the storm is here, it's time for everyone to hunker down, we have massive amounts of resources prepared for the storm. meanwhile, the white house has accused donald trump of spreading lies over the us government's response to hurricanes helene and milton. and the other main stories we're following. israel's defence minister vows a "lethal, precise and surprising" response to iran's missile attack earlier this month. and taiwan celebrates its national day — we'll be live in the capital taipei. welcome to newsday, broadcasting to viewers in the uk and around the world.

it's 10am in singapore and 10pm in florida. in the last 30 minutes, hurricane milton has made landfall in sarasota county. that's according to the national hurricane center. it could be one of the most destructive storms in the state's history. hundreds of thousands of people are already without power. milton is now a strong category three storm as it collides with the coastline in sarasota county and neartampa. we're looking at some live pictures now in tampa, florida near where that storm made landfall — you can see strong winds, rain and water on the street. and a little further down the coast, this is fort myers. you can see strong winds here macro. it you can see strong winds here it has intensified. strong winds and rain. and this was fort myers earlier. you can see the before and after of water coming up over this hotel pool. and just to show how dangerous this storm is, even before it came on shore, it was already causing damage.

the storm's produced several tornadoes in florida. this is a home in fort myers that was hit by one of those tornadoes. the roof is ripped off and the interior already destroyed — hours before the hurricane even made landfall. these pictures from space give you a sense of the size of the monster storm. wind gusts have been measured on land as high as 90 miles per hour — or 144 kilometres. some areas in florida are under an "extreme wind warning". more than 500,000 people are reportedly without power. of course, milton comes only about two weeks after hurricane helene struck the state. many cities in florida have not yet finished cleaning up from that storm. florida's governor, ron desantis gave this update on the storm. at this point, it's too dangerous to evacuate safely, so you have to shelter in place and just hunker down. category three storm for most places in florida, particularly newer construction, likely the building is going to be

able to withstand it, but if you start to get into a situation where trees are snapping, power�*s popping, you have to treat it like a tornado. if you are in a tornado warning, that is a duck and cover in a place that's safe in your structure, those can be very, very dangerous, even in cover. my colleague sumi somaskanda is in miami, and told me more about those tornado warnings which were issued across southern florida, linked to hurricane milton. this was really a dramatic part of today. those tornado warnings issued across southern florida, and indeed the most tornado warnings ever issued in a day. more than 100. florida governor ron desantis earlier talking. reports of damage, and some possible fatalities as well linked to some of the tornadoes. this is all due to these weather conditions.

we were an hour north earlier today and the conditions are extremely hot, humid and muggy, and when that mixes with the cooler air, the big clouds turn into tornadoes and move very quickly. we mentioned earlier, we were reporting at an evacuation centre when we heard there was a tornado a few streets north, and we got out pretty quickly. they were moving quickly and there were reports of sightings all over the area. again, keep in mind, we are three and a half hours from where the storm has made landfall, so it gives a sense of the power of the weather conditions the storm has brought. absolutely. you mentioned it has made landfall, people were told to evacuate. now there are shelter in place orders instead — is it too late for them to get out of there? yeah, now the storm has made landfall close to sarasota, it is indeed too late for people to leave.

that's why governor ron desantis said to shelter in place. as we understand, many, many people did leave, millions evacuated ahead of the storm. we saw people evacuating today, going to the shelters where we were reporting earlier. but we know some people chose to stay home. i spoke a few minutes ago with friends in tampa, and initially it had been predicted the storm would hit directly in tampa bay. it moved a bit south, but they are hunkering down. the winds are pretty severe, not that much rain, has flickered a few times but so far things are ok. again, the storm is so massive, it will take several hours to understand the destruction it has left behind and what impact it has had. what are the resources available to the state, and on standby for recovery? certainly there are those

federal resources, the emergency management agency said they have more than 1000 people in florida prepared to help. 20 million meals, a0 million litres of water, so plenty of resources. and the florida governor detailed many resources. national guard on hand. they have hundreds and hundreds of trucks and we saw hundreds of people in miami ready to clear debris and restore power. that has to wait until the eye of the storm passes, but governor desantis seemed confident he believes the state can handle it and move forward once the storm has passed. speaking at the white house this evening, president biden warned the "irresponsible and relentless promotion" of disinformation is undermining confidence in the preparations for hurricane milton. mr biden accused former president trump of being at the forefront of spreading what he called "outright lies". 0ver over the last few weeks, there

has been reckless and irresponsible and relentless promotion of disinformation and outright lies about what's going on. it's undermining confidence of the people in florida. an incredible rescue work being undertaken. literally thousands of fellow americans putting their lives at stake, putting them on the line to do the dangerous work that needs to be done. it's harmful to those who most need help, quite frankly, these lies are unamerican and there is simply no place for them. not now, not ever. former president trump has led this onslaught of lies, about properties being confiscated. it's simply not true. they are saying people impacted will receive $750 in cash and no more. that is simply not true either. i'm joined now by our north america correspondent david willis, who's monitoring

events from los angeles. the accusations president biden levelled at former president trump, he mentioned lies being told when it comes to payments. can you give me an idea of the background of this story? it’s background of this story? it's interesting. _ background of this story? it�*s interesting, isn't it? with lesser than a month to go to the us presidential election, lesser than a month to go to the us presidential election, more or less everything in this more or less everything in this country is political right now. country is political right now. that's why we saw president that's why we saw president biden and his deputy kamala biden and his deputy kamala harris condemning what they harris condemning what they called the spreading of lies by called the spreading of lies by leading republicans, donald leading republicans, donald trump chief among them. we trump chief among them. we heard president biden there heard president biden there condemning what he called the condemning what he called the reckless irresponsible and reckless irresponsible and relentless promotion of relentless promotion of disinformation and outright disinformation and outright lies. he said those sort of lies. he said those sort of conspiracy theories had conspiracy theories had weakened the morale of rescue weakened the morale of rescue workers and confused victims of workers and confused victims of

hurricane helene which struck hurricane helene which struck the same part of to the same part of florida just two weeks ago. mr trump and his running matejd vance has put around a number of conspiracy theories. among them, the suggestion that kamala harris was siphoning off money from the helene rescue and recovery effort to hours illegal immigrants. also claims that federal officials tasked with handing out relief suppliers were looking to seize people's land. —— house illegal immigrants. but perhaps the widest claim of all was by republican congresswoman marjorie taylor greene who claimed the government in some way controlled the weather. president biden said today that those sort of claims were dangerous and, as he put it, unamerican.— dangerous and, as he put it, unamerican. . ., unamerican. thanks, david, and suggestions... _ unamerican. thanks, david, and suggestions... we _ unamerican. thanks, david, and suggestions... we talked -

unamerican. thanks, david, and suggestions... we talked a - unamerican. thanks, david, and suggestions... we talked a lot i suggestions... we talked a lot about this the last couple of weeks with hurricane helene, are we seeing this is having an impact with the social media spread, and how can it be tackled?— tackled? well, it can be tackled. _ tackled? well, it can be tackled, as _ tackled? well, it can be tackled, as the - tackled? well, it can be - tackled, as the government is clearly intent on doing, by funnelling mass resources into this area.

it's part of an attempt, i think, by the biden administration to prove it is not taking this lightly, and to head off any potential criticism that might come from political rivals.— political rivals. david, thank ou. ratan tata — who led one of india's biggest conglomerates, the tata group — has died in mumbai aged 86. after taking over the company in 1991, he transformed it into a global corporation. the tata group is one of india's largest companies, with annual revenues in excess of $100 billion. in a statement, the current chairman described mr tata as a "truly uncommon leader". and we'll have more on the life and legacy of ratan tata coming up shortly in business today. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news. let's look at some other stories making news. it has been revealed that a 15—year—old girl who was stabbed to death in northumberland last year was killed by her ex—boyfriend who was 16 at the time.

ajudge has now allowed holly newton's killer to be named as logan macphail, saying the nature of the relationship was a key factor in the case. he was found guilty of murdering her last summer. an investigation looking into the care of children by the orthopaedic surgeon yaserjabbar at great 0rmond street hospital has been expanded to include four other london hospitals where he worked. an earlier review of his treatment of more than 700 children had already concluded that many had been subject to "incorrect" and "unsuitable" surgery. the high court has ordered rebekah vardy to pay coleen rooney a further £100,000 as part of their legal dispute. their barristers have been back at the high court in a dispute about legal fees, two years after mrs va rdy lost her libel battle, when she was found to have leaked private information about mrs rooney to the press. you're live with bbc news. in lebanon, fighting continues between hezbollah and israeli forces.

at least ten people were injured and four killed in an israeli airstrike on the village of wardaniyeh in southern lebanon on wednesday. lebanon's national news agency says the strike hit a hotel housing displaced families. israel has continued to bomb targets in the capital, beirut. video taken wednesday shows serious damage in the city's southern suburbs, home to several hezbollah buildings. and israel dropped bombs on towns in southern lebanon, including heam in southeast lebanon, and in tyre, the southwestern port city. 0ur senior international correspondent 0rla guerin sent this report from tyre. the view from tyre — israel's ever—expanding war in the name of self—defence. lebanon being pounded, like gaza before it. israel says it's targeting hezbollah. as we watch the strikes get

close, then closer still. well, this strike has just come in right behind our hotel — incredibly loud, incredibly close. we can hear sirens now, first aid rushing to the scene. and there are some civilians i can see very close to the area of the blast. emerging from the smoke, a mother and child who had tried to escape the war with a trip to the beach. israel hit this building just off the strand, which houses a pro—iranian tv channel. there was one dead in the strike. hezbollah, too, keeps striking, firing rockets across the border, killing a man and a woman in israel today. all the air strikes have

not put paid to this. neither has the ground invasion. this is the latest footage released by israel, said to show its troops on lebanese soil in the south. here in tyre, a crisis unit is trying to keep the city alive, getting food and blankets to shelters and fuel to hospitals. this father appears with his children, desperate for help. the director, mortada mhanna, worries for his team, some of whom had to flee their homes. i think it's a critical and very dangerous situation for us because israel, our enemy, israel didn't take care for any civilian people. they haven't. ..

no feelings? no feelings. but your decision is to remain, you will stay? i will stay. i will stay on my office, on my home, on my land. others are staying, too, despite wrenching losses. here, a son's grief. he is brought to his knees, and consoled by a grave—digger. his elderly mother, leila, was killed by an israeli air strike — the 18th person to be buried here. war has destroyed the rituals of life and of death in lebanon. while prayers are being said

here now, this is a quick burial for one of those killed recently. a mass grave has been dug here. we've been told that people will be buried here temporarily, and they'll be exhumed and reburied when the situation is safer. he rages at israel. "until our last breath, we won't leave our land," he says. "if we die, we will all be buried here." then he helps to lay her to rest — his last act for his mother. 0rla guerin, bbc news, tyre. now turning to israel, where a rocket fired from hezbollah killed two people in the northern israeli town of kiryat shmona on wednesday. the mayor said a man and woman in their 40s were walking their dogs

when the rocket fell near them. hezbollah also fired a barrage of rockets near the israeli port—city of haifa. some were intercepted while others fell in the area, causing injuries. there was a mass stabbing attack in the central israeli city of hadera. at least six people were stabbed, in four different locations, by a man riding a motorcycle. local police took the suspect into custody. as israel expands operations against hezbollah in lebanon, there are growing questions over how it will respond, to iran's multiple missile attack a week ago. the israeli defence minister, yoav gallant, says any response will be "deadly, precise and surprising" and he called iran's missile attack "aggressive but imprecise". however as america calls for restraint, influential voices in israel want a powerful message sent to iran. indeed, former israeli prime minister naftali bennett has urged benjamin netanyahu to go after iran's nuclear facilities, a suggestion that makes washington very nervous. he's been speaking to the bbc�*s international editor, jeremy bowen.

israel's onslaught against its enemies — this was an attack in beirut last saturday on a senior hezbollah leader — wouldn't have been possible without american weapons and diplomatic support. even though israel's military hardware depends on us resupply, washington has been reluctant to pressure israel when, asjoe biden has put it, they go over the top. since april, when iran attacked israel with missiles after an israeli airstrike on their embassy in damascus, the us has been telling the israelis not to escalate by hitting iran's nuclear sites, even after the latest iranian attack last week. now, influential voices in israel want to ignore us wishes. former prime minister naftali bennett is one of them, saying this opportunity should not be missed. so we're at the 11th hour, which was not the case three years ago, but there's also

an ability that didn't exist until now because essentially, iran was defending itself with two arms, hezbollah and hamas. they were sort of its insurance policy against a strike. but now both of those arms are pretty much neutralised. so the defences are down — is that what you're saying? exactly, and the road is paved. is it the case you want the americans to do it for you? i can tell you, we've never asked, in our history, of america to fight our wars or to send soldiers to fight our wars. iran, from iran's point of view, they might think they're defending themselves, because you think about it, israel escalated the war in lebanon. israel decided to assassinate the leader of hezbollah, hassan nasrallah, a very big ally of theirs. and so they were pushed into a position, weren't they, where they had to respond? quite the contrary. you're mistaking the events. there is a regional war taking place, but the,

the head of the octopus that's conducting all this war is the only part that's immune. it's unbelievable, if you think about it. all of this mess, all of this chaos, all of this death is being governed and managed from tehran. isn't the danger you might speed that up? provoke them into creating a bomb faster? fast forward 2007. israel took out syria's nuclear reactor. again, people don't like it, but we saved the world from assad with nuclear weapons. we have the thankless job of taking out nuclear facilities of the worst regimes in the world. everyone likes to criticise us, but we're doing thatjob. and if they get that bomb, it's everyone's problem, it's not our problem. i want to see how londoners will feel when there's an intercontinental ballistic missile with a nuclear bomb. we cannot allow that to happen. israelis are getting on with their lives while their government decides

how to retaliate for the ballistic missile attack last week. the next steps in this spiralling war depend on that decision. celebrations are getting underway in taiwan, as the island comemorates the 113th anniversary of it officially becoming the republic of china. these are live pictures from the capital in taipei, where the president william lai to speak soon. the anniversary comes amid rising tensions with china, something the president is expected to address in his speech. let's cross live to our correspondent ruper wingfield hayes. cheerleaders dancing, marching bands, what do we expect to hear from bands, what do we expect to hearfrom president lai? we hear from president lai? we understand _ hear from president lai? - understand he has told visiting dignitaries in the last week or two that they do not need to be worried there are going to be any big surprises in his

speech. i think that's an indication of the concern that some of taiwan's allies have had with the new presidency of lai ching—te who took over in may after winning the election in january. may after winning the election injanuary. president lai is considered more hostile to china than his predecessors and to the opposition parties. so he is reassuring his allies that he is not going to fundamentally change anything in taiwan. we expect him to make a speech talking about taiwan's achievements, its history, the fact that it is, in his words, a sovereign, independent country that has never been part of the people's republic of china. this is a tradition the ruling democratic progressive party have taken for the last eight years or more. it's something that antagonises the government in beijing a great deal. they absolutely do not like president lai and his government, and have said so

forcefully in recent days. they consider him pro—taiwan independence and, in their word, hostile and provocative towards china. he will say he is not, that he wants peace across the taiwan straits, but what we have seen in the few months since he took over as president is a ramping up of chinese military pressure around the island. a dramatic increase in the number of ships and aircraft coming around taiwan, very close to taiwan, every single day. he will certainly want to talk about that and taiwan's response to that and taiwan's response to that as well.— that as well. just briefly, you mention how _ that as well. just briefly, you mention how he _ that as well. just briefly, you mention how he is _ that as well. just briefly, you mention how he is being - that as well. just briefly, you | mention how he is being seen that as well. just briefly, you - mention how he is being seen as a separatist, provocative by beijing. do people feel like it is more insecure as a result of that provocative conversation? actually, his polling figures have gone up since he was elected. he was elected with 34% of the popular vote. recent

opinion polls show a high 40s support rate for president lai, so his popularity has increased. but i saw an opinion poll this week that said around half the population here are fearful of chinese invasion of the island in the next few years. about half are not. so it really divided opinion in taiwan over the threat from china. ., ~' ,, ~ taiwan over the threat from china. . ~ ,, ~ , china. thank you. we will be monitoring — china. thank you. we will be monitoring the _ china. thank you. we will be j monitoring the all-important monitoring the all—important speech in the next half an hour or so. that's all for now — stay with bbc news. check out the live page on the website for all the coverage on hurricane milton. that's all for now. hello. 0ur weather has started to turn a little bit cooler. you might have noticed the change, and the trend is set to continue as well. well, here in north yorkshire, we had signs of the change, waves being driven

onto the beaches here by the strengthening north to north—easterly wind. temperatures on tuesday in rhyl got up to 17 degrees, but it was just 12 on wednesday, a drop of some five degrees celsius. the drop in temperatures came as these northerly winds worked in. now, over the next few hours, we've still got some patches of cloud and rain to come across england and wales, with clearing skies further north in scotland and northern ireland. and it's here where we'll have the chilliest start to the day on thursday. temperatures low enough even for a nip of frost in sheltered glens in scotland. so starting the day on thursday, expect a bit of damp weather for southern parts of england and wales. that should clear out of the way as we go through the morning, and then elsewhere, loads of sunshine draped around coastal fringes. there'll be a scattering of showers, and they'll tend to come and go, really, through the day. a chilly wind? yes. temperatures below where they've been over recent days, 10—12 celsius. although cooler, these temperatures are actually a little bit closer to average for the time of year.

now, the colder weather is still going to be with us into friday. indeed, we could have a touch of frost to start the day across southern portions of england and wales. further north in scotland, cloud will thicken on friday as a weather system moves in, bringing some outbreaks of rain. some of that rain could just about skirt into the far north of northern ireland, but further south in england and wales, it's going to be a beautiful day with barely a cloud in the sky. for the weekend, still some rain left over from this area of low pressure affecting northern areas. sunday looks to be the better of the two days of the weekend as high pressure builds in. so saturday, some rain around across northern ireland, scotland, northern areas of england, and accompanying that rain, there'll be some pretty strong and gusty winds. another blast of northerly air coming down, really dropping those temperatures, just seven or eight degrees for northern scotland. for northern ireland, england and wales, meanwhile, we're looking at temperatures around 11 to 1a degrees, which is pretty close to average. as that high pressure builds in, though, for the second half of the weekend, we're looking at a cold

start to the morning, a few mist and fog patches, but a mostly dry day with sunny spells coming and going. temperatures for most of us between around 10—13 degrees. bye for now.

indian business leader ratan tata has died. we'll look at the life of the patriarch of the tata group. plus... we speak to a victim

who lost her life savings in a cyber scam. hello, and welcome to business today. i'm katie silver. indian tycoon ratan tata has died. the 86—year—old's death was announced a few hours ago by the tata group, a conglomerate he led for more than two decades. mr tata was one of india's most recognised business leaders. prime minister narendra modi has hailed him as a "visionary business leader, a compassionate soul and an extraordinary human being". the bbc�*s samira hussain takes a look at the life of mr tata. chairman of the tata conglomerate for more than two decades, ratan tata turned the company that bears his name into a global empire. shy and often described as a loner, tata was raised by his grandmother in mumbai. educated in the united states, he came back to india at age 25, to work in the family business.

under his leadership, he turned an indian company