live from singapore, this is bbc news. the us's top diplomat, antony blinken, is back in the middle east, urging israeli leaders for a ceasefire. israel intensifies its aerial assault on lebanon — at least 18 people are killed and dozens injured in a strike near the country's largest hospital. with two weeks to go to the us presidential election, donald trump's campaign accuses the british labour party of making illegal contributions to his opponent, kamala harris. the former boss of the fashion giant abercrombie & fitch and his british partner are arrested on sex trafficking charges.

welcome to newsday. i'm steve lai. the us's top diplomat is in israel continuing his bid to end the widening conflict in the middle east. during talks that lasted several hours on tuesday, us secretary of state antony blinken pressed israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu to use the killing of hamas�*s leader as an opening for peace. he also stressed the need to get more humanitarian assistance into gaza. the biden administration has repeatedly tried to calm the conflict. this is secretary blinken�*s iith visit to to the region since the war in gaza began just over a year ago. i believe very much that the death of sinwar creates an important opportunity to bring the hostages home and bring the water when and and ensure ——the hostages home and bring the war to an end and ensure security. that is what our conversations

today focused on israeli colleagues including arrangements for the period following the end of the conflict. our correspondent injerusalem, wyre davis, has more on the challenges faced by mr blinken in getting israel to deescalate. but to emphasise the low hopes of any progress their version of events discussed at the meeting are very different. first of all we got from the american side the view that israel should capitalise on the successful action to bring the hamas leader sinwar to justice and secure hostages release and end the conflict. mr blinken�*s spokesman also spoke about the importance of getting more aid into gaza where some 400,000 people in the north in particular are suffering because of the humanitarian crisis. we know that antony blinken is very concerned at israel's enhanced military activity in the north is having a detrimental humanitarian impact. and then we go to the israeli version of how the meeting went.

mr netanyahu's spokesman spoke about the iranian threat to israel, the very real threat that israel is concerned about. iranian missiles coming down over israel a couple of weeks ago and how that might be responded to by the israelis. and the israelis thanked the americans for their support in providing enhanced missile defence coverage. israelis also spoke about a governing framework for gaza the day after the war ends, of course, israel is insistent that neither the palestinian authority nor hamas should be allowed to run things in gaza after the end of the war but what there wasn't from the israeli side was talk of a ceasefire nor talk of a deal to release the remaining hostages and certainly no talk about the pressure from the americans and the others to improve and enhance the amount of aid getting into gaza because of this humanitarian situation.

perhaps not much coming from these talks. blinken staying overnight in israel before moving on to the wider region tomorrow. meanwhile, the israeli military has confirmed hezbollah�*s hashem safieddine, the apparent heir to former chief hassan nasrallah, was killed in an airstrike earlier this month. it comes after hezbollah said it was behind the attempted drone attack on the israeli prime minister's holiday home over the weekend. in beirut, health officials say 18 people were killed by an israeli airstrike near a large government hospital in the city's south. israel says it was targeting a hezbollah position. and israeli military says it has identified a bunker concealed under another beirut hospital that, it says, holds hundreds of millions of dollars worth of cash. israel said it was monitoring the compound but would not strike the hospital itself. the hospital's staff dispute these claims. here's our senior international correspondent, 0rla guerin. explosion. broad daylight in beirut. a multistorey building

brought down. as always, israel said the target was hezbollah. here, it gave a warning. and here, it didn't. a crowded neighbourhood, right across the road from lebanon's biggest public hospital, rafik al hariri. among the 18 people killed, four children. and a short distance away, the al sahel hospital has been evacuated after israel claimed it is sitting on a hezbollah goldmine. where is the bunker located? directly under al sahel hospital in the heart of beirut. there are hundreds of millions of dollars in cash and gold inside the bunker right now. we evacuated instantly. we could not risk anyone.

we were invited in today by the general manager to check the hospital for ourselves. what was your feeling last night when the israelis suddenly announced you had a bunker under the hospital with millions of dollars in gold? it was a shock, really, it was a shock. this hospital was founded a0 years ago on an old house, built on it. so it is impossible, it is impossible to have any tunnel or any infrastructure underneath the hospital. then, down to the two levels below ground. nowhere was off limits. well, we are at the morgue now. all of the drawers have been opened to show us there is nothing concealed here. this is level —2, and we have been told by the hospital staff that there is nothing beneath this, no basement, no bunker, no cash, no gold.

we continued the search at this building across the road, identified by israel. and here, too, we got access below ground. there is a doorway here, an entrance to a lift shaft, and we can't open that. it seems like the lift isn't working. now, according to the israeli claim, beneath this building, there is an entrance to the bunker. if there is, we didn't find it. doctors here insist there is nothing to find. 0rla guerin, bbc news, beirut. elsewhere, the israeli military is intensifying its offensive in northern gaza, where it claims hamas has regrouped. residents injabalia told the bbc the idf besieged hospitals and shelters for displaced people there, preventing critical aid from reaching civilians. the head of the un's agency

for palestinian refugees has issued an urgent plea forfighting to stop, to enable humanitarian aid to reach trapped people. for more on all this, i'm joined now by firas maksad, senior fellow at the middle east institute. let's start with what we've just seen in lebanon. israel claiming hospitals are being used as cover for hezbollah, something they accused hamas of in gaza? yes, what is unfolding in lebanon is a war of narratives and both sides like credibility in the stories they are putting forward. since the beginning of the conflict, three weeks ago, hezbollah has time and again claimed it does not store weapons and missiles in civilian areas, only four israel to strike these areas and for everyone to witness the missiles going off in the villages and southern suburbs

of beirut. 0bviously, israel, every time given the massive civilian told both in gaza and lebanon, every time civilians are struck, israeli narrative and credibility is undermined. what we are really saying here is a tragedy where the civilian population is caught in the middle and there is an ongoing war of narratives between both sides. ~ . ., , sides. what we have seen in gaza, sides. what we have seen in gaza. do _ sides. what we have seen in gaza. do you _ sides. what we have seen in gaza, do you think- sides. what we have seen in gaza, do you think we - sides. what we have seen in gaza, do you think we will. sides. what we have seen in | gaza, do you think we will be seeing this in lebanon? that is definitely the _ seeing this in lebanon? that is definitely the fear _ seeing this in lebanon? that is definitely the fear in _ seeing this in lebanon? that is definitely the fear in beirut. . definitely the fear in beirut. i've talked to a lot of friends and family in lebanon and i can tell you and one should listen to what the israeli officials have been threatening, turning beirut into another gaza. so, yes, it is a palpable fear and in the playbook, it has some resemblance, starting off by going after hezbollah and the weapons people and cachet is but increasingly now putting pressure on hospitals under the pretext and assumption that there are bunkers under the

hospitals. yes, it echoes of gaza. ., ., . , gaza. how to grade eight is hezbollah _ gaza. how to grade eight is hezbollah at _ gaza. how to grade eight is hezbollah at the _ gaza. how to grade eight is hezbollah at the moment i gaza. how to grade eight is - hezbollah at the moment given the attacks on their banking and infrastructure are not to mention the killing of hassan nasrallah and his successor as well? . �* , ., ., ., well? that's the million-dollar auestion well? that's the million-dollar question and _ well? that's the million-dollar question and all— well? that's the million-dollar question and all my _ well? that's the million-dollar question and all my sources i well? that's the million-dollar question and all my sources in| question and all my sources in beirut have struggled to answer that. clearly the organisation is reeling, it is off—balance. it has not been able to hand out the cash to support it usually does to its supporters in times of crisis, there are intentions within its support base. that said, hezbollah and the iranians will support them on the question is whether they will be able to regroup. at least the israeli strategy seems to include not allowing them a moment to try to regain their balance as the fight

continues.— their balance as the fight continues. ., , �* ~ , continues. antony blinken is t in: to continues. antony blinken is trying to get _ continues. antony blinken is trying to get the _ continues. antony blinken is trying to get the region - continues. antony blinken is trying to get the region to i trying to get the region to de—escalate but this is not working? de-escalate but this is not working?— de-escalate but this is not workinu? ,, . ., , ~ ., de-escalate but this is not workinu? ,, . �* ~ , working? secretary blinken is . uite working? secretary blinken is quite frankly _ working? secretary blinken is quite frankly wasting - working? secretary blinken is quite frankly wasting his - working? secretary blinken is| quite frankly wasting his time. we are two weeks away from the election results and there is desperation to get some good news out of the region that would demonstrate a win of sorts, a political victory for the administration. very clearly from the reader from the meeting with benjamin netanyahu, 2.5 hours spent together, the israeli reading is focused on iran and the american reading is focused on the need to get a ceasefire and provide humanitarian aid in northern gaza. they could not be more further apart in terms of what their priorities are right now and it's not clear where secretary blinken will go nextin where secretary blinken will go next in the region. there is a stop off in riyadh, it should have beenjordan, he is going

to saudi arabia next and it smells of desperation and a hail mary effort to get a breakthrough.— hail mary effort to get a breakthrough. hail mary effort to get a breakthrou:h., , w' , breakthrough. just quickly, we have run out _ breakthrough. just quickly, we have run out of— breakthrough. just quickly, we have run out of time. - breakthrough. just quickly, we have run out of time. thank i breakthrough. just quickly, we l have run out of time. thank you so much for your time. we do appreciate your perspective. to the the us presidential election, which is nowjust two weeks away. and donald trump's campaign team has filed a complaint against the labour party in the united kingdom for what it claims is interference in the us election. a statement from the trump—vance campaign said: "the far—left labour party has inspired kamala's dangerously liberal policies and rhetoric. in recent weeks, they have recruited and sent party members to campaign for kamala in critical battleground states, attempting to influence our election." i'm joined now by our north america correspondent, peter bowes. peter, who are the trump team referring to and what is it they are objecting to?

this all comes in the form of a six page complaint that was made to the federal election commission, in the united states, the election watchdog. they are complaining both against the british labour party and the kamala harris campaign. they say both parties are guilty of making and accepting illegalforeign national contributions. they focus in on and a shot in the letter of a now deleted it seems linkedin post by a labour party official, who talks about 100 current and former staff members, heading to the united states to help with the kamala harris campaign. it says there are ten spots still available, in other words, inviting people to come forward, labour party activists, if they want to fill those particular spots. the key line seems to be that the

housing needs of those individuals will be covered. there is no explanation of exactly how that would happen but that is what the trump campaign has focused in on, suggesting that the labour party is in some way finding this effort. is this different from prominent uk politicians like liz truss and nigel farage showing up at the republican national convention earlier this year? essentially, it is not any different and there's nothing unusual about political activists in different countries, travelling to another country to help colleagues, as they see them, who have like—minded views in terms of fighting an election. this case, the centre—left party, the labour party and the democrats in the united states, who clearly see the world in the same way on a number of issues, but in this case it may well involve those labour party

people advising democrats on the campaign, based on the experience they just the campaign, based on the experience theyjust had with an election campaign in the uk. nothing illegal about that. it only becomes illegal when money is involved, when any financial arrangements are made and when crucially the american party, in this case the democrats, can be seen as benefiting financially from friends overseas coming into the country to help them during the election campaign.— election campaign. thank you very much- — meanwhile in the us, it's been a busy day of campaigning with a strong focus on those seven battleground states that could decide the next president. in the past couple of hours, we've seen four different rallies, across four of those seven states. including in detroit, michigan, where the rapper eminem introduced former president barack 0bama to support the harris campaign. earlier, he appeared with vice presidential candidate tim walz in wisconsin

where early voting has now opened. and in greensboro, north carolina, donald trump has been addressing supporters. his running mate, jd vance, was in arizona before that. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. let's look at some other stories making news. another wave of prisoners have been released early from jail to try to ease overcrowding in england and wales.

1,100 more inmates have been allowed out, the second set of emergency releases since september. this time it includes those serving sentences of five years 01’ more, but offenders convicted of serious violence, sex crimes or terrorism are again excluded. government borrowing rose last month to £16.6 billion, in part, because of increased wages and interest payments on public debt. it comes as the chancellor, rachel reeves, prepares for the budget next week. meanwhile, the international monetary fund says the uk economy is set to accelerate, raising its growth forecast to 1.1%, up from 0.7% three months ago. an independent commission is being set up to deliver the largest review of the water sector since privatisation in the 1980s. the government says it'll examine how best to tackle the problems threatening to engulf the sector. you're live with bbc news.

it's day two of the brics summit of emerging economies in russia and more than 20 heads of state are gathering in the city of kazan. russian president vladimir putin met with indian prime minister narendra modi earlier on tuesday. mr modi has called for a peaceful resolution in the war between russia and ukraine. president putin also met with chinese president xijinping, who reaffirmed his country's friendship with russia. the un has confirmed that secretary general antonio guterres will attend the summit. that's prompted fierce criticism from kyiv. for more on the gathering, our russia editor, steve rosenberg, sent this update. for the world leaders arriving in russia today, there was pomp... ..there was pastry... ..and, then, putin. for russia's president, there was a golden opportunity to show that attempts by the west to isolate him have failed. china's xijinping is one of more than 20 heads of state

attending the brics summit. bell tolls. it may not be the greatest show on earth, but to mark the summit, they have lit up the ancient kazan kremlin. the brics club of emerging economies represents nearly half the world's population, and more than a quarter of the global economy. russia hopes that brics will reshape the global order, and relieve the pressure of western sanctions. so russia's main interest is in breaking the dominance of the us dollar, the power of the us treasury. they want the brics countries to create an alternative trade mechanism, and especially an alternative cross—border settlement system that does not involve the dollar or the euro. russia is pleased to have partners, but the brics nations don't agree on everything. russia often talks about wanting to reshape the global order,

and it sees brics, i think, as a means to that end. but the members of brics are not like—minded souls. there are differences of opinion and disagreements, for example between india and china. up until now, forging a common approach has proved difficult. also expected at the summit is the un secretary general. it is two and half years since antonio guterres was last in russia and received a cool reception. his decision to come now has sparked anger in kyiv, which claimed it damaged the un's reputation. but for vladimir putin, the more world leaders who come here, the better. it is better to play the statesman than be viewed a pariah. steve rosenberg, bbc news, kazan. the former head of the fashion giant abercrombie & fitch — and his british partner — have been arrested on sex trafficking charges — along with a third man

in the united states. the fbi opened an investigation last year after the bbc revealed claims that mikejeffries and his partner matthew smith sexually exploited and abused men at events they hosted in their new york residences and hotels around the world. any wrongdoing. rianna croxford reports. mikejeffries, the mogul behind a globalfashion brand. his vision made billions for abercrombie & fitch, drawing in teenagers with provocative ads like these. he stepped down in 2014 after running the company for two decades. he's now facing criminal charges. to anyone who thinks they can exploit and coerce others by using the so—called casting couch system, this case should serve as a warning. prepare to trade that couch for a bed in federal prison. the bbc spent two years investigating

allegations of sexual exploitation, unearthing evidence spanning nearly a decade. after we broadcast our report last year, the us authorities began their own investigation. this morning, the fbi arrested the formerfashion boss and his british partner in florida. several men told the bbc they were abused at events they hosted in major cities around the world. i think he is a deviant. i think he is a predator. i don't think that is what the public has seen. i was overwhelmed, like, i have never seen anything like this. what i would like to talk about is being lied to, l tricked, and traded like a commodity. i evidence gathered by the bbc found there was a highly organised operation involving this middleman, james jacobson, now also arrested. in the past few months, i have spoken with more men who attended these events, 20 in total. some told me they were tricked and abused. others that they were injected with drugs.

a lawyer for mrjeffries told the bbc... tonight, mikejeffries was released on bail. if convicted, he and the others accused could face life in prison. rianna croxford, bbc news. king charles and queen camilla have wrapped up their tour of australia. in the last half hour or so they've boarded a plane for their next stop in samoa. their time in australia ended with an inspection of naval flotillas but it wasn't all smooth sailing — the king was confronted for a second day by an aboriginal rights activist who was arrested for chanting "he's not my king". 0ur senior royal correspondent daniela relph, reports. an iconic backdrop, a crowd of 10,000 people

and a familiarface — the actressjoanna lumley, currently working in sydney, met the king and queen on theirfinal engagement in australia. this was the biggest crowd they'd drawn by far during the trip, with many waiting for several hours. welcome, charles. welcome. he shook my hand and i wasjust like, i wasjust silent. and then he goes, "i hope i didn't keep you waiting long." and i go, "oh, i would wait forever for you, my majesty. " this is the king and queen's big goodbye to australia. this tour has had its challenges, from whether it would happen at all because of the king's cancer treatment, to yesterday's protest. but it draws to a close today in front of huge, supportive crowds. it is australia's uno trip would be complete without some barbecuing royals. this is the

longest trip overseas he has attended. it is australia, of course, so no trip would be complete without some barbecuing royals. this is the most prolonged period we've seen the king on duty this year. buckingham palace will be relieved he has coped ahead of the next stage of this trip, to samoa. and just before we go, an australian woman has ended up literally stuck between a rock and a hard place. )matilda campbell was trapped upside down after slipping between two boulders, as she tried to retrieve her mobile phone during a hike in new south wales' hunter valley region. photos shared by the new south wales ambulance service show her hanging between the boulders by her feet. matilda had to undergo a 7—hour ordeal during which emergency services undertook a challenging rescue, including moving several boulders. a paramedic involved in the rescue said he had never encountered a job quite like this in his 10—year career. thankfully, it ended safe and

sound. no word about her phone though! that's all for now. stay with bbc news. hello. wednesday's shaping up to be a fine day across most of the uk with some pleasant sunshine. however, the morning could look like this, particularly across southern and central areas of england. mist and fog really quite thick in places, but the fog shouldn't last. it will clear later in the morning, and thanks to the position of this area of high pressure and our southerly winds, it'll feel pleasant in that sunshine. and i think the mild air is here to stay at least until thursday. beyond that, somewhat cooler air will arrive off the atlantic. so the short term then, that fog forming across southern and south—eastern parts of england into east anglia, lincolnshire and further north into the vale of york. but i think it's in the south—east and east anglia, where the fog will be thickest, possibly visibilities as low as 100m or less, elsewhere, clearer skies. and this is the forecast for 8:00 in the morning, and the temperatures typically around nine or ten celsius.

so once that fog eventually clears away and it may take time, it may first lift into low grey skies before that sunshine comes through, but once it does, it'll be a fine day. just the possibility of a few afternoon showers, so don't be surprised if there's some spots of rain for a time in the south. so here's the forecast then for thursday, we still have those southerly winds, that mild air is with us. can't miss this, a weather front is approaching, but it's just to the west of our neighbourhood. at this stage, at least through most of thursday, some sunshine from london, norwich all the way to aberdeen. hazy skies for belfast and then later in the day, the possibility of that rain arriving in northern ireland. and then eventually it will arrive come friday, because this weather front will be slap bang over the uk. if anything, an area of low pressure will form and very gusty winds will develop across southwestern parts of the country. it's still relatively mild air, so temperatures around 15 or 16, maybe even 17, but that slightly fresher air starts to reach western parts of the uk. and how about the weekend and into next week?

well, the jet stream will start spreading weather fronts our way, so that does mean somewhat more unsettled weather. but into next week it does look as though the jet stream may go further north once again with high pressure building. so here's the outlook then from thursday onwards, the weather does go downhill as we head into friday with some outbreaks of rain. similar weather for saturday and sunday. fingers crossed things should improve by the time we get to monday. bye— bye.

the imf is optimistic about the us economy, revising higher growth forecast for the world's largest economy. and union workers bowing boat on a new pay deal, we take a look at how the aeroplane maker's new ceo is tackling some of the biggest challenges facing the company. hello and welcome to business today. i'm steve lai. the international monetary fund has raised its growth forecast for the us economy and singled out as a quote engine of global growth, the imf says efforts to tame inflation without hurting the job market seem to be working. and coupled with robust consumer spending and lend them to now expect the us economy to grow by 2.8% this year and by economy to grow by 2.8% this yearand by 2.2% economy to grow by 2.8% this year and by 2.2% in 2025. this comes as voters in the us for a

purple car surveys for the country's next