the neo—nazi who played a key role on a social media account that helped spark a summer of violence in parts of the uk. the row over donations prompts sir keir starmer to pay back more than £6,000 for gifts and hospitality. takes ta kes a takes a shot! and joy for aston villa as they take the lead against bayern munich in their long awaited return to top flight european football . 0n newsnight at 10.30pm, we'll bring you fresh insight on the stories of the day, with big interviews and our regular panel of newsnighters, and of course look at what the papers are saying about tomorrow's news. good evening and welcome to the bbc news at ten. israel says eight of its soldiers have been killed in the opening two days of its ground

invasion of lebanon. hezbollah says it fired guided missiles at their tanks, as israeli airstrikes have continued across the south of lebanon and here in beirut. we have heard more loud explosions and the sound of strikes in the last 15 minutes. iran s response to the operation, a barrage of missiles fired towards israel last night, has raised tensions in this region even higher. both sides say they re preparing further attacks. president biden has warned against any strike on iran s nuclear sites, but says israel has the right to respond. in a moment we will get the latest from our international editorjeremy bowen, who's injerusalem, but we start tonight in northern israel. 0ur middle east correspondent lucy williamson sent this report. israel's air force was defending other targets when iran's missiles came. slipping through defences to hit several air bases,

like this one at nevatim. another narrowly missing an intelligence base in tel aviv. the crater it left filled with visions of what if. the us said this attack had twice the scope of iran's last bombardment in april. not all the targets hit were military. 0ne landed in this residential suburb of tel aviv. neighbours rushing through repairs before thejewish new year tonight. temporary solutions to the problems of a regional war. 83—year—old schmulic�*s home, one of more than a hundred houses damaged here. everybody was scared because the blast it was an enormous blast. and when we get out

of the shelter, we saw something not from this world. all the house was glasses, no windows, no doors. the impact site around 100 metres from his front door. another what if. this is the second time in six months that iran has attacked israel directly. actions that were once seen as red lines are now becoming routine. each time the line between message and miscalculation is paper thin, and each time demands a response. israel's prime minister has promised a response will come. translation: we are in the middle l of a tough war against iran's axis l of evil, which seeks to destroy us. this will not happen because we will stand together and with god's help, we will win together.

israel has been crossing red lines itself, sending the soldiers into lebanon this week. a limited and targeted incursion, it says, to destroy hezbollah tunnels. but another four brigades were called up today and villages in the south of lebanon told to leave their homes and move north. also today, the first israeli casualties airlifted out of the combat zone. eight killed and others injured. men from israel's elite commando and infantry brigades. the youngest of them 21 years old. two days into this war, israel is facing the risks of old conflicts weighed against the risks of playing by new rules. lucy williamson, bbc news, israel. despite the unprecedented scale of

that attack iran launched on israel, is president said in the last few hours his country is not looking for war but pledged a stronger response if israel tries to retaliate for the attack. lyse doucet reports. iran's most powerful missiles, sending their starkest message last night to israel. if you hit us or our allies, we will hit you. the order given by commanders and clerics. in the name of god, he declares, in revenge for the martell�*s blood. and today, a message from the president while visiting qatar. translation: we were left with no choice but to respond. if israel decides to retaliate, it will face faster reactions. it retaliate, it will face faster reactions-_ retaliate, it will face faster reactions. , , ., ., ,

reactions. it is this man who calls the shots in _ reactions. it is this man who calls the shots in tehran, _ reactions. it is this man who calls the shots in tehran, the - reactions. it is this man who calls the shots in tehran, the supreme leader ayatollah khomeini. revered by his supporters, reviled by enemies. ultra conservative, deeply distrustful of the west. translation: in our region the root cause of all these wars is the presence of those who claim they want peace and calm, america and some european countries. iran's cautious cleric has tried to avoid direct confrontation with israel, with america. but today his supporters celebrated iran's attack. for hardliners, israel's assassination of hassan nasrallah crossed a red line. they had to retaliate. this is why iran believes it had to protect what it calls its ring of fire, relishes it has armed in these countries across the region. most of all, hezbollah in

lab anon, right on israel's border. 0ur security correspondent, israel's border. lab anon, right on israel's border. hassan nasrallah was part of iran's hassan nasrallah was part of iran's forward defence and in gaza, hamas, forward defence and in gaza, hamas, their political leader was killed in their political leader was killed in july while visiting iran. israel was july while visiting iran. israel was blamed. these groups which also call blamed. these groups which also call themselves the axis of resistance themselves the axis of resistance are in syria, iraq and as far away are in syria, iraq and as far away as the houthis in yemen. they have as the houthis in yemen. they have been weakened by not wiped out by been weakened by not wiped out by israel's recent strikes and there israel's recent strikes and there are certain to keep attacking but are certain to keep attacking but what matters most of all for the what matters most of all for the islamic republic is to preserve the islamic republic is to preserve the islamic republic is to preserve the islamic republic. their power at islamic republic is to preserve the islamic republic. their power at home. that means stroking hard home. that means stroking hard enough, to send a message but not so enough, to send a message but not so hard it drags iran into an all—out hard it drags iran into an all—out war it knows it cannot win. lyse war it knows it cannot win. lyse doucet, bbc news. doucet, bbc news. iran launched around 180 missiles iran launched around 180 missiles towards israel last night, towards israel last night,

so how successful were they in so how successful were they in striking their targets? striking their targets?

but israel has already made clear it will respond. so what might it do? back in april, when it was last targeted, israel responded with a single highly precise strike — likely an air launched ballistic missile — to take out an iranian air defence system. that was being used to protect a nuclear plant at isfahan. this time, israel is expected to do more. some want to target the nuclear facilities themselves, like at natanz. but it is well protected and would likely need american help. and when president biden was asked earlier today if he'd support israel targetting those nuclear sites, this was his response, the answer is no. so, another option for the israelis is to target iran's economic capacity. that could mean hitting something like the oil refinery at abadan. a further option might be military bases.

it is not yet clear what israel will do or when but it says it can strike anywhere in the middle east. anna. four people trying to leave lebanon, it is extremely difficult, most commercial airlines have stopped flying and today the uk government charted a uk flight to take british nationals who want to leave out of lebanon. phil mackie met some of those people at the airport in birmingham tonight who chose to leave beirut. safety at last. at 8.a0pm this evening, the first special charter flight bringing british citizens out of lebanon landed at birmingham international airport. it had been a long day beset by delays, but at last passengers could relax. just arrived to birmingham airport from beirut. feeling exhausted. i

don't really know what i am feeling but i am grateful to be back and safe. we have had a really warm welcome here at the airport which took me by surprise. this is what they've left behind. this was last night in beirut. getting out of the city has become increasingly difficult. many airlines have cancelled their scheduled flights, and the planes that are still flying in and out have to contend with the plumes of smoke caused by rocket strikes. it had been an anxious wait today at the rafik hariri airport for those who had managed to secure a seat on the plane. most were born in the uk but had lived a long time in lebanon, so saying goodbye was difficult. born in manchester, samia has lived in lebanon for 30 years. it's crazy. so surreal. i couldn't take it any more. it was really, really nervewracking and i'm very, very sad to go, but i'm coming back. these sisters knew it was time to leave but hoped

they could go back soon. leaving, even for a short while, it's, like, hurtful, especially because, like, it's my country. but i think because the situation is out of hand, i don't really have any other option. we're not going to be sure i when we're going to be back, so we're just going to stay hopeful |that it's not going to be for long, | and we're going to come back to our precious country. - there can only be more flights like this as long as it's safe to fly in and out of beirut, and there are still an estimated 4,000-6,000 british citizens in lebanon. today, defence secretaryjohn healey was in cyprus, meeting the forces preparing for a potential large—scale evacuation by a different route. until then, it's hoped this won't be the last flight to make it out. phil mackie, bbc news. let's speak to our international editor, jeremy bowen, who's injerusalem. jeremy, what might happen next? iran israel said they are both

planning fresh attacks, there is no sign of the stopping, is there? h0. sign of the stopping, is there? no, sadly there — sign of the stopping, is there? no, sadly there isn't. _ sign of the stopping, is there? iifr, sadly there isn't. it sign of the stopping, is there? iirr, sadly there isn't. it seems that looking at everything that is going on at the moment in the region that the slide towards an even worse wider war that millions of people in the middle east and the worried world looking on have been very concerned about for a year now, since those hamas attacks on israel, it seems that that slide is happening. i have spoken to senior western officials who have said there doesn't seem to be any room for diplomacy at the moment. that is because what has been called the shadow wall between israel and iran has come out into the open and i think what is going to determine the next phases and how fast this thing continues to slide is what israel does when it hits back at iran as it

said that it will do. there are voices in israel who believe that this is a chance to do some real damage to the islamic republic. the iranians said they don't want an all—out war because they figured they had another way of fighting it which was by harassing and hurting israel, using allies like hezbollah and various other proxies, but the israeli decision to go on the offensive, to decapitate hezbollah, to invade the southern lab anon has smashed that strategy. if you look at the fact that now the iranians think they need to escalate, it is a really dangerous mix.— really dangerous mix. thank you, jerem . really dangerous mix. thank you, jeremy- the _ really dangerous mix. thank you, jeremy- the idf— really dangerous mix. thank you, jeremy. the idf have _ really dangerous mix. thank you, jeremy. the idf have confirmed l really dangerous mix. thank you, i jeremy. the idf have confirmed that those air strikes that we had in the southern suburbs of beirutjust

before we started the programme this evening were targeting, they say, another hezbollah area and i had a message just before coming on air saying i was hoping for some sleep tonight and less destruction here in beirut but it doesn't look like that'll happen this evening. thank you very much. a bbc investigation has tracked down a neo—nazi who shared instructions on social media on how to commit arson during the summer riots in the uk. violent disorder swept parts of the country following the killing of three young girls in southport in late july. social media platforms faced strong criticism for inflaming tensions and mobilising rioters — by allowing extremist rhetoric and the sharing of locations to be targeted. one such platform, telegram, shut down some of the worst channels, including one named southport wake up, that had gathered around ia,000 members. 0ur uk editor, ed thomas, has found the man who played a key role on that account. and he travelled to helsinki to confront him.

inside messaging app telegram's extremist accounts. for the first time, we confront the neo—nazi who creates these posts. we reveal his true identity and his key role as an organiser of this summer's riots. 0urjourney to understand how a senseless killing of children in southport could spiral into chaos has led us here to the finnish suburbs. so this is who we are trying to track down. his telegram account he is known as mr ag, but we know his real name is charles—emmanuel mikko rasanen. he's 20 and he lives on the outskirts of helsinki. and his telegram account was instrumental in provoking the riots across the uk. we traced him here,

to this apartment block. this is it. second floor. rasanen. it was from here after the southport killings he became an administrator, a leader of this telegram group called southport wake up. it had nearly ia,000 members and was crucial to planning unrest across the uk. the first protest in southport was organised here. this poster was made. followers joined together to discuss other locations. and later a list of dozens of refugee centres to target was shared in the group. alongside this, mr ag posted this manual, titled "arson". he writes: "something fun for you to read — take care." we are not fully showing the manual, but it was originally made by russian fascists and details how to avoid the police and target muslims and jews. by now, riots had broken off across the uk for days —

a country in crisis, gripped by violence. my country! let's have it! after two days' of waiting, mr ag... charles emmanuel? ..finally appeared. mikko? bbc news. i said in the e—mail i do not legally consent to any interview and if this continues i will get a restraining order. what do you want to say to people... i will get a restraining order. do you regret your posts? i will get a restraining order if it continues. do you have any regrets? i will call the police now. what do you want to say to people that were injured in these riots. mr ag pinned the arson manual to the top of the southport wake—up group for thousands of members to read. and look at the posts below — one says: "i'm ready for these migrant boys". another says: "you invaders are a stupid bunch

underestimating whites." you posted an arson manual. leave me alone, i'm calling the police. you posted an arson manual. i'm calling the police. are you a neo—nazi? and here are mr ag's personal telegram accounts. he celebrates hitler. he promotes the neo—nazi nordic resistance movement, a group proscribed as terrorists in the usa. during the riots, he had this advice to people going out on the streets: "remember your mask, keep your hoodie up." he also posted dozens of voice notes. national socialism — it's about survival. others we are not playing in full were extremely offensive and anti—semitic. i wish the genocide ofjews... do you want to say anything to people in britain? you were an administrator of the southport wake up page on telegram. you posted an son manual.

do you accept any responsibility for what you did? have you got anything to say to people in britain? police officers were injured. as families were grieving the deaths of their children, you were posting arson manuals. you have posted anti—semitic reports, you have celebrated adolf hitler's birthday. what do you want to say to people in britain? nothing to say from mr ag. we left him on the phone, calling for the police, accusing us of harassment. so there appears to be no regrets, no apology from one of the key agitators of the uk riots. now, here in finland, seemingly out of reach of the british authorities. finnish police wouldn't comment, but said it was aware of the matter.

if he was in the uk he would be arrested. this is a wake—up and we cannot underestimate the significance of the internet with terrorism acts. it is undoubtedly the major thing that has happened since i started myjob. finnish police wouldn't comment, but said it was aware of the matter. the uk government told us it wouldn't let the internet serve as a haven for those seeking division in our communities. but mr rasanen is free and his telegram social media posts are still open for him to use. downing street says sir keir starmer has paid back more than £6,000 worth of gifts and hospitality that he received since becoming prime minister — following an ongoing controversy over donations. 0ur political correspondent, alex forsyth, reports. in brussels today, the prime minister wanted to focus on relations with european leaders, but the issue of freebies followed him here.

keir starmer announced he'd repaid some of what he's received in gifts, saying it was the right thing to do as he looks to tighten the rules for ministers. we came in as a government of change. we are now going to bring forward principles for donations because until now, politicians have used their best individualjudgement on a case by case basis. i think we need some principles of general application. so i took the decision that until the principles are in place, it was right for me to make those repayments. tickets to see taylor swift, the cost of clothes rented from a fashion designer, and tickets to the races in doncaster are all being repaid by the prime minister, a total of about £6,000 — some, but not all, of what he's received. tonight, the conservatives have issued a statement saying there are questions over keir starmer�*s decision to repay some of what he received in gifts and hospitality, including whether other cabinet ministers may choose to follow suit. downing street is clearly keen to move on from this, hoping that clearer guidance about what ministers should

and shouldn't accept will help draw a line under what has undoubtedly been a difficult issue. today, though, in a separate development, it emerged lord alli, the man behind some of the donations to labour, is being investigated by the parliamentary authorities over whether he properly registered all of his interests. it's understood to be a clerical issue. labour says they are confident he has. thank you for your questions. so still the scrutiny continues. alex forsyth, bbc news, westminster. the eu and uk have pledged to hold the first of a series of annual summits next year — following talks in brussels aimed at resetting post—brexit relations. after meeting the european commission president ursula von der leyen, sir keir starmer said they'd be working together on shared challenges like the economy, security, and illegal migration.

the four conservative mps vying to become the party's next leader have all addressed the final day of its annual conference. the next round of voting starts in a week and the new leader will be announced a month today. 0ur political editor, chris mason reports. 0nto the stage one by one, the candidates for conservative leader. the job — hauling their party out of the deepest of holes, colossal election defeat. the speech that felt like a potential game—changer came from the man who used to be home secretary, james cleverly, who channelled the former us president ronald reagan in trying to be upbeat. so let's be more like reagan. let's be enthusiastic, relatable, positive, optimistic. let's be more normal. laughter he said the property sales tax stamp duty should be scrapped and adapted a line gordon brown once used about his rivals.

now is not the time for an apprentice. who could that possibly be a reference to? well, all the others, really, including the frontrunner robertjenrick, who had this blunt critique of the conservative record in office. we failed to deliver a strong nhs, the strong economy and, yes, a strong border. he wants the uk to leave the european convention on human rights and have a law to cut immigration. if i am your leader, i will fight for the effective freeze in net migration our country needs. there's no end to branded millinery here, including for the candidate with a mention of headgear in his name. the fightback starts now. we will focus on what the british people need and be absolutely. ruthless about delivering it. from health care and . immigration to security and education, we will deliver. mr tugendhat also wants

a migration limit. last up today, the favourite for many here, kemi badenoch. she talked about free speech, gender, and said she was not a climate change sceptic, but a net—zero sceptic. some people say i like a fight. i can't imagine where they got that idea. laughter. but it's not true. i do not like to fight, but i'm not afraid to fight. i don't fight for the sake of fighting, but i do fight for you. both frontrunners, kemi badenoch and robertjenrick, have had difficult days at this conference, and... it felt today like james cleverly made the most of his moment. the question is whether that will make any difference. the next round of voting is next week. the winner will be announced next month. chris mason, bbc news, in birmingham. and with details of what's coming up on newsnight on bbc two, here's victoria derbyshire.

is the ground fighting in tenses in lebanon a leading military expert says what might happen next and how israel might respond following iran's missile assault. plus we will talk live to actress amanda abington in her first interview after the bbc apologised to her and upheld some of the complaints about her strictly dance partner. join us then. football now — and in champions league action, aston villa have played their first home game in europe's elite competition in over a0 years. our sports correspondent, nesta mcgregor, was watching at villa park. villa park may be quiet now but a few minutes ago it was deafening. a memorable night. villa park hosting top—flight european football for the first time in over a0 years. fireworks before kick—off, the game itself was a bit of a slow burner until late in the second half

substitute duran with an audacious effort. the bayern munich goalkeeper stranded. bayern munich fans stunned. the only goal of the game. aston villa defeat in one of the giants of the game. bayern munich were the favourites to win the trophy. a good night for liverpool at anfield, they were 2—0 winners over bologna. serve with the pick of the goals. a great night for english clubs. villa fans will be happy to tell you that one of the most famous night was a 1—0 win over bayern munich, no trophy tonight, but that victory won't do them any harm. thanks very much. the king has been given a samoan dancing lesson ahead of his trip to the pacific nation later this month. and his majesty didn't hesitate to show off his moves. the lesson was given by freddy tuilagi — an honorary consul with the samoan high commission — and the brother of former england rugby international manu tuilagi.

time for a look at the weather. and if you want to continue watching the bbc news at ten, please turn over to bbc one or you can watch on iplayer. next, it's newsnight.