mark lowen, thank you very much.. mark . lowen, thank you very much. the progress in and of itself. mark lowen, thank you very much. the uk government says it remains undaunted after houthis targeted a british warship in the red sea in the latest round of strikes. these pictures have come in showing the moment that hms diamond repelled the attack by firing sea viper missiles incoming heading directly towards the ship. the warship is currently in the red sea to protect merchant ships from houthi attacks. the ministry of defence says there were no injuries or damage. this latest strike from the iran backed group comes days after an oil tanker with british links was also hit and went up in flames, as you can see in these pictures. the fire was extinguished with no crew injured after french, indian and us naval ships provided assistance to the vessel. responding to the recent attacks, the uk's defence secretary grant shapps wrote: live now to our political correspondent harry farley. a statement from the defence secretar

mark lowen in jerusalem, _ sheltering 1.5 million people.ou for joining us. we stay in the middle east. an oil tanker with links to the uk has been attacked by houthi missiles. the marlin luanda, which is operated by a uk registered company, was travelling in the red sea off the coast of yemen when it was struck. the uk government says it reserves the right to respond appropriately. it is the latest attack in and around the red sea, one of the world's busiest shipping lanes. our diplomatic correspondent paul adams reports. this is the marlin luanda last night, five visible from the bridge, threatening its cargo of russian oil bound for singapore. the houthis are quick to take credit, their spokesman saying once again that this was being done to support the palestinians in gaza and in response to what he described as american british aggression. the fire was finally brought under control this morning is indian, french and american naval vessels arrived on the scene. the crew was unharmed and the scene. the crew was unharmed and the tank are n

our correspondent mark lowen is live injerusalem for us.scus that said to have been housing the iranian revolutionary guard in the capital was hit by an israeli air strike they say which they say killed four members of the revolutionary guard. the they say killed four members of the revolutionary guard.— revolutionary guard. the pictures show a pretty _ revolutionary guard. the pictures show a pretty large _ revolutionary guard. the pictures show a pretty large strike - revolutionary guard. the pictures show a pretty large strike there . show a pretty large strike there caused by precision targeted missile and israel does not comment on military operations abroad so we will never get a confirmation from israel that it was their missile if indeed it was but if it was an israeli strike, it could well have been retaliation for what happened less than a week ago when iran hit a building in northern iraq which they say was housing the israeli agency by mossad so you know how this tinderbox region is seeing flames lit in every single corner and t

that is mark lowen there, our correspondent in the middle east.as been put out, a day after it was struck by a houthi missile, off the coast of yemen. these pictures show that fire on board the marlin luanda. the houthis said it was targeted on friday in response to what they called "american—british aggression". the operator of the ship, trafigura, paid tribute to the bravery of the captain and crew and thanked the indian, us and french navies for their help. in a statement the company said... we are pleased to confirm that all crew on board the marlin luanda are safe and the fire in the cargo tank has been fully extinguished. the vessel is now sailing towards a safe harbour. the crew continues to monitor the vessel and cargo closely. this latest incident follows us and uk air strikes on houthi targets in response to attacks on ships in the red sea region — one of the world's busiest shipping lanes. the uk government says it reserves the right to respond appropriately. in the last few minutues the defence secretary grant shapps said "this intoler

mark lowen, thank you.nd jailed for criticising the idf. meir baruchin, who teaches history and civics in tel aviv, was arrested and held in solitary confinement, after a series of facebook posts he'd made about palestinian civilians being killed in gaza, criticising the israeli military, and warning against wars of revenge. a court has ruled the dismissal "wrongful" and ordered his reinstatement. meir baruchin, history and civics teacher at tel aviv�*s yitzhak shamir high school joins us now from jerusalem. thank you forjoining us. for those people watching who are not familiar with this story, can you just start by describing what you were actually charged with when you were arrested. good afternoon and thank you for having me. on november the 9th i received a phone call from the jerusalem police department asking me to come over for an interrogation. i asked on what charge and they said for sedition and incitement. on my way there i called my lawyer and he said in order to interrogate an israeli citizen

here's our middle east correspondent mark lowen. seizing on another development as proof of what it says is the un's bias against it, which is that 12 members of staff of the un mission operating in gaza have been dismissed for... as they were found to be, to have been complicit in the hamas attacks on israel on the 7th of october. now, israel says that is proof that the un mission in gaza is not impartial — that it is pro—hamas. what the united nations and pro—un voices are saying is, "look, the entire workforce of that un agency is 30,000 people. "so12 bad apples should not tarnish the entire "reputation of the un agency." but, you know, israel is saying this is proof that, "we are fighting," in israel's words, "a just war, "and we have the right to defend ourselves." well, hamas has been designated a terrorist organisation by the uk and the us. speaking to bbc world service radio, a member of the movement's political wing said it is asking for a thorough and transparent investigation into the case. bassem naim also denounced unrw

from jerusalem, mark lowen reports.za's skies, where bombs have rained down, not an israeli attack but an israeli appeal for information on the hostages seized by hamas. around 130 still not home. how many are dead is unknown. the subtext from israel, "this is why we are still on the offensive." but in israel, at the prime minister's residence, anger from families of the missing, who want him to do more get them back. polls show most think benjamin netanyahu should be prioritising their release. many here still feel failed by a state created to protect them. translation: | want to - have a country that cares for us, because our prime minister and the war cabinet doesn't. splits have spread to the top. gadi eisenkot of the war cabinet accused mr netanyahu of dishonesty by vowing total victory over hamas, adding he was responsible for leaving israel open to its attack. a war cabinet at war with itself spells trouble for israel's leader. benjamin netanyahu's growing unpopularity at home is increasingly echoed abroad. publi

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem. elsewhere in the region, an american official said a missile or rocket attack had injured us personnel at a base in iraq. the us also said it had targeted a missile the iran—backed houthis in yemen were aiming at shipping in the red sea. and an air strike on southern lebanon has killed a member of the powerful armed group hezbollah and another lebanese national. israel has been accused of targeting hezbollah and its ally hamas, in strikes on southern lebanon in recent weeks. both groups are backed by iran. to discuss all this, i am joined by mara rudman, who is a former senior us national security official who served in both the obama and clinton administrations. thanks forjoining me, we are seeing more conflict across the region now — does this concern you that it could lead to further escalation? it is concerning me, it has for some time, as i know it has been a top concern of those leading the government in the united states. the region, as you said in the opening segment, is a tin

sumi: mark lowen reporting there.topher nolan's oppenheimer has come out on top in this year's oscar nominations. the film received 13 oscar nominations including for best director and best picture. box office hit barbie received eight nods. the awards will be handed out in march at a ceremony in los angeles, hosted by jamaican. -- by jimmy kimmel live. . let us offer our show. let's show you pictures from our polling station in new hampshire. the first in the nation primary. . voters have done going to the polls for several hours. the polls will close at 7:00 and 8:00. the last ones at it :00 eastern time. we will have live results throughout the evening. water set -- watch our special coverage and check out our website for the latest there as well. i am sumi somaskandfrom concord, new hampshire. thank you so much for watching "world news america," and do stay with us. ♪ narrator: funding for this presentation of this program is provided by... narrator: financial services firm, raymond james. man: bdo. accountants an

mark lowen there.tuation remains a pressing issue and there are continued fears about the limited amount of aid getting into the territory. there's also concern about how it's distributed, once it does arrive. on the border between israel and gaza — at kerem shalom near rafah in the south — families of israeli hostages held in gaza have prevented aid from reaching the city. our middle east correspondent, lucy williamson, reports from there. and a warning — some viewers may find content in her piece distressing. in gaza city, hunger sometimes offers the best chance of survival. crowds drawn to a delivery of humanitarian aid yesterday, driven away by gunfire. bullets arrive faster than starvation. sirens blare today at the same aid delivery point 20 people were killed by shelling, according to the hamas—run health ministry. more than 100 injured. translation: we were heading to get flour and they shelled - us four times, and some people were martyred and injured, and i was injured in my hand and leg. roc

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem. mark how the cut in funding would affect the humanitarian situation in gaza. unwra is the largest agency in aid distribution now operating in gaza. it is an agency that has been in existence since 1949 providing aid, providing help, providing shelter, providing education to palestinian refugees. it has long had a difficult relationship with israel, which has, in a sense, seen unworthy the existence of that agency helping palestinian refugees as putting in doubt the very permanence and existence of israel. the fact that unwra works with palestinian refugees and israel says that prevents the refugees from kind of taking routes and settling in in the new in what became the sort of geographical permanence of this region. but now with with with western governments cutting or freezing their funding to anwar, that is obviously a major concern to the agency. i mean, philip lazzarini, the head of ubrwa says that two million people rely on the lifeline and assistance to unrwa and that that assi

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem.us, has long been known as little palestine. bridgeview has shown various forms of support for palestinians in gaza. billboards and signs all around the area call for a ceasefire. but many members of the palestinian community there say they're also suffering because of the current conflict. the bbc�*s sally nabil reports. this is little palestine, or bridgeview, a suburb of chicago, illinois. a large palestinian community lives here, and their presence is visible. they are thousands of miles away from home, but closely tied to the ongoing fighting in gaza. this is the sign, this is the famous sign. since the fighting broke out in gaza, laila has had this sign in her garden. shortly after putting it up, laila, a us—born mother of three, received death threats in two consecutive letters. the biggest change is not being able to go outside whenever i want to go outside. sometimes... sometimes i get scared that maybe a person will come and try to take one of my kids just to get back at me.

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem.der president 0bama who's now a distinguished senior fellow at the middle east institute. many thanks for your time today on newsday, i want to focus more on how this conflict that we just the report about, is spreading in the entire region, especially given your experience. the rise of the houthi has been incredible in the last three years but could there rise have been prevented? it’s three years but could there rise have been prevented?— three years but could there rise have been prevented? it's a pleasure to be with you _ have been prevented? it's a pleasure to be with you tonight _ have been prevented? it's a pleasure to be with you tonight i _ have been prevented? it's a pleasure to be with you tonight i think- have been prevented? it's a pleasure to be with you tonight i think the - to be with you tonight i think the reality is that the houthi movement, israeli, about 25 years old —— is really about 25 years old, the geopolitical movement, irreligious revival movement, became a

from jerusalem, our correspondent mark lowen reports. crushed from the air.es, homes, families, and now the very mission set up to help gaza's desperate is taking a hit, too — the un agency for palestinian refugees, or unrwa, firing several employees for alleged involvement in hamas�* assault on israel. a body set up to protect accused of attack. britain and a handful of other countries have now paused theirfunding. the foreign office said it was appalled by claims of complicity in what it called a heinous act of terrorism. hamas stormed israel on october 7th, killing more than 1,200 people and abducting at least 240. israeli intelligence has reportedly passed on material said to show the participation of unrwa staff and the use of its vehicles and facilities. its government has seized on the allegations, as the world remembers another massacre. translation: it was proven on international holocaust i remembrance day what we've been saying for years, that the unrwa employees are collaborators with the terrorist organisation hamas, and that the un has become no

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem.men under president 0bama who's now a distinguished senior fellow at the middle east institute and told me about what's driving the spread of the conflict to the wider region. i think the reality is that the houthi movement is really about 25 years old. they were initially a political movement, a religious revival movement, became a conflict with the former government for a number of years before, of course, the events of 2011, the arab spring, and then their overthrow of the transitional government and the beginning of the civil war. so this is a group that has grown in strength and significance over the years. i don't think that it was possible to turn them back because they really tapped into some very real issues within yemen, and now more broadly in the region. does america bear some responsibility for their rise, and now their power within the region? their original position that really raised their profile was anti—americanism in the period after 2001, the global war on terror,

bbc�*s mark lowen there. meanwhile...s to free more than 130 hostages still held by hamas are gathering pace. the head of the cia is expected to meet officials from israel, egypt and qatar at an undisclosed location in france in the coming days. they're expected to work towards securing the release of the hostages held in gaza. many western governments consider hamas to be a terrorist organisation. earlier, i spoke to gershon baskin, lead negotiator in the release of israeli soldier gilad shalit who was held hostage by hamas for five years. he's also middle east director at the international communities 0rganization. i asked him how this round of talks to help reach an agreement. i think the fact the talks are taking place at the highest level possible with the highest level people in the intelligence community is a very good sign. i think that we need to move away all the background noise that we hear, all the reports of this kind of agreement or another kind of agreement and understand that that's all part of the negoti

air strikes, the suffering, the anguish deepening on both sides. 0ur middle east correspondent mark lowenations. both lowen has more on the allegations. syria and iran that both syria and iran have reported that a building both syria and iran have reported thata building in both syria and iran have reported that a building in damascus that they say was housing the iranian revolutionary guard in the syrian capital was hit by an israeli air strike, which killed four members of the iranians revolution regard. now, the iranians revolution regard. now, the pictures show a pretty large strike they're caused by a precision targeted missile. israel does not comment on the military operations abroad, so we will never get confirmation from israel that it was their missile, if indeed it was. if it was an israeli strike, it could well have been retaliation for what happened less than a week ago, when iran hit a building happened less than a week ago, when iran hita building in happened less than a week ago, when iran hit a building in northern iraq, which they say was housing the israeli spy agency.

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem.of two navy seals who went missing in the region. they are missing, presumed dead. they were reported missing after boarding an iranian vessel earlier this month in the gulf of aden. rescue crews failed to locate the two men, whose status has now officially been changed to deceased. gerald firestein is a former us ambassador to yemen under president 0bama who's now a distinguished senior fellow at the middle east institute and told me about what's driving the spread of the conflict to the wider region. it seems that the us is increasingly getting swept up increasingly getting swept up in this conflict. how is that likely —— what's the response likely —— what's the response likely to be to that? it’s likely -- what's the response likely to be to that?— likely to be to that? it's a very complicated - likely to be to that? it's a | very complicated situation likely to be to that? it's a i very complicated situation in the red sea. the administration had three priorities in dealing with wh

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem.o—state solution. there's no surprise here because this has been a long—held position by benjamin netanyahu, of being against the creation of an independent palestinian state — the two—state solution is the preferred plan by the international community that would see the creation of a palestinian state sitting along israel. and arab countries have now been defending negotiations for the creation of a palestinian state as an exit strategy for this war. and we're seeing now that the prime minister has been reluctant to accept this idea — an idea that's defended also by president biden, who's been obviously a huge supporter of the israelis in this war. so again, it shows that the massive, huge differences between the positions defended by the israeli prime minister, and also the positions and views defended by the biden administration for gaza once the war is over. teaching is due to resume next month but the fourth floor of the faculty where the shooting took place will remain closed. st

we can speak to mark lowen. , just looking at the israeli newspapers this morning, seeing the faces of those young soldiers, many of them reservists, who have been killed in gaza in that operation. i wonder if that has changed in any way public sentiment and what the reaction has been to their deaths. i think it will of course deep in the sense of national trauma, already very deep over the fate of the hostages and the attack in october, the worst in israel's history. but now you have got the number of israeli soldiers killed in the ground operation going past 200, and as you say, 2a killed in those attacks yesterday, and i don't think in and of itself it is going to change public opinion here, but i think it is going to deepen an already subtle shift in public opinion. there is a sense from families of the hostages that the government is not doing enough in their review to prioritise the release of the 130 or so remaining hostages, although 30 of them according to israel may already be dead. but there is a growi

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem.re getting ready to cast ballots in the 2024 us presidential primary. the vote on tuesday comes after former president donald trump dominated the iowa republican caucuses. he won 51% of the vote there, well ahead of florida governor ron desantis and and former un ambassador and south carolina governor nikki haley. three days out from new hampshire, the latest major poll suggests mr trump holds a significant edge over ms haley in the state — 53 to 36%. ron desantis is polling at just 7%. in new hampshire on saturday, mr trump surrounded himself with officials from south carolina, nikki haley's home state, including the governor. it also comes after south carolina senator tim scott endorsed mr trump this week, having dropped out of the presidential race in november. ms haley's campaign is depending on victory in new hampshire. haley has ramped up her criticism of mr trump. today, she even questioned mr trump's mental fitness for office after he confused her with the former house speaker,

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem. gunness is a former chief spokesperson for unrwa, and now director of the myanmar accountability project. he gave me his reaction to the israeli allegations. they are very serious and unrwa has taken robust action in implementing its zero tolerance policy. if you look at the statement of the commissioner general, the head of unrwa, philippe lazzarini, he made it clear that he was sacking these people to protect unrwa's interests. in other words, in advance of the results of the investigation, in the absence of prima facie evidence, unrwa has dismissed these people. so, you know, these accusations are taken very, very seriously. unrwa always takes disciplinary action up to and including dismissal and that is what we have seen in this case. and to be clear, this is disproportionate and it is punitive. it is going to hurt the million people who are, at the moment, in a war zone in unrwa installations. the women, the children, the newborn, the sick, the babies, the dying, they are the one

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem. just take a moment to explain the background to the un agency at the centre of these claims. unrwa is the initialised name of the un's relief and works agency for palestinian refugees. it started its work in 1950 and says it provides essential services for the well—being, human development and protection of those people. this includes healthcare, education, social services, and infrastructure work. it has around 13,000 staff in gaza — almost all of them palestinians. its funding comes from un member states, the european union, and other governments and private organisations. in 2017, unrwa says the contributions amounted to more than $1.1 billion — much of which is spent in gaza and the west bank. so far, nine countries have suspended funding, inlcuding the us, the uk, canada, germany and australia. with me is said shehata, from bbc arabic. thank you for talking to us. this came as a shock, these allegations emerged yesterday. take us through what the allegations are and in terms of w

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem.ng ready to cast ballots in the 2024 us presidential primary. the vote on tuesday comes after former president donald trump dominated the iowa republican caucuses. he won 51% of the vote there, well ahead of florida governor ron desantis and and former un ambassador and south carolina governor nikki haley. three days out from new hampshire, the latest major poll suggests mr trump holds a significant edge over ms haley in the state — 53% to 36%. ron desantis is polling atjust 7% and has largely moved on to south carolina. the third primary state, where voters will cast ballots in late february. ms haley, on the other hand, says she is going for victory in new hampshire and has ramped up her criticism of mrtrump. today, she even questioned mr trump's mental fitness for office, after he confused her with the former house speaker, nancy pelosi, during a campaign speech. here's mr trump's apparent blunder, followed by ms haley's response. nikki haley is in charge of security. we offered a 1

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem.the region, an american official said a missile or rocket attack had injured us personnel at a base in iraq. the us also said it had targeted a missile the iran—backed houthis in yemen were aiming at shipping in the red sea. and an air strike on southern lebanon has killed a member of the powerful armed group hezbollah and another lebanese national. israel has been accused of targeting hezbollah and its ally hamas, let's cross now to nomi bar—yaacov, who is associate fellow of the international security programme at chatham house. thank you so much forjoining us. can we get your reaction on this latest attack in damascus? yes. can we get your reaction on this latest attack in damascus? yes, i think it is a _ latest attack in damascus? yes, i think it is a further _ latest attack in damascus? yes, i think it is a further escalation - latest attack in damascus? yes, i think it is a further escalation of. think it is a further escalation of the war. at some point, unless there is a compre

our middle east correspondent mark lowen is injerusalem. what do we know so far?veloping — what do we know so far? this developing in _ what do we know so far? this developing in the _ what do we know so far? “in 3 developing in the last hour? yes, we have just heard from the un agency for palestine refugees which had tweeted that a training centre in khan younis sheltering tens of thousands was hit with buildings ablaze and mass casualties. we have update from the head of that agency, tom waits, who says it was attacked this afternoon with two tank rounds hitting a building that shelters 800 people, reporting now nine dead and 75 injured —— the head agency, tom white. un teams are trying to reach that centre with an agreed—upon route with the israeli army who have blocked access. this is a un building in khan younis which is the centre of the fighting in southern gaza, it is the southern part of the strips largest city and it is strip's largest city and it is clearly the centre of the israeli offensive at the moment because it is the top hamas commanders are hole

mark lowen there. the red sea during the latest round of strikes. these pictures show the moment hms diamond repelled the attack by firing sea viper missiles at an incoming which was heading directly towards the ship. the warship is currently situated in the red sea to protect merchant ships from houthi attacks. the uk ministry of defence says there were no injuries or damage. this latest strike from the iran backed group comes days after an oil tanker was hit. the fire on the marlin luanda was extinguished with no crew injured after french, indian and us naval ships provided assistance to the vessel. responding to the recent attacks — defence secretary grant shapps wrote: "the uk remains undaunted after yesterday�*s illegal attack on hms diamond by the iranian backed houthis. our commitment to protect innocent lives and the freedom of navigation is absolutely unwavering." our political correspondent harry farley has the latest. this is isn�*t even the first time hms diamond, which is a british navy de

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem. some breaking has dropped out.n desantis has dropped out of the presidential campaign, to endorse trump. dozens of people are said to have been killed when a market and shopping district in the russian—occupied city of donetsk in eastern ukraine was hit by shelling. proxy officials there blamed ukraine, saying at least 25 people died and least 20 others were injured in the attack. graphic video from the scene shows many dead bodies in the street, as well as shattered shop fronts and stalls, and damaged cars. russia's foreign ministry called it a �*barbaric terrorist act', accusing the west of complicity. the ukraine government has not yet commented. meanwhile, official sources in kyiv have confirmed to the bbc that the explosion at an oil terminal outside st petersburg was a "special operation" of the ukrainian security service. they said the sbu used drones to start a major fire at the baltic terminal in ust—luga, west of russia's second city. the ukrainians say fuel processed at the plant was being used to supply

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem.secretary—general has said the right of palestinians to build their own state must be "recognized by all". antonio guterres said he would also continue calling for a truce. the refusal to accept the two state solution for israelis and palestinians and the denial of the right to statehood for the palestinian people are unacceptable. these will indefinitely prolong the conflict that has become a major threat to global peace and security, exacerbate polarisation and embolden extremists everywhere. elsewhere in the region, an american official said a missile or rocket attack had injured us personnel at a base in iraq. the us also said it had targeted a missile the iran—backed houthis in yemen were aiming at shipping in the red sea. and an air strike on southern lebanon has killed a member of the powerful armed group his brother and another lebanese national. —— the armed group hezbollah. israel has been accused of targeting his brother and its ally hamas, in strikes on southern lebanon in

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem. with me is mohamed taha from bbc arabic. good morning. another week, we're coming into another new week in whole war between the two. netanyahu, a lot of pessimism about what he has been saying?— has been saying? indeed, lots of pessimism _ has been saying? indeed, lots of pessimism because - has been saying? indeed, lots of pessimism because he - has been saying? indeed, lots of pessimism because he told | of pessimism because he told biden last week that he might be open for a two state solution and then a day after that he turned back and said there is no way for a two state solution. and this is basically the situation and the basis of his government because netanyahu of my government is based on refusing the two state solution, according to the what might ring ministers in his cabinet like ranvir. we saw in lebanon overnight bombarding to the bernese villages and the hezbollah retaliated to israeli settlement in the north. we saw that netanyahu does not accept even the palestinian authority to stay in the west bank. he wants to take

bbc�*s mark lowen injerusalem.ation that staff from the un agency for palestinian refugees were involved in the october the 7th attacks. a bit more on israel's accusation that staff from the un agency for palestinian refugees were involved in the october 7th attacks. australia, italy and canada have now suspended their funding to the agency. the us state department has also suspended its additional funding to un—ra. the organisation's head said a full investigation into the allegations is being carried out — and anyone found to have been involved will be held accountable. an oil tanker with british links has been attacked by houthi missiles. the marlin luanda was travelling in the red sea off the coast of yemen when it was struck. the uk government says it reserves the right to respond appropriately. it is the latest attack in and around the red sea, one of the world's busiest shipping lanes. 0ur diplomatic correspondent paul adams reports. this is the marlin luanda, carrying russian oil from greece to singapore, t

thank you, mark lowen in jerusalem. now to our other main story.d ukraine of shooting down a russian military transport plane they say was carrying 65 captured ukrainian soldiers to a prisoner exchange. the bbc has verified this mobile phone video which shows the aircraft falling through the sky in the distance and exploding on the ground. you can see the flames behind that street sign. 7a people were on board the plane altogether. no one is reported to have survived. russia says its radars detected the launch of two ukrainian missiles and called it a barbaric act of terrorism. a spokesman blamed ukraine for the attack. translation: using a spokesman blamed ukraine for the attack. translation:— attack. translation: using an anti-aircraft _ attack. translation: using an anti-aircraft missile _ attack. translation: using an anti-aircraft missile system, i anti—aircraft missile system, russian _ anti—aircraft missile system, russian aerospace forces observe the launch_ russian aerospace forces observe the iaunch of— russian aerospace forces observe th

with the latest, here's mark lowen. lives on a list that grows by the day.d in gaza since israel's offensive began, says hamas. numbers out of date by the hour. israel's focus is now southern gaza, pounded from the air, backed by naval strikes. but there have been clashes in the north too. israel's army — vastly superior to hamas — is still facing significant resistance across the territory. the israeli defence forces released pictures of a new tunnel they say they found, booby—trapped and more than 800m long — and, they say, it's likely to have held israeli hostages. translation: in the tunnel, we found five cells, _ each had a toilet and a mattress, enclosed by metal bars. according to testimonies we have, about 20 hostages were held in this tunnel at different times, in difficult conditions — without daylight, with stuffy air, very little oxygen, and terrible humidity that makes it difficult to breathe. but more than three months in, israel still hasn't destroyed hamas or got the remaining hostages home, and splits are growing here. anti—war protesters —

our middle east correspondent, mark lowen, told us more about the upcoming talks.to begin, we understand, as early as sunday, tomorrow, in france. there are reports, but the cia has not confirmed the location or the start date and they will involve bill burns, the head of the cia, who's meeting with his opposite numbers at mossad, israel's intelligence agency, and the egyptian spy agency as well, and top officials from qatar to try to revive attempts at finding a ceasefire — making progress towards a ceasefire in this conflict. tomorrow, sunday will be three months since israel launched its ground offensive in gaza, and the warring sides are still far apart on ceasefire proposals. we understand from reports that israel has mooted the idea of a one or two—month pause in fighting or truce, and the phased release of israeli hostages and palestinian prisoners. but hamas is said to be demanding a permanent ceasefire as part of any hostage release deal. now, the fact that they are... these talks are due to take place show that the wheels of diplomacy are turning faster.

mark lowen in jerusalem.arship was attacked again in the red sea by the iranian—backed houthis yesterday. these pictures have just come iranian—backed houthis yesterday. these pictures havejust come in iranian—backed houthis yesterday. these pictures have just come in of the moment the hms diamond repelled the moment the hms diamond repelled the attack by firing sea viper missiles at an incoming houthi drone. it was heading directly towards the ship. the ministry of defence said. it is currently situated in the red sea to protect merchant ships from houthi attacks. live now to our political correspondent harry farley. what can you tell us about this? in the last few minutes we have had this statement from the ministry of the defence here in the uk, confirming hms diamond, a british naval destroyer in the red sea, was attacked again by the houthi groups, the iranian—backed group in yemen at the iranian—backed group in yemen at the moment. the statement from the mod said these intolerable and illegal attacks ar

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem.ldings in gaza have been damaged or destroyed by israeli strikes, including more than a hundred historically important sites. the bbc's yasmin khatun dewan has been looking at some of the sites damaged over the last three months. significant buildings damaged or destroyed in gaza include libraries, religious sites and places of ancient historical importance. you can see gaza city's al—hussein mosque behind me here. this image was taken on the 6th of january this year. but let's contrast that with an image from january 2021 prior to the recent conflict. here's an image from more than ten years ago. it's ramadan 2013, and the man seen here is in the great omari mosque, the largest and oldest in gaza. the mosque opened in the seventh century on the site of a byzantine church. named after omar, islam's second caliph, its library was once filled with rare manuscripts, including old copies of the koran. the mosque has been damaged numerous times in the past, losing many ancient documents, bu

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem.on, an american official said a missile or rocket attack had injured us personnel at a base in iraq. the us also said it had targeted a missile the iran—backed houthis in yemen were aiming at shipping in the red sea. and an air strike on southern lebanon has killed a member of the powerful armed group hezbollah and another lebanese national. israel has been accused of targeting hezbollah and its ally hamas, in strikes on southern lebanon in recent weeks. nomi bar—yaacov is an associate fellow of the international security programme at chatham house. i began by asking for her reactions on the attack in damascus. i think it is a further escalation of the war, and i think at some point or other, unless there is a comprehensive end to the war, a comprehensive ceasefire and release of the hostages and a plan for an end game ending with the two state solution living side by side in security and peace, we will reach a point of no return where the escalation is no longer under control. as you

that was mark lowen reporting from jerusalem.speak again to chris gunness, who's a former chief spokesperson for unrwa. thank you very much forjoining us on bbc news. these allegations are incredibly serious. you have been at the heart of the organisation, what is your reaction to them? the? the heart of the organisation, what is your reaction to them?— is your reaction to them? they are very serious _ is your reaction to them? they are very serious and _ is your reaction to them? they are very serious and unrwa _ is your reaction to them? they are very serious and unrwa has - is your reaction to them? they are | very serious and unrwa has taken robust action in implementing its zero tolerance policy. if you look at the statement of the commissioner general, the head of unrwa, he made it clear he was sucking these people to protect unrwa's interests. in other words, to protect unrwa's interests. in otherwords, in to protect unrwa's interests. in other words, in advance of the results of the investigation, in the absence of eviden

mark lowen, thank you very much indeed.th the blast furnaces at port talbot. we can join close both the blast furnaces at port talbot. we canjoin lucy close both the blast furnaces at port talbot. we can join lucy who close both the blast furnaces at port talbot. we canjoin lucy who is there for us. thank you, today there is a lot of meetings and a lot going on. the first thing we are expecting is probably one of the most emotionally charged events of the day. the managing director of tata steel is due to meet workers here. that is ahead of the official announcement which we are expecting at 1130 this morning, where we believe they will confirm that up to 3000 jobs will go across the uk, mostly here at the port talbot site. joining me now is the local mp, stephen kinnock. how are people feeling this morning? people are feeling very, very concerned and also very disappointed. we know that the multi—unions have put a plan on the table which was a compelling plan that would enable us to keep one of the blast furnaces open whil

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem. call to police was made from a house near norwich about an hour before four people, including two young children, were found dead inside. the force has referred itself to the independent police watchdog, because no officers were sent to the property in response to that call — which was made by a man at six o'clock on friday morning. sam readhas more, from the scene. 2a hours on, there's still a huge police presence on this small estate near norwich. the man who died has been named locally as bartlomiej kuczynski. the two young girls also lived in the house. the 36—year—old woman was related but didn't live there full time. police said today a 999 call was made by a man inside the property at around 6am yesterday morning. no one was deployed. officers then discovered the bodies around an hour and a quarter later after another call from a member of the public. norfolk police has referred itself to the independent police watchdog. more than 2a hours on, people here are still in disbelief

and mark lowen gave us his analysis of benjamin netanyahu's comments.ong—standing opposition to a palestinian state chimes with the majority of public opinion at the moment, that is still too traumatised to countenance an independent palestine over those attacks on 7th october and of course he's also fighting for his political survival to some extent, with diminishing popularity here, and relying on support from the far right within his cabinet, two ministers from the far right threatening to topple the government unless israel pursues its war. and of course they are very much aligned with him on the anti—palestinian statehood position. but i think that there is growing exasperation, clearly, from western allies at the moment, and the fact that benjamin netanyahu keeps repeating this publicly in a sort of pretty clear rebuttal to israel's western allies at the moment who are pressuring him to sort of ease off on the offensive and engage in meaningful diplomacy, thatjust shows the widening chasm that there is now between the netanyahu government and isra

mark lowen, bbc news, jerusalem.e taken part in a ceremony there to mark 79 years since its liberation. the event was one of many around the world to mark international holocaust remembrance day. here in the uk, major landmarks were being lit up in purple, and people are being encouraged to light a candle in a window to signal their opposition to hatred and prejudice. alfred garwood is a holocaust survivor who was just eight months old when he was taken to bergen—belsen concentration camp. he told me about his family's experience. you may find some of his recollections distressing. i was born in 1942 in a nazi ghetto and when i was eight months old, all four of us, my parents and my older sister and myself, were taken to bergen—belsen concentration camp. we were given starvation rations, the amount of food you had was about 160 calories per day. one piece of bread, some water, soup and that was basically at. and the life expectancy was about six months. being a baby, clearly that led to different problems. fortunatel