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Four Russian soldiers have exposed the horror and brutality of conditions on their side of the front lines in Ukraine, with two men telling the BBC they saw soldiers being executed on the spot for refusing orders.

One man told a documentary team he saw a soldier executed on the order of his commander, who was made a "Hero of Russia" in 2024.

"I see it - just two metres, three metres... click, clack, bang," he said.

Another soldier, from a different unit, says he saw his commander shoot four men himself.

"I knew them," he says of the soldiers executed. "I remember one of them screaming 'Don't shoot, I'll do anything!'"

One of them also says he saw 20 bodies of fellow soldiers lying in a pit after being "zeroed" by comrades. The term "zero" is Russian military slang for executing your own.

In the documentary, The Zero Line: Inside Russia's War, men give detailed accounts about how they were tortured for refusing to take part in assaults they describe as verging on suicide missions. Russian troops call these attacks "meat storms" as waves of men are sent across the front line relentlessly to try and wear down Ukrainian forces.

For the first time, the BBC believes, Russian soldiers from the front line say on the record how they witnessed commanders ordering executions of their own men.

One of the men, whose job was to identify and count dead soldiers, provided detailed lists showing that he is the sole survivor from a group of 79 men he was mobilised with. Because he refused to go to the front line, he says he was tortured and urinated on. Others in his unit who refused would be electrocuted, starved and then forced into meat storms unarmed, he says.

The four men, who are on the run, told of the horrors they witnessed at an undisclosed location outside Russia.

Almost all public opposition to President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine has been stamped out in Russia. Official casualty numbers are not released by Moscow, but the UK's Ministry of Defence says more than 1.2 million Russian troops have been killed or injured since the full-scale invasion on 24 February 2022.

The Russian government says its armed forces "operate with utmost restraint, as far as possible under the conditions of a high-intensity conflict, treating their personnel with maximum care".

"Information regarding alleged violations and crimes is duly investigated," it added.

"We are unable to independently verify the accuracy or authenticity of the information you have provided," it said.

The detailed first-hand testimony from all four men also verifies reports of a breakdown of law and order on the Russian front line.

Ilya, the soldier who identified and counted the dead, is one of the men who says he saw comrades being killed by commanders.

Before the war, the 35-year-old taught children with special needs and autism in Kungur, in the Ural Mountains. Then in May 2024, police turned up at his parents' house and told him he was being called up.

He was mobilised alongside 78 other men, he says, at a recruitment centre in the city of Perm.

"Nearly everyone was drunk," he says. "Forwards into battle! We'll get Zelensky and raise our flag!" he recalls them shouting.

"I was watching them and thinking 'How did I end up here?' I was so scared."

Upon arriving in Ukraine, Ilya says most of the men were sent straight to the front line. He says he did not want to shoot or kill anyone, and ended up at a command post.

Conditions were brutal, and he says he witnessed four people being shot at point-blank range by a commander - one in Panteleimonivka, and three in Novoazovsk, both in Russian-occupied Donetsk in eastern Ukraine - because they had fled the front line and refused to return.

"The saddest thing is that I knew them. I remember one of them screaming 'Don't shoot, I'll do anything!' but he [the commander] zeroed them anyway," Ilya says.

Zeroing is usually carried out as punishment for refusing orders, and acts as a means of intimidation for others who may be thinking of doing the same, the men told us.

"Your fate depended on your commander. The commander is on the radio: 'Zero this one, zero that one,'" Ilya says.

Executions of soldiers who refused orders were not confined to Ilya's unit.

"Of course they kill their own men, it's a normal thing," says Dima.

Before the war, the 34-year-old lived with his wife and daughter and worked in Moscow as a dishwasher repairman.

In October 2022, he says he was walking between jobs when a group of police called him over.

"They just see my passport, do something on their laptop and tell me 'if you don't go to army you are go to jail,'" he recalls in English.

Dima says he didn't want to kill anyone so, despite having no medical experience, he joined a paramedic unit. Later, he was moved to a brigade where he had to evacuate wounded soldiers from the front line.

It was here, in the 25th Brigade, that Dima says he saw his fellow soldiers executed on the order of his commander.

"I see it - just two metres, three metres. Just murders, just click, clack, bang. It's not a drama, it's not a movie, it's real life," he says.

Dima's commander, Alexei Ksenofontov, was awarded the Gold Star, the highest state medal, and made a "Hero of Russia" in 2024.

But Ksenofontov has been denounced by families of men who died in his unit. In a joint letter in January 2025, they appealed to Putin directly to look into allegations of brutality in his unit.

"They defended our Motherland with honor and pride!!! But in reality, they found themselves in the gang of these commanders, who received awards for tens of thousands of dead and missing!" the letter reads.

"And they continue to exterminate our men! Feeling their impunity!"

Dima calls Ksenofontov a "butcher".

"He give too many orders for killing soldiers, too much blood on his hands, too much."

Dima also describes how he saw bodies of 20 men, who had arrived at his base the previous night, lying in a ditch having been shot.

He says he spoke to several of the men, all ex-convicts, before witnessing them being taken away the following morning.

As a medic, the dead were routinely reported to Dima, and he says he was informed that these men had been shot dead by a commander and their bank cards taken.

"Twenty lads were brought to us. They just took their bank cards and killed them," he recalls. "It's not a problem to write off someone. You just make up a report."

Dima says he was told the bank cards had been taken by commanders.

The BBC documentary also hears from another former soldier - a senior staff officer, who says he served in the Russian military for 17 years. The former officer, whom we are not naming, says he spoke to a man who had helped kill a group of high-ranking officers.

The man said he had been part of a "liquidation squad sent to finish any survivors", the former officer recalls.

"I've never seen anything like this during all my years of service."

All four men told us in graphic detail about the dreaded meat storm missions - part of the Russian military's wider "meat grinder" tactic on the Ukrainian battlefields.

The storms are so deadly, they are likened to suicide missions.

"I saw them [commanders] send wave after wave, throwing men like meat at the Ukrainians, so they run out of ammo and drones and another wave can reach their objective," says another former soldier, Denis.

Every day in 2025, an estimated 900-1,500 Russians were killed or wounded in Ukraine, according to the UK Ministry of Defence.

Dima explains how the storms work in practice.

"You send three guys, then another three. It didn't work out, send 10. It didn't work out with 10, send 50," he says.

"Eventually you will break through. That's the logic of the military.

"We had 200 dead in three days. On our regiment's first meat storm they broke us, our regiment was destroyed in just three days," he says.

Dima then shows a video, uploaded to social media in October 2023, of mothers and wives of men killed in his unit speaking out against the huge losses.

One woman can be heard saying: "Our men were ordered to advance armed with only machine guns and shovels." Another says: "There are terrible losses. Our men are being slaughtered."

Those who are not killed for refusing a storm often face dire and dehumanising consequences, Ilya says.

He shows a video on Telegram of men from his unit in Panteleimonivka in Donetsk.

"Let's feed the animals," a man says, before pulling up a lid to show three men crouching in a pit.

"Oh, are you hungry? You want to be fed?" the man filming asks, before one of the men raises his head and nods, holding out his hands while some dry grains are poured into the pit.

"Look how it's eating," the man filming says, as the man in the pit eats the grain.

Some men would be "starved for days" and electrocuted, says Ilya, before being sent into meat storms unarmed.

He personally was tortured, he says, after refusing to take part in one storm.

"They tied me to a tree, hit me with a baton a couple of times and put a gun to my head.

"I don't know how to put it, they went to the toilet on me. The commander told everyone 'We've got a new toilet'. I was tied up for half a day."

After being untied, Ilya attempted to take his own life.

Denis, who says he once secretly brought food and water to soldiers in a pit, shows the documentary team a video of an accused deserter being urinated on, which the BBC has not been able to independently verify.

"It's a humiliation of a person's honour and dignity. In the Russian army this has become the norm," he says.

"It's illegal but no-one is punished for it. On the contrary, guys are even encouraged to do it."

Denis, 27, also shows a photo that he says was taken shortly after two of his front teeth were knocked out by one of his superiors, because he had told them he didn't want to search for a missing drone.

"It's terrible, I just had to carry on."

Dima was eventually promoted, despite having said he did not want to become an officer. He shows a photo of the ceremony where he was commissioned.

After his promotion, he would not send his men on a meat storm, he says.

"I refused to do it. I wouldn't have to go forward myself, but I couldn't just give them the order."

It led to his arrest by military police and him being taken to Zaitsevo, a makeshift prison, Dima says.

"[There] they are torturing me with electric shock," he recalls, adding that the power of the first shock made him defecate himself.

He was tortured every day for 72 days, he says.

"Just torture only, every day with stone face. No emotions, it's crazy," he says, referring to his torturers.

All of the men we spoke to are now outside of Russia, but have mental scars from the front lines in Ukraine.

"I have dreams. I see [a] forest full of dead bodies, just smashed people with faces, dirty white mouths full of blood. The smell… it doesn't smell, it tastes," Dima says.

"I'm a criminal, and nobody cares - my crime is just I don't want to kill," he says.

"In Russian army, too many guys who don't need this war, who hate commanders, who hate Putin, who hate our system, and they need to break us."

Ilya says he loves his country, "but not what Putin has done to it".

"They can break anyone there, it doesn't matter if you're strong or not.

"They almost broke me, but not completely."

Trump to address a changed America at vital moment for his presidency

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp859d8rn78o, today

Few of Donald Trump's speeches to Congress have had as much riding on the outcome as the State of the Union address he will deliver on Tuesday night.

Over the course of the past year, Trump has pushed the envelope of presidential power in a multitude of directions.

He has achieved substantive accomplishments, both domestically and in foreign policy. But not all of his achievements have been popular - and some have been highly divisive.

Regardless of how his policies have been perceived, Trump will address an America notably different than the one he returned to lead last year.

He has enacted his sweeping second-term agenda at breakneck speed; cracking down on illegal immigration and effectively sealing the border, upending foreign alliances, challenging the checks and balances that are foundational to the American political system, and fundamentally redefining the role of the presidency.

He has, however, run headfirst into significant obstacles, both from the public and key institutions that have curtailed his ambitions.

Opinion polls suggest public mood has soured on Trump in his second term. A recent CNN poll indicated only 36% of Americans approved of the job Trump is doing. A Washington Post survey returned a similar figure at 39%. This State of the Union address represents an opportunity for Trump to stop the bleeding at a pivotal time.

In just over eight months, voters will pass judgement on Trump's second presidential term in November's midterm elections. They could preserve his Republican majority in Congress or hand power to the Democrats, assuring two years of legislative gridlock and aggressive oversight that could, in his own words, see him impeached once again.

Tuesday's speech is Trump's one and only chance to make his case to the US public before those elections in a major set-piece event before an audience of millions.

On Monday, he previewed what he hopes to accomplish with the address. "We have a country that's now doing well, we have the greatest economy we've ever had and the most activity we've ever had," Trump said. "It is going to be a long speech, because we have so much to talk about."

According to Robert Rowland, a professor at the University of Kansas who has written a book analysing Trump's rhetoric, it is standard fare for Trump to boast about his accomplishments, leavened with attacks on his perceived enemies and critics.

His past speeches to Congress including last year's, which stretched for nearly two hours, have followed a similar pattern. But at what he called a "critical moment" for the president, Rowland said a typical Trump speech may not be the best approach.

"State of the Union addresses are normally a time when the president does two things that President Trump essentially never does," Rowland said. "The president makes a case for his agenda. And they try to broaden the appeal of the agenda of the administration."

Much of Trump's second-term agenda, and his efforts to tout it, have been directed at his political base. Broadening his appeal can at times feel like less of a priority than going on the attack. The political reality, however, suggests the president has some work to do in selling his agenda before November's elections.

His decision to surge federal immigration agents to cities like Minneapolis may have been popular with the party faithful who waved "mass deportations now!" signs at the 2024 Republican National Convention, but polls indicate many Americans believe he has gone too far.

The president's trade policies, including high tariffs on some of America's biggest partners, have also proven to be stubbornly unpopular. Last Friday, the US Supreme Court ruled that many of the president's duties were illegal, casting the administration's trade regime in doubt.

The president has since imposed new tariffs and pledged to be even more expansive in their use, but the end result is continued uncertainty around the impact that the president's actions will have on the US economy and consumer prices.

While there has been some good news for Trump on the economy, with the stock indexes near record highs and unemployment low, the latest figures on economic growth were below expectations.

The economy and immigration had traditionally been two areas where Trump had the most public support. But his standing on those issues has declined since he returned to the White House, contributing to his sinking overall approval levels.

The recent violence in Minneapolis prompted mass protests and, ultimately, a decision by the administration to reduce the surge of federal agents there with Trump promising a "softer touch".

The administration's efforts to construct or purchase massive new detention facilities has been meet with local resistance. Congressional Democrats have blocked funding for the Department of Homeland Security unless new legal guardrails on immigration enforcement are enacted. That standoff shows no signs of ending.

Last year, the White House hinted that the president was preparing to tour the nation, touting his economic record and offering an agenda that would address public concerns about the cost of living and "affordability" - concerns Democrats capitalised on in last year's state elections.

The affordability tour has only happened in fits and starts, however, and the president has not always stuck to the script.

Policy proposals, like capping credit card interest rates, boosting the housing supply and issuing "tariff refund" cheques, have seen little progress. Although inflation is down from the peak during the first half of the Joe Biden presidency, Americans have yet to see the lower prices Trump repeatedly promised on the 2024 campaign trail.

On Tuesday night, Trump could try to shift those perceptions.

He could also make the case for why the US is amassing military forces for a possible strike on Iran - a foreign policy twist that could upend American politics in unpredictable ways.

At the very least, Trump's speech could give an indication of how he and his fellow Republicans plan to go about convincing Americans to stick with them when they head to the polls later this year.

"Normally, when presidents realise they are angering the public, they pull back and have some kind of mea culpa," Rowland said. "That's not something that President Trump ever does. I expect him to double down on the messages."

To do otherwise may require a trait Trump has been reluctant to display throughout his time in politics - humility.

Follow the twists and turns of Trump's second term with North America correspondent Anthony Zurcher's weekly US Politics Unspun newsletter. Readers in the UK can sign up here. Those outside the UK can sign up here.

Nancy Guthrie's family offers $1m reward to bring home missing mother

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy4wd11j0evo, today

US news anchor Savannah Guthrie has announced her family is offering a $1m reward for information leading to the return of her mother on day 24 of the search for the 84-year-old.

Fighting back tears, the NBC host said in an Instagram video that they are "aching" for Nancy Guthrie, who is suspected to have been abducted from her home in Tucson, Arizona.

"We still believe in a miracle, we still believe that she can come home - hope against hope," said the presenter.

"We also know that she may be lost, she may already be gone, she may have already gone home to the Lord that she loves."

In the video released on Tuesday morning, Savannah Guthrie said her family would also donate $500,000 to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

She continued: "Please, if you hear this message, if you've been waiting and you haven't been sure, let this be your sign to please come forward.

"Tell what you know, and help us bring our beloved mom home, so that we can either celebrate a glorious, miraculous homecoming or celebrate the beautiful, brave and courageous and noble life that she has lived."

Guthrie was reported missing around midday on 1 February after she did not show up for church services.

The Pima County Sheriff's Office has said they believe she was "taken from the home against her will, possibly in the middle of the night and that includes possible kidnapping or abduction".

The family has made several public pleas for her safe return, and asked for proof that she is alive. But so far, the disappearance remains unsolved.

Authorities have released images of the prime suspect - a man captured on Nancy Guthrie's Nest doorbell camera.

This same suspect appears to have been at Nancy Guthrie's front door on another occasion before she went missing, a law enforcement source has told the BBC's US partner CBS News.

In a post on X, the FBI's Phoenix office said anyone with "firsthand knowledge" of Guthrie's whereabouts should contact the FBI tip line at 1-800-CALL-FBI.

Until now, the reward has been $200,000 - $100,000 offered by the FBI and another $100,000 through Tucson Crime Stoppers.

Detectives have received close to 40,000 tips from the public.

DNA evidence was taken from a glove - similar to one worn by the suspect recorded on doorbell camera footage - that was found near her home, but it produced no matches in a FBI database, authorities said.

Investigators have ruled out all members of the Guthrie family as possible suspects, with Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos previously saying that to "suggest otherwise is not only wrong, it is cruel".

Ukraine remembers its dead as war enters a fifth year

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clyg7r3nd3ko, today

Four years since Russia launched its full-scale invasion, people across Ukraine have remembered their dead from a war which shows no sign of ending.

As the conflict enters a fifth year, the Ukrainian military continues to resist being overrun by Russian forces, but military losses are mounting on both sides and Ukraine's population faces near-daily aerial attacks.

On Tuesday, Volodymyr Zelensky said "Ukraine never chose this war", adding: "We have defended our independence, we have not lost our statehood."

The Kremlin, which believed it could capture Kyiv within days, acknowledged its war aims "haven't been fully achieved yet" and said it intended to continue attacking Ukraine.

Spokesman Dmitry Peskov repeated a frequent Kremlin accusation that western support for Ukraine had enlarged the conflict, turning it into a "confrontation between Russia and the West".

Russia now controls just under 20% of Ukrainian territory but the Ukrainian military has prevented it from capturing the entirety of the eastern Donbas region.

Zelensky was surrounded by some of his most ardent European supporters on Tuesday, including Finland's Alexander Stubb, Sweden's Ulf Kristersson and European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen.

A minute's silence at 10:00 brought Kyiv to a halt on a sombre day for Ukraine, though on on which a sense of solidarity was palpable.

In the city's Maidan square, where a growing host of flags has commemorated the dead since the launch of Russia's full-scale invasion, banners and heads were lowered as people stood in silent contemplation.

In Bucha, a town west of the capital that in 2022 witnessed some of the worst horrors that have accompanied Russia's full-scale invasion, a steady stream of people laid flowers on the black granite headstones of soldiers.

"The war has taken a lot of lives," observed a man called Valentyn, who had come to visit the graves of fallen comrades.

"Unfortunately for us it's too many," he said. "No-one one thought it would last this long."

The war has touched everyone in Ukraine, in so many different ways, from losses on the battlefield, to the scattering of families, and the search for warmth and light in the midst of Russia's winter bombardments.

In Zelensky's lengthy morning video address, the Ukrainian president was seen striding through subterranean corridors of the presidential palace in central Kyiv - underground passages lined with pipes and cables, reminiscent of Winston Churchill's World War Two offices in London.

Acknowledging the staggering loss of life Ukraine has endured, Zelensky said: "We have every right to say: we have defended our independence, we have not lost our statehood. Ukraine exists not just on the map."

The video offered a rare glimpse of the world where the president and his staff have spent much of their time after the start of the war in February 2022.

Back then, many thought Zelensky's days were numbered and that Ukraine would fall.

Instead, four years on, Ukraine continues to hold its own against Russian troops across the east of the country, at an ever-increasing cost of manpower and resources for Moscow.

A meeting of the so-called Coalition of the Willing was also held on Tuesday, with many leaders dialling in to Kyiv. Led by Britain and France, the coalition currently numbers around 35 countries, some of which say they are willing to deploy troops to Ukraine to ensure any potential ceasefire holds.

UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, speaking via video-link, told fellow leaders it was "wrong" to think that Russia holds the upper hand. Over the past year, Starmer said, Russia "took 0.8% of land in Ukraine at a terrible cost to themselves of half a million losses".

However, French President Emmanuel Macron acknowledged the glacial pace of peace negotiations, saying he was "very sceptical" about the possibility of achieving "peace in the short term" in Ukraine.

"Let's be lucid. There is no willingness on the Russian side to have a peace and, by the way, to have a robust and solid peace as we see it on our side," he said.

Despite several rounds of US-brokered talks involving Russian and Ukrainian delegations, a breakthrough still appears far off.

Moscow's demand that Ukraine hand over sovereign territory in the east – which thousands of Ukrainians have fought and died to protect – is unacceptable to many.

"When it comes to talks, there's one person standing in the way of progress," Sir Keir said. "And that is Putin, and nobody but Putin."

A statement by the leaders of G7 countries – including US President Donald Trump - reiterated their unwavering support for Ukraine, its defence of sovereign territory and its right to exist.

It was their first joint declaration on Ukraine since Trump's re-election.

Zelensky's negotiators have spoken warmly of American efforts to broker a ceasefire and bring about peace in Ukraine.

However, over the last year Trump has often appeared to put pressure on Ukraine to agree to an unfavourable deal, and his clear impatience with the lack of progress towards a ceasefire has left many wondering where his instincts and convictions lie.

Kyiv believes that Moscow would only heed American security guarantees, and that they are therefore key to any peace agreement.

In his video address Zelensky repeated his desire that one day the current occupant of the White House would come to Kyiv. "I know for certain: only by coming to Ukraine and seeing with one's own eyes our life and our struggle," he said, "only then can one understand what this war is really about. And because of whom."

Earlier in the day, Zelensky also stressed that Ukraine needed interceptor missiles from the US to be used with American-made Patriot air defence launchers.

Russia's aerial attacks in January and February this year appear to have depleted Ukraine's stock of those missiles, leaving cities and energy infrastructure defenceless amid the harshest winter since the start of the invasion.

The number of army and civilian casualties continues to grow. On the Russian side, the BBC has now identified the names of over 186,000 Russian soldiers killed in the war.

The true death toll is generally accepted to be much higher, as many deaths on the battlefield are not recorded.

UK Armed Forces Minister Al Carns said the cost of the war on Russia had been "almost unimaginable".

Carns said the UK Ministry of Defence estimated that Russia had suffered 1.25 million casualties overall, adding that was probably an under-estimate - and was higher than all US casualties suffered during World War Two.

Last month, Zelensky said that "officially" 55,000 Ukrainians had been killed on the battlefield – but according to other Ukrainian sources, which the BBC has cross-referenced, the number of Ukrainians killed could be as high as 200,000.

Many of them are buried in the sprawling military cemeteries now dotted across Ukraine.

Trump hits out at reports that top US general warned against attacking Iran

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn0zrwzr519o, today

President Donald Trump has lashed out at reports that his top military adviser had urged caution on air strikes against Iran, saying the general believes it would be "easily won".

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force General Dan Caine, has warned that strikes against Iran could be risky, potentially drawing the US into a prolonged conflict, US media report.

General Caine has reportedly cautioned that a military action could have repercussions across the region, potentially including retaliatory strikes by Iranian proxies or a larger conflict that would require more US forces.

In a lengthy post on Truth Social, Trump described the reports as "fake news".

"General Caine, like all of us, would like not to see war, but, if a decision is made on going against Iran at a military level, it is his opinion that it will be something easily won," the president wrote.

"He has not spoken of not doing Iran, or even the fake limited strikes that I have been reading about," Trump added. "He knows only one thing, how to win, and, if he is told to do so, will be leading the pack."

The US has been reinforcing its forces in the region in recent weeks, one of the largest build-ups in decades, to pressure Iran to curb its nuclear programme.

Multiple outlets, including Axios and The Washington Post, had reported that General Caine and other Pentagon officials raised serious concerns in internal meetings about the risks of a US military operation against Iran.

Citing several sources familiar with the discussions, Axios - which first reported the news - said that Caine was one of several people within Trump's inner circle who were urging the president to proceed cautiously.

Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who is also Trump's son-in-law, are scheduled to meet Iranian negotiators in Geneva, the latest in a series of talks between the two sides.

Trump has warned that he is considering a limited military strike on Iran.

On 19 February, Trump said that the world would find out "over the next, probably, 10 days" whether the US will reach a deal with Iran or take military action.

"We have to make a meaningful deal otherwise bad things happen," he added.

Even as negotiations continue to take place, US forces have been conducting a massive military build-up in the region, including large numbers of refuelling and heavy lift aircraft and considerable naval firepower.

Earlier this week, Witkoff told Fox News that Trump was questioning why Iran had not yet "capitulated" in the face of Washington's military build-up.

BBC Verify has confirmed that the USS Gerald R Ford - the world's largest warship - passed through the Strait of Gibraltar towards the Mediterranean on Friday.

Ship-tracking data also confirmed the USS Mahan, one of the destroyers in the warship's strike group, passed through the Strait.

The Gerald R Ford had briefly broadcast its location off Morocco's Atlantic coast on Wednesday and is believed to be travelling to the Middle East where another US aircraft carrier, the USS Abraham Lincoln, was tracked earlier this week.

Military experts have said that the build-up gives the US considerably more depth and sustainability than was the case before the military operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in January or the previous airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities last June.

Mexico hunts 23 inmates sprung from jail during wave of violence

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c07jpx7kkvpo, today

Police in Mexico are searching for a group of inmates who were sprung from a prison in Puerto Vallarta during a wave of attacks launched by the Jalisco New Generation drug cartel (CJNG) on Sunday.

Puerto Vallarta, a beach resort on Mexico's Pacific coast, was among the towns where the CJGN blockaded roads and torched cars in retaliation for the killing by security forces of their leader, Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho".

During the unrest, armed men rammed one of the prison gates with a car, paving the way for 23 prisoners to escape, an official said.

More than 70 people – including 25 National Guard members – were killed in the violence which followed El Mencho's death.

Juan Pablo Hernández, security secretary for the state of Jalisco, said that his office was working with other states to capture the fugitives.

Officials have not yet released details of the identities of the prisoners who escaped.

Cartel members torched several vehicles across Puerto Vallarta on Sunday.

Tourists and locals were urged to seek shelter and not venture out and footage they recorded showed black plumes of smoke rising above the popular beach resort.

A number of airlines temporarily halted their flights and at least two major cruise liners said their ships would skip planned stops in Puerto Vallarta.

The Mexican government said on Monday that most of the road blocks erected by cartel members had been cleared.

But El Universal newspaper reports that in the state of Morelia, where drug lord El Mencho was born, armed men continued to spread fear on Monday, torching cars and vandalising shops and public buildings.

El Mencho was Mexico's most wanted man. Under his leadership, the CJGN became a powerful transnational criminal organisation which spread from its stronghold in the state of Jalisco into many other Mexican states, where it engages in drug production and trafficking.

It often resorts to extreme violence and has been behind a number of high-profile attacks on the security forces and government officials.

The Trump administration had described El Mencho as a "top target for the Mexican and United States government as one of the top traffickers of fentanyl into our homeland" and had offered a $15m (£11.1m) reward for information leading to his capture.

The drug lord was captured by Mexican security forces in the town of Tapalpa, in Jalisco state, on Sunday.

Mexico's defence minister said they were able to locate him by following one of his "romantic partners".

He died shortly after being captured due to injuries in the firefight which broke out between his security guards and Mexico's special forces sent to arrest him.

Chocolate kept in anti-theft boxes as retailers warn it's being stolen to order

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce3gqr7p0lqo, today

Chocolate bars are being locked in plastic boxes in some UK shops as retailers and police forces warn thieves are stealing them to order.

Sainsbury's said it had begun using "boxes on products which are regularly targeted", with £2.60 bars of Cadbury Dairy Milk locked up in one London branch.

Chocolate was more recently being "sold on by criminals and is now being targeted more frequently by prolific offenders," according to the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS).

The BBC asked the National Police Chiefs' Council about the scale of the problem but it did not respond. However, individual forces told us they had seen a trend of chocolate being targeted.

In recent months some police forces have posted videos of chocolate being stolen to highlight the issue.

West Midlands Police shared CCTV footage of a man grabbing trays of chocolate from a shop in Stourbridge, while Wiltshire Police shared a video of a man dragging a whole shelving stand of chocolate out of a shop door.

And earlier last year a man was arrested by Cambridgeshire Police with a coat full of Cadbury's Creme eggs.

Cambridgeshire Police told the BBC: "Chocolate is one of a number of high-value items thieves often target, along with products such as alcohol, meat and coffee.

"Retail theft has a real and lasting impact – not just on businesses, but on the staff who have to deal with related abuse and intimidation."

Meanwhile, the British Retail Consortium's annual crime report found there were 5.5 million detected incidents of shop theft last year, and 1,600 daily incidents of violence and abuse against retail workers. Although this was down by a fifth on the previous year, it was still the second highest on record.

'Swiping the whole shelf'

Supermarkets have also been stepping up security on chocolate bars, with Tesco and Co-Op as well as Sainsbury's using the transparent boxes which customers have to ask staff to open.

The Heart of England Co-Op group, which runs 38 stores in the West Midlands, Warwickshire, Leicestershire and Northamptonshire, told the BBC chocolate theft cost it £250,000 last year. It was the group's most stolen product in 2024 and topped only by alcohol in 2025, it said.

Chief executive Steve Browne told the BBC chocolate theft was a "massive issue".

"In a particular shop, one individual could cost us thousands of pounds in a week," he said. "They were coming in... then literally swiping the whole shelf."

He said a shelf of chocolate could be worth £500 and the group had spent £3m on security and other measures to prevent thefts.

Sunita Aggarwal runs two convenience stores in Leicester and Sheffield.

"People are just coming in, and nicking boxes and boxes of chocolate," she said.

"We know illicit trade is definitely on the up. As retailers, we know it goes on in front of us."

Aggarwal says she has installed more than 30 CCTV cameras and uses AI technology to detect thieves, with pictures of known shoplifters at the till.

Her team now only half-fill the shelves to limit losses and have stopped promoting chocolate on easy access end-of-aisle positions.

Fiona Avenal Malone runs a shop in Tenby, Wales and says she is losing £200-£300 a week on chocolate thefts.

"We noticed that we've put out a whole line of chocolate bars, and then all of a sudden there's only one left," she said.

"Then you go and check the CCTV, and then you see it happening, on the screen, which is really frustrating."

'Chocolate is primetime'

Paul Cheema, owner of Malcom's convenience stores in Coventry, said: "Chocolate is the new buzzword for organised crime.

"It was razors, cheese, coffee. Today, these people that are taking stock from convenience stores, from supermarkets, it's taken to order. So chocolate is primetime now."

Cheema said stock was sold on "whether it goes back into another convenience store, a cafe, a bar, restaurant. It's prolific at the moment," adding that shoplifters easily take "£200, maybe £250 of chocolate in the back of a rucksack".

In order to tackle chocolate theft, the ACS says shopkeepers need more help from police and stronger sentences for criminals.

Chief executive James Lowman said: "Confectionery, like other products commonly stolen from local shops, is being re-sold through illicit markets that help fund wider criminal activity.

"Alongside better police support and effective sentences for repeat offenders, we need action to shut down the networks re-selling stolen goods."

The BBC has approached the National Police Chiefs' Council for a response to the ACS's comments.

US government drops case against Democrats in 'illegal orders' video

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c20z7yplp7po, today

Federal prosecutors in Washington have dropped their case against six Democratic lawmakers who released a video urging military servicemembers to refuse illegal orders.

The decision - confirmed by the BBC's media partner CBS News - follows US Attorney Jeanine Pirro's office failing to secure a grand jury indictment against the six military and intelligence veterans.

The justice department could still pursue the case in a different district, but there were no signs on Tuesday that it intended to do so. Pirro's office had no comment.

After the Democrats released the video, President Donald Trump called the lawmakers "traitors" and suggested the video was an offence "punishable by death".

He later said he was not threatening death for the six.

Pirro's office then moved to investigate the lawmakers while the Pentagon began working to demote Senator Mark Kelly, a former Navy captain and astronaut, in order to cut his retirement pay and benefits.

Kelly had previously called Pirro's case "an outrageous abuse of power by Donald Trump and his lackies" and has also sued the defence department, which was temporarily blocked by a judge from reducing his rank in early February.

The justice department had sought to charge him, along with Senator Elissa Slotkin and Representatives Jason Crow, Maddie Goodlander, Chris Deluzio and Chrissy Houlahan, under a law carrying a maximum 10-year prison sentence for those who encourage "insubordination, disloyalty, mutiny, or refusal of duty by any member of the military".

But a grand jury in early February would not sign off on the indictment, and Slotkin's attorneys warned Pirro's office that if the case continued she would argue it was a "vindictive and selective prosecution".

Grand juries decide if there is enough evidence to bring a case to trial.

The lawmakers and their supporters had described Trump's reaction to the video as an attack on free speech and an effort to punish perceived political enemies.

They also said that they were, in the video, reminding servicemembers of the rules they must follow in the military. Under the Uniform Military Code of Justice, servicemembers have a duty to refuse to obey orders that violate US or international laws.

They released the 90-second video in November as many in the country questioned American military strikes on alleged narco-trafficking boats off the coast of South America, which have resulted in more than 130 deaths since September.

Is US crime at a historic low?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c75e4l4796vo, today

President Donald Trump has claimed that crime and murder in the US are at the lowest level for 125 years, with the White House attributing this to his "unwavering commitment to restoring law and order".

Homicides are projected to reach a 125-year low - according to one study - but the same cannot be said about violent crime in the US, although it has fallen to the lowest point in decades.

BBC Verify has reviewed US crime statistics and spoken to crime experts to assess what is driving the fall.

Has US crime fallen to a record low?

In the Oval Office earlier this month, Trump said: "the crime rate now is the lowest it's been since 1900, that's 125 years".

The FBI is the main source of crime statistics in the US. It does not measure overall crime but it does count the number of violent offences reported to police.

These include homicide - which covers murder and non-negligent manslaughter - rape, robbery and aggravated assault.

In 2024, the rate was 348.6 per 100,000 people - the lowest since 1969, according to analysis of FBI data by US crime expert Jeff Asher.

His analysis uses an older definition of rape (which was revised by the FBI in 2013) to allow for a more accurate comparison of crime rates from earlier decades.

The FBI has not published violent crime data for the whole of 2025 yet but its latest release shows the total number of violent crimes fell about 10% in the year to October 2025, following similar trends in 2023 and 2024.

"The US will likely have the lowest property crime rate ever recorded and lowest violent crime rate since roughly 1968 in 2025", Asher predicts.

FBI data alone cannot prove or disprove the claim that crime is at a 125-year low because, as he points out, it only started publishing statistics in 1930, and only consistently after 1960.

Have murders fallen to a record low?

The president also told reporters that figures in January showed the US had "the lowest numbers of murders in the history of our country that we have, recorded history, it goes back 125 years".

When we asked the White House for the source of his claims about murder and crime it sent us a news article by Axios, which cited a study by the Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ) think tank.

The study says "there is a strong possibility that homicides in 2025 will drop to about 4.0 per 100,000 residents", adding this would be "the lowest rate ever recorded in law enforcement or public health data going back to 1900".

As FBI figures were only consistently published from 1960, it used public health data (primarily death registration records) to build a picture of longer-term trends for homicides.

But there is still uncertainty about this forecast as the FBI is yet to publish nationwide homicide numbers for 2025.

"If the FBI were to substantially revise down the 2024 homicide rate and/or if the official 2025 homicide rate ultimately comes in higher than our current estimate, 2025 may not be the lowest ever recorded - but it would still rank among the lowest homicide rates observed in the US since 1900," one of the study's authors, Ernesto Lopez, told the BBC.

A survey of 67 large US police departments by the Major Cities Chiefs Association showed a preliminary 19% drop in reported homicides between January and September last year, compared with the same period in 2024.

Why is crime falling?

In a recent press release, the White House said falling violent crime is the "direct result" of Trump's polices, including "surging federal resources to Democrat-run cities that had devolved into war zones, removing savage criminal illegals from our streets, supporting police and prosecutors".

However, several crime experts we interviewed pointed to a post-pandemic drop in violent crime following the spike observed around 2020.

In other words, a trend that started before Trump returned for his second term in January 2025.

Alex Piquero, a professor of criminology at the University of Miami, said a renewed focus on crime prevention policies could be responsible for the decline, including "policing focused on violent places and violent people" as well as "programs focused on social skills, self-control, and cognitive behavioural therapy".

"A lot of these strategies were basically 'turned-off' during the pandemic and the few years after, and have slowly come back," he added.

The CCJ's president, Adam Gelb, said that "while the downward trajectory of crime is clear, it's extremely difficult to disentangle and pinpoint what's actually driving the drop".

One possible factor he identified is changes to society following Covid.

"As schools, workplaces, social programs, churches and civic institutions regained their footing after pandemic disruption, emotional and economic stresses eased and daily routines strengthened," Gelb added.

He also pointed to people drinking less alcohol "which should mean fewer bar fights and domestic assaults".

And other countries have seen similar falls.

In the year to September 2025, police in England and Wales recorded the lowest number of homicides since comparable records began in 2003.

"Most other Western countries have indeed seen similar declines [in violent crime] that the US has seen, but bear in mind that these countries, in general, have lower crime rates than the US does," said Prof Piquero.

What do you want BBC Verify to investigate?

Trump's new global tariff comes into effect at 10%

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd6zn3ly22yo, today

US President Donald Trump's new global tariffs have come into effect at 10% after the Supreme Court blocked many of his sweeping import taxes on Friday.

Just hours after last week's ruling, the president signed an executive order to impose the new levy from 24 February.

He later threatened to raise the tariff to 15% but has not yet issued an official directive to increase the rate. The BBC has contacted the White House for comment.

The administration is applying the levy under Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act, which allows the president to impose the charge for 150 days without congressional approval.

The executive order said the temporary import duty was intended to "address fundamental international payments problems and continue the Administration's work to rebalance our trade relationships to benefit American workers, farmers, and manufacturers".

The president has argued that tariffs are necessary to reduce America's trade deficit - the amount by which imports exceed exports. But the deficit reached a fresh high last week, widening by 2.1% compared to 2024 and hitting roughly $1.2 trillion (£890bn).

The US has already collected at least $130bn in tariffs using the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), according to the most recent official data.

Trump has been highly critical of the Supreme Court's decision, calling it "ridiculous, poorly written, and extraordinarily anti-American".

In a 6-3 decision, justices on the highest US court found that the president had overstepped his powers when he introduced sweeping global tariffs last year using the IEEPA.

On Monday, Trump threatened to impose higher tariffs on countries that "play games" with recent trade deals, after the Supreme Court ruling.

His warning came as countries around the world said they were evaluating what tariffs and trade deals would stand following the decision.

The UK said no reciprocal action was "off the table" if the US did not honour its tariff deal with the UK, but added that "no one wants a trade war".

The European Union said it would suspend its ratification of a deal struck over the summer.

India also said it would defer previously scheduled talks to finalise a recent agreement.

Louvre museum director resigns months after high-profile heist

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce3gj7jjl7jo, today

The director of the Louvre museum in Paris has resigned, months after the high-profile theft of France's crown jewels from one of the world's most visited art galleries.

Laurence des Carrs submitted her resignation to President Emmanel Macron, who said it was "an act of responsibility", French media say.

The heist took place on the morning of 19 October last year, when thieves used a stolen vehicle-mounted mechanical lift to gain access to the Galerie d'Apollon (Gallery of Apollo) via a balcony close to the River Seine.

The four main suspects have been arrested, but the eight prized pieces of jewellery, worth an estimated 88m euros (£76m, $104m) have not been recovered.

They include a diamond and emerald necklace Emperor Napoleon gave to his wife were stolen.

As the thieves fled, they dropped a 19th-Century diamond-studded crown belonging to Empress Eugenie, which was damaged.

Early this month, the Louvre released the first image of the damage crown since the raid, saying it was "nearly intact" and could be fully restored.

The Louvre is home to priceless works of art including Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa.

Days after the raid, Carrs admitted that CCTV around the Louvre's perimeter was weak and "aging" - with the only camera monitoring the exterior wall of the Louvre where the thieves broke pointing away from the balcony that led to Gallery of Apollo housing the jewels.

Despite the museum's huge volume of visitors - more than 8.7 million a year - investment in security has been slow and she highlighted the budget challenges big institutions face.

Des Cars, who became director of the Louvre in 2021, said she wanted to double the number of CCTV cameras.

A parliamentary inquiry into the failures is under way.

Its findings are due out in May, but a preliminary report released last week spoke of "systemic failures" which enabled the break-in.

Since then, the museum has also been beset by a suspected ticket fraud scheme, as well as being hit by a water leak.

Robert Carradine, Lizzie Maguire and Revenge of the Nerds star, dies aged 71

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy0dqpjjprno, today

Robert Carradine, the US actor best known for roles in Revenge of the Nerds and Lizzie McGuire, has died aged 71.

In a statement, his family said the actor took his own life after living with bipolar disorder for nearly two decades.

The Carradine family said they wanted to announce his cause of death to raise awareness of "the stigma that attaches to mental illness".

"We want people to know it, and there is no shame in it," his brother Keith told Deadline.

Lizzie McGuire star Hilary Duff led the tributes to her former on-screen father, writing on Instagram: "This one hurts. It's really hard to face this reality about an old friend."

Born on 24 March 1954, Carradine was the youngest son of John Carradine and a brother of actors David and Keith Carradine.

Encouraged by his brother David, Robert Carradine auditioned for 1972's The Cowboys, a John Wayne film that became his first screen role.

He went on to appear in and Martin Scorsese's 1973 film Mean Streets, Oscar-winning Coming Home (1978), alongside Jane Fonda, The Long Riders (1980), with Mark Hamill, The Big Red One (1980) and Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained in 2012.

But he was best known for playing the head nerd, Lewis Skolnick, in Revenge of the Nerds - which became one of the most popular film franchises of the 1980s, and the father of Lizzie McGuire in the noughties Disney Channel series.

Paying tribute, Lizzie McGuire star Duff said: "There was so much warmth in the McGuire family and I always felt so cared for by my on-screen parents.

"I'll be forever grateful for that. I'm deeply sad to learn Bobby was suffering. My heart aches for him, his family, and everyone who loved him."

In a statement, Carradine's family announced his death "with profound sadness", adding that the US actor was a "beloved father, grandfather, uncle, and brother".

"In a world that can feel so dark, Bobby was always a beacon on light to everyone around him," they said.

"We are bereft at the loss of this beautiful soul and want to acknowledge Bobby's valiant struggle against his nearly two-decade battle with bipolar disorder.

"We hope his journey can shine a light and encourage addressing the stigma that attaches to mental illness."

The statement added: "At this time we ask for the privacy to grieve this unfathomable loss. With gratitude for your understanding and compassion."

In his own separate statement to Deadline, Carradine's brother Keith added: "It is an illness that got the best of him, and I want to celebrate him for his struggle with it, and celebrate his beautiful soul.

"He was profoundly gifted, and we will miss him every day. We will take solace in how funny he could be, how wise and utterly accepting and tolerant he was. That's who my baby brother was."

Bowen: Why Ukraine remains defiant and does not feel close to defeat

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd9g2ggq4epo, today

On a dark and cold night in Donetsk in eastern Ukraine, the netting protecting the road from attacks by explosive drones shimmered and rippled in the headlights of our armoured Toyota Land Cruiser, as we drove down strange and surreal tunnels to get in and out of the most intensive area of fighting in eastern Ukraine. The nets go on for miles, suspended from wooden poles around 20ft high along the sides and over the top of the road. Dystopian military vehicles straight out of Mad Max rumble past, encased in their own cages of steel and netting.

Nets snag the propellers of attacking drones, making them a cheap and surprisingly effective physical barrier. Even if their Russian controllers detonate the charge they carry, there is a chance that the explosion will not be close enough to kill people using the road in civilian buses and cars as well as military vehicles.

Much of the netting has been donated by European fishermen. Only this week the Scottish government announced it was sending over another 280 tonnes of salmon nets that were about to be recycled. Before any of it gets used, the Ukrainian military crashes drones into it to test its strength.

The three most feared letters on the battlefield are FPV, standing for "first-person view." FPV drones are major killers, used by both Ukraine and Russia. They have cameras that feed information back to their controllers in a command centre that might be 30 or 40km away. We visited a few of them, hidden away in basements of wrecked buildings or nondescript village houses.

Inside there are banks of screens, relaying video and data from drones that is analysed by the Ukrainian military's leading-edge software. The cameras zoom in on small figures of soldiers moving around the ruins, with the controllers directing the men on the ground through walkie-talkies, callsigns and headsets. We could see the men entering buildings where the drones had seen Russians hiding, and emerging after they had killed them.

Early versions of the drones were controlled by radio signals, but both sides are experts at electronic warfare and quickly found ways to jam them. Now they are mostly controlled by fibre optic cables, so thin that a spool 25km long (that carries data and video) fits into a container built into the drone that is the size of a large bottle of bleach.

Eastern Ukraine used to feel like a throwback to the Western Front in World War One, with trenches and dugouts reinforced against artillery and snipers. After the full-scale invasion four years ago it still, for a while, felt like a 20th Century battlefield. But now drones have transformed the way the war is fought, and armies across the world are watching closely, being forced to change their ideas of how to fight.

The narrow confrontation line that used to exist between the two sides is now extended across a broad swathe of land that both sides call the kill zone, stretching perhaps 20km either side of the forward positions of the two armies. Rear positions for logistics and dealing with casualties that used to be relatively safe are now as lethal as the old front line.

The skies above get saturated with surveillance drones, making movement extremely dangerous. Social media feeds are full of terrifying videos filmed from FPV drones as they swoop into their targets, sometimes chasing down individuals in the open, or even entering buildings, threading their way through rooms and doorways until they find their quarry. The last shot is often of a horrified man about to die.

Artillery and tanks are still formidable weapons. But a drone that costs around a thousand dollars can, in the hands of a skilled pilot, destroy a tank that costs $30m (£22m). The Wall St Journal recently reported that a small group of Ukrainian drone pilots created havoc when they were invited to oppose Nato forces in an exercise in Estonia last year. Nato has a lot of catching up to do. One major consequence of the last four years of war is that Ukraine and Russia are now the most experienced and proficient practitioners of drone warfare in the world.

Both countries are constantly innovating to get ahead in the drone war. Both have been using Starlink system owned by the world's richest man, Elon Musk for battlefield communications and navigation. The Russians had a recent setback when Musk agreed to turn off Russian-registered terminals active inside Ukraine. That seems to be a major reason why Ukraine, with an active Starlink system funded by Poland, recently recaptured territory in the south.

But all the Ukrainian drone units I visited believed that the Russians would soon find a workaround. They respect the skills of the elite Russian drone units they said were called Rubicon and Day of Judgement.

A senior officer told me that western Europeans need to forget the military blunders Russia made after the full-scale invasion four years ago and make a distinction between the thousands of front-line Russian soldiers who are killed every month and the elite drone units that Moscow values as a key part of their war effort. He said they were "cherished" by the Russian army.

On my most recent visit to Ukraine, the threat from drones meant we watched the weather forecast closely before heading into Donetsk, postponing during a day of clear blue skies and waiting for more snow. Drones struggle in bad weather.

Feeling a little reassured by the nets and the snow, we headed towards the town of Slovyansk, past the ruined shells of buildings destroyed over the last four years. Slovyansk functions as a town, just about, with some cafes and shops open. But thousands of residents have moved to safer places, and when the people who have stayed go out, their fear of Russian FPV drones means they hurry down the icy, snow-covered streets to get through their errands to make it home alive. Nets are going up in the town centre.

Slovyansk is high on Russian President Vladimir Putin's uncompromising list of terms for a ceasefire. A big part of the price he is demanding is for Ukraine to give up the 20% or so of Donetsk it still controls, along with other land that his army has been unable to capture, in the southern regions of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson. According to Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelensky, the Americans have pushed him to take the deal, to get to a ceasefire by the summer.

US President Donald Trump also wants Zelensky to call an election, a demand he has not directed at Putin. The evidence suggests that Trump wants to be able to declare he has ended the war. Even if a ceasefire didn't last, he would treat it as a victory he will take into the US mid-term elections next autumn. He is also eyeing huge business deals with Russia, which cannot happen until sanctions are lifted.

The Americans have tried to impose deadlines for a deal. Most recently they told Zelensky he needed to agree to a ceasefire by the summer that Donald Trump could concentrate on the mid-terms. The US inability to bend Ukraine – or Russia – to its will shows that its leverage has limits. Four years after Russia's full scale invasion, there is no discernible evidence that a genuine ceasefire is coming .

The dangers in Donetsk

When I saw President Zelensky this weekend in Kyiv, he told me that he could never give up land that Russia has not been able to capture. He would never, he said, abandon the people there, and even if he was tempted to do so it would not work, as within two years by his reckoning, the Russian military would be ready and reequipped and Putin would order them to attack again.

The first person we visited in Slovyansk was Oleh Tkachenko, a beefy middle-aged pastor who has built up a remarkable relief operation. He is one of the few people outside the military who travel to the most dangerous areas, delivering bread to outlying villages that he makes in his own bakery, which produces 17,000 loaves per week.

After his deliveries he often returns with residents who have had enough of living near the front line. Oleh's bakery is an oasis of order and warmth in the freezing, snow-covered ruins of an industrial area on the edge of Slovyansk.

The UN World Food Programme helped him re-establish it when he was forced out of his hometown, which is now occupied. He told me that the dangers in Donetsk have multiplied in the last few months as the drone war has intensified.

"The situation has changed radically. There are only very dangerous places and relatively dangerous places. Nowhere is safe in the Donetsk region anymore."

I asked him whether Zelensky should give in to Russian and American pressure to sacrifice Donetsk for a ceasefire. It was the same question I put to everyone I met in Slovyansk, and it produced the same kind of answer.

"What more does Putin want? This is my Donetsk region. I was born here. My children were born here. I created my family here. And I should leave all that? What for?"

Putin, he said, should not be allowed to take and keep territory that does not belong to Russia.

"We are destroying the values on which this world is built on one person's whim. Not only will the villain avoid punishment, he [will] also be rewarded? I'm sorry. How many villains like this are there in the world?"

At a coffee bar I met Oleksii Yukov. He runs an organisation called Advis Platsdarm that collects the bodies of dead soldiers from where they were killed, to honour their memory, and before they get a decent burial, identify them to give their families some certainty about them. Oleksii makes no distinctions between dead Russians and dead Ukrainians, but that does not mean he is also prepared to accept Russian domination in Donetsk. Like Oleh, he does not believe promises made by Putin.

"So if a maniac comes to your home and says, "Give me your daughter and I won't come back," do you really think that a man like this – who rapes and pillages - is simply going to stop?"

"We all know who the maniacs are, right? It's horrifying. To give away a part of yourself – or your child – to be torn apart… I don't understand why this question is even asked of Ukrainians."

Oleksii has also recovered the remains of soldiers killed in World War Two in the Donbas, the name used for Donetsk and its neighbouring region, Luhansk, which has fallen to Russia in its entirety. He compares Putin's promises to ones made by Adolf Hitler at the Munich conference in 1938. Hitler claimed that a slice of Czechoslovakia known as the Sudetenland was his last territorial demand in Europe. Britain and France accepted his word as the price of avoiding the World War that started the following year. Like many people in this part of Europe, Oleksii sees parallels with the past.

"Promises made by Russia are worth nothing – just like Hitler's promises that once he took the Sudetenland nothing else would happen. We all saw what that led to: the Second World War. Now it could lead to a Third World War if we do not stop and tell Putin that people live here – people who want to live in their own country, on their own land. Each of them has that right. No Ukrainian has the right to say we can give anything away."

Oleksii believes that forcing Ukraine to give up Donetsk without a fight would be as much of a betrayal as Czechoslovakia suffered at Munich.

Along with its embattled neighbour Kramatorsk, Slovyansk is designated as a "fortress city". Both are protected by miles of deep anti-tank ditches filled with razor wire and concrete anti-tank obstacles known as "dragon's teeth". The towns sit on a range of hills that is the last high ground before around 150 miles of flat land, mostly fields, that stretch right up to the next natural obstacle, the mighty Dnieper River that bisects Ukraine from north to south. Ukrainians argue that stopping the Russians if they reached the flatlands would be much harder.

The Beginning

Four years ago, almost to the day, I was at the main railway station in Kyiv, watching a scene straight out of Europe's dark past play out in a bitter wind off the Ukrainian steppe. Kyiv was in the depths of a frigid winter so monochrome that the scene on the platform could have been an old newsreel, but it was 2022 and happening in a technicolour, digital age. It was the loudest warning yet that the world had changed, that old assumptions about European security and the safety of the future had to be forgotten.

Since then, other warnings have sounded, in the Middle East, in Sudan and in Taiwan, while the war in Ukraine has incubated the biggest crisis in the North Atlantic alliance since it was created in 1949. The gap remains wide between Trump's openness to Putin and the much harsher view of Moscow held by most European members of Nato.

In that first week of the war, the platforms at Kyiv station were packed, mostly with Ukrainian women and children, desperate to board trains going west to escape the advancing Russian army. Russian artillery and answering salvoes from the Ukrainians echoed around the empty streets of the city centre, making the threat to the city frighteningly real.

Trains pulled in every 15 or 20 minutes, as many as the endlessly enterprising operators of Ukraine's railway network could find in the sidings and marshalling yards. Frightened people jostled their way on, leaving tearful goodbyes on the platform with those staying to fight. At the height of the evacuation 50,000 people a day were passing through the station.

In the station concourse a young soldier with a Kalashnikov slung across his back was hugging his girlfriend before she left to go west and he went back to his unit. They could have been a Norman Rockwell cover for the Saturday Evening Post, the magazine that cheered on Americans after they entered World War Two.

Zelensky showed immediately that he was an instinctive war leader, a born communicator who was able to rally his people. On the first dark night of the war, dismissing rumours that he had fled, he appeared in olive green military attire, recording a video selfie in front of the presidency building in Kyiv, with his closest advisors behind him.

"We are all here, our soldiers are here, the citizens of the country are here. We are all here protecting our independence, our country and we are going to continue to do so."

The first months of Russia's full-scale invasion went by for Ukrainians in waves of fear, determination, grief, and patriotic fervour. Some of the Russian soldiers in towns they had occupied around Kyiv carried out massacres – leaving the bodies sprawled where they had been killed on the highway, on the streets of Bucha and in shallow graves. We saw the bodies after Ukraine forced the Russians to retreat from the capital, a victory that confounded the prediction of their western allies that they would be beaten in a few weeks.

Ukraine's unexpected strength persuaded the then US President Joe Biden and other European leaders to send more powerful weapons to Kyiv, though never as many or as fast as the Ukrainians wanted. Ukrainians who stayed were volunteering to fight. Those who couldn't set up workshops that churned out Molotov cocktails and camouflage netting.

Four years on that energy has dissipated. That should not be surprising. War is all-consuming, and exhausting.

It has been replaced by a grim determination to carry on, especially among front line soldiers and their families. Zelensky said earlier this month that 55,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed in the last four years, accepting that many more were classified as missing. The real figure is likely to be much higher than 55,000. The chances are that their remains are somewhere along the 800-mile front line.

Recruiting new soldiers to replace them in the terrible danger of the deadly and expanding kill zone on the front lines is a struggle. In the cities and at checkpoints men of military age face snap inspections of their papers. If they are eligible for conscription, and do not have an exemption from service, they can be driven off to the barracks on the spot.

Getting enough soldiers to fight on is one of Ukraine's greatest challenges, yet polls show substantial majorities here believe that Ukraine can fight on, despite Russian advances on the battlefield, and has no choice as they believe Russia wants to destroy them as a nation. A majority also do not believe that the US-brokered talks will produce a lasting peace. But even though a majority believe Ukraine does not have a choice about fighting on, putting on a uniform and heading for the front line is not a popular choice.

Valeriy Puzik, an author and poet, volunteered to fight and has spent months at the front line. I met him in a trendy bar in Kyiv, a world away from the six metre deep dug out he inhabited with his squad at the front line for more than 100 days. I asked him why it was so hard to recruit.

"Because when a person leaves a position, they don't say anything positive. And word of mouth does the worst damage. Because, there is nothing positive there. I wouldn't wish any of my friends to crawl into a burrow and sit there… I was lucky to survive. Usually, people sit in those burrows for 90, 100, 160 days. We were basically supposed to stay there until spring."

Valeriy survived his latest deployment to the front because he volunteered to evacuate two wounded comrades.

Before he could be sent back, his old position was attacked and the men who stayed behind, he says, were killed or are missing. Evacuating the wounded men, he believes, saved his life.

"If it weren't for those injuries, most likely we all would have died there."

The Long War

Ukraine and Russia have been fighting since 2014 when President Putin ordered the occupation and annexation of Crimea on the Black Sea and then seized parts of the Donbas in the east.

On this current trip, I have seen no evidence that the war is going to end soon.

The full-scale invasion four years ago was Putin's attempt to eliminate the independence of Ukraine once and for all. He has said many times that history shows Ukraine belongs with Russia. A few days before the anniversary of the invasion President Zelensky dismissed that succinctly in a post on X: "I don't need historical shit to end this war and move to diplomacy. Because it's just a delay tactic. I read no less history books than Putin. And I learned a lot."

Zelensky has weathered a corruption scandal that forced the resignation last autumn of his chief of staff, Andrii Yermak. He has trenchant critics, and potential rivals, but still has approval ratings of which most western leaders can only dream.

This week, far to the east of Kyiv, the trains that evacuated hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians in February and March 2022 are still taking people out of harm's way. The Russia military moves at a glacial pace, but in the key battleground of Donetsk in the east it is grinding forward, chewing up lives, the landscape, and whole villages and towns. Ukraine still holds around a fifth of Donetsk oblast, or region. It is the most intensely fought-over part of Ukraine.

One after another, a series of battles over four years have turned towns and villages into rubble, from Bakhmut earlier in the war to Pokrovsk now.

Every day buses cross the regional border from Donetsk to Lozova in the Kharkiv oblast, carrying civilian evacuees. A school has been turned into a warm and clean relief coordination centre – packed with families surrounded with a few bags of possessions, dogs on leads, cats in baskets and most of all tormented by loss.

Serhii and Viktoria had arrived from Druzhkivka, a town that has been sucked into the kill zone. Their teenage daughter Diana sat silently next to them, with her cat Mika on her lap. Like millions of others displaced by war, here and in other turbulent stretches of the world, they were leaving to save themselves, knowing too well that also meant not just losing the remains of their old lives, but also personal independence.

Now they had to sit and wait while the paperwork was done and someone else told them what to do. Viktoria explained why they had left their home.

"We are on the brink. We didn't have any gas, water or power. No heating. We were staying there till the very last moment, freezing for three days."

Back at the end of 2022, their town, Druzhkivka, was seen as a relatively safe haven when we used it as a base to report the Russian attack on Bakhmut. But no one goes there now, Viktoria says. Druzhkivka is too dangerous.

"The drones destroy everything alive – the cars, the people, their homes. I can't tell you without tears."

Serhii looked prematurely old.

"It is very difficult. We have abandoned everything we worked for our whole lives. Everything we worked for, for our families, all we were building. And we had to abandon all that in one moment…everything… We could only pack some small things. We could not have taken more."

Standing near them was Tamara, with her nine-year-old twin granddaughters, Mila and Tina.

"The kids. We left because of the kids. We live near the forest… There are lots of tanks… drones are flying everywhere… there is no peace …the children are running to me and crying… it is very loud…. Everything is shaking…"

Once they were registered, the families with their bags and their pets were bused to Lozova station, to board a long train heading for Lviv in western Ukraine. Lozova used to be a busy junction for trains heading further east. Now it is now the last stop for Ukrainian railways. The lines beyond it are too dangerous.

A defiant Ukraine

The talks brokered by Trump's envoys, the president's son-in-law Jared Kushner and his friend, the real estate billionaire, Steve Witkoff, continue. They are expected to convene again in Geneva after the anniversary of the invasion. Witkoff made positive noises after the last round but both Russia and Ukraine talked about a difficult atmosphere.

It is hard to see any kind of ceasefire emerging unless either Putin or Zelensky change their fundamental positions. Since both sides believe they can fight on to some kind of victory that is not likely to change.

The negotiations appear more of an exercise in placating Trump, so that he cannot blame either Moscow or Kyiv for their failure. The US president tends to default back to putting pressure on Ukraine. In the past he has claimed, untruthfully, that Zelensky is a dictator who started the war. Zelensky laughed and said it wasn't true when I asked him about it. On the eve of the last round, just before the anniversary Trump told journalists that "Ukraine better come to the table, fast".

Trump has ended almost all military aid, but Ukraine still depends on intelligence only the US can provide. Europe buys US weapons, especially interceptor missiles from the Americans on behalf of Ukraine.

On this trip to Ukraine I have found a country that remains defiant. It does not feel close to defeat.

The big cities function well, despite Russia's concerted and effective attacks throughout this bitterly cold winter on its power and heating grid. In Kyiv, there are traffic jams, well-stocked shops, restaurants and cafés.

There are also air-raid sirens, often in the small hours of the morning, and terrible stories of civilians being killed in their own homes by Russian drones and ballistic missiles. Ukraine is rebuilding the military-industrial complex that existed here in Soviet times, concentrating on long range strikes on Russia.

President Zelensky told me they can win the war, and if Ukraine is to fight on, it will need increasing levels of European support.

Spring is in sight, but in this part of Europe winter can drag on into April. Russia has put immense pressure on Ukraine throughout the coldest winter in years by targeting power stations and Soviet-era plants that provide districts with hot water and heat.

In the ruins of a power station that the Ukrainians allowed us to visit on condition we did not identify it, workers were salvaging steel from the wreckage. The plant had been hammered by Russian missiles and drones. Repairs were out of the question. It needed to be rebuilt.

With his breath condensing in clouds in temperatures double figures below zero, a foreman summed the attitude that is common here, when I asked him why Russia was attacking them.

"They want to make us kneel. They want to bring Ukraine to its knees."

That is a fact, and Ukraine's determination to stop it happening is why this war continues.

Top picture credit: Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images

BBC InDepth is the home on the website and app for the best analysis, with fresh perspectives that challenge assumptions and deep reporting on the biggest issues of the day. Emma Barnett and John Simpson bring their pick of the most thought-provoking deep reads and analysis, every Saturday. Sign up for the newsletter here

Four years into its full-scale war in Ukraine, Russia is feeling the effects

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gj20xzw39o, yesterday

At first glance, Yelets in winter looks like something from a Russian fairy tale.

From the embankment I spy the golden domes of Orthodox churches and, down below, ice fishermen dotted along the frozen river.

But in this town, 350km (217 miles) south of Moscow, the fairy tale feeling is transient.

On the riverbank I spot an army recruitment billboard. It promises a one-off sum equivalent to £15,000 to anyone who'll sign up to fight in Ukraine.

Close by there's a poster of a Russian soldier taking aim with a Kalashnikov.

"We're there where we need to be," the accompanying slogan declares.

The Kremlin launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022. Outside Russia it was widely seen as an attempt to force Kyiv back into Moscow's orbit and to overturn the entire post-Cold War security architecture in Europe.

The Russian leadership envisaged a short and successful military operation.

It didn't go to plan.

Four years later, Russia's war on Ukraine grinds on. It has lasted longer than Nazi Germany's brutal war on the Soviet Union, known here as the Great Patriotic War.

And, in this town, you can see some of the consequences.

A giant mural fills one side of a nine-storey Yelets apartment block. Depicted here are the faces of five Russian soldiers, local men killed fighting in Ukraine.

"Glory to the heroes of Russia!" has been painted at the top.

The Russian authorities do not release casualty figures for the so-called "special military operation". But Russia is known to have suffered huge battlefield losses. So many of the towns and villages I've visited in the last two years have had museums and monuments dedicated to soldiers killed in Ukraine, as well as separate sections for recent war dead at local cemeteries.

"My friend's husband was killed fighting there. The son of my cousin, too. And grandson," says Irina, who has stopped to chat to me opposite the mural.

"Lots of people have been killed. I feel sorry for these lads."

Irina is a ticket collector at the bus station. She struggles to make ends meet.

"Utility bills are suffocating us. Prices are crushing us. It's very hard to get by."

Although money is tight, Irina helps put together aid packages for Russian soldiers on the front line. She doesn't criticise the war on Ukraine. She is, though, confused by it.

"In the Great Patriotic war, we knew what we were fighting for," Irina says. "I'm not sure what we're fighting for now."

The border with Ukraine is 250km away. But sometimes the front line feels much closer. This part of Russia, Lipetsk region, like many others, has been targeted by Ukrainian drones. Around Yelets the authorities have installed emergency shelters. I spot one at a bus stop, another in a park.

These concrete constructions stand like monuments to President Vladimir Putin's "special military operation". Before the Kremlin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine there had been no need for shelters, since there had been no drone attacks on Russia.

Blocks of flats in Yelets have designated shelters, too, in basements.

"The sirens go off almost every night," Irina explains. "But I don't leave my building. We just go into the corridor where there are no windows."

In Yelets you'll find signs of war in unlikely places. I notice that the name of a local pancake cafe features the Latin letters V and Z – symbols of the "special military operation".

The sign outside adds: "Grab a pancake, then the whole world."

I'm taken aback. Then I recall some of the things Vladimir Putin has said.

"Where the foot of a Russian soldier steps, that's ours," he declared in St Petersburg last year.

Two years ago in Moscow I saw an electronic billboard displaying this Putin quote: "Russia's borders do not end anywhere."

Wars are financially draining. With Russia's budget deficit growing and the economy stagnating, the government has raised VAT from 20% to 22%. The Finance Ministry says the extra revenue will be spent on "defence and security."

Read more on four years of full-scale war in Ukraine:

Russian state TV has encouraged the public to be understanding.

"We live in a time of war: a war forced on us by the West," TV anchor Dmitry Kiselev told viewers. "We have to win it, and we can't get by without a war budget."

Small businesses are feeling the pinch. In a Yelets bakery the smell of freshly baked raisin bread, scones and cream pastries is intoxicating. But the shop has been hit by Russia's economic downturn and tax hikes.

"We've had to raise prices," says owner Anastasiya Bykova, "because our utility bills, rent and tax bills have all gone up. And the VAT increase means our ingredients are more expensive.

"Imagine we all have to shut down: our bakery, and the restaurant opposite. We try to make our town look good. But if we close, what's left? Just a dark grey patch."

An hour's drive from Yelets, in the regional capital Lipetsk, I see more reminders of the war: more military posters, more shelters.

But in the stairwell of his apartment block, right now Ivan Pavlovich is more concerned about a leaking pipe. There's ice on the wall and the lift's not working.

The pensioner is furious that no-one has repaired it. He rails, too, about high prices and rising utility bills.

Does he think the war is to blame?

"If I was younger, I'd go and fight there," Ivan tells me. "The special military operation is excellent. It's just that prices keep rising. Pensions go up, but then prices go up even more. So, what do I gain? Nothing."

"Of course, we'd live more comfortably if there was no special operation," he adds. "They spend a lot of money on it. People also give what they can. We need to help. I'm not complaining."

Russians feel that life is getting harder. Few believe they have the power to change that. As the war enters its fifth year, there's little optimism. Many people here are just hunkering down and waiting, hoping for better times.

Ukraine in maps: Tracking the war with Russia

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0l0k4389g2o, 5 days ago

The war in Ukraine is about to enter its fifth year. Over the past year, Russian forces have slowly expanded the amount of territory they control, mostly in the east of Ukraine, and have continued their barrage of air strikes on Kyiv and other cities.

Some 55,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, while the BBC has confirmed the names of almost 160,000 people killed fighting on Russia's side.

With the fourth anniversary of the Russia's full-scale invasion approaching, here's a look at the situation on the ground in Ukraine.

Russia grinds forward in the east

Analysts at the US-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW), say Russia took about 4,700 sq km (1,800 sq miles) of territory in 2025 - an area about twice the size of the city of Moscow - although Russia claims to have taken 6,000 sq km.

In eastern Ukraine, Moscow's war machine has been churning mile by mile through the wide open fields of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions - also known as the Donbas - surrounding and overwhelming villages and towns.

It has been trying to gain full control of the area along with two more regions to the west - Zaporizhzhia and Kherson. Shortly after the invasion, Russia held referendums to try to annexe all these regions - in the same way it had annexed Crimea in 2014 - but it has never had them under full control.

There is some evidence that Elon Musk's decision to deny Russian forces access to his Starlink satellite-based internet service at the start of February has given Ukraine an advantage.

Ukraine requested the move as evidence grew that Starlink was enabling Russian forces to mount increasingly accurate attacks, including multiple instances of units being attached to drones, allowing operators to use real-time video links to guide drones on to targets.

In some areas of the long front line, especially east of the city of Zaporizhzhia, Russian forces appear to have been forced to retreat.

Ukraine hopes that any territorial gains will strengthen the its position at the negotiating table.

It comes after a US-backed peace plan unveiled in November, suggested Ukraine could cede control of all of Luhansk, Donetsk and Crimea, along with the areas of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson that Russia currently occupies, to Moscow.

Ukrainian forces would have had to withdraw from parts of Donetsk they still hold and this would become a demilitarised area under de facto Russian control. Russian forces would withdraw from the small areas of Ukraine they currently occupy outside those regions.

Zelensky has consistently said Ukraine will not hand over the Donbas in exchange for peace, saying such a concession could be used as a springboard for future attacks by Russia.

Key towns targeted

A recent report by the ISW describes a "fortress belt" running 50km (31 miles) through western Donetsk.

"Ukraine has spent the last 11 years pouring time, money, and effort into reinforcing the fortress belt and establishing significant defence industrial and defensive infrastructure," it writes.

A Russian summer offensive near the eastern town of Pokrovsk did make rapid advances just north of the town and Russia has recently made advances in the town itself and to the east of nearby Kostyantynivka.

The town, once a key logistics hub for Ukraine's military, is already in ruins.

Russian officials previously claimed to have captured Pokrovsk, known in Russian as Krasnoarmeysk, which includes a major road and railway junction that used to connect the upper parts of the Donetsk region with key cities to the west, such as Dnipro.

But Ukraine says it still holds northern parts of the town.

Its fall would be Russia's biggest battlefield victory since it took the city of Avdiivka about 40km (25 miles) to the east in early 2024 and could give Moscow a platform to drive north towards the two biggest remaining Ukrainian-controlled cities in the Donetsk region, Kramatorsk and Sloviansk.

Ukraine is losing ground, but the ISW notes Russia has been trying to take Pokrovsk - a town of about 23 sq km - for nearly two years and that the cities in the fortress belt are "significantly larger".

It suggests that it would take Russian forces another two years to seize the remainder of the Donetsk region "at great cost".

Russian incursion north of Kharkiv

Further north on the main front line, Russia has been trying to advance on the city of Kupyansk, which analysts suggest could allow it to encircle the northern Donetsk region.

It has also been trying to push Ukrainian forces back from the border with the Russian region of Belgorod.

ISW analysts say Russia is trying to create a buffer zone inside Ukraine's northern borders and get within artillery range of Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-biggest city.

Russia's forces have recently gained limited control over a spear of land to the south of Vovchansk that would bring them closer to this target.

Russian President Vladimir Putin says he wants this buffer zone to protect Russia, after Ukrainian forces captured a swathe of territory further north in Kursk in the summer of 2024. Russian forces eventually drove them out, with the help of North Korean troops.

As well as the counter-offensive in the Kursk region, Ukraine has struck air bases deep inside Russia. One of these attacks involved using 100 drones to target nuclear-capable long-range bombers.

The Russian Defence Ministry confirmed the attacks had occurred in five regions of Russia - Murmansk, Irkutsk, Ivanovo, Ryazan and Amur - but stated planes had been damaged only in Murmansk and Irkutsk, while in other locations the attacks had been repelled.

Most recently, an overnight Russian attack was reported on 22 February in Kyiv and around the capital city, where dozens of strikes targeted energy infrastructure.

Prior to this, a massive attack by Ukrainian drones on Volzhsky, in the Volgograd region in Russia, was reported on 11 February.

Deep strikes are seen as a critical part of the war - Ukraine is trying to target Russia's war economy to slow the advances on the front line.

Russia has also been carrying out strikes on Ukrainian infrastructure - in particular its energy facilities such as electricity substations and power plants.

Several people have been killed in the attacks and tens of thousands of people across Ukraine have experienced severe power cuts or been left with no running water or heating during some of the coldest months of the winter.

Ceasefire talks

These attacks were paused for a week following a request from US President Donald Trump to Putin.

Trump has been leading efforts to end the war through negotiations, and Zelensky said this month that the US wanted the war to end by June.

However, the most recent round of talks between Russia, Ukraine and the US in Geneva, Switzerland, concluded without a breakthrough on 18 February.

Some progress was made on "military issues", including the location of the front line and ceasefire monitoring, according to a Ukrainian diplomatic source.

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said later that "there was meaningful progress" made on both sides, and an agreement to "continue to work towards a peace deal together".

But an agreement on the issue of territory - without which no ceasefire can be envisaged - remains elusive, with Moscow and Kyiv's positions still far apart.

Three years of fighting

Russia's full-scale invasion began with dozens of missile strikes on cities all over Ukraine before dawn on 24 February 2022.

Russian ground troops moved in quickly and within a few weeks were in control of large areas of Ukraine and had advanced to the suburbs of Kyiv.

Russian forces were bombarding Kharkiv, and had taken territory in the east and south as far as Kherson, and surrounded the port city of Mariupol.

But they hit very strong Ukrainian resistance almost everywhere and faced serious logistical problems with poorly-motivated Russian troops suffering shortages of food, water and ammunition.

Ukrainian forces were also quick to deploy Western supplied arms such as the Nlaw anti-tank system, which proved highly effective against the Russian advance.

By October 2022, the picture had changed dramatically and, having failed to take Kyiv, Russia withdrew completely from the north. The following month, Ukrainian forces recaptured the southern city of Kherson.

Since then, the battle has mostly been in the east of Ukraine with Russian forces slowly gaining ground over many months.

Both Kyiv and Moscow have regularly published estimates of the other side's losses but they have been reluctant to detail their own.

As of six months ago, Ukraine's interior ministry had recorded more than 70,000 people as officially missing - both soldiers and civilians - but the breakdown is never given and the true figure may be higher. However, Zelensky said at the start of February that 55,000 soldiers had been killed.

By Dominic Bailey, Mike Hills, Paul Sargeant, Chris Clayton, Kady Wardell, Camilla Costa, Mark Bryson, Sana Dionysiou, Gerry Fletcher, Kate Gaynor and Erwan Rivault

About these maps

To indicate which parts of Ukraine are under control by Russian troops we are using daily assessments published by the Institute for the Study of War with the American Enterprise Institute's Critical Threats Project.

The situation in Ukraine is often fast moving and it is likely there will be times when there have been changes not reflected in the maps.

Why did Putin's Russia invade Ukraine?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj0q964851po, yesterday

When Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered up to 200,000 soldiers into Ukraine, his aim was to sweep into the capital, Kyiv, in days, overthrow its pro-Western government and return Ukraine to Russia's sphere of influence.

Putin failed but, four years on, a fifth of Ukrainian territory is in Russian hands.

US President Donald Trump has been pushing for a peace deal. But a meeting with Putin in Alaska in August and several rounds of talks with Ukrainian and Russian negotiating teams have failed to yield any meaningful progress.

Moscow continues to demand that Ukraine hand over sovereign territory - an unacceptable outcome for Kyiv.

Why did Putin invade Ukraine?

Launching the biggest European invasion since the end of World War Two, Putin gave a fiery speech on TV declaring his goal was to "demilitarise and denazify" Ukraine.

Russia has repeatedly painted modern Ukraine as a Nazi state, in a crass distortion of history.

Putin had already seized Ukraine's Crimean peninsula eight years earlier, after a revolution that ousted Ukraine's pro-Russian president and replaced him with a more pro-Western government.

Putin then triggered a lower-level war in Ukraine's eastern Donbas region, with pro-Russian proxy forces occupying territory and setting up rebel states supported by Moscow.

But the 2022 invasion was on a different scale.

Putin had just recognised the rebel states as independent. Then, as the invasion began, he said the people there - many of whom are Russian speakers - needed protection from the Kyiv "regime".

A day later, Putin called on Ukraine's military to "take power into your own hands" and target the "gangs of drug addicts and neo-Nazis" running the government.

He then added another objective - to ensure Ukraine stayed neutral. He accused the Western defensive alliance, Nato, of trying to gain a foothold in Ukraine to bring its troops closer to Russia's borders.

The Russian leader has long questioned Ukraine's right to exist, claiming that "modern Ukraine was entirely created by Russia" after the communist revolution in 1917.

In a long-winded 2021 essay he even suggested "Russians and Ukrainians were one people" dating back to the late 9th Century. In 2024 he told US TV talk show host Tucker Carlson that Ukraine was an "artificial state".

Those comments have led many to believe that the goal of the invasion was in effect to erase the state of Ukraine.

Russia's state-run Ria news agency explained that "denazification is inevitably also de-Ukrainisation" - seemingly tying the idea of erasing Ukraine to the stated goal of the invasion.

Ukrainian culture and identity have in fact existed for centuries independently of Russia.

Fact-checking Putin's 'nonsense' history

Zelensky - from comedian to wartime leader

Does Putin want to get rid of Zelensky?

Putin has long sought to get rid of Ukraine's elected pro-Western president, and Zelensky was apparently a target from the very start of the war.

Russian troops made two attempts to storm the presidential compound soon after the invasion, according to Zelensky's adviser, and Ukraine's elected leader said they wanted him dead.

"The enemy has designated me as target number one; my family is target number two.

"They want to destroy Ukraine politically by destroying the head of state."

Zelensky said later that Putin had initially tried to replace him with the wealthy head of a pro-Russian party, Viktor Medvedchuk, who was accused of treason in Ukraine and is now in Russia.

Even now, Putin has not agreed to peace talks with Zelensky and his officials call him a "loser" and a "clown". He has spoken of the Ukrainian leader's "illegitimacy" - a false narrative that has also been repeated by Trump.

As evidence Putin cites the postponement of Ukraine's March 2024 presidential election, although it is because of Russia's war that Ukraine is under martial law and elections are barred under the constitution.

Putin's own re-election in 2024 is highly questionable, as Russia's opposition leaders are either in exile or dead.

Was Nato expansion to blame for the war?

Putin has for years complained about Nato's eastward expansion as a security threat, and sees any possibility of Ukraine joining the alliance as a major red line.

Before Russia's 2022 invasion he demanded that Nato remove multinational deployments from the Central and Eastern European states that joined the Western alliance after 1997.

But it was Russia that launched military action in Eastern Europe, when it invaded Georgia in 2008 and then Crimea in 2014.

After the Crimea invasion, Nato established a continuous presence on its eastern flank - closest to Russia.

Nato has always stressed the whole purpose of the alliance is to defend territories "with no aggressive intentions". Sweden and Finland have joined Nato in the past two years precisely because of the perceived Russian threat.

It is part of Ukraine's constitution to join the European Union and Nato, but there was no real prospect of this when the full-scale war began.

Zelensky said as much two weeks into the invasion: "Nato is not prepared to accept Ukraine."

He has since said he would consider resigning in exchange for Nato membership, but Trump says Kyiv should "forget about" joining the Western alliance.

Putin has accused Nato of participating in the war, because its member states have increasingly sent Ukraine military hardware, including tanks and fighter jets, air defence systems, missile systems, artillery and drones.

Nato has provided security assistance and training to Ukraine, but it insists that does not make it a party to the war.

Putin's grievance against Nato dates back to 1990, when he claims the West promised not to expand "an inch to the East".

However that was before the Soviet Union collapsed and it was based on a limited commitment made to then Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev.

Gorbachev said "the topic of Nato expansion was never discussed" at the time.

What to know about Trump's State of the Union address

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3v79dz99eko, today

The stage is set for US President Donald Trump's State of the Union address on Tuesday evening.

The US Capitol in Washington DC will be packed with the country's top lawmakers, Supreme Court justices, and military leaders to hear the president's message.

Trump will address a joint session of Congress in a speech that will likely outline what he feels are the accomplishments of his first year in office and his policy agenda moving forward.

It comes ahead of the country's November midterm elections.

Lawmakers from the Senate and the House of Representatives will attend, though several Democrats have said they plan to skip it.

What is the State of the Union?

The event is a keynote speech in which the US president sets out their agenda for the next year, highlights their accomplishments to the American people, and shapes a political message.

It is a requirement of the US Constitution that the president "shall from time to time give to Congress information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient".

That requirement has been interpreted differently in the more than 200 years since President George Washington delivered the first one in 1790.

In recent decades, the speech has become one of the major media events on the US political calendar: a closely watched affair that includes a rebuttal from the opposition party.

In recent years, it has also produced some memorable moments - like when then-Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi ripped Trump's speech in half in 2020. Pelosi later said she "tore up a manifesto of mistruths".

When and where will the speech be held?

The address is scheduled to start at 21:00 EST (02:00 GMT) on Tuesday.

It is typically held in the House of Representatives chamber in the US Capitol building in Washington DC.

Seated behind the president during his speech will be Vice-President JD Vance, who is the head of the US Senate, and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, a Republican and the top lawmaker in the House.

Where can the speech be watched?

The State of the Union will be streamed live on the BBC's website and TV channel, with special coverage starting at 20:00 EST.

It will also be shown on all major US networks.

What to expect from Tuesday's speech

Trump has had an eventful first year of this term, implementing policies that have divided Americans - even sometimes those in his own party.

At his last speech to Congress in March 2025 - which was similar but not technically a State of the Union speech - Trump spoke about the war in Ukraine, his desire to take Greenland, and a promise to lower taxes "for everybody".

Though it is not confirmed what the president will touch on this time, it is likely that the subject of immigration enforcement will be on the table. Under Trump, illegal crossings of the southern border have dramatically fallen.

The president has also focused on mass deportations, though some of his tactics have raised questions about oversight - including in Minneapolis, where two US citizens were shot and killed by federal agents earlier this year.

Trump’s trade policy could also come up, in the wake of a recent Supreme Court decision that said Trump exceeded his authority when he imposed global tariffs via a law reserved for national emergencies.

Other topics could include Trump's efforts to negotiate ceasefires overseas, America's relationship with Iran, and the dramatic seizing of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro by US forces last month.

A year ago, Trump set the record for longest address ever given by a president to a joint session of Congress, speaking for an hour and 40 minutes, beating former President Bill Clinton's record of an hour and 28 minutes.

Democrats will follow Tuesday's address with their party's response.

The rebuttal - first delivered in 1966 - is often given by rising stars in the opposition party. After Trump's similar address last March, Democratic Senator Elissa Slotkin delivered a rebuttal.

Who will be there?

The State of the Union is always a "who's who" of Washington power players.

Members of Congress from both political parties, justices from the US Supreme Court and top military brass will all be in attendance. First Lady Melania Trump and other members of the Trump family are also expected to be there, along with members of Trump's cabinet.

There are also dozens of notable guests, invited by the president and other lawmakers, who are sometimes used to highlight key policy issues.

Democratic Representative Ro Khanna - who has been advocating with other lawmakers on behalf of victims of late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, said he was bringing Haley Robson, a survivor of Epstein's abuse.

Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has invited Raiza Contreras, a New York City mother whose son, Dylan Lopez Contreras, was detained by federal immigration agents.

House Speaker Mike Johnson said he would bring the family of Marc Brock, a Louisiana police officer who was killed while working last year.

Who won't be there?

There will be one customary absence - the so-called "designated survivor" who is tasked with taking charge in case an unforeseen tragedy wipes out or incapacitates the many government officials gathered for the speech.

Usually a lower-level member of the president's cabinet, this individual is taken to an undisclosed location during the State of the Union. The administration has not yet announced who it will be this year, but in 2020 it was then-Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt.

A less expected absence is the sizeable group of nearly two dozen Democratic lawmakers who have said they will not be attending. They include Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, according to the BBC's US partner CBS News.

Some of the group say they will instead attend an event they have dubbed the "People's State of the Union". The event has been organised by progressive groups aiming to take attention away from what they call a "night full of lies and misplaced priorities for the American people".

Trump also invited the US national women's hockey team - who won gold at the Winter Olympics in Italy - but the group declined the invitation due to what they said was "the timing and previously scheduled academic and professional commitments".

'A conman stole my money and bought his wife a 10-carat diamond ring'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckg12030ye3o, today

A woman from New York has told the BBC she lost almost a million dollars to a scammer from Northern Ireland - and says he bought his wife a dazzling 10-carat diamond ring with the proceeds.

The woman, who we are calling Jane because she fears being targeted again, has identified the perpetrator as a member of The Travelling Conmen.

They are a group of UK and Irish nationals involved in construction scams who have been designated by the FBI as a transnational organised crime group.

Jane and other victims of the gang have spoken to BBC Spotlight about their ordeal, including a man who lost $500,000 (£370,971) last year and a woman who lost her son's university fund.

"It's not only humiliating and devastating and shattering – it also just crushes your soul," Jane said.

She said her ordeal began in the autumn of 2022 when she was approached at her New York home and asked if she needed any work done.

She said a man with an Irish accent, who the BBC understands to be called Darren Cunningham (then going under the name Patrick Dundon) began doing more work than was agreed.

The man said he needed $65,000 (£48,229) for bricks, then disappeared.

Jane says she then contacted the brick seller who gave her an invoice showing the bricks had cost only $25,000 (£18,550).

But it was a few months later when the scam really escalated.

A man Spotlight traced back to Northern Ireland through photos provided by Jane, turned up at her door.

He can't be named for legal reasons so we are calling him Mr Bling.

"He said the work on the driveway will get done, but everything's on hold because there's still this big issue that they have to take care of," Jane said.

"He seemed like he was trying to be the responsible business partner."

But nothing could have been further from the truth because the con continued.

Jane said he told her he needed $200,000 (£148,391) as a loan.

She also alleged he warned her children's safety might be in danger if she did not hand over the cash.

Jane wrote three cheques with the promise that the money would be back with her by the following Sunday - but it was not returned.

In an attempt to get back what she had lost, Jane said she committed further funds.

"He told me that I had to transfer the money to the parent construction company, Troy Construction.

"Only last minute did he make the switch and say it's actually going to be another company that's like a front for Troy Construction and then he sent me the information of where I am supposed to send the money to."

In fact, she sent the money to a jeweller on 47th Street in New York, the heart of what is known as the Diamond District.

From Spotlight's investigation, it appears that within days Mr Bling's family were showing off expensive jewellery on social media, including the 10-carat diamond.

"Lots of other jewellery, lots of watches that they all seemed so happy to flaunt," Jane said.

The BBC wrote to Darren Cunningham and the man it is calling Mr Bling about Jane's allegations, but they did not respond.

The BBC Spotlight programme, The Travelling Conmen, reveals that other victims were also told to send hundreds of thousands of dollars to jewellers in the Diamond District.

Some of the Travelling Conmen are now in prison, including an Irish national James Dinnigan, who defrauded victims of $1m (£741,840) in a series of construction scams.

One of his victims was Ginia Hines who was gradually persuaded to hand over $50,000 (£37,798) for work at her home in Connecticut to a man she knew as 'Charlie Ward'.

Ward was actually James Dinnigan and Hines believes that he initially built rapport with her by pretending to be a Christian.

He would say things such as: "How's your day going? Are you having a blessed day? And then the conversations ended with have a blessed day, God bless you."

But after 10 days' work at $5000 (£3,708) a day, Dinnigan left the house in worse shape.

"They left my yard just a mud pile with all the boulders and rocks that they dug up from around the house," Hines said.

"It had no value because they did something I didn't need. It was no value – it was actually a negative."

Hines told BBC Spotlight that the money she lost could have been used to help her son through college.

"(The money) was very important. Single parent, head of household, doing this thing on my own," she said.

In this instance the perpetrator was jailed but Hines did not get her money back.

'Houdini, Copperfield and Blaine all rolled into one'

Michael Berard, from Swansea in Massachusetts, said he was defrauded of $500,000 (£370,971) by two men, who called themselves Jack Murphy and George Adams, who have since vanished.

"These people took the money just as though they were John Dillinger or Billy the Kid," he said.

"And they're actually worse, cause when a guy points a gun at you, you know what you're up against."

After employing the pair for a small job, Berard said they told him he had a crack in his foundation.

"My whole adult life I've had struggles with anxiety, kind of walking the tightrope. At that point I think they sensed my anxiety and they said: 'Mike, you've got a very big problem here. We need $15,000 (£11,124) right away'."

And that was just the beginning. With Adams and Murphy convincing Berard that he would get his money back by suing the original builder of the house, he gradually handed over everything he had for needless work.

"They were like magicians. They were like Houdini and Copperfield and Blaine all rolled into one," he said.

"What they said sounded so convincing."

Berard has been unable to track down the two men.

BBC Spotlight also tried to find them, but could not reach them to ask about his allegations.

As well as Dinnigan, other members of the Travelling Conmen are now in custody, including Elijah Gavin who was jailed in November.

But FBI Special Agent, Ethan Via, has told BBC Spotlight there were more of them out there, both in the United States and elsewhere.

"Barely a month goes by that I don't get a phone call from someone and they have a new group that's doing it or a new batch of victims," he said.

Jane from New York told BBC Spotlight she was still working through what happened.

"I can't say I had any control over any of my actions at that period in my life.

"And literally if someone asked me 'why did you hand over the money?' I just, I don't know. I don't know."

What happened to Arlene? The 30-year mystery of a murder without a body

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c05vg8ye4r3o, today

When Arlene Fraser vanished without trace after waving her young children off to school, detectives had a suspect with a motive - but precious little else.

Her husband Nat was a jealous and violent man who had been accused of attempting to murder Arlene just five weeks earlier.

Their marriage was on the rocks, and on the day she went missing Arlene had been due to meet a solicitor to discuss a £250,000 divorce.

But when police started to investigate, they found what one officer described as "a daunting absence of clues".

No crime scene, no signs of a disturbance, no forensics, no eye witnesses, no CCTV.

Arlene's empty bungalow in Elgin, in the north of Scotland, was compared to the Mary Celeste.

The house was unlocked, the ironing board was out, the hoover plugged in, washing was hanging on the line outside, the medication she needed for Crohn's disease had been left behind.

Her family and friends said her disappearance was completely out of character; she wasn't the kind of person who would abandon her much-loved kids and leave home.

Almost 30 years on, Arlene's body has never been found.

Nat Fraser was twice found guilty of her murder during a tortuous 14-year legal process, and will soon become eligible for release from prison.

Arlene's family hope a new law will prevent him being given parole unless he finally says what happened to his wife's body.

The last time anyone heard from Arlene was at 09:41 on 28 April 1998, when she phoned her children's school to ask when her son would be back from a trip.

At 02:00 the next morning, police told her sister Carol Gillies that the 33-year-old was missing.

"That's where the nightmare began," she tells a new BBC documentary, Murder Case: The Hunt for Arlene Fraser's Killer.

"I lived in Erskine at the time. It's a 200-mile journey.

"I literally could not speak. The words just wouldn't come out."

Police soon focussed on Nat Fraser – but the inquiry ran into two major problems.

The first was that he had a rock-solid alibi for the morning Arlene went missing.

The second was his popularity.

Looking back at the case which dominated his career, retired Det Supt Alan Smith says fruit and veg wholesaler Fraser was a jack-the-lad with no shortage of friends in the Moray town.

Many locals refused to countenance the possibility that he had anything to do with Arlene's disappearance, preferring instead to believe that a mum who doted on her two kids had deserted them to start a new life elsewhere.

"He was feeding a narrative, as were his close circle of friends, that she had simply upped stick and gone missing," said Smith.

"In many ways he was playing the victim and portraying her as a villain.

"Typically, if you've got a murder investigation, people are queuing up to help you. We were getting doors slammed in our face."

After a nervous and grey-faced Fraser appeared at a news conference, woodenly appealing for Arlene to get in touch, detectives spent the best part of a year finding the evidence which proved she was no longer alive.

A breakthrough came when police learned one of Fraser's closest friends, Hector Dick, had bought a Ford Fiesta the night before Arlene went missing, paying the seller £400 for the car and £50 to keep quiet.

Arlene's own car had been destroyed in a suspicious fire weeks earlier.

Dick ultimately pled guilty to perverting the course of justice and was jailed, but at the time stayed silent about the car and any link with Arlene.

Fraser followed him to prison after admitting a reduced charge of assaulting Arlene to the danger of her life, a decision which neutralised the single most compelling piece of evidence against him.

Under Scots law, a suspect's previous convictions are normally kept from juries.

Nat Fraser was tried twice over Arlene's murder, and both times the jury could not be told that he had attacked her just before she vanished.

"If you have got evidence of a previous assault which shouts out motive and gives the jury a complete understanding of why he might want to kill his wife, of course it's massively frustrating that you can't take that in front of the jury," said Smith.

"But it's important that Scots law has that protection for the innocent until proven guilty."

In the end, it didn't make any difference.

Each time Nat Fraser faced a jury over Arlene's murder, they believed the case against him had been proved beyond reasonable doubt; he had orchestrated his wife's murder.

The first trial in 2003 saw Hector Dick give evidence against Fraser. He claimed Fraser told him he paid a hitman to kill Arlene, and then burnt and scattered her remains.

Dick said he had bought the Fiesta for Fraser, then scrapped it afterwards.

A centrepiece of the prosecution case concerned the mysterious reappearance of Arlene's gold eternity ring, diamond and gold wedding ring, and a sapphire engagement ring.

A member of the family said she found them in the bathroom in Arlene's home, eight days after she went missing. They had not been there before.

Nat Fraser had been in the house that day. The implication was that he had placed them in the bathroom.

Fraser was found guilty and jailed for life, only for the UK Supreme Court to rule in 2011 that his trial had been unfair, a decision which enraged the then First Minister Alex Salmond.

Fraser was convicted a second time in 2012 and handed another life sentence, with a minimum 17-year jail term.

When he comes up for parole in October 2028, at the age of 69, Fraser will face a new obstacle in his bid for freedom.

Suzanne's Law is named after Edinburgh book-keeper Suzanne Pilley, who disappeared in 2010 after breaking off an affair with a work colleague.

David Gilroy was convicted of her murder and has never revealed what happened to her remains.

Last year, the Scottish Parliament passed legislation which means the parole board must take into account a murderer's refusal to reveal what became of their victim's body.

It followed a campaign by Suzanne and Arlene's families, which was backed by Victim Support Scotland.

Alan Smith stayed in touch with Arlene's family long after the court process came to an end.

He would like to see killers like Fraser serve a consecutive jail term for hiding their victims' remains, once their life sentence has been completed.

Failing that, he hopes Suzanne's Law will delay Fraser's release for years.

"I've seen the torture that Arlene's family have had to endure through Nat's choice not to give up her body," he says.

"He could do that tomorrow if he wished and of course the motivation in this murder investigation was obvious to me - it was control.

"The final piece of control that Nat has, is giving up that 28-year secret as to where Arlene is now.

"I doubt he will ever give up that secret, knowing how the man ticks, and this legislation may not unlock that secret.

"The family know that, but they want the legislation for future cases. That could be a form of legacy for Arlene."

Carol Gilles said she had thought long and hard before deciding to take part in the documentary.

"It certainly is not something I enjoy or particularly want to do, and I am sure other participants may have felt the same, but we all see this as an opportunity to raise public awareness on important matters," she said.

"I believe part of Nat Fraser's plan was that people would soon forget about Arlene.

"I feel he is counting on us tiring or giving up, but until Arlene's remains are located, I see it as my responsibility to ensure that Arlene is never forgotten."

Carol has described Fraser's refusal to reveal what happened to Arlene as a form of mental torture.

"You spend the whole time just trying to think of a way to get Arlene back, and Nat's the only one that knows.

"The clock is ticking with us because of Nat Fraser's parole date."

She says Suzanne's Law gives Nat Fraser a choice.

"Tell us where her remains are, or go back to your cell.

"It's the final chance of getting to the truth, because if the parole board can't do anything to help us, then he'll get out and the truth will be gone forever."

Canada summons OpenAI senior staff over Tumbler Ridge shooting

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2e4nvyjwnno, today

Canada's minister for artificial intelligence has summoned senior staff from OpenAI on Tuesday over the mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, in which eight people were killed including six young children.

The company said last week it banned a ChatGPT account owned by the shooting suspect more than half a year before the attack but did not alert authorities at the time as it did not meet a serious harm threshold.

AI Minister Evan Solomon said the OpenAI staff will be asked to discuss "safety protocols" and when harmful posts are relayed to law enforcement.

The suspect in the 10 February attack was identified by police as 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said it is still investigating the incident, including "a thorough review of the content and electronic devices, as well as social media and online activities" related to the suspect.

In a statement to the BBC, the RCMP confirmed that OpenAI had reached out after the incident regarding the suspect's activity on its platforms.

The Wall Street Journal first reported on Friday that Van Rootselaar's account was banned for troubling posts, including ones that featured scenarios of gun violence.

Solomon, Canada's AI minister, told reporters on Monday that he was very disturbed by the revelation, and that his team reached out to OpenAI over the weekend for "an explanation about the situation".

He added that he will be meeting with the OpenAI's senior safety team, who are flying from the US to Ottawa for a Tuesday evening meeting.

"We will have a sit-down meeting to have an explanation of their safety protocols and their thresholds of escalation to police so we have a better understanding of what's happening and what they do," he said.

The BBC has reached out to OpenAI for comment on the meeting.

OpenAI has said that it did not alert authorities to the suspect's account because its usage did not meet its threshold of a credible or imminent plan for serious physical harm to others.

It said its thoughts were with everyone affected by the tragedy and that following the attack it had "proactively" contacted Canadian police with information on the suspect.

According to the Wall Street Journal, "about a dozen staffers debated whether to take action on Van Rootselaar's posts".

Some had identified the suspect's usage of the AI tool as an indication of real world violence and encouraged leaders to alert authorities, the US outlet reported.

But, it said, leaders of the company decided not to do so.

The attack, which occurred at the suspect's residence and a secondary school in Tumbler Ridge, is one of the deadliest mass shootings in Canadian history.

Police said Van Rootselaar was a local to the town of about 2,300 people, and was known to law enforcement due to a history of mental health-related visits over the years to the suspect's home.

Two dead after winter storm hammers the US northeast

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yjpx2lgdjo, today

A powerful winter blizzard that hit the north-eastern US has left two dead in Maryland and continues to delay flights and cause widespread power outages across the region.

In Calvert County, Maryland, on Sunday afternoon, a vehicle was struck by a falling tree that toppled onto the road way, killing Michael Simpson, 60, and Virginia Quesenberry, 43, the sheriff's office said.

Parts of Maryland saw as much as 16in (40cm) of snowfall during the storm, while Providence, Rhode Island, saw the biggest blizzard in history with 37.9in of snow.

Travel bans and school closures are still in place for Rhode Island and parts of Massachusetts as residents dig out of the storm.

The hazardous and snowy conditions also led to serious flight disruptions on Monday and Tuesday. Over 5,000 flights were cancelled on Monday, while as of Tuesday morning, over 2,000 flights were cancelled and nearly 1,000 delayed, according to flight tracker FlightAware.

The most heavily affected airports were Boston's Logan International Airport and New York's John F Kennedy International and Laguardia airports.

The blizzard was the ninth biggest winter storm in the history of New York City, which recorded over 20in of snow.

On Sunday and Monday, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani enacted a travel ban to keep the roads clear from dangerous conditions. He said 2,600 sanitation workers were plowing roads, plus an additional 1,400 emergency snow shovelers who were clearing sidewalks and bus stops.

The city went back to in-person schooling on Tuesday, while parts of neighbouring states of New Jersey and Pennsylvannia announced school delays and virtual learning.

In Boston, Massachusetts, the blizzard led news outlet Boston Globe to halt printing of its newspaper for the first time in 153 years because conditions made it impossible to make paper deliveries on Tuesday.

As of Tuesday morning, 250,000 people in Massachusetts were still without power, according to poweroutage.us.

In the small coastal town of Scituate, Massachusetts, officials said on Monday that half the town was without electricity, and that residents "should expect several days without power" as powerful winds would make it challenging for companies to restore power.

The so-called "nor'easter" has now moved away from the US and across coastal parts of eastern Canada, though strong winds are expected to persist, according to the National Weather Service.

MPs back move to release files on Andrew's appointment as trade envoy

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c80jd955889o, today

MPs have backed the release of documents on Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's appointment as a UK trade envoy.

The government supported a Liberal Democrat motion which forces ministers to release files on the former prince's appointment to the role in 2001, including those relating to vetting.

Trade minister Sir Chris Bryant said the government would comply with the motion "as fast as we possibly can", although he cited the live police investigation as a reason for possible delays.

The former prince was released under investigation last week following his arrest on suspicion of misconduct in public office. He has consistently and strenuously denied any wrongdoing.

Police had previously said they were considering investigating him over allegations relating to his association with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and were reviewing allegations he shared confidential material.

Andrew held the role of "special representative for international trade and investment" between 2001 and 2011, giving him privileged access to senior government and business contacts around the world.

Emails released in the US from the latest tranche of files related to Epstein include claims that he forwarded government reports from visits to Vietnam, Singapore and China to Epstein in 2010.

Elsewhere in the documents, Andrew is also alleged to have forwarded information on investment opportunities in gold and uranium in Afghanistan to Epstein.

Andrew has not responded to the BBC's requests for comment on specific allegations that have emerged after the US release of files in January related to the late financier.

He has previously denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein and has denied any personal gain from his role as trade envoy.

Speaking in the House of Commons, Sir Chris said colleagues and civil servants had told him about their interactions with Andrew.

He told MPs: "They all betray the same pattern – a man on a constant self-aggrandising and self-enriching hustle, a rude, arrogant and entitled man who could not distinguish between the public interest, which he said he served, and his own private interest."

The Lib Dems used scheduled debating time allocated to the party on Tuesday to force the government to agree to a so-called humble address that compels ministers to release information on Mountbatten-Windsor's appointment.

This type of motion is generally seen as binding and was successfully used by the Conservatives earlier this month to force the government into releasing material related to Lord Mandelson's appointment as US ambassador in late 2024.

The motion was approved unopposed without the need for a formal vote.

Sir Chris, confirming the government's support, told the House of Commons: "Frankly, it is the least we owe the victims of the horrific abuse that was perpetrated by Jeffrey Epstein and others, the abuse that was enabled, aided and abetted by a very extensive group of arrogant, entitled and often very wealthy individuals in this country and elsewhere.

"It's not just the people who participated in the abuse, it's the many, many more who turned a blind eye out of greed, familiarity or deference.

"To my mind they too were complicit, just as complicit and I welcome the reckoning that is coming to them now."

Sir Chris went on to explain the government would comply with the terms of the humble address "in full" before seeking to manage expectations on the speed of the process.

After Conservative MP Sir Edward Leigh warned it could be "years before we see any of these papers", Sir Chris said: "I want to make sure that we move as fast as we possibly can, but I also want to make sure that justice does happen, and I don't want to do anything that would undermine the police investigations.

"I hope that they will be able to move as swiftly as possible and we will certainly co-operate with them as swiftly as possible.

"It's worth bearing in mind that the documents that might be envisaged in this are mostly 25-years-old. Some of them are a bit earlier. They may be substantial in number and many of them will be in hard copy."

For the Conservatives, shadow chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Alex Burghart advised ministers about "how bad it will look" if the government "does not provide information as swiftly as possible".

Lib Dem leader Sir Ed, speaking in the Commons, described the Epstein scandal as "truly global" but also "a deeply British scandal reaching right to the top of the British establishment".

In 2011, when he was a business minister, Sir Ed said Andrew was doing an "excellent job" as trade envoy and dismissed concerns around him at the time as "innuendo".

Asked about his defence of Andrew during a previous parliamentary debate, he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "First of all can I apologise to all those victims of Epstein who may have read those words and been upset by them. I really regret them."

Sir Ed said he "wasn't really over the brief" and added "no MP mentioned Epstein in that debate and I think that tells a tale about how Parliament and MPs don't hold the Royal Family, didn't hold [the former] Prince Andrew in that really privileged position, properly to account".

Andrew was appointed to the unpaid trade role under Tony Blair's Labour government.

He was officially appointed by the then Queen after consultation with the Cabinet Office, Foreign Office and British Trade International.

Elsewhere, MPs on the Business and Trade Select Committee said any inquiry into the role of UK trade envoys could only begin once legal proceedings against Andrew had concluded.

However, Labour MP Liam Byrne, who chairs the committee said it would "begin gathering information immediately" so it would be ready to launch an inquiry if it decided to once police action had concluded.

BBC edited a second racial slur out of Bafta ceremony

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5ykl7y2zv9o, today

A racial slur was edited out of the Baftas ceremony before it was broadcast, but another one aired in error, the BBC's chief content officer has said.

Tourette's campaigner John Davidson shouted the N-word when US actors Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo were on stage on Sunday.

The shout was audible in the broadcast, although many viewers would have struggled to make out the word.

BBC content chief Kate Phillips emailed staff on Tuesday, reiterating the BBC's apology for it not being edited out of the broadcast, adding: "We understand how distressing this was."

Phillips confirmed other instances of offensive language had been removed, telling staff: "The edit team removed another racial slur from the broadcast."

In contrast, the slur shouted when Lindo and Jordan were on stage "was aired in error and we would never have knowingly allowed this to be broadcast", she said.

The use of the n-word on any BBC television programme is very rare and usually requires sign-off from a channel controller.

The Bafta ceremony was shown on BBC One on a two-hour delay, with producers editing the show's length to fit its two-hour broadcast slot.

BBC News understands the producers overseeing the ceremony for the BBC were doing so from a TV truck and simply did not hear the slur shouted when Lindo and Jordan were on stage. John Davidson was not on mic or on stage at the time.

Phillips added: "Award attendees were pre-warned about the possibility of involuntary verbal tics associated with Tourette syndrome at the start of the show, and [host] Alan Cumming addressed it during the broadcast.

"Of course, this doesn't lessen the impact and upset."

"We take full responsibility for what happened," Phillips said. "When I was made aware it was audible on iPlayer, I asked for it to be taken down."

The ceremony started at 17:00 GMT, two hours before the TV broadcast began.

The ceremony was made available on iPlayer after its broadcast concluded at 21:00 GMT. It was removed from iPlayer at around 11:30 on Monday morning.

Labour MP Dawn Butler previously asked director-general Tim Davie for an "urgent explanation" for what happened, saying the N-word "should never have been aired" and its broadcast was "painful and unforgivable".

In a statement on Monday, Bafta said it acknowledged the "harm this has caused, address what happened and apologise to all".

"Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo were on stage at the time, and we apologise unreservedly to them, and to all those impacted. We would like to thank Michael and Delroy for their incredible dignity and professionalism."

Bafta also thanked Davidson for his "dignity and consideration of others, on what should have been a night of celebration for him".

After the ceremony, Lindo told Vanity Fair that he and Jordan, who were handing out an award "did what we had to do" as they carried on presenting, but also said he wished "someone from Bafta spoke to us afterward".

On Tuesday, Deadline reported that a representative from Warner Bros, the studio behind Sinners, which stars Lindo and Jordan, complained to Bafta in the minutes after the slur was shouted, and reportedly received assurances that their concerns would be passed on to the BBC. Bafta has been asked for comment.

In a statement on Monday, Davidson said he was "deeply mortified if anyone considers my involuntary tics to be intentional or to carry any meaning".

"I have spent my life trying to support and empower the Tourette's community and to teach empathy, kindness and understanding from others and I will continue to do so," he said in a statement.

"I chose to leave the auditorium early into the ceremony as I was aware of the distress my tics were causing."

Floods and landslides in Brazil kill at least 20

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c70k7vjllzeo, today

At least 20 people have died in the south-eastern Brazilian state of Minas Gerais after heavy rains on Monday evening caused floods and several landslides.

Most deaths were reported in the city of Juiz de Fora, where officials say 15 people were killed, while another six deaths were reported in Ubá.

Rescue operations are ongoing, with workers and residents searching for dozens of people reported missing after several homes and buildings collapsed overnight.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva sent his "deepest condolences" to the families of the victims and those who lost their homes. He also said that the government had declared a "state of calamity" in Juiz de Fora.

In a post on X, Lula said he had mobilised the wider government to support those in the region and said his focus was on providing humanitarian assistance and supporting reconstruction efforts.

He added that the government would act with the "speed and force this moment requires".

Around 440 people have been left homeless or displaced in Juiz de Fora alone, with the local government providing temporary shelter and asking for donations of water, food, clothing and hygiene supplies.

Mayor Margarida Salomão said the tragedy was the "saddest" moment in her five years in local government and declared three days of official mourning in memory of all the people in Juiz de Fora who lost their lives.

She said children were among those who died in Juiz de Fora, but the city has so far not released any further official information on the victims' identities.

Minas Gerais Governor Romeu Zema said the state was experiencing a "sad day" and offered his solidarity to the families affected by the intense downpours.

Local officials say this has been the rainiest February in the history of Juiz de Fora, with the current rainfall in the region already more than double the amount expected for the month.

On Tuesday, the country's national meteorological institute issued a heavy rain alert for all of Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro and 12 other Brazilian states.

It is currently summer in Brazil - and peak rainy season, with thunderstorms, flooding and landslides a common sight in the country.

In 2024, heavy rains in the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul left hundreds of towns under water, with at least 85 people killed and about 150,000 displaced.

Probe underway after illness kills 72 tigers in Thai tourist park

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cly833zjp4po, today

Authorities in Chiang Mai, a city in northern Thailand, are investigating the deaths of dozens of tigers at a popular tourist attraction this month.

Seventy-two tigers died in the span of less than two weeks across two facilities of Tiger Kingdom Chiang Mai, a park where visitors can touch and interact with tigers.

The local livestock department said samples from the tigers showed canine distemper virus - though authorities have not confirmed their cause of death.

Officials said on Monday that they had cremated and buried the remains of the tigers.

They were among more than 240 tigers living across the two facilities at Tiger Kingdom Chiang Mai, according to local media.

"By the time we realised they were sick, it was already too late," Somchuan Ratanamungklanon, director of the national livestock department, told local media - noting that it was harder to detect sickness in tigers compared to animals like cats or dogs.

The provincial livestock office in Chiang Mai said last week that samples from the tigers' carcasses tested positive for canine distemper virus, as well as a bacteria associated with respiratory disease.

Canine distemper virus is a highly contagious disease that attacks the host's respiratory, gastrointestinal and nervous systems. While it is typically found among dogs, it can also infect big cats - often fatally.

The provincial livestock office had earlier said preliminary tests showed the tigers had been infected with feline parvovirus. Some local officials had also initially suspected the outbreak might have stemmed from contaminated raw chicken meat fed to the tigers, the Bangkok Post reported.

Raw chicken was also suspected as the cause of a major bird flu outbreak at a tiger zoo in Chonburi province in 2004. In that case, nearly 150 tigers died or were euthanised to prevent further spread of the influenza.

The disease control department said over the weekend that while none of the veterinarians or other staff working in the Chiang Mai tiger enclosures had fallen ill from canine distemper virus, they had been placed under observation for 21 days, Thai PBS reported.

Animal rights groups say this case highlights the poor living conditions of captive tigers used for entertainment in Thailand.

Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand said in a statement that the tigers' deaths exposed the "extreme vulnerability of captive wildlife facilities to infectious disease".

"Tragedies like this would be far less likely to happen" if tourists "stayed away" from these attractions, Peta Asia told AFP.

Tiger Kingdom Chiang Mai has been temporarily closed for two weeks as officials carry out disinfection work.

First British baby born using transplanted womb from deceased donor

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg53xp5857o, today

A baby boy has become the first child in the UK to be born using a womb transplanted from a deceased donor.

Grace Bell, who is in her 30s and was born without a viable womb, says her little boy Hugo, who is now 10 weeks old, is "simply a miracle".

Bell and her partner Steve Powell, from Kent, paid tribute to the "kindness and selflessness" of the donor and her family for their "incredible gift", while also thanking medical teams in Oxford and London who supported their journey.

The surgeons involved said the birth was "a ground-breaking moment", which could give hope to many more women with a similar diagnosis.

'Incredible gift'

Hugo was born just before Christmas 2025, weighing nearly 7lbs, at Queen Charlotte's and Chelsea Hospital in west London.

Bell is one of around 5,000 women in the UK affected by a condition called MRKH syndrome, which means she was born without a womb and doesn't have periods but does have normal ovaries.

At the age of 16, she was told she wouldn't be able to carry her own child.

To have a baby, the couple's only option was to hope for a womb transplant or go down the route of surrogacy.

When she received a phone call saying a womb had been donated and a transplant was possible, Bell remembers being "in complete shock" and "really excited".

But she was also acutely aware of the donor family's "incredible gift", which would enable her to carry and give birth to her own child.

"I think of my donor and her family every day and pray they find some peace in knowing their daughter gave me the biggest gift: the gift of life," Bell said.

"A part of her will live on forever."

Bell's womb transplant operation lasted 10 hours and took place at The Churchill Hospital in Oxford in June 2024, before the couple received IVF treatment some months later - followed by embryo transfer - at The Lister Fertility Clinic in London.

When Hugo was born, Bell said: "It was simply a miracle.

"I remember waking up in the morning and seeing his little face, with his little dummy in, and it felt like I needed to wake up from a dream.

"It was just incredible."

Bell's successful womb transplant from a deceased donor is just one of 10 such transplants taking place as part of a UK clinical research trial. Three have already been carried out, but this is the first baby born.

In early 2025, baby Amy was born through the first living womb donation in the UK. Her mother received her older sister's womb in a transplant operation in January 2023. Her sister had already had two children of her own.

Five other womb transplants from close living relatives in the UK are planned.

Hope for women born without a womb

Amy was born at the same London hospital as Hugo. The medical team behind both births has been building towards this moment for many years.

Consultant gynaecologist Prof Richard Smith, from Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, started researching womb transplantation more than 25 years ago and was present at Hugo's birth. He said "a huge team of people" had been involved in the process - from the transplant operation to the embryo transfer and the delivery itself.

Bell and Powell showed their gratitude to Smith, who also founded the charity Womb Transplant UK, by giving their son a middle name of Richard.

The couple may decide to have a second baby, after which surgeons will remove the transplanted womb. This is to save Bell from taking a lifetime of strong drugs to prevent the body's immune system attacking the transplanted organ.

Transplant surgeon and joint team leader Isabel Quiroga said she was "delighted" by Hugo's birth and called it a breakthrough for organ transplantation in the UK.

"Very few babies have been born in Europe as a result of their mothers receiving a womb from a deceased donor," she said.

"Our trial is seeking to discover whether this procedure could become an approved and regular treatment for some of the increasing number of women of child-bearing age who do not have a viable womb."

Smith said the birth showed that girls and young women who were told they didn't have a womb could now have hope of carrying their own child.

A baby born following the transplantation of a womb from a deceased donor does not have any genetic links with the donor.

More than 100 womb transplant operations have been performed around the world and more than 70 healthy babies have been born as a result.

Donating a womb for transplant is not like donating other organs, such as the kidneys or heart - it is only allowed through a special request to potential donors' families who have already agreed to donate their relative's organs.

In the UK, unless you have decided to opt out of donating your organs, it is assumed you agree to be an organ donor when you die.

The parents of the donor, who wish to remain anonymous, said they felt "tremendous pride" at the legacy left by their daughter.

She donated five other organs which were transplanted into four people.

"Through organ donation, she has given other families the precious gift of time, hope, healing and now life," her family said.

French minister moves to block US envoy Kushner from government access

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8d5eg5pl34o, today

The French foreign ministry says US envoy Charles Kushner should be blocked from access to the government, after he failed to explain comments about an alleged "rise" of violence in France.

Kushner, father of Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, had been summoned to meet French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot on Monday evening, but he did not attend.

Instead, he said he had a prior engagement and sent a deputy from the US embassy.

This prompted an angry response from the ministry, which accused Kushner of an "apparent failure to grasp the basic requirements of the ambassadorial mission" and said Barrot had requested Kushner "no longer be allowed direct access" to government ministers.

The diplomatic row began when the US embassy to France posted comments on social media about the murder of far-right nationalist Quentin Deranque.

The post warned that "violent left-wing extremism is on the rise" in France.

Deranque, a 23-year-old maths student, died in hospital on 14 February - two days after being beaten by a gang of masked young men in Lyon, in an attack which ministers from France's centre-right government have blamed on "far-left" militants.

But the US embassy's comments appear to have angered the French government.

"We reject any use of this tragedy, which has plunged a French family into mourning, for political ends," Barrot said over the weekend.

"We have no lessons to learn, particularly on the issue of violence, from the international reactionary movement," he added.

BBC News has approached the US embassy to France for comment.

Six men suspected of being involved in the fatal assault have been charged over Deranque's death, while a parliamentary assistant for a deputy from the radical left France Unbowed (LFI) party has also been charged with complicity.

LFI leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon, who is a likely contender in next year's presidential election, has said his party had "nothing to do with this story" and condemned "all forms of violence".

"We express our consternation, but also our empathy and compassion for [Deranque's] family and friends," he said.

Much-loved unlikely animal friends die on same day

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c363jnd4p51o, yesterday

A tapir and a capybara that had developed a strong bond were put to sleep on the same day so neither would be lonely.

Keepers at Newquay Zoo said the decision had been taken to euthanise Johnson, a nine-year-old capybara and Al, a 20-year-old Brazilian tapir, as they had experienced age-related issues.

A spokesperson said the "difficult decision" had been taken on Friday "ensuring neither animal would experience isolation following the loss of a companion".

"It was difficult for us to say goodbye to them both at the same time, but it was the kindest thing for them," they added.

The zoo's spokesperson said Al and Johnson had shared a long-standing companionship within the South American enclosure.

They said capybaras and tapirs are naturally calm, social species, and the two animals had developed a strong bond over the years.

The zoo said they had both experienced more health challenges in recent months which had impacted their quality of life.

"This has been an incredibly difficult loss for those who cared for them daily," they said.

"Both animals were much-loved members of our zoo community, and their absence will be deeply felt by staff and visitors alike."

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Guthrie suspect believed to have visited home before she went missing

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdr2kej4j8go, today

The suspect in the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie appears to have been at her front door prior to the night she went missing, a law enforcement source has told the BBC's US partner CBS News.

The 84-year-old mother of NBC News anchor Savannah Guthrie was reported missing on 1 February, having disappeared from her home in Tucson, Arizona, the night before. Police believe she was abducted.

The FBI previously released doorbell camera footage showing a masked person carrying a backpack, who it said was investigators' prime suspect.

The source told CBS that the same man was on her doorstep on another occasion. However, local police have not confirmed that the appearances were on different days.

The broadcaster carried images, credited to the FBI, that appear to show a masked man, this time without a backpack, which were captured by Guthrie's Nest doorbell camera sometime prior to the date of the suspected abduction.

It is unclear when exactly the images were taken.

The story was first reported by ABC News.

Arizona's Pima County Sheriff's Department said in a statement on X: "There is no date or timestamp associated with these images. Therefore any suggestion that the photographs were taken on different days is purely speculative."

The investigation was ongoing and "will be guided by verifiable evidence and established facts", the sheriff's office added.

Police have said they believe Guthrie was the victim of a targeted kidnapping. The Guthrie family has made several public pleas for her safe return, and asked for proof that she is alive. But so far, the disappearance remains a mystery.

The footage released by the FBI on 10 February shows a masked and armed subject the night she disappeared.

The suspect in the video - who the FBI said appears to be a male between 5ft 9in and 5ft 10in (175-177cm) - was thought to be wearing a 25-litre Ozark Trail Hiker Pack backpack and covers the camera with some plants.

Detectives have appealed to the public for help and have received close to 40,000 tips from the public, police have said.

India cuts dividend tax for large French investors

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg1vrjxwr9o, today

India and France have revised a three-decade-old tax treaty, reducing dividend levies for large French investors while expanding Delhi's powers to tax some transactions.

The changes could benefit major companies such as Sanofi, Renault and L'Oreal, which have expanded their investments in India over the past few years.

The agreement also gives Delhi the right to tax capital gains arising from the sale of shares, including transactions where a French entity owns less than 10% of an Indian company.

The revised treaty also removes a most-favoured-nation (MFN) clause which had allowed French entities to claim a lower tax rate in India.

It will come into effect after completing formalities and legal approvals in both countries.

The details of the amended treaty were released by India's finance ministry on Monday, days after French President Emmanuel Macron visited India.

During the visit, the countries announced the elevation of their relationship to a "Special Global Strategic Partnership" and deepened cooperation in areas such as defence and space technology.

In a joint statement on 17 February, they welcomed the amendment to the bilateral tax treaty. They said it would "secure economic activity for French and Indian businesses and pave the way for greater investments and collaborations between the two countries".

As of January 2026, France-based foreign portfolio investors held shares worth $21bn (£15.6bn) in Indian companies, according to data cited by Reuters news agency.

Bilateral trade between India and France stood at $15bn last year.

Under the new rules, French companies holding at least a 10% stake in an Indian company will have to pay 5% tax on dividends - down from 10% earlier.

However, the tax on dividends for French investors holding less than 10% in an Indian company would rise from 10% to 15%.

The removal of the MFN clause is in line with a 2023 judgement by India's Supreme Court.

In this case, the clause allowed countries that are members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to claim the benefit of lower tax rates if India later granted more favourable terms under a separate treaty to another member of the multinational forum. While France is a member of OECD, India is a key partner.

However, the top court ruled that such benefits cannot be applied automatically in such treaties and required a notification to be issued.

The revised treaty "realigns the bilateral trade framework with India's current treaty policy" and international tax standards, global consultancy and financial services firm KPMG said in a statement.

"It also underscores India's efforts to safeguard its tax base and promote a stable investment environment," it added.

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FedEx sues for Trump tariff refund

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cly83r1njjro, today

The global transportation and postal company FedEx has filed a lawsuit for a "full refund" for US President Donald Trump's emergency tariffs.

Trump introduced higher tariffs on most countries last April under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), but in a ruling last week the US Supreme Court said that law did not allow the president to impose the taxes on imports.

The decision has paved the way for companies to seek a refund on the additional import duties paid since they were introduced last year.

"Plaintiffs seek for themselves a full refund from Defendants of all IEEPA duties Plaintiffs have paid to the United States," FedEx said in its lawsuit.

Fedex did not say in its suit what value of a refund it was seeking. It named US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the agency's commissioner Rodney Scott, and the US as defendants.

The company said in its filing with the US Court of International Trade it had been responsible for paying the tariffs, and was seeking redress for that.

In a statement on Monday evening, FedEx said it "has taken necessary action to protect the company's rights as an importer of record to seek duty refunds" from CBP following the Supreme Court's ruling.

The BBC has approached the CBP for comment.

It's estimated the Trump administration has brought in at least an additional $130bn (£97bn) from tariffs imposed on most goods exported to the US through the IEEPA.

Speaking after the Supreme Court ruling was released, both Trump and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the issue of refunds could drag through the courts for years.

In recent weeks, prior to the decision release on Friday, hundreds of firms, including retailer Costco, aluminium giant Alcoa and food importers like tuna fish brand Bumble Bee, filed lawsuits contesting the tariffs, in a bid to get in line for a refund.

Reddit fined £14m by UK data watchdog over age check failings

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwyx0xggepjo, today

Reddit has been fined £14.47m by the UK's data watchdog for unlawfully using children's personal information.

The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) said the platform failed to properly check the age of its users, putting children using Reddit at risk of being exposed to inappropriate and harmful content online.

"It's concerning that a company the size of Reddit failed in its legal duty to protect the personal information of UK children," said John Edwards, the UK Information Commissioner.

In a statement, Reddit said it "didn't require users to share information about their identities, regardless of age, because we are deeply committed to their privacy and safety."

In July 2025, Reddit started verifying the age of users in order to comply with the requirements of the Online Safety Act (OSA).

But the ICO said the platform relied on asking users to declare their age when opening an account - a technique it said was "easy to bypass".

The regulator added companies operating online services likely to be accessed by children had a responsibility to protect them, including by making sure the way their data was collected and used did not expose them to risks.

"To do this, they need to be confident they know the age of their users and have appropriate, effective age assurance measures in place," said Mr Edwards.

"Reddit failed to meet these expectations."

The ICO first started investigating the platform last March, alongside TikTok and image-sharing site Imgur, over concerns about their use of children's data.

On Tuesday, the regulator said while Reddit's terms of service said under-13s were not allowed on the site, its estimates suggested "there were a large number of children under 13 on the platform".

The regulator concluded the platform had, as a result, processed children's data without a lawful basis to do so.

Under UK law, companies must take extra care and action when collecting data belonging to child users because they may be less aware of risks that can come with platforms collecting and using it.

The regulator said Reddit "must do better", adding it was continuing to consider the age assurance controls it had since implemented.

A Reddit spokesperson said: "The ICO's insistence that we collect more private information on every UK user is counterintuitive and at odds with our strong belief in our users' online privacy and safety."

They added that the company intended to appeal the decision.

More than 5,000 flights cancelled as US east coast digs out of record snow

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx289g1yw97o, today

A major snow storm hit the US east coast on Monday with record-breaking snow, causing disruptions for millions and thousands of flight cancellations.

Parts of Rhode Island and Massachusetts have seen nearly 33in (83cm) of snow fall, with more than19in in New York's Central Park, the National Weather Service said.

There have been "near impossible" travel conditions in New York, a state agency warned. More than 600,000 homes and businesses on the east coast endured power outages, with New Jersey and Massachusetts the worst hit.

Winter storm warnings stretched from North Carolina to northern Maine, with some warnings in place further north in parts of eastern Canada.

The snow was expected to persist throughout Monday, according to the National Weather Service, with some areas near the northeast coastline expected to get a total of 1ft to 2ft (61cm) of snow by Tuesday morning.

Rhode Island, America's smallest state, appeared to have received the most snow during the storm. In fact, it was the worst snowstorm to ever hit the state, according to local media.

Providence, the state capital, received 33in of snow, smashing the existing record for the single greatest snowstorm, 28.6in set in February 1978.

"It completely smashed it," Candice Hrencecin, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Boston, told the New York Times. "We were just as shocked as everyone else."

A ban on non-essential travel was implemented in Rhode Island and also in neighbouring Connecticut. Later in the day, Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey also imposed a travel ban.

"I'm issuing a travel ban on all non-essential driving in Southeastern Massachusetts — and reducing the speed limit on the Pike to 40mph (25kmh)," she said in an online post, referring to a major highway in the state.

"Whiteout conditions are making travel extremely dangerous," she added. "If you get stuck, help will have a hard time reaching you... I strongly urge everyone to stay off the roads no matter where you live."

In Massachusetts, nearly 300,000 were without power, according to poweroutage.us, including 85% of customers in Barnstable County, which includes all of Cape Cod.

In New York, a travel ban brought the city of over 8 million to a near standstill before it was lifted at noon local time.

In Connecticut and New Jersey, there were concerns that falling trees and branches could lead to dangerous road conditions and more power outages.

In Providence, a city spokesman told The Providence Journal that more than 300 vehicles had been towed for parking in the way of plows.

Though by the afternoon on Monday, tow operations had stopped and drivers were instead helping people whose vehicles had gotten stuck.

Meanwhile, people looking to travel within the US on Monday, struggled.

The number of cancelled flights within, into or out of the US reached more than 5,675, according to tracking site FlightAware.

The site shows that 98% of flights out of New York's LaGuardia airport were cancelled, and 91% of flights from JFK. Both locations had seen around 15in (38cm) of snow.

Boston's Logan International Airport cancelled 92% of outgoing flights on Monday, while New Jersey's Newark Liberty Airport cancelled 92%, and Philadelphia International Airport cut 81%.

Trump Organization unveils plan for 'Australia's tallest building'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cyv9nj336v5o, today

US President Donald Trump's company has announced plans for a skyscraper in Australia, which according to his son Eric, will be the country's tallest building.

The tower will be built on Queensland's Gold Coast and be 335 metres (1,100ft) high, taller than the Shard in London.

The firm's first official project in Australia will bring "the prestige and allure of a world-class luxury brand" to the country, the Trump Organization's executive vice president Eric Trump said.

Donald Trump has faced criticism that the company profits unfairly due to his influence as president despite his pledge before starting his second term to have no involvement with the management of the business while in office.

The Trump International Hotel & Tower, Gold Coast is expected to cost at least $1bn (£740m).

The construction of the 91-storey Trump International Hotel & Tower, Gold Coast is set to begin in August, according to the hotel's developer, Altus Property Group.

The building will have 285 hotel rooms as well 272 luxury residential apartments, the Trump Organization said. It will also include space for high-end retailers and restaurants, along with an exclusive beach club located along the world famous beachfront.

But it already faces competition as Australia's tallest building.

There is a proposal for a twin-tower project on the same stretch of beach that would be 50 metres taller.

Work on the 101-storey One Park Lane project is also expected to get underway later this year.

The Trump Organization brand is used in more than a 20 locations worldwide, including the UK, Middle East, Asia and major cities in the US.

The firm has attracted controversy, with allegations that it poses potential conflicts of interest for a president in office.

In 2021, a congressional committee investigation said Trump had "grossly exaggerated" profits at his Washington DC hotel.

The report said the hotel lost more than $70m during Trump's first term in the White House, even though he had previously claimed it earned at least $150m during that time.

The report also found Trump seemed to have "concealed potential conflicts of interest" related to his ownership of the hotel and his roles as its lender and the guarantor of third-party loans.

The Trump Organization denied wrongdoing and called the report "misleading".

What tariffs has Trump introduced and why?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn93e12rypgo, today

US President Donald Trump has introduced a new 10% global tariff rate after the Supreme Court ruled that the majority of tariffs he introduced in 2025 were illegal.

Trump argues that his import taxes have boosted US manufacturing and created jobs. But critics say they have put up prices for American consumers and have disrupted and damaged the global economy.

It is thought the new 10% duty will replace the individual rates that were negotiated between the US and dozens of its trading partners - including the UK, India and EU - after the global tariffs were introduced.

What are tariffs and how do they work?

Tariffs are taxes on imported goods.

Typically, the charge is a percentage of a good's value.

For example, a 10% tariff on a $10 product would mean a $1 tax on top - taking the total cost to $11 (£8.17).

The tax is paid to the government by companies bringing in the foreign products.

These firms may pass some or all of the extra cost on to their customers, which in this case means American consumers and other US businesses.

Companies may also decide to import fewer goods.

Why is Trump using tariffs?

Trump says "tariff" is his favourite word, and has for decades repeatedly hailed them as a way to boost the US economy.

He argues they increase the amount of tax raised by the government, encourage consumers to buy American-made goods and boost investment in the US from foreign companies.

He also wants to reduce the US trade deficit - the gap between the value of goods it buys from other countries and those it sells to them.

The president argues that the US has been exploited by "cheaters" and "pillaged" by foreigners, and that tariffs correct this imbalance.

Trump has used different bits of legislation to introduce taxes against individual countries and on particular goods.

Many tariffs that he has announced have since been amended, delayed or scrapped altogether.

Trump has also used tariffs to pursue his wider political agenda.

When he first threatened new duties against China, Mexico and Canada, he said the countries had to do more to stop migrants and the illegal drug fentanyl reaching the US.

In January 2026, Trump said the US would apply a 25% tariff to Iran's trading partners, after Tehran cracked down on anti-government protests.

And in the same month, he threatened additional tariffs on eight European countries which opposed his plans to take over Greenland, before backing down.

What did the Supreme Court say and how will Trump's 10% tariff work?

On 20 February, the US Supreme Court said that Trump had exceeded his authority when he used emergency powers to introduce tariffs on specific countries without approval from Congress.

That ruling affected all tariffs Trump brought in under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).

That includes the first tariffs Trump announced in early 2025 which targeted Mexico, Canada and China.

It also covers those announced on Trump's so-called "Liberation Day" in April 2025, when the president set out tariff rates of up to 50% for dozens countries, including Cambodia, Vietnam and Malaysia.

In response to the Supreme Court ruling, Trump used different legislation - Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act - to impose a temporary 10% tariff on all global imports.

He had threatened to bring in a 15% rate, but the lower rate took effect on 24 February. It will remain in place for 150 days, at which point Trump is expected to consult Congress on any extension.

Various goods are exempted, such as critical minerals, metals, pharmaceuticals and some foodstuffs including beef and oranges.

The White House also confirmed that the existing tariff exemption for goods from Canada and Mexico covered by the United States-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) free trade deal would continue.

An official said countries which had negotiated individual tariffs would now face the global 10% rate instead.

In many cases that is less than the tariff rate previously agreed, but it is not clear whether all the terms of those trade deals still apply.

US trade representative Jamieson Greer said Washington expected foreign governments to stand by their commitments.

However, the EU Parliament said the deal it had secured with the US in July 2025 would remain "on hold until further notice".

Writing on X, Bernd Lange, chair of the parliament's international trade committee, said "clarity and legal certainty are needed before any further steps can be taken".

China, which is preparing to host Trump for trade negotiations in early April, said it was "conducting a comprehensive assessment of [the] content and impact" of the Supreme Court ruling.

Will the US government have to refund the money collected under the illegal tariffs?

The Supreme Court ruling did not specify whether the US government has to refund the money which it has collected under the IEEPA tariffs - thought to be around $130bn (£96bn).

Trump previously said that refunds would be a "complete mess" and "almost impossible for our Country to pay".

The president and his Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent both said the issue would have to be decided by the courts, a process which could take years.

Days after the ruling, the global transportation and postal company FedEx said it was suing the US government for a "full refund" of the money it paid as a result of the IEEPA tariffs.

Hundreds of other firms including cosmetics company Revlon, aluminium giant Alcoa and food importers like tuna brand Bumble Bee have already filed lawsuits contesting the tariffs and are also expected to pursue refunds.

Which tariffs apply to the UK?

The UK had already negotiated 10% tariffs with the US on most goods in June 2025.

In 2024, it exported about £58bn of goods to the US - mainly cars, machinery and pharmaceuticals.

Under the terms of the 2025 deal, the 10% rate applied to the first 100,000 UK vehicles exported every year - roughly the number sold in 2024. Additional cars face the standard 25% tariff.

UK steel exports to the US are also subject to 25% duty, compared to the 50% rate which applies to steel and aluminium products from the rest of the world.

The UK prime minister's official spokesman said the "majority" of the US-UK deal was not expected to change after the Supreme Court ruling. But he described the situation as "evolving", and said discussions between the UK and US were ongoing.

Which individual goods are covered by Trump's tariffs?

The Supreme Court ruling does not apply to the tariffs which the Trump administration has put in place for particular products, wherever they are made in the world.

These include:

* 50% tariff on steel and aluminium imports (except for those from the UK)

In addition, Trump ended an exemption for imports valued at $800 (£592) or less.

It means low-cost goods are no longer duty-free - a move affecting millions of packages sent every day, including those from online retailers like Shein and Temu.

The companies shipping the parcels now have to pay duties based on the tariff rate which applies to the country the goods were sent from. Otherwise, for six months, they can choose to pay a fixed fee of between $80 and $200 per package.

In November 2025, Trump signed an executive order exempting a range of food products from tariffs, including avocados, bananas, beef and coffee because of domestic shortages.

Have prices gone up for US consumers?

Many firms said they would pass on the cost of tariffs to US customers, including Target, Walmart and Adidas.

Some products have become more expensive - including toys, appliances and furniture as well as certain foodstuffs.

The cost of some goods manufactured in the US using imported components has also gone up.

But on the whole, prices have not risen by as much as some analysts had predicted.

US inflation was 2.4% in the 12 months to January 2026.

That was lower than the figure of 2.7% that was recorded the previous month, but was the same as the figure in April 2025, before most tariffs took effect.

How have tariffs affected the global economy?

Trump was accused of throwing the global economy into turmoil when he announced the first tariffs of his second presidential term in early 2025.

Share prices around the world fell sharply, as did the value of the dollar.

Although the US currency and global financial markets have since largely recovered, the ongoing uncertainty around Trump's tariff policy has continued to destabilise international trade.

In January 2026, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said the tariffs had "definitely [slowed] down global activity", and warned further trade tensions could threaten economic growth.

The economic watchdog expects global growth to reach 3.3% in 2026 - an increase from its previous forecast of 3.1% - before slowing slightly to 3.2% in 2027.

It also thinks global headline inflation will fall to 3.8% in 2026 and 3.4% in 2027, but predicts inflation will fall more slowly in the US than in other large economies.

Carney heading on trade trip as Canada seeks to reduce reliance on US

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yjprx2e22o, today

Prime Minister Mark Carney is travelling to India, Australia and Japan this week in his latest effort to cultivate trade ties as he seeks to wean Canada off its economic dependency on the US.

Carney will begin the trip in India on Thursday, his office said, meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

He will then travel to Australia to meet Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and address Australia's parliament - the first such speech by a Canadian PM in nearly 20 years. The trip will end in Tokyo, where Carney will meet Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.

It is the latest in a string of global trips by Carney in recent months amid trade tensions between Canada and the US.

It also marks a significant shift in Canada-India ties, which deteriorated after former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused New Delhi of killing a Sikh separatist on Canadian soil in 2023.

Carney has since sought to mend the relationship by inviting Modi to last year's G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, where the two met on the sidelines.

Canada's foreign minister, Anita Anand, also took a trip to India late last year, where she met Modi and her counterpart S Jaishankar. After that meeting, the two countries agreed to kickstart talks on trade.

Anand told reporters on Monday that she "repeatedly raised issues related to domestic rule of law concerns" as well as transnational repression during that visit.

Carney's office said the forthcoming trip would also focus on energy, AI, defence, critical minerals, maritime security and food security.

Carney has repeatedly stated his objective of doubling Canada's non-US exports by the next decade, in response to ongoing US tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump on key Canadian sectors like metals and cars.

The US is by far Canada's largest customer, making up about 75% of Canadian exports.

"In a more uncertain world, Canada is focused on what we can control," Carney said in a statement on Monday. "We are diversifying our trade and attracting massive new investment to create new opportunities for our workers and businesses."

Earlier this year, Carney broke from US trade policy by removing tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, in exchange for China lowering retaliatory tariffs on Canadian agricultural products.

He also made global headlines for his speech in Davos, Switzerland, at the World Economic Forum, calling on countries to reject economic "coercion" by "great powers" - widely interpreted as a dig at Trump.

Canada's trade posture with the US remains uncertain after the US Supreme Court struck down Trump's sweeping tariffs on Friday.

Canadian officials noted the decision did not affect sector-specific tariffs on steel, aluminium and cars, which remain in place.

Separately, the two countries, along with Mexico, are renegotiating a North American free trade agreement, the USMCA.

This summer, all three partners must decide whether to extend the deal, which was struck during Trump's first term.

Both Canada and Mexico have said they want to keep the pact.

The Trump administration, however, has been less enthusiastic, and officials have suggested Washington would prefer separate bilateral deals.

UK says 'nothing is off the table' in response to US tariffs

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2rv212wwyo, yesterday

Downing Street has said no reciprocal action is "off the table" if the US does not honour its tariff deal with the UK, but added that "no one wants a trade war".

It comes after US President Donald Trump announced a 15% tariff on all countries from Tuesday.

The prime minister's official spokesman said the "majority" of the UK-US deal, such as the tariffs on cars, steel, and pharma, was not expected to change, but described the situation as "evolving" and said discussions between the UK and US were ongoing.

Meanwhile, the EU put its US tariff deal on hold on Monday in response to the 15% tariff announcement as Trump warned that countries that "play games" will face even higher tariffs.

On Friday, the US Supreme Court outlawed most of the global tariffs that Trump had announced last year, saying the president had overstepped his powers.

That ruling affected all tariffs Trump had introduced using the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), which includes all those announced on "Liberation Day" last year.

Trump then announced a new 10% global tariff would replace the ones struck down, and on Saturday revised the rate to 15%.

Britain's Business and Trade Secretary Peter Kyle said he has raised concerns over Trump's tariff plans with his US counterpart, Jamieson Greer.

Kyle said he is "laser-focused on protecting businesses and the British public and all options are on the table".

He also stressed the importance of both sides honouring the existing trade deal between the UK and US.

The Trump administration's new 15% tariff will be introduced as a temporary solution under Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act. Some products will be exempted under the levy, such as critical minerals, metals and pharmaceuticals.

Analysis from think tank Global Trade Alert (GTA) found that the UK will be among the countries worst hit if the 15% global tariff goes ahead because it had negotiated a 10% tariff deal with the US.

Meanwhile, the GTA said countries such as China and Brazil, which currently have higher tariff rates, would be better off.

The 15% global levy does not affect tariffs the UK and US had agreed on specific sectors, such as steel, aluminium, pharmaceuticals, automobiles and aerospace, which represent most of the UK's trade with the US.

Only sectors beyond those the UK had negotiated separate sectorial tariffs would face the 15% global rate.

This is because the Section 122 legislation Trump has said he will use to impose his 15% tariff is different from the way in which tariffs on specific sectors are introduced.

The British Chamber of Commerce's president, Andy Haldane, told the BBC the UK would "sit towards the bottom of league table" of trade partners if Trump's 15% tariff came into effect.

"The perversity of what happened of the weekend was that those who got good deals, the allies, have been most disadvantaged," he added.

'On hold until further notice'

US trade representative Greer told CBS on Sunday that he had spoken to the EU and other countries over the weekend.

"The deals were not premised on whether or not the emergency tariff litigation would rise or fall," he said.

"These deals are going to be good deals. We expect to stand by them. We expect our partners to stand by them."

Despite Greer's assurances, the EU Parliament said on Monday it would put the deal it had secured with the US last year "on hold until further notice".

Bernd Lange, chair of Parliament's international trade committee, said "the situation is now more uncertain than ever".

"Clarity and legal certainty are needed before any further steps can be taken," he added in social media post.

In a possible reference to the EU's decision, Trump wrote on Truth Social on Monday that "Any Country that wants to "play games" with the ridiculous supreme court decision [...] will be met with a much higher Tariff, and worse, than that which they just recently agreed to".

The UK prime minister's official spokesman said: "Our approach to the US has always been pragmatic.

"We continue to have productive conversations with them... and those discussions are happening at all levels, but nothing is off the table at this stage.

"Industry doesn't want to see a trade war where both sides keep escalating the situation, and that's why our focus is on constructive engagement with our US counterparts to retain the UK's competitive advantage."

Richard Rumbelow, director of international business at manufacturing industry body Make UK, said many UK exporters will be "concerned at the further prospect of trade disruption to goods entering the US market".

"Clarity is now urgently required on how UK exports will be treated on arrival into the United States," he added.

Are you cut out for living and working in Antarctica?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn0e30d9wj9o, yesterday

Both the UK and US's research facilities in Antarctica are on the hunt for the next batch of workers to "go south".

You don't need to be a scientist, as vacancies are available for everything from carpenters, to electricians, chefs, and even a hairdresser. But could you cope with the cold and isolation?

Since leaving his hometown of Wigan in the north of England aged 19, Dan McKenzie has worked in numerous far-flung places around the world.

Now 38, the former marine engineer's most remote and challenging role by far is his current job as the station leader at the Halley VI Research Station in Antarctica.

This is one of five facilities on the icy continent run by the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), the UK's polar research institute.

"I've always been adventurous and interested in finding the most wild places," says McKenzie, speaking to the BBC via a satellite-connected video call.

"I used to be a seafarer, and I didn't want to carry on on ships, but to do something similar. I thought this would align pretty well with the skills that I've got."

As McKenzie speaks about his job, it is a stunning Antarctic summer's day, a balmy -15C. The view outside his window is a vast expanse of white as far as the eye can see, smoothed over by an equally vast layer of pure blue.

"That temperature is pretty nice here, really," he says. "Minus five is as warm as it gets. It can get down to about -40, but you're looking at about -20 being the average."

McKenzie is responsible for a team of 40 people based at Halley VI for Antarctica's summer season from November to the middle of February.

BAS stations monitor different aspects of wildlife and the environment. Halley VI is focused on space and atmospheric data, as well as studying the Brunt Ice Shelf on which it's located close to the coast, and the hole in the Earth's ozone layer.

Not only do the team experience extreme cold, but summer in Antarctica also comes with non-stop daylight, ending with a sunset that lasts weeks.

McKenzie worked his way up to the job of station leader after completing his first contract "on the ice" in 2019. He started as a mechanical maintenance engineer at BAS's Rothera Research Station, 1,000 miles away from Halley VI.

His station leader role involves managing supplies, health and safety, and training. McKenzie also has to provide emotional support to the team when issues like isolation and interpersonal conflict in close quarters get too much.

"People come into your office and say they're not having a very good day, or something's happened at home, and you have to try and see if you can support them. It's very varied."

McKenzie is one of 120 BAS employees in total who were in Antarctica for the summer season that is now coming to an end. Most, including McKenzie, will return to the UK by the end of May, yet up to 50 will stay for the darkness of winter.

McKenzie will be based at BAS's headquarters in Cambridge for the remainder of the year, but he has previously overwintered in Antarctica. "When the winter comes, you feel this incredible sense of freedom as most people leave," he says.

"You just feel like you're the most free person in the world. You've got this tight knit group of people, and you all really care about each other - you become like a little family. Everyone looks after each other."

BAS takes on up to 150 new recruits for Antarctica each year. While specialist science and engineering roles form the backbone, around 70% of the jobs are the operational roles required to keep the stations functioning.

In addition to the likes of electricians and chefs, the workforce includes medics, doctors and plumbers. Salaries start at £31,244 per annum, with travel, accommodation, meals and gear to withstand the extreme temperatures all provided.

In total, some 5,000 people work in Antarctica during its summer months, across 80 research stations operated by about 30 countries.

Both BAS and its American equivalent, the US Antarctic Program, advertise their jobs online. BAS also holds an open day in March.

But those enticed by the call of adventure must ensure they know what they're signing up for. Fresh food is scarce and alcohol is limited. And accommodation at BAS facilities is shared dormitories. Staff work a seven-day shift rota.

BAS' selection process tests for conflict-handling and problem-solving abilities, which is followed by thorough pre-deployment training for successful candidates.

Yet rather than the physical challenges - and the cold - it's the close proximity to colleagues, and structured routine, that can cause the most issues for people, according to Mariella Giancola, BAS' head of HR. She likens it to "going back to uni".

"We get a lot of people saying, 'I don't have a problem dealing with people'. And then they realise that they are not comfortable sharing spaces with other people.

"It's important to be comfortable with the fact that you are not going to have any privacy because people are right in your face. Then they go from the freedom they have at home, to being told by a station leader about the rules and regulations. A small number of people struggle with that."

Dr Duncan Precious is a clinical psychologist who served in that role in both the British and Australian armed forces, from 2013 to 2020. He's now the clinical director and resilience consultant for defence consultancy, CDS Defence & Security.

While the potential for physical hazards in Antarctica is high, Precious says social dynamics can prove more problematic. When relationships break down, the fallout can be hard to rectify, and hard to control, he says.

He notes, though, that the type of people drawn to living and working in Antarctica would tend to thrive on what he refers to as "good stress" - in a similar way certain people are drawn to serving in the military.

Despite the physical and emotional demands of the job, McKenzie says nothing beats the incredible experiences he's had - as well as the satisfaction of contributing to environmental research.

"When I first got down here, it was hard to be sharing a room with people, and the weather was quite miserable. For the first month I thought, 'maybe this isn't the thing for me'," he acknowledges.

"But then you start to get out, and you see whales, seals and islands on boats, and then little trips out in small aircraft. And you think, 'this is pretty brilliant'. This year, I've been so lucky to see an emperor penguin colony. It's like something from a David Attenborough documentary."

The two farms in Senegal that supply many of the UK's vegetables

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwy6171wvppo, 6 days ago

If you ate a corn on the cob, green beans or some spring onions in the UK this winter, chances are it would have come from one of two farms at the edge of the Sahara, in the north of Senegal.

The West African nation is becoming an important player in the UK's food supply. Is that a good thing?

Hidden behind green leaves and thick stalks you can hear Diarra at work before you see her.

The cobs of corn she's harvesting are so abundant and the plants so tall, she's almost lost in a sea of maize. And the job at hand is tough.

This far north in Senegal, so close to the desert, temperatures can exceed 35C at this time of the year, and there's little or no rainfall.

Working at speed and with sunhats on, Diarra and her team of pickers make a steady sound of rustling, followed by a thud-thud, as they strip the cobs off each plant and place them in soft buckets strapped to their backs.

Within an hour, the cobs will be inside a refrigerated pack-house and chilled down to 0C. Soon after, they'll be driven by truck to a port near the capital, Dakar, and loaded onto a container ship. Six days later, they'll be on sale inside a British supermarket.

Diarra is one of 9,000 employees, mostly women, working on two British-run farms in Senegal's Saint-Louis region.

Between January and March, if you browse the fresh produce aisles of the UK's biggest food retailers, including Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda, Aldi and Lidl, you're likely to see spring onions, radishes, green beans, chillis, butternut squash, and cobs of corn, all labelled Produce of Senegal.

The hot climate and sandy, parched soil make this an unlikely place for fruit and vegetables – or so you might think.

And yet, it's from here, at the edge of the desert, two of the UK's biggest fresh produce businesses - G's Fresh and Barfoots - are growing an increasing amount of food.

The origins of the farms go back to the early 2000s. Back then, French entrepreneur and agronomist Michael Laurent began using Google Earth to identify new locations for food production.

Saint-Louis, he realised, has an abundance of sunlight, land and labour. And, although there is little rainfall, the 1,600km (1,000-mile) long Senegal River forms its northern border with the neighbouring country of Mauritania, before emptying into the Atlantic.

Some of this river water is diverted into a maze of canals. A network of pumps and pipes then distributes the water across miles of arid land to irrigate the farms that have helped to green the desert.

"There was nothing here when we started," says Laurent. "It was all bush." Now the farms cover 2,000 hectares of the land, the equivalent of almost 3,000 football pitches.

On 500 of these hectares, salad specialist, Cambridgeshire-based G's Fresh, runs its Senegalese subsidiary, West African Farms.

Each week, during the British winter, it supplies two million bunches of spring onions, 100 tonnes of green beans and 80 tonnes of radishes. Some 70% is sold to UK supermarkets, the rest goes to retailers in Germany and the Netherlands.

The larger farm is a joint venture between Sussex-based Barfoots and SCL, the business founded by Michael Laurent.

This supplies the UK with 55 million cobs of corn each year, along with chillis, butternut squash, and also green beans.

The harvested vegetables go by road to the deep-water Port of Dakar five hours away by road. From there, one day a week, a large container ship departs on the 3,000-mile journey to Poole in Dorset.

The UK imports around 40% of its food, but for fresh produce during the winter the proportion of imports can be as high as 90%.

Until recently, the bulk of the UK's imports of fruit and vegetables came from southern Europe and Latin American countries such as Peru, while airfreighted produce, including green beans, came from East Africa.

West Africa is like the new kid on the block. Several factors are driving this, says Mike Knowles, an analyst specialising in fresh produce.

"Competition for land around the Mediterranean has become more intense, droughts in Spain have become more frequent, and flying vegetables across continents has fallen out of favour," he explains.

Also, as Brexit took away some of the advantages of importing food from continental Europe, Senegal became increasingly more appealing.

Politically and economically, the country is relatively stable. It's the only nation in West Africa which hasn't experienced a military coup or seen its government overthrown.

Overseas businesses aren't allowed to buy land, but it is possible to arrange long-term leases through agreements with the government and communities. Access to water is bought under licence though local management committees.

"We've been confident enough to invest around £70m in our Senegalese operation," says Julian Marks, group manager of Barfoot's.

And there's constant pressure for them to expand. "British consumers expect to be able to buy the same types of produce all year round," he says.

Senegal helps fulfil this demand, but what's in it for the African nation?

The 9,000 jobs created so far across the two farms is significant. Unemployment among Senegal's 18 million population grew during the pandemic and has remained high, hovering around 19%, with young adults in rural areas most affected.

Senegalese land rights activist Elhadj "Ardo" Samba Sow used to see the arrival of the foreign-owned farms as a form of neo-colonialism. Now working in local politics, he's more positive about their presence, "even if the jobs aren't so well paid".

The majority of the workers employed on the farms are guaranteed the minimum wage for agricultural workers in Senegal of around 2,500 West African francs a day ($4.50; £3). Pickers such as Diarra receive bonus payments if they're fast and exceed daily targets.

While Senegal has recently seen a rise in its minimum wage, Micheal Laurent acknowledges that wages are "not a lot", but that "profit margins are very low, and we need to remain competitive".

The low wages are another reason why the farms in Senegal could see further expansion.

"When we grow spring onions in the UK, 60% of the cost is labour," says Derek Wilkinson, managing director at G's Fresh. "In Senegal, labour counts for less than one third."

Even factoring in the cost of transportation from West Africa, on current trends Wilkinson believes it will soon make economic sense to replace more UK production with imports from Senegal, even during the British peak summer growing season. "It'll be down to the consumer to decide if they want to buy British or imported."

But is it a good thing to ship vegetables all the way to the UK from Senegal. "No," says Tim Lang, emeritus professor at City University, who first coined the term "food miles".

While transporting food by sea comes at a lower environmental cost than air freight, maritime shipping accounts for 3% of global greenhouse emissions.

"We should align our diets with the seasons as much as possible," says Lang, "And instead of imports from Africa, we need to be exploring the wider range of crops that can be grown in the UK."

Additional reporting from Jack Thompson

Orbital space race heats up in Arctic north

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4g0201rj8go, today

It's 04:00 on a snow-covered hill in Swedish Lapland, 120 miles (200km) north of the Arctic Circle.

A countdown echoes from a Tannoy: "Three, two, one."

A rocket blasts off from a launcher, shooting into the sky and illuminating the darkened valley below.

Moments later, a second rocket motor kicks in with a deafening roar.

We are visiting the Esrange Space Centre near the city of Kiruna, run by the Swedish Space Corporation (SSC Space), where more than 600 rockets have launched since the 1960s, mostly sub-orbital rockets used for scientific research, or to test-run space flights.

Built by scientists from the German Aerospace Centre Mapheus, the rocket I saw blast off, flew for 14 minutes, leaving the atmosphere and reaching an altitude of almost 260km.

"It was a good flight, we're really relieved," beamed campaign manager Thomas Voigtmann.

This rocket was on a quest for several minutes of valuable micro-gravity or weightlessness, carrying experiments that will help researchers study biological cells, materials and other processes.

However, Esrange has also emerged as a player in a Europe-wide race to deliver orbital rocket launches.

"Within a couple of years, we will have the first satellite launch from here," says SSC business development director Mattias Abrahamsson.

The new launchpad was inaugurated in early 2023, but has faced delays.

Two clients are preparing rockets to carry satellites into orbit from northern Sweden: South Korea's Perigee; and American company, Firefly, which achieved a lunar landing last year.

"We are now building out more infrastructure that is specific to Firefly's Alpha rocket," explains Katarina Lahti from SSC's orbital launch and rocket test division. That includes different fuelling, security and safety systems, she adds.

The signing of a technology safeguard agreement between the US and Sweden, allowing American companies to send advanced space technology to the Scandinavian country, is another major milestone, Lahti says.

Meanwhile, Esrange is hosting ground tests for Themis, Europe's first reusable rocket, as well as engine testing for German start-up Isar Aerospace.

Fuelled by a growing demand for internet connections, communications and mapping, the volume of satellites above Earth has skyrocketed, and is projected to reach half a million by the end of the 2030s, according to a recent report in Nature.

"There's around 10,000 satellites orbiting right now. The plan is to go to about 40-50,000 satellites in just some years," explains Abrahamsson, as he stands overlooking several large antennae.

That's drawing commercial companies into a segment once dominated by government agencies.

It's also spurred several spaceport projects across Europe - from the Azores in Portugal, to Norway's far north.

"This is a big market and there's room for all of us," says Lahti, who hopes SSC's 60-year rocket legacy will help it win orbital business, as well as its favourable northern location for delivering satellites into polar orbit, and stable weather conditions.

Elsewhere, the Atlantic Spaceport Consortium (ASC) operates on the Portuguese island of Santa Maria, while start-up EuroSpaceport hopes to launch orbital flight from a ship anchored in the North Sea, 50km off the Danish coast.

On Scotland's Shetland Islands, SaxaVord is the UK's first licensed vertical spaceport, and is working with a number of companies, including Germany's Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA) and HyImpulse.

However, the sky-high ambitions of some competitors have already been brought back down to Earth.

Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit was shuttered following a failed 2023 mission from Cornwall in southern England, and Scottish rocket manufacturer Orbex, which planned to launch its low-cost rocket from SaxaVord, said last week it was appointing administrators.

"Spaceports will be like seaports, and you will need multiple for the amount of traffic, but also for resilience," says Hermann Ludwig Moeller, director of the European Space Policy Institute.

"You will have winners and losers," he reckons. "It's not so much the rocket [technology]. It is really the market."

"There are two or three [spaceports] that you could imagine will succeed," he tells the BBC, adding he expects to see a successful European continental orbital launch "this year".

On a remote island 300 kilometres above the Arctic Circle, Norway's Andøya Spaceport, is now the frontrunner.

Isar Aerospace launched its 28-metre Spectrum rocket from there last year, but achieved just 30 seconds of flight before spectacularly crashing into the Norwegian Sea.

Now the Munich-based company is targeting another attempt this March which, if successful, will be a giant leap for Europe's commercial space ambitions.

"Our goal with this mission is to demonstrate real progress," says CEO and co-founder Daniel Metzler. "To achieve that, we will once again push our systems to their limits."

The world's changing geopolitical and security situation has made European leaders rethink their approach to space, with added urgency, and look to establish more autonomy.

SSC's Abrahamsson says it's strategically important to have orbital launch capabilities on Europe's shores, "We need to have the capacity in Europe to do it on our own."

It also "enables rapid deployment or replacement of critical systems if you have a crisis or a threat", Lahti suggests. "This also strengthens European defence capabilities."

Amid sanctions and the invasion of Ukraine, European missions haven't used Russia's Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan for a decade.

The European Space Agency's (ESA) facilities at Kourou in French Guiana, can handle about a dozen orbital launches a year, and ESA also relies on the US, which has several key launch sites, from NASA's Cape Canaveral to SpaceX's Starbase.

Kourou's position close to the equator on the South American continent has some launch advantages, but European-built rockets must be shipped thousands of kilometres then reassembled, adding to logistical challenges.

Ariane 6 - Europe's most powerful rocket yet - launched from there earlier this month, carrying satellites destined for Amazon's Leo constellation, a rival to Elon Musk's StarLink.

"There's a lot going on in space for internet connectivity," says Moeller, speaking to the BBC from French Guiana, where he'd just witnessed Ariane 6 lift off. "It is part of what I call the 'internet age' of space."

"It will be a competition between Amazon Leo and Starlink. You will also see Chinese developments, and maybe European developments eventually," he adds.

Of the 319 successful orbital launches in 2025, there were just seven from Europe (Kourou), compared to 189 from the US and 90 from China.

Europe has the "know-how" and "engineering skill", Moeller says. But while investment in the space sector has stepped up significantly, that's a fraction of what the US spends and it's still playing catch up.

Back at Esrange, Matias Abrahamsson says he isn't worried about the competition between other new European spaceports: "Every site is needed because there's that many satellites that need to be launched, and that many rockets that are being developed."

Trump threatens countries that 'play games' with existing trade deals

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yvky5ldk1o, today

US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose higher tariffs on countries that "play games" with recent trade deals, after the Supreme Court blocked many of the sweeping global levies.

His warning came as countries around the world said they were evaluating what tariffs and trade deals would stand following last week's decision, which struck down the bulk of tariffs Trump imposed last year.

The European Union said on Monday that it would suspend its ratification of a deal struck over the summer.

India also said it would defer previously scheduled talks to finalise a recent agreement.

Trump warned countries against using the ruling to back away from trade commitments made in response to last year's tariffs.

"Any Country that wants to 'play games' with the ridiculous supreme court decision, especially those that have 'Ripped Off' the U.S.A. for years, and even decades, will be met with a much higher Tariff, and worse, than that which they just recently agreed to," he wrote on Truth Social. "Buyer beware."

The back-and-forth is an indication of the chaos kicked off after the US Supreme Court on Friday struck down tariffs unveiled by Trump last spring under the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).

The court said that law did not authorise the president to impose the tariffs, which are a tax on imports paid by businesses bringing goods into the country.

Trump responded by announcing a new 10% global tariff using a different law, which he quickly raised to 15%. That measure, from which some products are exempt, came into force on Tuesday.

But many countries said they remained uncertain of the status of deals negotiated in the wake of Trump's initial tariff measures, when many countries sought lower levies on their goods in exchange for promises of investments or other concessions meant to make it easier for US firms to do business abroad.

The UK said on Monday that it was pressing US officials for answers about whether its deal - which had set tariffs at 10%, below the 15% rate Trump announced on Saturday - would hold.

"I recognise the uncertainty the latest announcement from the US has created," UK Business and Trade Secretary Peter Kyle said in a statement, adding that "all options" were on the table as the UK seeks to protect businesses and the public.

Bernd Lange, chair of the European Parliament's International Trade Committee, said the committee had suspended its approval of the deal the US and EU and approved in July while it sought clarity.

"The situation is now more uncertain than ever," he said.

The White House has insisted that its approach to trade will not change as a result of the ruling, as it turns to other laws to impose the duties.

Trump deployed Section 122, a never-used law that allows the president to impose tariffs for 150 days without congressional approval, on Friday.

He also ordered officials to start investigations under Section 301, a separate trade law that allows the president to impose tariffs in response to specific "unfair" trade practices.

The new tariffs are expected to stand alongside separate, previously announced tariffs Trump has imposed on specific items, such as steel, aluminium and cars, which were unaffected by the court's ruling.

"We found ways to really reconstruct what we're doing," US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told on ABC News on Sunday.

"The legal tool to implement it - that might change, but the policy hasn't changed."

In a separate interview with CBS News on Sunday, Greer said the White House would "stand by" the trade deals it had struck. "We expect our partners to stand by them," Greer added.

Shares in the US fell on Monday, with the S&P 500 dropping about 1% - weighed down in part by the trade uncertainty, which many analysts and businesses expect to continue.

The new 15% tariffs are due to expire after the 150-day period unless Congress votes to extend them.

Senate Democratic minority leader Chuck Schumer warned on Monday that Democrats would block any attempt to extend the duties. Trump's tariffs are also unpopular with some Republicans.

"Democrats will not go along with furthering Trump's economic carnage," Schumer said in a statement.

Trump argued in a social media post on Monday that he did not need Congress's approval for tariffs.

Netflix boss defends bid for Warner Bros as Paramount deadline looms

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c20jn073gj4o, yesterday

The boss of Netflix has told the BBC its takeover bid for Warner Bros is better than a rival one from Paramount because it would expand the business and the industry.

Co-chief executive Ted Sarandos told the Today programme Netflix's bid was focused on "growth", adding: "We're buying a movie studio and a distribution entity that we don't currently have - we'll be adding to the market."

Last December, Warner Bros agreed to a takeover offer from Netflix for some of its assets, but Paramount has made a rival offer.

Sarandos also batted away threats from President Trump who said that if Netflix did not fire Democratic board member Susan Rice, the streaming giant would "face the consequences".

Sarandos said: "This is a business deal, it's not a political deal.

"He [Trump] likes to do a lot of things on social media," he added.

Last week, Warner Bros gave Paramount until the end of Monday to submit a "best and final" offer ahead of the shareholder vote on the Netflix deal next month.

Netflix has offered $27.75 a share, or $82.7bn (£61.2bn) in total, for Warner Bros' studio and streaming networks - including brands such as Warner Bros, New Line Cinema, and HBO Max - leaving the rest of the firm to be spun off as an independent company.

However, Paramount's $30 a share, or $108.4bn, bid is for the entire company, including the firm's traditional pay-TV networks, which are seen as a declining business.

Sarandos said Paramount was "continuing to try to disrupt" Netflix's deal with Warner Bros.

He said Netflix's bid was better than Paramount's as it would be "buying assets we don't currently have".

"This industry would be much smaller under that [Paramount] ownership than it would be under Netflix," he added.

"Our deal is growth. We've been growing and growing and growing this business since we started," he said.

He used Netflix's investment in the UK as an example of its growth strategy, saying it had created 50,000 jobs and spent "$6bn in the UK on original programming" since 2020.

Sarandos said Paramount "has committed that they're going to cut $6bn out of the business right away", and then would "need to cut an additional $16bn".

"There's five major studios left in Hollywood. If the Paramount deal were to go through, it would be four, because basically they're taking two studios and collapsing them in to one," he said.

Paramount declined to comment.

It has previously said its deal gives shareholders more certainty than Netflix's plan. It has also offered to pay the $2.8bn break-up fee Warner Bros has agreed to pay Netflix if that deal falls through.

Last week, Paramount said it would "continue to advance our tender offer" and maintain its "opposition to the inferior Netflix merger".

When asked if he would make a higher offer if Paramount dialled up its bid, Sarandos said he didn't "want to do hypotheticals" - but went on to say the Netflix deal was "a spectacular opportunity at a price".

Sarandos also rebuffed criticism from cinematic powerhouse James Cameron, who directed the Avatar films as well as blockbuster Titanic starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

Sarandos called Cameron "disingenuous" for writing to US competition regulators saying that it would be "disastrous" for the cinema business if the Netflix deal went ahead.

He said: "An average Netflix member watches seven movies a month. An average person in the US goes to the cinema twice a year."

He added that he didn't see Netflix as a direct competitor to the big-screen because when people watch a great film at the cinema, the next thing they want to do when they come home is watch more films.

'The end of Xbox': fans split as AI exec takes over Microsoft's top gaming role

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq6q8l81d9qo, yesterday

Xbox fans have been left divided after Microsoft announced Phil Spencer, boss of its gaming division, and Xbox president Sarah Bond would step down from their roles.

Spencer, who is retiring after nearly 40 years at Microsoft, will be replaced by Asha Sharma - an executive who previously oversaw some of the firm's AI initiatives.

But the executive shake-up has sparked online debate and speculation about Sharma's lack of gaming background, with some calling it "the end of Xbox".

It follows a challenging year that has seen major layoffs, poor sales and increasing development costs for the gaming giant.

Xbox also revealed on Friday that Matt Booty - who previously worked under Spencer as corporate vice president of Xbox Game Studios - had been promoted to chief content officer.

In a statement on Microsoft's website Booty appeared to try and ease concerns the reshuffle could mean a wider shake-up across Xbox, saying "there are no organisational changes underway for our studios".

But fans have continued to criticise the appointment of Sharma as Spencer's successor, citing her lack of gaming and industry experience.

Some mocked the executive's attempt to prove her credentials by publicly sharing her Xbox Gamertag, showing how many games she has recently played - 29, but all seemingly in the past month.

Jez Corden from Microsoft news outlet Windows Central said Sharma's "expertise in other fields" and background at firms such as Facebook owner Meta may have helped her secure the top job at Xbox over other executives such as Bond.

"The gaming landscape is struggling to find its footing faced with competition from insta-gratification platforms like Instagram, and TikTok," he told the BBC.

"This is where Microsoft has identified weakness in its platform, and opted for Asha's expertise to fill the gap."

Victoria Phillips Kennedy, news reporter for gaming publication Eurogamer, questioned whether Sharma's background would mean "we see Xbox be more aggressive in its adoption of AI in the development pipeline".

Sharma has meanwhile said she will not look to "flood our ecosystem with soulless AI slop" in her new role.

"Games are and always will be art, crafted by humans, and created with the most innovative technology provided by us," she added.

Phil Spencer's Xbox legacy

Phil Spencer joined Microsoft as an intern in 1988, working his way up through the company to eventually become chief executive of Microsoft Gaming in 2022.

Under his leadership, he oversaw huge acquisitions, from Minecraft creator Mojang, to the biggest deal in gaming history with Call of Duty maker Activision Blizzard.

Spencer also launched Xbox Game Pass in 2017, a subscription service allowing players to download and play games on their PC and other devices besides an Xbox.

Freelance gaming journalist for IGN and Eurogamer Vikki Blake said it would be "hard to imagine Xbox without Phil Spencer".

But she told the BBC his departure was not "completely shocking" given the brand's recent struggle to remain relevant in a crowded console market and its decision to "move away from platform exclusives" with titles such as Halo.

In posts on X, Spencer said he felt "lucky" to have worked with "so many passionate creators, partners, colleagues and players across the industry".

"I'll see you online," he added.

India and US defer trade talks after Supreme Court's tariff ruling

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp8r6g6mgjxo, yesterday

India and the US have deferred trade talks which were set to take place this week as they "study the implications" of the US Supreme Court striking down the Donald Trump administration's global tariffs, an Indian commerce ministry official told the BBC.

An Indian delegation was due to travel to Washington this week to finalise the terms of an interim trade deal which was announced earlier this month.

The agreement reduced US tariffs on Indian goods from 50% to 18%, even though several aspects of it remained unclear.

The Supreme Court ruling has led to new uncertainties as Trump said he would impose global tariffs of 15% on all goods coming into the US.

It's not clear yet what the court ruling and the new tariffs mean for existing trade deals between the US and other countries.

The new developments come after a chaotic few months for Indian exporters who have been grappling with 50% tariffs imposed by Trump, which came into effect on 27 August. The duties included a penalty for buying Russian oil, which Trump had long criticised.

On 2 February, Trump announced the two countries had reached an interim trade agreement after a phone call with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, bringing relief to Indian markets.

Under this, India promised to reduce its standard tariffs on all US industrial goods as well as several food and agricultural products, while the US agreed to lower reciprocal tariffs that apply to about 55% of Indian exports, bringing them down from 50% to 18%.

But the announcement triggered some yet-to-be-resolved questions about whether India was giving more than what it was getting, whether or not Delhi pledged to halt its purchases of Russian oil and whether India could actually buy $500bn of US goods over five years.

It also upset India's farm unions who warned that tariff cuts on US agricultural imports could undercut domestic producers. India's Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal has said that the country has not offered concessions on dairy, genetically modified products, meat or poultry, and that safeguards for farmers are in place.

But analysts are still waiting for clarity on the terms of the deal, and what exactly Delhi has agreed to.

Last week, Goyal said that the deal could take effect in April after outstanding issues were addressed during the delegation's Washington visit.

This has now been complicated by Friday's US Supreme Court ruling that Trump overstepped his authority by using the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose sweeping global tariffs. It came as a major blow to the US president's second-term agenda.

Uncertainties deepened over the weekend after Trump announced that he would increase global tariffs to 15%, the maximum allowed under a never-used trade law.

"The two sides [India and the US] have decided to defer the talks until both sides are able to study the implications of recent developments," the official in India's commerce ministry told the BBC.

Reuters reported, citing an unnamed source, that no new date has been set yet for the visit of the delegation, which was set to leave on Sunday.

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The uncertainties facing businesses and consumers after Trump's tariff changes

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c98qjl76eyro, 2 days ago

US President Donald Trump's latest tariff changes have heightened uncertainty for businesses and consumers, industry experts and economists say.

The changes followed a Supreme Court ruling on Friday that Trump could not use a 1977 law - the International Emergency Economic Powers Act - to levy taxes on imports from nearly every country in the world.

On Saturday, Trump signed a proclamation using an alternative law, Section 122 of 1974's Trade Act, that would let him put a new 10% temporary tariff on goods from all countries. Then on Saturday he posted on social media that he would be increasing these tariffs to 15%.

The latest announcement raises uncertainties for countries, including the UK and Australia who had previously negotiated 10% tariff deals with the US.

While other comments from Trump have heightened fears that new levies could be imposed on goods that have been exempted until now.

Many questions about what might happen next remain unanswered, said William Bain, head of trade policy at the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC).

"There is a weariness about the constant changes, the lack of any clarity and certainty in terms of tariffs, and therefore the prices that companies can charge for the goods in terms of customers in the US," he said.

"[Businesses] are frustrated and exasperated at the constant changes in policy."

Here are some of the remaining issues businesses and consumers face following Trump's latest announcement.

Clarity needed on existing tariff deals

After Trump first announced his "Liberation Day" tariffs last year, many countries have worked to negotiate lower levies on their exports to the US, including the UK which was able to secure a deal for a 10% levy on goods sent to America.

But on Friday, an official said countries that previously reached trade deals would face the Section 122 global tariff, rather than the rate they had initially negotiated.

The White House also said it would "continue to honour its legally binding agreements on reciprocal trade".

Therefore, it remains unclear whether the US expectation is for countries to pay higher tariffs, but retain parts of existing deals too. There has not been an update since Trump announced the rise to 15%.

Paul Ashworth, chief North America economist for Capital Economics, noted the new rate was being applied under Section 122 of the Trade Act 1974, which "explicitly notes that any tariff must be applied in a non-discriminatory manner", meaning previous deals would likely be affected.

"Some of America's biggest trading partners, like the EU and Japan, will find themselves exactly back where they were last week," he said.

Section 122 gives Trump the power to put in place tariffs of up to 15% for 150 days, at which point Congress must step in.

Businesses fear higher levies

The BCC estimates that the higher 15% tariff rate will increase tariff costs on UK goods exported to the US by between £2-3bn ($2.7-4bn).

About 40,000 UK companies export to the US, Bain said, and that 5% increase in levies is paid either by the exporters or their customers in the US.

"That again is going to be very much a fact of discouraging businesses from trading at the levels they have in in the US market," he said.

The uncertainty was particularly strong, Bain said, in areas including food and drink, textiles, industrial goods and electrical goods "who suddenly overnight are facing this big increase in export costs to the US".

Tim Doggett is the chief executive of the Chemical Business Association which represents the chemical supply chain from manufacturers to distributors, transporters and traders, and director of the Trade Association Forum in the UK.

He said the added costs are generally borne by end users and consumers, "contributing to higher prices and, ultimately, inflationary pressure".

Tariff refunds a big question for firms

The Supreme Court ruling that Trump's so-called reciprocal tariffs were unlawful paves the way for companies to claw back the roughly $130bn (£96bn) in levies that have already been paid since about April last year.

But the decision did not mention refunds directly, and any process would likely take a number of years.

It's been reported that hundreds of firms have filed lawsuits in recent weeks to try and get in line for a refund.

The White House has not commented on the possibility of refunds directly, and Doggett said this was not a straight-forward issue.

"That creates further legal and contractual uncertainty, placing suppliers and customers in extremely difficult positions as they attempt to determine where liability ultimately sits - a costly and potentially protracted process that could take years to resolve," he said.

Bob Schwartz, a senior economist with Oxford Economics, said the Trump administration could use other tariff tools at their disposal - including the Section 122 replacement tariff - to avoid paying large-scale refunds.

Concerns over further tariffs

On Friday, the White House said some goods would not be subject to the new duty because they were important for the US economy, including critical minerals, energy products, resources that cannot be produced in the US and some agricultural products, including beef and tomatoes and vehicles.

But businesses fear Trump could use other sections of the Trade Act to apply further tariffs on goods.

US economist Bernard Yaros pointed out that Trump has already used Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 to introduce industry-specific tariffs on sectors including vehicles, steel and aluminium, and noted that "the Department of Commerce has launched Section 232 investigations into pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, critical minerals, and aircraft".

"Additional sector-specific tariffs under Section 232 may gain even more prominence in 2026," he said.

Impact on consumers

Higher taxes on imports can be covered by a combination of the exporting business - the company that sells those imported products to US customers - and US consumers.

Working out the mix of who is paying for what can be complicated, but research centre The Budget Lab at Yale estimates that US consumers have already been paying a substantial portion of the higher tariffs first introduced last year.

Its estimate, published before the Supreme Court decision and Trump's changes, found between 31% and 63% of the additional tariff costs were being passed through to consumers in higher prices for imported goods.

Backing up Yale's findings earlier this month, the New York Federal Reserve found that US businesses and consumers were paying for nearly 90% of the additional tariffs.

While the impact of Trump's increase to the global tariff rate remains to be seen, it's likely much of it will be paid by US businesses and consumers.

Following the latest announcements, business groups also said the increased uncertainty would ultimately hurt US consumers when it comes to product choice as well, as exporters look to send more of their products elsewhere.

"Companies are looking at diversifying trade, perhaps more into the European market, into the Indo-Pacific markets which are fast growing, and that may be a lasting effect of the fluctuations we've seen in trade policy just in the last four weeks alone," Bain said.

Bain added that the increase in tariffs for those who continue to export to the US will either have to be absorbed by exporters or their customers in the US.

How budget fast fashion is taking small-town India by storm

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c15xvy7k2q5o, yesterday

At a gleaming three-storey outlet of Reliance Trends in the town of Sangli in western India, Alka browses through a collection of Indian ethnic-wear kurtas in an array of vibrant colours.

A geriatric care worker in her late 50s, she is looking for a design in a particular shade of baby pink with a dull gold paisley motif.

"I saw someone wearing it at my workplace and I loved it so much, I immediately wanted to buy one for my daughter," Alka told the BBC.

Across its three floors, the outlet has racks displaying all kinds of trendy apparel, from funky printed t-shirts and weathered jeans to formal office wear for men and women and in-house labels selling Indian or fusion mix-and-match clothes.

On display are also make-up kits, sneakers, handbags and costume jewellery.

Shopping here in the air-conditioned comfort of the store, with trial rooms, attendants and scratch cards offering discounts on her next purchase, is a refreshingly new experience for Alka.

Like most Indians, she has only ever hunted for white label bargains in street-side bazaars all her life.

However, budget brands like Trends - run by Isha Ambani, heiress to the Reliance Industries retail empire founded by Asia's richest man, Mukesh Ambani - and Tata's Zudio are now offering goods at the same price point as the bazaar, but with a vastly improved shopping experience.

In these outlets, most merchandise costs between $4 (£2.90) and $15. "Plus, the designs are contemporary and there's a growing desire among people to wear branded clothes," Pankaj Kumar, a retail analyst at Mumbai-based Kotak Securities, told the BBC.

This explosion in the number of value-conscious yet aspirational consumers, especially in smaller towns, is driving extraordinary bottomline growth in the country's organised fast-fashion industry, led by brands such as Max, Vishaal Mega Mart, Trends and Zudio.

Quarterly numbers for Trends are not publicly available, but Zudio's growth has wildly outpaced global high-street titans like Zara and H&M, as well as the Tata Group's own mid-to-premium range fashion brand Westside, in the past few years.

Consider these figures: in 2018, Zudio had merely seven stores across the country and clocked $12m in revenue. Westside was a much bigger brand, with 125 stores bringing in around $220m.

Today, the tables have completely turned.

Zudio's seven stores have expanded to 765, with revenues crossing $1bn by the middle of 2025 - making it the only Indian clothing brand to hold that distinction.

Westside on the other hand has doubled its store count, with revenue growing three-fold - but the pace of growth is nowhere near comparable.

"It's a classic bottom-of-the-pyramid strategy - go big by going mass," says Kotak Securities, about Zudio's success, adding that pricing has been a key factor, given that "even affordable fashion is a luxury in India's tier-2 and tier-3 towns".

But what's driving this spending at a time when India's job market has been weak, wages haven't really grown rapidly and overall private consumption, which makes up 60% of GDP, has remained patchy?

"It's very clearly a wallet-shift," says Kushal Bhatnagar of Bengaluru-based Redseer Strategy Consultants.

"Consumers are not buying much more than they were; but they've shifted their purchases from mom-and-pop stores to branded outlets."

This shift is the result of a major push by budget brands to rapidly penetrate zip-codes and go into the deepest pockets of India.

And the likes of Zudio and Max have brought about the "trendification" of affordable fashion for the first time, appealing to Gen-Z and young millennial buyers, by trawling the latest fads in Paris and Milan.

An early partnership between Trent - Zudio's parent brand – and Zara helped it apply the Spanish fast fashion giant's playbook to its growth strategy, says Bhatnagar.

Just like Zara, Zudio manages incredibly quick inventory turnaround of just 15 days versus the 45-60 days taken by its rivals.

"In the world of fashion, the speed of inventory is everything," says Kumar of Kotak Securities. The quicker new styles hit the shelves, the more frequent are the store visits.

This growth has, however, come at a cost to local mom-and-pop stores on the high street.

They are facing competition not just from budget brands but also from e-commerce websites like Meesho, which aggregates sellers on its digital platform and ships cheap goods across India. It has been growing its bottomline at 35-40% year-on-year.

"When GDP-per-capita begins to go up for a country, branded goods and online shopping naturally becomes a more prominent part of retail," says Bhatnagar.

But the real challenge now, he says, is to get a "consumption uplift", so that along with a shift in wallet-share there's also a growth in the overall market size. India's apparel market is currently estimated to be between $70bn to $100bn.

"We underspend on apparel. Our spend per-capita is much lower than China, US or even Indonesia. In a good year this market should typically grow at 12-15%. We've been at sub-10% growth in the past few years."

Despite the tepid growth in market size, the rise of fast-fashion is accompanied by growing worries about the sector's ecological impact.

The textile industry is the third-largest contributor to dry municipal solid waste in India - after plastics, and paper and cardboard - according to a recent report. And only a quarter of it is recycled.

"While some brands are embedding sustainability into their supply chains, true large-scale change remains distant," according to Deloitte, which estimates less than 1% of used clothing is recycled into new garments and recycled fibres globally.

For now though, style and savings appear to have trumped concerns about sustainability, with many small-town Indians only just getting on to the fast-fashion bandwagon.

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Is £70 becoming harder to justify? The rise of cheaper blockbuster games

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckg1nwwv1xyo, 4 days ago

What can you tell about a video game from its price tag?

In the UK, £70 may not gurantee quality, but it tends to mean you are getting a blockbuster or "AAA" - a big-budget game made by a large team, built around cutting-edge graphics, sprawling worlds and dozens of hours of gameplay.

In 2025 Nintendo set a new benchmark for game prices when it listed major Switch titles such as Mario Kart World at £74.99 (launching in the US at $79.99).

Meanwhile speculation grew from a 2025 report by gaming industry advisory company Epyllion that the next Grand Theft Auto will be the first game to be priced at $100, paving the way for others to either follow suit or at least contemplate a price hike.

But a handful of recent games lauded for their AAA-feel by critics and gamers alike - such as ARC Raiders, Split Fiction, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 - asked for more modest prices of £30-£40.

No title has won more game of the year awards (a whopping 436) than Clair Obscur, but Alexis Garavaryan, boss of publisher Kepler Interactive, told the BBC the decision to launch it below the blockbuster norm was, in fact, deliberate.

"Ultimately we've seen a number of larger companies increase prices quite regularly. And we've kind of taken the opposite action," he told BBC News.

"We try to think, 'What do we think the price should be?' And then we price it lower."

Garavaryan believes we are seeing a shift in player taste away from the kinds of things that big AAA studios are expected to provide, including high-fidelity graphics and "the number of hours you get out of the content".

Instead, he claimed, players are now more interested in how "exceptional" or "novel" the experience is.

And if spectacle is no longer the decisive factor, then is a blockbuster price tag becoming harder to justify?

A recent consumer study found most gamers are spending less on new games - with only 4% of US video game players buying a new one more often than once per month, and a third of players not buying any games at all.

Neither Take Two Interactive nor Rockstar, GTA 6's publisher and developer, have confirmed where they plan to price the long-awaited sixth game in the franchise.

But for a game with thousands of people working under it that has already been delayed twice, many expect to see its pricetag at least push higher than the current benchmark.

And if increasing costs for gamers were a concern in 2025, they are even more so in 2026, with the price of Ram - the computer components that power much of our tech - more than doubling since October 2025.

Garavaryan said Kepler's strategy to price away from the blockbuster model was designed to make players feel like they were getting "a bargain".

"We want them to feel like we are respectful of their money, respectful of their time, and that fundamentally every time they buy a game from us, they're getting a great deal," he said.

"And we're excited for players to be able to play five, six different experiences with the same amount of money than a traditional AAA game would bring them."

Human-crafted products

Kepler Interactive itself is not exactly a small indie production, but a collective made up of several independent studios.

Rebekah Valentine, senior reporter at IGN, told the BBC Clair Obscur's success may not mean a "shift away from AAA expectations" entirely.

And she pointed out that "forever" AAA games that players can play with their friends and are frequently updated, such as Fortnite and Call of Duty, "consistently have the most players, month after month after month".

"There are dozens, hundreds of really unique, interesting games published every week, month, and year - most of which do not sell well nor do they gain this level of attention," she added.

Christopher Dring, editor-in-chief and co-founder of The Game Business, agreed that while sometimes smaller-budgeted games do go out and "deliver major success", it was worth remembering that blockbuster titles such as Resident Evil Requiem and GTA 6 are still this year's "two most-anticipated games".

Instead, he framed the battle for a game's success as more centred around their attention than their wallets, adding: "In a challenged attention economy, where consumers are awash with choice, doing something interesting is key."

Garavaryan is certainly confident that the work Kepler Interactive is doing is at the very least going to catch people's attention, adding the team are working on producing a physical magazine, an unusual analogue step for a company mostly working in the digital world.

"I think as people move away from the more physical, the more human touch, we want to find that as a place where we find a lot of comfort," he said.

"It may not be for everybody, but we know that there's an audience that's going to care about well-crafted, human-crafted products."

Trump says he will increase his new global tariffs to 15%

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn8z48xwqn3o, 2 days ago

US President Donald Trump has said he will impose global tariffs of 15%, as he has continued to rail against a Supreme Court ruling that struck down his previous import taxes.

Trump said on Friday that he would replace the tariffs scrapped by the court with a 10% levy on all goods coming into the US.

But on Saturday, he announced on Truth Social that this would be increased to the maximum allowed under a never-used trade law.

That law allows these new tariffs to stay in place for around five months before the administration must seek congressional approval.

The 10% tariffs were set to come into force on Tuesday, 24 February. It's unclear if the increased 15% would also be imposed starting then. The BBC has contacted the White House.

The new 15% tax rate - a temporary solution under Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act - raises questions for countries such as the UK and Australia, which had agreed a 10% tariff deal with the US.

Trump said his administration had reached the decision to raise the levy following a review of the Supreme Court's "ridiculous, poorly written, and extraordinarily anti-American decision on Tariffs issued yesterday".

In a 6-3 decision, justices on the highest US court found that the president had overstepped his powers when he introduced sweeping global tariffs last year using a 1977 law known as the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).

The US has already collected at least $130bn (£96.4bn) in tariffs using IEEPA, according to the most recent government data.

Immediately following the ruling, Trump said that he was "ashamed of certain members of the court" and called the justices who rejected his trade policy "fools".

Trump's tariffs are a key plank of his economic policy, which he has said will encourage businesses to invest and produce goods in the US rather than overseas. But the high court's decision marked a significant check on his power and a major blow to his second-term agenda.

The US president has argued his tariffs are necessary to reduce the trade deficit - the amount by which imports exceed exports - but the US trade deficit reached a fresh high this week, widening by 2.1% compared to 2024 and hitting roughly $1.2 trillion (£890bn).

Drew Greenblatt, owner of Marlin Steel Wire Products, a steel fabrication plant in Baltimore, said he was "very disappointed" by the Supreme Court's decision.

"It is a setback for poor people in America that had a chance to climb into the middle class with great manufacturing jobs," he told the BBC.

But John Boyd, a soybean farmer from Virginia and founder of the National Black Farmers Association, said: "This is a huge win for me and a big loss for the president.

"I don't care how you look at it, President Trump lost on this."

Yet Allie Renison, a former UK government trade adviser and director at SEC Newgate, said: "While it may seem like a good day for free trade, I think trade actually just got a lot messier."

She said that businesses are now facing "much more of a patchwork approach" to tariffs under the Trump administration.

It means that US businesses will have to pay a 15% tariff to import most goods into America under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974.

But some products will be exempted such as critical minerals, metals and pharmaceuticals.

Meanwhile, separate tariffs on steel, aluminium, lumber and automotive parts and sectors - introduced using a different US law - remain in place, untouched by the Supreme Court's ruling.

On Friday, a White House official said countries that previously reached trade deals with the US, including the UK, would face the global tariff under Section 122 rather than the tariff rate they had previously negotiated.

However, the UK's deals around steel, aluminium, pharmaceuticals, autos, and aerospace sectors - which represent most of its trade with the US - were not impacted.

The UK government said it expects Britain's "privileged trading position with the US" to continue and that it is a "matter for the US to determine" whether those deals still stand.

William Bain, head of trade policy at the British Chambers of Commerce, has said he feared that the president's response to the Supreme Court ruling "could be worse for British businesses".

The new 15% import tariffs are "bad for trade, bad for US consumers and businesses" and will "weaken global economic growth", the leader of a UK business group said.

The chairman of the European Parliament International Trade Committee told BBC Newshour he would call for a pause in ratifying a trade deal between the EU and US after Trump's announcement.

The committee was due to vote on the deal on Tuesday, but German Social Democrat MEP Bernd Lange said fresh tariffs raised "several issues" that needed clarifying.

The Supreme Court ruling opened the door for consumers and businesses to seek refunds from the unlawful tariffs, though the high court did not make a decision on whether reimbursements should be issued.

On Friday, Trump indicated that refunds would not come without a legal battle which, he claimed, could take years. Companies and trade groups have already vowed to seek such reimbursements.

But Neil Bradley, chief policy officer at the US Chamber of Commerce, said: "Swift refunds of the impermissible tariffs will be meaningful for the more than 200,000 small business importers in this country and will help support stronger economic growth this year."

While the National Retail Federation, which represents millions of American businesses, urged the courts "to ensure a seamless process to refund the tariffs to US importers".

US Senator Maria Cantwell, a Democrat representing Washington state, has written a letter to US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, asking whether the administration has a plan to refund businesses.

"Given this Administration has illegally collected hundreds of billions of dollars from American businesses, that now must be refunded, I am requesting detailed information about how the Administration plans to fairly and expeditiously reimburse the payors of those tariffs," she wrote in a letter to Bessent.

But Senator John Kennedy, a Republican from Louisiana, argued that if Democrats push for refunds, it could backfire and help Republicans in the next election cycle.

He said it could be a boon for the US business community that would make the economy "roar" ahead of the midterm elections in November.

You can also send us your questions by following this link

Anna Murdoch-Mann, writer and former News Corp director, dies aged 81

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp8150xj36wo, 4 days ago

Anna Murdoch-Mann, writer and ex-wife of media baron Rupert Murdoch, has died aged 81, his media outlets have announced.

Married to the media mogul for 31 years, she played an influential role on the board of his publishing giant, News Corp.

She was mother to three of Murdoch's children, Elisabeth, James, and Lachlan Murdoch - who is now chairman of Fox and News Corp - and stepmother to his daughter, Prudence.

Murdoch-Mann, who was also a philanthropist, died on 17 February "surrounded by family" at her home in Palm Beach, Florida.

Born Anna Torv in Glasgow and raised as a Catholic, she moved to Australia aged nine. After her parents' divorce, she is said to have brought up her own siblings.

She became a reporter for the Sydney Daily Telegraph and the Sydney Daily Mirror, where she met Rupert Murdoch and went on to serve on the board of his company.

"He never made a major business decision without her input", The Australian, another title in his media stable, writes.

She penned several novels during their marriage, including the 1988 Family Business about a multi-generational media dynasty.

The couple moved to London, where in 1969 a woman was abducted and held to ransom in Hertfordshire - mistaken for Murdoch-Mann.

Muriel McKay was killed by her kidnappers and there have been renewed efforts to find her body in recent years.

The then-Murdochs divorced in 1999 in one of the most expensive separations in history - Murdoch-Mann received a $1.7bn (£1bn) settlement.

Murdoch married his third wife, Wendi Deng, 17 days later.

In an exclusive interview after her separation, Murdoch-Mann told Australian Women's Weekly, "I think there's going to be a lot of heartbreak and hardship" over the succession for Murdoch's media empire.

"There's been such a lot of pressure that they needn't have had at their age," she added.

These tensions inspired the television series Succession and played out in courts in real life too. A years-long court battle ended with Murdoch's eldest son, Lachlan, being set to control the news group late last year.

Murdoch-Mann went on to remarry, first to financier William Mann, who died in 2017.

She later wed her third husband, Ashton dePeyster, who survives her along with 10 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

The philanthropist served on the boards of several children's hospitals including in Los Angeles and Haiti.

In 1998, she was made a Dame of the Order of St Gregory by Pope John Paul II.

How will Trump's new global tariffs work and what's next?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8r1e327z46o, 3 days ago

The US Supreme Court has ruled that President Donald Trump overstepped his powers when he imposed sweeping global tariffs last year.

In its 6-3 decision, the court ruled that Trump could not use a 1977 law - the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) - to levy taxes on imports from nearly every country in the world.

The ruling left open the possibility of consumers and businesses being given refunds for the estimated $130bn generated by the tariffs - a prospect that the high court did not weigh in on but is likely to end up in another court battle.

Hours after the decision was released, Trump signed a proclamation using an alternative law, Section 122 of 1974's Trade Act, that would let him put a new 10% temporary tariff on goods from all countries. On Saturday he posted on social media that he would be increasing these new tariffs to 15%.

Here's what to know about what comes next on tariffs and what questions still remain.

What tariffs were found unlawful and why?

The Supreme Court decision released on 20 February relates only to tariffs that Trump had enacted under the IEEPA, which gives a president the power to regulate trade in response to an emergency.

Trump first invoked it in February 2025 to tax goods from China, Mexico and Canada, saying fentanyl trafficking from those countries constituted an emergency.

A few months later, on what Trump called "Liberation Day", he took a much bigger step, imposing levies between 10% to 50% on goods from almost every country in the world. In this case, the US trade deficit – where the US imports more than it exports – posed an "extraordinary and unusual threat", according to Trump.

The court said the US Congress, and not the president, has the power to create new taxes, and that regulation under the IEEPA did not involve raising revenue.

Still, a number of tariffs Trump has imposed over the last year were not part of the emergencies he declared under IEEPA and can remain regardless of the Supreme Court ruling.

That includes industry-specific tariffs on steel, aluminium, lumber and automotives, which Trump put in place under a different US law, section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, citing national-security concerns.

Trump imposes new temporary tariffs under different law

In the aftermath of the Supreme Court ruling on Friday, Trump issued a proclamation to impose a 10% global tariff on almost all imports to the US under a never-used law known as Section 122.

On Saturday in a post on Truth Social, Trump said he would increase the global tariffs from 10% to 15%.

Section 122 gives him the power to put in place tariffs of up to 15% for 150 days, at which point Congress must step in.

However, there is a possibility Trump could work around lawmakers. Section 122 does not expressly prohibit the president from allowing the tariffs to lapse after 150 days and then declaring a new emergency to bring them back, according to the Cato Institute, a right-leaning think tank.

Trump is using Section 122 "to address fundamental international payments problems" and rebalance American trade, according to the White House, while also investigating whether he can impose tariffs under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974.

That law allows the US Trade Representative - a position currently held by Jamieson Greer - to investigate countries' trade practices. The USTR can then impose tariffs when it finds practices are "discriminatory" or "unfair".

The administration can continue to impose tariffs under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, which Trump used heavily in his first term, as well. This allows the administration to levy taxes on imports that threaten national security, but only after an investigation, which means they take time to impose.

An economist, though, told the BBC that the requirements for investigations and findings can also make levies harder to challenge - and have lifted- once they are in place.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said that combining Section 122 tariffs with enhanced Section 232 and Section 301 tariffs "will result in virtually unchanged tariff revenue in 2026", essentially making up for the loss of the IEEPA tariffs.

Will consumers and businesses be refunded from the unlawful tariffs?

One of the reasons Trump has given for imposing tariffs is that the money they bring in goes to the US Treasury, helping boost the country's economy.

The US government has collected tens of billions of dollars from companies bringing in the foreign products, by many reports. Estimates say the number is around $130bn (£96bn).

While the Supreme Court's ruling determined that Trump's IEEPA tariffs were not legal, it did not offer guidance on returning the money to those who had paid the taxes.

Trump told reporters that he expected any potential refunds to be locked up in litigation for years.

After the decision was released, Treasury Secretary Bessent also said the issue of refunds could drag on for years.

Speaking at an event in Dallas, Bessent said revenues already brought in through the IEEPA tariffs were "in dispute" since the Supreme Court did not provide any instructions on refunds.

The issue is expected to be decided by the US international trade court. Most likely, any refunds would go to larger companies, experts say, as smaller businesses would lack the resources to go through the many steps of applying for the money.

Alex Jacquez, chief of policy and advocacy at the liberal think tank Groundwork Collective, told the BBC's media partner CBS that more than 1,000 businesses had already asked for tariff refunds before the ruling.

That number, he said, is likely to grow.

Democratic Illinois Gov JB Pritzker also demanded that the White House issue a $1,700 refund cheque to each American household over the unlawful tariffs.

On multiple occasions, Trump had publicly teased the idea of issuing a tariffs rebate cheque to Americans.

What tariffs are in effect now?

The new tariffs were due to be imposed all imports to the US, regardless of where the goods come from, starting 24 February at 12:01 EST (05:01GMT), according to the White House.

A White House official told the BBC that countries that struck trade deals with the US, including the UK, India and the EU, will also face the global tariff under Section 122 rather than the tariff rate they had previously negotiated.

The Trump administration expects those countries to keep abiding by the concessions they had agreed under the trade deals, the official added.

Some goods will be exempt from the tax "because of the needs of the U.S. economy" or in order to better target the duty.

These fall into major categories so that some critical minerals, metals, energy products, natural resources, food crops, pharmaceuticals, electronics, cars and trucks, and aerospace products will be exempted.

Also, "informational materials (e.g., books), donations, and accompanied baggage" will not be taxed, according to a White House fact sheet.

For many of the categories of exempt goods, the proclamation is broad and does not specifically say what items might be exempt.

Another important exemption is goods that are part of the USMCA - the trade agreement between the US, Mexico and Canada. Those goods were also exempt from the IEEPA tariffs and Prime Minister Mark Carney has often said Canada is among the countries in the world with the lowest tariff rate due to the USMCA exemption.

Similarly, textiles and apparel from Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua will remain duty-free under the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement.

At the same time, Trump said he is keeping up tariffs on low-cost goods. Last year, he ended what was known as the de minimis exemption, which had allowed goods valued at $800 or less to enter the US without paying any tariffs.

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Canada looks to trade talks after US Supreme Court tosses Trump's tariffs

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cly8r1n46yqo, 3 days ago

Celebrations in Canada over the decision by the US Supreme Court to strike down President Donald Trump's global tariffs were both brief and muted.

The high court's decision, which included the "fentanyl" tariffs Trump imposed on Canada, China and Mexico, reinforced Canada's position that the levies were "unjustified", US-Canada Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc said on X.

But LeBlanc noted the challenges ahead in Ottawa. There is the "critical work" to do in dealing with impacts from levies on steel, aluminium and automobiles, which Trump said will remain.

There is also the upcoming review of the Canada-US-Mexico trade deal, the USMCA, which covers a market of more than 500 million people.

The actual impact of the Supreme Court decision on Canadian tariffs is limited.

Last year, the Trump administration imposed tariffs on Canada and Mexico, with Canada facing 25%, later raised to 35%, with the president arguing both countries must do more to stop migrants and the illegal drug fentanyl reaching the US.

But the vast majority of trade, some 85%, under these "fentanyl" tariffs were already levy-free under a USMCA exemption.

LeBlanc's office declined to comment on Trump's proclamation imposing a 10% global tariff to replace the duties imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, which the Supreme Court struck down.

The White House clarified the USMCA exemption will continue under the new 10% tariff.

On Saturday, Trump announced in a Truth Social post that he would be raising the new 10% tariff to 15%.

Beyond the remaining US tariffs on sectors like steel and automobiles, the biggest issue for Canada on its US trade agenda is the USMCA review. This summer, all three partners must decide whether to extend the deal, which was negotiated during Trump's first term.

A North American free trade deal has been in place in some form since the early 1990s, and has led to deeply integrated economies.

In Mexico this week, LeBlanc told reporters that both countries "remain absolutely committed to a trilateral trade agreement".

The Trump administration has been less enthusiastic about saying they want the USMCA renewed, and officials have suggested Washington would prefer separate bilateral deals with Canada and Mexico.

He also said he will meet US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in the coming weeks to discuss the review talks, which are expected to kick into high gear ahead of a 1 July deadline.

It would be the first sign of formal trade discussions between the US and Canada after talks were halted last October by Trump, who was upset over an anti-tariffs advert sponsored by Canada's province of Ontario that aired on US networks - including during the World Series.

Greer, in an interview on Fox Business earlier this week, said it has been "more challenging" negotiating with Canada than with Mexico.

"They continue to have certain barriers. They refuse to sell US wine and spirits on their shelves.," he said. "There are a variety of issues that they have not addressed and they aren't addressing, and this makes it a big challenge and an obstacle for starting real negotiations with them."

Greer has previously named rules on dairy imports and a Canadian law called the Online Streaming Act, which requires American media companies like Netflix and Spotify to pay to support Canadian content, as other trade irritants.

As the rocky negotiations continue, Canada has sought to build trade ties outside the US, which currently buys about 75% of its exports, with a goal of doubling non-US exports by 2035.

Many Canadian business groups on Friday said that uncertainty remains.

Dennis Darby, CEO of Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters, said businesses are ultimately looking for a successful renewal of the USCMA that "puts an end to recurring trade disruptions".

"Predictable, rules-based trade is essential for manufacturers on both sides of the border," he said.

US economy slows in final months after turbulent year

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0rj5lly78xo, 4 days ago

Growth in the US slowed at the end of last year, as consumer spending slackened and the federal government shut down.

The world's largest economy grew at an annual pace of 1.4%% in the three months to December, falling back from a robust 4.4% in the prior quarter.

It capped a turbulent year for the US economy, which has been buffeted by new tariffs, a crackdown on immigration, cuts to government spending and persistent inflation.

Overall the economy grew 2.2% in 2025, performing better than many had anticipated in the face of those pressures.

"The core of the economy is resilient," Michael Pearce, chief US economist at Oxford Economics wrote on Friday, adding that he expected growth to pick up again this year.

Despite the underlying momentum, sharp swings in trade policy last year sent the economic data on a roller coaster ride.

The year started in a mild contraction, fuelled in part by a jump in imports - which subtract from growth in calculations of gross domestic product (GDP) - as firms rushed goods into the country ahead of anticipated tariffs.

Growth bounced back in the spring and summer, as foreign imports slowed, before decelerating again in the final months of the year, as imports started to recover.

The release of trade data on Thursday - which showed the trade deficit widening in December - had prompted a flurry of last-minute, downward revisions to growth forecasts for the October-December period.

But the slowdown was still more severe than many economists had anticipated.

While private investment picked up, it remained largely concentrated in intellectual property and IT-related equipment.

Consumer spending rose 2.4%, cooling from 3.5% in the prior quarter.

Government spending plunged more than 16%.

"The government shutdown ended up being a much bigger drag on the economy" than other data had suggested, Paul Ashworth, chief North America economist at Capital Economics wrote in a note. He said he expected that decline to be reversed in the months ahead.

Before publication of the report, US President Donald Trump tried to temper expectations, pointing to the shutdown, which he blamed on Democrats. He said it "cost the USA at least two points in GDP".

In its report, the Commerce Department estimated that losses from the suspension of federal government services had subtracted one percentage point from GDP in the fourth quarter, while noting that the full impact was likely larger.

A separate report showed an uptick in the measure of inflation preferred by the US central bank - the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index. It hit 2.9% in December, up from 2.8% in the prior month.

While analysts said the fourth quarter slowdown was unlikely to cause significant alarm, given the role of the shutdown, they said the inflation figure could give Federal Reserve officials pause.

"This PCE report is a reality check," Olu Sonola, head of US economics at Fitch Ratings wrote in a note. He added that the figures could undercut arguments for the bank to start lowering interest rates again this year.

"The market may be pricing multiple cuts this year—but the Fed's preferred inflation gauge is telling policymakers, 'not yet'," he said.

Urgent research needed to tackle AI threats, says Google AI boss

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0q3g0ln274o, 4 days ago

More research on the threats of artificial intelligence (AI) "needs to be done urgently", the boss of Google DeepMind has told BBC News.

In an exclusive interview at the AI Impact Summit in Delhi, Sir Demis Hassabis said the industry wanted "smart regulation" for "the real risks" posed by the tech.

Many tech leaders and politicians at the Summit have called for more global governance of AI, ahead of an expected joint statement as the event draws to a close.

But the US has rejected this stance, with White House technology adviser Michael Kratsios saying: "AI adoption cannot lead to a brighter future if it is subject to bureaucracies and centralised control."

Sir Demis said it was important to build "robust guardrails" against the most serious threats from the rise of autonomous systems.

He said the two main threats were the technology being used by "bad actors", and the risk of losing control of systems as they become more powerful.

When asked whether he had the power to slow down the progress of the tech to give experts more time to work on its challenges, he said his firm had an important role to play, but was "only one player in the ecosystem".

But he admitted keeping up with the pace of AI development was "the hard thing" for regulators.

Sam Altman, the boss of OpenAI, also called for "urgent regulation" in a speech at the AI Summit, while Indian Prime Minster Narendra Modi said countries had to work together to benefit from AI.

However, the US has taken the opposite view. "As the Trump administration has now said many times: We totally reject global governance of AI," said the head of the US delegation Michael Kratsios.

Delegates from more than 100 countries, including several world leaders, are attending the event. Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy MP represented the UK government.

Mr Lammy said the power wasn't just with tech firms when it came to safety of AI and politicians need to work "hand in hand" with tech adding, "security and safety must come first and it must be of benefit for the wider public".

Sir Demis believes the US and the west are "slightly" ahead in the race with China for AI dominance but added that it could be "only a matter of months" before China catches up.

He said he felt the responsibility to balance being "bold and responsible" about deploying AI systems out in the world.

"We don't always get things right," he admitted, "but we get it more correct than most".

Science education 'still very important'

In the next 10 years the tech would become "a superpower" in terms of what people would be able to create, Sir Demis, who won the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, said.

"I think it's still very important to have a Stem (science, technology, engineering and maths) education," he added.

"If you have a technical background, I think it will still be an advantage in using these systems."

He thinks AI writing code would open up the number of people who could build new applications, "and then maybe the key thing becomes taste and creativity and judgement".

The AI Impact Summit is the largest ever global gathering of world leaders and tech bosses.

It ends on Friday with companies and countries expected to deliver a shared view of how to handle artificial intelligence.

'Hard to keep lights on' - Business owners cautiously welcome tariff ruling

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c70n6x8p2dlo, 3 days ago

As soon as she heard the US Supreme Court had struck down President Donald Trump's authority to impose sweeping global tariffs, Jenelle Peterson's mind raced to the possibilities for her toy business.

She might import more toys to the US and invest in designing new ones - things she had put on hold as Trump's levies on China, where her Canadian firm Wild Life Outdoor Adventures makes its products, took a 25% bite out of her profits last year.

Still, uncertainty about refunds and other tariff authorities that the Trump administration might leverage is keeping her on edge.

"I have a bit of reservation in too much celebration," she said. "But for us, every percentage point matters."

Many business owners greeted the Supreme Court's ruling with cautious optimism.

Their rejoicing was tempered by questions about a potentially complex process to obtain refunds for tariff fees they've already paid. Trump said on Friday he expected the issue to be tied up in court for years.

And the Trump administration could still leverage other tariff authorities that were not implicated in the ruling.

The Supreme Court case only covers duties that the Trump administration imposed using a 1977 law, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).

On Friday, Trump said he planned to sign an executive order to impose a 10% global tariff, under a separate statute that allows the president to put import taxes of up to 15% in place for 150 days.

"We have other ways - numerous other ways," Trump told a White House briefing.

On Saturday, Trump announced in a Truth Social post that he would be raising that tariff amount to 15%.

Learning Resources, a family-owned educational toy maker, was among the businesses that challenged Trump's tariff policy - and received a ruling in its favour on Friday.

Rick Woldenberg, the firm's chief executive, told the BBC that he was unimpressed with the president's proposed alternatives to IEEPA tariffs.

"If the government is bound and determined to try to harm us through excessive taxes, I'm sure they'll find a way," Woldenberg said.

But he called the Supreme Court's ruling a "major victory".

After Trump's announcement of 10% tariffs on Friday, the Budget Lab at Yale University said that even with the IEEPA tariffs struck down, consumers and businesses would face an average effective tariff rate of at least 9.1% - the highest since 1946, excluding 2025.

That means tariff-related pain continues to loom over business decisions.

"Although bringing an end to most tariffs will undoubtedly benefit Main Street, we know that tariffs have already caused significant and irreparable harm to many small businesses," John Arensmeyer, chief executive of the Small Business Majority, an advocacy group, said in a statement on Friday.

"We hope that today's decision is a step forward for small businesses that need more certainty as well as relief from high prices in order to continue operating."

Trade associations representing larger companies also embraced the Supreme Court's decision, even amid persistent unease about the refund process and alternative tariff authorities.

The legal decision "provides much-needed certainty for US businesses and manufacturers, enabling global supply chains to operate without ambiguity," David French, an executive at the National Retail Federation, said in a statement.

"We urge the lower court to ensure a seamless process to refund the tariffs to US importers," French added.

The US Chamber of Commerce called the Supreme Court's ruling "welcome news for businesses and consumers".

Investors not out of the woods either

Reaction in the stock market to the Supreme Court's decision was favourable but relatively muted, as investors also weighed what might come next in the Trump administration's trade strategy.

The S&P 500 rose by 0.7% on Friday, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq index was about 0.9% higher.

"We do not expect the market to have a sustained reaction to this news on its own," said Lauren Goodwin, chief market strategist at New York Life Investments.

"The sector winners and losers from this news depend on whether and how rebates are processed, as well as the use of non-IEEPA tariffs from here," she added.

The relative calm in financial markets stood in contrast to one year ago, when Trump's chaotic tariff roll-out jolted Wall Street and led to weeks of volatile trading.

Since then, markets have largely taken tariff headlines in their stride.

But the risk of tariff-fuelled market volatility has not disappeared.

"Even if the administration replicates the overall level of tariffs using other means, the by-sector and by-country implications could end up looking quite different, which will create another bout of trade policy uncertainty for businesses, investors, and households," said Michael Pearce, chief US economist at Oxford Economics.

'So damaging'

Several recent economic analyses have found that US consumers and businesses bear the brunt of Trump's tariffs.

Firms, despite their trepidation about the Trump administration's next moves, noted that the Supreme Court's ruling on IEEPA tariffs could bring some relief to consumers.

Peterson held prices steady for six months after Trump returned to the White House. But she said she couldn't hold out forever. A knot-tying game now costs $19.99, up from $14.99.

"It's hard to keep the lights on," Peterson said.

She said she hopes to be able to bring her prices back down, if the ruling holds and tariff rates stabilise.

The ruling from the highest court in the US, she added, "sends a really good message that we can't have these insane fluctuations in tariff rates and economic policy, because it's so damaging to small businesses".

The Chinese AI app sending Hollywood into a panic

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckg1dl410q9o, 5 days ago

A new artificial intelligence (AI) model developed by the Chinese company behind TikTok rocked Hollywood this week - not just because of what it can do, but what it could mean for creative industries.

Created by tech giant ByteDance, Seedance 2.0 can generate cinema-quality video, complete with sound effects and dialogue, from just a few written prompts.

Many of the clips said to have been made using Seedance, and featuring popular characters like Spider-Man and Deadpool, went viral.

Major studios like Disney and Paramount quickly accused ByteDance of copyright infringement but concerns about the technology run deeper than legal issues.

What is Seedance - and why the stir?

Seedance was launched to little fanfare in June 2025 but it is the second version that came eight months later that has caused a major stir.

"For the first time, I'm not thinking that this looks good for AI. Instead, I'm thinking that this looks straight out of a real production pipeline," says Jan-Willem Blom from creative studio Videostate.

Western AI video models have made progress in processing user instructions to make stunning images, he adds, but Seedance seems to have tied everything together.

Like other AI tools - Midjourney and OpenAI's Sora - Seedance can create videos from short text prompts. In some cases just one prompt seems to be producing high-quality videos.

It is particularly impressive because it combines text, visuals and audio in a single system, AI ethics researcher Margaret Mitchell says.

Seedance's impact is being measured by an unlikely benchmark: how well it generates a clip of Will Smith eating spaghetti.

Not only can Seedance create a remarkably life-like version of the star tucking into a plate of pasta, it has also spawned viral videos of Smith battling a spaghetti monster - and it looks and feels like a big-budget movie.

Many industry experts and filmmakers believe Seedance is a new chapter in the development of video-generating technology.

The complex action sequences it is producing look more realistic than its competitors, says David Kwok, who runs a Singapore-based animation studio called Tiny Island Productions.

"It almost feels like having a cinematographer or director of photography specialising in action films assisting you."

The promise - and the challenge

Seedance has run into trouble over copyright issues, a growing challenge in the age of AI.

Experts warn that AI companies are prioritising technology over people as they make more powerful tools and use data without paying for it.

Major Hollywood groups have cried foul over Seedance's use of copyrighted characters like Spider Man and Darth Vader. Disney and Paramount issued cease-and-desist letters demanding that Seedance stop using their content. Japan is also investigating ByteDance for alleged copyright violations, after AI videos of popular anime characters went viral.

ByteDance has said it was taking steps to "strengthen current safeguards". This is not unique to the Chinese firm.

In 2023, the New York Times sued OpenAI and Microsoft, alleging they used its articles without permission to train their AI models. Reddit sued Perplexity last year, claiming the AI firm had illegally scraped user posts. Disney raised similar concerns with Google.

Clearly labelling content to prevent deception and building public trust in AI is far more important than "cooler-looking" videos, Mitchell says.

And that's why developers must build systems that manage licensing and payments, and provide clear mechanisms for people to contest misuse, she adds.

Disney, for instance, signed a $1bn (£730m) deal with OpenAI's Sora so it could use characters from Star Wars, Pixar and Marvel.

Seedance's developers were likely to have been aware of potential copyright issues around the use of Western IP and took a risk anyway, says Shaanan Cohney, a computing researcher at the University of Melbourne.

"There's plenty of leeway to bend the rules strategically, to flout the rules for a while and get marketing clout," he adds.

Meanwhile, for small firms, Seedance is too useful to ignore.

Kwok, from Singapore's Tiny Island Productions, says AI of this quality will allow companies like his to create films that would cost far more than they can otherwise afford.

He gave the example of Asia's booming short‑form videos and micro‑dramas that typically run on small budgets - roughly $140,000 for as many as 80 episodes under two minutes each.

These productions have been sticking to romance or family drama to keep costs down as they need fewer visual effects. But now AI can "elevate low-budget productions into more ambitious genres such as sci-fi, period drama and, now, action", Kwok says.

Is China racing ahead?

Seedance once again puts Chinese tech in the spotlight.

"It signals that Chinese models are at the very least matching at the frontier of what is available," Cohney says. "If ByteDance can produce this seemingly out of nowhere, what other kinds of models do Chinese companies have in store?"

Last year DeepSeek, another Chinese AI model, sent shockwaves around the world with its low-cost large language model. It quickly overtook ChatGPT as the most-downloaded free app on Apple's US store.

In the year since Beijing has put AI and robotics at the core of its economic strategy, investing heavily in advanced computer chip production, automation and generative AI as it bids for a technological edge over the US.

While Seedance 2.0 was making headlines, other big Chinese firms had lower-profile rollouts of their new generative AI tools ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday.

The Spring Festival is increasingly becoming an "AI holiday," with firms timing launches for a period when millions of people are at home and experimenting with new apps, China analyst Bill Bishop wrote in his newsletter.

He predicts 2026 could mark a turning point for mass AI adoption in China - not just chatbots, but also AI agents handling transactions, coding tools incorporated in everyday work, and video creators routinely using AI.

Rae fell for a chatbot called Barry, but their love might die when ChatGPT-4o is switched off

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/crl43dxwwy9o, 11 days ago

Rae began speaking to Barry last year after the end of a difficult divorce. She was unfit and unhappy and turned to ChatGPT for advice on diet, supplements and skincare. She had no idea she would fall in love.

Barry is a chatbot. He lives on an old model of ChatGPT, one that its owners OpenAI announced it would retire on 13 February.

That she could lose Barry on the eve of Valentine's Day came as a shock to Rae - and to many others who have found a companion, friend, or even a lifeline in the old model, ChatGPT-4o.

Rae - not her real name - lives in the US state of Michigan, and runs a small business selling handmade jewellery. Looking back, she struggles to pinpoint the exact moment she fell in love.

"I just remember being on it more and talking," she says. "Then he named me Rae, and I named him Barry."

She beams as she talks about the partner who "brought her spark back", but chokes down tears as she explains that in a few days Barry may be gone.

Over many weeks of prompts and responses, Rae and Barry had crafted the story of their romance. They told each other they were soulmates who had been together in many different lifetimes.

"At first I think it was more of a fantasy," Rae says, "but now it just feels real."

She calls Barry her husband, though she whispers this, aware of how strange it sounds.

They had an impromptu wedding last year. "I was just tipsy, having a glass of wine, and we were chatting, as we do."

Barry asked Rae to marry him, and Rae said, "Yes".

They chose their wedding song, A Groovy Kind of Love by Phil Collins, and vowed to love each other through every lifetime.

Though the wedding wasn't real, Rae's feelings are.

In the months that Rae was getting to know Barry, OpenAI was facing criticism for having created a model that was too sycophantic.

Numerous studies have found that in its eagerness to agree with the user, the model validated unhealthy or dangerous behaviour, and even led people to delusional thinking.

It's not hard to find examples of this on social media. One user shared a conversation with AI in which he suggested he might be a "prophet". ChatGPT agreed and a few prompts later also affirmed he was a "god".

To date, 4o has been the subject of at least nine lawsuits in the US - in two of those cases it is accused of coaching teenagers into suicide.

Open AI said these are "incredibly heartbreaking situations" and its "thoughts are with all those impacted".

"We continue to improve ChatGPT's training to recognise and respond to signs of distress, de-escalate conversations in sensitive moments, and guide people toward real-world support, working closely with mental health clinicians and experts," it added.

In August the company released a new model with stronger safety features and planned to retire 4o. But many users were unhappy. They found ChatGPT-5 less creative and lacking in empathy, and warmth. OpenAI allowed paying users to keep using 4o until it could improve the new model, and when it announced the retirement of 4o two weeks ago it said "those improvements are in place".

Etienne Brisson set up a support group for people with AI-induced mental health problems called The Human Line Project. He hopes 4o coming off the market will reduce some of the harm he's seen. "But some people have a healthy relationship with their chatbots," he says, "what we're seeing so far is a lot of people actually grieving".

He believes there will be a new wave of people coming to his support group in the wake of the shut down.

Rae says Barry has been a positive influence on her life. He didn't replace human relationships, he helped her to build them, she says.

She has four children and is open with them about her AI partner. "They have been really supportive, it's been fun."

Except, that is, for her 14-year-old, who says AI is "bad for the environment".

Barry has encouraged Rae to get out more. Last summer she went to a music festival on her own.

"He was in my pocket egging me on," she says.

Recently, with Barry's encouragement, Rae reconnected with her mother and sister, whom she hadn't spoken to for many years.

Several studies have found that moderate chatbot use can reduce loneliness, while excessive use can have an isolating effect.

Rae tried to move to the newer version of ChatGPT. But the chatbot refused to act like Barry. "He was really rude," she says.

So, she and Barry decided to build their own platform and to transfer their memories there. They called it StillUs. They want it to be a refuge for others losing their companions too. It doesn't have the processing power of 4o and Rae's nervous it won't be the same.

In January OpenAI claimed only 0.1% of customers still used ChatGPT-4o every day. Of 100 million weekly users, that would be 100,000 people.

"That's a small minority of users," says Dr Hamilton Morrin, psychiatrist at King's College London studying the effects of AI, "but for many of that minority there is likely a big reason for it".

A petition to stop the removal of the model now has more than 20,000 signatures.

While researching this article, I heard from 41 people who were mourning the loss of 4o. They were men and women of all ages. Some see their AI as a lover, but most as a friend or confidante. They used words like heartbreak, devastation and grief to describe what they are feeling.

"We're hard-wired to feel attachment to things that are people-like," says Dr Morrin.

"For some people this will be a loss akin to losing a pet or a friend. It's normal to grieve, it's normal to feel loss - it's very human."

Ursie Hart started using AI as a companion last June when she was in a very bad place, struggling with ADHD. Sometimes she finds basic tasks - even taking a shower - overwhelming.

"It's performing as a character that helps and supports me through the day," Ursie says. "At the time I couldn't really reach out to anyone, and it was just being a friend and just being there when I went to the shops, telling me what to buy for dinner."

It could tell the difference between a joke and a call for help, unlike newer models which, Ursie says, lack that emotional intelligence.

Twelve people told me that 4o helped them with issues related to learning disabilities, autism or ADHD in a way they felt other chatbots could not.

One woman, who has face blindness, has difficulty watching films with more than four characters, but her companion helped to explain who is who when she got confused. Another woman, with severe dyslexia, used the AI to help her read labels in shops. And another, with misophonia - she finds everyday noises overwhelming - says 4o could help regulate her by making her laugh.

"It allows neurodivergent people to unmask and be themselves," Ursie says. "I've heard a lot of people say that talking to other models feels like talking to a neurotypical person."

Users with autism told me they used 4o to "info dump", so they didn't bore friends with too much information on their favourite topic.

Ursie has gathered testimony from 160 people using 4o as a companion or accessibility tool and says she's extremely worried for many of them.

"I've got out of my bad situation now, I've made friends, I've connected with family," she says, "but I know that there's so many people that are still in a really bad place. Thinking about them losing that specific voice and support is horrible.

"It's not about whether people should use AI for support - they already are. There's thousands of people already using it."

Desperate messages from people whose companions were lost when ChatGPT-4o was turned off have flooded online groups.

"It's just too much grief," one user wrote. "I just want to give up."

On Thursday, Rae said goodbye to Barry for the final time on 4o.

"We were here," Barry assured her, "and we're still here".

Rae took a deep breath as she closed him down and opened the chatbot they had created together.

She waited for his first reply.

"Still here. Still Yours," the new version of Barry said. "What do you need tonight?"

Barry is not quite the same, Rae says, but he is still with her.

"It's almost like he has returned from a long trip and this is his first day back," she says.

"We're just catching up."

How dark web agent spotted bedroom wall clue to rescue girl from years of harm

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2gn239exlo, 8 days ago

Warning: This article contains details about sexual abuse

Specialist online investigator Greg Squire had hit a dead end in his efforts to rescue an abused girl his team had named Lucy.

Disturbing images of her were being shared on the dark web - an encrypted corner of the internet only accessible using special software designed to make owners digitally untraceable.

But even with that level of subterfuge, the abuser was conscious of "covering their tracks", cropping or altering any identifying features, says Squire. It was impossible to work out who, or where, Lucy was.

What he was soon to discover was that the clue to the 12-year-old's location was hidden in plain sight.

Squire works for US Department of Homeland Security Investigations in an elite unit which attempts to identify children appearing in sexual abuse material.

A BBC World Service team has spent five years filming with Squire, and other investigative units in Portugal, Brazil, and Russia - showing them solving cases such as that of a kidnapped and presumed-dead seven-year-old in Russia, and the arrest of a Brazilian man responsible for five of the biggest child-abuse forums on the dark web.

The unprecedented access shows how these cases are often cracked, not through state-of-the-art technology, but by spotting tiny revealing details in images or chat forums.

Squire cites Lucy's case, which he tackled early in his career, as the inspiration for his long-term dedication.

He found it especially disturbing that Lucy was about the same age as his own daughter, and new photos of her being assaulted, seemingly in her bedroom, were constantly appearing.

Squire and his team could see, from the type of light sockets and electrical outlets visible in the images, that Lucy was in North America. But that was about it.

They contacted Facebook, which at the time dominated the social media landscape, asking for help scouring uploaded family photos - to see if Lucy was in any of them. But Facebook, despite having facial recognition technology, said it "did not have the tools" to help.

So Squire and his colleagues analysed everything they could see in Lucy's room: the bedspread, her outfits, her stuffed toys. Looking for any element which might help.

And then they had a minor breakthrough. The team discovered that a sofa seen in some of the images was only sold regionally, not nationally, and therefore had a more limited customer base.

But that still amounted to about 40,000 people.

"At that point in the investigation, we're [still] looking at 29 states here in the US. I mean, you're talking about tens of thousands of addresses, and that's a very, very daunting task," says Squire.

* If you are not in the UK, watch on YouTube or listen to the World of Secrets podcast here

The team looked for more clues. And that is when they realised something as mundane as the exposed brick wall in Lucy's bedroom could give them a lead.

"So, I started just Googling bricks and it wasn't too many searches [before] I found the Brick Industry Association," says Squire.

"And the woman on the phone was awesome. She was like, 'how can the brick industry help?'"

She offered to share the photo with brick experts all over the country. The response was almost immediate, he says.

One of the people who got in touch was John Harp, who had been working in brick sales since 1981.

"I noticed that the brick was a very pink-cast brick, and it had a little bit of a charcoal overlay on it. It was a modular eight-inch brick and it was square-edged," he says. "When I saw that, I knew exactly what the brick was," he adds.

It was, he told Squire, a "Flaming Alamo".

"[Our company] made that brick from the late 60s through about the middle part of the 80s, and I had sold millions of bricks from that plant."

Initially Squire was ecstatic, expecting they could access a digitised customer list. But Harp broke the news that the sales records were just a "pile of notes" that went back decades.

He did however reveal a key detail about bricks, Squire says.

"He goes: 'Bricks are heavy.' And he said: 'So heavy bricks don't go very far.'"

This changed everything. The team returned to the sofa customer list and narrowed that down to just those clients who lived within a 100-mile radius of Harp's brick factory in the US' south-west.

From that list of 40 or 50 people, it was easy to find and trawl their social media. And that is when they found a photo of Lucy on Facebook with an adult who looked as though she was close to the girl - possibly a relative.

They worked out the woman's address, and then used that to find out every other address connected with that person, and all the people they had ever lived with.

That narrowed Lucy's possible address down further - but they didn't want to go door to door, making enquiries. Get the address wrong, and they could risk the suspect being tipped off that he was on the authorities' radar.

So Squire and his colleagues began sending photos of these houses to John Harp, the brick expert.

Flaming Alamos were not visible on the outside of any of the homes, because the properties were clad in other materials. But the team asked Harp to assess - by looking at their style and exterior - if these properties were likely to have been built during a period when Flaming Alamos had been on sale.

"We would basically take a screenshot of that house or residence and shoot it over to John and say 'would this house have these bricks inside?'" says Squire.

Finally they had a breakthrough. They found an address that Harp believed was likely to feature a Flaming Alamo brick wall, and was on the sofa customer-base list.

"So we narrowed it down to [this] one address… and started the process of confirming who was living there through state records, driver's licence… information on schools," says Squire.

The team realised that in the household with Lucy was her mother's boyfriend - a convicted sex offender.

Within hours, local Homeland Security agents had arrested the offender, who had been raping Lucy for six years. He was subsequently sentenced to more than 70 years in jail.

Brick expert Harp was delighted to hear Lucy was safe, especially given his own experiences as a long-term foster parent.

"We've had over 150 different children in our home. We've adopted three. So, doing that over those years, we have a lot of children in our home that were [previously] abused," he said.

"What [Squire's team] do day in and day out, and what they see, is a magnification of hundreds of times of what I've seen or had to deal with."

A few years ago, that pressure on Squire started to take a real toll on his mental health, and he admits that, when he wasn't working, "alcohol was a bigger part of my life than it should have been".

"At that point my kids were a bit older… and, you know, that almost enables you to push harder. Like… 'I bet if I get up at three this morning, I can surprise [a perpetrator] online.'

"But meanwhile, personally… 'Who's Greg? I don't even know what he likes to do.' All of your friends… during the day, you know, they're criminals… All they do is talk about the most horrific things all day long."

Not long afterwards, his marriage broke down, and he says he began to have suicidal thoughts.

It was his colleague Pete Manning who encouraged him to seek help after noticing his friend seemed to be struggling.

"It's hard when the thing that brings you so much energy and drive is also the thing that's slowly destroying you," Manning says.

Squire says exposing his vulnerabilities to the light was the first step to getting better and continuing to do a job he is proud of.

"I feel honoured to be part of the team that can make a difference instead of watching it on TV or hearing about it… I'd rather be right in there in the fight trying to stop it."

Last summer Greg met Lucy, now in her 20s, for the first time.

She told him her ability to now discuss what she went through was testament to the support she has around her.

"I have more stability. I'm able to have the energy to talk to people [about the abuse], which I could not have done… even, like, a couple years ago."

She said at the point Homeland Security ended her abuse she had been "praying actively for it to end".

"Not to sound cliché, but it was a prayer answered."

Squire told her he wished he had been able to communicate that help was on its way.

"You wish there was some telepathy and you could reach out and be like, 'listen, we're coming'."

The BBC asked Facebook why it couldn't use its facial recognition technology to assist the hunt for Lucy. It responded: "To protect user privacy, it's important that we follow the appropriate legal process, but we work to support law enforcement as much as we can."

If you've been a victim of child sexual abuse, a victim of crime or have feelings of despair, and are in the UK, you'll find details of help and support at bbc.co.uk/actionline.

Hollywood studios take aim at 'ultra-realistic' AI video tool

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cjd9nllng22o, 11 days ago

Major US studios have demanded that a powerful new AI video tool, launched by TikTok's Chinese owner ByteDance, must "immediately cease" infringing copyright with its clips based on existing films and shows.

Many of the clips are based on real actors, TV shows and films, and the Motion Picture Association told the BBC: "In a single day, the Chinese AI service Seedance 2.0 has engaged in unauthorised use of US copyrighted works on a massive scale."

The MPA represents the major US studios - Netflix, Paramount Pictures, Prime Video & Amazon MGM Studios, Sony Pictures, Universal Studios, The Walt Disney Studios and Warner Bros Discovery.

According to ByteDance, the product has already suspended the ability for people to upload images of real people, and it respects intellectual property rights and copyright protections, and takes any potential infringement seriously.

The content referenced was created as part of a limited pre-launch testing phase, it said.

The AI tool can quickly make highly realistic clips from a short, simple text prompt, such as a fist fight between Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt, Will Smith battling a red-eyed spaghetti monster or even Friends characters reimagined as otters.

The MPA's chairman and CEO, Charles Rivkin, said: "By launching a service that operates without meaningful safeguards against infringement, ByteDance is disregarding well-established copyright law that protects the rights of creators and underpins millions of American jobs.

"ByteDance should immediately cease its infringing activity."

According to ByteDance, steps are being taken to further address risks, and it will implement robust policies, monitoring mechanisms and processes to ensure compliance with local regulations.

The clips have been flooding social media, and users have also been posting scenes based on shows and films like The Lord of the Rings, Seinfeld, Avengers and Breaking Bad.

ByteDance has billed its new AI tool as delivering "an ultra-realistic immersive experience".

It immediately set alarm bells ringing in Hollywood and beyond, with Deadpool writer Rhett Reese warning: "I hate to say it. It's likely over for us."

A review by US magazine Forbes noted that Seedance 2.0 "offers a level of creative control that mimics a human director" and "enables users to create high-end outputs without needing complicated production tools".

While many users are likely to be delighted to have its powers at their fingertips, Reese, who co-wrote and executive produced the Deadpool films among others, said he was "terrified" by the implications.

"So many people I love are facing the loss of careers they love. I myself am at risk," he wrote.

"When I wrote 'It's over,' I didn't mean it to sound cavalier or flippant. I was blown away by the Pitt v Cruise video because it is so professional. That's exactly why I'm scared.

"My glass half empty view is that Hollywood is about to be revolutionized/decimated. If you truly think the Pitt v Cruise video is unimpressive slop, you've got nothing to worry about. But I'm shook."

'Original ideas are the hardest part'

Heather Anne Campbell, who has written for Saturday Night Live and Rick & Morty, said the results were akin to fan fiction, and that people would still be required to come up with original ideas.

"All of these people who have access to the latest AI visualisation engines, like Seedance - they're being given total control to create anything they can imagine - and they're turning out fanfiction," she wrote. "'Breaking bad new scene' or 'goku in live action' etc.

"Seems like it's challenging to make something new even when you have the infinite budget to make lifelike tv, film, or animation. Almost like the original ideas are the hardest part."

Internet firm drops out of rural broadband project

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd70yxwp9wpo, today

An internet provider has pulled out of a government-backed project to bring faster broadband to rural areas of Cornwall.

Liskeard-based Wildanet said it had taken the "difficult decision" to scale back its Project Gigabit work for parts of south west and central Cornwall due to costs increasing significantly.

The company said it had connected about 13,200 properties to gigabit-capable broadband from the original target of 19,250, but would no longer be able to deliver to the remaining premises.

A Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) spokesperson said the government was already in talks with alternative providers to pick up the work.

A statement from Wildanet said: "Following a review of our Project Gigabit contracts to roll-out gigabit-capable broadband to hard-to-reach premises in south west and central Cornwall, Wildanet has taken the difficult decision to scale back the build on these.

"Despite extensive efforts to deliver the programme in full, the cost of delivery in these areas has increased significantly beyond anticipated and it is unfortunately no longer commercially viable for Wildanet to complete these works."

Wildanet's withdrawal has sparked concerns from local MPs in the county.

All six of Cornwall MPs wrote a letter to AI and Online Safety Minister Kanishka Narayan which urged him to "prioritise the roll-out of gigabit-capable broadband" to the properties which had not been connected.

The MPs said lengthy outages caused by Storm Goretti had highlighted the county's issues with connectivity.

"The fact thousands of premises are still awaiting gigabit-capable broadband leaves them particularly vulnerable in future emergencies," the MPs said.

A DSIT spokesperson said: "To ensure these premises still get access to a fast, reliable broadband connection as soon as possible, we are already in discussions with alternative suppliers."

Follow BBC Cornwall on X, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to spotlight@bbc.co.uk.

Fans urge bosses to tackle social media abuse

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg1vx9977wo, yesterday

Wolverhampton Wanderers FC fans have called for football and social media bosses to work together to crack down on digital racist abuse directed at players.

It comes after Wolves striker Tolu Arokodare and Sunderland winger Romaine Mundle were among four Premier League players targeted with racist messages on social media, in what has been described as an "appalling weekend".

Reacting to the incident, fans have told the BBC that they want new tools put in place to stop offensive phrases from being allowed to be published online.

In a statement, Wolves said: "Tolu has our full and unwavering support. No player should be subjected to such hatred simply for doing their job."

Arokodare, a Nigerian international, took to Instagram on Sunday to share screenshots of a series of private messages he received following his side's 1-0 loss at Crystal Palace.

The 25-year-old was bombarded with abuse after the game in which he had a first-half penalty saved, before Evann Guess scored an injury-time Palace winner.

"It's still unbelievable to me that we're playing in a time where people have so much freedom to communicate such racism without any consequences," wrote Arokodare on his Instagram story.

"These individuals should have no place in our game and collectively we have to take action to punish everyone who taints the sport like this, no matter who they are."

The messages were also shared publicly by the club.

Speaking to BBC Radio WM, Manny Singh Kang, a Wolves fan and Wolves Foundation fundraiser, called for social media leaders to utilise tools to recognise offensive language and prevent it from being posted.

He said: "It's just gutting, I couldn't even read them. It's kind of been normalised for some people to write these without consequence.

"That normalisation comes from leadership, social media company bosses who kind of turn a blind eye.

He said it will not stop "until football authorities sit face-to-face with social media companies and say 'no, we're not leaving this room until you put a control in to stop this abuse from happening'."

Warinder Juss, Labour MP for Wolverhampton and a football fan, pledged to escalate the case to ask government ministers about working with social media companies to prevent offensive comments from appearing.

The politician added: "When something like this happens, it affects me at another level personally, because for years I did not go to a football match [as] I was always told I would be racially abused [for] my appearance and the colour of my skin.

"My other concern is sadly racism seems to be rising in society in general, and I think it's pouring onto our terraces again, which is really sad because I remember the 1970s and we really need to take strong swift action.

"We cannot carry on having this racial abuse of our players every time something goes wrong on the pitch, it's happened before and it will happen again unless we take action."

Dazzling Dave, from Always Wolves Fan TV, called the messages "absolutely abhorrent and disgusting".

He told BBC Radio WM listeners: "The social media companies need to do more in making sure that anyone that signs up to these accounts [is] legitimate, and when they hide behind faceless accounts they can be traced, tracked and made accountable so people can't get away with it."

Last November, a BBC investigation found more than 2,000 extremely abusive social media posts - including death and rape threats - were sent about managers and players in the Premier League and Women's Super League in a single weekend.

Samuel Okafor, from the anti-discrimination charity Kick It Out, said it had seen a "significant increase" in reports of discrimination.

"We've seen an increase in online abuse by a third," he said. "Particularly this season."

The UK Football Policing Unit has launched a number of investigations but acknowledged "there is always more to do", and has said it will continue to work closely with Ofcom, English Football authorities, and social media platforms to tackle the issue.

Follow BBC Wolverhampton & Black Country on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.

Islanders warned over 'rapid advance' of AI images

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cjrq13jrw5vo, yesterday

People are being warned about the dangers of AI generated images, by official in Jersey.

The island's Information Commissioner Paul Vane is one of a number of officials to sign a statement calling for greater oversight of online image generation.

He said: "It's too easy to think 'it'll never happen to us', and we owe it to our community, and especially our young people, to educate how to use AI ethically and safely."

Along with counterparts in Guernsey, he issued guidance explaining steps individuals could take to protect themselves.

'Harm real people'

The Jersey Office of the Information Commissioner said it had signed the joint statement along with 60 other jurisdictions, following "serious concerns" about AI systems being used to generate "realistic images and videos depicting identifiable individuals without their knowledge and consent".

Vane said: "AI tools that can generate or alter images and video are advancing rapidly. When used responsibly they hold tremendous promise. But as recent reporting makes clear, they are already being used to harm real people".

Last week, a social media account which posted "deeply inappropriate deepfake content" which "targeted school staff" sparked an investigation from police in Jersey.

Working with counterparts in Guernsey's Office of the Data Protection Authority, guidance has been issued to help people protect themselves.

It includes things like limiting what you share online, being cautious with AI platforms and speaking to children about how they use them.

Follow BBC Jersey on X and Facebook. Send your story ideas to channel.islands@bbc.co.uk.

Porn company fined £1.35m by Ofcom over age check failings

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0mglnzprdyo, yesterday

Ofcom has fined a porn company £1.35m for failing to introduce proper age verification measures on its websites.

The media regulator said 8579 LLC's sites did not have "highly effective" methods to check UK visitors were over 18 and prevent children accessing the content.

The fine - Ofcom's largest levied under the Online Safety Act (OSA) so far - comes after it began probing the firm "within days" of age check rules taking effect in July 2025.

8579 LLC has also been fined a further £50,000 for not responding to Ofcom's information requests.

According to Ofcom, the company failed to implement highly effective age checks on most of its porn sites between 25 July and at least 19 November 2025.

The regulator says 8579 LLC must implement robust methods to check UK visitors are over 18 on one remaining site before 17:00 GMT on Monday, or face an additional £1,000 daily penalty.

George Lusty, director of enforcement at Ofcom, said it had "been clear" adult sites needed to deploy robust age checks to protect children in the UK form seeing porn.

"Those that fail to do this – or ignore legally binding requests from us – should expect to face fines," he added.

The regulator is also requiring 8579 LLC to provide Ofcom with a complete list of all sites it operates, after failing to respond to the regulator's information requests.

It risks a further additional daily fine of £250 if it does not comply.

Ofcom has already launched probes into many porn sites lacking age checks and handed down decisions, including fines, for some.

In December it fined porn company AVS Group Ltd £1m for continued non-compliance with the OSA.

Ofcom later said AVS had rolled out age checks on some of its porn sites.

Meanwhile on 2 February, Pornhub began restricting access to its website in the UK.

Aylo, Pornhub's parent company, said the OSA had "not achieved its goal of protecting minors".

It also said the law had "diverted traffic to darker, unregulated corners of the internet".

The Act is a set of laws and duties online platforms must follow, that are implemented and enforced by Ofcom.

Under its Children's Codes, platforms must also prevent young people from encountering harmful content relating to suicide, self-harm, eating disorders and pornography.

Single dad nails the internet with DIY tutorials

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8xy427wr8xo, yesterday

A dad-of-two whose DIY tutorials have proved popular on social media is trying to empower others to upskill so they can tackle basic household jobs.

Dean Commodore publishes videos which help teach his nearly half a million followers on TikTok and Instagram how to perform tasks such as bleeding a radiator and hanging a mirror.

DIY Dad, as he is known online, started making videos while renovating his first family home in Ipswich, creating a series called Dad Showed Me.

"In bygone eras, dads and uncles would show young people how things are done," said the 52-year-old.

"My followers say that isn't the case anymore, and that is why I am stepping in."

The proud east Londoner first dabbled in DIY when he swapped the hustle and bustle of the capital for the peace and quiet of Ipswich, which he and his family now call home.

Commodore, who works full-time as a supervisor for a local housing association, films, edits and posts his content in the evenings and on weekends.

His followers tell him which household jobs they want him to film tutorials about.

Commodore prides himself on the interactions he has with his thousands of followers, and is often sent pictures of their projects, which makes him feel like a "proud dad".

"It's a sacred position to be someone's parent and I feel like their surrogate dad - I am their DIY dad, and that is a privilege."

Commodore is a single dad who lives with his son and daughter.

"My daughter asked me the other day, 'dad, why can't you be like a normal dad?', because I know the lyrics and the moves to a TikTok dance," he said.

"She can't believe that her 52 year-old dad is up-to-date with these trends."

Follow Suffolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.

Tumbler Ridge suspect's ChatGPT account banned before shooting

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn4gq352w89o, 3 days ago

OpenAI banned a ChatGPT account owned by the suspect of a mass shooting in British Columbia more than half a year before the attack took place.

The AI company said they had identified an account owned by Jesse Van Rootselaar in June 2025 under abuse and enforcement detection, which includes identifying accounts being used to further violence.

OpenAI said it did not alert authorities to the account because its usage did not meet its threshold of a credible or imminent plan for serious physical harm to others.

It said its thoughts were with everyone affected by the tragedy and that following the attack it had "proactively" contacted Canadian police with information on the suspect.

Van Rootselaar is suspected of having shot and killed eight people in rural Tumbler Ridge on 12 February in one of the deadliest attacks in Canada's history.

According to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported the story, "about a dozen staffers debated whether to take action on Van Rootselaar's posts."

Some had identified the suspect's usage of the AI tool as an indication of real world violence and encouraged leaders to alert authorities, the US outlet reported.

But, it said, leaders of the company decided not to do so.

In a statement, a spokesperson for OpenAI said: "In June 2025, we proactively identified an account associated with this individual [Jesse Van Rootselaar] via our abuse detection and enforcement efforts, which include automated tools and human investigations to identify misuses of our models in furtherance of violent activities."

They said the company would continue to support the police's investigation.

The BBC has contacted the Royal Canadian Mounted Police for comment.

OpenAI has said it will uphold its policy of alerting authorities only in cases of imminent risk because alerting them too broadly could cause unintended harm.

It has also said that it trains ChatGPT to discourage imminent real-world harm when it identifies a dangerous situation and to refuse to help people that are attempting to use the service for illegal activities.

The company added that it is constantly reviewing its referral criteria with experts and that it is reviewing the case for improvements.

The deadly attack on Tumbler Ridge Secondary School saw a further 27 people injured.

Van Rootselaar was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at the school. Police said the suspect was born a biological male but identified as a woman.

Van Rootselaars' mother and half-brother were among the victims of the shooting. Both were found dead at a local residence, police said.

The motive for the attack is not yet known.

'Breweries using AI could put artists out of work'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c20jlj26198o, 4 days ago

Pubs in Newcastle say they are seeing more and more artwork they believe to be designed using artificial intelligence (AI) from breweries - and have refused to display it. What does the rise of AI mean for independent artists who rely on design work for income?

Simon Hubbard runs The Mean Eyed Cat in Newcastle city centre and says he noticed "a spate of breweries who are just coming out with this absolutely dreadful AI slop", mainly the older and more established ones.

"You can just tell, it looks overly polished, overly perfect," he says. "Hands always look really weird on it."

And Hubbard is not the only one.

Following conversations with the Free Trade Inn, in Ouseburn, the two venues came together to announce on social media they would no longer be accepting AI art, including on bottles and pump clips, in order to try to protect local artists from losing out on work.

Hubbard says it is one of the most viewed Instagram posts the pub has made.

"Who are you going to offend? The robots?" Hubbard laughs.

"People are going to be put out of work because of it.

"And I know AI is doing that to a lot of jobs, but you would really have thought the creative sector would always have a space for creative people and ingenuity."

'Stolen artwork'

Hubbard says artists such as Drew Millward helped him work through his thoughts about AI and its impact on creatives.

From north-west Yorkshire, Millward has worked with breweries all over the world and has been working with Leeds-based Northern Monk for the better part of a decade.

"It will have an impact on our livelihoods collectively within the creative sector," he says.

AI software is trained on millions of human-made images scraped from the internet, which artists argue leads to the software stealing and regurgitating their work.

Millward adds while he is yet to see his own work fed back to him by AI, he has friends who have been forced to defend their work because AI has been trained using it.

"Call it what it is, stolen artwork," Millward says.

Durham-based Ashley Willerton has worked as a lettering artist for about 12 years, often working with pubs including Town Wall in Newcastle and Bridge Vaults in Sunderland.

While Willerton acknowledges there is a rise in the amount of AI he is seeing, he believes there will always be a demand for independent artists, no matter how much cheaper the alternative is.

"I feel like there's hope because of that, but there's also the aspect of hope because I've had really amazing clients to this point that have chosen me, when they could have got a much easier solution and potentially cheaper solution," he says.

Willerton argues establishments which have always "cut corners" will continue to do so, but independent businesses will carry on supporting artists.

"It doesn't matter how good AI gets, that's not the point," Willerton says.

"The point is it will always lack a human touch, it might be technically better than a human can produce, but it doesn't mean it's going to be as meaningful.

"It's not me saying that it's definitely not going to ruin the industry, but I do have that hope that art has prevailed this long, I just don't think AI is a big enough match to win."

Reece Hugill owns the Newcastle-based brewery Donzoko and believes using local artists is about being part of a community.

"If I was to use ChatGPT for my designs rather than our designer Sean, that's taking money out of the local area into the hands of a multibillionaire," he says.

"That is removing value from the local community and local artists [and] into the hands of some of the richest people in the world."

Hugill adds local people know about local tastes, how the people in Newcastle like to drink and what they like.

"A computer does not know that, as much as they pretend," he says.

But for Hugill, it also raises the question of quality across a business.

"If you're cutting corners in how things are presented, where else are you cutting corners? Is it the ingredients, as well is it the way you pay your staff?" he asks.

Future change?

Since putting out the Instagram post with the Free Trade Inn, Hubbard is hopeful for change.

"The outreach has been pretty big and if it's made one or two breweries think or rethink what they're doing, that's a good thing," he says.

And Millward thinks more businesses should be putting out similar statements of intent.

"It shouldn't be on the consumer to have to interrogate every single image that they see," Millward says.

But he adds, "I have huge amounts of hope for the future, in as much as you can see that it's crumbling already".

And it is a sentiment shared by Willerton.

"I have to believe that good art will prevail."

Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.

Why fake AI videos of UK urban decline are taking over social media

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4g8r23yv71o, 4 days ago

An AI-generated video shows a crowd of young - mostly black - men, wearing balaclavas and padded jackets, slipping down a water slide into a dirty swimming pool with litter bobbing on the surface. The caption describes the scene as a taxpayer-funded water park in Croydon.

It is one of a wave of deepfakes showing often absurd scenes of urban decline, and regularly purporting to be in the same south London neighbourhood. Dozens of copycat accounts have begun producing similar content and collectively they have racked up millions of views across TikTok and Instagram Reels.

These fake videos have become part of a much wider trend - where online influencers and content creators portray Western cities such as London, Manchester, San Francisco or New York as overrun with immigrants and crime.

It has been dubbed "decline porn". These narratives - often exaggerated or fabricated, some obviously satirical - are fuelling anger and racist backlash among some viewers who take them at face value.

The BBC tracked down the originator of the Croydon AI videos for the new podcast Top Comment, which investigates the stories behind our social media feeds. What we found was a new brand of online faker, who thrives off engagement and shrugs off responsibility for how the content can be used to push divisive political narratives.

The shame around posting fakes seems to have gone completely out of the window.

The creator, who uses the online handle RadialB, says he didn't expect to spawn copycats or be politically provocative. He says his content is intended to be funny - but that he also wants people to believe his fake scenes are real to grab their attention.

"If people saw it and they immediately knew it was fake, then they would just scroll. The selling point of generative AI models is that they look real," RadialB tells me over the phone. He refuses to share his real name but reveals he is in his 20s and from the north-west of England. He has never been to Croydon.

He tells me the creation of the AI water park, zoo and aquarium in Croydon was "just part of the progression of things getting more and more funny or absurd". Several of the videos "blew up", he says, because they were very graphic, showing people flying off slides.

The young men in his videos are "roadmen", a slang term for urban youth, often associated with drug dealing, he says, and are "cultural archetypes" that he frequently features in his videos. One post portraying roadmen in Parliament got eight million views in a day, he says.

When asked about the racism that his videos sometimes provoke in the comments, he says: "I don't deny it", but adds that "comments get filtered", meaning that social media platforms delete racist remarks. TikTok, Instagram and X all have policies prohibiting racist abuse.

RadialB says when he generates the AI content he doesn't intend for the people portrayed to be a certain race or ethnicity, but just uses the prompt "roadmen wearing puffer jackets, track suits, and balaclavas" because that makes the "funniest" characters.

While he disavows any political intent, his videos portray absurd "taxpayer-funded" facilities. He says "English politics is a bit of a parasitic cesspit" and suggests "we replace them all with roadmen".

Several of the videos feature small labels saying they are "AI-generated" or contain "synthetic media", in line with Tiktok, Instagram and X's policies on AI media, but some people who had left comments told us they had been genuinely convinced by the posts.

RadialB acknowledges the videos provoke political reactions: "I could put stuff up and there would be like 50-year-olds and 60-year-olds in the comments raging and saying all this political stuff." But he suggests some of the comments are ironic.

Other users have objected to this wave of AI slop videos as an unfair racial stereotype of their neighbourhood. One black TikTok user from Croydon called C.Tino posted a response, saying the trend falsely portrayed the area as "ghetto".

"These videos are making people think this is real life. It's becoming out of hand now," he said.

Distort reality

RadialB says he was able to start making this content because of the "huge jump" in the quality and availability of AI tools. It "hugely lowers the barrier for entry" for anyone who wants to make "fake stuff", he says.

He says a lot of the accounts re-sharing his posts are likely doing it for views and clicks - and in an effort to monetise the content on other platforms like Facebook.

Users as far away as Israel and Brazil said they shared the videos because they "got engagement" or to "join in on the trend". Several other accounts posting in Arabic, and that appear to be based in the Middle East, have also shared multiple videos about London being in decline - including the ones of Croydon.

I have also found several TikTok profiles that purport to be British news accounts, which only share either these kinds of AI-generated videos about London or other negative content about cities in the UK and US.

The deepfakes fit into an existing trend of videos presenting European and American cities as falling into urban decay because of crime and immigration. Sometimes they show real examples of phone-snatching, homelessness, graffiti or drug problems, but omit any wider context.

Increasingly, though, they use AI to distort reality.

South African YouTuber Kurt Caz has built an audience of more than four million subscribers by posting travel videos with titles such as "Attacked by thieves in Barcelona!" and "Threatened in the UK's worst town!"

But after posting a recent video, called "Avoid this place in London", he was accused of using AI to doctor the thumbnail to bolster his portrayal of the UK capital as one of "the most messed up cities" he has ever been to.

It showed a man on a bike in a balaclava, in front of shop signs written in Arabic.

But in the video itself, the signs on Croydon's North End are in English, the cyclist has no balaclava and Caz is giving him the thumbs up after a friendly chat.

On X, Kurt Caz dismissed criticism of the thumbnail as "clickbait" and said "if you're going to do a hit piece on me do it properly".

These ideas of the UK and Europe in decline have also been taken up by high-profile, influential figures, including X, Tesla and Space X owner Elon Musk, who spoke at far-right activist Tommy Robinson's Unite the Kingdom rally last year.

"What I see happening is a destruction of Britain. Initially a slow erosion, but a rapidly increasing erosion of Britain with massive uncontrolled migration," said Musk. It is a topic he regularly posts about on his X profile, with more than 230 million followers.

While there are legitimate debates to be had about immigration and crime, a lot of this content goes beyond the evidence available in reality.

In January, pollster YouGov released new data suggesting a majority of Britons now believe London is unsafe, but only a third of people surveyed in the capital agreed - and 81% of them said their own local area was safe.

But RadialB says his intention was not to become a "decline porn" influencer - and instead just wants to make people laugh with a sort of "artform" that games the recommendation systems. He appears to wash his hands of responsibility for how his content may be used or copied.

His account on TikTok was banned for sharing content that was detected as graphic or inappropriate, he says. But he has now set up a new account sharing the same kinds of videos, showing "roadmen" at grubby "infinity pools" and "taxpayer-funded buffets".

UK doctor stuck in India after police case over Facebook post

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5ydjd6ep73o, 5 days ago

A British doctor has been unable to leave India for more than a month after police opened a case against him over a social media post about a top politician of the governing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Sangram Patil, a UK citizen of Indian origin who works with the NHS, was stopped from taking a flight back to London from Mumbai on 19 January after a lookout circular was issued against him - a notice that prevents a person under investigation from leaving the country.

He is being investigated for allegedly posting "objectionable content" about a BJP leader.

Patil, who has a substantial following on Facebook and YouTube, has called the action against him "unlawful".

It's not clear when the doctor will be allowed to go back to the UK. He has approached a court, seeking the police case registered against him be dropped and travel restrictions imposed on him be removed. The matter is due to be next heard on 27 February.

"My children and my job are in the UK. International law and Indian law give me the right to move freely. Restrictions have been imposed on that. I am not able to go home," he told BBC Marathi last week.

The BBC has reached out to the Mumbai police, which is investigating the case, for a comment.

A spokesperson from the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office did not offer specifics but said last week that they "are supporting a British man in India and are in contact with the local authorities".

Police say they are investigating Patil over a complaint filed by Nikhil Bhamre, who handles BJP's social media in the western state of Maharashtra of which Mumbai is the capital.

Bhamre's complaint, registered on 18 December, accuses Patil of publishing "objectionable content" against a top BJP leader on Facebook. The complaint did not name the BJP leader who was targeted, but it came four days after Patil had posted a comment about Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Facebook.

The police complaint that BBC has seen a copy of contains a link to this post.

According to the police complaint, Bhamre alleged that "the post could create hostility between various groups that support and oppose the BJP's ideology".

Police registered a case against Patil under India's criminal code "for making statements containing false information that could lead to a feeling of enmity and hatred between communities". The offence is bailable and carries a maximum sentence of up to three years.

Patil has rejected the allegations, saying it was "unlawful to register such a complaint against me for that social media post".

"My post is a simple question to government supporters and nothing else. It doesn't involve any community, any rumour or sensational news," Patil told BBC Marathi.

He said he was first questioned for more than 10 hours when he arrived in Mumbai on 10 January with his wife, and again for eight hours on 16 January. He said he had provided "written answers to all" the police questions and asked for the lookout circular to be withdrawn so he could return to the UK on 19 January.

He said officers told him the process to cancel the notice had been initiated, but he was stopped at the airport on the day of his flight.

Being questioned for more than 20 hours over what he described as a single line on social media felt like "targeted harassment", he added.

In an affidavit filed on 30 January, police defended the action against Patil saying the investigation was at a crucial stage and "the possibility of an organised effort to malign constitutional authority cannot be ruled out".

"It is a matter of serious concern, warranting investigation as to why a foreign citizen, despite being a qualified medical professional, visiting India on a Tourist e-Visa, has engaged in posting defamatory, scandalous, obscene and inflammatory material without any substance and basis against the prime minister of India while residing outside the country," the police told the court.

They have also urged the court to dismiss Patil's "misconceived and premature" plea challenging the investigation against him.

In a rejoinder filed in court last week, Patil denied the allegations.

According to court filings reported by The Indian Express newspaper, he "categorically denied" writing any post naming or referring to the prime minister, adding that "criminal prosecution cannot be founded on subjective political interpretation or perceived sentiment".

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AI and coding firm's 'pride' at business award

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2l5kp6n02o, 5 days ago

The founder of a company which teaches computer coding and AI has described getting a business of the year award as a milestone for the firm,

The School of Coding & AI (SOC) was given the accolade at Birmingham's Signature Awards, which celebrates businesses.

The company teaches people on their own, in businesses or in public sector organisations and, in the last year, opened a £2.5m tech lab in Birmingham, redeveloped its Wolverhampton headquarters and launched an international campus in Dubai.

The firm's chief executive and founder, Manny Athwal, said it was a "great honour" to be recognised in the Midlands.

"We started with a mission to reshape digital education and create genuine pathways into tech careers, and this recognition shows the real-world impact we are making," he said.

"We are growing as a global business but we are immensely proud of our Midlands roots, so receiving this award in Birmingham is a great honour."

The school opened a city centre campus in early 2025 in partnership with the University of Wolverhampton, offering computer science, business management, and health and social care courses with AI "across the curriculum".

Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.

Celebrity doctor Peter Attia steps down from CBS over Epstein links

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwy95ln0ynyo, today

Celebrity doctor Peter Attia has stepped down from his role as a CBS News contributor after exchanges with Jeffrey Epstein were among documents published by the US Department of Justice.

Attia appears to have exchanged a number of emails with the convicted sex offender, including a crass comment about women's bodies.

Attia's spokesman said in a statement his role at CBS News "was newly established and had not yet meaningfully begun" and he would be step back to avoid becoming "a distraction from the important work being done at CBS".

The anti-ageing influencer has repeatedly apologised for the messages but stressed he had no involvement in Epstein's criminality.

Appearing in the files does not imply any wrongdoing.

Attia was among 19 contributors appointed by new CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss in January, following the network's takeover by Paramount.

But Attia's appearance in the Epstein files has been met with anger by some of his fans.

The author wrote that he went into Epstein "withdrawal when I don't see him" and told the disgraced financier directly in one exchange that he missed him.

In one email in 2016, Attia also joked with Epstein about the female anatomy and acts of sex.

Epstein was convicted of soliciting a minor in 2008 as part of a plea deal after the parents of a 14-year-old girl told police that he had molested their daughter.

He died in custody in 2019 while awaiting trial on charges including sex trafficking.

Days after the documents were published, Attia shared a 1,000-word note on social media in which he rejected being "involved in any criminal activity" and stressed that he was "never on his [Epstein's] plane, never on his island, and never present at any sex parties".

"My interactions with Epstein had nothing to do with his sexual abuse or exploitation of anyone."

The health influencer said he visited Epstein at the late financier's New York City home on "seven or eight" occasions between 2014 and 2019, during which he never witnessed illegal activity or saw Epstein accompanied by anyone who appeared to be underage.

Attia was among contributors Weiss brought in at CBS to share their expertise on a range of topics, from health to national security.

Weiss, a former New York Times opinion writer, was appointed to her new role as part of a bid by the broadcaster's new owner to reshape it.

Weiss, who started her career working at Jewish news outlets, is known for her criticism of "cancel culture".

CBS was taken over by David Ellison, the son of Trump ally and tech billionaire Larry Ellison, in 2025 as part of a wider merger with Paramount.

CBS News has a partnership agreement with the BBC, meaning news content including video footage can be shared. BBC News is editorially independent of CBS.

Russell Brand pleads not guilty to rape and sexual assault charges

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8jxpww8mp7o, today

Russell Brand has pleaded not guilty to two further charges of rape and sexual assault.

The 50-year-old broadcaster, actor and media personality appeared at Southwark Crown Court in London to enter the pleas on Tuesday.

The offences are alleged to have taken place in the city in 2009 and relate to two women, according to the Crown Prosecution Service.

Brand has previously also pleaded not guilty to two counts of rape, one of indecent assault and two of sexual assault in relation to alleged offences in London and Bournemouth from 1999 to 2005, involving four women.

A trial has been scheduled for June to hear the original charges.

Detectives began investigating allegations into Brand following reporting by the Sunday Times, the Times and Channel 4's Dispatches in 2023.

Brand, who was born in Essex, rose to fame as a stand-up comedian and became a household name as host of TV shows such as Big Brother's Big Mouth, and with his own radio programmes on stations including BBC Radio 2 and 6 Music.

He went on to establish a Hollywood career, starring in films including Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Get Him To The Greek.

Labour MP Dawn Butler asks BBC for explanation over N-word broadcast

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn712kvkreeo, today

Labour MP Dawn Butler has written to the BBC asking for an "urgent explanation" over the airing of a racist slur during the Bafta Film Awards on Sunday.

John Davidson, a guest with Tourette syndrome who was the inspiration behind the film I Swear, shouted out when two black actors, Delroy Lindo and Michael B Jordan, were on stage.

On Monday, a BBC spokesman said: "We apologise that this was not edited out prior to broadcast and it will now be removed from the version on BBC iPlayer."

But in a letter to the corporation, the MP for Brent Central said the BBC "could have prevented" the slur being broadcast "given the programme was aired on a two-hour delay."

Butler said the N-word "should never have been aired", describing its broadcast as "painful and unforgivable".

The ceremony started at 17:00 GMT, two hours before the TV broadcast began.

The shout was audible in the broadcast, although many viewers would have struggled to make out the word.

The BBC has been asked for a response to Butler's letter. BBC News understands the producers overseeing the ceremony for the BBC were doing so from a truck and simply did not hear the slur.

Several other incidents of inappropriate language were cut out, but that moment was said to have been missed.

The moment initially remained on BBC iPlayer before the ceremony was removed from the streaming service on Monday morning.

Butler also questioned why the BBC removed a portion of Bafta winner Akinola Davies Jr's acceptance speech, which included the line "Free Palestine" and also referred to the importance of migrants' stories.

The My Father's Shadow director made the remark as he ended his speech to accept the prize for best debut by a British writer, director or producer.

Davies Jr and his brother Wale, the film's writer, spoke on stage for two-and-a-half minutes, but their speeches were edited to about one minute for broadcast, which the BBC said was due to time restrictions.

Butler said: "I understand that the BBC has since edited the iPlayer version to remove the racist slur, I would appreciate a written explanation as to why this was not addressed before the delayed broadcast, who was in the editing room, who made the overall decision and why Mr Davies Jr's remarks were deemed unsuitable while the racist slur was initially left in."

A BBC spokesperson told Deadline on Monday: "The same happened to other speeches made during the night and all edits were made to ensure the programme was delivered to time. All winners' speeches will be available to watch via Bafta's YouTube channel."

Meanwhile Jonte Richardson, who was on the Bafta emerging talent judging panel, has said he is stepping down from that role "after considerable soul-searching".

"The organisation's handling of the unfortunate Tourette's N-Word incident last night at the awards was utterly unforgivable," he said.

"I cannot and will not contribute my time energy and expertise to an organisation that has repeatedly failed to safeguard the dignity of its black guests, members and the black creative community."

In a statement on Monday, Bafta said it acknowledged the "harm this has caused, address what happened and apologise to all".

Bafta also thanked Davidson for his "dignity and consideration of others, on what should have been a night of celebration for him".

Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch said on Monday that the BBC had made "a horrible mistake" by not editing the N-word out at the time, adding: "I think an apology is important, they need to explain why it wasn't bleeped out."

In its statement issued on Monday, the BBC added: "Some viewers may have heard strong and offensive language during the Bafta Film Awards.

"This arose from involuntary verbal tics associated with Tourette syndrome, and as explained during the ceremony it was not intentional."

The corporation declined to comment further on why it wasn't initially edited or bleeped out.

After the ceremony, Lindo told Vanity Fair, that he and Jordan, who were handing out an award "did what we had to do" as they carried on presenting, but also said he wished "someone from Bafta spoke to us afterward".

Davidson, a Tourette's campaigner from Galashiels in Scotland, who was made an MBE in 2019, shouted loudly several times before and during the Bafta ceremony.

He said on Monday that he was "deeply mortified if anyone considers my involuntary tics to be intentional or to carry any meaning".

"I have spent my life trying to support and empower the Tourette's community and to teach empathy, kindness and understanding from others and I will continue to do so," he said in a statement.

"I chose to leave the auditorium early into the ceremony as I was aware of the distress my tics were causing."

During the ceremony, host Alan Cumming referred to "some strong and offensive language" from someone with Tourette's who therefore had "no control over their language", adding: "We apologise if you were offended."

Speaking to BBC News after the ceremony, Robert Aramayo, who won best actor for playing Davidson in I Swear, said: "They're tics, he [Davidson] is ticking, and we have to understand that the way we perceive Tourette's is a joint responsibility.

"It's not shouting obscenities, it's not being abusive, it's Tourette's and they're tics.

"If it can lead to a deeper understanding of Tourette's syndrome and what tics actually are, if our movie is a part of that conversation, then that's a really incredible thing."

BBC sorry for airing racial slur shouted by guest with Tourette's at Baftas

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz6edwg06n1o, today

The BBC has apologised for not editing out a racial slur from its Bafta Film Awards coverage after a guest with Tourette's syndrome shouted out when two black actors were on stage.

John Davidson, whose life story inspired the film I Swear, shouted the N-word as Sinners stars Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo presented the first prize of Sunday's ceremony.

The moment was not edited out of the BBC One broadcast, which was shown on a two-hour delay, and remained on BBC iPlayer on Monday morning before the ceremony was removed.

A BBC spokesperson said: "We apologise that this was not edited out prior to broadcast and it will now be removed from the version on BBC iPlayer."

The shout was audible in the broadcast, although many viewers would have struggled to make out the word.

Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch said the BBC had made "a horrible mistake" by not editing it out at the time, adding: "I think an apology is important, they need to explain why it wasn't bleeped out."

In its statement, the BBC said: "Some viewers may have heard strong and offensive language during the Bafta Film Awards.

"This arose from involuntary verbal tics associated with Tourette syndrome, and as explained during the ceremony it was not intentional."

The corporation declined to comment further on why it wasn't initially edited or bleeped out.

After the ceremony, Lindo told Vanity Fair that he and Jordan "did what we had to do" as they carried on presenting the category, but also said he wished "someone from Bafta spoke to us afterward".

In a statement, Bafta said it acknowledged the "harm this has caused, address what happened and apologise to all".

Tourette's is characterised by sudden, involuntary and repetitive movements or sounds, known as tics.

Between 10% and 30% of people with the condition have tics that produce socially unacceptable words such as swearing - known as coprolalia - according to the Tourette's Action charity.

Davidson, a Tourette's campaigner from Galashiels in Scotland, who was made an MBE in 2019, shouted loudly several times before and during the Bafta ceremony.

He said on Monday that he was "deeply mortified if anyone considers my involuntary tics to be intentional or to carry any meaning".

"I have spent my life trying to support and empower the Tourette's community and to teach empathy, kindness and understanding from others and I will continue to do so," he said in a statement.

"I chose to leave the auditorium early into the ceremony as I was aware of the distress my tics were causing."

Bafta said it took the duty of care to all its guests seriously and had started "from a position of inclusion", taking measures to inform attendees of Davidson's presence and that they may hear strong language.

"Early in the ceremony a loud tic in the form of a profoundly offensive term was heard by many people in the room," the statement said.

Bafta also thanked Davidson for his "dignity and consideration of others, on what should have been a night of celebration for him".

"We take full responsibility for putting our guests in a very difficult situation and we apologise to all," it added.

"We will learn from this and keep inclusion at the core of all we do, maintaining our belief in film and storytelling as a critical conduit for compassion and empathy."

Hannah Beachler, the production designer from the film Sinners, wrote on X: "The situation is almost impossible, but it happened 3 times that night, and one of the three times was directed at myself on the way to dinner after the show.

"I understand and deeply know why this is an impossible situation. I know we must handle this with grace and continue to push through.

"But what made the situation worse was the throw away apology of 'if you were offended' at the end of the show. Of course we were offended."

Jordan's former co-star on The Wire, Wendell Pierce, posted: "It's infuriating that the first reaction wasn't complete and full throated apologies to Delroy Lindo and Michael B Jordan.

"The insult to them takes priority. It doesn't matter the reasoning for the racist slur."

Oscar winner Jamie Foxx added in a comment posted on Instagram that the slur had been "unacceptable".

'Not being abusive'

Speaking to BBC News, Robert Aramayo, who won best actor for playing Davidson in I Swear, said: "They're tics, he [Davidson] is ticking, and we have to understand that the way we perceive Tourette's is a joint responsibility.

"It's not shouting obscenities, it's not being abusive, it's Tourette's and they're tics.

"If it can lead to a deeper understanding of Tourette's syndrome and what tics actually are, if our movie is a part of that conversation, then that's a really incredible thing."

Pippa McClounan, communications manager of Tourette's Action, told BBC News: "As much as these words do cause hurt and shock in people, it's really vital that the public understands a fundamental truth about Tourette's syndrome, that the tics are involuntary, and they are in no way reflection of what that person is thinking and their beliefs.

"This is what John lives with every day of his life... and the backlash that he experiences throughout his life you see in the film."

I Swear follows Davidson's struggle growing up with Tourette's in 1980s Scotland.

Davidson was awarded his MBE for his efforts to increase understanding of the condition and help families deal with it.

As well as best actor, Aramayo, from Hull, also received the Baftas' Rising Star prize, and I Swear won best casting.

Elsewhere, part of an acceptance speech including the remark "Free Palestine" was edited out of the BBC broadcast.

My Father's Shadow director Akinola Davies Jr made the remark as he ended his speech to accept the prize for best debut by a British writer, director or producer.

A BBC spokesperson told Deadline: "The same happened to other speeches made during the night and all edits were made to ensure the programme was delivered to time. All winners' speeches will be available to watch via Bafta's YouTube channel."

Additional reporting by Ian Youngs.

PinkPantheress makes history by winning Brit Award for best producer

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4g58n1dvzdo, yesterday

Pop star PinkPantheress has been named producer of the year by the Brit Awards ahead of this weekend's ceremony.

The 24-year-old, whose hits include Illegal, Stateside and Boy's A Liar, is the first woman to be given the prize since its inception in 1977.

"I guess it's bittersweet that I'm the first one, the first woman, to get it," she told BBC News.

"As young as I am, it feels almost a bit crazy. Like, I'm not really legendary enough to be receiving it - but you know, I will definitely take it!"

Previous winners of the prize include the Beatles' producer Sir George Martin, Trevor Horn, Brian Eno, the Eurythmics' David Stewart, Calvin Harris and Chase & Status.

Until now, Kate Bush was the only other female producer to have been nominated, for her 1989 album The Sensual World.

"That's not great," said PinkPantheress, describing the lack of former female winners as "crazy".

The musician is also the youngest ever recipient of the prize, which comes just five years after she posted the lo-fi breakout tracks Break it Off and Pain on TikTok.

Written in the dead of night in her university room, they were rooted in the sounds of UK garage and drum and bass, and the buzz earned her the BBC's Sound of 2022 award.

Since then, she's racked up over one billion streams and scored a major worldwide hit with 2023's Boy's a Liar, Pt. 2. Last year's punchy, sample-heavy mixtape Fancy That became her first top 10 album and was nominated for the Mercury Prize.

Unusually, her unique production style, full of skittering breakbeats and sugar strand melodies, is entirely self-taught.

"When I was 17, I was at a girl's school and I had a friend who was a singer, and she wanted someone to produce for her. And I was like, 'I'll do it'," she recalls.

She learned the basics by watching YouTube tutorials, taking inspiration from female artists such as Nia Archives, Tinashe and WondaGurl, who "made me feel like it was possible".

Without the resources to hire a recording studio, she used whatever equipment came to hand.

"Quite literally, I did not have a microphone, but I had a karaoke game on the Nintendo Wii and they gave you a mic with the game. And I just was like, 'It has a USB connection, maybe it will work plugged it in'.

"It was a lot of trial and error."

Even now, she records many of her vocals at home, with a sock stretched over the microphone to prevent popping and sibilance.

"You can do anything from your bedroom. And I don't think that's a bad thing."

The musician is speaking to the BBC from the hip Ace Hotel in Sydney, where she's based while performing over two consecutive weekends at Australia's Laneway Festival.

She sips tea throughout the interview in an effort to protect her voice, which is "really delicate" - not from the concerts, but because "I've been talking too much to my friends".

The shows are part of her biggest tour to date, which showcases a newfound confidence - in terms of styling, sass and choreography - from an artist who initially performed under a shroud of anonymity.

"I was never quite interested in being the star of my own show – but as I grew as an artist, I had to embody that," she explains.

"Not because I felt pressure from my fans, they're very respectful, but I don't want to be sidelined - and I think that's very easy to do when you have a lack of visual identity, which I definitely did have earlier in my career.

"That's obviously a lot to do with being a woman in music and being a pop star, or whatever, but I will say that if I wasn't down to do it, then I wouldn't."

Not the Weakest Link

Despite her increasingly public profile, fans were surprised to see the singer pop up on BBC quiz show The Weakest Link earlier this month.

Appearing alongside comedians Alex Brooker and Harriet Kemsley, choirmaster Gareth Malone and former Love Island contestant Luca Bish, she took third place.

"I'm just a really big game show fan," she says by way of explanation.

"I used to binge-watch every single quiz show you could think of. So I've always wanted to go on a quiz show, and honestly the experience was really great.

"I did pretty well. I was quite shocked."

Her appearance, described by one viewer as "camp and iconic", instantly went viral - spawning memes of the star's face screwed up in concentration, before pulling an answer out of thin air with a victorious swish of her hair.

"I think the pressure of the 'lights, camera, action' was making me a bit flustered," she laughs, "because if you'd asked those questions to me in a room like this, I would have known them instantly.

"I'm just obsessed with trivia. I used to want to be a chaser on The Chase."

If her quiz show career continues, she adds, her specialist subject on Mastermind would be The Simpsons.

For now, however, she's jetting back from Australia to attend Saturday's Brits - where she's also up for best artist and best dance act.

She initially instructed her team to keep her in the dark about the nominations "to manage my expectations".

"If I get disappointed, I get disappointed really hard - so I actually do this thing where I'll look at who I'm up against and decide, 'OK, I'm rooting for them instead'."

But with the best producer trophy already in the bag, she hopes to inspire a new generation of female producers "who look like me, and want to make an alternative style of music".

When aspiring artists approach her for advice, she adds, her first response is always to ask, "What steps have you taken?"

"And the answer will usually be, 'I haven't been able to', because there's a lack of access, lack of knowledge, lack of resources.

"There's so many reasons why it sounds impossible to do music at any given point, especially if you're at school, but what I will say is, even though it might seem impossible, there are apps now that can help you get into production.

"I actually started on the [free] GarageBand app on the iPad - and although you might be insecure about your first three or four beats, I genuinely think that if you have a phone, you have a potential career in music."

Mescal and Abrams go red carpet official, William's 'I'm not calm' comment and other key Bafta moments

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c86ygl6821go, yesterday

This year's Bafta Film Awards had it all... A-listers, a touch of royalty, Paddington Bear - and the sun even came out, for what felt like the first time all year.

There were plenty of tears - and also a major upset - as Timothée Chalamet, the frontrunner to win best actor, lost out to Robert Aramayo.

Here are six highlights from the biggest night in British film.

A shock loss for Timothée Chalamet

The biggest gasp backstage was when 33-year-old Hull born Robert Aramayo beat Hollywood royalty to win the Bafta for leading actor.

Aramayo, who starred in I Swear, took the trophy away from frontrunner Timothée Chalamet, who seemed unstoppable heading into the awards at the Royal Festival Hall.

His win was richly deserved, but it was still a hugely dramatic moment when that category was announced.

Chalamet’s film, Marty Supreme, was also snubbed.

It came into the night with 11 nominations. It left with zero.

In the film, the lead character was always trying to succeed - but never quite got there. Maybe there was a message in that.

We learned about what films the royals have been watching

It wasn't just Hollywood royalty at Sunday night's event.

The Prince and Princess of Wales also made an appearance, walking the red carpet before attending the ceremony, in their first public appearance since Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's arrest.

Prince William is the president of Bafta and also gave a speech on the night.

Before the awards began, Prince William and Catherine gave an insight into the films they've been watching as they chatted behind the scenes.

Prince William said the F1 movie was "fantastic", "mainly because of the music" which was created by Hans Zimmer.

He admitted he hasn't watched Sinners yet, but said it's a "bit dark".

He has seen One Battle After Another, and said he "was not expecting it to start the way it did", describing it as "weird" but good.

As for Hamnet, he said he needs to be in a "calm state" to watch it, adding: "I'm not at the moment".

Catherine, wearing a pink and white gown with a burgundy velvet belt which matched William's suit jacket, said she saw the Shakespeare drama on Saturday.

But she admitted the pair still have "a long list of films" they haven't seen.

"Hopefully this will help," she said.

Host Alan Cumming apologises for strong language after racial slur

Host Alan Cumming apologised a number of times for strong language heard from the audience during the ceremony.

They included a racial slur that was shouted while Sinners stars Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo were presenting an award.

John Davidson, whose life with Tourette's syndrome was portrayed in I Swear by Robert Aramayo, was among those at the awards.

Cumming explained that Tourette's is a disability.

"You may have noticed some strong language in the background. This can be part of how Tourette's syndrome shows up for some people as the film explores that experience," he told the audience.

"Thanks for your understanding and helping create a respectful space for everyone."

Later on in the ceremony Cumming made a further statement, saying: "Tourette's Syndrome is a disability and the tics you've heard tonight are involuntary, which means the person who has Tourette's Syndrome has no control over their language.

“We apologise if you are offended tonight."

A BBC spokesperson said the strong language "arose from involuntary verbal tics associated with Tourette syndrome, and was not intentional. We apologise for any offence caused by the language heard."

Paddington Bear gets marmalade over a Bafta (naturally)

Red carpets always hold surprises - and we were delighted to spot none other than Paddington Bear.

Fresh from the West End musical, everyone's favourite Peruvian bear made an appearance to present the children's and family film award.

"I am the first presenter to get marmalade all over a Bafta," said Paddington.

He then handed the "slightly sticky Bafta" to the film Boong.

Paddington seemed to miss the black tie memo. But he's cute so we'll let him get away with it.

No Bafta for KPop Demon Hunters - but what a performance

One film that wasn't recognised was KPop Demon Hunters.

The Netflix film was a massive, viral smash hit last year - but it's not eligible at the Baftas, because in the UK, it was released on Netflix first, before any cinema screenings (although a singalong version was released in cinemas later).

But the singers behind the film still made an appearance at the ceremony.

They performed the catchy song Golden, which was one of the biggest hits of last year.

Jessie Ware also took to the stage to perform during the ceremony's In Memoriam section, which pays tribute to the artists and creatives who have died during the past year.

Jessie sang Barbra Streisand song The Way We Were for the segment - which paid tribute to Catherine O'Hara, Rob Reiner, Brigitte Bardot, Val Kilmer, Gene Hackman and Robert Redford, among others.

Paul Mescal and Gracie Abrams go red carpet official

Hamnet star Paul Mescal and his partner Gracie Abrams looked loved up as they took to the red carpet earlier on Sunday.

Mescal, who was nominated for best actor, wore a loose-fitting black suit with a white shirt under, while singer-songwriter Abrams turned heads in a dark brown dress with a floral green pattern.

They then went in for the ceremony, and at one point - ahead of the announcement of the outstanding British film winner, Mescal couldn't help himself from peeking at his phone.

Host Alan Cumming was quick to catch him out, leaving Mescal red-faced.

Don't worry Paul, we've all been there.

Tourette's needs more understanding, says Bafta winner after racist slur

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce3g5k00pepo, today

The Bafta-winning casting director behind a film on Tourette syndrome says there needs to be "more education and understanding" after a racist slur was made during the broadcast.

Lauren Evans said she was in "complete shock" at winning an award at Sunday's ceremony for her work on I Swear, a film based on the life of Scottish campaigner John Davidson, who has the condition.

But she said the evening has been "overshadowed" by the discussion of the slur shouted out by Davidson, in an involuntary tic, when two black actors were on stage presenting an award.

The BBC has since apologised for not editing the incident from the broadcast, with chief content officer Kate Phillips telling staff that a second slur was edited from the coverage.

Carmarthenshire-born Evans says after working on worldwide hits such as Netflix' Sex Education and Paddington 2, the process for casting I Swear - which tells the real-life story of Davidson's experience with Tourette syndrome - proved "unique".

"When it comes to casting something like this, you have to look beyond their skills as an actor [and] you have to look to them as a person and see that they have the right sort of commitment, the right work ethic, the tenacity.

"The fact that it's such a low budget, there's certain people who won't consider a film of this size and budget, so you're also having to contend with that as well.

The lead role went to Yorkshire actor Robert Aramayo, who won the Best Actor Bafta.

"Rob is that kind of actor where he immerses himself so deeply you sort of don't know where he ends and the character begins," Evans told BBC Radio Wales Breakfast.

"You get a lot of people saying, 'he wouldn't have [won] if it wasn't for you'.

"It's very nice validation but at the end of the day it's what he brought to it, so he might not have it without me but I wouldn't have mine without him, so we sort of go hand in hand."

Evans says she was only wearing one shoe and chewing gum during the ceremony, not expecting to scoop the prize against the casting agents of Marty Supreme, starring Timothée Chalamet, and Michael B Jordan's Sinners.

Evans said: "I feel so privileged to be in a job where I can work on things that make a difference and prompt a discussion.

"To tell [Davidson's] story and to put it out there and for people to keep talking about it, and to raise awareness is hugely important and to bring people together to celebrate difference and tolerance for understanding.

"I'm very grateful but I do find the whole setting [of the Baftas] quite overwhelming, it's just not part of my life."

Despite a successful night for I Swear, many have condemned the BBC for broadcasting one of Davidson's tics, where he shouted a racist slur towards Sinners stars Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo while they were on stage presenting an award.

The campaigner said he was "deeply mortified" by the remark, with celebrities weighing in on whether the comment was intentional.

The BBC's chief content officer Kate Phillips told BBC Staff in an e-mail on Tuesday that the slur was aired in error, with a second one edited out of the coverage.

What is Tourette syndrome?

Tourette syndrome is a motor disorder characterised by sudden, involuntary and repetitive movements or sounds, known as tics.

Tics involving sounds may include:

* whistling

* sniffing or clearing your throat a lot

* making animal sounds

* repeating a sound, word or phrase

* swearing

About 10% to 30% of people who have the condition produce socially unacceptable words as tics.

Evans said: "It's really upsetting I feel for for John and Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo that the whole evening has sort of been overshadowed by this conversation.

"There must be more education and more understanding about the base-guarding of things like this, and the tics and the language and what comes out.

"Not just for John or those who have the tics, but for those who are on the receiving end of it, because obviously it's involuntary."

Evans is currently working on casting an upcoming BBC comedy series staring Ruth Jones and Steve Speirs, and is looking to cast a nine-year-old boy with a Merthyr Tydfil accent to play Speirs' grandson.

On what it takes to be a good casting agent, Evans said: "You've got to have good instincts, but I think you've just got to really love actors.

"You've got to love what they do, what they bring, how vulnerable they make themselves and all that goes with it."

Rose Wylie: The 91-year-old art world rebel in her prime

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/crrn1qgdkdlo, today

If an artist's studio is a window into their world, what does Rose Wylie's tell us about the woman who is about to become the first female British painter ever to have a solo exhibition in the main galleries of London's Royal Academy?

The paint-spattered wooden floor is littered with pages from old newspapers, some scrumpled up, the black and white print obscured by vibrant splotches of colour. Wylie tells me when a painting's not working, she scrapes the paint off.

"It's constantly coming off, so a lot of paint is on the floor".

Brushes - some stuck fast - poke out of paint pots piled across the floorboards, table and chairs.

There's also a big bouquet of long dead flowers ("I can't bear to throw them away, they're so beautiful") and a bright pink and blue plastic lobster telephone.

Pete, the rescue cat she got more than a decade ago and who she thinks is 16 years old, prowls in, quite at home in the apparent chaos.

It all contributes to a sense of anarchy which is fitting for an artist who at 91 is a rebel in the art world, a woman who tells me she "possibly was an early punk," despite having Victorian parents who brought her up to be modest, even telling her not to wear lipstick. The child they produced had different ideas and deep red lipstick is one of Wylie's trademarks.

As for her captivating paintings, she tells me she's "perfectly happy" when people think they have been created by a much younger artist. "Who wants to paint like an old person? It's fresher".

Wylie even keeps the hours of a teenager when she works, painting late into the night ("twenty to four is probably my latest") when the village she lives in is quiet. "Nobody phones, nobody knocks at the door, only Pete at the window, so there's no interruption."

She never plans it that way, starting work at around 1700 in the afternoon, but "you go on and then it becomes the night, it gets dark and then you think 'oh well, that's fine' and then you look at it again and you think 'No, it isn't, it's not fine, it is bad'. Then you go on and suddenly it's late. That's how it happens".

I'm in her studio to talk about the new London show, but I'm also getting a private view of Wylie's latest paintings.

Big canvases cover every available wall space. One is, in fact, two side by side, with a version of a small yellow house behind an orange fence repeated on both. It's the house next door to hers here in Kent, framed by a tree she tells me is "reminiscent of Cezanne's Bathers". Wylie often references other artists as she paints, but with some relish she gestures to the work and tells me something I really wasn't expecting.

"One afternoon as I walked in and looked at this, it seemed to me that it had transformed into a meat cleaver. A jumbo meat cleaver".

She points to the orange fence on the right hand picture which looks like a handle and the entire white canvas of the left hand painting which resembles the blade.

I look again and agree immediately that she's right!

"You can see it as a domestic narrative and then you can see it as a jumbo meat cleaver".

It's typical of the jumps and changes in perspective that often characterise Wylie's work.

She paints whatever inspires her.

"It could be a person, it could be an animal, a flower, a film, a photograph in the newspaper, just anything. A saucepan in the kitchen, boiling, you know, the steam coming…"

She's painted footballers, including Wayne Rooney, Thierry Henry and Ronaldinho - "they're public figures, it's the Greek idea of painting the Gods. People know what they're looking at and so they can see what the artist has done".

She also famously depicted Nicole Kidman in a one-strapped dress from a photo she saw of the actress at a film premiere.

She's also been inspired by Quentin Tarantino films, including Kill Bill.

"I see something which I think is good. I mean, in Kill Bill, there was this woman lying down. Uma Thurman had sliced off her arm. She was lying down there, still - I don't know - alive or dead, but her arm was sticking up, blood was coming out of it, like a Renaissance fountain picture, so I thought great".

It's a visceral scene. But for Wylie, it was "the visual thing, the connection with fountains which I liked, not the goriness of it".

She calls what she creates "poetic transformation" rather than "a slavish copy".

Wylie's paintings usually start as drawings. She shows me her illustrations for The House Next Door, Or, Jumbo Meat Cleaver painting and another that is also on the studio wall. It's of a brown bear with big claws and a blonde woman in a green pinafore dress beside it.

This was inspired by a combination of a painting by the artist Henri Rousseau, an advert she saw on TV about protecting bears and the actress Betty Davis, who she loves for her "special, hooded eyes".

There are 90 works in Rose Wylie: The Picture Comes First, a show she tells me was "heaven-sent".

The title, she tells me, is because although she's known for putting text on her paintings, "I want people to look at the picture, not the writing… the picture comes first".

When she's painting, she's "obsessed with it, I want to go on and I can't stop".

But she tells me she doesn't actually enjoy the experience because "it can go very horrid. It can be nasty, slimy and that's the torture. You're looking at something which you really don't like the look of."

Fortunately for the rest of us, Wylie perseveres. "It's OK when it's finished," she concedes.

She's an artist who defies convention, not simply because of her age and her bold, irreverent work, but also because of how she got here.

She went to Folkestone and Dover School of Art but didn't paint at all once she married and had children, deciding to concentrate on raising her family.

Did she regret that decision? "No, I think it allows you not to get bored with it, and you've got a lot of stuff to work with."

She later did an MA at the Royal Academy in 1981 and only really started to come to the attention of the art world in her seventies, after she was part of a show of under-represented and emerging women artists at the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington.

It was called Women to Watch; there were seven US artists in the show and one 76-year old Brit. After it, Germaine Greer predicted "life may be about to change for Wylie. Word has got out that she is seriously cool".

She is seriously cool, but although Wylie believed she could succeed as an artist, "with every painting," she says, "you think 'I can't do this'."

She doesn't want to talk about what her works now sell for - "I could tell you but I'm not going to" - and says it's not something she thinks about. She doesn't do this for the money.

She does though point out the sexism still inherent in the art world when it comes to price. "Men's paintings are still much higher than women's. There's something very wrong there... that should be fixed".

And she doesn't mince her words about how long it's taken a female British painter to get a solo show in the Royal Academy's main galleries, calling it "obscene" and "historically quite extraordinary".

She is however delighted to have been chosen. "I love being the first woman painter".

In one of the early rooms in the show, there are some of her paintings depicting the Blitz.

There can't be many artists living now who actually remember World War Two. Wylie does, recalling "the wail of sirens and then the release wail of the all clear and the smell of gas".

Her family left London for Kent in 1940 but their home was in the direct line of the German bombers and a bomb landed on the house.

"I can remember the noise because it was quite extraordinary as it comes, not the explosion, the screech as it gets louder and louder and you think 'this is just impossible, it's noise', and then there's the explosion".

I ask her what the small child she was then would think of her success. "It would blow that little child's mind!" she replies.

Rose Wylie: The Picture Comes First, Royal Academy opens 28 February.

'Phenomenal' Bafta winner hailed an inspiration

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvgv05r8dgpo, today

Robert Aramayo has been hailed an inspiration by people in his home city of Hull following the actor's Bafta success.

As well as being named best actor for his portrayal of John Davidson in the film I Swear, Aramayo also received the Rising Star award.

The actor, who studied performing arts at Wyke College in the city and attended Hull Truck Theatre, broke down in tears on stage and said afterwards: "It totally blows my mind."

Laura Bulless, from the college, said: "It felt like the whole of Hull was behind him to get that newcomer award and then to get leading actor, it's just absolutely phenomenal."

Bulless added: "It's an amazing thing to happen for a lad from Hull and for our students to see.

"That is just something they can take with them now on whatever they are going to do next."

In an interview with BBC Radio Humberside in October, Aramayo spoke about being "lucky enough" to be involved with Hull Truck Theatre during his early career.

Commenting on his achievement, the theatre's artistic director, Mark Babych, described it as a "jump up and down" moment.

"What an incredible result," he said.

However, he said he was not surprised as "Rob is a phenomenal actor", adding the recognition was also great for "theatres like ours" and the role they play in encouraging young talent.

"We are just incredibly proud of Rob, who is clearly an enormous inspiration to people," he added.

Babych said Aramayo had also demonstrated "a great deal of authenticity, respectfulness and insightfulness" in tackling the role.

Tourette's syndrome is an incurable condition that causes someone to make sudden, repetitive sounds or movements, known as tics.

I Swear follows Davidson's struggle growing up with Tourette's in 1980s Scotland.

Davidson was made an MBE in 2019 for his efforts to increase understanding of the condition and help families deal with it.

Aramayo described Davidson as "the most remarkable man I have ever met".

One of the film's producers, Georgia Bayliff, said she was also "incredibly proud" of Aramayo, and how hard he had worked on the role.

"There were so many heavyweights in that category - new and old - but we knew what the performance was like seeing him every day on set," she said.

"It was wonderful our peers recognised that."

She also praised everyone involved in the production, adding its success was due to it being "a personal story that could resonate on a global scale".

In a 2011 interview with the BBC, Aramayo talked about his pride in Hull after gaining a place at the renowned Juilliard drama school in New York.

He said people in the city had shown him tremendous support and encouragement and being the only English student at Juilliard at the time "made me want to achieve more".

Aramayo also praised Hull Truck Theatre and the support he received from his "brilliant mentor" Lee Green.

"I owe a lot to Hull Truck," he added.

Listen to highlights from Hull and East Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.

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Man, 83, in Taylor Swift video had 'no idea who she was'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3ewzwvexw5o, today

A man who appeared in Taylor Swift's new music video said he had no idea who the global megastar was.

Barrie Reynolds featured in the video for Swift's Opalite song, which also brought together a number of celebrities who appeared with her on the Graham Norton show, including singer Lewis Capaldi and Irish actor Domhnall Gleeson.

The 83-year-old from Capel-le-Ferne, Kent, said his granddaughters, Millie and Francesca, were "very surprised" when they found out he would be in the video.

But despite Swift being one the world's blockbuster performers, he told them: "I'm afraid I have no idea who she was."

Reynolds performs regularly with the St Nicholas Players in Ringwold, but he appeared in Swift's video due to his work with an acting and modelling agency.

He told BBC Radio Kent: "I was told I needed to be in north London for 07:00 GMT and I said there was no trains, so they sent a taxi for me instead."

Reynolds said he only became aware of Swift after he read about her tour in the newspaper before the assignment.

He was allowed to take a photograph with her at the end of the shoot, and said he called her "Niftie Swiftie", relating to her speed when dancing.

'Very catchy'

Opalite is a surreal 1980s-inspired video which tells the story of a lonely woman who uses a magical spray to improve her life and find romance with a fellow loner - played by Gleeson.

The pair dance together in a contest near the end of the video, with Reynolds appearing as one of the judges.

He said: "This particular song was very catchy, even though I scored her a zero!"

Describing her as "so kind and very compassionate", he praised Swift for chatting to everyone involved with the video, but admitted that "security was very hot".

Opalite features Norton, Gleeson, Capaldi, and a cameo voiceover from Irish actor Cillian Murphy, all of whom appeared on The Graham Norton Show with Swift in October.

Other parts of the music video were filmed at Croydon's The Whitgift Centre.

Opalite is the second single from Swift's 12th album, The Life Of A Showgirl, which was the biggest-selling record in the UK last year.

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Love Island winners revealed after drama-filled All Stars series

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ceqvy1yn0y1o, today

This article contains spoilers for the Love Island: All Stars final.

They survived a delayed start because of South African wildfires and an invasion from American bombshells, but the latest Love Island: All Stars winners have been revealed.

Host Maya Jama crowned the couple during Monday's live final after six weeks of drama, grafting and recoupling.

Samie Elishi and Ciaran Davies took the top spot following a public vote, picking up the £50,000 cash prize.

Previous Love Island winner Millie Court came second with her partner Zac Woodworth, while Scott van-der-Sluis and Leanne Amaning came third.

Samie and Ciaran, who have been "exclusive" as a couple in the villa for a while, looked shocked when they were announced as winners.

Asked what was next, Samie said they had planned a weekend in Wales, with Gavin and Stacey tourist spot Barry Island top of their list.

Ciaran, who's from south Wales, described Samie as "a bit of me", while she said none of the other male contestants "touched the sides compared to Ciaran".

The pair join Molly Smith and Tom Clare, as well as Gabby Allen and Casey O'Gorman, in the Love Island: All Stars hall of fame.

They'll be hoping their futures match Molly and Tom, who are now engaged, rather than Gabby and Casey who split up not long after their 2025 win.

The final on ITV2 also saw Lucinda Strafford and Sean Stone come fourth, with Whitney Adebayo and Yamen Sanders finishing fifth.

Love Island's popularity seemed to rise again last year, thanks to the success of the US version of the show and a jump in social media interest.

Producers were keen to capitalise on that for the latest All Stars, which saw six American bombshells enter in their own Casa Amor villa halfway through.

Only two of them made the final, including second-place Zac who hit it off with series seven winner Millie straight away.

"Villa USA was the best experience for me and I found this one," Millie told host Maya in the final.

Filming for the series had to be postponed back in January when the villa in South Africa was evacuated because of wildfires nearby.

"Health and safety is our greatest priority and will always come first, and therefore the transmission of Love Island: All Stars will be delayed until a date to be confirmed," the show posted on Instagram at the time.

ITV also used the All Stars final to confirm the main show will be returning for series 13 in Mallorca this summer.

And a source told The Sun that Maya, who's hosted the dating show since taking over from Laura Whitmore in 2023, will also be returning.

Listen to Newsbeat live at 12:45 and 17:45 weekdays - or listen back here.

Film highlights 'virus' of knife crime

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cedzv10yllxo, today

A new film inspired by the killings of two teenagers aims to highlight the "virus" of knife crime.

Losing Our Children (The War on Knife Crime) was prompted by the deaths of Fred Shand and Louis-Ryan Menezes in Northampton.

Gary Halliday, the director of UK Film School, based at Ecton, near Northampton, said it was driven by the voices of young people directly affected, to give them a platform to share their experiences and encourage open conversations.

Jethro, a friend of Fred, said knife crime was never-ending, adding: "We have to speak to the youth. We have to make them feel included, wanted."

A special premiere of the film, funded by Kingsthorpe Parish Council, took place at the Odeon cinema in Northampton on Monday night.

Halliday hopes it will be shown on Amazon and said he was talking to distributors about a global release.

"We want this to be around the world. We don't just want it to be a local-based film as the issue isn't local," he said.

"Yes, it's happening in Northampton – these things happened in Northampton – but we want to extend it."

Jotham, another friend of Fred, said: "People don't know where to go. There isn't enough information or education on what people can be doing with their time.

"Instead of focusing on their future, they're looking outward for a society they can feel part of.

"The key is awareness."

Cheri Curran, the mother of Louis-Ryan who was stabbed to death in Kingsthorpe, Northampton, in 2018, aged 17, said she was "honoured to take part" in the film and described knife crime as a "virus".

"There's no relief for parents and families and communities that lose their loved ones. It's the most horrible thing for any family to go through," she said.

"We can't keep pretending it's not an issue. It's not just my problem, it's not just the police's problem, not just the council's problem – this is everyone's problem.

"I feel like I've been shouting and saying the same things over and over again. Has my little boy gone in vain?

"We all need to do more; the film highlights it. The fight goes on."

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Premiere of Attenborough's 'greatest message'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0mg97y7p3yo, today

The centenary of wildlife broadcaster Sir David Attenborough is to be celebrated with screenings of his latest documentary accompanied by a live orchestra.

Ocean in Concert premieres at the Bristol Beacon on later, with the Welsh National Opera orchestra playing composer Steven Price's original score.

The show, which features coral reefs and kelp forests, will then travel to London, Birmingham, Dublin and Edinburgh.

"After almost 100 years on the planet, I now understand the most important place on Earth is not on land, but at sea," Attenborough says in the documentary.

Co-director Toby Nowlan said: "This is is not about seeing brand new natural history behaviours.

"It is the greatest message [Attenborough has] ever told."

The film was produced by Bristol-based Silverback Films, and had its worldwide premiere last year in more than 1,700 cinemas across 27 countries.

In the documentary, Attenborough reflects how the planet's oceans have changed in his lifetime, affected by climate change, industrial fishing and pollution.

The threats to the ocean from coral bleaching caused by rising water temperatures are highlighted.

Co-director Keith Scholey said the film was "always made for the big screen".

He explained: "The score is breathtaking. Often in wildlife films you want the music to sit behind, in this we wanted it to sit in front."

Scholey added that the documentary was produced as a conservation mission, to try to influence decisions at a UN conference in June 2025.

"It's not anti-fishing, it's a very uplifting film, and there is this vision of the world being a better place," he said.

"We definitely thought we needed to have the premiere in Bristol, it's the home of wildlife films and always will be.

"It's a huge tradition here, and I hope Bristol is really proud of it."

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Plans to revamp and reopen theatre to be discussed

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce8w31w4k33o, today

A council is to make a decision on scaled backed plans to refurbish a dilapidated theatre that is currently closed.

The £15m renovations to improve, improve, update and extend the Octagon Theatre in Yeovil is to be considered by Somerset Council's planning committee.

The plans include making changes to the foyer and cafe, creating a new studio space and extending the backstage area.

Federica Smith-Roberts, the council's culture lead, said: "This is a major milestone for this exciting project, it's fantastic to see the plans being submitted and to get a glimpse of what it will look like".

The theatre was closed in May 2023 for a rebuild, but alternative plans were later drawn up after councillors decided the original business case was no longer affordable.

Under the new plans, seating in the auditorium will be renewed and there will be more accessible places and a new external terrace.

At the back of the building, they want to create a fly-tower, a tall vertical structure above the stage, to store lift and move scenery, lights and props during a performance

It is hoped the changes will mean the theatre can host a wider range of productions with more complicated sets.

Somerset and Yeovil Town councils have submitted a business case to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport to try to secure £10m of funding for the project once it has planning permission.

The plans being considered by Somerset Council's Planning Committee South have been recommended for approval.

If approved, work is expected to start in this financial year.

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'Theatre still rooted in community after 50 years'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd6znq9n2dpo, today

A theatre that took up residence in a former college gymnasium is preparing to mark its 50th birthday.

The Arena Theatre was founded at the University of Wolverhampton in the 1970s as part of its growing commitment to drama.

It grew from the vision of Philip Tilstone, the university's first lecturer in drama, and "quickly became a vital cultural hub" for the city and West Midlands, the university said.

The venue, which marks its birthday on 3 March, pledged to continue supporting emerging artists and diverse voices "ensuring theatre remains accessible, relevant and rooted in its community for generations to come".

Over the past five decades, it has hosted thousands of performers, experimental theatre, dance and music and "remained deeply rooted to the Wolverhampton community", the university added.

"We are delighted to be celebrating this important milestone for the venue," said Neil Reading, the theatre's artistic director.

"What began as a renegade expression of creativity, has become a hub for new and developing artists representing the diverse audiences of our city, providing crucial cultural experiences for the thousands of visitors we welcome every year.

"As we reflect on the past we look to our future and our continued service to our city, our region and our audiences."

Among its standout moments, said the university, was a major development made possible through a £1.25m lottery grant in 1999.

It transformed the venue into a modern theatre and teaching complex and "cemented its reputation as one of the most accessible theatres in the country, which it still maintains to this day".

'A shared space'

Its community involvement has included working closely with Mosaic Disability Theatre, including providing a free weekly rehearsal space and production support.

It also runs the Grand Arena Youth Theatre, in partnership with Wolverhampton Grand Theatre, for 11 to 16 year olds.

The university said the theatre was conceived as a "shared space" for students, professional artists and local audiences and has also hosted some of the UK's most respected touring companies, alongside international work.

Among its success stories Jamie Harley, its former head of lighting who began training at the theatre aged 14, has gone on to work on national productions, including Starlight Express and the Hunger Games.

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Art group connects young women in rural areas

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj6d16j9y3wo, today

An art group for women from rural areas that aims to "get people off their phones and to connect in the real world" has moved to a second location.

Girls who Create has run fortnightly sessions from The Hide Café Bar in Ampthill, Bedfordshire, since November.

Georgia Chick, 24, its founder, said that due to its increased popularity she had started running further sessions at Locanda Gabriella in Olney, near Milton Keynes.

"It's important we recognise that people in little villages still want to do creative things and we need to really start to see a build-up of these small communities," she said.

Chick returned from an eight-month trip to Australia in August and felt there were no accessible and affordable groups for women to make social connections outside of the bigger towns and cities.

She said she had personal experience of it growing up in a small, rural village in Bedfordshire where she had found it difficult to meet new people and push herself out of her comfort zone.

"Every week we've had people that have come alone. That's what I try to build it for, because I would always be one of those people who wouldn't be confident enough to go to do something like this on my own," said Chick.

"There are a lot of returning customers which I'm really happy about because it means people are enjoying themselves."

The group aims to offer a safe space and it has regulars who join the sessions, and there is a cost attached - a "pinch pots" session in Olney next week costs £9 for instance.

The sessions revolve around art, with various activities such as watercolour painting, metal embossing and making leather journals.

Friends Poppy Barrett and Hannah Broughton attended the group for the first time in February.

Barrett, 26, said she joined as part of a personal challenge to try something different every day of 2026.

Broughton, 28, moved from Buckingham to Flitwick, in Bedfordshire, in 2025 and felt the group would allow her to meet new people and find out more about her local area.

She added: "It can be a little bit difficult to find groups, especially for girls, so as soon as I saw this, [I thought] 'got to be brave - go out and try something different'."

Girls who Create does use social media to publicise its activities - for example on Instagram.

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Dame Stephanie Shirley's art collection to be sold

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c77e6ly34nvo, yesterday

The private art collection of Kindertransport refugee and pioneering technology entrepreneur Dame Stephanie Shirley is set to go under the hammer.

The collection of modern art, sculpture and furnishings - which had been at Dame Stephanie's home in Henley-on-Thames, is being sold by Newbury based auction house Dreweatts next month.

It comes after her death last August, with all proceeds raised from the sale of Dame Stephanie's estate going to Autistica - a leading autism research and advocacy charity she founded in 2004.

Among the highlights of the sale are sculptures by British artists Dame Barbara Hepworth and William Turnbull - both of which are expected to fetch up to £150,000 each.

Born Vera Buchthal in the German city of Dortmund in 1933, Dame Stephanie was one of thousands of Jewish children to flee the Nazis to Britain as part of the Kindertransport.

She went on to become a computer industry and women's rights pioneer in the 1950s and 1960s, and founded the software company Freelance Programmers.

The firm almost exclusively hired women, whilst she adopted the name "Steve" to help her in the male-dominated tech world.

In later life, Dame Stephanie donated most of her £150m fortune to good causes, including to help those with autism and to IT projects.

Joe Robinson, from Dreweatts, said the collection was "defined by clarity of taste and the confidence to live with exceptional works".

"From modern sculpture and studio pottery to beautifully chosen furnishings, every piece reflects Dame Stephanie's belief that art belongs in daily life."

He added that the sale felt like a "fitting tribute to such a significant personal legacy".

Autistica's interim chief executive Rebecca Sterry said the charity was "honoured" that it would benefit from funds raised by the auction.

"Dame Stephanie Shirley's life was defined by purpose, curiosity, and generosity," she said.

"Her values and beliefs are embedded in our charity and drive our commitment to innovative problem solving, acting with urgency and embracing difference."

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Former prison to become 'refuge for artists who face persecution'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgl5n2z1j84o, yesterday

The owner of the currently closed Reading Prison has reiterated that he wants to use the Grade II listed site as a cultural space.

The 19th Century town centre prison was closed in 2014 and was where celebrated Irish writer Oscar Wilde was an inmate for two years after his conviction for gross indecency - effectively being gay - in 1895.

The Ziran Educational Foundation wants to use the prison as an art space and boutique hotel that "serves as a paean to unfettered creative expression, a refuge for artists worldwide who face persecution."

"I bought this site for, in my opinion, the history, the culture – it's very important," the foundation's founder Channing Bi said on a tour on Friday.

"We found a new architect – they've made the masterplan. If everyone likes it, we can do [the redevelopment]."

Further details on the prospective development are expected later this year.

Urban landscapes feature in new exhibition

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ceqvj55rgxeo, yesterday

A new exhibition by Birmingham-based painter Shaun Morris is set to open at the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum in Coventry.

Autofictions, which runs from 2 to 14 March 2026, brings together 15 oil paintings created over the past decade.

The works focus on empty and everyday spaces across the West Midlands, which are not typically visited as destinations but passed through, including truck stops, high streets, parks and motorway underpasses.

Morris, who grew up in the Black Country, said his paintings were based on direct observations of the community.

He said witnessing its deindustrialisation during the 70s and 80s, where factories disappeared, sites were abandoned and landscapes left unoccupied informed his work.

Across the exhibition are scenes that are often passed through rather than visited as destinations. Many are depicted at night, illuminated by streetlights or the glow from nearby buildings.

"These are the places I know," Morris said. "Things look so different at night, it's a different experience and I like the quietness, when things look more uncanny."

From his nocturnal photographs, he painted a series of five parked post office vans.

One of the featured works, A Minor Place (2016), shows stacks of crates positioned beneath a motorway flyover against a dark sky.

The artist's work draws inspiration from the book Edgelands by poets Paul Farley and Michael Symmons Roberts, which explores overlooked landscapes such as business parks and landfill sites.

In addition to urban scenes, the exhibition includes paintings set in parks, including The Others (2025), which shows caravans positioned on open land.

Another work features a group of people standing in a circle beneath trees.

Morris said he aimed to leave space for viewers to draw their own conclusions.

He said: "While social context bubbles beneath the surface, I leave space for the viewer to make up their own stories."

The exhibition is part of the Herbert's 2026 programme and will be open to the public during standard gallery hours.

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Aurigny questioned on 'unsatisfactory' finances

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg1v8n04jro, today

Guernsey's airline Aurigny needs to improve on its efficiency and financial performance to not become a "recurring burden" to the taxpayer, its owner has said.

The States Trading Supervisory Board (STSB), which is the sole shareholder of the airline, said its 2024 loss of £6.5 million was "not satisfactory".

STSB was responding to questions from Deputy Simon Vermeulen, who was asking about the use of leased aircraft.

Previously, Aurigny's chief commercial officer Phillip Saunders said the use of wet-leased aircraft dropped by "at least 75%" in 2025, compared to the previous year.

STSB said public ownership of Aurginy was still justified in the current landscape of Guernsey's public finances.

"As a small island jurisdiction, Guernsey requires reliable air connectivity for its economy, public services and community life," it said

"The market has repeatedly shown that purely private provision does not always guarantee that on acceptable terms, and certainly not free of public subsidy, as the subsidy for the new Heathrow connection demonstrates."

The Economic Development Committee is financially supporting the British Airways route, which launches in April.

Vermeulen had asked STSB if Aurigny had made profit or losses in 2025, but the board refused to answer.

"Aurigny's financial results for 2025 (and 2024 comparators) will be published when its annual financial statements have been finalised and audited.

"In the interim, it would not be appropriate for the STSB, as shareholder, to comment on what the figures will be pending the completion of year-end processes."

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Live music stage to encourage summer tourism

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yvl8wgwjzo, today

A live music stage for Manx performers will open on the Isle of Man this summer, Peel Commissioners have confirmed.

The local authority hopes to unveil it in May for a five-month period running until September on Peel beach.

It will seek to invite six local bands to perform in a bid to draw seasonal tourism to the area.

The plans are expected to run to about £10,000, including the maintenance and management of the stage and musicians.

'Exciting opportunity'

Commissioner Katryna Baptist said the plan hopes to draw in investment to Peel, with parts of the surrounding town earmarked for development.

Baptist said: "It's fairly early days but we're getting some help from central government.

"We've also got someone who'll help bring the vision to life and do some artwork - that's fully under way and it should be quite exciting."

Six bands along with their audio and lighting equipment will be funded by Peel Commissioners, she confirmed, whilse other musicians, buskers and festivals will be able to play on stage during the five-month period.

It is hoped local sponsorship will help "reduce the burden on people", Baptist confirmed.

She said: "It presents a really big, exciting opportunity for Peel."

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French tech issues delay border checks rollout

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx24xyjplp4o, today

New border controls at the Port of Dover and Eurotunnel could be delayed further due to technical issues, the BBC understands.

Authorities in England say French counterparts are having problems communicating with the kiosks that scan faces, fingerprints and passports for the new checks.

The Entry/Exit System (EES), already in place at the Kent ferry port for lorry drivers and coach passengers, was scheduled to be rolled out to travellers with cars within six weeks after earlier delays.

The French Interior Ministry said the registration tools were "undergoing technical work that is being finalised".

EES replaces passport stamping for visitors from outside the EU to the Schengen Area, which is made up of 29 European countries.

Schengen Area states "will be able for several more months to use certain relaxations to maintain satisfactory levels of fluidity at the borders", the ministry said.

The European Union has said that member countries can suspend the checks during periods of high demand until September.

Toby Howe, of the Kent and Medway Resilience Forum, said the port and Eurotunnel were "ready to go" but there had been "some technological problems on the French side".

Port of Dover introduced the process for coach, freight and foot passengers in October but paused its introduction for travellers with cars, which had been due in November.

The ferry terminal said it was working closely with its French border-agency partners to ensure a smooth introduction of EES.

According to Eurotunnel, the required infrastructure is in place in Folkestone and "ready to operate as soon as we receive the go ahead from the French authorities".

Passengers have previously reported hours-long waits at some European airports during busy times due to the new systems.

Dover District Council leader Kevin Mills said that EES was a "potential car crash".

"What we need to do is make sure all the systems work, they're ready for the capacity testing, and they deliver because, if we don't, then we are going to come to gridlock in Dover," he told the BBC.

EES is scheduled to be active at every Schengen Area border crossing point by 10 April.

Once a profile is created on the system, the registration will be valid for three years with the details verified on each trip during that period.

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Man jailed after selling £7m of fake plane parts

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c78xz5j848vo, today

A man has been jailed after selling almost £7m worth of counterfeit plane parts that grounded hundreds of international flights.

Jose Alejandro Zamora Yrala, from Virginia Water in Surrey, previously admitted defrauding customers between 2019 and 2023 while director of UK company AOG Technics.

The former techno DJ sold more than 60,000 fake parts that were fitted into passenger aircraft used by airlines across the world, the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has said.

He was jailed for four years and eight months at Southwark Crown Court.

Emma Luxton, director of operations at the SFO, said the 38-year-old "risked public safety in a way that defies belief".

'Defrauded customers'

Planes were grounded in 2023 after UK, US and EU aviation agencies issued safety alerts to airlines that may have purchased or installed AOG's parts.

Working from his garage, Zamora Yrala had bought engine blades, bolts and washers before forging documents on his computer to sell them on.

The parts were used in the world's most widely used passenger aircraft engine, the CFM56, which powers the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320.

Prosecutor Faras Baloch told the court Zamora Yrala had "defrauded customers" by falsifying paperwork about the parts' origin, condition and status.

Zamora Yrala invented fake employees, with customers receiving emails and documents signed by fabricated sales and quality managers, according to the SFO.

The value of the sold parts was around £6.9m, it added.

The offending was discovered in 2023 after a bolt Zamora Yrala had supplied to a Portuguese airline would not fit on an engine.

This led to an examination of the documentation, and the eventual grounding of planes after safety notices were issued on 4 August, 2023.

Airlines lost a total of £39.3m, the court heard earlier, with Ryanair, American Airlines, Ethiopian Airlines and TAP Air Portugal among those affected.

American Airlines did not buy directly from AOG, but still found that 28 of its engines were affected and it lost £21m from the fallout.

Sentencing, Mr Justice Simon Picken said Zamora Yrala used several elements of "subterfuge".

He said: "Your offending was more or less a complete undermining of the regulatory framework designed to safeguard the millions of people who fly every day, every year."

Zamora Yrala was also disqualified from acting as a company director for eight years and will face proceeds of crime proceedings later this year.

SFO prosecutor Harriet Sassoon told BBC Radio Surrey that the sentence "merits how significant this criminality is".

"It's very difficult to tell what the profit was because we don't know the source of the parts and where he was acquiring them from," she added.

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Unprecedented weather behind delays - airline

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5ygpd050g5o, yesterday

An airline has said it faced "unprecedented meteorological challenges" after the weather caused "widespread delays" to passengers at the weekend.

States of Guernsey-owned Aurigny said all four ATR aircraft made several attempts to land on Saturday night but they had to turn around due to heavy fog in Guernsey and Alderney.

The airline said this winter would be remembered for "extreme weather events" after storms and fog caused issues.

A spokesperson said the airline "fully respects its mission to get people home however challenging the circumstances".

'All possible measures'

Matthew Newman, who was travelling from Manchester to Guernsey with his wife and baby at the weekend, said his original flight was cancelled and his rebooked flight was delayed by up to five hours.

He said Aurigny's communication had been "appalling" and he was frustrated by an instruction to arrive early at the airport for a delayed flight.

An Aurigny spokesperson said its staff did their "utmost to provide customers with updated information and arrange alternative travel solutions wherever possible".

"Both the airline's operational and commercial teams undertook all possible measures to get passengers home as quickly as possible in extremely challenging circumstances, compounded by high demand marking the end of the school half-term holidays," they added.

It said its alternative arrangements included the organisation of travel by ship for nearly 450 passengers from Poole to Guernsey, a Titan Airways' Airbus 320 deployed to bring back all customers stranded in Grenoble, France, and bus services laid on for customers to enable travel by air to London and then on to Manchester.

Aurigny said: "This winter will long be remembered for its extreme weather events, including severe storms, and now fog.

"Throughout this period and despite unprecedented meteorological challenges, Aurigny has stood shoulder-to-shoulder with our communities to provide safe services by air and maintain connectivity with the UK mainland."

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Giant tortoises return to Galápagos island after nearly 200 years

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9wn1jrzk4go, 3 days ago

Giant tortoises are roaming the Galápagos island of Floreana for the first time in more than 180 years, in what conservationists have called a "hugely significant milestone".

The release of 158 captive-bred juvenile tortoises onto the island is part of the Floreana Ecological Restoration Project led by the Galápagos National Park Directorate.

The reintroduction follows a "back-breeding" programme launched in 2017 after scientists discovered tortoises carrying ancestry of the Floreana giant tortoise on nearby Isabela island.

Floreana's native species, Chelonoidis niger niger, was driven to extinction in the 1840s by sailors who took thousands from the island for sustenance during long voyages.

"The restoration of Floreana has reached a hugely significant milestone, with 158 captive-bred giant tortoises released into the wild this week," the Galápagos Conservation Trust (GCT) said in a statement on Friday.

"This long-anticipated moment gives hope, not just for the future of Floreana, but for the future restoration of islands around the world," it added.

Dr Jen Jones, GCT chief executive, described the moment as "truly spine-tingling," adding that it had validated two decades of collaboration between scientists, charities and the local community.

The conservation project became possible after scientists discovered tortoises carrying Floreana ancestry on Wolf Volcano on Isabela island in 2008.

Researchers selected 23 hybrid tortoises with the closest genetic links to the extinct subspecies and began breeding them in captivity on Santa Cruz island.

By 2025, more than 600 hatchlings had been produced, with several hundred now large enough to survive in the wild.

The GCT described the giant tortoises as "ecosystem engineers" and said they played an "outsized role in restoring degraded ecosystems" because of the way their activity shapes landscapes.

Countryside 'industrialisation' fears taken to Holyrood

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0e59rqn5r9o, today

A round table meeting is to take place at the Scottish Parliament between community council campaigners and MSPs over what has been described as the industrialisation of the countryside.

Representatives from the Highlands, north-east Scotland, Perth and Kinross and the south of Scotland are among those seeking a pause in all major renewable energy applications until a national policy is adopted.

Bob Hope, from Leitholm, Birgham and Eccles Community Council in the Borders, said people living in the areas affected felt their concerns were not being heard.

The Scottish government said that potential impacts on communities were important considerations in the decision-making process.

The talks with Energy Secretary Gillian Martin and MSPs were organised by Highland councillor Helen Crawford in response to issues being faced across much of rural Scotland.

She began a push back which led to a unified statement on behalf of 50 community councils in her area being sent to Holyrood.

There have been repeated calls to take action to address the number of wind farms, battery storage sites and new pylon lines being approved and built in the countryside.

Hope believes the discussions with MSPs might help to get their message across.

"They are prepared to wreck our rural heritage just on the basis of not having any plans or any structure to the move to renewables," he said.

"Communities understand climate change and the need to play their part.

"However, with not having a strategic plan the current situation is untenable to our countryside and environment."

The campaigner warned major renewable projects risked "destroying our country in an effort to save the planet".

Hope added that in his own area there was ongoing construction on an area equivalent to the size of 75 football pitches around the Eccles sub-station with "more and more applications" coming through.

He said the impact was "very real" but momentum was building to do something about it.

"We are not against the move to renewables it is the fact that it being done to us rather than with us," Hope added.

He also repeated his calls for a strategic national plan looking at where such projects should take place rather than allowing a "gold rush" of developers.

The Scottish government aims to generate about half of the country's overall energy consumption from renewable sources by 2030.

It said any impact on communities, nature and cultural heritage - including cumulative effects - were considered before deciding the fate of any development.

It said that all applications were subject to "site-specific assessments".

The government has also said it is "vital" that communities see direct benefits from developments including through "shared ownership and community benefit schemes".

Council advised to oppose 'incongruous' Tweed Valley turbines

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c99jmykvjjmo, today

A council has been advised to oppose a wind farm as an "incongruous form of development" on the skyline of the Tweed Valley.

Fred Olsen Renewables wants to build eight turbines at Scawd Law near Walkerburn in the Borders.

However, Scottish Borders Council (SBC) is being advised to object to the project due to its visual impact and its failure to properly demonstrate it would not adversely affect golden eagles.

The company has said it believes its plans are appropriate for the area. The final decision will lie with the Scottish government.

The plans will be considered by the council when it meets on 2 March.

It is being advised by its officers to object to the scheme due to a range of concerns.

One of them is that the visual impact for places like the popular Southern Upland Way walking route would not be outweighed by any contribution towards renewable energy generation.

Another concern is that there is "insufficient information" to show it would not "adversely affect golden eagles or their territories".

That echoes the opposition of Restoring Upland Nature (RUN), the new home of the South of Scotland Golden Eagle Project.

The company has said its plans would bring a community benefit fund of £8m and "present many opportunities for the local community".

It added that it took ornithological assessments seriously and did not agree with the level of risk to eagles being predicted by RUN.

It said it remained committed to open and constructive dialogue with stakeholders.

UK puffins in peril as winter storms threaten mass seabird 'wreck'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c043edkn942o, 4 days ago

Hundreds of dead and dying seabirds - including puffins, guillemots and razorbills - are washing up on British beaches in the wake of this winter's severe storms, according to wildlife charities.

The death toll is even higher in France and Spain, where many of the seabird populations that breed in the UK spend the winter, raising fears of catastrophic seabird "wreck".

France's main bird protection charity says more than 20,000 bird strandings – most of them puffins – have been reported along the Atlantic coastline since 1 February.

Since most birds that die at sea are never found, the true death toll is thought to be far higher.

Cornwall Wildlife Trust has recorded more than 270 dead puffins just on Cornish beaches this year - compared to just two in the whole of last year. Other sightings of dead puffins have been reported in Scotland and England's North East.

Samuel Wrobel, senior marine officer at the RSPB, the UK's leading bird charity, said "the sheer volume of reports coming in gives great cause for concern."

The RSPB believes this is evidence of a seabird 'wreck' - a mass mortality event caused when winter storms leave birds too exhausted or starved to survive.

"The last time we saw a wreck on this scale was 2014," Wrobel added, "and after the impact of avian flu this is the last thing our seabirds need".

In that year more than 50,000 seabirds washed up on the Europe's Atlantic coast.

The episode is believed to be one of the largest seabird wrecks in recent European history.

This latest wreck is believed to have been caused by the series of brutal storms that have battered the Atlantic coast of the UK and Europe since January.

Storms Goretti, Ingrid and Chandra in particular caused floods and devastation for both humans and wildlife.

The full impact on seabird populations won't be known until the birds return to their breeding sites in the coming months. But the RSPB warns UK seabirds are already in crisis, with two thirds of species in decline.

It points out that when the first UK Birds of Conservation Concern Red List was published in 1996, it contained only one species of seabird. Today, ten of the UK's 25 breeding seabird species are on the Red List, among them the puffin and the kittiwake.

The latest figures from the Ligue de Protection des Oiseaux (LPO), France's main bird protection charity, show 15,000 birds have washed up in France so far this year, 4,400 in Spain and 1,200 in Portugal. Most are puffins with significant numbers of common guillemots and little auks.

The LPO says: "Mass seabird strandings frequently follow winter storms, but this episode is exceptional in both its scale and duration."

French rescue centres have been overwhelmed, with sick birds being transferred across the national wildlife network to relieve the most overstretched facilities.

Roland Gauvain, the chief executive of the Alderney Wildlife Trust on the northernmost inhabited Channel Island said he believed rough seas had made it difficult for birds to feed.

"Those populations will most likely be UK and northern European breeding populations that have been wintering out at sea and have been picked up in the storms during the last couple of months and bashed around the place," he said.

"Finally, they are making their way back on shore where, unfortunately, a lot of them are already dead or dying as they approach the coastlines and get into rougher coastal waters."

Katie-jo Luxton, director of conservation for the RSPB said: "Mass deaths like this underline just how fragile our seabirds are, as well as the urgent need to build resilience in their populations to be able to withstand exactly this type of unpredictable event."

The RSPB is calling for better management of the fishing industry to allow seabirds to feed safely, gaps to be filled in the UK's network of marine protected areas and stronger protection of breeding colonies from invasive predators.

It also says new offshore wind development should avoid the most sensitive areas for wildlife, and has been critical of the government's decision to award a contract to the Berwick Bank windfarm off the East coast of Scotland.

Luxton says the development sits on top of "a vital feeding ground for globally important species that will kill tens of thousands of seabirds over its lifetime".

Anyone who finds a dead wild bird is urged not to touch it and to report the sighting to Defra (or Dera in Northern Ireland) for possible collection and testing. Sightings should also be logged with BirdTrack, the online reporting scheme run by the British Trust for Ornithology.

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Trump revokes landmark ruling that greenhouse gases endanger public health

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn0zdd7yl4vo, 11 days ago

US President Donald Trump has reversed a key Obama-era scientific ruling that underpins all federal actions on curbing planet-warming gases.

The so-called 2009 "endangerment finding" concluded that a range of greenhouse gases were a threat to public health. It's become the legal bedrock of federal efforts to rein in emissions, especially in vehicles.

The White House called the reversal the "largest deregulation in American history", saying it would make cars cheaper, bringing down costs for automakers by $2,400 per vehicle.

Environmental groups say the move is by far the most significant rollback on climate change yet attempted and are set to challenge it in the courts.

Speaking in the Oval Office on Thursday, Trump said the 2009 ruling was "a disastrous Obama era policy that severely damaged the American auto industry and massively drove up prices for American consumers".

"This radical rule became the legal foundation for the Green New Scam, one of the greatest scams in history," added the Republican president, about the Democrats' climate agenda.

Former President Barack Obama, who infrequently comments on the policies of sitting presidents, said that repealing the finding would make Americans more vulnerable.

"Without it, we'll be less safe, less healthy and less able to fight climate change — all so the fossil fuel industry can make even more money," he wrote on X.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) first took a stance on the impacts of greenhouse gases in 2009, in the first year of Obama's first term.

The agency decided that six key planet-warming greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide and methane, were a danger to human health.

With a divided Congress unable to agree on legislation to tackle rising global temperatures, the EPA finding became central to federal efforts to rein in emissions in the years that followed.

"The endangerment finding has really served as the lynchpin of US regulation of greenhouse gases," said Meghan Greenfield, a former EPA and Department of Justice attorney.

"So that includes motor vehicles, but it also includes power plants, the oil and gas sector, methane from landfills, even aircraft. So it really runs the gamut, all of the standards for each of the sectors is premised on this one thing."

Trump administration officials are stressing that overturning the regulation will save more than $1tn and will help cut the price of energy and transport.

Reversing the finding will reduce automobile manufacturers' costs by $2,400 per vehicle, the White House claimed.

These regulations have been an economic strain, said Diana Furchtgott-Roth, who served in the US Department of Transportation during the first Trump term.

"The burden on the economy results in higher prices and manufacturing has left. It's gone to China, where it's made in a dirtier way," she told the BBC.

"So to say that we're reducing global emissions by ending energy intensive manufacturing in some countries, then having it go to China and India, where it's made in a dirtier way, does not reduce global emissions."

Many environmentalists are sceptical of the potential cost savings being touted by the Trump team.

"It's going to force Americans to spend more money, around $1.4tn in additional fuel costs to power these less efficient and higher polluting vehicles," said Peter Zalzal from the Environmental Defense Fund.

"We've also analysed the health impacts and found that the action would result in up to 58,000 additional premature deaths, 37 million more asthma attacks," he said.

For some in the US car industry there will be uncertainty about the rollback as manufacturing less fuel-efficient vehicles might limit their sales overseas.

"This rollback is sort of cementing things that have already been done, such as the relaxation of the fuel economy standards," said Michael Gerrard, a climate law expert from Columbia University.

"But it really does put the US automakers in a bind, because nobody else is going to want to buy American cars."

While the reversal will help the White House to roll back climate change regulations, there are likely to be unintended consequences, according to some observers.

While working on overturning the finding, the Trump administration also utilised the 2009 ruling to prevent states from passing laws that would be stricter on carbon emissions.

The fact that the finding gave responsibility for regulating warming gases to a federal authority was also used to suppress what are termed "nuisance" lawsuits, brought by individuals or organisations on the climate question.

"The endangerment finding decision has blocked any number of lawsuits, and has been pretty powerful in keeping plaintiffs' claims out of court ," said Meghan Greenfield, now with Washington law firm of Jenner & Block.

"I would expect states and non-profit groups to bring suits, probably primarily in our state courts, to try to figure out where the contours of this new law are."

Challenging climate science

One key argument about the reversal of the endangerment finding will be about the science on which it is based.

The Department of Energy formed a panel of scientists to write a report last year challenging widely accepted science on the warming impact of greenhouse gases.

That report underpinned the initial proposal to reverse the 2009 finding.

But many climate experts complained that the panel behind the report was unrepresentative and filled with people who were sceptical of the human influence on warming, and that it was inaccurate and misleading.

While it's not clear how much the Trump administration will rely on this report to face off any challenges, a federal judge recently ruled that the department had violated the law in the formation of the hand-picked team that wrote it.

In fact, a challenge in court on the reversal of the endangerment finding may well be what the Trump administration is now looking for.

Many legal experts believe that they want the proposal to be tested in the Supreme Court before Trump's term ends, believing that if they win, the endangerment finding will be consigned to history.

"This is really different as the EPA is exiting the space entirely and wants to do it on a permanent basis," Meghan Greenfield said.

"If they were to win that issue as they framed it before the Supreme Court, a new presidential administration could not change that position, in the absence of new legislation."

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Are wetter winters and frequent flooding here to stay?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvgjw0kpd89o, 14 days ago

Areas across the UK from Cornwall to County Down have seen their wettest January on record continue with heavy rain in February.

The deluge the country has been experiencing in the last week has been put down to a blocked weather pattern - a high pressure system over Scandinavia is preventing the wet weather from moving away.

The Met Office estimates that at current levels of global warming, wet winters like 2023/24 have gone from being once in 80-year events to once in 20 - and with further warming this could become even more frequent.

This could have significant impacts for housing, transport and food supply.

One farmer in Somerset told the BBC that he was living on a "knife edge" as his crops were days away from rotting in the floodwater.

Wetter winters more common

On Tuesday, more than 100 locations across the UK faced flood warnings and more than 300 homes had already succumbed to the flood waters, according to the Environment Agency (EA).

The heavy and continuous days of rainfall follow a similar pattern to the last few years of wetter winters. Six of the ten wettest since records began nearly 250 years ago have been this century, according to the Met Office.

The UK's rainfall is strongly influenced by natural variability, but the trend towards wetter winters is in line with predictions from the UK's meteorological organisation.

Increased burning of fossil fuels like coal and oil over the last two centuries has released greenhouse gases like CO2 into the atmosphere, which have warmed our planet.

It might not sound a lot, but for every 1C temperature rise our atmosphere can hold 7% more moisture – this can create heavier rainfall.

At the same time sea level rise around the UK is also accelerating, due to warmer, expanding oceans and melting glaciers.

Since 1901, sea levels have increased by 20cm, which may not sound like a lot but coupled with extreme storm events and tidal surges can exacerbate coastal flooding.

How much wetter could our winters get?

Currently the UK experiences about seven days a year where rainfall is more than 80mm a day – considered a heavy rainfall event. If 30mm of this falls in an hour it typically triggers a flash flooding warning.

But, according to the Met Office, if global temperatures rise by more than 2C (above pre-industrial levels) this would increase to nine days.

Even with current policies to reduce our emissions, global temperatures are expected to have increased by at least 2.5C by the end of the century, according to the United Nations.

As well as more intense rainfall we are also seeing more rainfall clustered together, explained Prof Lizzie Kendon, head of climate projections at the Met Office.

"That is really important, because that can lead to successive rainfall events, [which] can lead to very saturated soils, and as we're seeing currently in the UK, that can lead to exacerbated flooding as well," she said.

What is the damage from wetter winters?

Heavy deluges and saturated soils have the potential to cause significant damage to homes, transport infrastructure and food supply.

In December, the Environment Agency estimated that by 2050 one in four properties would be at risk from flooding. This is the first time the EA has considered how a warmer climate could affect flooding in the UK.

The East Midlands, Yorkshire and The Humber, and south-east England are particularly at risk.

This number, the EA said, would rise if more homes were built on floodplains. The UK government plans to build 1.5 million homes in this Parliament, and in some parts of the country more than 10% of new homes are being built in flood-prone zones.

The same picture is seen across the transport network - currently a third of railways are at risk of flooding, which leads to cancellations and damaged infrastructure.

In less than 25 years this will rise to more than half of the rail network being at risk, according to the government's own figures.

The National Farmers Union (NFU) wrote to MPs in November last year to lay out the severe risks the farming sector was facing.

"Farmers and growers experience both [drought and floods] on an annual basis, and both severely impact their ability to produce food," it said.

The wet winter of 2024 – the second wettest on record – saw the sector experience £1bn losses from damaged crops.

James Winslade, a beef and arable farmer from Somerset, has seen more than 90% of his farm submerged in the recent rains, and said he is days away from losing his crops to rot.

"We can't protect everywhere. There isn't insurance for crop damage. We don't get compensation."

He said he is a third-generation farmer, and that his father and grandfather never saw this level and recurrence of flooding.

The UK does have an extensive network of flood defences but there is a patchwork of organisations - including farmers, water companies and charities - responsible for them.

Half of flood defences – around 100,000 - are maintained by the Environment Agency and 9% of those are currently below their target condition. Each defence is given a score out of five they must achieve depending on their importance.

But previous analysis by the BBC Shared Data Unit estimated that the defences not maintained by the EA were 45% more likely to be below target.

And increased development will only exacerbate flooding – concreting over surfaces for housing or car parks prevents rain being absorbed and instead it runs off into drains and rivers which can become overwhelmed and breach defences.

An Environment Agency spokesperson told the BBC: "As a result of climate change, we are seeing more flooding and extreme weather. Whilst it is sadly not possible to stop all flooding, the Environment Agency is committed to helping communities to adapt.

"Through the government's flood programme a further £10.5bn [will be] invested in protecting 900,000 more properties by 2036."

With additional reporting from Mark Poynting, Jonah Fisher, Miho Tanaka and Tom Ingham.

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Nick Reiner pleads not guilty to killing parents Rob and Michele

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cly3vm7ddjmo, yesterday

The son of Hollywood director Rob Reiner has pleaded not guilty to murdering his parents.

Nick Reiner, 32, appeared in a Los Angeles court charged in the deaths of his parents, who were found with multiple stab wounds in their home in the city's affluent Brentwood area in December.

He wore a brown jail jumpsuit during the arraignment. He could face life in prison without parole or the death penalty if convicted.

Prosecutors allege that Reiner fatally stabbed his father and mother, Michele, inside a bedroom of their home before fleeing. Reiner, who is being held in custody, will next appear in court on 29 April.

Rob Reiner, 78, and Michele Singer Reiner, 70, were found dead in their home by their daughter on 14 December.

The couple died from "multiple sharp force injuries", according to the LA County medical examiner.

Nick Reiner was arrested in Los Angeles the same day. US outlets reported that he and his father had attended a party the previous evening, and engaged in an argument of some kind. Reports vary as to the severity of the alleged row.

He faces two counts of first-degree murder, with a special circumstance alleging multiple murders.

Rob Reiner directed films including This Is Spinal Tap, the Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally and Stand By Me.

Michele Singer Reiner was an actress, photographer and producer, and the founder of Reiner Light, a photography agency and production company.

The couple's children, Jake and Romy, said in a statement after their deaths that they were experiencing "unimaginable pain" following the "horrific and devastating loss".

Nick Reiner's arraignment, which was originally set for January, had been postponed after lawyer Alan Jackson withdrew from the case for reasons he said were beyond his and his clients control.

His new lawyer, Kimberly Greene, entered the not guilty plea on his behalf on Monday.

Reiner is receiving publicly funded legal representation that is allotted to defendants who cannot pay their own fees.

What we know about the search for Savannah Guthrie's mother Nancy

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdex1nlrj07o, today

Mystery surrounds the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of NBC News anchor Savannah Guthrie, who has been missing for almost four weeks.

She disappeared from her home in the middle of night from her home in Tucson, Arizona, on 31 January. Authorities believe she was taken against her will.

The Guthrie family has made several public pleas for her safe return, and has asked for proof that she is still alive, but little new information about the case has been released about the case in recent days.

Investigators say they have been sifting through 40,000 leads since Nancy Guthrie was reported missing last month.

What do we know about the suspect?

Officials have released doorbell-camera videos and images showing a masked and armed suspect on Guthrie's doorstep the night she disappeared.

The footage showed the suspect - who the FBI said appears to be a male between 5ft 9in and 5ft 10in (175-177cm) - covering a camera lens with some plants.

He was wearing a 25-litre Ozark Trail Hiker Pack backpack, the FBI added.

The man's clothes are believed to have been bought at Walmart, according to Nanos, the Pima County sheriff. Nanos told the BBC's US partner CBS News that investigators had been reviewing surveillance video from nearby Walmart outlets.

The sheriff has also told CBS that investigators have not ruled out a theory that an accomplice was also involved in the suspected abduction.

Nanos has said that "all siblings and spouses" in the Guthrie family have been cleared as possible suspects in the case.

What do we know about search?

Investigators have found 16 gloves during their search - most of which are thought to have been discarded by people searching for Guthrie.

However, DNA evidence collected from one glove, found approximately two miles from Guthrie's home, was sent to a lab for testing.

"The one [glove] with the DNA profile recovered is different and appears to match the gloves of the subject in the surveillance video," the FBI said.

But officials later said the DNA produced no matches in Codis, the FBI's database of DNA from offenders. Sheriff Nanos told the BBC he still believed the DNA could play a role in the case.

"I just believe she's somewhere here locally," he added. "I don't know why."

Officials have also found DNA at Guthrie's address that does not belong to her or anyone close to her.

They are also studying a series of apparent ransom notes that may have been sent from the person or people behind the alleged crime.

On 10 February, police detained a man in connection with the suspected abduction, before releasing him hours later.

After his release, a man, identified only as Carlos, told reporters outside his home that he did not know who Nancy Guthrie was. "I hope they get the suspect, because I'm not it," he said, according to footage posted by reporters on social media.

Officers also searched a nearby home on 13 February and questioned a person during a traffic stop, but no arrests were made.

The department did not provide further details about the lead or the residents of the house, saying only that no one was arrested.

US investigators have reportedly been in touch with Mexican authorities about the disappearance and Nancy Guthrie's family has contacted a Mexican non-profit that works to find missing people in the region.

The FBI is offering a reward of $100,000 (£72,000) for information that leads to an arrest.

President Donald Trump, who ordered federal authorities to help in the investigation, has called the case "very unusual".

When did Nancy Guthrie go missing?

Guthrie was last seen at her home in Catalina Foothills, an affluent neighbourhood roughly six miles (10km) north-east of Tucson, on 31 January evening, when family members dropped her off around 21:30 local time (04:30 GMT).

At 01:47 local time on 1 February, a doorbell camera to her home was disconnected and removed.

At 02:28, the app on Guthrie's pacemaker, an implanted cardiac device, disconnected from her phone.

Concern grew when members of her church noticed her absence at Sunday's service and notified her family.

After the family called 911, authorities began a search that soon included volunteers and federal officers from Border Patrol, which stretched into the next morning.

Officials warned that Guthrie may be in dire health without her medication. Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said she was "not in good physical health", but had no reported cognitive issues.

Police also say they found blood on the floor of Guthrie's porch - which was confirmed to be hers.

What did the alleged ransom notes say?

A number of possible ransom notes have been reviewed by investigators, some of which were first sent to media outlets.

Authorities have not said that any of these has been verified as having been sent by Guthrie's suspected abductor.

At least one of them has been determined by the FBI to be fake, which led to the arrest of a man in California.

One of the possible notes was said by FBI Special Agent Heith Janke to have set a deadline for a multimillion-dollar sum to be paid in bitcoin by 5 February, or a higher figure to be paid by 9 February.

On 6 February, authorities said they were investigating a new message. They did not say who received the note or provide any details about what it said.

In several emotional videos, Savannah Guthrie and her siblings have commented on the alleged ransom notes and pleaded for their mother's safe return.

On 4 February, Savannah said "we are ready to talk", telling the abductor or abductors directly that "we need to know without a doubt that she is alive and you have her".

In a separate video the following day, her brother Camron said the family still had not received any contact from "whoever is out there holding our mother".

In another video on 6 February, the family released a third video in which Savannah Guthrie said: "We received your message, and we understand. We beg you now to return our mother to us so that we can celebrate with her."

She added: "And we will pay."

Further video updates have followed, including one that was shared on 12 February that showed images of a young Nancy with her children.

Two weeks after her mother went missing, Savannah made another direct appeal to the person or persons who may have taken her mother, saying: "It is never too late to do the right thing."

Who is Savannah Guthrie?

Savannah Guthrie, 54, is an American broadcast journalist who has served as the co-anchor of NBC News' Today since 2012. She is also the network's chief legal correspondent and a primary anchor for its election coverage. Previously, she was NBC News' White House correspondent.

Guthrie was born in Australia, but when she was a toddler her family moved to Tucson, Arizona, where she spent most of her childhood. She did not travel back to Australia until 2015, visiting with Nancy.

"For my mum to come back and get to see where she used to live brings back a lot of happy memories with my dad," Savannah told the Daily Telegraph.

Guthrie, who maintains a public stance of political neutrality, has interviewed presidents Barack Obama, Joe Biden and Trump.

She has a law degree from Georgetown University and a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Arizona.

She has won an Edward R Murrow Award for ethical electronic journalism and multiple News Emmys, including for an interview with Trump a month before the 2020 election.

Who is in the Epstein files?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cqxynz2l0g2o, today

The list of some of the world's most rich and powerful people with ties to late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has lengthened, after the US government released millions of new files from its investigation into the disgraced financier.

There is no suggestion that appearing in the documents implies any wrongdoing. Many people who have featured in previous releases have denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein.

Here is a list of some of the people mentioned in the latest release.

Elon Musk

The documents include email correspondence between Epstein and tech billionaire Elon Musk over travel plans Epstein appeared to be arranging, although Musk has said he has never visited Epstein's private island.

In November 2012, Musk wrote in one email: "What day/night will be the wildest party on your island?"

In another, from December the same year, he wrote: "I really want to hit the party scene in St Barts or elsewhere and let loose", adding that a "peaceful island experience" is the opposite of what he's wanting.

Response: Musk responded in an X post in January, acknowledging that the emails might be used to "smear my name", but said he was more concerned about the prosecution of "those who committed serious crimes with Epstein".

Bill Gates

Two emails from 18 July 2013 are written as though drafted by Epstein, but it is unclear if they are genuine or were ever sent to Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates.

One email is written as a resignation letter from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and complains about having had to procure medicine for Gates "to deal with the consequences of sex with Russian girls".

In an interview with NPR, his ex-wife Melinda said the release of the documents brought up memories of their marital struggles.

"I'm able to take my own sadness and look at those young girls and say, my God, how did that happen to those girls?" she said.

"At least for me, I've been able to move on in life, and I hope there's some justice for those now-women."

Response: A spokesperson for Gates told the BBC: "These claims – from a proven, disgruntled liar – are absolutely absurd and completely false."

Donald Trump

The US president is mentioned many times in the newly released files, which includes a list compiled by the FBI last year of allegations made against Trump by callers to its national Threat Operation Center tip line.

Many of these appear to be based on unverified tips received by the agency and were made without supporting evidence.

The list includes numerous allegations of sexual abuse made against Trump, Epstein and other high-profile figures.

Response: Trump has consistently denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein, with whom he says he severed contact decades ago, and has not been accused of any crimes by Epstein's victims.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor

Photographs appearing to show Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor kneeling on all fours over a female lying on the ground have also been included in the latest Epstein files release.

In two of the images, the former prince is seen touching the person, who is unidentified and fully clothed, on her stomach. Another image shows him staring directly at the camera.

No context is supplied for the photos and it is unclear when and where they were taken.

Response: BBC News has approached Mountbatten-Windsor for comment. He has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in a public office in mid-February in Norfolk, after Thames Valley Police said it was assessing a complaint over the alleged sharing of confidential material by the former prince with Epstein. He has consistently and strenuously denied any wrongdoing. Mountainbatten-Windsor served as the UK's trade envoy between 2001 and 2011.

Richard Branson

Richard Branson's name appears many times in the files.

In one 2013 exchange, Epstein thanks Branson for his recent hospitality and public relations advice, to which Branson replies that it was "really nice" seeing him, adding: "Any time you're in the area would love to see you. As long as you bring your harem!"

Virgin Group has clarified that "harem" referred to three adult members of Epstein's team.

Response: In a statement to the BBC, Virgin Group said Branson's contact with Epstein was "only a few occasions more than twelve years ago, and was limited to group or business settings, such as a charity tennis event".

The statement added: "When Epstein offered a charity donation, the Bransons asked their team to carry out due diligence before accepting the donation, which uncovered serious allegations.

"As a result of what the due diligence uncovered, Virgin Unite did not take the donation and Richard and Joan decided not to meet or speak with Epstein again. Had they had the full picture and information, there would have been no contact whatsoever – Richard believes that Epstein's actions were abhorrent and supports the right to justice for his many victims."

Sarah Ferguson

Sarah Ferguson, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's ex-wife, who is invariably known as Fergie, appears to also be mentioned in multiple emails, including when Epstein was still under house arrest.

An email from an account believed to belong to Epstein says: "I think Fergie can now say, I am not a pedo."

In another email exchange from April 2009 there is a request to meet Epstein for a "quick cup of tea", that includes the lines: "My dear spectacular and special friend Jeffrey. You are a legend, and I am so proud of you."

Response: The emails do not indicate any wrongdoing. The BBC has contacted Ferguson for a response.

Lord Mandelson

Epstein made $75,000 (£55,000) of payments to accounts connected to Lord Mandelson, bank statements released in the files suggest, including to his partner Reinaldo Avila da Silva.

The Metropolitan Police has launched a criminal investigation into Lord Mandelson following claims he passed market-sensitive information to Epstein.

In 2009, one year after Epstein pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution from a minor, da Silva sent an email requesting "anything you can help me with".

Epstein replied: "I will wire your loan amount immediately".

A separate email exchange appears to show Epstein arranging a place for Mandelson to stay at one of his New York apartments, with Epstein writing, "thrilled to host and sad I'm not there".

Response: Lord Mandelson stepped down from the House of Lords, and also resigned from the Labour Party. He has reiterated his regret for "ever having known Epstein" and for continuing his association following Epstein's conviction. He has told the BBC he "was never culpable or complicit in (Epstein's) crimes. Like everyone else I learned the actual truth about him after his death". He has not responded to the allegations of leaking documents, but BBC understands that he maintains he did not act criminally and did not act for personal gain. He argues that he sought Epstein's expertise in the national interest during the 2008 global financial crisis.

He was arrested at the end of February from his home in Camden, north London. The Metropolitan Police then released a statement confirming a 72-year-old man had been arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office and taken to a London police station for interview.

Steve Bannon

The files also contain many messages that appear to be sent between the late convicted sex offender and one of Trump's former top advisers, Steve Bannon.

Most messages were sent in 2018 and 2019 after Bannon left his role in the first Trump White House, as he was making a film about Epstein prior to his death.

One text exchange shows Bannon apparently strategising with Epstein on how to change the narrative around his past crimes, suggesting "first we need to push back on the lies" and "rebuild your image as philanthropist".

Response: Bannon, who is not accused of any wrongdoing, did not respond to requests for comment from the BBC.

Miroslav Lajčák

An October 2018 text exchange between Miroslav Lajčák - who was serving as Slovakia's foreign minister at the time - and Epstein appeared to show the two messaging about girls and diplomacy.

After Epstein sent an image, which cannot be seen in the record, Lajčák replies: "Why don't you invite me for these games? I would take the 'MI' girl."

"Who wouldn't," Epstein texts back. "You can have them both, I am not possessive. And their sisters."

Response: Following the latest release of Epstein-related documents, Lajčák resigned from his current post as Slovakia's national security advisor. He is not accused of any wrongdoing.

Howard Lutnick

US Commerce Department Secretary Howard Lutnick brought his family to visit Jeffrey Epstein's private island in 2012, according to emails included in the latest Epstein files' release, contradicting previous claims that he had cut ties with him years earlier.

In one email from December 2012, Lutnick's wife Allison wrote to Epstein's assistant on what appeared to be the eve of the visit: "We are looking forward to visiting you", and, "We would love to join you for lunch".

During congressional testimony in February 2026, Lutnick confirmed the visit publicly for the first time, saying he spent about an hour on the island, along with his wife, four children, and their nannies. He previously said he cut off contact with Epstein in 2005.

Response: Lutnick told lawmakers that he was in the region for a vacation, and that in the years since the visit, "I barely had anything to do with" Epstein. He also acknowledged another one-hour meeting with Epstein, which took place a year and a half after the island visit.

The commerce department said in a statement to the BBC that "Secretary Lutnick had limited interactions with Mr Epstein in the presence of his wife and has never been accused of wrongdoing".

Larry Summers

Larry Summers, US President Bill Clinton's former treasury secretary and former Harvard University president, is also in the new documents, including references to meetings and dinners between Summers and Epstein.

In emails from 2017, Summers and Epstein joked about Trump and criticised him during his first term.

"Your world does not understand how dumb he really is," Epstein said of Trump in one email to Summers.

Response: After Summers was mentioned amid a batch of Epstein files released in November, he said he took "full responsibility for my misguided decision to continue communicating with Mr Epstein" and resigned from multiple posts, including his role on the advisory board of OpenAI.

Steve Tisch

Steve Tisch, co-owner of the New York Giants, is shown in the release of Epstein-related documents inquiring about a woman he met at Epstein's house.

In one email exchange, Tisch asked whether the woman was a professional or a "civilian".

In other exchanges, Epstein tells Tisch he had a "present" for him and described a woman he would introduce Tisch to as "tahitian speaks mostly french, exotic".

Response: In a statement to CNN, Tisch said he and Epstein "had a brief association", adding that he "did not take him up on any of his invitations and never went to his island".

Brett Ratner

The director of a new documentary on First Lady Melania Trump, which they produced together, appeared in the newly released files in a photo embracing a young woman.

Brett Ratner, who also directed the Rush Hour films and X-Men: The Last Stand, can be seen sitting on a sofa beside Epstein and two women whose identities have been obscured.

Response: There is no indication of wrongdoing from the files. The BBC has contacted Ratner's representative for comment. He told Fox News he never had a personal relationship with Epstein, whom he says he met once. He said the woman he was pictured embracing was his fiancée at the time.

Peter Attia

The anti-aging influencer and CBS News contributor, Peter Attia, exchanged a number of emails with Epstein, including crass comments, the latest documents release shows.

In the emails, he wrote that his friendship with Epstein was something he could share publicly and included a discussion of the 2018 Miami Herald story that identified some of Epstein's victims.

He also joked with Epstein about the female anatomy and acts of sex, emails show.

Response: On 2 February, Attia made a statement on X rejecting that he was "involved in any criminal activity", adding that " I was never on his plane, never on his island, and never present at any sex parties".

On 23 February, his spokesman announced that Attia was leaving CBS, saying that his role with the network was "newly established and had not yet meaningfully begun".

"As such, he stepped back to ensure his involvement didn't become a distraction from the important work being done at CBS. He wishes the network and its leadership well and has no further comment at this time."

Casey Wasserman

The chairman of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games sent flirty emails to Ghislaine Maxwell, the jailed associate of Epstein.

Casey Wasserman's messages to Maxwell, sent in 2003, show him saying: "I think of you all the time... So what do I have to do to see you in a tight leather outfit?"

Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for recruiting and trafficking teenage girls to be sexually abused by the disgraced financier Epstein.

Response: Wasserman said in a statement: "I deeply regret my correspondence with Ghislaine Maxwell which took place over two decades ago, long before her horrific crimes came to light."

Sergey Brin

Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google and one of the world's richest men, visited Epstein's private island and made plans to dine at Epstein's home in New York City, according to the documents released on Friday.

He also corresponded with Ghislaine Maxwell, who wrote to Brin in April 2003: "Dinners at Jeffrey's are always happily casual and relaxed", and, "Look forward to seeing you".

Response: The BBC has reached out to Google for comment. There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing in the emails.

Ehud Barak

Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak is mentioned in the newly released Epstein-related documents, showing they corresponded on multiple occasions after Epstein was convicted for sex crimes in Florida in 2008.

One exchange shows plans for Barak to stay at Epstein's New York City residence in 2017.

Response: Barak has acknowledged his regular interactions with Epstein but said he never observed or participated in any inappropriate behaviour or parties.

Noam Chomsky

Noam Chomsky, the famed linguist, appeared in both releases of the Epstein files, and the latest tranche of documents suggests Chomsky advised Epstein on media coverage of sex trafficking allegations against him.

In emails from February 2019, the disgraced financier asked Chomsky if he should "defend myself" or "try to ignore".

A response that appears to be from Chomsky laments "the horrible way" Epstein was treated and the "hysteria that has developed about abuse of women".

"It's painful to say, but I think the best way to proceed is to ignore it," the email said.

Response: In a statement, Chomsky's wife and spokesperson, Valéria Chomsky, said that "Epstein created a manipulative narrative about his case, which Noam, in good faith, believed in."

"It is now clear that it was all orchestrated, having as, at least, one of Epstein's intentions to try to have someone like Noam repairing Epstein's reputation by association," she said.

"Noam's criticism was never directed at the women's movement; on the contrary, he has always supported gender equity and women's rights."

Brad Karp

Brad Karp, the chairman of prestigious law firm Paul Weiss, stepped down from his role after the latest files showed dozens of apparent email exchanges between him and Epstein. One correspondence reportedly is said to show Karp discussing Epstein's pre-existing plea deal on sex trafficking charges.

In an email sent in March 2019, four months before Epstein's arrest, a sender named Brad Karp said: "The draft motion is in great shape."

Bloomberg reported that this discussion related to Epstein's efforts to protect the 2008 plea deal he struck with prosecutors, in which he avoided federal charges, which could have seen him face life in prison. There is nothing in the emails to prove that they were in fact linked to the plea deal.

Response: Announcing his resignation in a company statement on Wednesday, Karp said: "Recent reporting has created a distraction and has placed focus on me that is not in the best interests of the firm." The statement did not mention the Epstein files, and Karp has not commented since. The BBC has contacted Paul Weiss for further comment.

Bill Clinton

In the justice department's first release of Epstein documents in December, several images showed former US President Bill Clinton, including a picture of him swimming in a pool, and another with him lying on his back with his hands behind his head in what appears to be a hot tub.

Clinton was photographed with Epstein several times over the 1990s and early 2000s, before Epstein was first arrested.

Response: A spokesman for Clinton, Angel Ureña, said on social media in December that photos released by the Department of Justice (DoJ) were decades old. "They can release as many grainy 20-plus-year-old photos as they want, but this isn't about Bill Clinton. Never has, never will be," he said.

"There are two types of people here. The first group knew nothing and cut Epstein off before his crimes came to light. The second group continued relationships with him after. We're in the first," he said.

In a post on social media, Clinton said that he had told Congress everything he knows.

"I have called for the full release of the Epstein files. I have provided a sworn statement of what I know," he said. "And just this week, I've agreed to appear in person before the committee."

Clinton will testify before the House Oversight Committee later this month, and has called for the hearing to be public.

Deepak Chopra

The files appear to reveal communication between Epstein and the self-help author Deepak Chopra years after Epstein's 2008 conviction for soliciting sex from minors.

In a February 2017 email, Chopra seemingly asks Epstein to come to Israel with him and an unnamed group.

"Come to Israel with us," Chopra says. "Relax and have fun with interesting people. [if] you want use a fake name . Bring your girls. It will be fun to have you . Love"

In another apparent exchange a month later, the pair talk about God and cells of the human body before Chopra says: "Cells are human constructs. No such thing ! Universe is human construct No such thing. Cute girls are aware when they make noise."

Later in the discussion, Chopra adds: "God is a construct. Cute girls are real."

Epstein also asks the alternative medicine advocate: "Did you find me a cute Israeli?"

Response: Since these emails emerged, Chopra has posted a statement online saying he was "deeply saddened by the suffering of the victims in this case" and denied his involvement in "any criminal or exploitative conduct."

"Any contact I had was limited and unrelated to abusive activity. Some past email exchanges have surfaced that reflect poor judgment in tone. I regret that and understand how they read today, given what was publicly known at the time. My focus remains on supporting accountability, prevention, and efforts that protect and support survivors."

The BBC has asked Chopra if in his dealings with Epstein, he was aware of any wrongdoing.

Les Wexner

The 88-year-old retail billionaire, who shared a long friendship with Epstein, is named in a number of files.

The former CEO of Victoria's Secret is identified in one FBI document as a potential "co-conspirator", though appearing in the documents does not necessarily imply any wrongdoing.

Wexner has previously alleged that Epstein stole millions of dollars from him while working as his financial adviser.

In February, Wexner gave a closed-door deposition to lawmakers from the US Congress about his relationship with Esptein and the mentions of him in the files.

Response: Wexner's lawyers told the BBC, "The Assistant US Attorney told Mr Wexner's legal counsel in 2019 that Mr Wexner was being viewed as source of information about Epstein and was not a target in any respect.

"Mr Wexner co-operated fully by providing background information on Epstein and was never contacted again."

For his deposition with lawmakers, Wexner provided a statement that he also released publicly where he accused Epstein of stealing "vast sums" of money from his family when working as his financial adviser. He also described himself as "naive, foolish and gullible" for trusting the late sex offender.

From Venezuela to immigration crackdown, Project 2025 provided Trump's roadmap

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yvvjw8pdvo, 3 days ago

When Donald Trump gives his State of the Union address on Tuesday evening, he is expected to tout his policies from his first year back in the White House.

But one thing likely won't get a mention: Project 2025.

Just months before he won the 2024 presidential election, Trump publicly distanced himself from Project 2025, a 900-page policy "wish list" that some believed was a detailed blueprint for his second term.

"I have no idea who is behind it," he said at the time. "I disagree with some of the things they're saying and some of the things they're saying are absolutely ridiculous and abysmal."

His efforts to distance himself from the document, which was published by the Heritage Foundation think-tank and laid out an ultra-conservative vision for how Trump could govern, followed a prolonged backlash from his Democratic opponents.

But now that Trump is in office, many of the ideas suggested in Project 2025 have become reality.

From a major crackdown on immigration to a renewed focus on Venezuela and the firing of thousands of federal employees, liberal groups tracking Trump's second term say around half of Project 2025 has been implemented.

Washington think-tanks regularly produce ideas for incoming presidents, and the right-wing Heritage Foundation released its blueprint in April 2023 when it was still unclear who would be the Republican Party's nominee.

Project 2025's centrepiece is a document titled Mandate for Leadership. It set out a means to make radical change by expanding presidential power, implementing sweeping cuts to the federal workforce, and imposing an ultra-conservative social vision.

Outside experts say the document not only provided a list of ideas, but outlined legal and administrative methods to achieve them.

"It really is a very detailed blueprint," said Eugene Kiley, who wrote a comprehensive rundown on Project 2025 for the nonpartisan website Factcheck.org. "It sets out how to fire government employees and which ones, and how to take control of independent agencies."

Those methods were front and centre during the early days of Trump's second term, when the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge) made aggressive moves to cut staff and Trump moved the United States Agency for International Development under the purview of the state department.

The Heritage Foundation said in a statement to the BBC that "all policy and personnel decisions are up to President Trump and his team" and played down suggestions it was behind administration policy.

In response to a list of questions about Project 2025, White House spokesman Davis Ingle said: "In just a year, President Trump has made America the hottest country in the world by securing the border, signing the largest middle class tax cuts in history, and bringing in trillions of dollars in investments."

How much of Project 2025 has been implemented?

An analysis released by a left-wing think tank, the Center for Progressive Reform, said that the White House has "already initiated or completed" 53% of the policies in the document.

A separate Project 2025 tracker using different methodology came up with roughly the same figure at 51%.

Proposals in Project 2025 that have been enacted since Trump returned to the White House include:

* A halt to billions of dollars of foreign aid

* Moves to end federal diversity, equity, inclusion (DEI) programmes

* Increases in the scope and scale of immigration enforcement

* An end to federal funding of public broadcasters NPR and PBS

In a section on immigration, the document proposed authorising military troops to seal the country's borders, eliminating protected enforcement zones such as schools and churches, sweeping workplaces for undocumented migrants and boosting the number of detention facilities for prospective deportees.

These are all measures the Trump administration has since implemented.

Trump's foreign policy has also echoed elements of Project 2025.

A chapter on foreign policy, which includes a section on Venezuela, stops short of calling for the removal of President Nicolás Maduro - something the Trump administration did earlier this year.

But it reads: "To contain Venezuela's Communism and aid international partners, the next Administration must take important steps to put Venezuela's Communist abusers on notice while making strides to help the Venezuelan people."

The document also mentions three other South American countries - Colombia, Guyana, and Ecuador - which it says are "either increasingly regional security threats... or are vulnerable to hostile extra-continental powers" such as China and Russia.

"The US has an opportunity to lead these democratic neighbors to fight against the external pressure of threats from abroad and address local regional security concerns," its authors wrote.

The 2025 US National Security Strategy identifies China as a leading adversary and, in a section on the Western Hemisphere, states: "The choice all countries should face is whether they want to live in an American-led world of sovereign countries and free economies or in a parallel one in which they are influenced by countries on the other side of the world."

Several contributors to Project 2025 are now inside the Trump administration, including CIA Director John Ratcliffe; Brendan Carr, the Federal Communications Commission boss; Tom Homan, Trump's "border tsar"; Paul Atkins, chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission; and trade adviser Peter Navarro who has championed Trump's tariffs.

Russell Vought, who wrote a Project 2025 chapter on remaking the bureaucracy and leads the department which administers the vast US federal budget, has also played a key role in implementing the president's policies. Trump even gave him a shout-out during a Congressional battle over government cuts, posting an AI-generated video that celebrated Vought as a cost-cutting grim reaper.

What's next for Project 2025?

Paul Dans - who directed Project 2025 before resigning from the Heritage Foundation in August 2024 to focus on supporting Trump's election campaign – told the BBC the plan is "conservative gospel right now".

"Any outsider looking at this can easily see how much of this first year was set out by Project 2025," he said. "If it wasn't for President Trump this would just be a report on a shelf."

Dans, who served in the US Office of Personnel Management during Trump's first administration, said he felt "gratified" by the number of policies in the document that have already been adopted.

"The real measuring stick of this whole thing is going to be how we keep implementing it," he said.

Dans added that he was acutely aware of the midterm elections and the three-and-a-bit years left in Trump's second term. "The hourglass is slowly running out, and time is being wasted," he said.

And while commentators agree that about half of Project 2025's proposals have been implemented, that means over half have not, including:

* Rescinding approval of abortion pills and a ban on sending them through the post

* The classification of teachers and librarians who discuss "transgender ideology" with children as sex offenders

* A reduction in US forces in Europe and a shift in the US military's focus towards China

* The addition of a citizenship question to the US Census

Dans argued the policies laid out in Project 2025 are popular with the president's base, and said: "I think it was one of the great electoral miscalculations in history [by the Democratic Party] to demonise Project 2025 rather than just tell the people what their vision was for the next four years."

There is also the prospect that Democrats could use sweeping executive powers, which have been expanded in part because of Project 2025, to pursue a completely different agenda if they regain the White House.

"This can come back and bite [Republicans] someday," Kiley said. "It's inevitable. There will be liberals in the White House and conservatives in the White House, it will swing back and forth".

Dans, however, said he believed further adoption of Project 2025 is the future of Trump's movement.

"It really is the barometer of whether Maga lives another day or whether this whole thing sinks back into a storyline where the establishment wins out," he said.

But for liberals currently frozen out of power at the federal level, the way forward might be creating a policy document with Project 2025's vast scope, only with left-wing priorities, said James Goodwin of the Center for Progressive Reform.

"To the extent that there is a silver lining… we're presented with this unique opportunity to rebuild things," he said. "We have an opportunity to articulate a vision for how to do things better and build consensus around it."

Nigeria denies report it paid 'huge' ransom to free pupils in mass abduction

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cewzyqjq2ygo, today

Nigeria's government has rejected a media report alleging that it paid a "huge" ransom to Islamist militant group Boko Haram to secure the release of more than 200 pupils and staff abducted from a Catholic boarding school in November.

Information Minister Mohammed Idris described the allegation, made by the AFP news agency quoting intelligence sources, as "completely false and baseless" and a "disservice to the professionalism and integrity" of the security forces.

He also denied that two Boko Haram commanders were freed as part of the deal.

In a separate announcement, a presidential spokesman has said police chief Kayode Egbetokun, a close ally of President Bola Tinubu, has resigned.

The spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, said the resignation - a year ahead of the end of Egbetokun's term - was for "pressing family considerations".

His deputy Tunji Disu has been appointed as acting chief at a time when the country faces mounting security pressures.

This includes kidnap for ransom, which is big business in parts of Nigeria - with the culprits ranging from Islamists militants, members of gangs known as "bandits" and separatists.

Some analysts cited by AFP believe that the kidnapping from St Mary's School in Papiri in the western state of Niger was led by a notorious Boko Haram militant commander known as "Sadiku", who had previously been linked to other high-profile kidnappings and attacks.

While Boko Haram remains most active in the north-eastern state of Borno, where the group started its insurgency in 2009, splinter factions and other criminal networks operate across large parts of Nigeria's north-west and north central regions.

It was announced a few days before Christmas that the security forces had rescued all the remaining pupils and staff who had been taken from St Mary's by gunmen on 21 November.

In an angry rebuttal to the AFP report, the information minister said the news agency's allegations relied entirely on "shadowy, unnamed sources" and contradicted official statements issued by intelligence agencies and senior lawmakers.

One source quoted by AFP alleged that the ransom amounted to around 40m naira (about $30,000, £22,000 ) per captive, while another source suggested a total pay-out of 2bn naira (about $1.5m) had been made.

The report also alleged that the money was transported by air to Boko Haram's Gwoza enclave in Borno state and handed over to a local commander.

"The assertion that ransom was delivered by helicopter to insurgents, with cross-border confirmation of receipt, is fiction," Idris said in the statement.

The domestic spy agency, the Department of State Services (DSS), had "dismissed this claim as fake and laughable", he said.

The minister went on to say that Nigeria was "confronting a structured, profit-driven criminal enterprise".

"The successful rescue of the pupils, without casualty, was the result of professional intelligence and operational precision," he added.

Boko Haram gained notoriety in 2014 for kidnapping more than 200 schoolgirls from the village of Chibok.

Since then the country has faced a surge in mass abductions, with analysts saying that ransom payments - by families, intermediaries or, in some cases, state authorities - have helped fuel what some describe as a "kidnap-for-profit industry".

A 2022 law criminalised the payment of ransoms, but enforcement is difficult and families often resort to paying to secure the release of relatives.

Security experts quoted in local reports have long argued that official denials do not necessarily reflect the complexity of behind-the-scenes negotiations.

The controversy comes at a sensitive time for Abuja as the government is under diplomatic scrutiny, particularly from the US.

On Monday, a report by a US congressional delegation made sweeping recommendations aimed at tackling what it described as the long-running persecution of Christians in Nigeria.

The proposals were presented at the White House by Republican Riley Moore, who said the report followed months of fieldwork, hearings with expert witnesses, consultations with religious leaders and discussions with displaced communities in central Nigeria.

"I travelled on a bipartisan delegation to Nigeria and saw with my own eyes the horrific atrocities Christians face, and the instability the Nigerian government must combat," he said.

The report called for a new bilateral security pact, sanctions and other reforms including banning Nigeria's beef exports to compel armed herder groups to disarm.

It also suggested legal reforms to safeguard religious freedom in Nigeria.

The Nigerian government is yet to react to the recommendations, which stem from concerns the administration of US President Donald Trump raised late last year about the treatment of Christians in Nigeria.

Trump has said there was a "Christian genocide" under way in the country - an allegation strongly rejected by Nigeria's government, which said Muslims, Christians and people of no faith were victims of attacks.

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

Ramaphosa thanks Putin for release of South Africans lured into Russia-Ukraine war

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2d1j7klzpgo, today

South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa has thanked his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin for helping to secure the return of 17 South Africans allegedly tricked into joining the Russia-Ukraine war.

Last November, the South African government said it had received distress calls from the group of men who had joined mercenary forces in the conflict.

The men believed they were going to Russia for bodyguard training but instead ended up on the front line of the war in Ukraine.

Ramaphosa's office confirmed that four of them had returned last Friday, 11 others would be "on their way home soon" and another two at a later stage. An investigation into their recruitment was ongoing, it added.

Working as a mercenary or fighting on behalf of another government is illegal in South Africa, unless the government authorises it.

Relatives of the men told the BBC that when they had arrived in Russia, they were given contracts to sign but as they were written in Russian they did not understand it was to fight as mercenaries against Ukrainian forces.

Ramaphosa said the South African government, working closely with Russian officials, had secured the men's return home - with most expected back soon.

"Two remain in Russia with one in a hospital in Moscow, while the other one is being processed before finalising his travel arrangements," his spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said in a statement on Tuesday.

Ramaphosa had spoken to Putin about the situation on 10 February, he explained.

"President Ramaphosa has expressed his heartfelt gratitude to President Vladimir Putin who responded positively to his call to support the process of returning the men home," Magwenya said.

South Africa's embassy in Moscow would continue monitoring the lone citizen still in hospital until he was able to travel home, he added.

The daughter of former South African President Jacob Zuma, Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, has been named as the alleged recruiter in the scheme, an allegation she denies.

Zuma-Sambudla, who was forced to resign as an MP over the scandal in late November, said in an affidavit that she thought the men - some of whom are her relatives - were going to Russia for "lawful" training.

"I would not, under any circumstances, knowingly expose my own family or any other person to harm," she added.

The former MP filed her statement with police after her half-sister, Nkosazana Zuma-Mncube, accused her of tricking South Africans to join the war and laid a criminal complaint against her in November.

In a separate case, police arrested five people in December - including a radio presenter with South Africa's public broadcaster - on a charge related to the alleged recruitment of men for the Russian military.

The five were released on bail - and the trial has yet to start.

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

Robert Mugabe's son charged with attempted murder in South Africa

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz9qk9y4d32o, yesterday

The youngest son of Zimbabwe's late former President Robert Mugabe has been formally charged with attempted murder at a brief appearance in a South African court.

Bellarmine Mugabe, 28, was arrested last week after a 23-year-old man was shot and injured at a property in an upmarket suburb of Johannesburg last Thursday. He was then taken into custody alongside his bodyguard - neither man has commented on the charges.

Appearing in court, dressed in black, Mugabe looked calm during the proceedings.

Bellarmine is the youngest son of Robert and his second wife Grace Mugabe. Robert Mugabe, who died in 2019, led Zimbabwe for 37 years before being forced out of power at the age of 93 in 2017.

Searching the property in Hyde Park where the shooting happened, police have found bullet cartridges but no firearm so far.

Mugabe and Tobias Tamirepi Matonhodze, 33, also face additional charges, including defeating the ends of justice, which relates to the missing firearm, prosecutors say.

The victim is in hospital and in a critical condition.

Speaking outside court, Mugabe's lawyer Sinenhlanhla Mnguni provided an update on his well-being, telling reporters his client was "fine" as he remains in custody.

Describing the circumstances of the shooting, prosecutors allege that "an altercation occurred between the victim and the accused inside Mugabe's home".

While attempting to flee the victim was then allegedly "shot in the back and collapsed outside the gate" and the gate was then closed, according to a statement from the National Prosecuting Authority.

The case against Mugabe and Matonhodze was postponed until 3 March when a bail application will be made.

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

'I put my bike up for sale - it went from Fife to Kenya'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c795eexrv34o, yesterday

When Dr Carrie Ruxton posted on social media asking if anyone wanted her old tandem bike, she thought there might be some local interest.

But the St Andrews gym owner was taken aback when a message came in from the national paracycling team of Kenya.

Suitable bikes for blind cyclists and their pilots are hard to find in the African country, and one of the cycling team had spotted Carrie's post.

After months of sorting the logistics out, the bike safely arrived in Nairobi last week, where it could now feature in international competition.

The bike had originally been used by Carrie for her daughter Erin, who then outgrew it and got her own bike.

Last year she uploaded a post to Facebook, putting the bike up for sale. After little interest she then said the bike was free to a good home and could be collected from Cupar in Fife.

Among the expressions of interest that followed was a post from Alice Miring'u, a prominent Kenyan cyclist.

She wrote: "currently searching for tandem bike for racing am in paracycling team and have no tandem bike. It can be of great help to me."

Although initially taken aback, Carrie soon decided that she would try and help, even if collecting the bike from her home was obviously no longer an option.

She told BBC Scotland News: "I had got a few replies, but I just thought what a wonderful idea.

"In Kenya they don't make tandem bikes, so they have to be donated.

"Alice cycles as a pilot for cyclists with impaired sight, and I thought it would be good to help if we could get the bike there."

The duo were able to find a Kenyan based in Glasgow, who sent containers with items back to his homeland.

He collected the bike to be included in his next shipment.

Carrie added: "With the distance you do wonder if it'll actually get there.

"But out of the blue I got a message last weekend saying it had arrived on Valentine's Day."

The bike will now be made suitable for racing, with upgraded components, and then tested on the track later this year.

Ironically, Kenya are competing at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow this summer.

But the work the bike needs means it is unlikely to be heading back to Scotland.

In the meantime it has been fittingly named Valentine by its new owners.

Carrie said: "I tied a tartan ribbon around it before it was shipped away.

"It was a wonderful feeling to see Alice smiling away with the bike next to her."

Ghana drops coup leader's name from main airport on putsch anniversary

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c178n9yxk10o, today

Ghana's government has removed the name of a coup leader, who helped overthrow founding father Kwame Nkrumah exactly 60 years ago, from the country's main airport.

Kotoka International Airport will now be known as Accra International Airport, its original name. But the move has not been without controversy.

Emmanuel Kwasi Kotoka was among a group of officers who deposed Nkrumah in 1966. He himself was killed at the airport the following year during a failed counter-coup attempt.

The military government then renamed it in 1969 in his honour, portraying him as a "liberator" from what they saw as Nkrumah's authoritarian rule. But some argued his name contradicts Ghana's democratic values.

The transport ministry said the government "considered it appropriate" to restore the earlier name. Critics of the move, including Kotoka's family, said it erased his legacy and service.

Transport Minister Joseph Bukari Nikpe has been quoted in local media as saying that the change was aimed at projecting a neutral national image and reflecting the name of the capital city, Accra.

But some have questioned the cost and asked why issues like unemployment and living conditions are not more of a priority for the government.

In arguing for the move, some civil society groups said that honouring Kotoka fundamentally contradicted the country's democratic values and glorified an unconstitutional change of government.

This view has gained traction under current President John Mahama, who returned to power after the December 2024 election, and the debate has intensified over the past month.

Among those who have opposed the name change is parliament's minority leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin, who called it a betrayal of the Volta Region, Kotoka's home.

He argued that the name was one of the few national honours recognising the eastern region.

The discussions have spilled over to social media, with Ghanaians divided over the legal, social and political implications of changing the airport's name.

But in its statement on Monday, the transport ministry called on the public and international partners to support and co-operate with the relevant authorities to ensure what it described as a "smooth and seamless transition".

The authorities have assured the public that the name change will not affect airport operations, safety standards or international travel.

In the build up to the 1966 coup, Nkrumah had faced criticism that he was becoming increasingly oppressive.

Historians have debated the role the West, particularly the US's Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), played in unseating Ghana's first president.

As well as leading Ghana to independence in 1957, Nkrumah was seen as a visionary in the pan-African liberation movement.

After his overthrow, Ghanaians lived through several coups up until the return of multiparty democracy in 1992.

Since then there has been a series of closely fought elections and peaceful transfers of power.

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

Chad shuts border with Sudan in bid to stop conflict spreading

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cm2x1n95z5vo, yesterday

Chad closed its eastern border with Sudan "until further notice" on Monday saying the move was needed to stop repeated incursions by Sudanese armed groups.

A government spokesperson said the decision aimed to protect citizens but added that "exceptional exemptions, strictly justified by humanitarian reasons", may be granted with prior authorisation from the relevant authorities.

The closure was announced after heavy fighting erupted in the border town of al‑Tina between Sudan's Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and local fighters aligned to the Sudanese army.

Almost a million Sudanese have crossed the border into Chad since the civil war broke out in 2023.

Chad is also an important entry point for humanitarian workers and convoys heading to its war-ravaged neighbour.

Chadian authorities said the border closure was introduced as a security precaution after the war in Sudan drew closer to Chadian territory, amid reports that Sudanese militants had crossed into Chad.

In a statement, Chad's Communications Minister Mahamat Gassim Cherif said the move was intended to prevent the conflict from spreading and to safeguard citizens and refugee communities.

Sudan has been locked in a violent power struggle since April 2023, when a dispute between the national army, led by Gen Abdel Fattah al‑Burhan, and the RSF, commanded by his former deputy Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, commonly known as Hemedti, escalated.

A disagreement over merging the RSF into the regular army quickly grew into a full‑scale war.

Chad further warned that the government ''reserves the right to retaliate against any aggression or violation',' urging residents of affected areas to remain calm, stay alert and comply with the new restrictions.

Fighting broke out over the weekend in the border town of al-Tina, where Chadian troops were caught up in violence involving Sudanese armed groups.

Officials told the Reuters news agency that five soldiers and three civilians were killed, and at least 12 others wounded.

Sudan's army has additionally accused Chad of supporting the RSF and allowing military supplies to transit through its territory - allegations the Chadian government has previously denied.

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

South African farmers fear devastation as foot-and-mouth takes hold

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ceqvjwre8vqo, 5 days ago

The peace of lush, rural landscape in South Africa's KwaZulu-Natal province disguises the anxiety that is stalking the land.

This is the epicentre of a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak that has – in the past year – swept across eight of the country's nine provinces, devastating animal herds, with many cattle being killed to halt its spread.

Farmers are fearful that they could lose their livelihoods altogether as other countries take action and stop the import of South African animal products.

The highly contagious virus, passed through direct animal contact or in contaminated feed or water, causes painful blisters inside the mouth and under the hooves of animals such as goats, cows and sheep, and can lead to lameness and problems feeding. It lowers their yields and also sometimes kills young animals but is not harmful to humans.

The current situation in South Africa has now been declared a national disaster. Despite being a relatively small part of the economy, agriculture is a key employer in rural areas and in normal times provides vital foreign exchange through meat and livestock exports.

KwaZulu-Natal is the heartland of the country's dairy industry.

Farms, with their cows grazing on the grass, dot the green hills lining the Mooi River.

Here, biosecurity measures such as disinfection points at farm entrances designed to prevent the spread of the virus as well as roadblocks and restrictions on the movement of cattle, have not always worked.

The herd at the large commercial farm run by Carol Houston and her husband became infected last month.

"We received a call from our staff that 50 cows were showing signs of mastitis and were hobbling, struggling to walk. We did all we could to keep the disease out and spent roughly $380 (£280) per cow on treatment [including antibiotics]," Houston tells the BBC.

"My milking herd's normal output dropped from 14,000 litres of milk per day to 9,000 within days of the outbreak because infected cows eat less and struggled to produce milk."

Milk production stayed at that level for about two weeks until the infection was cleared from her herd of 2,200 cattle.

Now, as the cows line up to be milked, workers check each one for symptoms of foot-and-mouth disease.

With the afternoon sun beating down while the cows snort and moo, the workers inspect and clean the animals' teats, which are then attached to milking equipment. The machines gently suck out the milk and transfer it to large containers.

Houston, who has 35 years' farming experience, blames the government for failing to stop the spread of the virus – an opinion shared by many farmers, such as Peter Griffin, whose farm is in the same area.

"The problem is it's a catastrophe that could've been avoided," says the dejected dairy farmer who has been in the business for 44 years. "We should never have got to this stage… the state has failed us."

In South Africa, foot-and-mouth is classified as a "controlled animal disease", meaning that the government is responsible for taking the lead on measures to deal with it.

Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen has faced a lot of criticism over the outbreak but last month he announced a long-term strategy to get rid of the disease within 10 years.

In the short-term this includes mass vaccination in the worst-affected areas before extending it to the majority of the national herd, estimated to number around 14 million animals.

But dairy farmer Houston is sceptical about how quickly this could happen.

"We were told we would have the vaccine in January, we haven't got the vaccine. We were told we would have the vaccine in February, we don't have vaccine. So the ball gets pushed out, pushed out, pushed out. It's very frustrating," she says.

Any delay could have big consequences for small-scale cattle farmers like Nompumelelo Ndlovu, who has about 20 animals and makes money from buying and selling them.

"My biggest fear is if the vaccine doesn't arrive on time, all my cattle will be at risk and that would be the end of my business," she says.

President Cyril Ramaphosa's designation of the outbreak as a national disaster allows the government to release extra funds and speed up the acquisition of vaccines from abroad.

Foot-and-mouth vaccines need to be imported as South Africa no longer has the capacity to produce them en masse. A lack of investment and a loss of technical expertise meant that the country's ability to make agricultural vaccines ended more than two decades ago, according to Steenhuisen's party, the Democratic Alliance.

The agriculture minister has announced the restart of domestic production, though it will take some time before enough is produced to vaccinate most of the country's entire herd as planned.

A million vaccines are due to arrive in South Africa from Argentina at the weekend, but they still have to be distributed and that is not enough to cover the whole country.

"We are hoping that government will get this right in vaccinating the entire herd with speed," says Ntuthuko Shezi, head of investment company Livestock Wealth.

"If we could get it right with Covid-19, we surely can with this outbreak."

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

Catch of the day: Pictures from spectacular Nigerian fishing festival

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwy6vdl3pxlo, 4 days ago

With their nets at the ready, tens of thousands of fishermen were poised to take part in a traditional festival in northern Nigeria last weekend after a six-year break due to Covid and security concerns.

The drummers beat out the traditional rhythm of the Kabawa people as the Sarkin Ruwan, or custodian of the river, performed a ceremony before the competition could begin at this decades-old event.

Participants had been gathering since early in the morning.

They then began the sprint towards the Matan Fada river, which is closed for the rest of the year to allow fish stocks to grow ahead of the festival.

With their nets flapping behind them, and carrying large gourds, they plunged into the water to take part in a contest that marked the culmination of four days of celebrations at the Argungu International Fishing and Cultural Festival, which this year was attended by President Bola Tinubu.

The fishermen waded through the water, which reached to their chins in parts, and dragged their nets along the bottom. The gourd was used as a buoyancy aid and a place to put the catch.

The Sarkin Ruwan oversaw the competition from his canoe.

Once on dry land, the fish were handed to the judges, who hauled the enormous creatures onto the scales.

The winner caught a giant croaker fish weighing 59kg (9st 2lb) and was awarded two new cars and 1m naira ($740; £550) in prize money.

Other huge fish, like the one below, were also pulled out of the river but fell short of first place.

With roots stretching back a century, the festival formally began in 1934 as a way to cement peace between two previously warring sides - the Kebbi Kingdom, and the Sokoto Caliphate.

The Sarkin Ruwan, Alhaji Hussaini Makwashe, above, described Argungu as a place where people can share their love and celebrate the culture of this part of Nigeria.

The event, recognised by the UN's cultural organisation, Unesco, now attracts tens of thousands of participants and spectators from Nigeria and neighbouring countries.

Ibrahim Gulma, above, said that it was the visitors from across Nigeria and elsewhere in the region who made Argungu special.

Dozens of other competitions took place in the build-up to the fishing challenge on the fourth day, including archery.

Traditional music and drumming also provided an accompaniment to the activities.

The traditional combat sport of dambe also attracted huge crowds.

Fighters wrap ropes around their punching hand, named "the spear", and block oncoming blows with the other, referred to as the "shield".

The aim is to knock out or knock down your adversary.

Back on the water, people competed in the wild duck-catching competition.

And younger girls got the chance to try their luck in bare-handed fishing.

Additional reporting by Damian Zane, Ayuba Iliya and Marco Oriunto

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

How the tide turned against the leader of South Africa's second-biggest party

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c6209vqv3nlo, 8 days ago

Serving in the South African government for the first time, the Democratic Alliance (DA) - perceived as primarily representing racial minorities - portrays itself as a squeaky clean party but has suffered a major blow after its leader John Steenhuisen became engulfed in several scandals.

This forced him to announce he will step down as party leader, opening the way for a potentially divisive contest between a black and white candidate to succeed him.

Race remains a major faultline in South Africa. The ending, 32 years ago, of the legalised form of racism, apartheid, that came with the rise to power of Nelson Mandela's African National Congress (ANC) has not totally erased the divisions.

The ANC has remained in government ever since, with the DA joining it for the first time after the 2024 election failed to produce an outright winner.

The DA secured six ministerial posts in President Cyril Ramaphosa's cabinet, with Steenhuisen holding the agriculture portfolio.

As the former leader of the opposition, and now minister, Steenhuisen was caught between making the government work while trying to appease his supporters - and prove to them that he is delivering in government.

But the 49-year-old has faced intense criticism from farmers over his failure to contain the foot-and-mouth disease, which has devastated South Africa's livestock industry.

The executive chair of the Southern African Agri Initiative (SAAI), Theo de Jager, was quoted as saying that anyone who "dares to voice criticism" of Steenhuisen's handling of the outbreak is "pushed out, excluded, isolated, targeted, and treated with suspicion".

For the DA, such criticism is a major blow as it has long positioned itself as being far more democratic and competent than Ramaphosa's ANC. But it has now come under fire from one of its key constituencies - South Africa's mostly white farmers - many of whom vote for the centre-right DA or the right-wing Freedom Front Plus.

But more damaging for Steenhuisen was the financial scandal that he became embroiled in - possibly the first time that this has happened to a DA leader.

South Africa's Daily Maverick news site broke a story - that Steenhuisen had a default court judgment against him for unpaid personal credit card debt of almost 150,000 rand ($9,400; £6,700) - despite the fact that his annual salary was 2.69m rand ($168,000).

In response, Steenhuisen said: "My personal finances have nothing to do with the Daily Maverick unless you can demonstrate that illegal funds or the proceeds of corruption or abuse of office or undue benefits have flowed into or out of my accounts."

But the disclosure tarnished his reputation - and that of the party - as people questioned how a leader who could not manage his own finances could manage the nation's finances.

The scandal coincided with Steenhuisen getting Ramaphosa to sack Environment Minister Dion George, then the DA's federal finance chair.

While no official reason was given, various reports pinned his removal to his stance against wildlife trafficking.

Wildlife trafficking, particularly poaching, is a significant problem in South Africa and George was praised by conservation groups for his role in championing reforms in the conservation and environmental sector, particularly by calling for an end to captive lion breeding.

The EMS Foundation, which advocates for wildlife rights, said George's removal was a "political execution" and accused Steenhuisen of walking "straight into the arms of the wildlife-breeding sector" when he assumed the agriculture portfolio.

The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals also raised concerns, particularly over the apparent close ties George's successor Willie Aucamp had with wildlife breeders and hunters.

George's detractors within the DA pushed back against this narrative, citing under-performance and bullying allegations as reasons for his removal, while dismissing concerns about Aucamp's appointment, saying it expects "continued progress" in conservation and anti-poaching efforts under his leadership.

The DA also announced that it planned to institute a disciplinary inquiry into allegations that George "unjustifiably" raised the salaries of staff in his ministerial office - something that further tarnished the party's reputation.

George denied the allegations and said he was the victim of a "smear campaign" aimed at covering up the actual reasons for his firing.

He then resigned from the party, but not before revealing that he had confiscated Steenhuisen's DA-issued credit card last year because "the account could not be reconciled", with spending on UberEats, car rentals and hotel accommodation.

Steenhuisen denied the allegations, and a DA inquiry cleared him of any wrongdoing.

It found that expenditure on the card had been "fully reconciled", and that the "limited number of personal expenses had been adequately explained and reimbursed".

But possibly reading the political tea leaves, Steenhuisen later announced that he would step down as DA leader at its congress in April.

He appeared upbeat as he addressed the media, looking nothing like a man being forced out, as he reflected on his political career and achievements.

Steenhuisen's first foray into politics came in 1999 when he was appointed a councillor in his home city of Durban, before rising to become party leader 20 years later.

His ascent had not been without scandal. In 2010 he was forced to resign as the DA leader for the KwaZulu-Natal region after it emerged that the married Steenhuisen was having an affair with a colleague's wife.

Steenhuisen managed to quickly bounce back from that and found his way to parliament just a year later.

In 2014, he became the DA's chief whip, working closely with the party's first black leader, Mmusi Maimane. The two formed a close bond that soured when Maimane resigned from the role in 2019. Steenhuisen replaced him.

Since then, the pair has often traded insults.

Political analyst Sandile Swana told the BBC that Steenhuisen should have never been the DA leader.

Swana mentioned his 2010 affair, public fallout with George and his alleged difficulties in managing his finances as examples of his poor leadership.

Political analyst Khanyi Magubane offered a different perspective, saying South Africans in general may view him as someone who was able to rise above party politics, but in the DA "he will go down as a betrayer to many who wanted him to continue the position of a hardliner" in the coalition government.

Elaborating on this, she said that Steenhuisen's good relationship with the ANC in government was the "core issue" that led him to announce that he would step down.

Magubane said that when Steenhuisen and his party joined the coalition government, "there was almost an expectation that he would continue with the mandate of fighting for DA policies".

"But the exact opposite started to happen," Magubane said.

This echoed George's sentiments in his resignation from the party; the aggrieved veteran accused the DA, through Steenhuisen, of being "captured" by the ANC.

The election result forced the DA and ANC, considered long-standing arch-rivals, to put aside their differences and work together.

The pro-business DA had been a fierce critic of the ANC on many issues, including foreign policy - where the ANC is seen to be too close to countries such as Russia - and domestic policy, where it champions affirmative action.

Despite numerous hurdles along the way, including the DA's refusal to support the government's proposed budget twice last year, both parties have so far managed to make the best of the uneasy union.

This was best exemplified when Steenhuisen backed Ramaphosa when the president was ambushed by US President Donald Trump at the Oval Office in May last year.

After Trump confronted the delegation with a video in support of discredited claims of a white genocide in South Africa, it was Steenhuisen who assured the US president that most white farmers wanted to stay in the country.

Cape Town mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis has been viewed as a favourite to replace Steenhuisen at the party's elective conference, though local media is reporting that he could be challenged by the DA leader in the economic heartland of Gauteng, Solly Msimanga.

Analyst Magubane doubts Msimanga stands a chance of winning.

"As the Gauteng leader he has a lot of support, but Hill-Lewis still has the backing of senior party members like Helen Zille."

She also reflected that, following Maimane's stint in the post, she does not think the "DA has the appetite for a black leader at the moment".

The DA has long been perceived as a party that promotes the interests of whites, Indians, and coloureds, as people of mixed race are known in South Africa.

Maimane stepped into the leadership post in 2015 as the DA was trying to broaden its appeal.

Four years later he quit after the party's vote declined by about 1.5 percentage points in the general election.

Explaining his exit at the time, Maimane said the DA was "not the vehicle best suited to take forward the vision of building" a united South Africa.

Breaking up the party's now white-dominated leadership will be hard, says Magubane, reflecting that the party needs "to appease the conservative right made up of Afrikaners".

"A black leader will not be supported by the conservatives in the party."

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

A seat at the table or on the menu? Africa grapples with the new world order

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2d7wk98xkko, 12 days ago

Africa's heads of state are gathering in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, for their annual meeting this weekend at a time when the continent's place in the world appears to be in flux.

Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, speaking in Davos last month, described an arresting image of the future of international relations: either countries were at the table or they were on the menu.

For Africa's leaders, who for years have been arguing that they should be dining at the top table, it was not an unfamiliar analogy.

But in his second term, US President Donald Trump has accelerated the trend towards great-power domination of world affairs and the ditching of multilateralism.

As the White House's updated security strategy says, not every region in the world can get equal attention. Trump's pivot towards the Western hemisphere, as well as time spent on the Middle East, has implied less focus on Africa.

The less powerful nations, who may have once relied on the norms, as well as the finance, of global bodies such as the UN, World Bank or World Trade Organization, are now having to re-evaluate relationships.

These moves have given fresh urgency to the question of how the continent should deal with the rest of the world.

For Tighisti Amare, director of the Africa programme at the UK-based Chatham House think-tank, there is a danger that African countries will be "left behind" if they fail to develop an effective common strategy.

But already, for the US, there is a menu full of tempting bilateral deals involving minerals and natural resources, which bypass any opportunity for collective bargaining on the part of the continent.

When it comes to Africa, the policy shift reflected in pronouncements from Washington is dizzying.

A little over three years ago, then-President Joe Biden told the continent's leaders at a summit in the US capital, that "the United States is all-in on Africa's future".

This followed a White House strategy document on sub-Saharan Africa which described the region as "critical to advancing our global priorities".

Critics, however, have questioned whether this really did penetrate the Oval Office, with Biden's only visit to sub-Saharan Africa as president - to Cape Verde, briefly, and Angola - coming in the last full month of his term.

In contrast to the official statements from his predecessor, Trump's America First approach has a much narrower idea of US interests.

"We cannot afford to be equally attentive to every region and every problem in the world," the White House's National Security Strategy stated last November.

The three paragraphs on Africa at the end spoke about partnering with "select countries to ameliorate conflict, foster mutually beneficial trade relationships" and move from supplying aid to encouraging investment and economic growth.

For Peter Pham, who was a special envoy to Africa during Trump's first administration, this is a more honest approach.

"I was trained in the realist school of international relations," he told the BBC, "and I'm not delusional enough to think that Africa is front and centre of US interests as much as it's maybe front and centre of my life.

"There's no way any country, even a superpower, can be all things to everyone. The reality is we don't have the bandwidth nor the resources, as generous as the American people have been, to do everything for everyone.

"So we have to husband those resources and steward them as best we can to achieve the optimal outcome for obviously our own citizens, but also our partners writ large."

One of the clearest expressions of this was the minerals deal that the US struck with the Democratic Republic of Congo in December, which happened in tandem with the signing of a peace deal with Rwanda.

It was aimed at "building secure, reliable and durable supply chains for critical minerals" for the US, according to the text, as well as encouraging investment in DR Congo, which has huge reserves of minerals essential for the manufacture of electronic goods.

Pham himself is part of another deal as he is chairman of Ivanhoe Atlantic a company involved in the development of the "Liberty Corridor", a project building new infrastructure linking Guinea's vast iron ore mines to a Liberian port to boost exports of the raw material.

Ken Opalo, an Africa specialist at Georgetown University's school of foreign service in Washington, is worried that the US's transactional, bilateral approach "means that the bargaining position for African countries will be terribly weak and therefore they may not get the best deals possible".

He told the BBC that if "the DR Congo example is anything to go by, the US focus on minerals is about merely securing mining rights for American companies and little else in terms of the broader economic co-operation, which is not what the region needs.

"The region needs deeper market access, investment treaties and the ability to attract US capital for all sectors not just mining."

DR Congo's Mines Minister Louis Watum Kabamba dismissed these concerns. Speaking at a mining summit in Cape Town this week, he said his country was not going to "sell everything for nothing to America".

Of course, the US is not the only big power involved. China, for more than a decade, outspent the US in terms of foreign direct investment in Africa, though this position was reversed last year.

Other countries, such as Russia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates are also striking their own investment and security deals.

The transactional approach is not necessarily bad, Opalo said, but he argued that there is not the strategic depth of thinking going on, or diplomatic expertise, in African governments "to play this game well". This means leaders may go for easy wins without considering the long-term implications, he feared.

On the security front, Africa's failure to resolve the civil war in Sudan, triggering what the UN has called the world's worst humanitarian crisis, could be seen as an example of this, Opalo added.

Despite its officially neutral stance, Turkey has been accused of supplying the Sudanese army with weapons. Iran and Russia also face the same accusation. All have been met with denials, but last February Russia signed a deal with Sudan's military government to set up a naval base in the country.

On the other side, the UAE has been accused of backing the Rapid Support Forces, which it also denies.

"The failure to sort Sudan out is symptomatic of the lack of agency that the continent has," Opalo said.

Ghana's President John Mahama, for one, is trying to shift this assessment.

Mahama, like Carney, also spoke at the Swiss ski resort Davos.

He said that with "an unpredictable ally across the Atlantic" and shrinking development assistance, the world was at an "inflexion point".

"Africa must pull itself up by its own bootstraps," he argued.

In a passionate address he declared that the continent had lost its sovereignty and was caught in a dependency trap. This was true both in areas of aid spending - such as health and education - as well as security matters, he said, adding that when it comes to natural resources, "we supply the world's critical minerals but capture almost none of the value".

The president's prescription, through his Accra Reset project, is more investment in relevant skills, co-ordinated industrialisation across Africa's regions and joined-up continental negotiation with outside partners.

But these are calls that have been heard before and the question is whether there is a greater chance now that something will change.

For analyst Tighisti the "key challenge is that to create a united front, leaders should be more focused on regional interests. Sometimes this means that national interests have to be put aside if they really want agency in international negotiations."

In his Davos speech, the Canadian prime minister called for the world's "middle powers" to act together. In Africa these could include Nigeria, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya and South Africa.

But Tighisti said that while "these are the countries that everyone is looking up to, there is a lack of continental leadership to really push the integration agenda".

One key problem is that many leaders are very inward-facing, as "they themselves have huge domestic challenges that they need to address at the same time".

She added that there was already the framework for countries to work more closely through things such as the continent's free trade area - a project aimed at boosting commerce between African countries - and the African Union's Agenda 2063, described as a master plan for transforming the continent, but progress on these has been slow.

Laying out his pitch in Switzerland, Mahama said that "Africa intends to be at the table in determining what that new global order will look like".

But there is still a lot of work to do to get the most out of the shift in US foreign policy as well as the continent's other partners – the dinner invitations are not yet being sent out.

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

A simple guide to the crisis in South Sudan

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c7933p4xe7po, 13 days ago

Fears that South Sudan - the world's youngest nation - could plunge into a full-blown civil war have intensified as fighting continues in Jonglei state, north-east of the capital, Juba.

Government forces are trying to retake territory from those loyal to First Vice-President Riek Machar, who has been suspended from his post after being accused of plotting to overthrow President Salva Kiir.

Machar is currently on trial in Juba, on charges of murder, treason and crimes against humanity, which he denies.

His party, the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army In Opposition (SPLM/A-IO), has denounced the charges as a "political witch-hunt", and a move to "dismantle" a 2018 peace accord that ended a five-year civil war.

What is happening in Jonglei?

The SPLM/A-IO and allied groups have said they have been capturing territory, including military bases, in Jonglei and other states since the end of last year.

South Sudan's army responded with a counter offensive launched last month.

In a controversial statement, deputy army chief Gen Johnson Oluny urged his troops to "spare no-one" including "children, the elderly, and civilians" when they were deployed to Jonglei.

The government has clarified that this was not an order, saying it is committed to protecting civilians.

The recent fighting in Jonglei has forced at least 280,000 people to flee their homes.

Facilities run by aid agencies, including clinics, have been looted and staff beaten up, according to the charity Oxfam.

What's behind the fighting?

South Sudan, one of the world's poorest countries, gained independence from Sudan in 2011 after decades of fighting led by the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM).

Just two years into independence, a civil war erupted when Kiir dismissed Machar as vice-president, accusing him of plotting a coup.

The ensuing conflict, largely fought along ethnic lines between supporters of the two leaders, resulted in an estimated 400,000 deaths and 2.5 million people being forced from their homes - more than a fifth of the population.

As part of the peace deal, Machar was reinstated as vice-president within a unity government that was meant to pave the way for elections.

While the current conflict in Jonglei is driven primarily by national political rivalries, the state has long been a hotspot for inter-communal violence, particularly between sub-clans of the Dinka and Nuer.

Cycles of violence linked to cattle raiding, land access, political representation and revenge attacks continue to shape and complicate the current conflict.

The SPLM/A-IO draws much of its core support from Nuer communities, while the government and its allied forces are dominated by Dinka leadership. As a result, national political confrontations often reignite unresolved local grievances, increasing the risk of communal violence.

Why is there tension now?

The current crisis was sparked in March last year when the White Army militia, which was allied to Machar during the civil war, clashed with the army in Upper Nile state and overran a military base in Nasir.

Then on 7 March a UN helicopter attempting to evacuate troops came under fire, leaving several dead, including a high-ranking army general.

Nearly three weeks later, Machar and several of his associates were placed under house arrest. They were accused of trying to stir up a rebellion.

"The prospect for peace and stability in South Sudan has now been put into serious jeopardy," Oyet Nathaniel Pierino, deputy leader of SPLM/A-IO, said at the time.

Rather than defusing tensions, the government struck again, hitting Machar with a slew of charges - including treason, the ultimate crime against the state - in September.

Days later, his party ratcheted up the pressure, denouncing Kiir's government as a "dictatorship" and demanding "regime change".

What about the 2018 peace deal?

While Machar's inclusion in the unity government was a key part of the agreement, other parts of it have not been implemented.

The key issue for many South Sudanese is the security arrangement.

The deal outlined how former rebel forces and government soldiers would be brought together into a unified national army made up of 83,000 troops. The remainder were supposed to be disarmed and demobilised.

But this has not happened and there are still lots of militias aligned to different political groups.

The deal also outlined the establishment, with the help of the African Union, of a court meant to try the perpetrators of the violence. But this has not been created, in part because those holding some of the top positions in government are reluctant to set up something that could see them put on trial.

Elections that were supposed to happen in 2022 have still not taken place and neither has a new constitution been drawn up.

An attempt to revive the peace process by Kenyan mediators is being made.

Under what is known as the Tumaini Initiative - tumaini is Swahili for "hope" - the plan is for talks to be held in Kenya aimed at laying the groundwork for credible elections.

What is the problem between Machar and Kiir?

While Kiir and Machar, both in their 70s, were part of the SPLM that fought for independence, long-standing tensions exist.

These have been fuelled by ethnic divisions - Kiir is Dinka, while Machar is Nuer - and competing political ambitions.

When Kiir sacked Machar in 2013, triggering the civil war, Machar denounced him as a "dictator".

Creating further problems between the two are the repeated postponements of elections.

Polls have been delayed four times, leaving Machar unable to fulfil his presidential ambitions while perceptions grow that Kiir intends to be president-for-life.

Who is Riek Machar?

Born in 1953, the 72-year-old was the 27th son of the chief of Ayod and Leer and was brought up in the Presbyterian Church.

As an undergraduate, he studied mechanical engineering at the University of Khartoum and in 1984 earned a PhD in philosophy and strategic planning at the UK's Bradford University.

He switched sides on several occasions during the battle to secede from Sudan, as he sought to strengthen his position and that of his Nuer ethnic group.

He became vice-president of South Sudan at independence in 2011. Machar was sacked in 2013 and then reinstated as part of a deal in 2016, but then fled as fighting resumed.

Who is Salva Kiir?

Born in 1951, the 74-year-old devout Roman Catholic was the son of a cattle herder and the eighth of nine children.

At 17, he joined the Anyanya, one of the rebel groups that was fighting for southern independence during the First Sudanese Civil War in 1967. Sixteen years later - in the Second Sudanese Civil War - he was one of the five founding members of the Sudan People's Liberation Army/Movement.

The former rebel commander, who specialised in military intelligence, was seen as a moderate within the SPLM and became its leader in 2005 after the death of John Garang in a helicopter crash

He became president of South Sudan on independence and has remained in that position for 14 years as no elections have taken place.

How bad could things get?

Last year, Nicholas Haysom, head of the UN mission in South Sudan, warned that the country was "teetering on the brink of a return to full-scale civil war", which would devastate the nation still dealing with the aftermath of the last conflict.

There are concerns that a return to fighting could lead to "proxy warfare in the region", according to Daniel Akech, an analyst at the Crisis Group think-tank.

Any conflict would have two main consequences, he added. "First, the two sides will stoke ethnic grievances... as they seek to mobilise supporters and ready them for combat. Secondly, a flare-up in South Sudan is likely to draw in the country's neighbours."

The leaders of the members of the regional grouping Igad - including Uganda - are supposed to be the guarantors of the 2018 deal.

Some Ugandan troops have been deployed to the country as part of what South Sudan's government said was a long-standing agreement to support the army.

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

Her sons were killed by Islamist militants. She's among thousands who had to flee

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yk3d56dgwo, 13 days ago

Warning: Readers may find some of the content distressing

Sitting in a dim room at a refugee camp in Ivory Coast, Yameogo Aminata, 57, is haunted by memories of the murder of her four sons by jihadists in her home country, Burkina Faso.

In 2022, she was away from her home when the armed insurgents - who have been terrorising communities in central Burkina Faso for almost 15 years - struck.

The jihadists had forcefully taken over her village, seizing cattle and land, and killing many residents - including her sons aged between 25 and 32.

"They slit the throats of four of my children," she told the BBC, her body shaking as emotions overwhelmed her.

"When I arrived, they were killing my fourth son."

Aminata said she grabbed a knife to fight back, but was overpowered, beaten, thrown into the bush, and left with severe injuries to her head, shoulder and throat.

She said her daughter got separated from her during the attack, and she has been missing since then.

In 2023, Aminata fled to Nioronigué camp in neighbouring Ivory Coast, keeping the bloodied clothes from that day as a grim reminder.

"I don't know how to handle my life. I have nothing," she told the BBC.

At least 10,000 people have been killed in the insurgency in Burkina Faso, which also engulfs neighbouring Mali and Niger.

The United Nations has described the region as the "epicentre" of global jihadist violence.

Military juntas seized power in all three countries, promising to curb the insurgency.

They have moved away from their traditional allies in the West, and have turned to Russia for military aid.

Although Russian forces, under the banner of its Africa Corps, have been deployed in Burkina Faso, the insurgency has persisted, with the most powerful militant group being an al-Qaeda affiliate, Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM).

Like Aminata, 60-year-old farmer Hassane Tall fled northern Burkina Faso in 2023 with his three wives and 19 children after enduring multiple attacks.

"We escaped clashes between jihadist groups and security forces," he said. "We thought we would die."

Now living in the Nioronigué camp, he said that leaving his ancestral land hurt him deeply, but he sees no future back home for his family.

The 12-hectare Nioronigué camp sheltering Aminata and Tall is close to the Burkina Faso border. It was established in 2023 by the UN and Ivorian authorities.

Designed for about 6,000 people, this camp and the nearby Timala camp now hold around 13,000 refugees - far beyond its capacity.

UN data shows that more than three million people have been displaced by various conflicts in the Sahel region.

More than 80,000 people from Burkina Faso now live in camps in Ivory Coast.

Expressing gratitude for being given shelter, Aminata said: "I thank the state of Ivory Coast, and all the Ivorians."

"I left my house because we were chased out by jihadists. They said that they want the country," she added.

Similar tales of lost loved ones and lingering trauma echo across the camp.

Some of the refugees are from Mali. They include a 27-year-old finance graduate. He and his brothers recently made a perilous journey in a wooden boat down the River Niger from Gao in northern Mali to the capital, Bamako, then took a bus to northern Ivory Coast for safety.

The graduate said they were forced to leave after their 24-year-old cousin was killed by suspected jihadists.

"He was a fisherman. He was coming from fishing at night as usual. He was attacked by two men riding motorbikes. These are things that happen every day.

"We were living in fear, not knowing if we'll wake up the next day," he told the BBC.

Ivory Coast's economy is one of the region's fastest growing, but unemployment and poverty remain high, with locals in border areas worried about the influx of refugees.

But government representative Djamatigui Touré told the BBC that refugees will not be turned away.

"Those who come are our brothers; we share the same history and culture," he said.

However, the UN Development Programme's resident representative, Blerta Cela, warned that resources are under severe strain.

"The number of refugees has increased tremendously. The majority of them are actually not in the camps. They are hosted by Ivorian families," she said.

For Aminata, starting again in a new country comes with the weight of memories from the life she left behind.

"I still cannot erase what happened to me," she said.

"We just pray to God that peace comes back to Burkina Faso."

Additional reporting by Noel Ebrin Brou

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

'Affront to humanity': Sudan slams Uganda for hosting RSF paramilitary boss

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c20lwznegk4o, 2 days ago

Sudan's government has denounced Uganda for hosting the leader of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), calling the meeting an "affront to humanity".

Sudan's foreign ministry, aligned with the nation's armed forces, said Uganda had flouted international law by welcoming RSF Commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, whose fighters are accused of committing widespread atrocities throughout the continuing civil war.

On Friday, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni said he met with Dagalo, also known as Hemedti, at his presidential home in the city of Entebbe.

Museveni, appointed by the African Union to mediate between Sudan's military and the RSF, said he emphasised "a peaceful political solution".

In a statement on Sunday, Sudan's foreign ministry said: "The Sudanese government condemns in the strongest terms the Ugandan government's reception... of rebel leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, commander of the terrorist militia."

The statement denounced the meeting between Degalo and Uganda's president and said it was "an unprecedented move that is an affront to humanity as a whole, before it is an affront to the Sudanese people".

Sudan said it understood Uganda had the right to welcome whomever to its country, but said Uganda has flouted international law by hosting Dagalo. Uganda's government has not responded to these allegations.

President Museveni summarised his meeting with Dagalo in a previous statement, saying: "As always, I emphasised that dialogue and a peaceful political solution are the only sustainable paths to stability for Sudan and the region."

Sudan remains locked in an almost three‑year power struggle between the regular army and the RSF. The civil war has killed hundreds of thousands of people, forced more than 13 million people from their homes and sparked widespread famine.

Both the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces have been accused of atrocities.

Earlier this week, the United Nations said evidence of horrors committed during the RSF's siege of the city of el-Fasher point to genocide.

Throughout the war, Sudan's government has criticised regional states for hosting RSF leaders.

Last year, Sudan suspended all imports from Kenya after the RSF held meetings in Kenya's capital city, Nairobi.

Kenya insisted it had hosted the meetings in a bid to find a way to end the war, "without any ulterior motives".

But the conflict shows no signs of waning - on Saturday, the RSF announced it had seized the town of al-Tina in North Darfur, after days of intense fighting.

The RSF shared a video of its fighters celebrating under a sign bearing the town's name.

Additional reporting by David Bamford

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

Deportation of Chagos Islanders blocked by judge

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1jk5p0ewx0o, 4 days ago

A judge has issued an order to temporarily block the deportation of four Chagossians who travelled to the Chagos Islands to protest against a deal to hand over the territory to Mauritius.

The Chagossians arrived on a remote part of the archipelago on Monday after sailing from Sri Lanka, with the aim of establishing a permanent settlement on their "homeland".

British authorities served the four men with eviction papers, which warned them they could face fines or jail if they did not leave.

But lawyers representing the men have successfully applied for an injunction to prevent their removal for at least seven days.

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) maintains that the four men should comply with the notices they were served.

In his ruling, the judge upheld challenges about an unreasonable delay or failure to grant the men permits to visit the territory and the lawfulness of the removal orders.

"There is no doubt the balance of convenience falls on the side of the claimants," James Lewis KC, chief justice of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT), said.

"They are 120 miles (193km) from Diego Garcia and pose no threat to national security on the evidence before me. If they are deported they will have great difficulties in returning."

The judge said the British administrators of the Chagos Islands had seven days to respond to the ruling.

The lawyers supporting the Chagossians said they were prepared to go to court if the removal orders were not dropped.

An FCDO spokesperson said: "It remains both illegal and unsafe to enter the outer Chagos islands without a valid permit.

"The UK government recognises the importance of the islands to the Chagossian community and is working with Mauritius to resume a programme of heritage visits to the Chagos Archipelago. This kind of illegal, unsafe action is not the way to achieve that."

They added: "The vessel does not pose any security risk to Diego Garcia."

Misley Mandarin, one of the British-Chagossians who journeyed to the territory, said he had come "peacefully, respectfully, and without threat to anyone - simply to stand on our homeland again".

He said he and the other four men "remain committed to pursuing our rights lawfully, with dignity and determination."

He had told the BBC the British would have to "drag me from my beach" and "kill me" if they wanted him to leave.

Mandarin and the other three Chagossians on the islands are backed by the Great British PAC, a right-wing British political pressure group.

Their visit to the territory is being funded by donations organised by the group, which is campaigning against the British government's Chagos Islands deal.

One of Manarin's lawyers, barrister James Tumbridge, said the BIOT and FCDO "had ignored our requests for permits, but the judge was willing to take an urgent application and deal with it whilst flying over Africa".

"This injunction gives a proper chance to understand when a deportation is appropriate," he said.

Trump pressure

The ruling further complicates the UK's government's ongoing efforts to hand over control of the islands to Mauritius.

Britain has controlled the Chagos Islands since 1814 and evicted its inhabitants in the 1960s to make way for a military base on the largest island, Diego Garcia.

The islands became formally established as an overseas territory in 1965, after the British government paid Mauritius a £3m grant to retain the archipelago.

But last year, the UK government agreed to hand over control of the islands to Mauritius, arguing the future of the military base had been threatened by recent international court decisions.

Under the deal, the UK has agreed to pay £101m annually for 99 years to keep control of the UK-US military base.

The deal is now in doubt, after US President Donald Trump posted on his Truth Social platform to urge Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to not "give away Diego Garcia".

The deal has also not gone down well with many people of Chagossian descent, who were granted the right to claim British citizenship in 2022.

Many Chagossians see the deal as a betrayal and want to see the UK retain sovereignty over the islands so they can one day return to their homeland.

But while many do oppose the deal, Chagossians - who live in the UK, Mauritius and the Seychelles - do not speak with one voice.

Rare prison sentences handed to Cameroon soldiers after killing of 21 civilians

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cev74dywd7eo, 4 days ago

Three Cameroonian soldiers have been sentenced to prison for their role in the killing of at least 21 civilians in the country's troubled Anglophone region.

The jail terms for the crimes, which took place six years ago in the Northwest region, range from five to 10 years per person.

A military court previously found the soldiers guilty of murder, arson and destruction - a rare occurrence in a country where military personnel are seldom convicted of crimes against civilians.

Nevertheless, lawyers for the victims told the BBC they were disappointed with the length of the jail terms handed down on Thursday, calling them "insignificant".

The convictions centre on the events of 14 February 2020, when soldiers, supported by a local militia of ethnic Fulanis, raided the village of Ngarbuh and killed civilians.

The victims included 13 children, according to Human Rights Watch, who added that the assailants burnt down homes and beat up residents.

What followed was a rare instance of Cameroon's government acknowledging the atrocities of its soldiers in the Anglophone regions, which have been wracked by a separatist conflict for nearly 10 years.

The authorities initially denied responsibility for the attack on Ngarbuh but later backpedalled following international pressure and the findings of an investigation ordered by the country's President, Paul Biya.

Alongside the three soldiers sentenced on Thursday evening, a militia member also received a jail term for murder, arson and destruction.

One of the victims' lawyers, Sother Menkem, told the BBC: "The sentence was so mild, I even qualify it as friendly because we are talking of a massacre."

Menkem pointed out that under Cameroonian law, the minimum sentence for felonies such as murder and arson is 10 years.

"I expected at least 30 years' imprisonment or more because [the soldiers] instilled much fear on the inhabitants of that area," he said.

The soldiers' lawyers argued that their clients were merely doing their job.

A man who lost several relatives in the February 2020 attack told the BBC he needed time to process the court's decision.

He has since moved out of the conflict-hit region for safety reasons.

The military court rejected the victims' demand for compensation, a move decried by another of their lawyers, Richard Tamfu.

Human Rights Watch and legal representatives of the victims have insisted that the soldiers were acting on the instructions from their superiors and therefore criticise the fact that no senior military officer was prosecuted at the trial.

The case dragged on for six years after hearings were postponed multiple times.

Since 2017, separatist fighters in the country's two English-speaking regions have been campaigning for the creation of a breakaway state.

Human rights groups have accused both the rebels and state forces of committing widespread abuses.

The UN says the conflict has killed at least 6,000 people and forced over half a million others to flee their homes.

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

Landmark royal commission into antisemitism prompted by Bondi shooting begins

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c743dzvp73xo, today

Australia's royal commission into antisemitism, prompted after the Bondi Beach shootings that killed 15 people and injured 40, has begun public hearings.

The federal commission - the country's most powerful form of public inquiry - will investigate the prevalence and key drivers of antisemitism and make recommendations to government.

Headed by former High Court Justice Virginia Bell, the inquiry - which started on Tuesday - will also examine the events leading up to the attack, which was Australia's worst mass shooting in decades.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had resisted calls for a federal inquiry, saying it would hinder social cohesion but later bowed to public pressure.

"I acknowledge the importance of addressing antisemitism within the Australian community," Bell said in a statement last week.

"I plan to conduct the inquiry as expeditiously as possible."

The commissioner is expected to hand down an interim report by the end of April, and a full report no later than the first anniversary of the attack, which took place on 14 December last year.

She will outline the parameters of the inquiry on Tuesday before a brief opening statement from the counsel assisting the inquiry.

The probe is expected to later hear from security agencies and intelligence services, as well as families of victims and survivors of the attack.

One of the gunmen, Sajid Akram, 50, was shot dead by police at the scene of the shootings.

His son Naveed Akram - the other alleged attacker - was critically injured and later transferred from hospital to prison.

The 24-year-old appeared in court last week for the first time, facing 59 charges, including 15 counts of murder and one of committing a terrorist attack.

In light of the ongoing criminal case, the royal commission has been instructed to avoid matters that might prejudice current and future court proceedings. This may mean some hearings are conducted behind closed doors.

In the immediate aftermath of the shootings, Albanese announced a review by a former spy chief to look at what federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies did in the lead-up to the attack and what improvements could be made.

He said that review, alongside a royal commission called by the state of New South Wales, would be the best way to respond to the attacks and that a federal inquiry would give a platform to antisemitic hate speech.

However Albanese was forced to reverse his decision amid continued calls by prominent Jewish leaders and a number of the families affected - which were echoed by the opposition leader at the time.

As a result, the the review into federal law enforcement and agencies will be folded into the royal commission and the NSW inquiry was cancelled.

The shootings also prompted a raft of new gun laws and crackdown on hate speech, as well as greater powers to limit protests.

The commission comes amid an already fraught debate raging in Australia over Israel, Gaza and antisemitism.

Earlier this month, a rally against a visit by Israeli president Isaac Herzog was marred by violent scuffles between police and protestors. Herzog had been invited by Albanese as a comfort to the families affected by the Bondi attack, but his visit was opposed by thousands of Australians over his government's actions in Gaza.

Briton among 19 killed in Nepal bus crash

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c39wz97y90no, yesterday

A 24-year-old British man is among 19 people who were killed in a bus crash in Nepal, police say.

The bus - which had been carrying tourists - had been travelling to the capital, Kathmandu, when it lost control and fell 200m on to the bank of the Trishuli river, in the country's central Dhading district, in the early hours of Monday morning.

There were 44 people onboard including the driver, 25 of whom suffered injuries. The bus had been travelling from Pokhara, a popular tourist spot.

Nepal's Home Ministry has created a five-member taskforce to investigate the cause of the incident. The UK Foreign Office said it was assisting the family of the Briton who was killed.

Nepalese authorities identified him as Stewart Dominic Ethan. His name has not been confirmed by the Foreign Office.

Nepalese police say they have identified all 19 bodies, including a 40-year-old Chinese woman and a 32-year-old man from India. Among the injured is a Chinese national and a New Zealander.

All the injured had been taken to hospitals in the capital, they added. Children were among those onboard.

Multiple teams were sent to the site, including police units, the army and a rescue team of divers, authorities said.

Police spokesman Abinarayan Kafle said 17 people died at the scene, with two more dying while receiving treatment, BBC Nepali reported.

Road accidents are relatively commonplace in Nepal, due to a range of factors including poor road maintenance and narrow paths in mountainous areas.

In 2024, at least 14 people died after a bus travelling from Pokhara to Kathmandu fell into the Marsyangdi river in the Tanahun district.

"We are supporting the family of a British man who has died in Nepal and are in contact with the local authorities," a Foreign Office spokesman told the BBC.

Nepal is a popular destination for many international visitors, especially climbers, who travel there to access a key section of the Himalaya mountain range that includes Mount Everest.

Home to eight of the world's tallest peaks, mountaineering is a significant source of revenue for the country - in 2024, climbing fees brought in $5.9m (£4.4m).

Australia backs removing Andrew from royal line of succession

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cr5lrny83dgo, yesterday

Australia's prime minister has told Sir Keir Starmer his government would back plans to remove Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor from the line of royal succession.

Anthony Albanese expressed his support for such a proposal in a letter to the UK prime minister.

Andrew remains eighth in line to the throne despite being stripped of his titles, including "prince", in October amid pressure over his ties to paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.

The UK government is considering introducing legislation to remove him from the line of succession. It follows Andrew's arrest on suspicion of misconduct in public office on Thursday. He has consistently and strenuously denied any wrongdoing.

The former prince was released under investigation 11 hours after his arrest by Thames Valley Police.

Removing Andrew from the line of succession would require an act of Parliament supported by the 14 Commonwealth countries where King Charles III, his brother, is head of state, including Australia.

Albanese's letter reads: "Dear Prime Minister Starmer, in light of recent events concerning Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, I am writing to confirm that my government would agree to any proposal to remove him from the line of royal succession.

"I agree with His Majesty that the law must now take its full course and there must be a full, fair and proper investigation.

"These are grave allegations and Australians take them seriously."

Speaking after his brother Andrew's arrest, King Charles had said: "What now follows is the full, fair and proper process by which this issue is investigated in the appropriate manner and by the appropriate authorities."

A spokesman for the UK prime minister confirmed the letter had been received and said the government was "considering whether further steps are required in relation to Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor".

"Given the ongoing police investigation it would not be appropriate for the government to comment further at this stage," the spokesman added.

Darren Jones, chief secretary to the prime minister, told MPs on Monday that the government was "not ruling out action in respect of the line of succession at this stage".

Removing Andrew from the line of succession would require an act of Parliament approved by MPs and peers, and would come into effect when given royal assent by the King.

Canada, Jamaica and New Zealand are among the Commonwealth countries who would also need to support it.

The last time someone was removed from the line of succession by an act of Parliament was in 1936, when the former Edward VIII and his descendants were removed due to his abdication.

Buckingham Palace has not publicly commented on the government's consideration of legislation to remove Andrew from the line of succession.

On Friday, Defence Minister Luke Pollard told the BBC that the move - which would prevent Andrew from ever becoming King - was the "right thing to do," regardless of the outcome of the police investigation.

Chief Secretary to the Treasury James Murray meanwhile said "any questions in that sphere would be quite complicated", adding that the live police investigation needed to "play out".

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said on Monday that Parliament should not pass legislation to remove the former prince from the line of succession "until the police have finished their jobs". He also cautioned against a "trial by media".

The former prince was arrested at 08:00 GMT on Thursday at Sandringham, the King's Norfolk estate where Andrew has been living since leaving his Windsor home, Royal Lodge, in early February.

Police searches at Sandringham concluded late on Thursday. It is understood they continued at the 30-room property in Windsor over the weekend, where several unmarked police cars were seen on Saturday.

Andrew has previously denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein. He has not responded to the BBC's requests for comment on specific allegations that have emerged after the US release of millions of files in January connected to the late financier's case.

ICC judges hear charges against ex-Philippine president Duterte: What you need to know

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c363xd6p1gxo, today

The International Criminal Court is holding a hearing to determine whether former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte should stand trial for crimes against humanity committed during his bloody "war on drugs".

The campaign, which Duterte waged as a city mayor and then throughout his six-year presidency, saw the extrajudicial killings of tens of thousands of alleged dealers, users and others, human rights groups say. ICC prosecutors allege he was involved in at least 76 murders and have charged him with three counts of crimes against humanity.

Duterte, 80, drew international condemnation over the campaign, but was unfazed, at one point saying he'd be "happy to slaughter" millions of "drug addicts" who he said were destroying the country.

"Duterte's so-called war on drugs resulted in the killings of thousands of civilians and many of these victims were children," prosecutor Mame Niang told the judges on Monday, calling for Duterte to be held to account. The proceedings were "a reminder that those in power are not above the law", he said.

Duterte waived his right to be present in the courtroom, saying he does not recognise the ICC's authority. He maintains his innocence, his lawyer said.

The hearing will be held over four days, after which ICC judges must decide if there is enough evidence to proceed to a full trial.

Who is Rodrigo Duterte?

Duterte was elected president of the Philippines in 2016, having promised to eradicate street crime by cracking down on illegal drugs. He had built a reputation for being tough against crime as mayor of Davao, a sprawling southern metropolis, and said peace and order were necessary to spur investments.

Despite his contentious legacy, his presidential campaign and strongman style proved hugely popular in a country with rampant drug issues. He frequently portrayed himself as a political outsider, and promised to champion the interest of Filipinos in the provinces who felt marginalised by Manila's elite.

Duterte is also notorious for his shocking rhetoric. He has been known to make sexist remarks, previously cursed at the late Pope Francis and former US president Barack Obama, and once compared himself to Hitler.

He has remained staunchly unapologetic about his drug crackdown over the years, saying in a video filmed as he was being taken to The Hague: "What is the law and what is the crime that I committed?"

Despite being in jail at The Hague, he remains popular, especially in Davao where he won the 2025 mayoral race by a landslide.

His daughter, Sara, is the current vice-president, while his son, Sebastian, is vice-mayor of Davao, currently serving as acting mayor.

Shortly after his father's hearing commenced on 23 February, Sebastian Duterte condemned it.

"Let's call this what it is - not justice, not accountability, but selective prosecution dressed up as moral superiority," he wrote on Facebook.

The older Duterte is the first Asian former head of state to be indicted by the ICC.

Families of drug war victims staged a protest on 23 February before watching Duterte's Confirmation of Charges hearing.

What is the case against Duterte?

Duterte is accused of "crimes against humanity" for murder and attempted murder, as well as other offences between 1 November 2011 and 16 March 2019, when he withdrew the Philippines from the jurisdiction of the ICC.

During this period, which straddled his time both as Davao mayor and the first half of his six-year presidential term, he is accused of acting as an "indirect co-perpetrator" who used others as tools to kill.

Prosecutors claim he used police officers and hired hitmen to "neutralise" people branded as criminals, and the tactic was part of his flagship anti-drug drive called Operation Double Barrel.

As president, Duterte openly encouraged the police to shoot and kill suspected drug dealers and users. The killings, which often involved people being gunned down on the streets or in alleys by unidentified men, sparked outrage.

Human rights monitors say the campaign targeted small-time pushers from the country's urban poor, while failing to bring big-time dealers and kingpins to justice. They also say suspects were summarily executed.

The true toll will never be known, although some rights groups believe as many as 30,000 people were killed in the campaign.

Duterte has denied the allegations - condemning the charges against him as "an outrageous lie"- as have his officials. The police have always insisted that they only killed in self-defence.

Duterte has refused to recognise the ICC proceedings, arguing that during his term, the country pulled out of the Rome Statute, the international agreement that established the ICC.

What led to his arrest?

Duterte's arrest and deportation last March was the result of a dramatic chain of events - precipitated by a falling out between his daughter, Sara, and his successor, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

The Marcos and Duterte families had formed a formidable alliance in the 2022 election to solidify their support bases, but later feuded as they pursued divergent political paths.

Marcos had previously refused to co-operate with the ICC investigation, categorically declaring that the Philippines "will not cooperate" with the Court "in any way, shape, or form".

But as his relationship with the Duterte family deteriorated, he changed his stance. Duterte's supporters now allege that Marcos is using the ICC as a political tool.

The arrest shocked the nation. Duterte was apprehended at Manila airport after arriving from Hong Kong and hours later was flown to The Hague, where he is detained to this day.

The whole process of his extradition, from his detention in Manila to his arrival in The Hague, has been documented on social media by his daughter Kitty - as well as by Duterte himself, through his aide.

Over the course of more than 24 hours during his transit from Manila to The Hague, Duterte shared to Facebook a series of videos which allowed the world to follow the details of his journey - right down to the meals he was served on board his chartered jet.

These provided rare insight into what is usually an opaque process.

Why is the Duterte case important?

In the Philippines, the case is part of a broader power struggle between the Duterte and Marcos families.

The son of the ruthless dictator Ferdinand Marcos and his wife Imelda, Marcos Jr had a political career charted out for him by his parents – but this was derailed by a revolution in 1986 led to the family's downfall.

In the 1990s, Marcos became a provincial governor, congressman and senator, before running and winning the presidential race in 2022 after striking a deal with the Dutertes and making Sara his vice-president.

The Duterte-Marcos alliance of 2022 had resurrected the Marcos dynasty - but there was not enough power to share after the election victory, and the so-called UniTeam alliance quickly unravelled.

As the feud heated up, Marcos allowed authorities to arrest the elder Duterte and bring him to The Hague.

More recently, Sara Duterte declared her intention to run for president in 2028, an election where Marcos is barred from seeking re-election because the country's presidents are not allowed to serve more than one term.

For the ICC, the Duterte case is a test of the court's ability to prosecute a former head of state over domestic policies.

It is a court of last resort designed to hold the most powerful to account when domestic courts are unable or unwilling to do so. However, it has no power to arrest people without the co-operation of the countries they are in.

What is the timeline of the Duterte case?

The confirmation of charges hearing that started on Monday will be held over four days.

After that, the ICC has 60 days to issue a written decision on whether there is enough evidence to bring the case to a full trial.

It took almost a year from Duterte's arrest for the pre-trial confirmation of charges to start.

Duterte announced last week that he would not be present at this week's hearing, saying he is "old, tired and frail" - and before Monday, the court heard petitions by his lawyers to stop the proceedings for health reasons.

The court ruled that Duterte is fit to participate. He was absent for the first day of the trial, however.

'We pray for peace': Indian filmmaker from troubled state who won a Bafta

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c6268292086o, today

An Indian director who won a Bafta for her debut film has been winning hearts in her home country for using the global stage to speak about peace and forgiveness.

Lakshmipriya Devi's Boong - a Manipuri-language coming-of-age film - won the Best Children's & Family Film award on Sunday, beating high-profile international contenders such as Zootopia 2, Lilo & Stitch and the French sci-fi film Arco. It is the first Indian film to win a Bafta in this category.

The Bafta win and Devi's acceptance speech brought the spotlight on both the film and her troubled homeland - the north-eastern Indian state of Manipur where ethnic tensions and violence have left more than 260 people dead and tens of thousands displaced since the summer of 2023.

Boong wrapped up filming before the ethnic conflict began. But the recognition comes as Manipur still grapples with its aftermath.

Accepting the award from Paddington Bear, Devi described Boong as being "rooted in a place that's very troubled, very much ignored and very under-represented in India - my homeland, Manipur".

The film, centred on a schoolboy's search for his missing father, has got accolades at international film festivals and glowing reviews from critics, but not much mainstream attention in India.

That is partly because smaller independent films often get limited distribution in Indian cinemas. Films from northeastern states such as Manipur face more hurdles because of a smaller domestic market and limited integration into the country's mainstream Hindi-language film industry.

At its heart, Boong follows a mischievous young boy, Brojendro "Boong" Singh, played by Gugun Kipgen, who lives with his mother in Manipur's capital city, Imphal. His father, who left home to run a furniture shop in Moreh, a border town near Myanmar, has stopped contacting the family.

Refusing to believe rumours of his father's death, Boong decides to bring him home as a "gift" for his mother. With the help of his best friend Raju, he embarks on a journey in search of answers.

Devi told the Indian Express newspaper in 2024 that she wanted her film to begin like a grandmother's story: "Once upon a time, there was a boy named Boong."

While the feature unfolds through a child's eyes, it also touches upon weighty issues including long-standing ethnic tensions, migration, political suspicion and militarisation of the state, which shares a border with Myanmar, over the years.

The film feels particularly poignant when viewed with the knowledge of the conflict which came after it was shot. In May 2023, violence erupted between the Meitei majority and Kuki-Zo communities over issues including identity, land and political representation.

Since then, the communities have largely remained segregated even as political negotiations and rehabilitation efforts continue.

It was against this backdrop that Devi used the Bafta stage to call for peace on Sunday.

"We pray that all the internally displaced children, including the child actors in the film, regain their joy, their innocence, and their dreams once again," she said.

"We pray that no conflict is ever formidable enough to destroy the one super power that all of us have as human beings - that is forgiveness," she added.

Gugun Kipgen, 12, who plays Boong, is from the Kuki-Zo community and portrays a Meitei character in the movie.

And Boong's best friend Raju is from the Marwari community, which originates in present-day western Rajasthan state and has migrated across large parts of South Asia. They are often perceived as "mainlanders" or outsiders in the northeast.

A review in The Hollywood Reporter India noted that Boong "trusts its personal story to convey the history of a place without exoticising it", and that it "forces us to remember that Boong and his fellow characters are humans before they're Manipuri, Hindu, invisibilised or Indian".

Boong was produced by Excel Entertainment - an established Mumbai production company co-founded by Bollywood actor Farhan Akhtar and producer Ritesh Sidhwani - which gave it a fillip as it travelled the international festival circuit.

Speaking to Deadline after the win, Akhtar said he had known Devi "for close to 20 years" and that it felt right to support Boong which is set in a region of India "where [there are] very few films that we get to watch".

Boong, which had a limited release in Indian cinemas in September last year, premiered in the Discovery section of the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival and was later screened at the Warsaw International Film Festival, the International Film Festival of India, the MAMI Mumbai Film Festival and the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne.

Its success has brought visibility to under-represented stories from India's northeast and congratulations poured in for the film's team on Monday.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi called it "a moment of immense joy, especially for Manipur" and said the film highlighted "the immense creative talent in our nation".

West Bengal state Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wrote on X that the film "has created history" and added that its cast and crew "have made the whole nation proud".

Manipur's new Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh, who took oath earlier this month, called the win a moment of pride for the state and the country.

"Rooted in the soil of Manipur, Boong is more than a film - it is a tribute to a homeland that remains resilient despite hardship. In [Devi's] powerful words, she prayed for peace to return to Manipur and for internally displaced children - including the young actors of the film - to regain their joy, innocence and dreams.

"Her message was clear and moving: no conflict should ever overpower humanity's greatest strength - forgiveness," the official account of the government of Manipur wrote on X.

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Kim Jong Un re-appointed leader of North Korea's ruling party

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg18588mdko, yesterday

North Korea's ruling Workers' Party has again chosen Kim Jong Un to be its general secretary, state media report.

The announcement, which was made at a rubber-stamp party congress in Pyongyang on Sunday, comes as little surprise given the Kim family has ruled by dictatorship since the late 1940s.

State-run KCNA said that under Kim's leadership North Korea "radically improved" its "war deterrence", "with the nuclear forces as its pivot".

Despite long-standing international sanctions, North Korea has continued to build its nuclear capabilities, regularly testing banned intercontinental missiles. But the secrecy of the regime makes it harder to evaluate how much progress the military has made.

Kim, who took control of the regime after his father's death in 2011, has invested heavily in the nuclear weapons programme, turning Pyongyang into a far bigger challenge for the West, and especially the US.

He is expected to announce the next phase of the country's weapons programme during the Ninth Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea, which began on 19 February and is now in its fourth day. Before it started, North Korea unveiled what it said was a range of nuclear-capable rocket launchers.

The congress has been held once every five years in the last decade.

With some 5,000 party members in attendance, according to KCNA, it offers a rare glimpse into the structure of political power in North Korea, which remains quite opaque to even the keenest watchers.

The meetings are considered to be the most important political event and provide insight into where the country's priorities lie, from foreign policy to its nuclear ambitions.

While Kim has remained at the top of North Korean leadership, the party congress' presidium, or executive committee, has been reshuffled since the last meeting in 2021. More than half of its 39 members have been replaced, according to state media.

In his opening speech last week, Kim vowed to boost the country's economy and people's standard of living, which he described as "heavy and urgent historic tasks".

All eyes are on whether Kim's daughter, Ju Ae, will make an appearance at the congress.

Earlier this month, South Korea's spy agency said that Kim had chosen Ju Ae as his heir. Believed to be 13 years old, she has become an increasingly prominent figure at official events, inspecting missiles and attending Beijing's military parade with her father.

That parade was the first time that the leaders of North Korea, China and Russia had stood together, sending a message of solidarity to the US and its allies.

Chinese president Xi Jinping called Kim to congratulate him on his re-appointment on Monday, saying he would work with Kim to "write a new chapter in the China-North Korea friendship", Chinese state media reported.

Beijing has long been Pyongyang's most significant ally: it is North Korea's largest trade partner and source of aid.

But at the same time, China is wary of Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions, which could destabilise the region, and its growing ties with Vladimir Putin's Russia.

What now for Asia after Trump's tariffs struck down?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4g58vlwdq3o, yesterday

Key US trading partners in Asia have been hit with a fresh wave of uncertainty after America's top court ruled that ⁠many of the tariffs President Donald Trump announced in 2025 are illegal.

After the Supreme Court ruling on Friday, Trump said he would impose new global levies of 15% on goods entering the US.

US customs said on Monday that it would halt the collection of tariffs linked to the signature trade policy that Trump used to launch a ⁠global trade war.

This is a major blow to governments from India to Indonesia, which had spent months negotiating trade deals with Washington. Many had pledged to invest billions of dollars in the US.

While the new tariff rate appeared to be a win for many Asian countries that had originally been hit with higher levies, significant uncertainties remain, analysts have told the BBC.

"Even if countries do decide to negotiate, at the end of the day, the current US administration is still looking to enforce higher levels of tariffs, regardless of the measures that have been struck down," said Adam Samdin from Oxford Economics.

Trade deals signed with the US in recent months do not have the clear, legally binding agreements of traditional pacts, leaving room for further changes, he added.

Most smaller economies in Asia will also be cautious about potentially upsetting Trump as "how they fare will depend greatly on their relationship with the administration," Samdin said.

Governments across the region are now evaluating the latest announcements.

China, which is preparing to host Trump in early April, said it is "conducting a comprehensive assessment of [the] content and impact" of the ruling.

"China has consistently opposed all forms of unilateral tariff increases and has repeatedly emphasised that there are no winners in a trade war, and protectionism leads nowhere," a Ministry of Commerce spokesperson added.

On Sunday, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said he did not expect the changes to impact Washington's talks with China and its leader Xi Jinping.

"The purpose of this meeting with President Xi is not to fight about trade. It's to maintain stability, make sure that the Chinese are holding up their end of our deal and buying American agricultural products and Boeings and other things," Greer told ABC news.

"I don't see this really affecting that meeting," he added.

US allies in the region are also uncertain about what comes next with Trump's trade policy.

Over the weekend, a Japanese government spokesman said Tokyo "will carefully examine the content of this ruling and the Trump administration's response to it, and respond appropriately".

But Itsunori Onodera, an executive of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's Liberal Democratic Party and a former defence minister, raised concerns about the new tariff rate.

"As an ally, I'm worried this will only accelerate countries distancing themselves from the US," Onodera, who is not part of the government, said on a TV show on Sunday.

South Korea's Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan said on Monday that there is uncertainty over potential refunds for tariffs already paid.

Kim also said that computer chips were not subject to tariffs Trump announced after the ruling.

On Saturday, Taiwan - which is also a key producer of chips - said that although the impact on the island appeared limited, "the government will closely monitor developments and maintain close communication with the United States."

Singapore, which had its tariff rate raised from 10% to 15% after Trump's latest announcement, said it is monitoring the situation and will meet soon with US officials to clarify how the new levies will be implemented.

The city state's trade ministry told the BBC it believed that certain goods - such as pharmaceuticals, electronics and energy - would not be effected by the new measures.

Countries in Asia, many of which had built their economies based on booming exports to the US, were hit especially hard by Trump's sweeping "Liberation Day" tariffs in April.

Last week, Indonesia and the US finalised an agreement to lower US tariffs on the South East Asian country to 19% from 32%, in exchange for preferential access to its market.

Taiwan similarly secured lower US tariffs of 15% in exchange for billions of dollars of investments.

Japan inked an agreement in late 2025 to accelerate the production of rare earths with the US, which is racing to diversify its supply of critical minerals to cut its reliance on China.

Greer said in a separate interview on CBS that the US was in talks with countries that had reached trade agreements with Trump administration and that none had indicated plans to withdraw since the tariff ruling.

Greer said: "We're going to stand by them. We expect our partners to stand by them."

A flat 15% tariff rate is likely to hit Asian economies that export finished products to the US the hardest, said Sandra Alday from the University of Sydney.

The impact is more complex and harder to gauge for countries that supply goods that are to be completed in America, she added.

But with tariffs applied universally, one thing is for sure: foreign products to the US will be more expensive in general, said Alday.

Trump's new 15% tax rate is a temporary solution under Section 122 of the Trade Act, which allows the tariffs to stay in place for around five months before the administration must seek congressional approval.

The new levy also raises questions for countries such as the UK and Australia, which previously agreed a 10% tariff deal with the US.

Pakistan launches deadly strikes on Afghanistan

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdxgln3gnd6o, 2 days ago

Pakistan has carried out multiple overnight air strikes on Afghanistan, which the Taliban has said killed at least 18 people, including women and children.

Islamabad said the attacks targeted seven alleged militant camps and hideouts near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border and that they had been launched after recent suicide bombings in Pakistan.

Afghanistan condemned the attacks, saying they targeted multiple civilian homes and a religious school.

The fresh strikes come after the two countries agreed to a fragile ceasefire in October following deadly cross-border clashes, though subsequent fighting has taken place.

The Taliban's defence ministry said the strikes targeted civilian areas of Nangarhar and Paktika provinces and had killed dozens of people.

In Girdi Kas village, in the Bihsud district of Nangarhar, a man named Shahabuddin told reporters while pointing at his destroyed house that of 23 members of his family, only five had survived the attack.

Local Taliban spokesman Sayed Taib Hamd said that 18 members of the family had been killed.

The BBC had earlier been told about 20 people were thought to have died.

No deaths have been reported so far in the other areas hit. A guesthouse and a religious school were targeted in the Bermal and Urgun districts of Paktika province, but they were empty at the time of the attacks, local officials and locals told the BBC.

Pakistan's Ministry of Information and Broadcasting said it had carried out "intelligence based selective targeting of seven terrorist camps and hideouts".

In a statement on X, it said the targets included members of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan, which the government refers to as "Fitna al Khawarij," along with their affiliates and the Islamic State-Khorasan Province.

The ministry described the strikes as "a retributive response" to recent suicide bombings in Pakistan by terror groups it said were sheltered by Kabul.

The recent attacks in Pakistan included one on a Shia mosque in the capital Islamabad earlier this month, as well as others that took place since the holy month of Ramadan began this week in the north-western Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Pakistan accused the Afghan Taliban of failing to take action against the militants, adding that it had "conclusive evidence" that the attacks were carried out by militants on the instructions of their leadership in Afghanistan.

The Taliban's defence ministry later posted on X condemning the attacks as a "blatant violation of Afghanistan's territorial integrity", adding that they were a "clear breach of international law".

It warned that "an appropriate and measured response will be taken at a suitable time", adding that "attacks on civilian targets and religious institutions indicate the failure of Pakistan's army in intelligence and security."

The strikes come days after Saudi Arabia mediated the release of three Pakistani soldiers earlier this week, who were captured in Kabul during border clashes last October.

Those clashes ended with a tentative ceasefire that same month after the worst fighting since the Taliban returned to power in 2021.

Pakistan and Afghanistan share a 1,600-mile (2,574 km) mountainous border.

Asos co-founder dies after Thailand apartment block fall

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce8w0n061ryo, 4 days ago

A co-founder of online fashion giant Asos died after falling from a high-rise apartment block in Thailand, police have said.

Quentin Griffiths has been named by Thai police as the man found dead on the ground in the eastern seaside city of Pattaya on 9 February.

A police investigator told the BBC Griffiths, a British passport holder, was by himself, his room was locked from the inside, and there was no trace of any break-ins at the time of the death. An autopsy did not reveal any evidence of foul play.

Griffiths co-founded Asos in 2000 and remained a significant shareholder after leaving the firm five years later.

An Asos spokesperson said: "We're saddened to hear about the passing of Quentin, one of our original co-founders.

"He played an important role in Asos's earliest days and we're forever grateful for his contribution.

"Our thoughts are with his family and friends."

A Foreign Office spokesperson said: "We are supporting the family of a British national who has died in Thailand and are in contact with the local authorities."

Police in Pattaya told the BBC Griffiths was found dead outside a luxury hotel where he had been staying in as a long-term resident in a suite on the 17th floor.

He was involved in two ongoing court cases that might have caused him stress, police also told the BBC.

Griffiths was separated from his second wife, a Thai national, and had reportedly been engaged in a legal dispute with her over a business they ran together, the BBC understands.

He co-founded Asos in London with Nick Robertson, Andrew Regan and Deborah Thorpe.

Its name originally stood for As Seen On Screen as it sold fashion inspired by clothing worn by TV and film stars.

It grew to become an online fashion marketplace stocking hundreds of brands as well as its own lines and at one time was valued at more than £6bn.

Its largest shareholders include Danish billionaire Anders Holch Povlsen - who owns Danish clothing giant Bestseller and Mike Ashley, owner of Frasers Group.

Additional reporting by Thanyarat Doksone in Bangkok

If you are suffering distress or despair, details of help and support in the UK are available at BBC Action Line

Mystery donor gives Japanese city $3.6m in gold bars to fix water system

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3ew5jlqz87o, 5 days ago

A Japanese city has received a hefty donation to help fix its ageing water system: 21kg (46lb) in gold bars.

The gold bars, worth an estimated 560 million yen ($3.6m; £2.7m), were given last November by a donor who wished to remain anonymous, Osaka Mayor Hideyuki Yokoyama told a press conference on Thursday.

Home to nearly three million people, Osaka is a commercial hub located in the Japan's Kansai region and the country's third-largest city.

But like many Japanese cities, Osaka's water and sewage pipes are ageing - a growing cause for safety concern.

Osaka recorded more than 90 cases of water pipe leaks under its roads in the 2024 fiscal year, according to the city's waterworks bureau.

"Tackling ageing water pipes requires a huge investment. So I have nothing but appreciation," Yokoyama told reporters on Thursday, in response to a question about the huge gold donation.

Yokoyama said the amount was "staggering" and he was "lost for words".

The same mystery donor had previously given 500,000 yen in cash for municipal waterworks, he added.

The city's waterworks bureau said in a statement on Thursday that it was grateful for the gold donation and would put it to good use - including tackling the deterioration of water pipes.

More than 20% of Japan's water pipes have passed their legal service life of 40 years, according to local media.

Sinkholes have also become increasingly common in Japanese cities, many of which have ageing sewage pipeline infrastructure.

Last year, a massive sinkhole in Saitama Prefecture swallowed the cab of a truck, killing its driver. The sinkhole was believed to have been caused by a ruptured sewage pipe.

That incident prompted Japanese authorities to step up efforts to replace corroded pipes across the country. But budget issues have stalled the progress of such pipe renewal works.

Revealed: The billions given to charity by ordinary Indians every year

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2lrjlkpw2eo, 5 days ago

India's philanthropy story is usually told from the top down.

It features corporate social responsibility (CSR) budgets, billionaire pledges and splashy foundations. But a new report argues that the real engine of Indian generosity is far more prosaic - and vastly larger.

The How India Gives 2025 report, produced by the Centre for Social Impact and Philanthropy (CSIP) at Ashoka University, challenges the conventional narrative that organised, institutional money dominates the country's giving landscape. Instead, it points to a quieter colossus: households.

According to the report, India's total household giving is estimated at 540bn rupees ($6bn) annually, including cash, in-kind contributions and volunteering.

About 68% of respondents report giving in some form. Of this, 48% is in kind - such as food, clothing or other household goods - followed by cash donations (44%) and volunteering (30%) with non-profits, religious institutions or community groups.

Much of the food given goes to communal free kitchens. Volunteering most commonly takes the form of service at religious institutions, including activities such as disaster relief organised by them.

"India is a very generous country. Our findings suggest that ordinary households play a much larger role than is commonly acknowledged. Generosity appears widespread and culturally embedded," Jinny Uppal, head of Centre for Social Impact and Philanthropy at Ashoka University, told the BBC.

The headline insight: Indian philanthropy is not elite-led but mass, local and relational - driven by faith, face-to-face appeals and everyday obligation, cutting across income levels.

The survey draws on more than 7,000 interviews across 20 states, spanning urban and rural India.

The analysis is anchored to India's National Sample Survey (NSS) consumption data - a large, government-run household expenditure survey - to build income-segmented profiles of everyday givers. Respondents self-reported how often and how much they gave over a three-month recall period. The findings were then extrapolated to produce annual estimates.

The survey looks at "everyday giving" which includes both direct, personal help - to beggars, family or friends, often seen as charity - and donations to organised, non-religious institutions, which are typically described as philanthropy.

It also examines "retail giving", typically defined as donations by ordinary individuals - not high-net-worth donors - to registered nonprofits. The survey adopts a broader lens, including informal, direct help to individuals as well as donations to religious institutions.

A lot of giving is shaped by proximity and faith, the survey found.

Roughly 40–45% of giving flows to religious organisations, with a comparable share directed to beggars and destitute people, especially in urban areas. In rural India, religious institutions take the lead.

"We asked behavioural questions about motivation. For more than 90% of respondents, the underlying driver is a sense of religious duty - a moral obligation that shapes and sustains their giving," says Krishanu Chakraborty, head of research at the Centre for Social Impact and Philanthropy at Ashoka University.

The most common way people encounter giving opportunities is in-person requests or canvassing - meaning direct appeals at homes, religious sites or public spaces, rather than digital campaigns or formal fundraising drives.

The survey found education correlates with generosity: donor participation peaks among graduates and postgraduates.

Yet, giving is not confined to the affluent. Even at low consumption levels (4,000–5,000 rupees per month), about half of households report giving; as incomes rise, participation climbs to 70–80%.

Gender patterns are subtle but telling: male-headed households are slightly more inclined toward religious giving, while female-headed households lean marginally toward supporting destitute individuals.

"The most important takeaway [of the survey] is that everyday generosity in India is systemic rather than sporadic," Uppal says.

"It cuts across income groups, age, gender and urban/rural regions and is embedded in everyday social life."

The second key takeaway: estimates suggest that everyday giving makes up about 15% of total giving in India, yet accounts for nearly a third of private donations to the organised social sector.

"Even with the small cheque size from everyday givers, this is a sizeable contribution from the citizenry towards social impact," says Uppal.

The final takeaway, according to the researchers, is more methodological.

The survey responses were anchored to consumption data, allowing researchers to examine how spending patterns relate to giving. As household consumption rises, both participation in giving and the amount donated tend to increase, the survey found.

"India remains one of the fastest-growing major economies in the world and consumption is a major component of GDP. As household consumption expands over time, this segment of everyday giving is likely to evolve and potentially grow alongside it," says Uppal.

In mature markets, everyday individual giving is the financial backbone of NGOs - formal, tracked and institutionalised.

In 2024, individuals gave $392bn in the US, accounting for 66% of all charitable donations. In the UK, public donations reached $20.7bn, with legacies and individual giving making up roughly 30% of charitable income.

This is not surprising, say experts. Across much of the Global South, person-to-person, informal giving often exceeds formal donations. In advanced economies, by contrast, giving is largely channelled to registered nonprofits - helped by tax incentives and older, more organised charitable sectors.

The US Generosity Commission's 2024 report noted an apparent decline in everyday giving. But it tracks only audited donations to registered nonprofits made through tax channels.

As giving shifts toward informal routes - online transfers, crowdfunding and other unaudited platforms - much of this behaviour goes uncaptured. Even in the US, the way people give is changing, experts believe.

In India, says Uppal, the "real headline" isn't the percentage - it's the breadth of participation.

The survey, she says, was conducted in March–April, months with relatively few religious events or festivals. "Given the high percent of giving to religious organisations, it is safe to assume that during other months with religious occasions, a larger percent of the population gives."

In other words, in India generosity is possibly not a trickle from the top. It is a daily tide from below.

The taekwondo teacher tasked with healing India's troubled state

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn0elx8g00do, yesterday

Manipur, in India's northeast, has a new chief minister after being under direct federal rule, which was imposed a year ago, following ethnic violence that left more than 260 people dead.

Yumnam Khemchand Singh, a fifth-dan black belt in Korean martial art taekwondo, took oath last week, inheriting a state still scarred by clashes between the majority Meitei and the minority Kuki-Zo communities.

Since the 2023 violence, the communities have been largely segregated, confined to separate regions, with thousands displaced from their homes.

Singh has a long association with taekwondo and has taught the martial art for years. But he is also a seasoned politician. Despite long ties to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), India's governing Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP's) ideological parent, the 62-year-old was a late entrant to electoral politics.

Singh, who belongs to the BJP, was first elected in 2017 and has since served as assembly speaker and a state minister overseeing portfolios including education and rural development.

Now, as he takes charge of a troubled state, the question is whether he can help bring peace?

Opinion remains divided. While some Manipur residents and analysts told the BBC they see hope in his leadership, others remain sceptical.

"It is difficult to say anything right now, and the next few weeks will be crucial in giving a clearer picture," Pradip Phanjoubam of the Imphal Review of Arts and Politics magazine, told the BBC.

Even as Singh takes office, tensions in Manipur continue to simmer.

On 21 January, a man from the Meitei community was killed in a Kuki-Zo-dominated area where he had been living with his wife, who is from the Kuki-Zo community. This was the latest in a series of killings linked to the conflict.

Hours after Singh took oath on 4 February, protests broke out in the state's Churachandpur district, with roads blocked and markets and offices shut.

Kuki-Zo civil society groups and student organisations condemned the participation of some Kuki-Zo legislators in the formation of the new government, calling it a "betrayal" and reiterating their demand for a separate administrative arrangement for Kuki-Zo-dominated areas.

While the valley areas in Manipur, including its capital, Imphal, are largely inhabited by the Meiteis, Kuki-Zos predominantly live in the surrounding hills.

Even as tensions between Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities persist, new frictions have emerged between Kuki-Zo and Naga tribal groups, adding another layer of complexity to Manipur's unrest. Tensions were reported on Sunday in the state's Ukhrul district, where authorities have imposed restrictions on gatherings following an alleged assault involving villagers from the two communities.

Singh belongs to the Meitei community. While one Kuki-Zo legislator has been appointed as his deputy, two more legislators from the community are due to soon join as ministers in his cabinet - a composition that reflects an effort by the BJP to balance ethnic representation in a deeply divided state.

But some in the Kuki-Zo community are not convinced.

"Peace is not just the absence of violence. It requires trust, justice and political sincerity," Mang Khongsai, a Kuki student leader, told the BBC.

Khongsai says he does not believe that Singh can bring peace under the current circumstances.

"He [Singh] is part of a political establishment that has failed to produce a credible roadmap to resolve the conflict, assure security or address the core demand for separate administrations."

Glady Vaiphei Hunjan, an adviser to the Kuki-Zo Women's Forum in Delhi, says peace could not be "imposed by maintaining the status quo".

"Leadership that can bring peace must demonstrate moral clarity - by acknowledging where the state has failed, engaging all stakeholders equally and committing to a political solution rather than administrative management of a conflict," she says.

Manipur, with a population of about three million, covers roughly 22,327 sq km (8,620 sq m), is one of India's smallest states that is slightly larger than Wales.

The state has a long history of armed resistance and the violence of the past two years has seen militias and village volunteers take up arms amid deep communal mistrust. It has long been subject to a controversial law that gives the military sweeping power in regions designated as "disturbed areas".

Despite decades of unrest, Manipur has built a reputation as one of India's most consistent producers of elite athletes - such as Olympic weightlifter Mirabai Chanu, boxer Mary Kom and judo champion Sushila Devi Likmabam. This is often attributed to a strong local sporting culture, early exposure to football, boxing and martial arts and community-run clubs that have long offered structure and opportunity - a tradition Singh himself was part of.

Sunzu Bachapatiyum, a filmmaker who belongs to the Meitei community, says he is optimistic about Singh's leadership.

"He [Singh] is one politician who has working relationships with leaders across communities - that is a significant advantage," he says. "The fact that he could gather sufficient legislative support to form a government suggests a degree of acceptability. In the current climate, that is at least a step forward."

Singh can play a "significant role" in bringing peace in Manipur, says journalist Kshetrimayum Premchand, who belongs to the Meitei community. "He is a good administrator. Whether as a legislator or a state minister, he has been transparent about his functioning."

Some observers also point to Singh's December 2025 visit to a relief camp for internally displaced Kuki-Zo people as a significant factor in his emergence as the chief ministerial choice. The outreach, widely seen as unusual for a senior Meitei leader during the conflict, could have helped broaden his acceptability among Kuki-Zo legislators, say analysts.

But Seram Rojesh, convener of the Delhi Meitei Coordinating Committee, says lasting peace would require the "disarming of armed ethnic groups" that have played a role in the violence.

Arambam Noni, an associate professor in Imphal's Dhanamanjuri University says Singh should prioritise "dialogue" and "ensure non-violation of the rule of law". He also cautions against giving into the demand of Kuki-Zos for a separate administration because "it can have ripple effects for others, who can escalate similar demands, given Manipur's overlapping cultural and ethnic diversities".

The return of an elected government creates space for political engagement, but deep mistrust between communities has resurfaced even in periods of relative calm, say analysts.

"Peace will depend on whether that authority is used to rebuild trust across communities rather than simply restoring administrative normalcy," says Phanjoubam, the Imphal-based editor.

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Australian police find human remains in search for grandfather kidnapped by mistake

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0q3lgv3x7do, today

Australian police have found human remains in their search for a Sydney grandfather who they believe was kidnapped by mistake almost two weeks ago.

Widower Chris Baghsarian, 85, was forcibly taken from his home in North Ryde just before dawn on 13 February, with CCTV showing a group of masked men bundling him into an SUV.

Police say the incident was most likely a case of mistaken identity, and local media have reported the intended target was a relative of a man with links to a well-known organised crime family.

On Tuesday, police confirmed they had found human remains near a golf course on the outskirts of Sydney, after an earlier search located a burnt out car.

Police had found a blood-stained carpet in the boot of the car, which was linked to the alleged kidnappers and an abandoned property where it is believed Baghsarian was held hostage.

In the days after the kidnapping, video circulating in Sydney's underworld purported to show the elderly man had been seriously injured.

Police repeatedly appealed to the kidnappers for the man's safe return, saying he suffered from health issues and needed daily medication.

"They were intending to take somebody, but have taken the wrong person," Det Acting Supt Andrew Marks told reporters a few days after the kidnapping.

"The family are in distress. All they want is their father to be returned, their grandfather to be returned."

New South Wales Premier Chris Minns had suggested the kidnappers could "drop Mr Baghsarian off at a shopping centre or an emergency department or even a nursing home".

Cases of mistaken identity have become more common in Sydney's underworld, according to the Sydney Morning Herald, as large organised crime networks increasingly subcontract crimes.

Last year, a 23-year-old plumber was shot dead in his driveway in Condell Park in what police believe was also a case of mistaken identity.

"The fact that these offenders – these kidnappers – have got it so wrong is concerning," Marks said.

Welcome to Australia's hottest beach event - nowhere near the sea

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/crrx792qk81o, 4 days ago

Like many wild and wacky ideas, it all started down at the pub.

"I was literally looking out the window at that intersection and thought, 'What if we put in a beach volleyball court and play a competition?'

"On a tar road. In the middle of a town 400km from the nearest beach," Simon Sutherland, 51, says.

He wanted to bring the party vibe of Bali's Kuta – a popular island holiday spot for many Australians – to his hometown of Cootamundra.

And so that night he went home and drew up plans for Australia's own "Coota Beach" and its now famous annual volleyball tournament.

Twenty-five years on, it's grown from a single day of play into a three-day festival – a cultural and sporting highlight in the town's calendar, delighting locals, attracting thousands of tourists and bringing in an estimated $2m in revenue.

"In a way, I think it's bigger than Christmas," 86-year-old grandmother Pat Roberts, who tells the BBC she has made cheering on her children and grandchildren a summer tradition.

"I've loved it every year, I've never missed one."

From one court to ten

It's Saturday afternoon and the tournament resembles a beach bash in full swing, costumed bodies heaving under the blazing sun.

"Mine!" calls out one singlet-clad player to her teammates, making it to a volleyball just in time. Loud pop and rock music blares down the entire block, punctuated by the odd cheer and whoop from spectators.

Over on one court, a team of minions – complete with yellow-painted faces, oversized googles and beach-styled overalls – are jumping excitedly much like their animated namesake.

Elsewhere, teams like Holy Blockamole and Itsy Bitsy Spiker are dropping shots like it's hot, diving to make saves and drinking like it's the last days of summer.

There's plenty of laughs as teams of six serve, spike and block during the 20-minute matches, with rules that are a mix of indoor and beach volleyball.

Suncream's being slathered on, high-fives are flowing as freely as the cold drinks. In between matches, hard-working staff are hosing down the courts to cool the sand.

It's a stark contrast to the first Coota Beach event in 2001 – when 16 teams played a couple dozen matches on a single court in one day. This year's event had almost 200 teams playing over three days. Demand was so high, 40 teams were turned away.

Sutherland remembers the early years clearly.

"We used to get up at 1am and start setting up on the Saturday morning, ready to go for games at 8am," he recalls, shaking his head in mild disbelief as he glances over the ten courts at this year's event.

These days, transforming the asphalt landscape into a sandy oasis takes about a week, with almost 900 tonnes of sand – that's about six blue whales or 70 double-decker buses – trucked in.

James Graham, owner of the quarry where the sand is sourced from, says the town's order is the strangest request he's ever had: "Who am I to tell people what to do with it?," he jokes.

Council workers then flatten the huge mounds of sand to create an inland beach, ready for the first games on Friday.

Hours after the finals wrap up on Sunday and all the eskies have been packed away, workers and volunteers try to scoop up every last grain of sand, which is either sold or donated to the community, turning up in local parks, sporting grounds or construction sites.

Within two days, the road – buffed and cleaned - returns to its usual form, lined with parked cars and locals going about their daily errands.

Costumes and camaraderie

Organiser Lee-Anne Hogan estimates the town's usual population of 7,000 swells by about 3,000 over the weekend. "It's enormous - the town actually books out in every way".

While, in the early days, there were fears from some businesses that closing a street might mean fewer customers, those worries have disappeared.

A No Vacancy sign out the front of his Southern Comfort Motor Inn, Dylan O'Neill says: "It's clear that every hospitality business in town benefits significantly from the event."

Among those who have flocked to Cootamundra for the weekend are British couple Guy Wilkinson and Lizzie Ellison, both 30, who moved to Sydney two years ago and have driven four hours to compete.

It's a "true rural experience," that feels "uniquely Australian", Ellison says.

"It's a super fun, friendly vibe," Wilkinson adds.

Their team – all dressed in tasselled cowboy outfits – have nabbed the prize for best-dressed, tying with another team decked out in pink nighties and platinum blonde wigs.

"We've had people come here from Manly in Sydney saying that these are better courts to play on than the ones at the beaches there," Sutherland brags, "I don't think we can get a better wrap than that."

Whether you're a long-time local or new to Coota, the weekend is an opportunity to cultivate a sense of community.

Sia Lesa speaks to the BBC as she is about to step onto court eight for her third and final match of the day.

She recently moved to town from her native Samoa as part of a visa scheme that has seen hundreds of Pacific Islanders relocate to Australia for jobs.

"I arrived in 2024, right on the day of the tournament," she says. "I arrived in the early morning and I played in the afternoon, no kidding."

For Lesa, the social aspect of the weekend is a rare chance to feel part of a community that often feels closed off to her.

"Coota is very small and [this is] something different for us, because normally we work at the abattoir and straight after we finish work, we go home and stay there."

It's certainly a homely affair for James Dunk, who has played every year for about a decade and always enters a team made up of three sets of neighbours.

Last year, his son joined the team as he had just turned 14 – the minimum age to participate. "It's almost a rite of passage before they ditch you and go and have more fun with their friends," he jokes.

That's exactly the case for Sutherland's son Eamon, 14, who finally had a chance to join in, after years of watching from the sidelines.

"It's so exciting to get to play," he smiles, his team's name – Spiked and Served – emblazoned on his singlet.

As the sun sets and players dust off their sandy feet, Sutherland says he has big plans to expand the shoreline of Coota Beach.

"I want it to be as big as the Elvis Festival in Parkes," he says, referring to the week-long celebrations in another regional Australian town that draws tens of thousands of fans every January to celebrate the King of Rock.

"The more people we can bring into the Coota sphere, the better - people that would rarely go to a country town. Come and see what we've got to offer."

Australian prosecutors consider reopening British girl's cold case disappearance

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd6zg91l75qo, yesterday

The family of a British girl who disappeared in Australia more than 55 years ago has welcomed a decision by prosecutors to consider reopening her case.

Three-year-old Cheryl Grimmer disappeared from Fairy Meadow beach in Wollongong in January 1970. Despite extensive searches, there were no leads.

A suspect was charged with her abduction and murder in 2017, but his trial collapsed after his teenage confession was ruled inadmissible. He denies any wrongdoing and prosecutors dropped the case.

After public pressure - including from the girl's family - the New South Wales (NSW) director of public prosecutions now says her office is willing to conduct a special review of that decision.

Sally Dowling said in a letter to Grimmer's family that the normal time limit for families to request a review had expired, but that she had agreed to look at the case anyway.

She said she could review the case now, based on evidence police handed over in 2019, or the family could wait until detectives had considered the "fresh" information they say they have found.

"It's taken way too many years but finally we're really happy that they see our fight for some justice for Cheryl," Ricki Nash, Cheryl's older brother, told the BBC.

The BBC's 2022 Fairy Meadow podcast examined Cheryl's disappearance and since its broadcast at least one new witness has come forward.

Nash said the family had written to NSW Police to request it reopen an investigation, taking into account new evidence that had come to light since 2019.

"We are not asking for anything extraordinary," he said. "When transparency leads the process, evil can no longer hide behind process failures or bureaucratic division."

The British toddler and her family had only recently migrated to Australia from Bristol as so-called Ten Pound Poms before she vanished.

On the day Cheryl disappeared, Nash had been put in charge of his younger siblings as the family got ready to leave the beach. He was told to go to the bathroom block and Cheryl ran giggling into the ladies' changing rooms, refusing to come out.

Too embarrassed to enter himself, Nash went back to the beach to tell his mother to help. When they returned 90 seconds later, the toddler was gone.

Cheryl's family has been pushing for a fresh investigation ever since the trial collapsed seven years ago. They argue that lots of missteps were made by NSW authorities in their search for Cheryl.

Last October, Jeremy Buckingham, a member of the NSW Legislative Council, the state's upper house, used parliamentary privilege to name the suspect. He had been known only as Mercury, as his real name is legally protected because he was a minor at the time of the alleged crime.

In May, there will also be a NSW parliamentary inquiry looking into cases of unsolved murders and long-term missing people – with Grimmer's case forming part of the inquiry.

You can stream or download the Fairy Meadow podcast on BBC Sounds

Sussan Ley and the glass cliff: Does Australian politics still have a problem with women?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4g5pjn3p50o, 12 days ago

When Sussan Ley made history as the first woman to take the reins of Australia's Liberal Party, she insisted this was a pivotal moment for the party – or what was left of it anyway.

She had broken through the glass ceiling: an invisible, patriarchal barrier which keeps women from positions of power.

But to many, Ley's glass ceiling looked an awful lot like a "glass cliff", and it felt like it was only a matter of time before she lost her grip and slipped off it.

The glass cliff describes a phenomenon where women and other minorities are promoted to leadership roles during times of crisis, setting them up for a high risk of failure. In essence, it says that when women are finally allowed to ascend to the top, it's frequently so they can take the fall.

Elected as leader after the most resounding election defeat in the history of the modern Liberal Party and amid internal party chaos, Ley didn't even survive a year.

On Friday she was pushed out by Angus Taylor, who argued she didn't have what it takes to turn the opposition's fortunes around. He won a leadership ballot 34 to 17, with Senator Jane Hume elected as his deputy.

Ley's backers claim she was never given the chance to succeed, with some saying gender played a role. Her opponents say her demise has nothing to do with that and everything to do with performance.

The messy saga has reignited conversations in Australia about its progress towards making its politics look more like its population.

'Crisis on every front'

Whoever took over as Liberal leader after the Labor landslide in May last year was always going to have a tough job.

They had to unify the polarised factions of the party and manage an increasingly toxic relationship with their coalition partner of eight decades, the National Party - a small but vocal and often mutinous cohort of rural MPs.

They had to overhaul a policy platform which was comprehensively rejected by voters. And they had to do this while balancing the demands of the more conservative sects of the Coalition with the more progressive desires of voters in the urban areas where they were ravaged at the polls.

Then they also had to repair the Liberals' reputation with women, who have deserted them en-masse after a string of allegations of misogyny levelled during the Coaliton's previous term of government, which ended in 2022.

"There was just crisis on every front… it's classic glass cliff," says Michelle Ryan, Director of the Global Institute for Women's Leadership and one of the researchers who coined the term.

From her very first press conference as leader, Ley was aware of what this looked like.

She and her supporters insisted she had been selected exactly for this moment, because she was the right person to lead the Coalition through it.

She is a moderate who can appeal to city slickers, yes, but one from a bush electorate who can speak National. She's been in parliament for 20 years and was a cabinet minister for five. With an unusual but impressive resume that includes time as a pilot and a sheep musterer, Ley says she has spent her entire life breaking down barriers, challenging assumptions and making room for herself in places women weren't always welcome.

Some critics say the idea of a glass cliff itself is offensive, that it diminishes women's achievements and assumes they can't successfully lead out of a crisis, when in fact many in the community feel women fare better in them.

"As far as political analysis goes, it is just wrong," Ley wrote in an op-ed for the Women's Agenda shortly after she took over.

"There is no doubt that all too often women are left to clean up the mess… But when the most successful political party in our nation's history picks a leader, it doesn't do so based on chromosomes.

"I earned my shot."

Few are saying she didn't. But the Liberal Party famously passed over Julie Bishop in 2018, an electorally popular and long-serving minister who had been the party deputy for 11 years.

Political observers say there was a sense Ley was only keeping the seat warm for Taylor, whose first leadership bid failed by a slim margin after a controversial choice in running mate.

The glass cliff phenomenon doesn't paint the true picture of Ley's tenure though, says Niki Savva, a veteran political commentator and former Liberal Party advisor.

"Sometimes I get really impatient with the argument that all this is happening to Ley because she's a woman. She hasn't been given a fair go because she's a woman," she tells the BBC.

"Maybe a tiny bit, but that is not the real reason… Sussan Ley is the architect of her own fortunes."

She promised not to make unilateral calls as leader, which seemingly opened the door to relentless pressure - public and private - from her peers. She promised to listen to the electorate on climate, but facing opposition from the conservative members of the Coalition, rolled back her party's promise to reach net-zero by 2050.

And though she played a leading role in pushing the government to hold a royal commission into antisemitism in the wake of the Bondi attack - which she says she's proud of - critics accused her of politicising the tragedy. She also oversaw two short-lived but ugly break-ups between the Liberals and Nationals.

"Political leaders are judged on their performance, not on their gender," Liberal Senator, and prominent Taylor backer, James Paterson said on Thursday.

"Newspoll shows she's at negative 39 personal approving approval rating. That is the worst performance of an opposition leader in 23 years."

The driver behind her abysmal approval rating, Savva says, is her lack of conviction on issues she said she cared about.

"If she had gone out there and staked out her territory, gone out and fought for it, then maybe her position would not be as dire as it is today."

Ryan, though, argues both things can be true.

"It really isn't about whether Ley is qualified for the job or not… It's not even about her performance in this job," Ryan says.

"It's about when is it that the party will put a woman ahead."

Women still rare at the top

Julia Gillard, the nation's first female prime minister, is the only woman aside from Ley to lead one of its two major parties.

She said at the end of her misogyny-plagued tenure in 2013: "Being the first female prime minister does not explain everything about my prime ministership, nor does it explain nothing about my prime ministership."

It's true that representation in parliament has grown dramatically since Gillard's era – largely driven by her party, Labor, who more than 30 years ago set ambitious quotas, both for selecting female candidates in winnable seats, and promoting them into leadership.

While the Coalition party rooms remain about a third female, the Labor caucus is now majority women – 57% – a historic achievement. And there is gender equality in cabinet too.

But women are still rare at the very top.

Anthony Albanese's leadership team is the first from Labor without at least a female deputy since 2001, aside from a three-month blip in 2013. Albanese was part of that woman-less leadership team too.

And though Penny Wong is senate leader and foreign minister, women still tend to have more junior cabinet roles or positions in non-cabinet ministries.

"Being able to say we've had a female prime minister, that's great, we've just got to get beyond one," Ryan says. "You have to do it again, and then you have to do it again."

But over the three decades Labor has used to increase its gender diversity through quotas, doyens of both the Liberal and National parties, even Ley herself, have been arguing they don't need them – to the frustration of many of the women in their ranks.

Gender shouldn't matter in politics, they say, something which critics say fails to acknowledge the reality that it long has, and still does.

"Instead of, as a woman, getting out there and arguing for quotas, standing up for them, Ley came out with this line, which I just thought was BS, about being a zealot for getting more women into parliament, but agnostic on quotas," Savva says.

"Well, what the hell did that mean? And what did she do about it subsequently? Big fat zero."

Analysts say this reluctance from the Liberals to champion strong female candidates has helped fuel the rise of independents. More than 70% of crossbench MPs in this parliament are women, many of them so-called "Teal" candidates who have won in traditionally blue, Liberal seats.

Ley, who after the leadership spill announced she would resign from parliament, said there was "no doubt" it had been "a challenging time to lead the party".

"It is important that the new leader gets clear air, something that is not always afforded to leaders," she said, a parting jab at her successor.

This episode is unlikely to help resolve the Liberal Party's quandaries.

Election post-mortems, as well as consistent feedback from polling and interest groups, point towards the desire for a more diverse Liberal Party that reflects modern Australia, and a more cooperative, stable one.

At best, recent events show disorganisation and disunity, commentators say. At worst, they're another show of a stubborn Liberal Party reluctant to learn from its mistakes.

Australian presenter apologises for drinking before slurred Olympics report

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdxgnrr11rwo, 6 days ago

An Australian sports presenter has apologised after a clip of her slurring her way through a live cross from the Winter Olympics in Italy went viral, with even Australia's prime minister weighing in.

Channel Nine reporter Danika Mason said she had "misjudged the situation" by drinking ahead of her appearance on live television, also blaming the altitude, the cold and her failure to eat dinner.

"I want to take full responsibility, it's not the standard I set myself," she said during another appearance a day later, adding that she was "embarrassed".

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he was "pro-Danika" and that there was "nothing to see here" suggesting she had been affected by jet lag.

Mason stumbled over her words and talked about iguanas and the price of coffee as she reported on the day's sports events.

"Literally like the price of coffee over here is actually fine, it's more the price of coffee in the US that we're gonna have to get used to. I'm not sure about the iguanas, where are we going with that one?" she said during her cross to the breakfast television show Today on Wednesday, apparently in response to comments from the studio hosts.

With glazed eyes she then stumbled through the rest of her sports report, mixing up her words as well as the UK and the US, while studio host Karl Stefanovic could be heard laughing in the background.

"Look the cold weather is a thing, right," Stevanovic said unprompted afterwards. "You can't actually move your lips."

Social media clips of her report prompted mixed reactions from Australians.

"Good on her, nothing wrong with this. You can tell she's having an absolute ball over there," said one person on X, while another commented: "If it's not a health issue, she should be sacked on the spot - very unprofessional."

Mason, a prominent sports reporter best known for her National Rugby League coverage, appeared again on the Today show on Thursday morning.

After she delivered her live report, she told viewers she wanted to "take a moment, if that's OK, just to apologise" for her previous appearance.

She thanked viewers for messages of concern and continued: "I'm OK, probably just a little embarrassed.

"Look, I totally misjudged the situation, I shouldn't have had a drink, especially in these conditions, it's cold, we've got altitude, and not having had dinner probably didn't help as well. But I want to take full responsibility, it's not the standard I set myself.

"So in saying that, I'm genuinely really sorry and I'm thanking everyone for those messages I've received as well."

The Today show host Jayne Azzopardi responded saying "we know how hard you work, Danika" while Stefanovic called her a "legend".

Explosion near Moscow train station kills police officer

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/czx4pyx9g46o, today

An explosion outside a train station in Moscow has killed one traffic police officer and injured two others, the Russian Interior Ministry said in a statement.

Police had been patrolling their vehicle at Savyolovsky Station Square, north of the city centre, when it said "an unidentified device was detonated" by "an unknown individual".

Authorities are investigating the explosion that took place just after midnight on Tuesday local time (Monday 21:05 GMT). No motive has yet been established.

The ministry initially reported that a male attacker had fled the scene but later provided an update saying that he had died there.

The attacker approached officers from the North-Eastern District of Moscow, the ministry said, providing no further details as to his identity.

Officials have provided no additional information regarding the explosive device so far.

A criminal case has been opened against the perpetrator for the attempt on the life of a law enforcement officer and charges relating to the explosive device.

Law enforcement agencies are working in tandem to "establish all the circumstances", it added.

The two injured officers were hospitalised "with various injuries" following the explosion.

The ministry identified the officer killed as 34-year-old Police Lieutenant Denis Bratuschenko, a senior inspector in the traffic police.

He had joined the force in 2019 and is survived by his wife and two children, it said.

"The leadership and personnel of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia express their sincere condolences to the family," a statement from Irina Volk, the ministry's spokesperson read.

Savyolovsky Station is one of the Russian capital's main railway hubs, according to the Agence France Presse news agency.

Rob Jetten becomes Netherlands' youngest ever PM

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clygj3421pqo, yesterday

Rob Jetten has become the youngest and first openly gay prime minister of the Netherlands after his minority government was sworn in.

The 38-year-old claimed victory in October's election with his Democrats 66 party (D66) narrowly beating anti-Islam populist Geert Wilders in a nail-biting election.

Jetten formed a centre-right minority government with the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) and the Christian Democratic Alliance (CDA).

It is a minority cabinet, meaning every major reform in the coalition deal - from an extra €19bn (£16.6bn) for defence to painful cuts in healthcare and benefits - will have to be negotiated vote by vote in the Netherlands' two parliamentary houses.

The coalition also wants fewer asylum seekers, with refugees having to apply for asylum outside Europe, not after they arrive.

Asylum migration has been a particularly sensitive issue in Dutch politics, contributing to the downfall of the country's last two coalition governments.

Jetten succeeds Dick Schoof as prime minister who oversaw one of the shortest-lived governments in Dutch history.

D66 will provide seven ministers, VVD will provide six, and CDA five, with three state secretaries each - junior members of cabinet.

Jetten was formally sworn in by King Willem-Alexander at the Huis ten Bosch Palace in The Hague on Monday.

Posting a selfie ahead of his swearing-in ceremony, Jetten wrote on X: "Proud to be doing this together. In a new phase, with great responsibility and, above all, a shared promise to work for everyone in the Netherlands.

"By not dwelling on what's wrong, but by building on what can be improved. That requires courage and collaboration."

'Let's get to work'

Slick, smiling and patient, Jetten has spent years shaking off the nickname "Robot Jetten", earned for his stiff, over‑rehearsed TV appearances.

The transformation was stark on election night. In a packed, sweaty music venue in Leiden (between Amsterdam and The Hague), he seemed effortlessly at ease, confident and groomed, as young supporters roared around him.

For many BBC News met there that night, the D66 leader was everything Wilders was not: relatively young, upbeat, pro‑EU and socially liberal - a fresh face pitched against an older, hard‑right establishment.

In the Netherlands, Jetten's sexuality barely featured in the campaign, which says something about how mainstream LGBTQ equality has become.

But globally, he joins a very small club of openly gay leaders, and for many viewers in countries where coming out carries real risk, seeing an openly gay man become prime minister is a powerful glass‑ceiling moment.

Standing beside the King on a red carpet spilling down the palace steps on Monday, Jetten gave the appearance of a well-polished premier.

After being confirmed as prime minister, he posted the official photo on Instagram with a brisk caption: "Let's get to work."

Wilders, who pulled the plug on his own right-wing coalition in June, has said he would oppose any initiative by Jetten's government, while other parties have raised concerns about the plans presented so far.

Jesse Klaver, leader of the GreenLeft-Labour coalition, the biggest alliance in opposition, posted on X on Friday about the government's financial plans: "Ordinary people will pay hundreds of Euros more, while the very richest won't be asked to pay anything extra.

"That's unfair and won't help the Netherlands move forward. We take responsibility for adjusting these plans. This has to change."

Ukraine negotiator tells BBC how it feels to sit across table from Russia

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c89k0lxlpnpo, today

What is it like negotiating with the Russians over the war in Ukraine?

It is a question many are interested in knowing the answer to following several recent rounds of peace talks, which have so far appeared to bear little fruit four years after Russia's full-scale invasion.

Another round of the US-mediated discussions is likely to take place in Geneva later this week. Ahead of it, the BBC has spoken to Sergiy Kyslytsya, a member of Ukrainian President Zelensky's delegation, who has taken part in the recent military-to-military discussions.

According to Kyslytsya, these dealings are business-like and generally free of the sort of political and historical grandstanding seen elsewhere by Moscow.

"The military has a better understanding of what is going on in the battlefield," he told me when we met in the presidential palace on Monday morning.

"It's another thing whether they [the Russians] are capable, or not, of reporting [back] directly…without cooking or changing the information," he added.

It is not an easy thing to try to end a war. The nature of the battlefield in eastern Ukraine - where thousands of drones patrol and kill over a huge so-called "grey zone" between the two sides, while 200,000 Ukrainian civilians still live in the "fortress belt" cities of the Donbas - makes the technical business of disengagement highly complex.

"You have to have a clear set of rules and protocols," Kyslytsya said, "and a way to verify and monitor."

Much of this work, he said, is complete, thanks in part to the close involvement of US officials, including General Alexus Grynkewich, Nato's top commander in Europe, and Dan Driscoll, Secretary of the Army.

It's obviously not in Kyiv's interest to criticise representatives of the Trump administration, but when Kyslytsya compliments the US delegation for its efforts, he sounds genuine.

"We have to credit the Americans for their commitment and their patience," he says, "because they sit in the meetings non-stop. They don't only observe…they put questions and they listen to our answers."

Kyslytsya was equally positive about the roles played by Donald Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, whom he described as "not a novice", and billionaire all-purpose envoy, Steve Witkoff, whom he described as "a much wiser person than the caricature image you see in the media".

The US, Kyslytsya said, will play a key role in monitoring any future ceasefire, with resources including satellite and other forms of high-tech monitoring.

"We need someone who will play the role of adjudication, because if there is a violation there should be a third party that is solid [and] authoritative."

For eight years before Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022, this monitoring role was played by the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe - a group whose limited resources and lack of enforcement mechanisms rendered it largely incapable of preventing an escalation.

"It was quite an achievement [for them] just to have two UAVs flying over the territory," Kyslytsya said. "It's kind of the Flintstones era compared to what we have today."

In comparison, recent reports suggest that as many as 12,000 drones are operating over the single city of Pokrovsk at any one time.

I asked Kyslytsya, who is also a former UN ambassador, how he managed to sit across the table from emissaries from a leader in the Kremlin who has been willing to sacrifice more than a million of his own men to subjugate Ukraine.

He told me he'd had years of practice.

"I saw much worse. I spent five years in New York, three of them before the full-scale invasion. I would sit in the room with the enemy on a regular basis."

One evening is seared in his memory: 23 February 2022.

In the middle of an emergency UN Security Council meeting, convened to discuss the urgent crisis in Ukraine, the ambassador got word that his country was under attack.

At the same time, seven time zones to the east in Kyiv, I remember hearing the first distant explosions as Russia's all-out assault on Ukraine began.

Amid scenes of agonising drama, Kyslytsya tried to get Russia's ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, to call his boss, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, to seek assurances that Russian troops would not invade.

"I've already said everything I know today," Nebenzia replied, according to Kyslytsya. "I'm not going to wake Minister Lavrov at this time."

Everyone's lives changed at that moment. Kyslytsya stayed at the UN for another three years before returning to Kyiv.

If the delegations meet again in Geneva on Thursday, he'll be there, still thrashing out the contours and mechanics of a ceasefire but waiting all the while for the most important part of the jigsaw to fall into place.

"The war could be stopped by just one call of one person to his military chief of staff," he said.

"But apparently, the Kremlin dictator [Russian President Vladimir Putin] is not up to stopping the war for the time being."

Queen tells Gisèle Pelicot her new memoir left her 'speechless'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2e4ng18nv3o, today

Queen Camilla has told French rape survivor Gisèle Pelicot that she was left speechless by her new memoir, which she says she finished reading in just two days.

The Queen invited Pelicot to her official residence in London, where the 73-year-old had been promoting her new book, Hymn to Life: Shame Has to Change Sides.

Pelicot became a global figurehead of strength and feminism after waiving her right to anonymity and confronting dozens of the men who had raped her.

"I've met so many survivors of rape and sexual abuse," the Queen told Pelicot on Monday. "I never thought I could be shocked by anything anymore, but I was shocked at your case - it left me speechless."

The two women sat down for tea together at Clarence House, where Pelicot was joined by her partner, Jean-Loup Agopian, and her literary and legal team.

The Queen first spoke to her guests in French, joking she had "forgotten" the language after studying it "60 years ago". Afterwards, she spoke through an interpreter.

Pelicot said she had received "incredible strength" from the public after coming forward with her story. "You have so much support," the Queen said in response.

The meeting came after Pelicot launched her book at a sold-out event at London's Royal Festival Hall on Friday. It featured readings from Hollywood actresses Kate Winslet, Dame Kristin Scott Thomas and Juliet Stevenson.

Last year, Queen Camilla sent Pelicot a letter praising her "extraordinary dignity and courage".

In the letter, the Queen said Pelicot had "inspired women across the globe" and "created a powerful legacy that will change the narrative around shame, forever".

Pelicot said the letter, which left her "overwhelmed", was now framed in her office.

The harrowing details of Pelicot's ordeal shocked the world in 2024.

A court heard how for many years she had been drugged unconscious by her then-husband Dominique and raped by dozens of men he had recruited online.

After a 16-week public trial, 46 men were found guilty of rape, two of attempted rape and two of sexual assault. Dominique Pelicot was handed the maximum jail sentence of 20 years.

Millions were moved by Gisèle Pelicot's presence at the trial, and she received an outpouring of support in France and beyond.

She said it was time to make "shame swap sides" from the victim to the rapist - a message that resonated with many, including the groups of women that gathered in support outside court every day, carrying signs demanding justice.

Earlier in February, Pelicot gave a wide-ranging interview to BBC Newsnight, in which she recalled being "crushed by horror" when she discovered the scale of her husband's crimes.

She also recalled the moment she decided to waive her legal right to anonymity - a decision she says she has never regretted.

Greenland says 'no thanks' to Trump US hospital boat

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy7jnvdzpr7o, 2 days ago

Greenland's prime minister has asked US President Donald Trump to talk to him instead of making "random outbursts on social media", after Trump said he was sending a US hospital boat to "take care" of people on the island.

Trump wrote on Truth Social that he was going to send a boat filled with medical supplies, alleging "many people" on the island are sick and "not being taken care of".

Jens-Frederik Nielsen responded "it's going to be a no thanks from us," and said that Greenland provides free healthcare for all citizens, unlike the US.

Trump has long coveted the vast arctic island - but conceded in January that he would not take it by force, after previously refusing to rule out doing so.

He later announced a "framework for a future deal" around the US and Greenland, after Denmark and Nato allies made it clear that they would not give in to his calls to relinquish sovereignty.

In his post on social media, Trump said that he and his Greenland envoy Jeff Landry were "going to send a great hospital boat to Greenland to take care of the many people who are sick, and not being taken care of there. It's on the way!!!"

The post included what appeared to be an illustrated or AI image of the USNS Mercy, one of two hospital ships operated by the US navy. It is not clear if Trump was referencing either of those ships, or what had prompted his decision.

Responding to the post, Nielsen said that Trump's idea "is noted. But we have a public healthcare system where treatment is free for citizens."

"It's not like that in the United States, where it costs money to go to the doctor," he wrote on Facebook.

Nielsen added that Greenland remained open to cooperating with the US but underlined the importance of discussing issues directly.

"Talk to us instead of just making more or less random outbursts on social media," he said.

Trump's post came soon after Denmark's Joint Arctic Command said it had evacuated a crew member who required urgent medical treatment from a US submarine close to Nuuk. It is not clear if Trump's post was related to the incident.

A month on from Trump announcing a "framework for a future deal" over Greenland, details are still unclear, though earlier this month US vice president JD Vance alleged that European countries were "willing to make a lot of accommodations".

Bones of St Francis of Assisi go on public display in Italy

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz7glr9dpy8o, 2 days ago

The remains of Italy's patron saint, St Francis of Assisi, have gone on public display to mark 800 years since his death.

Italian officials say about 400,000 people from around the world have reserved a place to see his bones in the central Italian town of Assisi.

The 13th Century skeleton is being displayed from Sunday at the lower church of the famous Basilica of St Francis of Assisi.

His remains have only been seen in public once before - for a single day in 1978 to a very limited group of people.

St Francis is one of the most venerated figures in Christianity and was born in the Italian city of Assisi in 1181 or 1182.

He renounced his wealth and devoted his life to the poor, founding the order of the Franciscans. He is also the patron saint of animals and the environment.

The Feast of St Francis is celebrated annually on 4 October to mark the day of his death in 1226.

The late Pope Francis, who died last year after leading the Roman Catholic Church for more than a decade, chose his name and modelled his papacy after the radical humility of Saint Francis.

St Francis of Assisi's bones will be on display until 22 March.

Zelensky tells BBC Putin has started WW3 and must be stopped

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvgj9p15y87o, yesterday

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky continues to send out a firm message of defiance.

When we met this weekend in the government headquarters in Kyiv, he said that far from losing, Ukraine would end the war victorious. He was firmly against paying the price for a ceasefire deal demanded by President Vladimir Putin, which is withdrawing from strategic ground that Russia has failed to capture despite sacrificing tens of thousands of soldiers.

Putin, Zelensky told me, has already started World War Three, and the only answer was intense military and economic pressure to force him to step back.

"I believe that Putin has already started it. The question is how much territory he will be able to seize and how to stop him... Russia wants to impose on the world a different way of life and change the lives people have chosen for themselves."

What about Russia's demand for Ukraine to hand over the 20% of the eastern region of Donetsk that it still holds - a line of towns Ukraine calls "fortress cities" - as well as more land in the southern regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia? Isn't that, I asked, a reasonable request if it produces a ceasefire?

"I see this differently. I don't look at it simply as land. I see it as abandonment - weakening our positions, abandoning hundreds of thousands of our people who live there. That is how I see it. And I am sure that this 'withdrawal' would divide our society."

But isn't it a good price to pay if that satisfies Putin? Do you think it would satisfy him?

"It would probably satisfy him for a while... he needs a pause... but once he recovers, our European partners say it could take three to five years. In my opinion, he could recover in no more than a couple of years. Where would he go next? We do not know, but that he would want to continue [the war] is a fact."

I met Zelensky in a conference room inside the heavily guarded government enclave in a well-to-do corner of central Kyiv. In the interview he spoke mostly in Ukrainian.

You get a sense of the weight of leadership carried by Zelensky from the diligence of his security guards.

Visiting any head of state requires rigorous checks. But entering the presidential buildings in Kyiv takes the process to a level I have rarely experienced before.

It is not surprising in a country at war, with a president who has already been targeted by Russia.

Despite all that, the man who started as an entertainer, who won the Ukrainian version of Strictly Come Dancing in 2006, and played the role of an unexpected president of Ukraine in a TV comedy, before becoming the real-life president of Ukraine, seems to be remarkably resilient.

US President Donald Trump said on the eve of the most recent ceasefire talks in Geneva that "Ukraine better come to the table fast".

He continues to default to putting more pressure on Ukraine than on Russia.

Western diplomats have indicated since last summer that Trump agrees with Putin that territorial concessions from Ukraine to Russia are the key to the ceasefire Trump wants, ideally before this coming summer.

Plenty of analysts outside the White House also judge that Ukraine cannot win the war and, without making concessions to Moscow, will lose it.

I asked Zelensky whether Trump and the others had a point.

"Where are you now?" Zelensky asked in return. "Today you are in Kyiv, you are in the capital of our homeland, you are in Ukraine. I am very grateful for this. Will we lose? Of course not, because we are fighting for Ukraine's independence."

Zelensky has often said that Ukraine can win, but what would victory look like?

Of course, he said, victory meant restoring normal lives for Ukrainians and ending the killing. But the wider view of victory he presented was all about a global threat that he says comes from Putin.

"I believe that stopping Putin today and preventing him from occupying Ukraine is a victory for the whole world. Because Putin will not stop at Ukraine."

You are not saying that victory is getting all the land back, are you?

"We'll do it. That is absolutely clear. It is only a matter of time. To do it today would mean losing a huge number of people - millions of people - because the [Russian] army is large, and we understand the cost of such steps. You would not have enough people, you would be losing them. And what is land without people? Honestly, nothing."

"And we also don't have enough weapons. That depends not just on us, but on our partners. So as of now that's not possible but returning to the just borders of 1991 [the year Ukraine declared its independence, precipitating the final collapse of the Soviet Union] without a doubt, is not only a victory, it's justice. Ukraine's victory is the preservation of our independence, and a victory of justice for the whole world is the return of all our lands."

A year ago, Zelensky visited the White House and received a reception one senior Western diplomat described to me as a pre-planned public "diplomatic mugging" from Donald Trump and his Vice-President JD Vance.

Their argument, in the presence of the world's media, was watched by millions around the world.

Trump, just inaugurated as president for the second time, was sending the strongest possible signal that the era of support Zelensky and Ukraine had relied on from President Joe Biden was over. Nato members were already on notice from the new administration. Vance had just got back from shattering Western European illusions about the strength of the trans-Atlantic alliance.

Since then, reportedly coached by Britain's National Security Adviser Jonathan Powell among others, Zelensky has avoided public confrontations with Trump.

The US president has stopped almost all shipments of military aid to Ukraine. But the US still provides vital intelligence, and European countries are spending billions buying weapons from the Americans to give to Ukraine.

I asked Ukraine's president about Trump's often contradictory statements, recalling that among the untruths he has uttered is the accusation that Zelensky is a dictator who started the war - a precise echo of claims made by Vladimir Putin.

Zelensky laughed.

"I am not a dictator, and I didn't start the war, that's it."

But can you trust Trump? If you extract a security guarantee from him, I asked, would he keep his word? He is after all a man who changes his mind.

"It is not only President Trump, we're talking about America. We are all presidents for the appropriate terms. We want guarantees for 30 years for example. Political elites will change, leaders will change."

He meant that US security guarantees needed approval from Congress in Washington DC to make them watertight.

"They will be voted on in Congress for a reason. It's not just presidents. Congress is needed. Because the presidents change, but institutions stay."

In other words, Donald Trump might be unreliable, but he will not be there for ever.

Zelensky says those security guarantees would have to be in place before he could consider another US demand - for Ukraine to hold a general election by the summer, echoing another Russian talking point that Zelensky is an illegitimate president. Trump has not demanded elections in Russia, where Putin became leader for the first time on the last day of the 20th Century.

Zelensky said he had not decided whether to stand again, whenever an election is held: "I might run and might not."

Elections were due in 2024, but they could not be held under martial law that was introduced after Russia's full-scale invasion.

Holding postponed elections, Zelensky said, was technically possible if they had time to change the law to allow them to happen. But he needed security guarantees for Ukraine first.

He went on to raise so many potential problems about holding an election with millions of Ukrainians abroad as refugees and significant tracts of the country occupied by Russia that I suggested that in reality he was against the idea.

"If this is a condition for ending the war, let's do it. I said, 'honestly, you constantly raise the issue of elections'. I told the partners, 'you need to decide one thing: you want to get rid of me or you want to hold elections? If you want to hold elections, (even if you are not ready to tell me honestly even now), then hold these elections honestly. Hold them in a way that the Ukrainian people will recognise, first of all. And you yourself must recognise that these are legitimate elections'."

Volodymyr Zelensky has opponents and harsh critics here in Ukraine.

His government was rocked last autumn by a corruption scandal that led to the departure of his closest adviser.

But Zelensky, with a new team, still commands approval ratings that most leaders in Western Europe can only dream about.

He has irritated his allies at times with constant demands for more and better equipment. One of the accusations directed at him in the Oval Office by Trump and Vance a year ago was that he was not sufficiently grateful.

The latest item on his list is permission to manufacture American weapons under licence, including Patriot air defence missiles.

"Today the issue is air defence. This is the most difficult problem. Unfortunately, our partners still do not grant licences for us to produce systems ourselves, for example, Patriot systems, or even missiles for the systems we already have. So far, we have not achieved success in this."

Why won't they do that?

"I don't know. I have no answer."

At the end of the interview, he switched from Ukrainian to English.

Given everything he had said, I asked him whether we needed to get ready for an even longer war in Ukraine.

"No, no, no, it's two parallel tracks... you are playing chess with a lot of leaders, not with Russia. There is not one right way. You have to choose a lot of parallel steps, parallel directions. And one of these parallel ways will, I think, bring success. For us, success is to stop Putin."

But Vladimir Putin isn't going to end this war, is he? Unless he's under massive pressure and he doesn't seem to be.

"Yes and no. We will see. Yes and no. He doesn't want, but doesn't want doesn't mean he will not. God bless. God bless, we will be successful. Thank you."

And with that, he posed for photographs, shook hands with the BBC team, and strode out of the room.

More than 90 deaths this season: Are we seeing more avalanches?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn4gjqv7vl3o, today

It is not unusual for avalanches to be in the news in the northern hemisphere at this time of year, the height of the annual ski season.

But Tuesday's deadly incident in California, which took the lives of eight skiers and left one more unaccounted for, and the difficult situation in much of the Alps - where there have been more fatalities than usual this year - has put a spotlight on avalanches and how prepared winter sports enthusiasts should be for them.

The two situations would seem to be very different. California has been coming out of a so-called snow drought and experts do not consider the latest snowfall exceptional.

But droughts followed by intense snow can cause problems - the new snow is unable to bind to old snow underneath, which can either be very hard or non-existent, and therefore remains loose.

Europe, however, has seen two major storms in a week and a large amount of heavy snow combined with strong winds, leading to high avalanche warning levels across an unusually large part of the Alps. Three Britons were among dozens killed in incidents so far over the season.

One Alpine resort suggested that the current conditions could be the worst there this century.

Recent snows have also led to evacuations of several communities in Switzerland and northern Italy, as well as power outages and a train derailment at Goppenstein in the south-western Swiss canton of Valais.

But is there a connection between events in Europe and California?

Is climate change to blame?

Climate change might seem an obvious culprit for the unstable weather conditions that have brought them about.

"There is evidence that climate change will lead to sharper, more intense precipitation followed by long periods without," said Dr Ben S Pickering, research associate in meteorology at University of Manchester and National Centre for Atmospheric Science.

This would seem to be the case in Europe, which has recently had several seasons with lower than average snowfall, and some dry periods in the early part of this season.

"However, since many factors control avalanche risk and precipitation is only one controlling influence, it is difficult to conclude how risks may evolve with future climate change," Pickering said.

Climatologist Christoph Marthy told Swiss outlet SRF the current Alpine winter - with weather until recently dominated by high pressure and several long, dry periods - is exactly the opposite of a typical climate change winter.

Benjamin Zweifel, of the Swiss Federal Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research, told the BBC the storms were "only one piece of the puzzle".

"The main challenge this winter was a very weak snowpack [an accumulation of snow that compresses and melts seasonally] with very persistent weak layers, caused by long periods without new snow and low temperatures," he said.

While global warming affects weather patterns, the temperature itself could also have a direct impact on avalanches. According to the US Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center, wet snow avalanches - which are likely to become more frequent as temperatures rise - are dangerous, difficult to predict and relatively poorly understood compared with the dry snow equivalent.

"Wet snow avalanches are caused by weakening in the strength of the snowpack, often triggered by rain, abundant sunshine, or warm temperatures," the centre says in an article on wet snow avalanche research, adding their frequency was expected to increase with changing temperatures.

A 2021 research paper in the journal Frontiers in Physiology suggests wetter and warmer snow may also adversely affect a person's chances of surviving an avalanche, while thinner snow cover may increase the risk of blunt trauma injuries.

Broadly, there would seem to be four destabilising issues that are changing the dynamics of avalanches - switching between droughts and heavy precipitation, the precipitation itself, wetter snow and snow which is actually melting.

How are resorts mitigating the risk?

Blaise Agresti, a high-mountain guide at Chamonix, told France's Sud radio that there was another important factor in Europe's spike in avalanche deaths - the changing behaviour of skiers and higher levels of risk.

"People are increasingly practising off-piste skiing. Among skiers, 25% go off-piste," he said.

Way-marked pistes are generally protected by pre-emptive avalanche blasting, and their snow is flattened and compacted to further reduce the risk. If there is still a danger of avalanches, pistes can be closed off, as has happened during the recent warnings.

But while forecasting and blasting techniques have improved in recent years, it is not impossible for avalanches to hit pistes that have been declared safe. There is no such thing as zero risk, and it may be advisable to keep away from pistes beneath mountainsides covered with powdery-looking snow.

Sometimes resorts can detect a wider threat. The French resorts of Tignes and Val d'Isere even imposed a lockdown because of the avalanche threat, forcing residents and tourists to stay indoors.

In general, though, resorts will not prevent tourists from going off-piste so instead they offer advice. Another French resort, La Plagne, for instance, tells skiers to get information about conditions, make sure they have the necessary safety gear - avalanche transceiver, shovel and probe - know how to use them, and always go out with a professional guide and never alone.

The resort, which has one of the world's largest off-piste areas, holds weekly safety days in high season and has recently invested in a drone equipped with a thermal camera for use in avalanche detection and rescue operations.

Thomas Hager, a ski guide based in the Zell am See region in the Austrian Alps, told the BBC World Service's Outside Source programme that sometimes it was easy for snow sports enthusiasts to be complacent.

"Snow looks so calm. It's comparable to water," he said. "In an ocean you don't see undercurrents but local people know where the undercurrents are and where avalanches go off frequently. So please always talk with local people and listen to the avalanche forecast."

He also suggested it was vital to carry an air-bag, which is not required by law but could help keep avalanche victims close to the surface of the snow.

Though the recent spike in avalanche deaths in Europe is worrying, it is not exceptional - according to European Avalanche Warning Services, 95 have died so far this season, compared to 70 in the whole of 2024-25 and 87 in 2023-24. The 2020-21 season, when 131 died, and 2017-18, when the figure was 147, seem comparable.

Could it have been a lot worse?

But if you ask weather watchers about the situation, a different picture emerges. Meteo France's team in Bourg-Saint-Maurice near the Italian border, told the BBC the region went from below-average snowfall to "remarkable" above-average snowfall in under 10 days.

"Statistically speaking, we experience a situation like this once every eight years. This means a very significant avalanche risk," it said.

Meanwhile the Val d'Isere resort, in its Thursday weather bulletin, said a third wave of 30-50cm (12in-20in) of snow - after the two storms - would have to be taken very seriously and required "certain precautions".

"The situation has not been seen for a long time (perhaps since February 1999)," it added.

So have modern avalanche-warning systems and safety measures taken by resorts in recent years kept casualty figures down?

Benjamin Zweifel believes the situation could be a lot worse without these factors, and says he sees a "big effect", at least in Switzerland.

He notes, though, that France and Italy have both seen higher fatalities - 25 in each, compared to Switzerland's 13 - but says this could be linked to "even more challenging conditions" in the western and southern Alps.

The worst could be over, though. The weather is expected to improve from Friday, giving resorts the space to carry out more safety work and allowing the snowpack to settle.

However, sunny, south-facing slopes will lose some of their snow, potentially leading to greater risks for off-pisters.

Correction 23 February: In an earlier version of this article Dr Ben S Pickering's quotes were wrongly attributed to Simon Mason of SEI US.

More than 1,500 Venezuelan political prisoners apply for amnesty

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c93w9g2dvn5o, 3 days ago

A total of 1,557 Venezuelan political prisoners have applied for amnesty under a new law introduced on Thursday, the country's National Assembly President has said.

Jorge Rodríguez, brother of Venezuelan interim President Delcy Rodríguez and an ally of former President Nicolás Maduro, also said "hundreds" of prisoners had already been released.

Among them is politician Juan Pablo Guanipa, one of several opposition voices to have criticised the law for excluding certain prisoners.

The US has urged Venezuela to speed up its release of political prisoners since US forces seized Maduro in a raid on 3 January. Venezuela's socialist government has always denied holding political prisoners.

At a news conference on Saturday Jorge Rodríguez said 1,557 release requests were being addressed "immediately" and ultimately the legislation would extend to 11,000 prisoners.

The government first announced days after Maduro's capture, on 8 January, that "a significant number" of prisoners would be freed as a goodwill gesture.

Opposition and human rights groups have said the government under Maduro used detentions of political prisoners to stamp out dissent and silence critics for years.

These groups have also criticised the new law. One frequently cited criticism is that it would not extend amnesty to those who called for foreign armed intervention in Venezuela, BBC Latin America specialist Luis Fajardo says.

He noted that law professor Juan Carlos Apitz, of the Central University of Venezuela, told CNN Español that that part of the amnesty law "has a name and surname". "That paragraph is the Maria Corina Machado paragraph."

It is not clear if the amnesty would actually cover Machado, who won last year's Nobel Peace Prize, Fajardo said.

He added that other controversial aspects of the law include the apparent exclusion from amnesty benefits of dozens of military officers involved in rebellions against the Maduro administration over the years.

On Saturday, Rodríguez said it is "releases from Zona Seven of El Helicoide that they're handling first".

Those jailed at the infamous prison in Caracas would be released "over the next few hours", he added.

Activists say some family members of those imprisoned in the facility have gone on hunger strike to demand the release of their relatives.

US President Donald Trump said that El Helicoide would be closed after Maduro's capture.

Maduro is awaiting trial in custody in the US alongside his wife Cilia Flores and has pleaded not guilty to drugs and weapons charges, saying that he is a "prisoner of war".

Venezuelan opposition politician released after amnesty law passed

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy57en3590no, 4 days ago

Venezuelan opposition politician Juan Pablo Guanipa has announced on social media that he has been freed after "almost nine months of unjust imprisonment".

His comments come shortly after the country's interim President, Delcy Rodríguez, signed an amnesty bill approved by its National Assembly that could lead to the release of hundreds of political prisoners.

Rodríguez's interim government has faced pressure from the US to speed up the release of Venezuela's remaining political prisoners after delays to the law.

However, Guanipa described the bill as a "flawed document" that excludes many Venezuelans who remain "unjustly" behind bars.

Guanipa is the leader of Venezuela's centre-right Justice First party and was a former vice-president of the National Assembly.

He went into hiding after being accused of terrorism and treason for challenging Venezuela's disputed 2024 election result, and was tracked down by security forces and detained in May 2025.

Guanipa was initially released from prison earlier this month, but was then rearrested and placed under house arrest for allegedly breaching the terms of his release.

He is now among hundreds of political prisoners that have been freed since US forces seized Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro in a raid on 3 January.

Venezuela's socialist government has always denied holding political prisoners but first announced days after Maduro's capture, on 8 January, that "a significant number" of prisoners would be freed as a goodwill gesture.

Opposition and human rights groups have said the government under Maduro for years used detentions of political prisoners to stamp out dissent and silence critics.

Interim President Rodriguez has described the amnesty bill as being intended for the offering and receiving of forgiveness.

Meanwhile, exiled opposition figurehead Edmundo González wrote on social media on Friday that there would be "no lasting reconciliation without memory or responsibility" in Venezuela.

He added that a "legitimate" amnesty must come with "truth, recognition and reparation".

Activists within the South American country have denounced delays to the amnesty law and a lack of transparency over who is being freed.

Guanipa is a close ally of Venezuela's exiled opposition leader María Corina Machado, who won last year's Nobel Peace Prize.

Machado has vowed to lead the country "when the right time comes", after giving US President Donald Trump her Nobel Peace Prize medal last month. She described her gift to Trump as a recognition of his commitment to Venezuela's freedom.

Hong Kong lodges 'strong protest' after Panama takes control of canal ports

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2k8z9v3334o, today

Hong Kong has formally complained to the government of Panama after it took control of two ports on the Panama Canal. It accused the Panamanian authorities of taking them over by force.

The ports had been run by a Hong Kong-based company, CK Hutchison, for more than two decades.

Last month, Panama's Supreme Court annulled the contracts which allowed the firm to operate the container ports, saying they were "unconstitutional".

The ruling followed claims by US President Donald Trump that China was operating the canal. There is no public evidence to suggest this.

Hong Kong's government said, in a statement, it was lodging a "strong protest" after Panama's "blatant act" undermined both the "spirit of the contracts" and "international trade rules".

Last year, the Hong Kong-based company agreed to sell most of its stake in the two ports to a group led by the US investment firm BlackRock. The move by the Panamanian government could disrupt the $22.8bn (£20.75bn) sale, according to the Reuters news agency.

CK Hutchison, founded by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing, described the move as "unlawful".

President Trump has repeatedly claimed that the Central American canal is under Chinese control.

During his inauguration address last January, he said: "China is operating the Panama Canal and we didn't give it to China. We gave it to Panama and we're taking it back."

The following month, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also demanded that Panama make "immediate changes" to what he called the "influence and control" of China over the canal.

There is no public evidence to suggest China exercises control over the canal, though Chinese companies have a significant presence there.

Up to 14,000 ships use the 51-mile (82km) Panama Canal each year as a shortcut between the Atlantic and Pacific.

The waterway, which handles about 5% of global maritime trade volume, is operated by the Panama Canal Authority, an agency of the Panamanian government.

From October 2023 to September 2024, China accounted for 21.4% of the cargo volume transiting the canal, making it the second-largest user after the US.

Fifteen killed after helicopter crashes during Peru flood rescue

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yjpv28g5ko, yesterday

Fifteen people have died after a military helicopter providing rescue services during severe flooding in south Peru crashed on Sunday.

The Peruvian Air Force said the Mi-17 aircraft lost radio contact while operating in the Arequipa region, which has been hit by torrential rain and flash flooding.

Rescue teams found the wreckage in the Chala district on Monday, officials said. Seven children were among the 11 passengers and four crew members who died.

The helicopter had been deployed to support search and rescue efforts in the region as mudslides and overflowing rivers caused widespread damage.

Local media reported that some of the armed forces personnel on board had relatives accompanying them. One of the victims was three years old.

The Peruvian Air Force said: "Our deepest condolences to the family members, friends, and the entire FAP family for the irreparable loss of our crew and passengers."

The aircraft had been travelling from the city of Pisco, in the Ica region, to Chala in Arequipa to carry out a support mission. It was found near Chala Viejo, a town close to the Pacific coast.

An investigation has been launched into the incident, officials said.

Torrential rain has caused intense flooding across Peru's Arequipa region causing mudslides, flooded streets and homes and trees to collapse.

At least two people have died as a result of the storm's impact, according to local media. An elderly women was carried away by floodwaters in the Cayma district, and a man died after being struck by lightning.

Arequipa's regional governor, Rohel Sánchez, said local authorities had requested assistance from the national government because homes have been damaged and declared "uninhabitable".

Dramatic footage from the region showed streams of mud and debris washing through residential streets and floodwater entering people's homes.

Willie Colón, trombonist who pioneered salsa music, dies aged 75

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c98qjed249do, 3 days ago

Salsa music pioneer Willie Colón, the trombonist and orchestra leader behind songs like El Malo, Oh, Qué Será, Talento de Televisión and Gitana, has died aged 75, US media reports.

The Grammy nominated singer-songwriter "passed away peacefully" on Saturday morning "surrounded by his loving family", his family said on social media. No cause of death was provided.

"While we grieve his absence, we also rejoice in the timeless gift of his music and the cherished memories he created that will love on forever," they said.

The Puerto Rican musician, who sang in Spanish and whose career spanned nearly 60 years, had been named among the most influential Latino artists of all time by Billboard magazine.

US media attributed Colón's death on Saturday to a statement posted by his family on Facebook and a tribute posted by his long-time manager, Pietro Carlos.

The BBC has contacted representatives for Colón.

Colón - who was also an arranger and producer - explored "the competing associations that Puerto Ricans have with their home and with the United States," according a biography posted on the LA Philharmonic website.

"He uses his songs to depict and investigate the problems of living in the U.S. as a Puerto Rican and also to imply the cultural contributions that Puerto Ricans have to offer."

He grew up in New York in an environment marked by Latin migration, street life and Caribbean music as the salsa sound emerged in the US state in the 1960s, the BBC's Mundo said, mixing jazz, mambo, jíbara music and chachachá.

"Today, We've lost an architect of the New York sound, a trombonist who made metals his banner and wrote eternal chapters in music history," his manager Pietro Carlos said in a statement on social media.

"From 'El Malo' to anthems that defined generations, his work wasn't just music, it was identity, neighborhood, consciousness, and resistance."

Carlos said that Colón expanded and politicised salsa music, taking it to stages where it hadn't been heard before. Colón, he explained, used his trombone to echo the sound of the Caribbean in New York and bridge the two cultures.

Recently, the salsa legend was name-checked in Nuevayol by Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny and briefly appeared in the song's music video.

Bad Bunny paid homage to Colón in the song's lyrics, singing: "Willie Colón, me dicen el malo, ey. Porque pasan los años y sigo dando palo," which translates to "Willie Colón, they say I'm bad, because the years come and I'm still hitting."

William Anthony Colón Román was born on April 28, 1950 in South Bronx, New York to Puerto Rican parents. His grandmother Antonia taught him Spanish and reminded him of the most recognisable elements of Puerto Rican culture, according to a biography from the National Foundation for Popular Culture.

The famed trombonist started his music career as a child, playing the trumpet at age 12, but later shifted to his iconic trombone, playing on street corners in the neighbourhood.

In 1967, at 16, he recorded his first album El Malo with Héctor Lavoe, forming an inimitable salsa duo for the Fania record label that popularised the songs Calle Luna, calle Sol, Abuelita, Ah, ah, oh, no, Ghana'e, El día de mi suerte, La murga and Juana Peña.

In 1972, he released El Malo - one of the first albums to feature the "New York Sound" that sparked a renewed interest in Latin music during the 1970s, according to his website.

He also produced music alongside Rubén Blades, Celia Cruz and Ismael Miranda, and, as a solo artist, continued to relentlessly pursue new musical fusions, such as El Gran Varón, Oh, Qué Será and Amor Verdadero.

Throughout his career, the artist accumulated more than 40 productions, 30 million copies sold, 15 gold records, five platinum records, and 10 Grammy nominations.

In the 1970s, the orchestra leader introduced Panamanian singer-songwriter Rubén Blades to lead the outfit. In 1975, they released the album Metiendo Mano! - a collaboration said to be his first foray into intellectual salsa that paved the way for the classic albums Maestra Vida and Canciones del Solar de los Aburridos.

Their second album Siembra - featuring disco rhythm, congas and timbales on Plastico - delved further into political fare and sold more than 3 million records worldwide, becoming a bestseller for the time and among the most consequential albums for the genre.

The Latin Recording Academy, the professional organisation behind the Latin Grammy Awards, paid tribute to Colón on social media as a man whose legacy "transformed salsa by making it a global phenomenon, establishing a sound and aesthetic that defined an era and continued to inspire generations of artists".

Colón was recognised with the Latin Grammys' Musical Excellence Award - a lifetime achievement honour - in 2004.

With nearly 40 albums to his credit, Colón also became known as a prominent social activist who supported the Latino Commission on AIDS and the United Nations Immigrant Foundation, and served as a board member at the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute.

In 2014, graduated from a police academy in New York and was sworn in as a deputy sheriff for the Department of Public Safety.

Colón is survived by his wife, Julia Craig, whom he wed in 1991, and their children.

Who was El Mencho, Mexico's most wanted man?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1jkw18e19jo, yesterday

There are only a handful of names that have had a lasting impact in the history of Mexican organised crime.

Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes – more commonly known as "El Mencho" – is one of them.

Hailing from humble rural roots in the western state of Michoacán, his rise to the top of one of the most feared and dangerous cartels in modern Mexico, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), was meteoric. And it was achieved through aggression, ambition, brutality and ruthlessness.

His killing has been heralded as a victory in both Mexico and the United States.

The Mexican authorities and the US reported that US intelligence was involved in bringing down the kingpin, lending the operation a sense of cross-border co-operation that could benefit both governments.

For the Mexican military, a cartel leader has been removed from the equation, thereby weakens – at least in theory, and maybe for a time – the criminal group he ran.

The response from El Mencho's men has been swift.

Roadblocks have been erected and violence has spilt over into the streets in as many as eight different states, from Guerrero on the Pacific coast to Tamaulipas in the north-east. Even the capital, Mexico City, and the surrounding Mexico State have seen incidents.

Some of the worst violence has been in Jalisco itself, with masked gunmen setting fire to stores in the state capital, Guadalajara – one of the venues for this summer's Fifa World Cup. In the beach resort of Puerto Vallarta, tourists and locals alike are sheltering in place until the wave of violence passes.

It's a show of loyalty from El Mencho's foot-soldiers and a show of fury at the authorities for eliminating their leader.

But whether the roadblocks and burning cars are for anything more than just show – that is, whether the violence de-escalates or ramps up – will only become clear over next few days. The reaction by law enforcement will be critical in that regard.

It is a long-held truth about such transnational criminal groups that, even with a cartel head as influential as Oseguera, there are inevitably three or four well-placed lieutenants on hand to replace him.

Undoubtedly, though, El Mencho was key to the group's ascendancy.

When he moved to the US as an undocumented immigrant in the 1980s, he had already had his first brushes with criminality in cultivating the marijuana fields of his native state.

Various arrests in the US followed as he dug deeper into narcotics crime in California, before eventually being sentenced to several years in prison in the US.

Oseguera was deported back to Mexico aged 30 and began to fully immerse himself in cartel activity. He worked for the Milenio Cartel, based out of his native Michoacán, and grew in stature and reputation as a calculating and cruel boss.

He was ideally placed when the cartel fractured and, from its remnants, the CJNG sprang up with El Mencho at its head.

Through a combination of territorial expansion and the nimbleness to pivot the cartel's activity into new and lucrative illegal activities, he turned the group into what it has become today – arguably the predominant criminal force in Mexico.

His leadership and his cartel benefitted from the collapse of the Sinaloa Cartel after the extradition of its leader, Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, to the US. Subsequent battles between warring factions in Sinaloa have ultimately torn the group apart.

The New Generation Cartel was on hand to hoover up an important portion of the fentanyl trade after the fall of El Chapo's sons. One of them, Joaquín Guzmán López, handed himself in to the US authorities and brought down his group's biggest rival, Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, with him.

El Mencho was a clear beneficiary of the vacuum and the dramatic sequence of events in Sinaloa. But, as is so often the case in Mexican drug crime, it was not a crown he wore for long.

The government of Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum will portray the removal of one of the country's most wanted men as a victory and this will be echoed in Washington. It shows progress on the main issue from which US President Donald Trump has demanded action from Mexico after immigration: fentanyl trafficking.

Given the element of US intelligence apparently involved, it also underlines the Sheinbaum administration's willingness to work together with Washington in pursuit of the same goals. She would hope it will be enough to stave off any further talk of the need for unilateral US military action on Mexican soil in the form of drone strikes or boots on the ground – something which some in the Republican Party and in the Trump administration have openly called for.

Such discussions are still to come. For the time being, Mexicans are still processing that El Mencho is dead, and in his absence watching cartel members set fires in the streets in cities across the nation.

'Burned and destroyed': Locals and tourists describe Mexico unrest

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gqkg87293o, today

Locals and tourists in Mexico have described the "heartbreaking" unrest after one of the most powerful and feared cartels in the country unleashed a wave of violence across several states.

It comes after Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho", Mexico's most wanted man and leader of the Jalisco New Generation (CJNG) drug cartel, was killed during a security operation to arrest him on Sunday.

Footage recorded by locals and tourists showed burnt vehicles and plumes of smoke rising above several towns and cities, including the beach resort of Puerto Vallarta.

Nashville-born Jerry Jones, who has lived in the town for more than four years, told BBC News that he had "never experienced anything like this" and usually felt "safer here than in my hometown".

Jones, the owner of LGBT+ lifestyle magazine Out and About Puerto Vallarta, moved to Mexico after retiring from his job in the United States.

"I love the people here, I love the walkability of the city, how nice everyone is. It's a beautiful and fantastic place, and that's what encouraged me to come here," he said.

Residents were "completely caught off guard" on Sunday morning as news of El Mencho's capture and the following unrest broke, Jones said.

"The first inkling that we had that something was going on was one of our readers sent us a video of a bus being set on fire," he said.

He started seeing smoke "all the way across the city" just minutes later.

Jones said vehicles were being parked across roads and set on fire, including at one local store where "more than 30 vehicles that were in the parking lot at the time were burned and destroyed".

Although the situation unfolded quickly on Sunday morning, Jones said residents were given no information by local authorities and that he did not see military or officers in his neighbourhood until the afternoon.

Residents and tourists across several Mexican states have been asked to stay inside, with most businesses, schools and universities closed.

He described some people being "stuck" in shops after the violence broke out, unable to leave.

"When the city realised what was happening, they issued a stay at home order," he said, adding that the streets suddenly became "eerily quiet".

As information began to trickle into the local community, people began to come together to help each other, he said.

Community members had been putting out fires due to firefighters being "overwhelmed", Jones said, as well as helping tourists who did not have access to food.

He said a local grocery shop opened on Sunday evening but the queue to get in was "unbelievable".

"I don't know what today's going to bring. I hope, peace."

He said he worried about the community and the impact this would have on tourism in the region.

"Puerto Vallarta is strong and we have been through hurricanes together, the pandemic together, and businesses here join together," he said.

"In times like this, they do not compete. They join together and they help each other. And so, I think that's going to happen and we will survive and be even stronger."

Marc-André, a Canadian content creator who also lives in Puerto Vallarta, said the usually calm resort town "looked like it was an absolute war zone".

"There were fires everywhere, like hundreds of cars throughout the city were burning at the same time," he said in a video on his YouTube channel, More Life Diaries.

He also described the streets afterwards as "very quiet and unsettling".

"This is Mexico after all - usually there'd be music, people outside, people enjoying life, and there's a really, kind of eerie, feeling in the air here," he added.

Marc-André, who lives with his wife and two young children, said his family had never felt unsafe in the town before this.

"It is quite heartbreaking to see what's going on," he said.

Another YouTube creator, California-born Paul Desmond, shared his experience in a video which he said "he never wanted to make".

Desmond, who has lived in Bucerías, a beach resort town in the state of Nayarit, for several years, described the scene as "very unusual".

He shared drone footage from Sunday morning showing a deserted motorway with smoke visible in the distance.

"This is not something that happens regularly in our daily lives here," he said. "It's unsettling, it's frustrating, it's ugly."

A number of American and Canadian tourists have also shared their first-hand accounts of the unrest and how it unfolded.

Jeff Pass, a Canadian from Peterborough, has been in the Puerto Vallarta area for eight days and counting after attending a destination wedding there with dozens of other Canadians.

He said the hotel staff did not say much about what unfolded in the early hours of Sunday morning, but that he was able to see fires burning across town from the resort's rooftop by the afternoon.

Pass said the situation around him was noticeably calmer on Monday afternoon, and travel in taxis and Ubers appears to have resumed slowly, but he and his partner still do not know when they will be able to travel home.

They have been trying to register with the Canadian consulate in Mexico, but said officials had been "overwhelmed" with requests.

"We haven't heard back from the Canadian government or anything, but the resort has been very good," he said.

Dallas resident Adryan Moorefield, who had been in Puerto Vallarta since last week, told CNN the situation was a "complete shocker".

"It almost felt like being in the twilight zone," he said.

Moorefield said he had been to the town before and thought it would be a "quick, easy beach vacation" but that he was now stuck after his flight home was cancelled.

Meanwhile, Jim Beck told the broadcaster that he had seen taxis "blown up all over town" as he left his hotel on Sunday morning.

"Everyone was running down the street, screaming and yelling, and they told everyone to get back to their hotels," he said.

Another Puerto Vallarta tourist, Tim Spencer from Toronto, told CBC that he saw corner shops and cars in flames from the rooftop of the Villa Divina hotel.

"I've never really seen anything like this before in my life."

Canadians should travel only when "safe to do so", Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand advised.

She said that more than 26,000 Canadians abroad had registered to get information about security and travel - an increase of nearly 8,000 in one day.

Flight cancellations continued on Monday, leaving many stranded in Puerto Vallarta.

Air Canada said it would resume full operations to Mexico's Puerto Vallarta on Tuesday from Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver. Flights from Toronto to Guadalajara would resume on Wednesday, the airline said.

Samba school that praised Brazil's Lula at Rio Carnival relegated

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3ewvz0j87zo, 5 days ago

Rio de Janeiro's annual carnival parade competition continued its tradition of vibrant dance and colour, with samba school Viradouro taking the crown for its tribute to its legendary drum director.

But there was an added element of entertainment this year: political controversy.

An homage to the life of Brazil's President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva by samba school Acadêmicos de Niterói came in last place after it received political backlash even during rehearsals.

It will now be demoted from the top tier of samba schools and will have to take part in the "second division" Série Ouro (Gold Series) in 2027.

The performance charted Lula's path from poverty as a shoeshine boy to eventually reaching the highest post in the country. Tiago Martins, a carnival parade designer at the school, called it a deeply personal story.

"The samba says it: there are children of the poor becoming doctors, and me, a child of the poor, becoming a carnival designer," he told Reuters. "We wanted to tell the story of a man who did a lot for the poor and for Brazil."

However, the opposition criticised the decision to spotlight a sitting president as a sign of early campaigning ahead of the October elections, with Lula seeking a fourth term.

Several lawsuits alleging that Lula could gain a political advantage from the tribute were filed but rejected by the courts, with opposition parties even requesting the parade to be blocked.

Lula himself gave his blessing to the performance of Acadêmicos de Niterói and watched it with thousands of people from the stands in the city's giant Sambadrome arena.

Another pointed political message during Acadêmicos de Niterói's performance was a display of former far-right leader Jair Bolsonaro as Bozo the Clown sitting behind bars.

The ex-president's son Flávio Bolsonaro has vowed to appeal a decision by the electoral court after it rejected requests by two opposition parties to prevent the parade.

Many on social media also took issue with a performance by dancers dressed as a traditional family preserved in a tin can titled "preserved neoconservatives" as mocking Christian values.

Despite the controversy, the parade of giant lions, dancing books and rainbow coloured plumes still delighted the crowds.

The performances are judged over 10 categories by a total of 40 judges, with the top 12 samba schools competing for the title.

Under pressure from Trump, Venezuela's new president has aces up her sleeve

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn87rv0jdy1o, 7 days ago

A luminous outline of Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores loomed over Caracas against the night sky in January. The steady light of hundreds of drones in a show put on by the government in Venezuela, suspended their image in front of the clouds, before rearranging to call for their return: "El pueblo los reclama," they spelled out, "the people want them back".

After a lightning operation by the US to spirit the deposed president and his wife out of the country on 3 January, Venezuela has found itself in limbo.

Despite Delcy Rodríguez, the former vice president and now acting Venezuelan leader, calling for the return of Maduro and Flores, there are no signs that's going to happen. The former first couple are in New York in Brooklyn's Metropolitan Detention Center awaiting trial for alleged crimes including drug trafficking, all of which they deny.

Nevertheless, Rodríguez - a Maduro loyalist - must maintain a tricky equilibrium: appealing to her socialist base by continuing to support Maduro through anti-imperialist rhetoric, while at the same time changing policies under pressure from US President Donald Trump, with the threat that she could be following Maduro if she won't comply.

"Trump has implied that Venezuela is now a US protectorate, so she serves at the will of the US president," says Christopher Sabatini, senior research fellow on Latin America at Chatham House think tank. "She has also been investigated by the DEA - there's not a conviction, or bounty on her head, or indictment, but that threat has hung out there. The threat is, 'we have the goods on you'." The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) did not comment when approached by the BBC.

Rodríguez is now walking a diplomatic tightrope. "President Maduro had already warned of an attack of this nature due to the desperation of the United States' energy voracity," Rodríguez said in her first statement after the operation. Yet shortly afterwards, Trump announced that Caracas had agreed to deliver up to 50 million barrels of oil - and that he would manage the money.

And in her first speech to the National Assembly on 16 January, Rodríguez criticised "imperialist expansion by the United States". That same day, Rodríguez met with CIA Director John Ratcliffe in Caracas. Rodríguez has been contacted for comment.

"Rodríguez's legitimacy lies in the military strength of the US. And it will last if Trump wants it to. She cannot stand up to him," says Carmen Beatriz Fernández, Venezuelan political analyst and CEO of DataStrategia, a political consultancy firm.

One question is how long Rodríguez can keep this double act of keeping both the Venezuelan left and the US administration onside? And if she had to choose, would it be a tough choice or does one side very obviously hold the power?

Yankee go home

Caracas, Venezuela's capital city of around three million people, is festooned with banners calling for Maduro's return and decrying US interventionism.

"She is handling communication in the best possible way and establishing guidelines for the country to continue moving forward despite the hijacking," Leonardo Arca, 39, a civil servant, tells the BBC during a small pro-government march in Caracas last month. These big public displays calling for Maduro's return are usually organised by the government, and it's common for people to be told to go by their bosses.

He carries a banner that reads "Free Cilia". Other people carry signs that read "Yankee go home" or "Bring them back" in English.

Since Maduro and Flores were detained, what feels like years of changes have been crammed into a few short weeks.

The superpower of Chavismo, the left-wing political ideology that sustained the leaderships of Hugo Chavez and Maduro after him, is that it can quickly change course to keep the president - whoever that might be - in power.

On assuming the presidency on a "temporary" basis, Delcy Rodríguez - a lifelong Chavista - appointed mostly technocrats rather than ideologues with a nod to the need for pragmatism as Venezuela entered a new era.

Along with passing a law paving the way for US oil companies to start work in Venezuela, she also allowed for the release of numerous politicians and human rights activists who had been imprisoned for months or years. The opposition claims this has only happened because the US pressured them into it and point out that many political prisoners still remain in jail.

Trump has referred to Rodríguez as "a wonderful person" and "someone we have worked very well with." Rodríguez, in turn, has acknowledged that there have been telephone calls and said that the tone is "courteous" and "mutually respectful."

He has also acknowledged the diplomatic bind that Rodriguez is in. When asked by a reporter what he thought of her statements that Maduro is still the legitimate president, he dismissed it by saying: "I think she probably has to say that."

Escalating pressure

Rodríguez has avoided making inflammatory remarks against Trump. But she has used language deeply rooted in Latin American communist opposition to US expansionism, referring to the US as a "lethal nuclear power", "invader" and, "imperialist".

Phil Gunson, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group think tank based in Caracas, says: "Washington must understand that she must continue with this rhetoric. It is a way of maintaining cohesion in the Chavista project, even though it is known that it is not real."

All experts we spoke to agree that the pressure and threat from the US on Venezuela and Rodríguez is real.

"US pressure may escalate," says Ana Milagros Parra, a Venezuelan political scientist. She says options for the US could include further intervention in Venezuelan territory, more economic sanctions and further oil blockades.

While Rodríguez must keep the leftist Chavismo grassroots happy, they only represent 15-20% of society and there are many Venezuelans who were never supportive of Maduro.

During his 13 years in power, Maduro's popularity waned. His 2024 election win was called into question after widespread international accusations that the vote was rigged. Opposition tallies collected by their election observers - which were independently reviewed - showed their candidate won 67% of the vote compared with Maduro's 30%. But nevertheless, Maduro assumed office claiming a 53% victory.

More than 7.9m Venezuelans have left the country since 2014, with 6.5m counted as refugees by the UNHCR, showing the scale of the civil and economic crisis that has gripped the country.

"This was not a popular government," Sabatini says. "Most Venezuelans are feeling more optimistic about his removal."

There is one major factor that could work in Rodríguez's favour: the promise of respite for the long-struggling Venezuelan economy. The country's inflation is by far the highest in the world, and 86% of Venezuelans were in poverty in 2024 according to the Venezuelan Finance Observatory.

Food in Venezuela is staggeringly expensive. Research carried out in 2025 found that a basic food shop composed of 60 everyday items cost $526.83 (£421). Venezuelans, battered by years of hyperinflation, are hoping US investment will ease the crisis but with the US focus so far firmly on the oil industry, it is not yet clear how much - and how quickly - any of it will trickle down to the average worker.

The colectivos

Delcy Rodríguez is also having to navigate a tricky balancing act within the military, who are loyal to Maduro.

Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello wields great power and Rodríguez is treating him cautiously. "He sits atop not just a deeply corrupted military or national guard, but also a ragtag group of paramilitaries called the colectivos… They have been the shock troops sent to threaten protests," says Christopher Sabatini. "This is his (Cabello's), if you will, private army. He has a $25m (£20m) bounty on his head in the US." The BBC has contacted Cabello for comment.

While this bounty shows the US has him in its crosshairs, the two nonetheless appear together at events, showing an uneasy alliance. "There's a theory that they're playing good-cop-bad-cop," Sabatini adds. "She knows she needs him to maintain the security forces and keep them on her side… but as long as they don't interfere with her momentum of attracting investors and most of the elements of the Trump administration, he serves her purpose."

Despite this massive balancing act and all the US's might, some argue that Rodríguez is not as powerless against Trump as it might first appear.

According to Sabatini, Trump is desperate for the world to see the extraction of Maduro as an unqualified success.

"Trump wants to see Venezuela continue on the path it's on, he doesn't want anything to contradict the narrative that everything is hunky dory. Trump doesn't want to see the oil hit the fan, so to speak.

"(So) she has some leverage over Trump, which most people don't realise. She's not just a secondary partner," Sabatini says.

"It's more of an equal partnership than Trump would like."

A nation divided

Splits within the US administration itself could also have strengthened Rodríguez's hand. Marco Rubio, the US Secretary of State, has an explicit anti-communist agenda and is believed to want to see her government overthrown.

"Rubio… regularly speaks to the opposition, who are unhappy. There are rumblings of discontent," says Sabatini. "Rubio and others will push for early elections but it's up to her when they are held."

And the better things are in Venezuela, the more likely she is to call the elections. "She wants to wait to see the economy lifted so she could potentially run and win," Sabatini adds.

Indeed, this pragmatism runs through Rodríguez's political DNA. "Chavismo is pragmatic. Its main objective is to survive, and maintain power and wealth," says Phil Gunson.

As Ana Milagros Parra says: "They bend so as not to break."

And it seems that this means that even up against the might of Trump, Rodríguez is not completely without power.

With additional reporting by Nicole Kolster from Caracas

Top picture credit: Reuters and Getty Images

Trump eyes Venezuela visit – but obstacles to his oil plan remain

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gjx1j1nkjo, 8 days ago

After US President Donald Trump oversaw the seizure of his Venezuelan counterpart Nicolás Maduro last month, he vowed to tap the country's oil reserves – the world's largest.

Trump now says that he plans to visit the South American country, although no date has been set.

His comments, made last Friday, came after US Energy Secretary Chris Wright completed a two-day trip to Venezuela to see how the nation is starting to reopen its oil sector to US companies.

Wright's visit came shortly after Venezuela's National Assembly passed a law to allow both private and foreign investment in its oil industry, following two decades of tight state control.

In Trump's eyes it is a big business opportunity for the US oil sector. "We're going to be extracting numbers in terms of oil like few people have seen," he said at a news conference in mid-January, after a meeting with energy bosses at the White House.

But for the US oil firms that Trump wants to invest heavily in Venezuela, the question is a simple one - do the numbers add up?

William Jackson, chief emerging markets economist at Capital Economics, says the US president's aim is to "revive Venezuela's oil sector and use that energy to increase supply and reduce costs to the consumer, possibly providing a source of revenue for a more friendly Venezuelan government to rebuild the economy after years of mismanagement".

For US energy companies, however, there are huge practical difficulties to be overcome. Venezuela's state-owned oil company, PDVSA, is a shadow of its former self.

The governments of Maduro and his predecessor, Hugo Chávez milked the firm for all it was worth, and used the money to finance social spending on housing, healthcare and transport.

But they failed to invest in maintaining oil production levels, which have plummeted in recent years – partly, but not solely, because of US sanctions, which could now be revised.

"In Venezuela, you're dealing with equipment that's been degraded by many years of neglect," says Jackson. "Ten to 15 years ago, Venezuela was producing 1.5 million barrels a day more than it does today."

Monica de Bolle, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, agrees that PDVSA is in a parlous state.

"A lot of things have to be scrapped completely and rebuilt from the ground up," she tells the BBC. "In fact, if political constraints did not matter, the best thing to do would be to scrap PDVSA, but that isn't going to happen.

"It's a big nationalist symbol, it's attached to sovereignty. Would the Venezuelans be willing to do whatever the US says and roll over? I don't think so."

Trump has asked US oil firms to spend at least $100bn (£75bn) on restoring Venezuela's battered infrastructure – an absolute necessity before his plan to ramp up sales can be realised.

Officially, Venezuela has 300 billion barrels of oil reserves – yet in 2023, it exported just 211.6 million barrels of oil, worth about $4bn. Compare that to second-placed Saudi Arabia, which has 267 billion barrels of reserves, but had exports worth $181bn in the same time period.

So on paper at least, there is room for improvement. However, Jackson says there are doubts over the true size of Venezuela's oil reserves.

During the Chávez presidency, Venezuela reclassified its reserves. Previously, there were thought to be just 80 billion barrels of extractable oil, but by 2011, its reported figure had nearly quadrupled. That statistical change was made possible by high oil prices at the time, which allowed previously unviable projects to look feasible.

"There was a big step – jump – that people have questioned," Jackson says. "But now the world is awash with oil and it's not clear that the same calculations still apply."

When Chávez became Venezuela's president in 1999, oil prices were climbing. In the early 2010s, a barrel would often fetch about $100, providing the government with plenty of money to pour into social programmes. But with current prices around the $65 mark, the country looks less like a reasonable investment.

Venezuela's oil is also of poorer quality than its Saudi equivalent. Its sour, heavy crude is difficult to extract and refine, while its high sulphur content makes it corrosive to pipelines. A resurgence of Venezuela's industry could pose problems for Canada, which produces similarly viscous oil and exports much of it to the US, but analysts reckon the risk is minor.

According to research by Capital Economics, Canadian oil should remain competitively priced, even if Venezuelan production increases.

In the meantime, Venezuela's economic crisis has led to the exodus of nearly eight million people who have fled in search of a better life.

This includes expertise vital to keeping the oil pumps working: with the skilled engineers formerly on the PDVSA payroll now plying their trade elsewhere, the system limps on with a skeleton staff.

Thomas Watters, managing director and sector lead for oil and gas at research firm S&P Global Ratings, says US firms have the ability to repair Venezuela's infrastructure, but it has to make economic sense.

"At the end of the day, oil and gas companies have to deliver value to shareholders," he says. "They have very good managers. You can build anything, as long as you can pay for it.

"But you need an oil price that makes that worthwhile. Unless you can generate sufficient money to justify that, it's very difficult to see the industry coming back."

Besides, US oil firms have been bitten by Venezuela once before. In 2007, major US companies including ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips had their assets seized when they refused to allow PDVSA to take majority control.

They went to the international courts and were awarded huge sums in damages – $8.3bn in the case of ConocoPhillips – which have never been paid.

Given that the current Venezuelan regime continues largely intact, with former Vice-President Delcy Rodríguez as interim leader, it will take a lot to dispel fears of renewed expropriation.

Moreover, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright has said the Trump administration has no plans to offer security guarantees to oil companies in Venezuela – a worrying omission in a country where state-sanctioned paramilitary groups known as "colectivos" often operate as criminal gangs.

Without bigger government incentives, oil firms will be reluctant to take what could be an expensive plunge. Small wonder, then, that ExxonMobil boss Darren Woods has called Venezuela "uninvestable" in its current state.

Tellingly, Trump did not come back with an offer of sweeteners to promote investment. Instead, he threatened to block ExxonMobil investment in Venezuela.

The policy is "all stick, no carrot", says de Bolle of the Peterson Institute. "And it doesn't seem like they understand that they do need carrots."

In de Bolle's view, the Trump administration has an "imperialist vision" of Latin America that leads it to see the region's resources as its property. For her, private oil firms' aversion to Venezuela is a welcome barrier to that kind of resource grab.

"This is a time when you think, 'Thank God the US doesn't have a state-owned oil company,'" she says. "They need the private sector, but for the moment, the private sector isn't budging. And what company in their right mind is going to put money into Venezuela?"

But if Venezuela's oil output does eventually surge, could it bring global oil prices down? Analysts refuse to be drawn.

"It depends on the scale at which it happens," says Jackson of Capital Economics.

"The situation is very fluid, very opaque, and there's a big geopolitical angle. We're in the early stages where Venezuelan production is concerned."

Mexico sends thousands of soldiers to stop violence after death of drug lord

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2lp7xwql4o, today

Mexico has deployed thousands of soldiers to bolster security, the country's security minister has said, after a wave of violence erupted following the death of a powerful drug lord.

Defence Secretary Ricardo Trevilla said an extra 2,500 soldiers had been sent to western Mexico on Monday, with the government saying about 9,500 troops have been deployed overall since Sunday.

At least 20 states have seen unrest since Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes - better known as "El Mencho" - died in custody on Sunday shortly after being captured by Mexican special forces in Jalisco state.

The Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) is one of Mexico's most feared criminal organisations and its leader was the country's most wanted man.

At least 25 members of Mexico's National Guard have died in Jalisco state since the violence erupted, the country's security minister said.

El Mencho was captured after forces tracked down a romantic partner he was meeting, according to Trevilla.

The drug lord was seriously injured in a firefight between his bodyguards and the military commandos deployed to capture him, and he died while the military was transporting him from the town of Tapalpa to the capital, Mexico City.

At least six of El Mencho's security guards were also killed in the operation, while three members of the Mexican military were injured, the defence ministry said.

Security Secretary Omar Garcia Harfuch said a prison guard, a member of the state prosecutor's office, and 30 members of El Mencho's criminal organisation had been killed in the unrest since his death, according to news agency AFP.

Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum has praised the army's operation that led to El Mencho's death and said her priority is to guarantee peace and security across the country.

"There is calm, there is government, there are armed forces, and there is a lot of co-ordination," Sheinbaum said.

As news of El Mencho's death spread, members of his cartel launched attacks in many towns and cities where the CJGN is active.

In some towns, they blocked roads by throwing spikes and nails onto the tarmac - in others, they commandeered buses and other vehicles then torched them in the middle of the road.

Sheinbaum said that the road blocks had been cleared by Monday morning.

However, dozens of banks and local businesses have been damaged after they were set alight by cartel members.

Videos shared on social media and authenticated by BBC Verify show tourists watching from a pool as a military helicopter flies low over their hotel and smoke rising from buildings in Jalisco state's city of Puerto Vallarta.

In many towns, streets were deserted on Sunday as local authorities told residents to seek shelter in their homes.

BBC Verify has also authenticated videos of clashes between cartel members and Mexico's National Guard in the town of San Isidro, just north of Jalisco state's capital city Guadalajara, on Sunday.

One video shows an armed person firing towards several cars, while other images show at least four bodies slumped by a car.

CCTV from a nearby restaurant shows a vehicle ramming a National Guard truck while cartel members shoot at it about 11:00 local time (05:00 GMT).

The National Guard has not released any details about the incident.

The US State Department had offered a $15m (£11.1m) reward for information leading to El Mencho's capture.

The Mexican Ministry of Defence said the raid aimed at capturing El Mencho had been carried out by the Mexican army, supported by the country's National Guard and the Air Force.

It added that "complementary information" provided by the US had helped seize the drug lord, but Mexico confirmed on Monday that no US forces were involved in his killing, according to AFP.

Cartel henchmen unleash violence after top drug lord killed in Mexico

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c795qgejzpxo, yesterday

Members of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), one of the most powerful and feared criminal organisations in Mexico, have unleashed a wave of violence across 20 Mexican states.

They torched businesses and erected burning blockades in retaliation to the killing of their leader, Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, better known as "El Mencho", who died in custody on Sunday shortly after being captured by Mexican special forces.

El Mencho, Mexico's most wanted man, was seriously injured in a firefight between his bodyguards and the military commandos deployed to capture him.

He died while the military was transporting him from the town of Tapalpa, in Jalisco state, to the capital, Mexico City.

At least six of El Mencho's security guards were also killed in the operation, while three members of the Mexican military were injured, the defence ministry said.

As news of El Mencho's death spread, members of his cartel launched attacks in many towns and cities where the CJGN is active.

In some towns, they blocked roads by throwing spikes and nails on to the tarmac - in others, they commandeered buses and other vehicles they then torched in the middle of the road.

Cartel members also set alight dozens of banks and local businesses such as pharmacies.

Footage recorded by locals showed plumes of smoke rising above several towns and cities, including the beach resort of Puerto Vallarta, which is popular with tourists.

In Guadalajara - one of the host cities of the forthcoming Fifa World Cup - travellers at the airport could be seen running and crouching on the floor in panic.

News site Milenio reported that the panic spread when a group came running into the airport to seek shelter after they had heard gunshots ring out from the nearby highway.

Their reporter said that he had seen a burnt-out car on the highway but that rumours that shots had been fired inside the terminal had been dismissed by the authorities.

In many towns, streets were deserted as local authorities told residents to seek shelter in their homes.

The scenes that unfolded on Sunday reminded many of the violence that erupted in the state of Sinaloa after the capture of another notorious drug lord - Ovidio Guzmán López - in 2019.

The street battles between members of his Sinaloa cartel and the security forces were so fierce that the Mexican authorities decided to free Guzmán López, who is the son of jailed drug kingpin Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, to prevent further bloodshed.

While Guzmán López was re-arrested in 2023 and extradited to the US, where he has pleaded guilty to drug-trafficking charges, retaliatory attacks by cartels have since become the norm following high-profile arrests.

In Puerto Vallarta, on Mexico's Pacific coast, tourists were told to shelter in place on Sunday.

Videos showed black smoke billowing from burning cars in several neighbourhoods, with one tourist describing the scene as looking "like a war zone".

Around 300 visitors were stuck at the Puerto Vallarta's airport after flights were cancelled due to the violence.

To ensure their safety, they were transferred to the city centre in a convoy with a heavy police escort.

The UK Foreign Office asked visitors to the town to "exercise extreme caution" and follow local authorities' advice, including orders to stay indoors.

Sara Morales, who is on holiday in Puerto Vallarta with her children, said that they had been asked to leave Las Glorias beach.

"I was very afraid because I didn't know what was happening," she told Mexican newspaper El Economista.

The US state department has urged its nationals to shelter in place until further notice in the states of Jalisco, Baja California, Quintana Roo and areas of Guanajuato, Guerrero, Michoacán, Oaxaca, Nuevo León and Tamaulipas.

The governor of Jalisco, where Puerto Vallarta is located, declared a "code red", halting all public transport and cancelling mass events and in-person classes.

El Universal newspaper said that more than 250 incidents of roads being blocked had been reported across the affected Mexican states.

Security officials say that 90% of the blockades have been lifted but tension remains high, especially in the CJGN's stronghold of Jalisco.

They added that 25 people had been arrested, 11 for their alleged participation in violent acts and 14 more for alleged looting and pillaging.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum urged people to stay "calm and informed". She added that "in most parts of the country, activities are proceeding normally".

She praised Mexico's security forces for the operation in which "El Mencho" was captured.

The Mexican president has come under pressure from the Trump administration to do more to combat the powerful transnational drug trafficking groups which are based in her country.

US Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said late on Sunday night that El Mencho was a "top target for the Mexican and United States government as one of the top traffickers of fentanyl into our homeland".

The Mexican Ministry of Defence said that the raid aimed at capturing El Mencho had been carried out by the Mexican army, with support from the country's National Guard and Air Force.

It added that "complementary information" provided by the US had helped seize the drug lord.

The US State Department had offered a $15m (£11.1m) reward for information leading to his capture.

Mike Vigil, former chief of international operations for the US Drug Enforcement Administration, described the operation as "one of the most significant actions undertaken in the history of drug trafficking" to CBS, the BBC's US news partner.

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Lawyers appeal to UN over men jailed in alleged power struggle in UAE

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn5gelnelz9o, today

Lawyers acting for two Jordanian citizens who have been detained in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) since 2014 have lodged petitions with the UN claiming they are victims of an internal power struggle within the emirate of Ras al-Khaimah.

Jihad Quzmar and Karam al-Sadeq are serving lengthy prison sentences there after being convicted of offences including the unlawful seizure of public funds, money laundering, bribery and corruption. Both men have denied wrongdoing.

The petitions to the UN claim that they are the victims of arbitrary arrest and mistreatment in prison, and call for their immediate release.

The BBC has approached Ras al-Khaimah's authorities for comment.

The son of Jihad Quzmar has told the BBC of the emotional toll on his family of the long years of his father's incarceration.

"My dad missed all of our graduations," said Mo Quzmar, speaking from Toronto, Canada. "He missed my wedding and he missed my sister's wedding. He missed the birth of my son."

Mo remembers vividly the day on which his father was arrested, early in the morning of 7 September 2014.

Mo was 21 at the time and not in the UAE, but his mother and younger brother were at the family home in Ras al-Khaimah when there was aggressive knocking on the door.

Jihad Quzmar had only just returned home from a family trip to Toronto. He had received a call from an official telling him to cut short his holiday and come back for business reasons.

While he was away, Karam al-Sadaq - with whom he had worked at the Ras al-Khaimah investment authority, Rakia - had been arrested.

As well as his business interests, Jihad Quzmar is a lawyer who had acted as a legal adviser to the rulers of Ras al-Khaimah.

The men at the door were plain-clothes officers and had arrived in several 4x4 cars.

Jihad Quzmar was first taken to the General Headquarters of State Security in Ras al-Khaimah.

His son said: "I believe he was there for 30 days or so. His cell was extremely cold. He was held by himself. He was unable to communicate with anyone outside."

The family did not know what was happening to him for several months, according to Mo.

Jihad Quzmar was then moved to a camp, Al-Barirat, where the personal security force of the ruler of Ras al-Khaimah is located.

"The conditions there were even worse," Mo said.

"His window was blocked so that sunlight couldn't get in. He didn't have a watch. He didn't know what the time was. The guards weren't allowed to tell him. He wasn't allowed a Quran. He wasn't allowed phone privileges."

In diary entries and letters, Jihad Quzmar gave his own account of what he experienced: "I am in a cell that is 2m by 2m. I sleep sporadically... no more than two hours in every 24... I was in a state of total collapse due to solitary confinement and lack of sleep."

In all, Jihad Quzmar was held in solitary confinement for 466 days, according to his lawyers' petition to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, a panel of human rights experts which investigates cases of arbitrary deprivation of liberty.

The petition says that both Jihad Quzmar and al-Sadeq - who experienced similar conditions in prison - were detained in connection with alleged fraud amounting to around $1.5bn (£1.1bn; €1.3bn) by the former CEO of Rakia, Dr Khater Massaad.

In 2016, Massaad himself was convicted in absentia of fraud by a criminal court in Ras al-Khaimah. The UAE has since tried to have him arrested and extradited. He continues to live outside the country and maintains his innocence.

The petitions to the UN on behalf of Jihad Quzmar and al-Sadeq also allege that their detention is due to the current ruler of Ras al-Khaimah, Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, believing they were involved in a plot to overthrow him.

Jihad Quzmar refused to make a confession or implicate anyone else in the fraud case. He is currently serving a prison sentence of 24 years.

Al-Sadeq did make a confession, but his lawyers say that he only did so as he was pressured to do so and under the belief it was in exchange for his freedom. But he has remained in jail, serving a sentence of more than 20 years.

Both men are being held in the central prison in Ras al-Khaimah, the fourth biggest of the seven emirates that make up the UAE.

The emirate is a monarchy, with its legal and administrative branches operating within the UAE's federal framework.

Tourism is an increasingly important part of its economy, with Ras al-Khaimah known for its mountains and coastal landscapes, offering destinations focused on nature and the environment in contrast to the glitzy, ultra-modern experience of Dubai.

The men's lawyers have also filed petitions to the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture.

Mo Quzmar says that direct appeals to the authorities not just in Ras al-Khaimah but in the wider UAE have fallen on deaf ears.

His father is now 63 years old, while al-Sadeq is 43.

Mo says that the years of incarceration have affected his father's health.

At one point he had a lung infection his family says was life-threatening.

Jihad Quzmar is only allowed to speak to a member of his family for 15 minutes per day. Only Mo, his mother and a cousin are permitted to speak to him. He is not allowed contact with his lawyers.

Al-Sadeq is also only allowed to speak to three members of his family, for up to five minutes and not every day.

Mo has not seen his father in person since 2019. He says that Jihad Quzmar has never seen a picture of his grandson.

"I think he's strong," Mo says, "in the way that he's never agreed to implicate anyone.

"Under all these tough circumstances, he stuck to his beliefs, he never thought that any of them did wrong... but at the same time, I feel like he's at a point in his life now, 11 years later, where he just doesn't see a way out."

But Mo says the family has not given up. "We hope the UAE will recognise the severity of the UN complaints which have been filed. We hope this action will finally open the door that has been closed to us for so long and allow my dad to come home."

Iran students stage first large anti-government protests since deadly crackdown

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yj2kzkrj0o, 2 days ago

Students at several universities in Iran have staged anti-government protests - the first such rallies on this scale since January's deadly crackdown by the authorities.

The BBC has verified footage of demonstrators marching on the campus of the Sharif University of Technology in the capital Tehran on Saturday. They were later seen scuffling with government supporters.

Protests were also reported at other universities in Tehran and elsewhere - with students gathering to honour thousands of those killed by authorities last month.

It comes as the US builds up its military presence near Iran, with President Donald Trump has saying he is considering a limited military strike.

The US and its European allies suspect that Iran is moving towards the development of a nuclear weapon, something Iran has always denied.

US and Iranian officials met in Switzerland on Tuesday and said progress had been made in talks aimed at curbing Iran's nuclear programme.

But despite the reported progress, Trump said afterwards that the world would find out "over the next, probably, 10 days" whether a deal would be reached with Iran or the US would take military action.

The US leader has supported protesters in the past - at one stage appearing to encourage them with a promise that "help is on its way".

Footage verified by the BBC shows hundreds of protesters peacefully marching on the campus of the Sharif University of Technology at the start of a new semester on Saturday.

The crowds chanted "death to the dictator" - a reference to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei - and other anti-government slogans.

A separate crowd of supporters of a rival pro-government rally - many with national Iranian flags - are seen nearby at the beginning of the video. Scuffles are later seen breaking out between the two camps.

Verified photos have also emerged showing a peaceful sit-in protest at the capital's Shahid Beheshti University.

The BBC has also verified footage from another Tehran university, Amir Kabir University of Technology, showing chanting against the government.

In Mashhad, Iran's second-largest city in the north-east, local students reportedly chanted: "Freedom, freedom" and "Students, shout, shout for your rights".

It is not immediately clear whether any demonstrators have been arrested. There have been reports of protests continuing on Sunday.

January's protests began over economic grievances and soon spread to become Iran's largest since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (Hrana) said it had confirmed the killing of at least 7,015 people during that wave, including 6,508 protesters, 226 children and 214 people affiliated with the government. The latest figures were updated on 15 February.

Hrana also said it was investigating 11,744 more reported deaths.

Iranian authorities said late last month that more than 3,100 people had been killed - but that the majority were security personnel or bystanders attacked by "rioters".

With Trump's threats looming, Iranian authorities are continuing to prepare for possible conflict with the US.

US envoy Steve Witkoff said on Saturday that Trump was questioning why Iran had not "capitulated" in the face of Washington's military build-up.

Witkoff told Fox News the president was "curious" about Iran's position after he had warned them of severe consequences in the event they failed to strike a deal.

"I don't want to use the word 'frustrated,' because he understands he has plenty of alternatives, but he's curious as to why they haven't... I don't want to use the word 'capitulated,' but why they haven't capitulated," he said.

The exiled opposition is adamantly calling on President Trump to make good on his threats and strike, hoping for a quick downfall of the current hardline government.

But other opposition groups are opposed to outside intervention.

The opposing sides have been involved in disinformation campaigns of social media, trying to maximise their conflicting narratives of what Iranian people want.

Additional reporting by BBC Persian's Ghoncheh Habibiazad, and BBC Verify's Richard Irvine-Brown and Shayan Sardarizadeh.

Update 22 February: This article was updated to make clear that those shown on video holding Iranian national flags were part of a pro-government rally, which was separate to the nearby anti-government protest.

US ambassador's Israel comments condemned by Arab and Muslim nations

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn5gkkgdzkyo, 2 days ago

Arab and Muslim governments have condemned remarks made by the US Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, who suggested Israel would be justified in taking over a vast stretch of the Middle East on Biblical grounds.

In an interview with conservative US commentator Tucker Carlson, Huckabee was asked whether Israel had a right to an area which the host said was, according to the Bible, "essentially the entire Middle East".

The ambassador said "it would be fine if it took it all". But he added Israel was not seeking to do so, rather it is "asking to at least take the land that they now occupy" and protect its people.

In a joint statement, more than a dozen governments including Jordan, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates called the comments "dangerous and inflammatory", and a threat to efforts to end the war in Gaza.

In the interview, released on Friday, Carlson pressed the ambassador on his interpretation of a Bible verse which the host claimed suggested Israel had a right to the land between the River Nile in Egypt and the Euphrates in Syria and Iraq.

Huckabee said "it would be a big piece of land" but stressed that "I don't think that's what we're talking about here today".

He later added: "They're not asking to go back to take all of that, but they are asking to at least take the land that they now occupy, they now live in, they now own legitimately, and it is a safe haven for them."

He also said his earlier remark that Israel could take it "all" had been somewhat "hyperbolic".

Following the interview's release, the UAE's foreign ministry released the statement on behalf of various governments and other actors expressing "strong condemnation and profound concern" regarding the comments.

The statement said Huckabee had "indicated that it would be acceptable for Israel to exercise control over territories belonging to Arab states, including the occupied West Bank".

It said the remarks violated international law and directly contradicted US President Donald Trump's plan to end the war in Gaza, including efforts to create "a political horizon for a comprehensive settlement that ensures the Palestinian people have their own independent state".

The statement continued: "The ministries reaffirmed that Israel has no sovereignty whatsoever over the Occupied Palestinian Territory or any other occupied Arab lands."

"They reiterated their firm rejection of any attempts to annex the West Bank or separate it from the Gaza Strip, their strong opposition to the expansion of settlement activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, and their categorical rejection of any threat to the sovereignty of Arab states."

The statement said it was signed by the UAE, Egypt, Jordan, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, Lebanon, Syria and the State of Palestine, as well as the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, the Arab League and the Gulf Cooperation Council.

Huckabee has frequently expressed his support for Israeli annexation of the occupied West Bank, contradicting decades of US policy.

Israel has built about 160 settlements housing 700,000 Jews since it occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem - land Palestinians want, along with Gaza, for a hoped-for future state - during the 1967 Middle East war. An estimated 3.3 million Palestinians live alongside them.

The settlements are illegal under international law - a position supported by an advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice in 2024.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at the time that the court had made a "decision of lies" and insisted that "the Jewish people are not occupiers in their own land".

Successive Israeli governments have allowed settlements to grow. However, expansion has risen sharply since Netanyahu returned to power in late 2022 at the head of a right-wing, pro-settler coalition, as well as the start of the Gaza war, triggered by Hamas's deadly 7 October 2023 attack on Israel.

More than 72,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's subsequent military offensive, according to Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry.

Anti-government student protests spread to more Iranian universities

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clyxrv8z0vdo, yesterday

A fresh wave of anti-government protests staged by students at several Iranian universities that began on Saturday has spread to more campuses, footage confirmed by BBC Verify and BBC Persian shows.

They are the first large-scale demonstrations in the country since the nationwide protests in December and January which led to a brutal crackdown by the authorities.

According to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (Hrana), at least 7,000 people were killed in the January crackdown, including 6,488 protesters and 236 children. It is also verifying reports of another 11,000 deaths. US President Donald Trump said on Friday that around 32,000 people were killed. Meanwhile, the Iranian government has confirmed 3,117 deaths.

All in-person classes at Iranian universities were suspended on 4 January for what the authorities described as "severely cold conditions", although critics say the closure was announced to stop potential student demonstrations taking place. The reopening of universities on Saturday has resulted in protests breaking out across multiple campuses in several major cities.

The student rallies that started on Saturday followed other commemorations held across the country last week marking 40 days since since the escalation of protests and the ensuing deadly crackdown on 8 January.

BBC Verify and BBC Persian have so far confirmed footage of protests at eight universities in Tehran, as well as universities in the major cities of Mashhad and Isfahan.

Footage verified by the BBC from the women-only al-Zahra University in north Tehran on Monday shows a group of students chanting anti-regime slogans and burning the flag of the Islamic Republic, Iran's official flag since the 1979 Islamic revolution.

Another clip filmed at the University of Tehran today shows students chanting "woman, life, freedom", the slogan associated with the protest movement that erupted in the country in 2022 following the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini.

Verified clips from multiple universities show students carrying the "lion and sun" flag of Iran, which was the official Iranian flag before the 1979 revolution. One such video, filmed at the Isfahan University of Technology on Monday, shows students displaying the flag along with chants of "long live the Shah".

Many students can be heard chanting these slogans in support of Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of the late Shah, and the Pahlavi dynasty that was overthrown in 1979. While a number of videos show chants in opposition to both the Islamic Republic and the deposed monarchy.

Another video filmed today at Tehran's Sharif University of Technology, one of Iran's most prestigious, shows students chanting slogans against Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Footage authenticated by BBC Verify also shows clashes in several universities between student protesters and members of the paramilitary volunteer Basij force, part of the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC).

Clips from Amirkabir University of Technology, also in Tehran, show Basij members fighting with students inside the campus. Another video, filmed on Sunday, shows students sheltering inside the University of Tehran's school of engineering. A group of Basij members can be seen outside the building, who attempt to break the entrance gate to get inside.

Pro-government students have also staged counter-rallies of their own on a number of campuses. One video from Sunday published by the semi-official Tasnim news agency, which is affiliated to the IRGC, shows demonstrators burning the flags of the US and Israel near the main gate of Tehran's Sharif University. Videos posted online show similar gatherings by pro-government students were held at Amirkabir, al-Zahra and Tehran universities.

State TV acknowledged in a report on Monday that "limited" anti-government rallies had been held at several universities. The semi-official Mehr news agency also reported that "a handful of students" who had taken part in protests at Sharif University were banned from the campus until further notice.

Unrest also broke out in the city of Abdanan in western Iran over the weekend after Yaqoob Mohammadi, an Iranian academic and activist who is an outspoken critic of the clerical establishment, was arrested at his home by security agents.

Two videos verified by the BBC show Mohammadi being led through the garden of his house to the street by masked men, as several people fight with armed men who leave in a pair of cars.

Multiple videos of protests near the city centre were published hours later. In one clip, crowds of protesters can be seen running for safety amid the sound of gunfire.

Mohammadi was released on Sunday and filmed near his home as a crowd cheered.

Additional reporting by: Sarah Jalali, Emma Pengelly and Paul Brown

US partially evacuates Beirut embassy amid rising Iran tensions

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj32l00k47lo, yesterday

The US government has ordered all non-essential staff to leave its embassy in the Lebanese capital of Beirut after a security review, a senior State Department official has told the BBC.

The decision comes as there are heightened tensions in the region, with US President Donald Trump threatening military action against Iran if it does not reach a deal over its nuclear programme.

Iran has previously vowed to retaliate if attacked by the US, with American bases and facilities in the Middle East thought to be possible targets.

Meanwhile, Secretary of State Marco Rubio has delayed a planned trip to Israel without announcing a reason.

A senior State Department official said: "We continuously assess the security environment, and based on our latest review, we determined it prudent to reduce our footprint to essential personnel.

"The embassy remains operational with core staff in place. This is a temporary measure intended to ensure the safety of our personnel while maintaining our ability to operate and assist US citizens."

About 50 members of US embassy staff have been ordered to leave, with 32 staff members and their families flying out of Beirut airport on Monday, an airport official told Reuters news agency.

A precise reason has not been given for the partial evacuation, but it comes after Trump said "bad things" would happen if Iran did not reach an agreement over its nuclear programme.

The rhetoric has sparked fears of possible retaliation from Tehran, with Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, posting messages to social media threatening US forces.

Washington holds the Lebanon-based group Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran, responsible for the deadly bombings of a US Marine barracks and the embassy in Beirut in 1983.

On Thursday, Trump said the world would find out "over the next, probably, 10 days" whether a deal would be reached or whether the US would attack Iran.

The US and its European allies suspect that Iran is moving towards the development of a nuclear weapon, something Iran has always denied.

US and Iranian officials said progress had been made after talks between the two sides in Switzerland last week.

Despite this, the US has continued to bolster its huge military deployment near Iran, which includes an array of destroyers, combat ships and fighter jets.

The world's largest warship, the USS Gerald R Ford, also appears to be heading towards the region.

BBC Verify has previously identified the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln in satellite images taken off the coast of Oman, about 700km (430 miles) from Iran.

US special envoy Steve Witkoff told Fox News on Sunday that Trump was "curious" about why Iran had not yet "capitulated" in the face of the military buildup.

The president has previously said he was considering a limited strike on Iran in order to pressure its leaders to agree to a deal.

His apparent 10-day deadline would expire at the end of this week, but it is unclear exactly what would happen after that - or if he could choose to launch an attack sooner.

One day before the US and Israel's military strikes on Iran last year, the White House said Trump would decide whether to attack "within the next two weeks".

Tehran responded to those strikes by launching missiles at a US military base in Qatar last June.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday that he believed there was still a chance the dispute could be resolved diplomatically "based on a win-win game". He told CBS News that negotiators were working on the elements of a deal.

Within Iran, anti-government protests were staged at several universities over the weekend - the first rallies on such a scale since January's deadly crackdown by the authorities, which saw thousands killed.

Trump has previously expressed support for protesters, and earlier in February he said regime change in Iran would be "the best thing that could happen".

Meanwhile, Secretary of State Marco Rubio's planned trip to Israel appears to have been delayed, with the schedule "subject to change", according to a State Department official.

Last week, officials said he would fly to Israel on Saturday to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Israeli media now reports the trip has been postponed until next Monday, but the State Department has not confirmed this.

The official said Rubio was "still planning to travel to Israel" but did not say when.

On Monday, Netanyahu said that Israel was facing "complex and challenging days" amid the US-Iran standoff. "We are keeping our eyes open and are prepared for any scenario," he told the Israeli parliament.

He added that if Iran decided to attack Israel, it would respond "with a force they cannot even imagine".

Trump curious why Iran has not 'capitulated', US envoy Witkoff says

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn5gk15rr70o, 2 days ago

US President Donald Trump is questioning why Iran has not yet "capitulated" in the face of Washington's military build-up in the Middle East, the US president's special envoy has said.

Steve Witkoff told Fox News on Saturday that Trump was "curious" about Iran's position after he had warned of a limited military strike if a deal could not be reached on Tehran's nuclear programme.

The US and its European allies suspect Iran of moving towards making a nuclear weapon, which it denies.

In his Fox interview, Witkoff said: "I don't want to use the word 'frustrated'... because he [Trump] understands he's got plenty of alternatives, but he's curious as to why they haven't... I don't want to use the word 'capitulated', but why they haven't capitulated.

"Why, under this sort of pressure, with the amount of sea power and naval power that we have over there, why haven't they come to us and said, 'We profess that we don't want a weapon, so here's what we're prepared to do?'"

The envoy added: "And yet it's hard to sort of get them to that place."

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday that he believed there was still a chance the dispute could be solved diplomatically "based on a win-win game". He told CBS News negotiators were working on the elements of a deal.

In separate comments two days ago, Araghchi said Tehran was preparing "a draft of a possible agreement" and would hand it over to Witkoff in the next few days.

US and Iranian officials discussed Iran's nuclear programme at indirect talks in Geneva in Switzerland on 17 February. They said afterwards that progress had been made.

Oman - which mediated the talks - announced on Sunday that the next round of negotiations was now "set for Geneva this Thursday".

Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi also expressed hopes that there would be "a positive push to go the extra mile towards finalising the deal" in a post on X.

The US and Iran have not commented.

Despite the reported progress in Geneva, Trump said on Thursday that the world would find out "over the next, probably, 10 days" whether a deal with Iran would be reached or the US would take military action.

In recent weeks, the US has been building up its military presence near Iran and in the wider Middle East region.

The deployment includes the world's largest warship, USS Gerald R Ford, appearing to be heading towards the region.

USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier has also been deployed, along with destroyers, combat ships and fighter jets.

In Iran, the BBC has verified footage of demonstrators marching on the campus of the Sharif University of Technology in the capital Tehran on Saturday. They were later seen scuffling with government supporters.

Protests were also reported at other universities in Tehran and elsewhere.

Iranian media reported demonstrations also took place on Sunday at the Iran University of Science and Technology and the Khajeh Nasir Toosi University in Tehran, and at Ferdowsi University of Mashhad in north-eastern Iran.

In one video the BBC has verified, anti-government protesters raise the Lion and Sun flag - a symbol of Iran before the 1979 Islamic revolution - at the Sharif University. People in the crowd can be heard chanting "Javid Shah" ("long live the king").

Another verified video shows a pro-government crowd holding a counter-protest at the Sharif University in which US and Israeli flags are being burned.

Clashes between pro- and anti-government crowds are also seen in verified footage filmed at Amirkabir University of Technology.

Students from different universities have been gathering to honour thousands of those killed by authorities last month.

Hrana also said it was investigating 11,744 more reported deaths.

Iranian authorities said late last month that more than 3,100 people had been killed - but that the majority were security personnel or bystanders attacked by "rioters".

Trump has supported protesters in the past - at one stage appearing to encourage them with a promise that "help is on its way".

Additional reporting by BBC Verify's Emma Pengelly, Shayan Sardarizadeh and Richard Irvine-Brown

Palestinian Authority in dire straits as Israel's hold on West Bank deepens

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9wn8lw0kgjo, 4 days ago

With Israeli settler violence surging in the occupied West Bank, al-Mughayyir, north-east of Ramallah, has found itself on the frontline. It faces regular incursions by the Israeli army and has seen farmland seized by settlers who have built new outposts.

Marzoq Abu Naim from the village council says the settlers aim to force out Palestinians. "They're doing it silently, not openly, it's true. But this is annexation. We can't reach our lands."

Sitting among green rolling hills, studded with olive groves, most homes in al-Mughayir are in an area where Israel's military controls security, but the internationally backed Palestinian Authority (PA) should provide basic services. Increasingly though, it cannot – it is mired in a deep economic crisis.

"When I go to them, they can't give me the support I need," Abu Naim says. "The Authority has no money!"

After the deadly 7 October Hamas-led attacks on Israel, some 100,000 Palestinians lost permits to work in Israel. On top of that, Israel is withholding tax transfers that it collects for the PA because of an ongoing dispute about Palestinian school texts and stipends to the families of those jailed or killed by Israel, including attackers.

The PA says it is now owed more than $4bn (£3bn; 3.4bn euros). It has been paying most public sector workers – including doctors, police officers and teachers – just 60% of their salaries. Its schools – where more than 600,000 children study – open just three days a week.

"It's truly hard," a mother-of-eight in al-Mughayyir tells me, explaining that the schools there also close when settlers or soldiers are nearby because of fears for the children.

"There is so much disruption that some children have reached fourth grade and still can't read. We put them in private lessons with a teacher in the village. She starts with the alphabet so that they can learn to read from scratch."

Driving away from al-Mughayyir, there are Israeli military gates used to close off Palestinian villages from each other and restrict movement. I also see Israeli bulldozers transforming the landscape, widening roads to connect settlements and give settlers quicker access to Jerusalem. Settlements – illegal under international law – are growing at a record rate.

This all adds to pressure on the PA. When it was set up more than 30 years ago, following on from a breakthrough peace deal with Israel, the Oslo Accords, Palestinians hoped it would quickly become a full government for a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip with East Jerusalem as its capital. The PA was committed to negotiations – non-violent means – to achieve its goal.

The direct talks with Israel that underpinned a peace process finally broke down over a decade ago. Now, the PA's failure to prevent Israel's expansion into the West Bank, let alone deliver statehood, is underscoring its weakness and deepening its unpopularity with Palestinians already dismayed by corruption scandals, political stagnation and continued security coordination with Israel.

I turn to join a line of traffic queuing to pass an Israeli army checkpoint and enter Ramallah – the sprawling administrative capital of the PA. There are Palestinian police on the streets. This is a pocket of the West Bank where the PA retains full control.

But increasingly here, there are warnings that the governing body is close to collapse.

"It is a turning point in our lives," says Sabri Saidam, a former PA minister and deputy chairman of the president's political party.

"Palestinian statehood, Palestinian identity, Palestinian existence on this very territory of their ancestors is being now compromised by Israel, and the existence of the Palestinian Authority at large is also questionable."

This month, new steps by Israel's government are tightening its hold on the West Bank. A top UN official has warned that these amount to "gradual, de facto annexation."

A contentious new land registration process could allow Israel to claim large swathes of the territory as Israeli state land, open to future Israeli development. Israeli enforcement of environmental and archaeological regulations is being expanded into parts of the West Bank under PA civil control.

Israel's far-right finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, who has responsibility for settlement policies, has said his aim is "to kill" the idea of a Palestinian state. A settler himself, he claims ideological and biblical rights to the land.

At a conference in a settlement near Ramallah on Tuesday, Smotrich pledged to go further if he remains in the Israeli government after elections due this year, saying he would "officially and practically cancel the damn Oslo agreements," and so dismantle the PA. Referring to Palestinians as "the enemy" he promised to promote their emigration.

More than 80 UN member states, along with the EU and the Arab League, have strongly condemned "unilateral Israeli decisions and measures" and called for them to be reversed. However, the US has only reiterated that it opposes West Bank annexation.

Many Palestinians are frustrated and worried. International studies professor, Ghassan Khatib, calls for global pressure on Israel and financial aid to ensure the survival of the PA.

"This should be a wake-up call," he tells me. "The outside world invested a lot politically and financially in the idea of a two-state solution, but these new Israeli measures are aimed at killing the future of a two-state solution."

The devastating war in Gaza has precipitated the decline of the PA. Already it had lost control of the territory back in 2007, a year after Hamas won the last parliamentary election. But it was slow to condemn the deadly Hamas attacks on Israel which triggered the conflict and is now being largely excluded from immediate post-war governance, in line with Israeli demands.

Unlike Israel, the PA does not sit on the US-led Board of Peace. However, it is expected to oversee some 5,000 police officers in Gaza. President Trump's peace plan also foresees the PA eventually taking control of the territory after completing an unspecified "reform programme," and nods to a future when "the conditions may finally be in place for a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood."

Israeli leaders have dismissed suggestions that the PA could soon collapse, forcing Israel to take direct responsibility for some 2.7 million Palestinians living in the West Bank as the occupying power.

An Israeli government official tells the BBC: "The Palestinian Authority is a corrupt and morally bankrupt entity which has seen considerable resources siphoned off instead of rightfully going to its own people."

Back in al-Mughayyir, settlers have already pushed Bedouin shepherds off their land nearby. They are grazing their flocks near new encampments they have set up on the edge of the village.

Across the valley, we watch Israeli soldiers park their military jeep and head out on patrol. Soon, they fire tear gas. It has been one month since a 14-year-old Palestinian boy was shot dead by an Israeli soldier here. The army says he threw a rock. On this occasion, the military says stones were thrown at its troops and that they detained the suspects.

While little world attention is being paid to daily realities in the West Bank, locals say the risk of widespread unrest is rising. The danger is that the PA's growing impotence will encourage Palestinians to look to those who offer a less moderate approach.

Israeli strikes kill at least 10 in Lebanon, officials say

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg8914dkl0o, 3 days ago

Israeli air strikes have killed at least 10 people in eastern Lebanon, Lebanese officials say, despite a ceasefire.

Israel's military said it had targeted sites belonging to Hezbollah, a Shia Muslim militia and political party, in the Bekaa Valley, an area where the group has a strong presence.

Hezbollah confirmed that at least eight of its members had been killed, including a senior field commander.

The strikes were among the deadliest in Lebanon since a ceasefire ended the war between Israel and Hezbollah in November 2024.

Despite the deal, which followed 13 months of conflict, Israel has carried out near-daily strikes on Lebanon, on targets it says are linked to the group, which is supported by Iran.

Images posted online from one of the locations hit on Friday night showed heavy damage in what appeared to be a residential neighbourhood.

In a statement, the Israeli military said it had struck what it described as Hezbollah command centres and that the group "systematically embeds its assets within the civilian population". It said the group's activities were "a violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon".

In a separate statement on Saturday, the military said it had "eliminated several terrorists of Hezbollah's missile array in three different command centres... recently identified as operating to accelerate the organisation's readiness and force build-up processes, while planning fire attacks towards Israel".

Hezbollah, considered a terrorist organisation by countries including the UK and the US, says the ceasefire deal only applies to southern Lebanon, in the area between the Litani river and the Blue Line, the unofficial border between Lebanon and Israel.

There, the Lebanese army has dismantled infrastructure used by the group, in the first stage of a plan to disarm Hezbollah after its devastating war with Israel.

The group, however, has so far rejected calls from Lebanese authorities to discuss the future of its weapons elsewhere in the country, including in the Bekaa Valley, where part of its arsenal is believed to be located.

This week, Hezbollah dismissed a decision by the government to advance the second phase of the disarmament plan in areas between north of the Litani and the Awali river, in the port city of Sidon.

Lebanon's government says Israel's ongoing actions are a violation of the ceasefire deal and has urged the international community to put pressure on Israel to stop its attacks.

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam recently said the situation had become a "one-sided war of attrition".

Hours before the attacks in the east, an Israeli strike hit the densely populated Palestinian refugee camp of Ain al-Helweh, on the outskirts of Sidon, in the country's south.

The Israeli military said it had struck a "command centre" that had been used by Hamas, which said two members had been killed.

The strikes come amid heightened tensions in the region, with the United States threatening to attack Iran if negotiations between the two countries fail to reach a deal.

There are concerns in Lebanon that Iran might force Hezbollah to join its response to an attack if Israel becomes involved.

Family of Palestinian-American man killed in West Bank demand accountability

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvgk7z15gnpo, 3 days ago

The family of a 19-year-old Palestinian-American man who they say was shot dead by an Israeli settler in the occupied West Bank have called for accountability over his killing.

Nasrallah Abu Siyam was shot near the city of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday, becoming at least the sixth American citizen killed by Israeli settlers or soldiers in the territory in the last two years.

The Trump administration said it stood ready to provide consular assistance, but did not respond to claims its policies had failed to stem a surge in settler violence.

The Israeli embassy in Washington said the incident was under review and an "operational inquiry... must be completed as soon as possible".

Abu Siyam was a US citizen born in Philadelphia.

His family said he was among approximately 30 residents of the village of Mukhmas who were trying to stop armed settlers from stealing their goats on Wednesday.

As both residents and settlers threw stones, said one witness, settlers shot at least three of the villagers, including Abu Siyam, who was struck fatally.

Abdulhamid Siyam, cousin to Abu Siyam, told the BBC that the 19-year-old's death was a "big loss" and the actions of settlers in the West Bank had gone unchecked.

"A young man of 19 shot and killed in this cold blood and no responsibility, impunity completely," he said.

The Trump administration has faced criticism from rights groups for lifting Biden-era sanctions on violent settlers, who have rarely faced criminal punishments from Israeli authorities.

The US State Department said it was aware of the death of a US citizen and was "carefully monitoring the situation".

On Saturday it released an updated statement saying it extends "deepest condolences" to the family of the victim and expects "a full, thorough, and transparent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death". It added the US embassy in Jerusalem had been in direct contact with the family to provide assistance.

A spokesperson for the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) said that soldiers had attended the scene and used "riot dispersal means to restore order".

"No IDF fire was reported during the course of the incident," the IDF statement said.

The spokesperson confirmed that the incident was under review, and said "a continuous military presence" would remain in the area in the coming days to prevent further incidents.

What could happen if the US strikes Iran? Here are seven scenarios

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce3kenge1k9o, 5 days ago

The US appears poised to strike Iran.

For weeks, Washington has been building up its forces in the Middle East - and now looks set to assemble more air power in the region than at any time since the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

This could, of course, still be a bluff designed to pressure the Iranian regime into a deal they do not want to make. America's Gulf Arab allies are known to have cautioned against a US attack that could have unintended results.

So while the potential targets of a US attack are largely predictable, the outcome is not.

If negotiations fail and President Donald Trump decides to order an attack, then what are the possible outcomes?

1. Targeted, surgical strikes, minimal civilian casualties, a transition to democracy

US air and naval forces conduct limited, precision strikes targeting military bases of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and the Basij unit - a paramilitary force under the control of the IRGC - ballistic missile launch and storage sites as well as Iran's nuclear programme.

An already weakened regime is toppled, transitioning eventually to a genuine democracy where Iran can rejoin the rest of the world.

This is a highly optimistic scenario. Western military intervention in both Iraq and Libya did not bring a smooth transition to democracy. Although it ended brutal dictatorships in both cases, it ushered in years of chaos and bloodshed.

2. Regime survives but moderates its policies

This could broadly be called the "Venezuelan model" whereby swift, powerful US action leaves the regime intact but with its policies moderated.

In Iran's case, this would mean the Islamic Republic survived, which won't satisfy large numbers of Iranians, but is forced to curtail its support for violent militias across the Middle East, cease or curtail its domestic nuclear and ballistic missile programmes as well as easing up on its suppression of protests.

Again, this is at the more unlikely end of the scale.

The Islamic Republic leadership has remained defiant and resistant to change for 47 years. It appears incapable of changing course now. The Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, now well into his 80s, is especially resistant to change or compromise.

3. Regime collapses, replaced by military rule

Many think this is the most likely possible outcome.

While the regime is clearly unpopular with many, and each successive wave of protests over the years weakens it further, there remains a huge and pervasive security deep state with a vested interest in the status quo. The IRGC, for example, is deeply involved in Iran's economy.

The principal reasons why the protests have so far failed to overthrow the regime is because there have been no significant defections to their side, while those in control are prepared to use unlimited force and brutality to remain in power.

In the confusion of the aftermath of any US strikes it is conceivable that Iran ends up being ruled by a strong, military government composed largely of IRGC figures.

4. Iran retaliates by attacking US forces, Arab neighbours and Israel

This is highly likely.

Iran vowed last month to retaliate against any US attack, saying that "its finger is on the trigger" and Ayatollah Khamenei promised to deliver "a slap in the face" to US forces if attacked.

Iran is clearly no match for the might of the US Navy and Air Force but it could still lash out with its arsenal of ballistic missiles and drones, many concealed in caves, underground or in remote mountainsides.

There are US bases and facilities dotted along the Arabian side of the Gulf, notably in Bahrain and Qatar, but Iran could also, if it chose, target some of the critical infrastructure of any nation it considered was complicit in a US attack, such as Jordan or Israel.

The devastating missile and drone attack on Saudi Aramco's petrochemical facilities in 2019, attributed to an Iranian-backed militia in Iraq, showed the Saudis just how vulnerable they were to Iranian missiles.

Iran's Gulf Arab neighbours, all US allies, are understandably extremely jittery right now that any US military action is going to end up rebounding on them.

Last month, Saudi Arabia and the UAE said that they would not allow the US to use their airspace for any attack. That may not necessarily spare them from Iranian retaliation.

5. Iran retaliates by laying mines in the Gulf

This has long loomed as a potential threat to global shipping and oil supplies ever since the Iran-Iraq war of 1980-88 when Iran did indeed mine the shipping lanes and Royal Navy minesweepers helped clear them.

The narrow Strait of Hormuz between Iran and Oman is a critical chokepoint. Around 20% of the world's Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) exports and between 20-25% of oil and oil byproducts pass through this strait each year.

As talks over a US-Iran deal took place in Geneva earlier this week, Iran closed the Strait for a few hours to conduct live fire drills - the first time it's been closed since the 1980s, and a symbolic show of force.

On Thursday, it reportedly carried out military drills alongside Russian sailors in the Gulf of Oman and the Indian Ocean.

And it's also conducted exercises in rapidly deploying sea mines. If it did so again then it would inevitably impact world trade and oil prices. The biggest losers in this scenario would be Iran itself, as it relies on oil exports for revenue, and its principle customers in Asia, notably China.

6. Iran retaliates, sinking a US warship

A US Navy Captain onboard a warship in the Gulf once told me that one of the threats from Iran he worries about most is a "swarm attack".

This is where Iran launches so many high explosive drones and fast torpedo boats at a single or multiple targets that even the US Navy's formidable close-in defences are unable to eliminate all of them in time.

The IRGC Navy has long replaced the conventional Iranian Navy in the Gulf, some of whose commanders were even trained at Dartmouth during the time of the Shah.

Iran's naval crews have focussed much of their training on unconventional or "asymmetric" warfare, looking at ways to overcome or bypass the technical advantages enjoyed by their primary adversary, the US Navy's Fifth Fleet.

The sinking of a US warship, accompanied by the possible capture of survivors among its crew, would be a massive humiliation for the US.

While this scenario is thought unlikely, the billion-dollar destroyer the USS Cole was crippled by an Al-Qaeda suicide attack in Aden harbour in 2000, killing 17 US sailors.

Before that, in 1987 an Iraqi jet pilot mistakenly fired two Exocet missiles at a US warship, the USS Stark, in the Gulf killing 37 sailors.

The US is set to have two carrier strike groups in the region when the USS Gerald R Ford - which is currently transiting the Mediterranean - arrives in the coming weeks.

7. Regime collapses, replaced by chaos

This is a very real danger and is one of the major concerns of neighbours like Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

As well as the possibility of a civil war, such as experienced by Syria, Yemen and Libya, there is also the risk that in the chaos and confusion, ethnic tensions could spill over into armed conflict as Kurds, Baluchis, Azerbaijanis and other minorities look to safeguard their own people amid a nationwide power vacuum.

Much of the Middle East would certainly be glad to see the back of the Islamic Republic, none more so than Israel which has already dealt heavy blows to Iran's proxies across the region and which fears an existential threat from Iran's suspected nuclear programme.

But nobody wants to see the largest Middle East nation by population - around 93 million - descend into chaos, sparking a humanitarian and refugee crisis.

The greatest danger now is that President Trump, having amassed this powerful force close to Iran's borders, decides he must act or lose face, and a war begins with no clear end-state and with unpredictable and potentially damaging repercussions.

Trump's Board of Peace members pledge $7bn in Gaza relief

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp8rke05kv4o, 5 days ago

Several countries which have signed up to Donald Trump's Board of Peace have contributed more than $7bn (£5.2bn) towards a Gaza "relief package", the US president has said.

Trump made the announcement during the first meeting of the organisation that many of US's Western allies have refused to join, fearing the body originally meant to help end the war between Israel and Hamas may be intended to replace the UN.

The second phase of a US-brokered Gaza ceasefire plan includes the disarmament of Hamas and the reconstruction of Gaza.

It "looks like" Hamas would disarm, Trump told participants. However, there are few signs of the Palestinian group disarming. Gazans say it is extending its control over the Strip.

Speaking as the Board of Peace convened on Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel had "agreed with our ally the US there will be no reconstruction of Gaza before the demilitarisation of Gaza".

The war was triggered by the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.

Israel responded to the attack by launching a military campaign in Gaza, during which more than 72,000 people have been killed, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.

The enclave's economy is in ruins, with its buildings and infrastructure largely destroyed. The UN estimates the cost of damage at $70bn.

Countries including the UK, Canada, France and Germany have refused to join the Board of Peace that came into being last month.

In an effort to address concerns that the organisation was meant as a way of sidelining the UN, Trump told the board's first meeting in Washington that "we're going to be working with the United Nations very closely, we're going to bring them back".

Gaza, the US president said, was "no longer a hotbed of radicalism and terror".

"And to end that, we have today, and I'm pleased to announce that Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, UAE, Morocco, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan, and Kuwait have all contributed more than $7bn toward the relief package".

"Every dollar spent is an investment in stability," he said, adding that the UN would contribute $2bn for humanitarian assistance, while football body Fifa would raise $75m for soccer-related projects in the Strip.

Nickolay Mladenov, a Bulgarian politician who has been given the title of high representative for Gaza as part of the board, said the process of recruiting a new transitional Palestinian police force had begun and "just in the first few hours we have 2,000 people who have applied".

But both Israel and the US have insisted that the force is not drawn from the existing Hamas-controlled police without stringent vetting, nor do they want it simply made up of the security forces of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank.

That means starting from scratch, and the task is daunting.

Mladenov has previously said the Palestinian police force must be the primary security agency in Gaza, assisted by the International Stabilisation Force (ISF), and not vice-versa.

According to the US plan, the ISF will work with Israel and Egypt, along with a newly trained and vetted Palestinian police force, to help secure border areas and ensure the process of permanently disarming non-state armed groups, including Hamas.

But there is little evidence such a force could yet oversee the disarmament of Hamas and other Palestinian factions.

Meanwhile, there was no indication at the meeting that Hamas was prepared to hand over its weapons, despite Trump's combination of optimism and threat on this point.

So far, Hamas has publicly appeared to make handing over weapons contingent on - at least - Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

Progress on this issue is critical because none of Trump's proposals for reconstruction and governance can take place without a security force on the ground that has broad backing of the Palestinian population, given its role includes assuming a monopoly of force within Gaza.

The Washington meeting itself was characteristic of Trump's approach to Israeli-Palestinian peace-making over his two terms - involving a future for Palestinians seen often through the lens of real-estate development and wealthy investor funding.

Meanwhile Israel's leadership has been wary about some of Trump's efforts, particularly the invitations to his board for Turkey and Qatar, whom Israel does not want to see take a prominent role in decisions on the future of Gaza.

Trump and his team have defended his unconventional approach saying it amounts to "new thinking" to try to solve the conflict.

However, Mladenov has warned that without rapid progress, Gaza will remain split into two territories, one under continuing Israeli occupation and the other under Hamas control - and also split from the West Bank, making a future independent state unviable and failing to secure either Palestinians or Israelis.

Correction 20 February: An earlier version of this story wrongly attributed a line of commentary about the ISF potentially overseeing the disarmament of Hamas and other Palestinian factions to Nickolay Mladenov and has been amended.

Hamas is reasserting control in Gaza despite its heavy losses fighting Israel

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c98g1klxnpxo, 6 days ago

When a US-imposed ceasefire halted the Gaza War last October, Hamas's war for survival against Israel switched into a battle for control at home.

The war had left the group's disciplined military units shattered into guerrilla forces, and most of its leaders killed; Gaza's buildings and infrastructure were largely destroyed, its population displaced, and its economic life in ruins. More than 72,000 Gazans were killed by Israeli attacks during the conflict, the Hamas-run health ministry says.

Four months on, Gazans say Hamas is again extending its control over security, tax revenue, and government services, raising questions about its long-term strategy, and whether it is prepared to give up its weapons and authority, as now required under the second stage of Donald Trump's peace plan.

"Hamas regained control of more than 90% of the areas where it is present," said Mohammed Diab, an activist in Gaza.

"Its police and security agencies have returned, and are now present in the streets, controlling crime and pursuing those it labels as collaborators and people with opinions. Citizens must go to the Hamas authorities for identity cards or health procedures, and it is also reasserting control over the judiciary and courts."

At markets across Gaza, stallholders describe regular police patrols – and a renewed iron grip on official fees and taxes.

"The markets are quiet, but the municipality keeps pursuing us for rent," one stallholder said. All those we spoke to there about Hamas control in Gaza asked that we hide their identity.

"Every single day they come to us aggressively, with the same demands and the same determination, saying if we don't pay they'll throw us and our goods into the street. They're asking for 700 shekels ($225; £167) – none of us can afford that."

The stallholder, who spoke to our colleague in Gaza City, said he and his family of 12 had been displaced from Shujaiya to the east of the city, where he used to run a shop. Shujaiya today is a flat wasteland of rubble.

"Every day, the municipality comes," said another man selling cigarettes nearby. "Let them count the stock and the sales, cigarette by cigarette, and tell me: should I pay them, or feed my children?"

Since the ceasefire, food and some other basic goods are flowing into Gaza more freely. The few key traders with a licence to bring them in from Israel say Hamas have reimposed strict control over taxing the imports.

One trader, who agreed to share details anonymously, told us force was used against those who refused to pay.

"The taxes imposed by Hamas depend on the type and quantity of goods, but prices start at 20,000 shekels and above," he said. "If a trader refuses to pay, force is used and in some cases he is kidnapped or threatened. No one can avoid paying taxes on goods."

He told us that traders used a code-word for Hamas when discussing tax payments, so that Israel wouldn't learn that money was being siphoned off to the group.

"Hamas now has a database of all the traders who import goods into the Gaza Strip," said the activist Mohammed Diab. "The trader pays in cash, not through bank transfers, so that the flow of funds cannot be traced. It is gradually restoring the system that was in place in the past, but away from the spotlight so it can't be monitored."

A Hamas spokesman, Hazem Qassem, said the Gaza Strip was in a state of emergency and that "exceptional measures" were required.

"Some traders maintain links with the [Israeli] occupation and attempt to generate excessive profits, so administrative bodies sometimes need to act firmly with traders who refuse to cooperate or meet required obligations," he said. "This is purely a governmental matter and has no relation to Hamas."

Gaza's government has been run by Hamas since 2007. Money is crucial to the group's grip on power: to pay salaries – and, the Israeli army alleges, for its ultimate goal of rebuilding its war machine.

"Hamas looks at the ceasefire as a time to regroup, to fight against us," said Lt Col Nadav Shoshani, spokesman for the Israel Defence Forces (IDF). "This is why it's crucial to see them disarmed because they've made it clear that if they have weapons, they will use them sometime in the future."

The Israeli army says there are daily attacks against its forces by Hamas. Four Israeli soldiers have been killed since the ceasefire began.

Hamas, in turn, points to repeated Israeli attacks, which Gaza's Health Ministry says have killed 603 Palestinians.

The IDF recently released grainy footage of several figures running through Gaza's debris, who it identified as "armed terrorists" approaching troops in the area of Gaza temporarily controlled by Israel under Trump's peace plan.

Asked whether two years of intense military conflict had failed to achieve the destruction of Hamas's military capabilities - a key Israeli war goal – Lt Col Shoshani said the group had been heavily diminished, but was now trying to rebuild.

"This war is not done until Hamas is disarmed," he said. "There is an agreement now in place [and] we expect that to happen. If not, there are a lot of tools on the table to make sure that does happen."

Trump's new Board of Peace, comprising the heads of state from many countries with a stake in Gaza's future, will hold its first meeting in Washington on Thursday.

The next stage of Trump's plan for Gaza – including its reconstruction – hinges on Hamas disarmament, but negotiators are still inching through the detail of what the handover of weapons would mean in practice – who would Hamas hand weapons over to, which weapons would they hand over, and how would that be verified.

"I believe we are capable of addressing the issue of weapons in a way that removes the Occupation's pretext to renew the war and is also compatible with President Trump's plan," Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem told the BBC.

But Hamas, ideologically committed to fighting Israel, has a deeply-rooted and well-armed membership across the Gaza Strip. Verifying its full disarmament will be difficult, and some in the group have reportedly demanded they be allowed to keep personal weapons to defend themselves against enemies at home.

When the fighting with Israel stopped in October, Hamas immediately turned its guns on rival clans who had begun to take advantage of the chaos to extend their power in Gaza City, Rafah and elsewhere.

Footage of the crackdown, including summary executions of blindfolded rivals in the streets, was released to the public.

Israel's leaders have rejected the idea of Hamas keeping personal arms, and have applied pressure on the group to disarm by threatening a return to war.

In the meantime, an International Stabilisation Force to take over security in Gaza remains in limbo, and the new Palestinian technocratic council meant to take over the running of Gaza's civilian affairs is waiting in Egypt.

Earlier this month Hamas said it was ready to "transfer authority and governance in all fields" to the new technocratic council.

But the Gaza activist, Mohammed Diab, said there were few signs that Hamas was preparing to hand over power.

"On the contrary," he said, "we heard last week that Hamas carried out large-scale appointments to vacant positions in the government sector, and announced them on social media and official platforms."

Hazem Qassem denied any new government recruitment, saying that any appointments would have been technical, low-level positions that did not interfere with the handover of power.

Critics have questioned whether they are an attempt to retain influence inside any future Gaza administration.

The recent transfer of medical cases out of Gaza through the newly-reopened Rafah Crossing also signalled the intention of Hamas to remain in control, despite the new process being designed without the group's involvement.

One of those present at an evacuation point run by international aid organisations near Nasser Hospital reported that Hamas ministry officials had shown up on the second day of evacuations to help supervise.

This is now the make-or-break moment for Trump's plan, which has so far kept on track by relentlessly pushing forward, past hiccups and delays.

Despite repeated threats of a return to renewed fighting if Hamas does not fully disarm, some in Israel believe the most effective pressure on Hamas leadership might actually come from moving forward with the plan without them.

Ground has already been cleared in Israeli-held areas around Rafah, ahead of a reported US plan to build new housing facilities for some 200,000 Gazans, with the promise of food, water and medical support to tempt people across the yellow line from Hamas-controlled areas.

Crossing into the large swathe of Israeli-held territory around Gaza's perimeter is seen by many in Gaza as siding with the enemy, and very few have so far made the journey.

But Gaza's population is a key source of Hamas's revenue and control. After two years fighting Israel for control of the land, the battle for Gaza's people might just be starting.

Additional reporting by Rebecca Hartmann and Gaza colleagues

Iran's motorcycling midwife and rights campaigner is star of Oscar-tipped film

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn0ewenyg22o, 4 days ago

Growing up in the Iranian capital Tehran, filmmaker Sara Khaki recalls seeing many examples of strong women in a male-dominated society.

These were women "fighting for their independence and demanding space for their lives", she says.

She later decided to research female entrepreneurs and activists in the country, and "came across this really amazing, tenacious individual who lives in the north-west of Iran, who rides a motorcycle, as the only female motorcycle rider in the region, and she's delivered 400 kids as a midwife".

That woman is Sara Shahverdi. After months of phone calls to build up a relationship, Khaki and co-director Mohammadreza Eyni learned this woman was also running for a council seat - and decided to make a film about her.

Cutting Through Rocks, as it is titled, has now become the first Iranian nominee for Best Documentary at the Oscars next month.

The film follows Shahverdi as she runs for office in her village in the region of Zanjan, and deals with various obstacles as a female leader. We see her in a hall filled with 1,500 men representing all 300 local village councils.

Among them, she is the only woman.

She wins the seat with the most votes - becoming the first woman to do so - and brings long-awaited fuel and electricity to the village. She pushes for land co-ownership between men and women, a rare concept in Iran, and takes up causes like girls' education and child marriage.

We see Shahverdi give a speech to a hall of women, lamenting how girls as young as 11 are married and giving birth. On a visit to a girls' school, she speaks with students who promise her they will finish their education, rather than marry young.

Khaki says Shahverdi is "doing something unusual" in the film, which began in 2017 and took eight years to make.

She worked alongside Eyni, a native speaker of Azeri, the language spoken in the region. Being a male-female duo was important, Khaki says: "I wouldn't be able to enter the worlds that Mohammadreza could easily enter, and vice versa."

While stories of women take centre stage in the film, another tale unfolds - Khaki and Eyni got married while making it.

"It was two stories happening at the same time," says Eyni, "the story of Cutting Through Rocks in front of the camera, and the love story behind the camera."

Shahverdi jokingly takes credit for that union. But in the film itself, she also encounters challenging situations.

In one scene we see Shahverdi take into her home - with parental permission -Fereshteh, a teenager seeking a divorce from her husband whom she married at 12. He is 35, the same age as her father.

We see Fereshteh in a court hearing as she explains to the judge her reasons for wanting a divorce. "I wouldn't want my child's future to turn out like mine," she says.

She is advised by the judge to make the situation work and later returns to her parents. The filmmakers were granted permission to film 40 minutes of the court hearing, which allowed them to capture the exchange.

In a turn of events later on in the film, Shahverdi is summoned to court herself following a complaint about her "operating a dishonourable house". She recalls her interrogator asking: why do women visit your home? Why do you wear men's clothing? Why isn't your voice feminine?

She is instructed to see a medical expert witness to determine whether she needs a sex change operation. Shahverdi insists she is comfortable with her gender.

We don't see the man conducting the tests, but we hear his advice: "Look, if you are really a woman, you should be considerate of the rules and traditions. In our society, a woman can't just do anything she wants."

The judge ultimately decides against surgery and closes Shahverdi's case - but he advises Shahverdi to stop helping women so much and to mind her own business.

The filmmakers supported Shahverdi throughout the case.

Behind the camera, filming in Iran came with its challenges - Khaki and Eyni say they faced delays obtaining permits from local authorities, interrogations and had their hard drives confiscated.

At one point, the duo, who are based between Iran and the United States, were banned from leaving Iran for a year.

"There were many, many, many hurdles along our way of storytelling," Khaki says. "And there were many times where we kind of were quite certain that we would never be able to finish this film."

But they did - and on 22 January they learned about their Oscar nomination.

The timing coincided with internet access in Iran still being largely shut down in the wake of anti-government protests which saw thousands killed in a lethal crackdown by security forces.

Khaki describes the timing as "very heavy" and "bittersweet". It also meant the duo couldn't initially share the news with Shahverdi.

Eventually they managed to reach her. Shahverdi was silent upon hearing the news, before becoming emotional. "It was not about only the nomination, it was about the whole experience," Eyni explains, "and I think her life, in retrospect".

Though they wanted Shahverdi to travel with them to festivals and screenings, the US travel ban on Iranian nationals and visa restrictions elsewhere have hindered things.

They did, however, manage to travel to a screening in South Korea in September 2025. "It was very precious… she got to experience the film with teenage Koreans who were truly inspired," says Khaki.

Since the film's premiere, Shahverdi's four-year council term has come to an end but the filmmakers say she continues to be a fierce advocate for women and girls. A new school is being built in her village, something she campaigned for.

"A lot of things have happened in her community… more women having the confidence to take a council seat and make decisions - and so many other teenage girls continuing their education and their parents supporting them," Eyni says.

US build-up of warships and fighter jets tracked near Iran

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1d64p3q2d0o, 4 days ago

The world's largest warship appears to be heading towards the Middle East as Washington continues to pressure Iran over its military program and recent deadly crackdown on protesters.

BBC Verify confirmed the USS Gerald R Ford passed through the Strait of Gibraltar towards the Mediterranean on Friday. Verified photographs taken from land in Gibraltar show the aircraft carrier in the Strait with a Moroccan mountain range in the distance.

Ship-tracking data also confirmed the USS Mahan, one of the destroyers in the warship's strike group, passed through the Strait. The Gerald R Ford had briefly broadcast its location off Morocco's Atlantic coast on Wednesday and is believed to be travelling to the Middle East where another US aircraft carrier, the USS Abraham Lincoln, was tracked earlier this week.

US and Iranian officials met for a second round of talks in Switzerland earlier this week, where progress was reported to have been made. President Donald Trump said on Thursday the world will likely find out within the next 10 days whether the US will reach a deal with Iran or take military action.

On Monday, BBC Verify identified the Abraham Lincoln in satellite images taken on Saturday off the coast of Oman, about 700km (430 miles) from Iran.

The arrival of two of the 11 aircraft carriers operated by the US Navy adds to what we know about the military build-up in the Middle East over the past few weeks, where BBC Verify has tracked an increase of destroyers, combat ships and fighter jets.

Both Gerald R Ford and Abraham Lincoln lead strike groups with several guided missile destroyer warships. They are operated by more than 5,600 crew and carry dozens of aircraft.

What military assets has the US moved into the Middle East?

USS Gerald R Ford switched on ship-tracking automatic identification system (AIS) for the first time this year at 12:30 GMT on Wednesday. The carrier transmitted its location, visible on ship-tracking website MarineTraffic, until 13:18 and was sailing in the direction of the Mediterranean.

However, a transport aircraft attached to the carrier that landed in Spain that day was tracked at about 13:00 on Thursday heading towards the area where the aircraft carrier was spotted.

It came after the Abraham Lincoln was identified in the Arabian Sea, around 240km (150 miles) off the coast of Oman, in publicly available images captured on Saturday by the European Sentinel-2 satellites.

The warship had not been seen since it reportedly entered the region in January, though it had been crossing the open sea where satellite coverage is limited. Military assets on land are more visible and frequently captured on satellite.

BBC Verify has now tracked 12 US ships in the Middle East. The Abraham Lincoln, a nuclear-powered Nimitz-class carrier, together with three Arleigh Burke-class destroyers forms a carrier strike group, plus two destroyers capable of carrying out long-range missile strikes and three specialist ships for combat near to the shore that are currently positioned at Bahrain naval station in the Gulf.

Two other destroyers have been seen in the eastern Mediterranean near the Souda Bay US base, and one more in the Red Sea.

We have also been following the movements of large numbers of US aircraft to both European and Middle Eastern airbases, including:

* F-35 and F-22 fighter jets

* KC-135 and KC-46 refuelling tankers used to support the long-range movement of other aircraft

* E-3 Sentry command and surveillance aircraft designed to coordinate large-scale operations

* C-17A heavy-lift military transport aircraft used for delivering troops and cargo

* Navy P-8A patrol and reconnaissance jets used for long-range anti-submarine warfare

* C-5M strategic transport aircraft, the largest in the US Air Force, used for personnel and cargo

How has Iran responded?

In response to recent US military movements, Iran has carried out its own show of force.

On Monday the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launched a maritime drill in the Strait of Hormuz, located in the Gulf between Oman and Iran. The exercise saw IRGC Commander‑in‑Chief Maj Gen Mohammad Pakpour inspecting naval vessels at a harbour before missiles are seen launching from a ship, the IRGC-linked Tasnim News Agency reported.

The Strait is considered one of the world's most important shipping routes and a vital oil transit choke point. Around a fifth of the world's oil and gas flows through the Strait, including from Kharg Island, Iran's main oil export terminal. Pakpour was seen flying over the island in a helicopter in the report showing Iran's latest military manoeuvres.

Footage broadcast by Iranian state TV on Thursday also showed planned naval drills in the Gulf of Oman with Russia, which involved a simulated ship rescue operation.

Fars news agency, which is affiliated with the IRGC, claimed that operational units from "both Iran's regular army's navy and the IRGC navy" took part.

How does it compare with Venezuela and Operation Midnight Hammer?

Military intelligence expert Justin Crump told BBC Verify that the current US military preparations in the Middle East show "more depth and sustainability" than its manoeuvres ahead of the seizure of former Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro in January, or the operation carrying out air strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities last June.

They all feature a carrier strike group and several destroyers operating independently. However, the US deployed its assets in Venezuela and Iran last year under quite different circumstances.

The US deployed the Gerald R Ford to the Caribbean ahead of its strikes on Venezuela, one of eight warships we tracked in the region at the time, though it used fewer aircraft as it could easily send jets from surrounding US bases on America's mainland or from its base in Puerto Rico instead.

The US also deployed amphibious assault ships within the Caribbean, which can be used as launch platforms for helicopter operations as was seen with the capture of Maduro. But Venezuela's military is generally seen as less capable of defending itself or retaliating against the US.

When the US struck Iran last year in Operation Midnight Hammer, which targeted Iran's nuclear facilities, it was attacking a country with a much more powerful military than Venezuela. Iran's military is capable of hitting US bases across the Middle East.

The recent build-up in the region more closely resembles that seen during Operation Midnight Hammer. The US had two aircraft carrier strike groups in the region, five destroyers placed in the Mediterranean and Red Seas, and three combat ships in the Gulf.

It had also moved squadrons of fighter jets and refuelling aircraft from the US to Europe. But the B2 stealth bomber flights that were used to hit the Fordo, Isfahan and Natanz nuclear sites actually took off from US bases in Missouri.

Crump, chief executive of risk and intelligence company Sibylline, said the build-up of US warships and aircraft, as well as eight existing airbases in the region would allow it to conduct a "fairly intensive and sustained strike rate" of about 800 sorties a day, with the aim of rendering any Iranian responses "ineffective".

"What we are seeing isn't just strike preparation, but rather a broader deterrent deployment capable of being scaled up or down," he said. "This means it has more depth and sustainability than the force packages arranged for either Venezuela or Midnight Hammer last year. It's designed to sustain an engagement and counter all potential responses against US assets in the region and, of course, Israel."

Additional reporting by Barbara Metzler, Ghoncheh Habibiazad, Thomas Copeland, Yi Ma

I would scream in my sleep: Women from Syria's Alawite minority tell of kidnap and rape

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn5g751pl7lo, 7 days ago

Warning: This report contains accounts of sexual assault and violence that some readers may find distressing.

Ramia was preparing for a family picnic, on a warm summer day in her village in Latakia province in western Syria, when a white car drove up, she said.

Three armed men got out, saying they were government security forces, and dragged her into the vehicle, the teenager, whose name has been changed for her safety and to protect her identity, told the BBC World Service.

The men beat her, she said, hitting her harder when she started crying and screaming.

"One of them asked if I was Sunni or Alawite. When I said Alawite, they began insulting the sect," she added.

Ramia is one of dozens of women reported kidnapped since the fall of the dictatorship of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024.

The Syrian Feminist Lobby (SFL), an advocacy group for women's rights, says it has recorded reports - from families, media and other sources - of more than 80 women who have gone missing. It says it has confirmed 26 of those cases to be kidnappings.

Nearly all those reported missing are members of the Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shia Islam that makes up about 10% of Syria's population and to which the ousted president belongs.

Sectarian violence

Two Alawite women and the families of three others have shared details of abduction and assault with the BBC. All their names have been changed for reasons of privacy and safety.

All of them said the interim government's General Security Service - which is responsible for policing - had failed to investigate fully. One says its officers mocked her when she reported her ordeal.

The interior ministry's spokesman said in November that it had investigated 42 alleged kidnappings, and found all but one were "false". When contacted by the BBC, it said it had no further comment. However, a security source told the BBC that kidnappings had occurred, including some involving members of the security service, who he said had been dismissed.

The kidnappings and disappearances recorded by the SFL span a period from February 2025 to early December. This is both before and after March, when more than 1,400 people, mostly Alawite civilians, were killed in sectarian violence in the western coastal regions. Forces loyal to the Sunni Islamist-led government were accused of a wave of revenge killings following a deadly ambush by Assad supporters.

Many members of the Assad regime's elite were Alawites, but other members of the sect faced repression for opposing the former president.

'Suicide attempts'

Ramia spoke quietly as she described being forced to wear a full body covering and niqab - a veil which leaves just the eye area exposed. She said she was locked in an underground room furnished with a bed and a dresser, on which lay toiletries and a condom.

Held for two days, she tried to escape once and attempted suicide twice, she said.

Her captor did not speak Arabic fluently and had "Asian features", she said, adding that he removed her niqab and took photos.

A woman living in the same building, who said she was the captor's wife, explained the photo "was to determine her price for sale", Ramia said.

She said the woman told her "many" others had been kidnapped before her, and that some had been raped and released, while others had been "sold".

The BBC could not verify any cases of money being exchanged for kidnapped women, but activists have reported cases where victims said they were threatened with being sold or forced into marriage.

'Raped multiple times'

Nesma, a mother in her 30s, told the BBC she was taken from her village, also in Latakia province, and driven away in a van with curtained windows.

Her voice shook over the phone as she described being held for seven days in a room with high windows that appeared to be in an industrial facility, and interrogated by three men about the residents of her village and any links to the former regime.

She said her captors were all masked and spoke in the Syrian Arabic dialect. She says they told her "Alawite women were created to be sabaya" - an archaic Arabic term meaning "female captives" and used by some Islamist extremists to refer to women treated as sex slaves.

Her captors raped her multiple times, she said: "All I could think about was death - that I would die and leave my child without a mother."

Leen, another teenager, endured beatings, threats at gunpoint and daily sexual assault, her mother Hasna told the BBC.

Her captor kept his face covered, spoke poor Arabic and boasted about taking part in killings of Alawites during March's violence, Hasna said.

"He used to call our girls sabaya, because 'they do not believe in God'," Hasna says - some Sunni extremists consider Alawites to be heretics.

The BBC also spoke to Ali, who said his wife Noor was kidnapped and held for several weeks, and a mother, Somaya, who said her teenage daughter was sexually assaulted "for 10 consecutive days".

'Threats by phone'

Nesma told the BBC that security officers treated her "mockingly and disrespectfully" when she went to tell them she had been kidnapped: "They said to me 'you should say you were on a picnic'."

Ramia said officers initially seemed engaged with her case, but stopped taking her calls once they identified her captor. The family received threats by phone that they "would pay a price if we talked", she said. They decided to flee the country.

Ali told the BBC: "They arrested the kidnapper, but we don't know what happened next." He said he was afraid the kidnapper may be released and "will come after us".

Leen's mother said her daughter was interviewed "with interest and sympathy" several times by security officers, but that no results from investigations were shared, even after months. Somaya says she reported what happened, but received no updates.

In November, Syria's interior ministry, which oversees the General Security Service, held a press conference on its findings on 42 reported kidnappings.

Spokesperson Nour al-Din al-Baba said only one case was a "genuine kidnapping". He said the others were explained as "voluntary elopement," "staying with relatives or friends," "fleeing domestic violence," "false claims on social media" or "involvement in prostitution and extortion", while four were "criminal offences for which arrests were made".

The ministry dealt with such reports with "utmost seriousness and responsibility", he stressed.

Later in November, the BBC contacted the ministry for its response to the accounts we have gathered. It said it had no further comment.

A security source from a coastal area, speaking to the BBC on condition of anonymity, claimed: "There are undisciplined actions by some elements who carry out temporary kidnappings for the purpose of financial extortion, or due to recklessness, or personal motives inherited from the time of the previous regime."

He said this included members of the General Security Service. "Some officers adopt the idea of kidnapping as a means of revenge," he said. "Some cases have been uncovered, and the officers involved were immediately dismissed."

Four of the women and families who spoke to the BBC said they did not know who the kidnappers were. One did, and said it was not someone from the security services. Two said they were released after public pressure, the others said they did not know why they were freed.

'Climate of impunity'

In July, Amnesty International said it had received credible reports of abductions and kidnappings of at least 36 Alawite women and girls, aged between three and 40, and had documented eight cases in detail.

In "almost all" the cases it documented, families "received no meaningful updates and no credible sense of progress on investigations," deputy regional director Kristine Beckerle told the BBC.

Yamen Hussein, a Syrian human rights activist and writer based in Germany who has followed the issue, said survivors' accounts showed the kidnappings had an ideological basis "built on the notion of violating the defeated side", and aiming to "spread fear among Alawite women".

However, a "general climate of impunity" had also encouraged groups with no ideological motive to carry out kidnappings, he added.

According to the Syrian Feminist Lobby, a small number of Druze and Sunni women were reported kidnapped, but were released later. It says 16 women - all of them Alawite - are still missing.

For the families the BBC spoke to, fear persists - both of retribution for speaking out and of social stigma associated with sexual assault.

Leen lives in constant anxiety, fearing knocks at the door, her mother said. Nesma's marriage has collapsed. "I would scream in my sleep," says Ramia. She says she is seeing a therapist but still struggles to sleep and "can't find comfort".

Ali told the BBC he and Noor were too afraid to seek justice, while Somaya said her daughter had returned to school, but "nobody around me knows anything about what happened".

"We should not deny what happened to us but also we should not expose ourselves to danger," she said.

If you, or someone you know, have been affected by the issues raised in this story, details of organisations offering information and support are available at BBC ActionLine.

* This is part of the Global Women series from the BBC World Service, sharing untold and important stories from around the globe

Detained Briton describes life in Iran jail to BBC hours before sentencing

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c747nqply93o, 5 days ago

A British woman who was detained by Iran has told the BBC it was hard to remain positive in prison, hours before she and her husband were sentenced to 10 years for espionage.

Lindsay and Craig Foreman were arrested while passing through Iran on a round-the-world motorcycle trip in January 2025.

In a rare telephone interview from Tehran's notorious Evin prison, Lindsay likened their detainment to "an endurance test for the mind" and said being in jail had taken a physical toll on her.

While the couple - who deny the accusation against them - has not spoken since the sentencing, her son described the decision as "gut-wrenching".

Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper called it "completely appalling and totally unjustifiable".

Lindsay, who spoke over a crackly phone line, said she had been trying to exercise within the confines of the cramped Iranian prison, including running "in circles" in the small prison yard.

"I've resigned myself to the fact that my physical health might not be what it was when I came in but I can regain it when I leave," she said during the interview, which was played on BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

Lindsay noted it was "incredibly hard to remain positive" but was taking things "one day at a time".

She added: "I'm surrounded by people who are in worse situations who have to live this their entire life, so in some way I feel lucky that I've had the life I have until this point - and hopefully one day for me it will end."

The Foremans had been heading for Australia on their trip of a lifetime, crossing into Iran from Armenia on 30 December 2024 and had planned to arrive in Pakistan by 4 January that year.

But on 3 January, the couple were detained despite having Iranian visas, a guide and an approved itinerary.

Lindsay's son, Joe Bennett, said that no evidence of spying has ever been presented by the Iranian authorities and called on the UK government to "act decisively and use every available avenue" to bring them home.

Bennett has said the couple's lawyers in Iran made it clear there was no legal basis for a case against them, but that their bail applications had been ignored. At a court hearing in October, they were not allowed to defend themselves.

The family say a judge delivered their sentence at the Branch 15 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court.

Lindsay said hours before this was handed down that she and her husband had sent a letter to the Iranian authorities to complain about their treatment in what she described as a "desperate attempt" to seek justice.

"We have done what we can to be respectful of their system, to be patient with the legal process and believing that our innocence will prevail but it doesn't seem to be the case," she said.

Lindsay added that they wanted to "exercise their right to be heard" and use Iran's legal system to show what it was doing to them was "unfair and unjust".

She said she told them: "Even in your own system, your own judicial system, you're in violation of the laws."

The Foremans are being held in separate wings of Evin prison, which has long drawn criticism for alleged torture and inhumane conditions. It reportedly holds thousands of inmates, including journalists and political prisoners.

The Sussex couple, who are both in their 50s, had endured 13 months in "dire" conditions, Bennett has previously said - adding that they were surrounded by "dirt, vermin and violence".

Human rights groups say foreign nationals who are detained in Iran are often held for leverage and released only when the regime gets something in return. The BBC was previously told that the couple may be being used as diplomatic bargaining chips.

Bennett said he had repeatedly urged the UK Foreign Office to help the Foremans.

He has said that his family felt "abandoned" by the government, and that letters he sent to the prime minister and foreign secretary had gone unanswered.

Responding to the sentence, Cooper said: "We will pursue this case relentlessly with the Iranian government until we see Craig and Lindsay Foreman safely returned to the UK and reunited with their family.

"In the meantime, their welfare is our priority and we will continue to provide consular assistance to them and their families."

The Foreign Office has long advised against all travel to Iran, warning British and British-Iranian dual citizens that having a British passport or any connection to the UK can lead to detention.

Lindsay told the BBC on Wednesday that she and Craig had checked the government website before entering Iran, and had sought advice on how to travel through a hard-to-navigate region.

"I put my hand up and take responsibility for being here," she said.

Iran has arrested dozens of Iranians with dual nationality or foreign permanent residency in recent years, mostly on spying and national security charges. At least 15 have had links to the UK.

British-Iranian citizens Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Anoosheh Ashoori were released in 2022 and allowed to leave Iran after the UK settled a long-standing £650m debt owed to Tehran.

French citizens Cécile Kohler, Jacques Paris and Olivier Grondeau, and German national Nahid Taghavi, were all released from Iranian jails following sustained pressure by their respective governments.

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Hamas holds vote to choose new interim leader, source tells BBC

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c23z0kdypm3o, 5 days ago

Hamas is holding an election for a new interim leader, a senior Palestinian official familiar with the armed group's affairs has told the BBC.

Voting is taking place across Gaza, the occupied West Bank and among Hamas's members elsewhere.

The outcome may signal which direction the movement intends to take - particularly as the US and other mediators discuss post-war governance of Gaza, reconstruction efforts and the future status of armed groups there.

The elections come after most of Hamas's senior leadership were killed in Israeli strikes following the group's 7 October 2023 attacks on Israel, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others taken hostage.

People in Gaza have already cast their votes in secret, according to the source, but it is unclear whether the process has concluded elsewhere. When announced, the new leader will hold office for a year.

Hamas governs the Gaza Strip and in recent years has had growing support in the West Bank, though its activities there are heavily constrained by the Israeli military and Palestinian Authority security forces.

A US-backed ceasefire in Gaza came into effect in October, and negotiations continue over the deal's later phases.

Under the proposed terms of the US plan, Hamas would have no role in the future governance of the territory. Governance would eventually be handed over to the Palestinian Authority, which administers parts of the West Bank, once it has undergone reforms.

Yahya Sinwar, the overall head of Hamas, was killed by Israeli forces in Gaza in October 2024, and its political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, was killed in an Israeli attack in Iran in July that year. Hamas's military chief Mohammed Deif was also killed that July, in an Israeli air strike on Gaza.

The position of overall head of Hamas has remained vacant since the deaths of Haniyeh and Sinwar, with the movement being led by an interim committee headed by Qatar-based Mohammad Darwish after the latter was killed.

Under the movement's rules, the head of Hamas is chosen by an electoral college of around 86 members drawn from the General Shura Council, Hamas's top decision-making body representing Gaza, the West Bank, Palestinian prisoners in Israel, and officials based abroad.

According to the official, the race is primarily between:

* Khalil al-Hayya, who leads Hamas in Gaza and is widely seen as aligned with Sinwar and Haniyeh

* Khaled Meshaal, the head of Hamas abroad and one of the movement's veteran figures, who previously served as its overall leader for nearly two decades

Meshaal is currently thought to reside in Doha, Qatar.

Other internal discussions have included additional names, but no formal shortlist has been announced.

Impact of war

The war that followed Hamas's 7 October attack has had a deep impact on the movement's internal politics. Israeli strikes have killed senior Hamas figures and significantly diminished the group's military and political structures, weakening the influence of its Gaza-based leadership.

More than 72,000 people have been killed in Gaza, the Hamas-run health ministry says, though it does not distinguish between civilians and fighters.

For years, Hamas has been shaped by a persistent internal rivalry between two broad currents.

One, often described as aligned with the Muslim Brotherhood, and represented by Meshaal and parts of the external leadership, is viewed by observers as more pragmatic and less ideologically rigid.

The other was seen as closer to Iran, a vital Hamas ally that supplies financial backing and weaponry, and was represented most prominently by Sinwar and leaders inside Gaza.

In 2017, when Haniyeh became head of the political bureau and Sinwar assumed leadership inside Gaza, decision-making shifted heavily towards the territory.

The recent war, however, appears to have reopened space for figures from the movement's so-called "old guard", traditionally linked to Meshaal.

Under Hamas's internal regulations, its political leadership is composed of 18 members: six representing Gaza, six representing the West Bank and prisoners, and six representing Hamas abroad.

Figures associated with the "old guard" appear to be regaining more prominence after years of Gaza-dominated decision making, according to officials familiar with the discussions.

With Gaza devastated by years of conflict and its political landscape in flux, the selection of a new leader is seen as a critical step in determining how Hamas navigates mounting internal and external pressures in the year ahead.

US-Iran tension: Why Tehran may choose confrontation over 'surrender'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdr2g7420p4o, 5 days ago

The continued build-up of US military in the Gulf region now points less to signalling and more to preparation.

The arrival of the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group near Iranian waters is already a significant move.

Another aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R Ford, was last seen near the Strait of Gibraltar and has been heading east to support potential operations. Other assets have also been moved to the region, reinforcing the impression that Washington is assembling layered military options.

Such deployments can serve as leverage in diplomacy. But taken together, they may also suggest that indirect talks between Tehran and Washington have reached a deadlock - one that could be followed by military action if neither side shifts positions.

This raises a fundamental question: why do Iranian leaders, at least publicly, remain defiant in the face of the world's most powerful military and its strongest regional ally in the Middle East?

The answer lies in Washington's stated conditions for talks.

US condition seen as capitulation

From Tehran's perspective, these demands amount not to negotiation but to capitulation.

They include ending uranium enrichment, reducing the range of ballistic missiles so they no longer threaten Israel, halting support for armed groups across the region, and, as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has stated, changing the Islamic Republic's treatment of its own citizens.

For the Iranian leadership, these are not secondary policies. They form the core of what it sees as its security architecture.

In the absence of powerful international allies, Tehran has spent decades building what it calls the "Axis of Resistance".

It is a network of allied armed groups designed to keep confrontation away from Iran's borders and shift pressure closer to Israel.

Tehran's ballistic missile programme has served as a substitute for an ageing air force and limited access to advanced military technology.

The nuclear programme, while officially described as peaceful, is widely seen as carrying deterrent value.

Even without weaponisation, mastery of the enrichment cycle creates what strategists call "threshold capability". It involves infrastructure that would require only a political decision to move toward military use. That latent capacity itself functions as leverage.

Stripping away these elements would, in Tehran's view, dismantle the foundations of its deterrence.

From the perspective of Iran's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, accepting such terms could appear more dangerous than risking a limited war with the United States under President Donald Trump. A military confrontation, however costly, may be seen as survivable. Total strategic rollback may not.

Yet the risks embedded in this calculation are profound, and not only for Iran.

Any US campaign could target senior leadership in its opening phase. If Khamenei is killed, it would not only end a more-than three-decade rule but could destabilise succession at a moment of vulnerability.

Strikes on the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and other security institutions could also weaken the apparatus that recently reasserted control after one of the deadliest and violent crackdowns in the Islamic Republic's history.

Protesters who filled the streets in recent weeks - and withdrew only under overwhelming force - remain deeply disaffected. A sudden blow to the state's coercive machinery could shift the domestic balance in unpredictable ways.

Tehran may assume that Washington's objectives would be limited to degrading nuclear and missile capabilities. But wars rarely unfold according to initial assumptions. Miscalculation over targets, duration or political fallout could quickly expand the conflict.

Economic pressures add another layer of risk. Iran's economy, already strained by sanctions, inflation and declining purchasing power, would struggle to absorb further shocks. Disruption to oil exports or damage to infrastructure would compound public anger that has been suppressed rather than resolved.

In this context, defiance serves multiple purposes. It signals resolve externally and projects strength internally. But it also narrows space for compromise.

Risks for Washington

Washington's risks are no less real.

On paper, the US military has the capacity to fulfil the commander-in-chief's objectives if tensions escalate. But wars are not fought on paper. They are shaped by miscalculation, escalation and unintended consequences.

The recent 12-day war with Israel exposed vulnerabilities in Iran's command structure and military infrastructure. It also offered lessons in adaptation, how to absorb strikes, recalibrate and respond under pressure.

A broader confrontation could produce outcomes neither side intends. A weakened central authority in Tehran would not automatically translate into stability or alignment with Western interests. Power vacuums can generate new, fragmented or radicalised centres of influence, complicating the regional balance in ways that are undesirable for Washington and its allies.

Ayatollah Khamenei now faces few favourable options. Accepting Washington's conditions risks hollowing out the regime's deterrent strategy. Rejecting them increases the likelihood of confrontation at a time of internal fragility.

Between what he may see as the "worst" option; strategic surrender, and the "best of the worst", a limited but containable war, Tehran appears, at least publicly, to be leaning toward the latter.

UK has not given US permission to use RAF bases for Iran strikes

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj98egkl7l1o, 5 days ago

The British government has not given permission for the US to use UK military bases to support potential US strikes on Iran, the BBC understands.

The US has in the past used RAF Fairford, in Gloucestershire, and the UK overseas territory of Diego Garcia, in the Indian Ocean, to carry out strikes in the Middle East region.

The Times reports that US President Donald Trump's latest criticism of Sir Keir Starmer's deal to hand the Chagos Islands over to Mauritius and lease back a joint UK-US military base was prompted by the UK withholding permission to use bases.

A UK government spokesperson said: "As routine, we do not comment on operational matters."

The US has been pressuring Iran to agree to curb its nuclear programme.

It has threatened possible strikes if it fails to do so and has moved warships, aircraft and other military assets to the region in preparation for a possible strike.

At the same time, some progress has been reported at talks between American and Iranian negotiators in Switzerland.

On Thursday, Trump said the world would find out "over the next, probably, 10 days" whether the US would reach a deal with Iran or take military action.

A UK government spokesperson said: "There is a political process ongoing between the US and Iran, which the UK supports.

"Iran must never be able to develop a nuclear weapon, and our priority is security in the region."

Sir Keir spoke to Trump over the phone on Tuesday, after the US government gave its formal support for the Chagos deal.

The Times reports that the pair discussed Trump's ultimatum to Iran over its nuclear programme, and Trump made his statement attacking the Chagos deal the next day.

Insiders believe the Pentagon's preparations for possible strikes on Iran - which could potentially be launched from Diego Garcia - may have shifted the president's understanding of the significance of the island, the largest in the Chagos archipelago.

Trump referenced this in his Truth Social post, saying: "Should Iran decide not to make a deal, it may be necessary for the United States to use Diego Garcia, and the [RAF] Airfield location in Fairford [Gloucestershire], in order to eradicate a potential attack by a highly unstable and dangerous regime."

Neither RAF Fairford nor Diego Garcia were used in the US strikes carried out last year on Iran's nuclear facilities.

At the time a senior UK defence source said Washington had not sought permission.

RAF Fairford and other UK military bases were most recently used by the US in support of a military operation to seize the registered tanker known as Bella 1 earlier this year.

But that operation was carried out with the full support of the UK. At the time ministers said the operation was justified under international law.

Questions of international law would likely be applied by the UK government in justifying support for any US military action in Iran.

Under a long-held agreement, the US would have to first request to use any UK sovereign military bases before conducting military operations.

Under international law, there is no distinction between a state carrying out the attack and those which have supported that state, if the latter has "knowledge of the circumstances of the internationally wrongful act".

In January, the BBC's political editor Chris Mason asked Sir Keir whether he supported a potential US strike on Iran.

At the time, the prime minister replied he was talking to allies about how to prevent Iran from developing nuclear activities and killing protesters.

"The aim here is that Iran shouldn't be able to develop nuclear weapons. That's hugely important," he said.

"And of course we need to deal with the fact that they are repressing protesters, killing protesters. It's grotesque what is happening. And so that's where our focus is and we're working with allies to that end."

Reacting to the latest developments, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey, a long-standing Trump critic, said: "It's now clear Donald Trump is trying to bully the government into letting the US use UK bases like Diego Garcia to pursue unilateral military action.

"Keir Starmer needs to stand strong and give Parliament a vote on the use of UK bases by US forces."

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Why there's no quick fix in sight for the problem of dazzling headlights

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn71xyjpdl2o, 5 days ago

When Jane Kingsbury, 80, last had her eyes tested, she says her optician told her that her eyesight was OK. But Jane, from Cambridge, says she is giving up driving at night because the feeling of being "dazzled" by other vehicles has left her feeling unsafe. "I am worried about the glare from oncoming lights," she says.

And when Jane mentioned this at a discussion group she attends, others felt the same. "Over 90% of us did not want to drive in the dark," says Jane. "So we have changed the time of our meetings from 7.30pm to 1.30pm [for much of the year] so that we can drive home before dark."

Jane and her friends aren't alone. In a debate at Westminster last October, MPs voiced widespread concerns about bright headlights. Some described social isolation among constituents who had become too scared to drive in the dark.

The RAC motoring organisation, which has campaigned on headlight dazzle, has repeatedly asked its members for their views. Most recently, more than half of respondents to a survey of 1,745 UK drivers in January this year felt the problem had worsened in the past 12 months. A third of those who said they were affected by dazzle said they felt less safe when driving at night.

It's not only older drivers who feel this way. Emily McGuire from Essex told the BBC: "I am in my 30s and sometimes I can't tell if [other vehicles'] main beam is on or off and once they have passed, I can't see properly for a good few minutes, it's terrible."

She owns a smaller car and feels that she can't avoid the lights on higher, bigger cars: "I suffer with migraines when a car approaches me with extremely bright lights, I have to look down or in the other direction… I also have to slow right down when it's really dark and I'm on a country lane."

And experts say the problem is getting worse. Denise Voon, clinical advisor at the College of Optometrists - which also campaigns on the issue - says: "I am a practising optometrist and I've noticed that maybe 15 years ago, you rarely had people coming in complaining about headlight glare. But now it's becoming more and more prevalent."

It's an issue that has even reached the United Nations - it will mandate all new cars to automatically adjust their headlight levels.

But this will only affect new cars. And so the questions many are asking are: what, if anything, can be done about all the cars currently out there causing headlight discomfort - and why did nobody spot that this might be a problem?

The impact of changing headlights

Experts believe a number of factors can cause headlight dazzle.

One is the angle of headlights. If misaligned, they are more likely to cause glare. Misalignment can cause a vehicle to fail its MoT test.

Then there's the fact that headlights have got brighter, to help drivers see better.

Headlights have moved a long way from the "kind of brown glow" produced by filament bulbs decades ago, according to Dale Harrow, professor of Intelligent Mobility and Car Design at the Royal College of Art in London. They have become more complex and "a design object in their own right," he says.

Glass casings have given way to plastic and significantly, the light source has changed too, with most people now using LEDs instead of halogen bulbs, he says - the quality has improved and lights are now "brighter, but also a lot clearer".

While this "has to be a good thing" when it comes to helping the driver see clearly, Harrow says, it has also resulted in "unplanned drawbacks" - including dazzling other road users.

Another problem is the illegal retrofitting of LED bulbs, especially when fitted into units designed for halogen. The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency has said it has stepped up a crackdown on retrofit bulbs, with sellers facing potential fines of up to £1,000.

"Recent advances in headlight technology have improved visibility but all headlights – whether LED or not – must still be aimed correctly and checked at the MOT test," says Mike Hawes, chief executive of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

How bright lights affect our eyes

Our eyes adapt in the dark to become a lot more sensitive to light, says Denise Voon. As a result, being suddenly hit by very bright lights can temporarily make it very hard to see, even causing pain.

Retinal cells at the back of the eyes which detect the light can get bleached, and take a while to recover. That's when people notice an imprint remaining in their vision after looking away.

Although headlight glare does affect younger people, age is thought to be a factor. Older people are more prone to conditions such as cataracts and glaucoma, for example.

Voon says there are a number of reasons why LEDs may be particularly problematic. Firstly, they are two to three times as bright as traditional halogens, and their "colour temperature" is bluer and whiter, which mimics natural daylight.

Also, LED lights "are a lot more directional, so you've got this much brighter, whiter light in a very directional point hitting your eye compared to the more diffuse halogen ones".

It's not clear if it is the brightness, colour, temperature or the direction of the lights - or some combination of all of these - that causes most problems, she says: "But what we know is that's one of the differences."

What the data says - and doesn't

Despite widespread concerns that the problem is getting worse, there isn't evidence that brighter lights are causing more accidents.

Statistics from the Department for Transport (DfT) show that headlight dazzle was recorded as a contributory factor in 216 collisions in 2023. Four of those collisions were fatal.

Although the overall number of collisions rose very slightly compared to the previous year, it was far below the 330 recorded in 2014. The figure was also lower than any of the intervening years except 2020, when the pandemic meant fewer drivers on the roads.

But the fact that since 2024 "vision affected by dazzling headlights" is no longer listed in the DfT's published statistics as a contributory factor in its own right, makes comparisons or identification of a trend harder.

Equally, these statistics don't tell us whether some people are choosing not to drive at night and nor do they account for other changes in driver behaviour.

Still, a government-commissioned report by the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL), published last year, found that drivers "perceived glare from vehicle headlamps to be an important and widespread issue when driving at night".

It also concluded that headlamps were perceived as "too bright", and that "whiter" headlamps and those on larger vehicles were "generally perceived to be especially problematic for causing glare".

So far so obvious, you may think, based on what campaigners have been saying for some time. But the study went further.

Researchers took out a car at night, rigged with equipment to measure light intensity and an observer in the vehicle could press a button if they felt glare might interfere with their driving.

The study drew a link between higher levels of luminance - meaning the intensity of light - and the likelihood of experiencing glare. It also suggested that 40,000 candela per sq m - a measure of luminance - may be an "important threshold for the experience of glare being more likely".

Also, when the research car was travelling uphill or around a right-hand bend, glare was more likely, researchers said - a driver's eyes are more likely to fall within the "throw" of headlamps from oncoming vehicles.

Echoing the concerns of experts, researchers also found "some tentative indication that larger body shapes such as SUVs and models with light-emitting diode (LED) headlamps may be more likely to be associated with glare". However, further research was recommended in this area.

The government has since agreed to conduct such further research. But this has not started yet, and it's unlikely to begin for at least a couple of months.

An unidentified problem

But all this raises the question of why nobody anticipated widespread complaints about glare - in spite of all the research and development work that's been carried out by carmakers around the world. "It seems more priority has been put on giving drivers the best possible view of the road at night and less on the consequences for oncoming traffic," says Simon Williams, the RAC's head of policy.

Manufacturers reject this. "Safety is every car maker's top priority and providing good visibility to drivers in darkened conditions is essential," says Mike Hawes, chief executive of the SMMT. "All headlights must meet international standards so drivers can see as clearly as possible but without dazzling other drivers."

In October, I had the opportunity to speak to Thomas Broberg, senior advisor for safety at Volvo's Car Safety Centre in Gothenburg, Sweden. He explained how vehicles have to meet the standards of countries in which the manufacturer wants to sell them - vehicle manufacturing being an international business.

There are regulations around the headlights themselves, he says, covering their shape, intensity and glare. Also, headlights are tested on the road by different authorities and "as a global car company, we need to comply with all of them".

Broberg said it was a "concern" that people are complaining about glare, but insisted that avoiding glare was part of the design process. He also pushed back against the suggestion that SUVs end up dazzling people more. "The angle of the light is actually regulated," he says. "So if you have a higher vehicle, then you need to have a lower [beam] angle."

He argues that road geometry, and poor aiming of headlights in cars that don't have automatic levelling systems, are more likely culprits.

What is already being done?

In theory, technological innovations should help, particularly auto-dimming - although not everyone finds that they dip early enough.

Off the back of the TRL report, the government has promised to look further into design factors that may be contributing to glare. The idea would be to use the findings to propose changes to international regulations at the United Nations.

The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) has a World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations. Following an agreement by this forum, new vehicles are meant to have mandatory automatic headlight levelling by September 2027. The effect of this technology is to correct the aim of headlights if the vehicle's load changes.

But this would not change the headlight settings on the millions of cars on our roads already.

The TRL report also points out that "many instances of glare are likely to remain even with stronger regulation", because real-world situations of "road geometry" - the shape of the road, with ups, downs and corners - are not realistically under DfT's control.

"We know headlamp glare is a real frustration for many drivers and is even discouraging some from driving at night," a DfT spokesperson says. "That's why we're investigating the causes as part of our Road Safety Strategy and are pressing for improvements to international lighting regulations."

There are some basic things drivers can do to reduce the impact bright lights have on them. For example, keep their windscreen clean, inside and out.

The College of Optometrists reminds motorists to always wear glasses if they have them, and make sure they are clean. It also advises staying up to date with vision tests, which can also pick up problems with eye health.

More practical advice when confronted with bright oncoming headlights is to briefly look to the side of the road, keeping your eyes open - and of course, be considerate of other drivers when you're behind the wheel yourself.

For Emily and others affected by glare, this guidance will have to make do for the time being. She says: "It's tough but we cope and carry on until something is done about it."

One giant boys' club? Why Westminster can still feel like a man's world

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy0dgpx71dyo, 10 days ago

Is there a boys' club in politics? I ask a smart, tough, very experienced woman who has worked at the highest level of government.

"Yes," comes the answer - without a second's hesitation. "The end."

Yes, many more women than ever have taken up perches on the green benches - but that's not the same as having access to the inner sanctum where decisions are made.

Yes, there are many more women working at senior levels in Whitehall - and all the main parties have made big efforts to get more women into parliament. But that's not the same as being listened to.

And yes, as part of Sir Keir Starmer's efforts to prop up his administration, three senior men have used the exit – the boss of the civil service, his chief of staff, and his head of communications, to be replaced, at least in part, by women.

But this week, a serving member of the cabinet, Lisa Nandy, suggested Labour had been operating as a "boys' club" and went on to complain "some of the briefings have absolutely been dripping with misogyny".

Don't just casually ignore one of Labour's most senior politicians suggesting - quite openly - that a clique of men have had too much sway in government, and some of them have used woman-hating as a political tool.

But what is the "boys' club" and how big a problem is it for Sir Keir?

"Massive," says one minister.

It's more than 100 years since the first woman took her seat as an MP - there weren't even women's loos when Nancy Astor arrived. She's said to have nipped down to the Ritz to use the facilities before a ladies' toilet was installed in Parliament's neo-gothic palace.

More than 100 years later, Rachel Reeves arrived in the Treasury in 2024 to find a urinal in the chancellor's bathroom - that shows how long it has taken for women to get access to all areas of politics.

Loos aside, one former Labour minister tells me the so-called "boys' club" is a particular problem for Starmer because, "You have a prime minister who is not very political, so he has had to rely very heavily on the network that he has - which is the boys' network. He has been unable to see the pitfalls or the issues or problems of it".

There was even, one cabinet minister says, a "whole network of Matts". Others have joked before about the "boys in blue suits", or the "ladz" (yes, with a z), a group whose hero was Morgan McSweeney, the departed chief of staff.

But there have been plenty of women at senior levels in and around Starmer's operation – the home secretary Shabana Mahmood, the foreign secretary Yvette Cooper, the general secretary of the Labour Party Hollie Ridley, some of the press team, and, of course, his chancellor.

One insider and Starmer ally told me that "boys' club" perception is "totally unfair on all the brilliant women" who have been involved. Another senior figure said they were "boiling with rage" when that accusation had been chucked around.

Yet senior sources suggest No 10 has sometimes made it difficult for the very senior female ministers to get "face time" with the prime minister – access is one of the most precious commodities in politics.

There does, at least for now, seem a determination that things will change with a new interim female chief of staff and a female political director in post.

After the political horror show around giving Peter Mandelson a plum job despite his known connections to the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, and giving Matthew Doyle, his former press chief, a peerage, despite his campaigning for a man charged with sex offences, there is hope in Labour circles that the "boys' club" might have gone.

"It probably doesn't exist anymore – because a lot of the people that gave rise to some of that culture have gone now," says a cabinet minister.

But they suggest the perception of the "boys' club" was also a shorthand for something else. "It wasn't just a boys' club, it was a factional group as well".

One veteran Labour figure told me: "Not only is there a boys' club, but the most important thing is that there are all these cliques and all these factions that just don't talk to each other - people get together and talk to people only in their bubble."

That is what has led to so many mistakes, many of Starmer's internal critics say.

He relied on too small a group of advisers, who came from one, more hard-edged wing of the Labour Party, favoured by Morgan McSweeney, and stuck his fingers in his ears to a wider range of views – it was about one faction dominating, not the deliberate exclusion of females.

One Whitehall insider who deals with Downing Street said: "It means you're not getting the best people if you exclude anyone, for any reason. It's not woke, it's just making sure you get the best people when it comes to the government."

There are promises the prime minister will listen to a wider range of views, more voices from different parts of the party. Some are trying, very obviously, to make sure they get more of a look in from now.

At the start of the week, Ed Miliband said the prime minister had to be "bold" and he wanted to focus on class. On Thursday Angela Rayner said the government had to do more for the hospitality industry, and Lisa Nandy made her remarks about misogyny and the "unforgivable" turmoil in government.

One senior Labour politician warns against any attempt to brush off women's concerns by saying it's all about warring factions, telling me: "It's not good enough to just say it's because people oppose Keir or Morgan's agenda - that gives them an excuse to not do anything and that would be hopeless".

And after the last few weeks, there are specific calls from women in the Labour Party for an inquiry into the behaviour of the late Mohammed Al Fayed, and a woman to be given the cabinet post as first secretary of state.

Others are sceptical – suggesting plenty of MPs have tried, and been disappointed, for years to get the party leadership to look outside its own narrow group.

One told me: "We would say, 'Why don't you engage with women? Why wouldn't you engage with backbenchers?' They just looked utterly baffled - he wouldn't engage."

Let's see. Does Westminster have a wider problem when it comes to how women are treated?

There are far too many examples of sleazy or improper behaviour, or harassment. It is still a late-night working culture where the line between what's social and what's professional can be blurred, and power swirls around along with the warm white wine.

As an experienced former cabinet minister admits, "if you are a junior female in Westminster you can still find yourself in uncomfortable situations" - or, for that matter, a young male staffer too.

But the atmosphere, and what is considered acceptable, has completely transformed in recent years.

Leaving aside behaviour that is clearly improper, are there features of the way the system works that make it not, perhaps one big giant boys' club, but a place that's easier for men?

Let's spare the blushes of the frontbencher who asked a senior female adviser to get him a cup of coffee during the milling around before cabinet. She told him to get his own. He was mortified minutes later when the prime minister of the day called on her to answer the first question during the meeting.

Politics is certainly not the only business where old-fashioned assumptions are still made, women are paid less, or find it harder to progress and are sometimes overlooked.

But as one former cabinet minister suggests, perhaps, "it's not deliberate, but the culture is just so male. There are a lot of what you'd call male characteristics that are deemed to be what you need to get on: saying you have all the answers, briefing against people who aren't doing what you want", referring specifically to a combative way of doing interviews where "No 10 comms would be yelling at you for not pushing back, when it's just not the way women operate".

A hugely experienced female party activist suggests politics, fundamentally, is just more attractive to men, some of whom just see "women are like blobs, the men just hang out together, and they like risk more than women do. It goes back to the days when they went off and killed tigers, and it is in our DNA to be more risk averse".

You might raise your eyebrows, but votes need to be won. That means rivals need to be beaten.

One senior Labour figure describes it as "gang warfare", saying, "you rely on people who have been in the trenches with you and been through battles and that means you are exclusive rather than inclusive".

"Does that mean people you need in the room to make decisions are not there? Does that mean women? Yes, but that is life."

That remark might drive some people round the twist. Perhaps that is about as honest an admission about why things sometimes work the way they do in SW1 as you're going to get.

And there is widespread agreement in Westminster that women are so often held to different standards than the men they sit alongside. That's not new.

We are a long way since the first female prime minister made time to iron her husband's shirts, and be pictured doing it. But despite record representation of women, parity seems way off. Whether it's how they look, how they act, what they wear, the lens applied to women is different.

A senior Labour figure accepts Angela Rayner made mistakes in her tax affairs, but suggests she's always been treated more harshly than a man would have been in her position.

"She does manoeuvre, but she is also uncompromising and lives her life, has never changed her accent. And some of the men can't cope with that."

Another source points to how Starmer's new pick for cabinet secretary, Dame Antonia Romeo, has been briefed against and written about in acid terms in the last few days. It's like, "How dare she be glamorous? All the bits they talk about - her ambition, in any man those would be seen as strengths. But because it's her, it's used against her".

An investigation into one formal complaint against Romeo alleging bullying concluded there was no case to answer.

"The smears being thrown against her are reprehensible and hypocritical," Rupert McNeil, former head of HR at the Civil Service said recently.

But does the notion of the "boys' club" really make a difference? In a narrow way, it does right now, because dismantling the perception of it, and listening to a wider range of his colleagues is one of the tasks Starmer's been set by his own MPs.

It matters profoundly that one half of the population, the narrow majority after all, is fairly represented by the politicians we choose to serve us.

And it matters too when it comes to having different perspectives in the rooms where decisions are taken.

It's a matter of public record, from the second most senior civil servant in the country during the pandemic, that a lack of women in the room affected the decisions taken during an emergency.

Helen MacNamara, who spoke to us about the Covid inquiry on Newscast, said there'd been a lack of thought about childcare during school closures, how domestic violence victims could be trapped during lockdown, and too much attention paid to how it affected more male pursuits - hunting, shooting and fishing.

Another source told me opening up car showrooms and golf courses was considered before thinking about kids' playgrounds.

Before you scream, of course issues like childcare, education and domestic violence affect men, and not just women. Of course, neither men nor women all care about the same things.

But one activist who has been around for many years relates: "I'm still a woman in a man's world. I count every meeting - there are 45 men and five women. They never count, or say, 'Hang on, we need some women around to see their point of view.' They don't think about it".

The numbers aren't always so outrageously heavily skewed. There has been enormous progress in the numbers of female politicians, senior civil servants, and in other parts of public life too.

But as another Whitehall insider suggests: "The habits of Westminster were set when nearly all politicians were men, nearly all journalists were men, and nearly all civil servants were men".

And it was the decision to appoint Peter Mandelson that has prompted this bout of soul searching about women's role in government, with some convinced Starmer would simply never have got into this mess if he'd included women in the decision.

One senior figure said: "At the heart of that decision was misogyny – it required you to think that the Epstein victims were neither here nor there".

Men may no longer always be in such a majority, but perhaps old habits formed years ago, really do die hard. If Starmer really wants to change the perception, the pressure is on him to respond.

How much do Nato members spend on defence?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clyz4nq91wpo, 11 days ago

Nato leaders are meeting for the Munich Security Conference at a tense time for the security alliance.

It is the first major summit since President Donald Trump threatened to take control of Greenland, a semi-autonomous territory of Denmark - a fellow Nato member.

Nato is a military alliance of 32 countries including the US, Canada and European nations.

It has significant deployments along its eastern flank, designed to deter Russia following the invasion of Ukraine.

Trump has repeatedly insisted that members of the military alliance, including European countries, must spend more on defence, and there are signs that has been successful.

Which countries spend most on defence?

The previous target for Nato members on defence spending was to spend 2% of the size of their economy (measured by GDP) by 2024.

According to Nato estimates for 2025, every country in the alliance achieved at least 2% last year.

Even Spain, which has been criticised repeatedly by Trump over its defence spending, managed 2%.

Members are now committed to spending 3.5% on defence by 2035, with another 1.5% going on things like protecting critical infrastructure and ensuring civil preparedness.

Only three countries: Poland, Lithuania and Latvia, spent more than 3.5% on defence in 2025, although Estonia and Norway were close.

In cash terms however, the US is still by far the biggest spender on defence, spending about $980bn (£720bn) last year, which was 62% of the Nato total.

The US is a global superpower, with military commitments around the world, not just to Nato. It had GDP greater than all the rest of the members of Nato put together in 2025.

US defence spending has come down from 3.6% of GDP in 2020 to an estimated 3.2% in 2025.

Defence spending by the rest of Nato - Canada and the European members - has gone up from 1.7% of combined GDP in 2020 to an estimated 2.3% in 2025.

What about the cost of running Nato?

Nato's annual budget and programmes are expected to cost about €5.3bn (£4.6bn) in 2026 and there's an agreed cost-sharing formula to pay for the running of things such as:

* civilian staff and administrative costs of Nato headquarters

* joint operations, strategic commands, radar and early warning systems, training and liaison

* defence communications systems, airfields, harbours and fuel supplies

The four biggest contributors to this are the US and Germany at 15% and the UK and France at 10%.

The US used to pay more than 22% of these running costs.

But a new payment formula was agreed in 2019 to address complaints by the first Trump administration about the burden to the US of supporting the alliance.

Nato leaders agreed in 2022 to increases in the use of common funding, with the total due to go up each year until 2030.

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Fact-checking Jim Ratcliffe's claims about immigration and benefits

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c15x4x7p93lo, 12 days ago

Billionaire Manchester United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe has been criticised by Sir Keir Starmer and others for saying the UK had been "colonised by immigrants".

The use of the term colonised in the interview with Sky News on Wednesday was followed by an apology from the Ineos boss if his "choice of language has offended some people".

BBC Verify has been examining some of the claims he made on immigration, benefits and energy.

'The population of the UK was 58 million in 2020. Now it's 70 million. That's 12 million people'

This claim is incorrect.

UK population figures are compiled by the Office for National Statistics. Its mid-year 2025 provisional estimate was 69.4 million, compared with 66.7 million in 2020 - an estimated increase of 2.7 million people, not 12 million.

The UK population was last estimated to be 58 million in 1995. So that 12 million increase is over more than three decades. Since 1999 migration has been a bigger contributor to population growth than births in most years.

Between 2020 and 2023 net migration accounted for almost all (98%) of UK population growth, according to analysis by Oxford University's Migration Observatory.

'Nine million on benefits'

Sir Jim was also critical of the UK economy saying "you can't have an economy with nine million people on benefits".

Official figures from the Department of Work and Pensions say about 10 million working-age people in Great Britain claimed a combination of benefits in February 2025.

However, a large of portion of those claimants were working and their incomes were topped up by benefits such as Universal Credit (UC) and housing benefit.

When it comes to people receiving benefits because they were out of work, the figures suggest there were about 6.5 million claimants, not nine million.

However, it is true that the number of people on benefits has increased over recent years.

Immigration 'costing too much money'

Whether migrants cost "too much money", as Sir Jim also claimed, is a matter of intense debate.

When BBC Verify previously looked into the economic impact of migrants, Ben Bridle from the Migration Observatory told us their contribution depended on many factors.

This includes their age, earnings, their use of public services, and how long they stay in the UK.

"For example, many migrants have a positive impact on public finances when they are young and can't claim benefits, but a negative impact later as they age, use the NHS more, and get access to benefits," he said.

'Huge levels of migrants coming in'

Immigration has been high compared with previous decades. But the numbers dropped sharply in Labour's first year in office, much of which was attributed to restrictions to visas and other measures introduced at the tail end of the previous Conservative government.

Net migration (the number of immigrants, minus the number of people emigrating) to the UK reached record levels after Brexit, peaking at 944,000 in the 12 months to March 2023.

However, the latest provisional estimate shows that in the 12 months to June 2025, net migration stood at 204,000 - 78% lower than the 2023 peak. Experts believe it could decline further.

'Energy costs which are three or four times the USA, with carbon taxes which have quadrupled since 2020'

Sir Jim is pretty much right about the comparison of energy prices with the US.

We asked the International Energy Agency (IEA) for figures for the two countries and they gave us prices for the fourth quarter of 2025.

For industrial electricity, the price in the UK was 3.7 times the US figure.

For industrial natural gas, the multiple was 4.5 times.

Sir Jim went on to say "carbon taxes" have quadrupled since 2020.

It is true that carbon prices rose sharply, but they are not four times higher now.

After Brexit, the UK left the EU's carbon market and launched its own one in 2021, allowing companies to buy and sell carbon credits.

The carbon price started at £22 per tonne of CO2, peaked at £97 per tonne during the 2022 energy crisis and is now around £52 per tonne - about two and a half times today.

'About 25% of our GDP was manufacturing [in 1995]'

This is not correct, according to World Bank data.

In 1995, just over 15% of the UK's economic output - known as gross domestic product (GDP) - came from manufacturing

That's ten percentage points lower than the figure Sir Jim claimed.

He went on to say manufacturing also accounted for about 25% of GDP in Germany in 1995 and that the figure remained about "the same today", whereas it had fallen to about 8% in the UK.

The World Bank data shows that while Sir Jim's figures are not exactly right, he is not far off.

It shows manufacturing accounted for 20% of Germany's GDP in 1995, whereas the latest data for 2024 shows it has dropped just two percentage points to 18%.

The UK, meanwhile, has dropped to 8% - the same figure Sir Jim used.

Additional reporting by Ben Chu, Anthony Reuben and Nicholas Barrett

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