tonight at ten, iran's supreme leader defends his country's missile strike on israel earlier this week. in a rare speech, leading friday prayers, ayatollah khamenei called it "minimum punishment" for israel's actions. as israel carries out more strikes on lebanon, israeli forces continue to battle hezbollah on its northern border. now you can hear the sirens are going off, telling us to get out of the area. blasts, siren wails. and with the first anniversary of the hamas attack on israel approaching, we'll report from a military base on the border with gaza which was overrun that day and how warnings were ignored. also on the programme... a police officer is charged over the death of an 81—year—old woman killed in a collision with a motorcycle that was

part of a royal escort. take a look at what happened... donald trump returns this weekend to the city where he survived a shooting. we speak to the widow of a man there who died. i'm angry because there were a lot of mistakes made that day. and it didn't have to happen. soak it up! and britannia rules the waves, almost. great britain are in the final of the america's cup. and stay with us here on bbc news for continuing coverage and analysis from our team of correspondents in the uk and around the world.

good evening and welcome to the bbc news at ten, live from beirut. iran's supreme leader has spoken to defend attacks on israel in a rare public address, saying muslim nations must unite against what he called a common enemy. it is one of today's main developments in the middle east as israel continues its ground and air assault against iran—backed hezbollah here in lebanon. in front of a huge crowd in tehran, ayatollah khamenei tried to justify iran's attack on israel as he led friday prayers for the first time in four years. tonight, we'll be analysing the significance of that speech. meanwhile, israel says its forces have hit more than 2,000 sites since ground operations began in southern lebanon on tuesday. this recent map shows weapons strikes across the region. attacks by israel are shown in red and those by hezbollah, rockets fired into northern israel, are in purple.

israel has ordered residents in these southern lebanese communities, around 30 villages, here marked in orange, to leave their homes for their own safety. the areas in grey show places which have already received evacuation orders since tuesday. this morning, an israeli strike cut a key route with syria. the masnaa crossing has been used by thousands of refugees who've been fleeing the bombing by israel. tonight we'll be assessing the situation and the pressure on people displaced by the airstrikes with our senior international correspondent 0rla guerin. but first, the latest from the israel—lebanon border with our correspondent lucy williamson. hezbollah rockets are no longer a response to israeli troops in gaza, but to israeli troops at home, mapping their path through lebanon's border villages. we're starting to see more signs of resistance to israeli forces

on the other side of the border. even a year of air strikes, intelligence operations, raids by special forces have not destroyed hezbollah�*s ability to fight backjust a few miles in. sirens. we've just heard some bursts of small arms fire and what sounded like some grenades from the israeli army, and now you can hear the sirens going off, telling us to get out of the area. explosions. we've just heard a series of very loud explosions, what seems to be rockets landing nearby, some small arms fire across the border. it seems the israeli army is pushing into a location, and this was the response. go. most of the residents along this border have been evacuated. come on, time to go.

but in the arab—israeli town ofjish a few miles down the road, many people have stayed. the sound of israeli artillery firing from the hill above. the mayor is one of many here with family ties to lebanon. israel's ground war has sparked mixed emotions, he says. it's more than afraid. afraid is something forjust a few minutes. we have one year of afraid. ican't... i don't know how to say it, but it's fear for a long time. and they don't know when, how, how it will finish. this is israel's third ground war in lebanon. so far, those wars have been easier to start than to end. lucy williamson, bbc news, the israel—lebanon border. lebanon says a number

of hospitals in the south of the country are out of action, as israel continues its offensive against hezbollah. the un says all 900 government shelters for the displaced are now full. 0ur senior international correspondent 0rla guerin reports from southern lebanon. an escape route from lebanon today, now passable, just, by foot. israel bombed the road overnight, claiming hezbollah were smuggling weapons beneath it. most of those struggling across this border are syrians, escaping lebanon's war to go home to their own. who wouldn't want to escape this? explosions. beirut last night, another massive israeli strike, one mile from the airport. the target — the likely next leader

of hezbollah, his fate unknown. day and night and countrywide, israel is bombing. this is in the south, in tyre. was there a hezbollah target here? we don't know, but locals say israel killed five people from one family, including two women and a baby. everybody here were children. children, everybody here. why, why? hassan was here outside his coffee shop when the air strike killed his neighbours at the weekend. translation: two missiles came. i saw the first one landing. i was thrown from there to there. and the second missile sent me flying again, me and the guys. now i'm terrified if i hear this sound.

hassan insists there were no weapons stood nearby, and all the dead were civilians. translation: it's not right. it's not right at all. i wish i had died with them. in lebanon now, many are lost and weary, and fear this war may bejust beginning. so we're just hearing explosions now. that's the sound of outgoing fire. that's rockets being fired from quite close by hezbollah, targeting israeli positions, a whole stream of rockets being fired now. israel has released this footage of its troops on lebanese soil, apparently advancing.

but the invaders may face a hard fight here, as happened in the past. and how will the middle east look on the day after? few would dare to guess. 0rla guerin, bbc news, southern lebanon. as we've heard, iran's supreme leader ayatollah khamenei led friday prayers in tehran this morning, delivering a defiant address and saying his country will not back down in its confrontation with israel. caroline hawley looks at the significance of his speech. this is the man who, as his title suggests, has ultimate power in iran. he very rarely leads friday prayers, so the world was watching what he had to say today. the crowds were huge, their regime trying to project an image of strength after a

series of humiliating blows to its allies. supporters gathered first to commemorate the hezbollah leader hassan nasrallah, killed in an israeli air strike a week ago today. and then out came the supreme leader, who last friday was reported to have gone into hiding amid fears for his safety. he tried to rally muslims across the middle east against israel. he defended the hamas attack 0ctober against israel. he defended the hamas attack october the 7th and insisted iran's missile attack earlier this week was a completely legitimate response to what israel had done. �* ,, �* legitimate response to what israel had done. ~ ,, ~ . ., legitimate response to what israel had done. ~ ,, ~ ~ ., ., had done. translation: what our armed forces _ had done. translation: what our armed forces did was _ had done. translation: what our armed forces did was the _ had done. translation: what our armed forces did was the minimum j armed forces did was the minimum punishment for the usurping zionist regime's astonishing crimes. fin regime's astonishing crimes. on tuesday night, iran fired close to 200 ballistic missiles at israel, most of them shut down, with one palestinian man killed in the west bank. benjamin netanyahu has said israel will pay a heavy price, and warned there was nowhere in the middle east israel could not reach.

iran is now central to the conflict spreading across the region. it backs armed groups that are enemies of israel, and israel is taking them on one by one. take gaza, where hamas has been pounded by israel with thousands of its fighters killed. now, hezbollah in lebanon, where israeli air strikes are taking out its leaders and infrastructure. and then the houthis in yemen have been attacking shipping in the red sea. israel has struck them too, and all of this is a direct challenge to iran and its regional power. the supreme leader's message today was despite these setbacks, its so—called axis of resistance won't back down. so-called axis of resistance won't back down-— so-called axis of resistance won't back down._ and - so-called axis of resistance won't i back down._ and tonight, back down. hey, folks. and tonight, president biden _ back down. hey, folks. and tonight, president biden said _ back down. hey, folks. and tonight, president biden said israel - back down. hey, folks. and tonight, president biden said israel is - back down. hey, folks. and tonight, president biden said israel is still i president biden said israel is still considering its response to iran's missile attack. the considering its response to iran's missile attack.— missile attack. the israelis have every right _ missile attack. the israelis have every right to — missile attack. the israelis have every right to respond _ missile attack. the israelis have every right to respond to - missile attack. the israelis have every right to respond to the - every right to respond to the vicious attacks on them notjust from the iranians, but from everyone

from the iranians, but from everyone from hezbollah, the houthis. anyway. but the fact is that they have to be very much more careful about dealing with civilian casualties.— with civilian casualties. ayatollah alli khamenei _ with civilian casualties. ayatollah alli khamenei also _ with civilian casualties. ayatollah alli khamenei also made - with civilian casualties. ayatollah alli khamenei also made it - with civilian casualties. ayatollah alli khamenei also made it clear| alli khamenei also made it clear that iran will hit back if it feels it needs to, as it braces itself for israel's retaliation in whatever form that comes. the expectation is that there will be more israeli air strikes in southern lebanon tonight and here in beirut, we are into the early hours of the morning, which is when they tend to come. the last few nights here have been loud and deadly. is that escalation continues, the british government has said this evening that it plans for a fourth and final, for now at least, charter flight to leave the country on sunday, taking back british nationals who want to leave. they have said that anybody who is still here in lebanon should register their presence if they want to book a seat on that flight. re—2. anna

foster, reporting from beirut. well, this present war in the middle east can be traced back to nearly a year ago, october 7th last year, when israel s military was overwhelmed as thousands of hamas gunmen breached the security barrier between israel and gaza. just a kilometerfrom the border, the military base of nahal 0z found itself on the frontline of the attack and in less than five hours it was overrun. jon donnison has been taking a look at warnings from that base which were ignored and how it fell to hamas. shouting. dawn on october the 7th, and hamas gunmen are already swarming nahal 0z. .. gunfire. ..one of israel's closest military bases to gaza, right on the front line. attacking on the ground and from the air. with drones, even paragliders.

within hours, the base is overrun and over 60 israeli soldiers are dead. among those taken hostage was naama levy, then 19 and only in her second day in thejob, bloodied and pinned against the wall. "i have friends in palestine," she pleaded. she was taken to gaza, where she has been for 12 months. after i could take in the wounds, the blood, the horror of those moments, i knew she was going to say something like that. you know, "i'm not the enemy, i have friends in palestine." that is my naama. the young soldier's job was what is called a spotter. unarmed, she was one of dozens of mostly young women who monitored suspicious activity in gaza. they had warned that hamas was planning something big for years, its fighters training in footage like this.

the nahal 0z base is now completely destroyed and some of the women spotters who worked there are asking why it wasn't better protected. shimron is one of the few who didn't die. she didn't want to give her real name, and her words are re—enacted by a bbc producer. they told me, "get up, the terrorists are here outside the door." i thought it wasn't real. it didn't make sense that they would be here inside the military base. and she is not the only person saying that if nahal 0z had been better reinforced, the soldiers there could have helped stop hamas from going on to kill hundreds of israelis. if that post was stronger and pushed back hamas in the area, it could save a lot of lives. but even if nahal oz and other posts were standing, it could not prevent totally the takeover, but it could save a lot of lives.

hundreds of lives? most probably hundreds of lives, yes. and for the families of those who were killed or taken hostage, they want answers. there should be protection, tanks, arms, combat soldiers, etc. it is painful to understand. one year on, there are still so many questions. why wasn't intelligence acted on? how did one of the world's most powerful militaries suffer its biggest ever defeat to a much inferiorforce? the israeli army says it is still investigating what happened at nahal oz, a base that should have been the country's first line of defence. jon donnison, bbc news, jerusalem. and faisal islam will have more on newsnight on bbc two shortly. yes, as president biden says, think about other alternatives to striking

is rainy and oilfields and if he was in their shoes, are they looking at other alternatives and what are the consequences of the strikes? plus, does the government's new green growth risks leaving the public behind. we are after the bbc news that 10:30pm. a metropolitan police officer has been charged over the death of an 81—year—old woman who died after a crash with a motorcycle that was part of a security escort for sophie wessex, the duchess of edinburgh. the incident happened in may last year. graham satchell reports. helen holland had been visiting her sister in west london when she was hit by a police motorcycle that had been part of a royal convoy. at the time, her son, seen here leaving flowers at the scene, said the 81—year—old had suffered multiple broken bones and massive internal injuries. she died two weeks later in hospital. after her death, sophie, the duchess of edinburgh, seen here with her husband edward, said she was deeply saddened and expressed her condolences and sympathies to ms holland's family.

the collision happened near a pelican crossing in earls court in west london on a busy road with fast—moving traffic. after an investigation by the independent 0ffice for police conduct, 67—year—old met police officer christopher harrison has been charged with causing death by careless driving. mr harrison will appear in court next month. graham satchell, bbc news. two metropolitan police officers who were sacked for gross misconduct after stopping the british sprinter bianca williams and her partner ricardo dos santos have been handed theirjobs back and will receive backpay. it follows their winning an appeal against their dismissal. the athletes were searched for drugs in july 2020 while their three—month—old baby was in the car. nothing was found. mr dos santos described the decision as "disappointing" and said he and ms williams would challenge it in the civil courts. sir keir starmer has set out plans to invest almost £22 billion

in projects to capture and store carbon over the next 25 years, saying the move would kickstart growth. it's hoped the funding for two areas in merseyside and teesside will create thousands ofjobs, attract private investment and help the uk meet climate goals. tomorrow, the republican nominee for the us presidency, donald trump, will return to the city of butler in the state of pennsylvania where he was injured in an assassination attempt at a rally injuly. 0ur correspondent gary 0'donoghue, who was there at the time of the attack, has returned to the swing state to speak to people who were affected that day, including the widow of a former volunteer fire—fighter who was killed, hit by a bullet meant for mr trump. if you want to really see something... it's a moment that will go down in history... ..take a look at what happened... gunshots. get down, get down, get down. ..a former president coming within inches of losing his life. there's frantic activity among the police...

a book bag next to him. give me a bleep hard line! ..as they look for other possible gunmen. this building, he was on top of this building! meanwhile, those closest to the stage are watching donald trump on the floor. this video, taken just moments later. while donald trump survived, corey comperatore did not. the former volunteer fire chief losing his life as he protected his wife and daughters. his widow, helen, told me how they'd been childhood sweethearts. the day before he was killed, my youngest daughter pulled out his senior photo that he had given to me. and on the back he had written that i was his best... thanked me for being his best friend. and he actually teared up and looked at me and said, "thank you for being my best friend". so it was just kind of weird

that we had that moment, you know, the day before. throughout the rally, corey had joked how he believed the former president would get him up on stage. less than a week later, corey's jacket was displayed on stage as donald trump accepted the republican nomination. ijust cried because, you know, i said he got his moment on stage with trump. so, you know, it was kind of like a nice moment, but it was a sad moment at the same time. two people with an exceptional view that day were a mother and son, ii—year—old gino, dressed as the former president, just feet from the stage. i felt everything. i felt sad, scared, mad that someone would do this. the police are down there running around on the ground. _ we're like, "hey man, there's a guy on the roof with a rifle". _ and the police are like, "huh? "what" ? you know, like they didn't know what was going on. i

just outside the rally, me and my team were talking to trump supporters about what they'd seen when one man told us an extraordinary story. his words would reverberate around the world. three months later, he has no regrets. i feel proud of it. i everything that i told you that| night has proven out to be true from everything that's come out since then. _ there's still no clear answer to the question why thomas crooks attempted to assassinate donald trump. but we do now have a much clearer idea about the series of security blunders that allowed him to do so. he was able to fly a drone over the site undetected. police saw him using a rangefinder to judge the distance to the stage, yet still he was able to climb onto a roof and fire eight shots. moments after that, crooks was dead, a single shot to the head from a secret service sniper. multiple inquiries are trying to establish who was to blame,

with much of the focus now on the actions of the secret service. if you're the secret service, if you're homeland security, if you're the most elite of the elite, how could you have failed in almost every single thing that needed to be covered? do you feel angry about losing him? yeah. very. i'm angry because, uh, there were a lot of mistakes made that day. and it didn't have to happen. it didn't have to happen. there are mixed feelings about donald trump's return to butler. some parents deciding to keep their children away. but in this staunchly pro—trump county, many believe they owe it to the former president to welcome him back. gary 0'donoghue, bbc news butler, pennsylvania. and bbc verify�*s ros atkins has been examining what happened on that day

injuly as donald trump returns to the town where he was shot. you can find his report on the bbc website. ahead of the us presidential election, the department of homeland security has repeated its warnings of the threat that online video and audio fakes could pose in the run—up to the vote. the bbc s disinformation and social media correspondent marianna spring has been investigating how one faked clip divided a baltimore community. this peaceful baltimore suburb with sizeablejewish and black communities found itself at the centre of a storm when an audio clip of its high school's headmaster, seemingly making racist and anti—semitic comments, went viral on social media. between these ungrateful black kids who can't test their way out of a paper bag, or these teachers who don't get it, how hard is it to get these students to meet their grade level expectations? baltimore is one the most safest, unsafest places in the world.

alfie was offended by the clip and decided to re—share it. you hear something like this like, wow. in the back of your mind growing up, you're thinking like, "this is probably the way people actually feel about us". i couldn't corroborate, was it actually a good story that i could repost? but then when i saw it on local news and people in the community started to post it, then i started thinking, "whoa, this may be real". then there was a bombshell. it turned out the audio clip of the principal had been faked using ai. on january the 17th 2024, the baltimore county police department became aware of a voice recording being circulated on social media. we have now conclusive evidence that the recording was not authentic. the suspect identified by the police was a former member of staff at the same school. so let's talk through the clues that it's faked. the story posed a challenge for local journalists, who managed to verify that the audio was faked. is there any indication of how they managed to get that to sound

so much like the principal, like, how he made it? it's very easy to get these tools. it doesn't take much money and it doesn't take much sound. you can use, like, a minute ortwo of a real person's voice to then get that voice to say what you want it to say. the problem was that lots of people within the community already believed the clip to be real. the principal was put on leave pending investigation and became the target of threats and abuse online, all for something he never said. alfie says he'll think twice before sharing a clip like this again. i've been burned by the fire once. i'm not touching the stove again. so i definitely won't listen to everything that's going on. deepfakes can be their most convincing when they target a community. but what happens when their focus is a president or a politician rather than a principal? marianna spring, bbc news, baltimore.

you can listen to episode three of bbc radio 4 s why do you hate me usa on bbc sounds now. for the first time in 60 years, great britain has reached the america's cup final after beating italy in the qualifying event. britain has never won the world's oldest sporting competition. the team will now challenge the defending champions new zealand next week. our sports editor, dan roan, was watching the race in barcelona. cheering. soak it up! british sailing had waited 60 years for this. ineos britannia celebrating becoming the country's first team to reach the final of the america's cup since 1964. how sweet it must taste for ben ainslie! earlier, the skipper had arrived for a crucial day's racing at their base in barcelona. bankrolled by billionaire sirjim ratcliffe, the team needing one win to seal this qualifying event against italy. is this the day that britannia creates history?

in light winds, ainslie and his team made a good start, leading opponents luna rossa by 150 metres after the first leg of eight. the italians close to within 30 metres after the fifth leg, but ineos britannia wouldn't be denied, extending their lead and clinching a dramatic series by seven wins to four. ineos britannia rules the waves in the mediterranean! four—time olympic champion ainslie delighted. just a massive day for our team and i can't say how proud i am of everyone. meanwhile, the crew's friends and family, watching on back at the team's base onshore, able to celebrate. this is how much it means to have ended britain's long, long wait for a place in sailing's most prestigious competition. three years ago, these sailors tasted the pain of defeat at this stage of the competition, but now they are through to the america's cup itself. ten years since we founded the team and it's our third go

at the cup and we've had some good moments and not so good moments, this is definitely the best so far. of course we want to go all the way now. the man who has invested more than £100 million in this campaign able to reflect on finally reaching the sport's most coveted event. it's the oldest, the oldest international trophy in the world, and it's the only one pretty much we've never won. remember that expression, britannia rules the waves? well, we don't in the america's cup, so far. this team will now face formidable defending champions new zealand when the america's cup final gets under way here next weekend. if britain is to win for the first time in 173 years of this event, it will have to beat the best as well as defying history. dan roan, bbc news, barcelona. 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.