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are waiting for the green light to enter the territory. the top diplomat says he's confident the cease-fire will begin on sunday and that it will persist. ♪ very warm welcome to world news america. good to have you with us. health officials in gaza say 80 people have been killed in israeli airstrikes since the announcement of a provisional cease-fire and hostage release deal. the draft agreement between hamas and israel was agreed to on wednesday in talks in qatar but it will not come into effect until sunday at the earliest and some hard-line israeli officials oppose it. then devere -- ben gvir says he will quit the government if the israeli prime minister signs off on the deal. he serves as israel's minister of national security and leads one of the far-right parties propping up mr. netanyahu's government. it would see israel free

palestinian prisoners while gaza would return some of the hostages. israel's government has devoted on the draft agreement. mr. bender beer called the deal a reward to hamas. >> the deal that is being formed is a terrible one. it includes the release of hundreds of murderers and the return of hundreds of thousands of gazans to the north of the gaza strip. it means we withdraw from the philadelphia corridor and stop the fighting. it dooms the fate of the other hostages and will lead to the end of the war with hamas not being defeated yet and so the goals of the war have not yet been achieved. >> we can speak to the deputy spokesman for the u.n. secretary general, antonio guterres. good to have you on our program today. i just want to start with the u.n.'s view on this deal.

the secretary saying after it was announced that it is a critical first step to get any for the humanitarian situation which he said is that catastrophic levels in gaza. this deal foresees 680 trucks a day entering into gaza. will this address that crisis? >> yes. if the deal is fully implemented, we believe it could. what is needed is to restore a sense of security and stability into gaza so that we can get aid in and move it to all the places where it is needed. so we need the crossings to be open. we need the trucks at the level you talked about. 600 trucks which would be humanitarian aid but also commercial traffic since commercial traffic has seized in gaza over the last 15 months. and ultimately, what we need is to make sure that understandings are reached with the party so that we can actually have the

safe conditions to move aid throughout gaza which is something we have not been able to do for quite some time. it has been extremely hard trying to keep more than 2 million people fed, give them clean water, medicine, and now hopefully, we have an opportunity to finally do that. >> israel says one of the reasons aid has not come in is because hamas militants have commandeered some of those trucks and we just heard a sound bite from the israeli minister. he said that if this agreement goes forward, he thinks humanitarian aid to gaza should be stopped until the hostages are released. what is your response to that? >> there are, like i said, more than 2 million people. 2.2 million people in gaza. many of them, indeed the vast majority of them have been living on may be one meal a day for months. there is malnutrition. there has been a risk of famine

particularly in the northern part of gaza, and there has been the spread of disease. we actually need to get aid in. >> i'm asking about those conditions of security and stability. do you believe this will be there again? the israeli military saying hamas well commandeered trucks and we know tinians say it is israel that stopped these trucks from getting in until now. >> we have had problems with the various parties and by the way, beyond israel and hamas, there have been problems with criminal gangs and also simply with the population in general because if people don't know when their next meal is coming, sometimes, they themselves will rush at trucks, desperate for food. what we need is a system of stability sufficient so people are not scared of when their next meal is coming. and we would have the conditions

that are needed in order to just give people the food, the medicine, the sort of supplies they need to get through another year. >> what is your view on the time until sunday when this deal is supposed to go into effect? we have seen the health ministry in gaza saying thousands of palestinians have been killed by israeli strikes since that cease-fire announcement. israel says they killed someone who was involved in the october 7 attacks but what are your thoughts on the continuing fighting in the days and hours before sunday? >> we are no strangers to the days before peace agreements go into effect. in many different conflict zones around the world, the days before a cease-fire begins are sometimes the hardest days and different militaries do their last bits of maneuvers or their last bits of positioning. that is still not acceptable when it comes to the civilian

cost, obviously, and we want to make sure civilians are spared just as they needed to have been spared for the last 15 months. but what the crucial thing is is that the parties understand the need that once the cease-fire is in effect, they have to abide by it and fully implement it. >> we will have to leave the conversation there for today. deputy spokesman for the u.n. secretary general, thank you so much for joining us here on bbc news. >> take care. >> as gazans wait for relief from the fighting, trucks are lining up to bring much-needed aid to the territory. israel -- since the war began. before -- before hamas deadly attack on israel and israel's subsequent war in gaza, around 500 truckloads of aid entered every day according to the united nations. that plummeted to nine per day in the period after the war started and although that number has improved, it was still only averaging truckloads daily.

the beginning of this month, just 10% of what gaza previously relied on. wednesday's deal if it comes into effect offers some hope. it includes the commitment to allow the 600 truckloads per day into gaza. they have been traveling with an aid convoy from jordan and a warning that his report contains some pictures of children in distress. >> help is coming. down along the valley, the biggest aid convoy since the war began. solidarity from the kingdom of jordan. in two deliveries, 120 trucks on the road to gaza from a country that is home to many palestinians. >> we are carrying aid messes my says mustapha al cadre, this is

a good deed and we are happy to be part of this operation. >> we can travel with this convoy as far as the israeli border but since the war began, israel does not allow the media to enter gaza and report independently. bbc colleagues living in gaza have been filming every day including today, the first real moment of hope. >> they are waiting for today's meager charity. little wonder that tired tempers fray. when you have lived this struggle every day. the aid from jordan is the tiniest fraction of what is needed here. but it does say to the people of gaza, by your neighbor at least,

you are not forgotten. >> i used to shop and go to school and my mom used to cook for me and when i got back, she would tell me to come eat. i dream every day about the cease-fire. i want to go home and for my father to return to us. >> home, a word that holds so much in any language. a word that means dignity. >> and never thought i would be fed by a charity. this is so unfair. if i don't get meals from here, i do not eat so i keep coming. my life as a young girl, dreaming of studying at a university or school, playing and having fun, has been reduced to accepting handouts. >> nearly 2 million people are dependent on aid here.

less than 3 hours drive away and jordan, some of what they need but when will it arrive? the u.n. complains of repeated is delays, of criminal gangs hijacking aid. the convoy we followed is still waiting to be allowed to cross into israel. bbc news, jordan. >> antony blinken hailed the cease-fire deal in his final address as secretary of state but he was interrupted. >> genocide and extermination and you are telling me to respect the process. criminal. why aren't you in the hague? why aren't you in the hague? >> two journalists heckled blinken, accusing the diplomat of complicity in israel's violence against civilians in gaza. blinken urged them to relate to the end of the speech for questioning. despite the interruption, he emphasized the deal as an historic moment that took tremendous effort and political courage.

>> over 15 months, of devastating conflict between israel and hamas, we have worked to broker a deal that would bring hostages home, that would stop the fighting, that would bring humanitarian aid to people who need it, that would create the space to conclude a permanent cease-fire. we now have that and we expect implementation of the agreement to begin on sunday. >> our state department correspondent, tom bateman, was that at -- was at that address for us today. despite the interruption, we did see the secretary of state really hailing this agreement as historic, as we heard, and critical. tell us more about what he said. >> on the immediate what happens next bar, he was talking about issues we have been hearing about today from israel and gaza. he described these as loose ends that would be ironed out. he was confident that the cease-fire will take effect on sunday and the hostages will start to be released and palestinian prisoners by israel

-- on the wider issue of where this goes next, i think there is some anxiety within the administration about handing this entire plan now over to the trump administration, whether it will be dealt with with the same sort of precision, level of priorities that they believe they have given this, and that is why i think antony blinken was trying to suggest that they hand this over with the best possible will and in the best possible shape to the incoming trump administration and was at pains to pay tribute to the trump transition team when it comes to the middle east envoy. and those involved to say they felt this had worked very well in a coordinated way. >> what more did he say about his time as secretary of state which we know since october 7, 2023, was really focused on this conflict? we know he was in the region several times. >> well, to start with, i have never sat in the state department press briefing and seen security officials have to be called income and you know, to see what happened there with

two journalists, one who runs an online outlet and the other, independent units, one that really being dragged out of the room as they were calling him a war criminal, it gives you a sense of the deep division, not least within the administration's own democratic base that this particular issue has caused. mr. blinken is very aware of that and i think he has tried to be reflective in his press conferences and speeches over the last week or two, to say did we get everything right? obviously not. you know, i cannot answer that question was the kind of thing he was saying. it was for others to look at. on the other side of the break, i think the thing they feel they have responded to that they are perhaps most proud of is the invasion of ukraine by russia where they feel that they are reacting to the moment effectively and strengthen the ukrainians to the extent that there probably will be a radical reshaping of policy by the trump administration but they believe it goes into the negotiations in

the best possible shape. >> thank you so much for your reporting. let's talk more about the cease-fire agreement now with andrew miller, former deputy assistant secretary of state for israeli and palestinian affairs. he is joining us. thank you so much for being with us on bbc news tonight. we heard from antony blinken in his address that he feels confident that this agreement will persist. do you share that assessment? >> tanks for having me. i do think there is a good chance that the agreement will continue at least through the first phase of the three stage deal. that should allow for between 30 and 33 israeli hostages to be released and several hundred palestinian prisoners. obviously, and most important, the cessation of combat between israel and hamas and also the surge in humanitarian assistance that is so badly needed in gaza

at the moment. i think there are real questions about whether we will see this deal translate into stage two, which is a pendant on israel and hamas reaching additional agreements including about governance in gaza. which would involve israel agreeing to some typo palestinian entity, presumably, as well as hamas agreeing to step down from power. >> when you look at the incoming trump administration which clearly did play a significant role in moving this cease-fire forward to an agreement, what role do you see them playing in negotiating this crucial second phase? >> it is unclear that the trump administration will have the same focus on post-conflict gaza and its role in stabilizing both israel and the palestinian territories in the broader region but i do think the trump administration will remain

focused in part because the first phase will not result in the release of all hostages. it will not release -- it will not result in the release of all american hostages. i believe there are roughly six or seven at the moment. the current plan is that three would be released during the first phase. if american hostages are still in gaza at the end of the first phase while president trump has indicated he would be supportive of israel resuming the war, if the cost is the lives of those american hostages, i think that would be a conflict for him and the potential conflict between president trump and prime minister netanyahu. >> indeed. if you look at what president biden had to say after this cease-fire agreement was announced, he said it paves the way for palestinians to reach their goal of having a state. at the same time, if you look at the words of this agreement, they are vague enough that they do not mention a future palestinian state.

what avenue do you see from this agreement towards resolving this question? >> this agreement, and its full implementation through all phases is a necessary condition to create an environment for negotiations on a palestinian state. it is hard to conceive of such negotiations happening while the conflict in gaza continues and it is hard to imagine arab states who are going to play an important role in any type of governance arrangement participating as long as the conflict continues so it is true that this is a very important step but it is contingent on implementation and then even after implementation, then comes the even harder part which is achieving something that no president or administration has been able to do in history. israeli and palestinian agreement on peace. >> that is true. we just listened to antony

blinken delivering his farewell address, speaking about the cease-fire agreement. i wonder, until june of last year, how do you assess the u.s.'s diplomatic role in reaching this agreement over 15 months of war? >> i think the biden administration deserves credit for their perseverance, for the level of focus, for the dedication that they have demonstrated over these many months. without the united states involvement in the conflict, i don't know any -- i don't know of any humanitarian aid that would be entering gaza. there would be a real chance the hostages would have been forgotten because unfortunately, there are elements in the israeli government that prioritize developments in gaza over the safety of israeli citizens. had the biden administration not done that, we could be in a very different place right now. at the same time, i think president trump's cooperation with president biden and vice

versa was crucial and that is a notable contrast with some prior hostage scenarios, thinking back to, you know, the transition from president carter who just passed away two president reagan and the iran hostages. this really is a credit to american cooperation at a time that is very rare. i think everyone is going to wonder in the weeks and months ahead, could this agreement have been reached sooner? the terms of the deal are very close if not identical to what president biden laid out on may 31, 2024. i not know the answer to that. i don't think anyone has a definitive answer. there is at least a possibility that could be the case because some tools were not exercised by the u.s. government at various points. >> we will have to leave it there for today. thank you so much. >> thank you. >> british prime minister sir keir starmer has signed a landmark hundred year

partnership with ukraine. the agreement formalizes economic and military support for the country. in his first visit to kyiv, he warned that unless ukraine achieves a just peace and build from a position of strength, it will embolden not just russia but aggressors around the world. his visit comes as there is growing concern that donald trump here in the u.s. might wind down support and push ukraine into a compromise with russia. >> the u.k. will give all military support to ukraine from ever before. we have already committed 3 billion pounds for military aid this year. and we are going further to support the frontline. providing a 2.2 billion pounds loan which will be paid back not by ukraine but from the interest on frozen russian assets. we are also galvanizing british industry so today, i am pleased to announce that we are providing 150 artillery barrels

for ukraine. >> our correspondent is in kyiv with more. >> this was a show of solidarity for a country that has paid a huge price for defending itself. on his first visit to kyiv as prime minister, keir starmer paused to remember the ukrainians who have died fighting since russia's invasion. he came to pledge more support from britain than ever before. moments later came a message from moscow. a russian drone. then we heard ukraine's air defenses, a reminder of the daily danger here. by then, volodymyr zelenskyy was hosting talks at the presidential palace, signing a treaty pledging a 100 year partnership. the timing is important.

in eastern ukraine, more territory looks like this every day. slowly and at great cost, russian forces are advancing. and next week, the united states has a new president. >> and wondered how concerned you are that as donald trump returns to the white house, u.s. support for ukraine is going to stop? >> we will continue to work with the u.s. on this. we are working today. we will work tomorrow. we will work into the future. in the end, the steps that we need to take must be robust enough to guarantee ukraine's security. >> president zelenskyy told me that still includes joining nato. if not today, then when? or will it happen at all? both men say ukraine can only talk peace with russia from a position of strength. but will donald trump agree with that? bbc news, kyiv.

>> from gaza to sudan, ukraine, and haiti, 2020 force on human rights violations at the most extreme and orphic incidents of international inaction according to a new report by human rights watch. researchers documented abuses at an -- and develop into class 100 countries and territories against a backdrop of rising authoritarianism, repression, and armed conflict. we sat down with human rights watch's direct -- executive director to discuss the report and started by asking about the implications of the cease-fire deal between israel and hamas. >> thank you so much for speaking with the bbc. the human rights report documents 100 countries and territories in the human rights situation there but let's start with gaza because a cease-fire deal is meant to take effect on sunday. if everything goes as planned, and it does, do you still have concerns that this deal will lead to a permanent cease-fire and and the israeli bombardment of gaza?

>> when we are talking about long-term solutions, there has to be a reality where the parties to this conflict are actually meeting their obligations under international law. the cease-fire provides a pause but even within that pause, unless there is unfettered humanitarian assistance that is going into gaza, people will continue to starve. we know from our research that health facilities have been decimated. water infrastructure has been destroyed. you know, majority of the population in gaza has -- many of the homes are not livable. so we are not talking about the sort of humanitarian aid that we have seen today. we are talking about meaningful levels of humanitarian aid and there is a long history over the last 18 years of various limitations that have been put on having goods and he military and assistance come in and that

needs to stop. >> we will have her full interview right here on the bbc news channel later this evening. before we go, the american filmmaker david lynch has died at the age of 78. he was best known for twin peaks and films including mulholland drive, blue velvet, and the elephant man. his work often focused on the mystery of human nature and incorporated dreamlike imagery. he received three best director oscar nominations and won a lifetime achievement oscar in 2019. that is all for world news america. thanks so much for watching and stay with bbc news. announcer: funding for presentation of this program is provided by... announcer: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. and by judy and peter blum kovler foundation, pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. ♪ ♪

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amna: good evening. i'm amna nawaz. geoff: and i'm geoff bennett. on the “news hour” tonight, gazans welcome the ceasefire deal with cautious optimism,