshine and showers towards the south and east. it'll feel a bit fresher given

the fact we've got those strong winds continuing. a cold night then to take us through into tuesday morning. then the next area of low pressure starts to push its way in. that's going to bring widespread rain across the country later in the day. and again, with the ground becoming saturated, more snow melt mixed in, we could see some flooding ongoing through tuesday into wednesday. another very mild day, but the weather quieting down a touch later in the week.

live from london, this is bbc news.

more than 25,000 people killed since israel began its offensive against hamas — that's according to the health ministry in gaza. the us blames iranian—backed militants in iraq for a ballistic missile strike on an airbase used by american troops. a new storm is forecast to hit the uk, with gusts of wind of up to 80mph and a risk to life. republican hopeful nikki haley questions donald trump's mental fitness after he confuses her with the democratic politician nancy pelosi. we have a country in disarray and a world on fire, and we need to know that we are not giving our kids options of two 80—year—olds going into a presidency. hello. i'm lewis vaughan jones.

welcome