yolande knell in — of this offensive. yolande knell in jerusalem, - of this offensive. j of this offensive. yolande - knell in jerusalem, thank you. let's get some reaction from the us. 0ur north america correspondent rowan bridgejoins us from washington dc. what has president biden been saying? he answered some questions on his way to your rally in pennsylvania this morning where he said he hoped that this would be the end of the tit—for—tat as jeremy bowen described it between israel and iran. and i think there will be a sense of relief within the white house as to the nature of the attacks that israel carried out, they were described by a senior official as precise and proportionate. i think there had been concerns, america had been pressuring the israelis publicly and privately not to go after iranian nuclear or oil facilities amid concerns that that could escalate the situation and they are clearly from the language used hoping to draw a line under this at this stage. they are brawling, senior american official said there would be consequences for iran, if they do

yolande knell injerusalem, yolande knell in jerusalem, thank yolande knell injerusalem, thank you.s security correspondent frank gardner. perhaps an unfair question, frank, i guess that is what is on everyone's minds right now, what happens next following the killing of yahya sinwar? will the israelis listen to the americans and push forward with a ceasefire this time? ida. americans and push forward with a ceasefire this time?— a ceasefire this time? no, i do not think— a ceasefire this time? no, i do not think they _ a ceasefire this time? no, i do not think they will. _ a ceasefire this time? no, i do not think they will. the - not think they will. the israeli cabinet feels they are on a roll and as yolande knell said, benjamin netanyahu went against much of public opinion and certainly against advice of the americans in defying calls for a ceasefire which would have probably brought the hostages home. he has pressed on and they feel they have an advantage at the moment. much depends on what iran does and the signals coming out of iran are pretty defiant. that does not appear to

let's go to yolande knell in - let's go to yolande knell in jerusalem. netanyahu of the future direction of this conflict and there will be no early end? that's right, he was really trying to project an image of strength on the anniversary of those hamas led attacks yesterday. he also said as a cabinet meeting was held in jerusalem that this was about the future of the country, the future of its children, but of course israel now fighting on multiple fronts. it gives people a sense of real uncertainty. that said, israel feels it continues to have military successes as search continues with its operations against hezbollah in lebanon, that intense aerial bombardment we had seen and two important statements from the israeli military this morning, one concerning this man who they are saying was the commander of the hezbollah headquarters, suhail husseini, and that he played a crucial role in weapons transfers between hezbollah and iran and he was also responsible for logistics management budgets within the organisation. it's killing in an air strike organis

that is if your group yolande kneu that is if your group yolande kneuin that is if your group yolandenon and the world can�*t push hezbollah away from our border we have no choice but to do it ourselves. i want to make it clear, i work with hezbollah, not with the people of lebanon. we do not want to harm lebanese siblings. —— a war with hezbollah. we are taking measures to prevent it. we will not let the 7th of october happen again on any one of our borders. we will continue doing whatever necessary so that israeli families can return to their homes in safety and security. yolande knell, he said there, we don�*t want to harm civilians. that is something the israeli military said when it comes to the offensive in gaza and there have been civilian deaths. what is the military strategy going forward from what we have heard in further briefings from the idf? they say they are planning to destroy this infrastructure along the border. they are stressing repeatedly that what they are planning at the moment is not an occupation. of course there was an occupation of southern lebanon after isr

i am bringing yolande knell in once more. _ for that. i am bringing yolande knell in once more.that benjamin netanyahu has been speaking to president joe biden today. the relationship between israel and the us is hugely significant when it comes to de—escalate this. what is your analysis about how crucial this particular hole could be given where we are in this ongoing conflict? .., where we are in this ongoing conflict? . ., ,, conflict? -- call. the us remains _ conflict? -- call. the us remains israel's - conflict? -- call. the us remains israel's closest | conflict? -- call. the us i remains israel's closest ally but we have seen consistently over the past year that despite its influence it has not always been able to limit israeli actions and we are expecting the main focus of this phone call to be really about israel's response to that massive attack by iran last week, where it fired close to 200 ballistic missiles at israel. we have had the israeli prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, that iran will pay the price. iran said it was acting in response to high—profile assassi

yolande knell in jerusalem. _ laying out. yolande knell in jerusalem, thank _ laying out.ou. - laying out. yolande knell in i jerusalem, thank you. looking jerusalem, thank you. looking at the bbc news website, lots of different lines coming in all the time, a live page, good place to keep across everything happening. the israeli military have ordered the evacuation of 35 areas in southern nir bitton. residents in more than 30 villages have been ordered to evacuate immediately —— in southern lebanon. developing situation. the place to stay across it is the bbc news website. let's speak to itamar yaar, former deputy head of israel's national security council and now ceo of commanders for israel's security, a group of former senior israeli security officials. thank you forjoining us. we were in possession the last time there was a war between israel and hezbollah in 2006 —— in position. what parallels can you draw between then and now? i think the situation now is slightly different. i think let us speak about the bigger picture. there is now a battle between two coalitions,

that is yolande — situation forwards. that is yolande knell, _ situation forwards.nell, our middle east correspondent. here in israel meanwhile the parliament, the knesset, is set to debate this week. this is important to draft legislation it is such a debate that could... the work of the united nations relief agency, unrwa. this could provide education and aid for palestinian refugees in the gaza west bank. the israeli politicians have long alleged that some unrwa staff have long been affiliated with hamas, so they want to curtail its work and some members of the israeli parliament certainly want to curtail its work here in the middle east. western governments have expressed deep concern about that draft legislation. meanwhile, i ran backis legislation. meanwhile, i ran back is still considering how and whether it will respond to israel's attacks on iranian territory on saturday. israeli fighterjets hit 20 targets on saturday. that was a response to iran's early attack on israel at the start of the month, so how will iran respond? so far the mood music seems to be

thank you very much for now, yolande. we will be speaking i now, yolande.ked becoming a distraction. the former civil servant had been caught up in a row over pay, after the bbc revealed her salary was higher than sir keir starmer�*s. our political correspondent iain watson reports. this is how close sue gray was to the prime minister. only last month she was with sir keir starmer when he met president biden. she became the labour leader's chief of staff originally in opposition, with a focus of preparing labour for government. but after less than 100 days since the election, it has looked like labour is somewhat underprepared, with rows over cuts to winter fuel payments and donations to ministers from wealthy donors. at six, trouble inside the labour party... she'd been under further pressure when the bbc revealed she was paid more than the prime minister. i acknowledge that briefings to you are not helpful to the government. my focus is on what we need to do as a government to change the country for the better. the former labour deputy leader told the bbc

yolande kneu you very much for that.ll talking about international reactions in some countries in the middle east talking about strikes. many countries urging iran not to retaliate for latest strikes. we heard earlierfrom prime minister keir starmer and he warned iran against responding to the latest strikes. i am clear that israel has the right to defend itself against iranian aggression. i am equally clear that we need to avoid further regional escalation and urge all sides to show restraint. iran should not respond. we will continue to work with allies to de—escalate the situation across the region. that was keir starmer, uk prime minister speaking a couple of hours ago. let's just remind you of some of the areas targeted by israel. iran's state media says the iranian air defense command issued a statement — saying that israeli airstrikes against military centres in tehran, the western province of ilam, and the southwestern province of khuzestan have been intercepted and countered successfully. 0ur security correspond

yolande knell, thank you. hugo bachega - on the other side. yolande knell, thank you.l, thank you. hugo bachega is in . thank you. hugo bachega is in beirut. we are watching several live shots of scenes above the city skyline of beirut with smoke rising. what has been happening in in the last few hours?— last few hours? another night of heavy lsraeli _ last few hours? another night of heavy israeli air _ last few hours? another night of heavy israeli air strikes - last few hours? another night of heavy israeli air strikes hitting . heavy israeli air strikes hitting beirut. the target was dahieh, the hezbollah base in the capital. it came after warnings by the israeli military, evacuation orders telling residents to leave some parts of dahieh who lives near buildings that the israeli military says being used ljy the israeli military says being used by hezbollah. some of the warnings came at three o'clock, four o'clock in the morning and people will have been sleeping when the warnings were issued. we haven't had reports yet about casualties from those attacks, but anoth

yolande knell in jerusalem yolande knell injerusalem affair. —— there.reement with germany, as the government seeks to strengthen its post—brexit ties with europe. our defence correspondent jonathan beale has the details. germany and the uk already train and work together as nato allies. but the government says this new defence pact will take the relationship to another level, with more cooperation between their militaries and defence industries — all part of the government's push to reset relations with key european allies post—brexit. this is an historic agreement. it brings our uk and german militaries closer together, our industries closer together, both to strengthen our security and europe's security, but also to boost our industries. german and uk defence firms are alreadyjointly making new armoured vehicles for the british army at this factory in telford. under the new agreement, germany would open a new factory in britain to produce the barrels for artillery guns. the government says it will sustain 400 jobs. they'll also jointly develop a new l

our middle east correspondent yolande knell is injerusalem for us and has the latest.ow two weeks since _ what can you tell us? it's now two weeks since iran _ what can you tell us? it's now two weeks since iran fired _ what can you tell us? it's now two weeks since iran fired some - what can you tell us? it's now two weeks since iran fired some 180 i weeks since iran fired some 180 ballistic missiles at israel and ever since then the region has been on edge, waiting for israel's threatened retaliation, knowing that there is danger lurking there or full—blown war between these two countries. this washington post article quotes to officials it says are familiar with this subject, they say that the israeli prime minister has told the biden administration that he is ready to opt for a more limited strike against iran than some had perhaps originally expected, opting to attack its military infrastructure. it had been proposed that israel could go after nuclear sites in iran, that would be very sensitive of course, that it could go over oil production facilities which analy

yolande knell. siren wails.ar ago when israel's deadliest day began. waves of hamas fighters from gaza led a bloody attack on a dance festival, army bases and villages, seizing hostages. this is a day of painful remembrance. they destroyed our house and our life. oh, god, where are you? this woman from nir oz going back to the home where her mother and niece were killed. her son and daughter were kidnapped by hamas and held for 52 days before they were released in a truce deal. but she says they are still living the nightmare of the 7th of october. her ex—husband is one of dozens of hostages stuck in gaza. last seen alive in a tunnel by his daughter. we know that every moment his life is... can be gone. our life is on hold. we can't think... ..about future, we can't think about nothing else. last year's shocking assault triggered the deadliest ever war against palestinians. with relentless israeli bombardment. most of gaza's population forced from their homes. a humanitarian catastrophe. and every day brings new

yolande knell, thank you very much.tage that has come out of iran and will continue to do so without the day. these images were posted on x today and we have confirmed these photographs of the flames and heavy black smoke are rising from an air defence base south of tehran. this video was posted on x in the early hours and if you look closely, you should just be able to see black smoke rising from a military base that is east of tehran. in the next video, you can see flashes in the night sky, along with audible explosions. bbc verify was able to locate the videos in tehran by identifying a shopping centre in front of the camera position. there is also a taller building, which we confirm to be the tehran international tower. here, a daylight image of damage to a factory. bbc verify found the factory. bbc verify found the factory was identified as a textile factory in an industrial town south of tehran. people in georgia are voting in what many see as one of the most important parliamentary elections since independence fr

joining me now are our correspondents in jerusalem and beirut, yolande knell and hugo bachega.the us, the warning that they should get more aid into gaza? we have not had a formal israeli government response but we have heard that the israeli prime minister met with senior officials to discuss this, even though it is a time we are not seeing a lot of government business taking place, it is the jewish holiday. business taking place, it is thejewish holiday. the latest figures we have had suggest there have been improvements in recent days in the amount of lorries going into gaza taking aid in. still it full short according to the latest figures of the more than 350 lorry—loads of aid the americans want to see going into gaza every day. the last figure was four tuesday when something like 145 lorries went in according to the israelis. was really important to see 50 lorry loads going into the northern part of the gaza strip yesterday. we have had aid delivered there over three consecutive days after a two—week stretch when the un says there was no aid going into the top one third

we can go back to yolande knell who continues to be with us in jerusalem. state antony blinken had to say, but essentially talking about the need for diplomatic resolution. how much pressure do you think there is, given the visit antony blinken made to israel as well, how much pressure is the us, israel's top ally, to try to get this done, given the circumstances? t try to get this done, given the circumstances?— try to get this done, given the circumstances? i mean, there is a lot of pressure _ circumstances? i mean, there is a lot of pressure coming - circumstances? i mean, there is a lot of pressure coming from i a lot of pressure coming from the us, but as we have found over the past year, it does not always lead to an immediate response from the israeli government. certainly, the attitude of israeli officials is that they will act in accordance with their own national security needs. at the same time, when mr blinken was here, he said many times they could not be a protracted campaign going on in lebanon and he said the us was working on a diplomatic d

let's speak to our correspondent in jerusalem, yolande knell.arian situation in gaza as antony blinken visits the region. as antony blinken visits the reuion. ., �* , as antony blinken visits the reuion. . �* , , as antony blinken visits the reuion. . �*, , ., region. that's right, it is a message _ region. that's right, it is a message coming - region. that's right, it is a message coming out - region. that's right, it is a message coming out fromj region. that's right, it is a - message coming out from the different un agencies that are involved in this mass vaccination campaign really made necessary after the first traces of polio were found, first of all in sewage water in central gaza in the middle of this year and then they had the first case of a baby, and unvaccinated baby with polio in close to two decades. it was underlined by the different un agencies involved in this mass vaccination that it was really important to have this 2—stage programme is rolled out across all areas of the gaza strip. the first stage was completed successfully

let's get more on this with our middle east correspondent yolande knell in jerusalem.fiant message from hezbollah, then. what is israel's response? hezbollah, then. what is israel's resonse? , . hezbollah, then. what is israel's resonse? , hezbollah, then. what is israel's re5ponse?_ response? israel is investigating what happened _ response? israel is investigating what happened at _ response? israel is investigating what happened at this _ response? israel is investigating what happened at this military i response? israel is investigating i what happened at this military base about a0 miles away from the border, while no warning sirens went off their to alert the soldiers, why that happened. that's because of concern and a failure of the air defence systems. it was about 7pm local time when this attack happened, so that dining area had been quite full with soldiers. now, hezbollah have said that this is because of israeli strikes that have been going on in beirut, and also in the south of lebanon in particular, and we are still hearing about intense fighting going on

yolande knell reports. siren wails.s marked the exact moment a year ago when israel's deadliest day began. waves of hamas fighters from gaza led a bloody attack on a dance festival, army bases and villages, seizing hostages. this is a day of painful remembrance. they destroyed our house and our life. oh, god, where are you? this woman from nir 0z going back to the home where her mother and niece were killed. her son and daughter were kidnapped by hamas and held for 52 days before they were released in a truce deal. but she says they are still living the nightmare of the 7th of october. her ex—husband is one of dozens of hostages stuck in gaza. last seen alive in a tunnel by his daughter. we know that every moment his life is... can be gone. 0ur life is on hold. we can't think... about future, we can't think about nothing else. last year's shocking assault triggered the deadliest ever war against palestinians. with relentless israeli bombardment. most of gaza's population forced from their homes. a humanitarian catastrop

but first let's go to yolande knell injerusalem. yolande, what are the israelis saying? army is continuing to insist that its ground operation inside lebanon is very limited in its scope. it says that its ultimate goal is to destroy the military bunkers, the tunnels that have built up bunkers, the tunnels that have built up very close to israel's northern border communities. and ultimately it also wants hezbollah to be pushed away from that border in line with a un security council resolution that ended the 2006 war between israel and hezbollah. and on top of all of that, after those earlier rocket attacks, what we had to this lunchtime, new restrictions being announced on israeli civilians as far south as tel aviv and here in jerusalem. that will close beaches and limits the number of people able to get together as we go into the jewish new year holiday. yolande knell, thank _ jewish new year holiday. yolande knell, thank you. _ let'sjoin hugo bachega in beruit. what's been the response from the authorities there? the prime minister here saying that this country is faci

yolande knell, bbc news, jerusalem.ain is the executive director of the un�*s cindy mccain is the executive director of the un�*s world food programme. she gave this reaction to israel's decision to stop unrwa working in the country. well, i'm hoping that better heads prevail. we need unrwa. unrwa on the ground is absolutely vital to what we do. logistically, we handle logistics. they do the work on the ground there. we don't have the ground there. we don't have the contacts, we don't have the ability to get to know the contacts because things are so intensely difficult there. i know they said they could stay in the west bank, but the problem is that they can't cross any lines to get into the west bank to work. i'm hoping, like i said, that better heads, the west bank to work. i'm hoping, like i said, that better heads, various governments can intercede on behalf of of humanitarian aid workers in the region to be able to get us in, let us work. we have also been hearing from various ambassadors. the us ambassador to the

you'll knell injerusalem there. —— yolande knell.pondent, frank gardner, had more on how the death of yahya sinwar might impact on negotiations to release the israeli hostages. benjamin netanyahu went against much of public opinion and certainly against advice of the americans in defying calls for a ceasefire which would have probably brought the hostages home. he has pressed on and they feel they have got an advantage at the moment. much now depends on what iran does and the signals coming out of iran are pretty defiant. there does not appear to be much appetite on other side for any kind of a ceasefire because i think you have to ask yourself certain questions here. does the death of yahya sinwar make it easier to bring a ceasefire? well, if israel feels they have not achieved their goals in gaza — they have not eliminated hamas and brought the hostages home — then a ceasefire is going to be unlikely. does it bring an end to the war in gaza? not immediately, no, which is very depressing for those people who have survived a year of

yolande knell, bbc news, jerusalem.peak to our correspondent in beirut, hugo bachega. but first let's go to yolande knell injerusalem. yolande, has there been any indication as to how — and when — israel will respond? well, the israeli security —— security cabinet met last night and promised a response. we don't know the details yet. there is a lot of speculation in the israeli media, the suggestion being that a significant retaliation could come within days. and they're discussing possible targets inside iran, including nuclearfacilities, oil production sites, military bases there as well. after the previous major iranian attack back in april, we had the us really urging restraint. israel went on to carry out quite a limited strike against an air defence base. now what israeli media and moting this time is that there does not seem to be the same message coming from washington, really asking israel to hold back. thank you very much indeed. let's go to hugo bachega in beirut. hugo, this morning you've been to see some of

yolande knell, bbc news, jerusalem. our correspondent in jerusalem is wyre davies.bout what is really officials have been saying about the death of yayha sinwar because they are trying to create a very clear narrative because that is very important in the region, isn't it? , ., ., ., it? first of all, we had confirmation - it? first of all, we had confirmation from - it? first of all, we had i confirmation from hamas it? first of all, we had - confirmation from hamas itself, there deputy leader did say that yayha sinwar had been killed but went on to describe the method of his killing and that israeli video according to hamas and the allies and iran, she was fighting with weapons in his hands and he died a martyr step fighting, heroically. that version was contradicted somewhat by the israelis said quite the opposite end according to their intelligence, he had spent most of his time underground in tunnels protected by a human shield of israeli hostages and is only when he was flushed out of these tunnels and running between various houses in the much bombed city in

joining me now is our middle east correspondent yolande knell.om udi with his call for the war to end and there to be a ceasefire in gaza. what all the polls saying now? they began in the months after the war began by showing strong public backing for the israeli army actions in gaza, but have they been shifting over the months? certainly there has been broad public support for the war in gaza for its aims of dismantling hamas' military capabilities are bringing the hostages home and removing the threat from gaza. there was another war goal that was recently added, to return people to their homes in the north of the country. they have been displaced by the fighting that has gone on in parallel to the war in gaza between israel and hezbollah. there is a drop in support for the war in gaza, that many people really want the war to end, close to half in one of the recent polls of jewish israelis that responded and many more of the arab israelis, who make up 20% of israel's population. there is, by comparison, a lot more support for what is happening

and yolande, i see there's also concern about the health workers who have to deliver these vaccines asucial, of course. how vulnerable are they? well, i mean, this was part of the statement really saying that not only was it not safe for parents and families to bring children along to immunisation, but also not safe for the health workers to be able to reach them. and we have seen during the course of the day the number of people killed in gaza rising again, about 20 killed, according to local medics, most of those in the north of the gaza strip, and also one person, an unwra worker in deir al—balah in the centre that un agency has confirmed killed there in a marked vehicle. now, all of this, you know, just adds to the international concern that there is particularly about conditions in the north of the gaza strip, where we've been hearing about hospitals being forced to evacuate israeli forces, surrounding some shelters, ordering people to move to the south, really quite desperate scenes. and as much as we've had, you know, the us secretary of state, antony blinken, just here talking

let's cross live now tojerusalem and speak to our middle east correspondent yolande knell. the authority has been saying?— what have the authority has been sa inc? ~ ., ., ., ., been saying? we know that ahead ofthe been saying? we know that ahead of the strikes _ been saying? we know that ahead of the strikes there _ been saying? we know that ahead of the strikes there was _ been saying? we know that ahead of the strikes there was a - of the strikes there was a conference call between members of the israeli security cabinet to authorise what then took place. it was the early hours of the morning that we got the first reports of explosions outside of tehran. very quickly the israeli military came out to confirm that it had begun its long—awaited response to iran's ballistic missile attack on israel which happened at the start of the month. then we got more details, about six o'clock local time, and it was confirmed by the israeli military that the operation was over. they said that they had involved dozens of their fighterjets. all of them had returned safely to their bases

yolande, what's the latest there?border says they pose an immediate threat to israelis living in the north of the country. it has been confirmed there had previously been confirmed there had previously been what has been described as low signature raids in southern lebanon, thatis signature raids in southern lebanon, that is the first confirmation of that. the two chads in the town and it shows the briefing of israeli soldiers taking place in the dark. there are paratroopers and ele elite commando forces, part of the 98th division which has been involved in some of the most intense fighting which has taken place in gaza. israel says it will continue to strike against hezbollah before that it until it is safe for people to go back to their homes. they had been evacuated because of the fighting that has gone on in parallel to the war in gaza. hezbollah is known to have extensive tunnel networks close to the border, it has other infrastructure. this is a dangerous stage of the fighting as israel goes in to deal with that

beirut — as lebanon now reckons with the aftermath of those strikes. 0ur middle east correspondent yolandestating conflict and failed diplomacy. this was israel's deadliest ever day. exactly one year ago, waves of hamas fighters from gaza led a bloody attack on israeli army bases, villages, a music festival. snatching hostages. and it triggered the deadliest ever war against palestinians. with relentless israeli bombardment, most of gaza's population forced from their homes. a humanitarian catastrophe. there's still no end in sight. they destroyed our house and our life. hadas calderon from nir 0z going back to the home where her mother and niece were killed. her son and daughter were kidnapped by hamas and held for 52 days before they were released in a truce deal. but hadas says they're still living the nightmare of the 7th of october. her ex—husband, 0fer, is one of dozens of hostages stuck in gaza, last seen alive in a tunnel by his daughter. we know that every moment his life is... can be gone. my daughter, she said, because she met him and he told her, "please fight for me, i don't w

yolande, the operation in northern gaza, the idf operation, has come under huge criticism from the un the thousands of people who are trapped and can't get out, with food shortages and a huge number of civilian casualties. what is the latest? we have had a series of statements from un officials about the increasingly desperate situation in the north of the gaza strip in the past few days. it is more than ten days ago that israel began a new military offensive, a ground offensive, backed up by aerial bombardment, ordering people to leave all of the north, specifically some areas in the far north, and particularly the jabalia refugee camp, which is a densely populated part of the gaza strip historically. un officials say to me this morning that there are still 100,000 people believed to be trapped there. we had this comment from the un secretary—general via his spokesman yesterday, where he talked about a large number of civilian casualties caused by this operation. the amount of humanitarian assistance was woefully inadequate, and there was a two—week stretch, almost, where the un were

yolande knell in jerusalem.burgh, president biden said he hoped this signalled the end of israeli strikes against iran. i have been talking to the intelligence community for the last half an hour. it looks like they did not do anything other than hit those targets, i hope that this is the end. 0ur north america correspondent rowan bridge has been giving the reacion to the strikes on iran in the us. i think there will be a sense of relief within the white house as to the nature of the attacks that israel carried out, they were described by a senior official as precise and proportionate. i think there had been concerns, america had been pressuring the israelis publicly and privately not to go after iranian nuclear or oil facilities amid concerns that that could escalate the situation and they are clearly, from the language used, hoping to draw a line under this at this stage. they are warning, a senior american official said there would be consequences for iran, if they do decide to strike back. you mentioned pres

yolande knell, bbc news. worth giving a reminder of the latest line from the idf.f seven soldiers killed in south lebanon in combat operations. that is a statement from israel's military, announcing the death of seven moth soldiers. we had heard of the death of one earlier. the total of eight soldiers killed. seven of eight soldiers killed. seven of them in one incident. we had about a commander who died earlier in the day. benjamin netanyahu warned about testing days ahead. that is what he said a couple of days ago. certainly, but as they move more troops into lebanon and they are at the start of actual combat between hezbollah and israeli forces, that news just coming into us. these are the pictures of the smoke over beirut, there, in lebanon. around the world and across uk, you are putting bbc news. you are working bbc news. before you play some of the latest from israel i want to remind you of the pictures coming into the bbc from qatar. we are expecting, you can see, the flags are set up and the podiums. we are expecting to hear from podiums. we are expecting

yolande knell, bbc news, jerusalem.st few seconds, the world food programme has warned that they managing crisis in gaza to soon escalate into a fan then, they say, unless immediate action is taken. let's go to ben brown in jerusalem. tell us more about the reaction that has been to this decision by the israeli parliament on unrwa. that top un official saying in the last hour or so to the bbc that it is a new way to kill children and hope. really strong words that from martin griffiths, who was undersecretary general for humanitarian affairs at the united nations. he said this was a new way to kill children, a way of killing hope. he also called on the international community notjust to express concern about this move by the israeli parliament, but to actually fight it. because if i feel can effectively kick out a un agency, then other countries around the world can do that as well if they don't like un agencies as well. it has also been lots of reaction from aid agencies have come together saying that the stations by t

yolande knell.ying they will work with united nations agencies like unicef, the un children's fund and other independent ngos, charity, working to fill the void left by unrwa. we have been talking to a journalist based here injerusalem and asking her why she thinks the israeli government, the israeli parliament pushed through these two pieces of legislation, so overwhelmingly.— two pieces of legislation, so overwhelminul . , overwhelmingly. this government has very successfully _ overwhelmingly. this government has very successfully turned - has very successfully turned unrwa into a kind of bete noire of the entire mishandled situation in gaza over the last many year, and i have to say that in some respect, unrwa has not done itself any favours, because it does appear that they accommodated hamas and have taken very lightly some of israel's accusations, that said, israel has provided little evidence for all of its accusations against unrwa, so we find ourselves in a situation in which unrwa has beco

let's speak to yolande knell, who is injeruslam.r and the news overnight, six israeli soldiers killed in clashes. ~ ., six israeli soldiers killed in clashes. ~ . , six israeli soldiers killed in clashes. . , ., ., clashes. we have 'ust had an u date clashes. we have 'ust had an update from _ clashes. we have 'ust had an update from the h clashes. we have just had an update from the israeli - update from the israeli military about the latest attacks but it has been carrying out inside lebanon. it is saying it has set about 200 targets associated with hezbollah, talking about how one council building was hit in southern lebanon where it says about 15 hezbollah operatives were killed and that weapons were killed and that weapons were stored there, that is its claim stop on the ground it claims to have killed hezbollah fighters with exchanges of fire. this after we have the news that eight israeli soldiers have been killed in an ambush. it had been expected of course that there would be some stiff resistance put up when israeli forces

yolande knell, bbc news. we will be live in beirut in a moment or two.ak to now to emily harding, a former cia analyst — who's now deputy director with the international security program at the center for strategic and international studies in washington. welcome to the programme. the white house talked about serious consequences for iran. what you think that actually means? , , means? time will tell. it seems israel is definitely _ means? time will tell. it seems israel is definitely serious - israel is definitely serious about strong retaliation against iran. back in april they did a very precise and very targeted strike, it really was meant as a warning to iran not to engage directly with israel. i think they must assume iran didn't receive that message or it would not have engaged in this most recent strike, so i would enter the rate —— anticipate they will strike back hard. rate -- anticipate they will strike back hard.— rate -- anticipate they will strike back hard. and to see this as a _ strike back hard. and to see this as a defensive - strike ba

yolande knell, bbc news, jerusalem. day of mourning and remembrance but also of intense security alert here in israel the prime minister benjamin netanyahu held an emergency meeting. israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu has held a special cabinet meeting in jerusalem. he said israel was changing the security reality in the region. members of the government, citizens of israel, we are gathering today for a special morning meeting. one yearago, hamas terrorists launched a surprise attack against the state of israel, against the citizens of israel. shortly after that massacre, i said, we are in a war. not an operation. we will fight back with the force, the enemy has never seen. we are at war and we will win it. since that black day, we have been fighting. this is a warfor our we have been fighting. this is a war for our existence. the war of resurrection. that is how i would like to officially call the war. we are changing the security reality of our region for the sake of our children, for the sake of our future, an

our middle east correspondent yolande knell is injerusalem. yolande, will this make a difference?ponse. we just heard one israeli minister calling the us approach here misguided. but there are signs that that warning letter from these two biden administration officials has been making a difference, because we have been hearing this lunchtime that for the third day running, aid is getting into the northern part of the gaza strip. 50 lorry loads of aid going in with israeli government permission today. and this is after a two—week stretch when the un says that no aid was getting into that part of gaza at all. there has been a lot of international concern about what is going on there as israel has been carrying out a new ground offensive in that part of the palestinian territory. david lammy said this lunchtime that the humanitarian situation there is dire, and he has said that all parties in this conflict have obligations under international humanitarian law.— obligations under international humanitarian law. ., ., ., the time is 1.15. our top story this afternoon: inflation falls t

in a moment, we will speak to yolande knell injerusalem. yeah, nina, free your country from hezbollah was the message in english by the israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu to the people of lebanon. now, as a former british intelligence chief said a few days ago, many people here in lebanon dislike hezbollah but they dislike israel more, so i don't think this message will resonate here. there is a long history of israeli violence here in lebanon, so i don't think a lot of people are paying attention to what the prior minister has to say. now obviously has beloved word has been weakened by these israeli air strikes. the leadership has been eliminated but the group hasn't been destroyed. and here in lebanon, his brother were is more than a militia, it is a political party with representation in parliament —— hezbollah. it has significant support. so you maybe able to destroy hezbollah, or we can then militarily but the ideology is likely to persist. the group is not going to disappear from likely to persist. the group is not going to dis

our middle east correspondent, yolande knell, joins us now from jerusalem.aid it is taking the letter seriously but many will wonder whether it will change anything. indeed, and we have not had a formal response from the israeli government to the strongly worded letter from these two top us officials and addressed to their israeli counterparts. it was leaked to the media, it was sent on sunday. we have had the israeli ambassador to the un speaking on radio in israel this morning, really defending his country's record and putting this in the context of the upcoming us election saying there is pressure from democratic voters. i was in touch with a un official responsible for aid going into gaza and he told me in the past two days there has been a small shift where for the first time in two weeks they have seen some lorry loads of aid entering the north of gaza, which is the worst affected area. the letter lays out specific demands on aid, and it says that since assurances given by israel to the us six months ago the amount of aid going it has dropped by more t

it's seen as israel's biggest victory so far in its war against hamas. 0ur middle east correspondent yolandeent from jerusalem. it was very carefully calibrated, this response, and it does seem that israel heeded the warnings from its closest allies, the us, not to hit iran's most sensitive site, its nuclear site, its oil production facilities because that could have had a big knock effect economically and it really could have tipped the region into a full—scale regional war. we have had, you know, iran coming out, saying that it is going to respond to what happened, and we've got one of the semi—official news agency is talking about a proportional response, the iranians saying that israel broke humanitarian law here but when they are thinking about what to do next, i mean, i will be reflecting, the iranian leadership them on the fact that this was limited damage with two soldiers killed, they say, but they know that israel has the capabilities to have done much more major damage inside iran. there have been these warnings coming from the us as well, really saying that now the strikes and co

people were killed by israeli strikes in the south of the country. 0ur middle east correspondent yolandeleader yahya sinwar has removed well, really, the killing of the leader of hamas has changed things a lot. americans have described him as being the chief obstacle in reaching a cease fire and hostage release deal in the past. what we understand now is that the israeli intelligence director, who has been handling these negotiations, it remains in qatar to meet with the prime minister, to meet with the us intelligence chief there as well. and although hamas has not directly involved in these talks at the moment, of course we know that many hamas leaders are based in delhi, so it has been suggested that it would be possible —— based in delhi. we have had the egyptian president putting forward an idea of a two day ceasefire as a sort of testing the water measure, saying that this could help push things forward. that would see, they have proposed, for it israeli hostages being released by hamas, some palestinian prisoners being released from israeli jails, a search in humanitarian aid goin

our middle east correspondent, yolande knell is injerusalem.much aid has got through to those who need it? definitely we were hearing that there were improvements, un officials saying to me that it is still not enough. even if you look at what the us was demanding in a strongly worded letter on sunday sent by the top biden administration officials, linking aid going into gaza to us weapons funding, they are asking for a gaza to us weapons funding, they are asking fora minimum gaza to us weapons funding, they are asking for a minimum of 350 of aid going into gaza every day. we are not up to even after that. we did here yesterday that 50 lorry loads of aid went in from jordan into gaza, in line with another us demand that that route from jordan should be reopened. in the north, which has been the worst affected part of the gaza strip, there was a two—week stretch at the start of the month when the un is said that no aide was going in at all. we are hearing that tens of thousands of people are stuck injabal eah in the north of gaza, where israel h

our middle east correspondent, yolande knell, joins us now from jerusalem.ference to what happens? irate difference to what happens? we reall difference to what happens? , really have to wait and see. there has been no formal israeli government response to the letter from these two top biden administration officials. it restates us policy on aid and weapons transfers. we have had a government minister this morning on the radio is strongly defending israel's position when it comes to aid saying it complies with international law. there had been suggestions made that this comes in the context of the upcoming us elections and the fact that there is a lot of pressure from democratic voters. but i have been in touch with a un official in gaza this morning and it seems in the past couple of days since the letter was written, there has been a small shift at least in northern gaza. we had a period of two weeks when the un said no aid was coming into the north of gaza, an area where there is this new israeli ground offensive still going on. we have seen over the past

our middle east correspondent yolande knell. decision how to how to respond to strikes from iran? , , . ., �* to how to respond to strikes from iran? , , ., ., �* ., to how to respond to strikes from iran? , , . ., �* . . iran? this is another we'll wait and see moment _ iran? this is another we'll wait and see moment in _ iran? this is another we'll wait and see moment in the _ iran? this is another we'll wait and see moment in the middle - iran? this is another we'll wait and see moment in the middle east. it| iran? this is another we'll wait and i see moment in the middle east. it is thejewish new year holiday see moment in the middle east. it is the jewish new year holiday so officially israel is on holiday. we did have beforehand a meeting of the israeli security cabinet. they met in an underground bunker, discussing how to respond forcefully, they say, to the ballistic missiles fired by iran, 180 on tuesday night. the reports are that they are talking about different strategic sites that could be hit in iran. we have had t

let's speak to our correspondent injerusalem yolande knell .. dead following the air strike. are there any other statements? well, it is at least 20 people killed in the south of the gaza strip that is where the hamas run health ministry there were two israeli strikes targeting buildings and one of them said to include 14 people who were killed. there is video footage which verifies the bodies laid out. it includes a number of women and children there but otherwise in the north of the gaza strip that remains the main focus over the past few weeks of israeli military operations. we have heard from the israeli military in the south of the gaza strip that a number of terrorists were killed in the north and it says it is continuing with operational activity in the area around the urban refugee camp there. it says that what has been happening is destroying terrorist infrastructure and seizing weapons. it has been extremely difficult for us to get independent information of what is happening on the ground. this is an area that has been besieged by isr