hamas base there. shock targeting a hamas base there. shock results in turkish elections, the opposition party claiming its largest victory in half a century. and a lower energy price cap comes into force, ticking bills in england, wales, scotland to their lowest level two years. germany partially legalises cannabis to tackle the black market trade. a special report coming up. results in local turkish elections have dealt a surprising low took president erdogan and his governing ak party. the economy was a major issue for voters, with inflation close to an eye watering 70%. i spoke to somebody about this

earlier. i think the results of send a very clear signal to policymakers because just after nine months of the presidential elections, support for the current policy makers has declined significantly. and this is mainly i think because of the high inflation and persistent inflation and declining purchasing power of the middle class and lower income classes, that is i think the main reason of declining support for the policymakers. do you think that this rebuff at the polls will tie president erdogan�*s hands when it

comes to reforming the economy? i think the signal is well received by the the policymakers because both the finance minister and president erdogan reiterated that the current policies will continue, so it means that they will continue to rebalance the economy and return back to sustainable growth for the turkish economy. when we look at the market reaction today for these announcements, the markets have also the scenario, so the markets took it as a positive sign. do you think that the government enjoys the faith of the turkish people and its institutions when it comes to reforming the economy? these results seem to suggest not.

actually, when we look at the current state of the turkish economy and the current global economy, i think there's not much room the current policymakers to change the course of the economy. in the last couple of years, we have unfermented several different policies, and these policies actually resulted in high inflation and declining economy growth at the end. so after all, we returned back to orthodox policies in order to rebalance the economy. so when i look at the current state of the turkish economy and of the global economy, i don't think that there is much room to make a u—turn from the orthodox policies and return back

to experimental unorthodox forces. day minimum wage for fast—food workers in the us state of california has gone up by 25% to around $20 per hour, covering around halfi million�*s workers at around $20 per hour, covering around half i million�*s workers at some around $20 per hour, covering around halfi million�*s workers at some of the country they biggest restaurant chain. for more on this, let's talk to somebody in new york. tell us more about what the companies are saying about this rise in the minimum wage for fast—food workers in california. this minimum wage for fast-food workers in california-— in california. this law dates back about a year. — in california. this law dates back about a year, and _ in california. this law dates back about a year, and it _ in california. this law dates back about a year, and it was - in california. this law dates back i about a year, and it was unusually involved in negotiations between unions and some of the franchise owners that typically kind of make up owners that typically kind of make up many of the fast food restaurant chains you see, and they came up

with this at a time when the economy was doing better, and now, as companies are starting to struggle with the idea that perhaps the economy is slowing, the state economy, that is the time when the slot now finally goes into effect, and so we have had from some franchise owners saying this really is going to raise their costs at a time they cannot afford it, and that it will make life harder for them. interestingly, if you look back over the past decade, certainly as we have seen this focus more and more on minimum wagejobs and what have seen this focus more and more on minimum wage jobs and what they pay, there has been a question in economic circles as to, if you raise the minimum wage, would it lead to more lay—offs? in the data historically, this over the last decade has shown that has not been the case, but again right now we are hearing the pain from individual franchise owners who are saying this will make their life harder, and has made them reconsider whether or not things work for them. imilli made them reconsider whether or not things work for them.— things work for them. will this have an im act things work for them. will this have an impact on _ things work for them. will this have an impact on what _ things work for them. will this have an impact on what they _ things work for them. will this have an impact on what they charge - an impact on what they charge customers for their products? the?

customers for their products? they have been grappling _ customers for their products? tie: have been grappling with customers for their products? ti31 have been grappling with rising food prices, there is a limit to how much consumers are willing to pay, certainly if you look at fast food chains, often you're going there because of its value proposition and if prices go up too much, that basically gets called into question. so that is where i think these group of people are feeling the squeeze. 0n the flip side, part of the reason you're seeing this increase in wages is a recognition. historically, these were jobs that were associated with teenagers, summerjobs, with teenagers, summer jobs, seasonal work, with teenagers, summerjobs, seasonal work, a chance to get their first bit of money in the professional world. first bit of money in the professionalworld. now first bit of money in the professional world. now there's a recognition of these jobs are often filled by women, immigrant workers, and so this is kind of trying to redress some of that, the fact that to help them make more of a living wage, but retention clearly in evidence, especially exposed by the inflationary period we have just been through, and the kind of

pressure that puts on both business owners and of the workers, because this increase we are seeing in the wage comes at a time when they have seen the price of rent and their own food costs go up as well.— food costs go up as well. california are a giant — food costs go up as well. california are a giant state, _ food costs go up as well. california are a giant state, well _ food costs go up as well. california are a giant state, well what - food costs go up as well. california i are a giant state, well what happens to have an impact on the debate on the national minimum wage elsewhere in the united states?— in the united states? california has alwa s in the united states? california has always been _ in the united states? california has always been seen _ in the united states? california has always been seen as _ in the united states? california has always been seen as perhaps - in the united states? california has always been seen as perhaps a - always been seen as perhaps a leader in this front, both the state of washington and california were kind of amongst the early recent wave in recent years of raising their prices. other states of a fold, even within california, some cities have higher minimum wages in the $20 being introduced today. so it depends on the policy of each state, each city, is that kind of how much this has an influence, but california definitely has been the leaders on this issue in recent years. leaders on this issue in recent ears. ~ : : ~' leaders on this issue in recent ears. ~ : . ~ leaders on this issue in recent ears. ~ : :, ~' :,

years. michelle, thank you for “oininu years. michelle, thank you for joining us- _ the boss of japan's nippon steel has defended plans to buy america's second biggest steel producer. the deal to buy us steel was agreed in december, but the white house says the company should stay in american hands. the japanese firm is calling for its roots in the united states to be recognised. here's our business reporter david waddell. here he is, the new president of nippon steel, tadashi imai. he takes up post today and on the top of his in—tray a tricky assignment. the $14 billion purchase of us steel. a deal has been agreed, but it's united these two — president biden and his predecessor, president trump. donald trump has said he'll block the deal if he's re—elected later this year. and president biden last month noted it's been an iconic american steel company for more than a century. and he said it's vital for it to remain an american steel company that is domestically owned and operated in common the white house sees steel as critical to national security. there are concerns, too, aboutjobs in a company which employs 22,000 people,

ia,000 in the us alone. and the iconic status cannot be overstated. at one time, us steel was both the biggest steel maker and the world's first billion dollar corporation. nippon steel argued that the company's deep roots in the united states be recognised. the japanese firm has about 4,000 employees there. it also had, he said, about 2,000 steel patents in north america, whilst most us steel makers had about 200 each. he's argued that nippon is the most useful partner for us steel seeking to grow in the united states, and promised to move the company's headquarters to pittsburgh, where us steel is based. but these arguments may hold little sway with the two men seeking first to court the american public in the months ahead. in other news, manufacturing activity in china

expanded for the first time in six months in march, according to official figures. the news offers some relief to policymakers — but the crisis in the property sector still remains a drag on the world's second largest economy. hong kong saw a 14% drop in cargo shipped through its port in 2023 as it lost out to rivals in mainland china and south east asia. it's the biggest percentage drop among the world's largest ports, according to the drewry consultancy. hong kong used to be the busiest port in the world but has now slipped to tenth place. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news.

the kremlin has dismissed a media report that links a russian intelligence unit to so—called �*havana syndrome' — a mystery illness which has affected us diplomats. an investigation by the insider, der spiegel and cbs

alleges that the americans were targeted with one victim of the syndrome — an fbi agent — told 60 minutes about her experience of being hit by a powerful force at her home in florida in 2021. it was like a dentist drawing on steroids, that feeling when it gets too close to your eardrum, it was like that time is ten. it was like a high—pitched metallic drilling noise, it knocked me forward at a 45 degrees angle this way. the syndrome was first identified in cuba's capital city in 2016, when us diplomats complained of dizziness, headaches, and a painful sound in their ears. us officials have previously said it's unlikely a foreign power is to blame. the kremlin spokesman, dmitry peskov, says the new accusations are unfounded. thousands of people have taken to the streets in haiti

to mark easter weekend. it's the first major national holiday since the country's government collapsed. the caribbean island is now largely gripped by gang violence. more than 1,500 people have been killed since the start of the year and tens of thousands of others left homeless. the un has described the situation as cataclysmic. nomia iqbal has more. as haiti spirals into violence, people try to hold on to their traditions. thousands of worshippers walk through narrow, dusty roads in cap haitian, praying for peace in a country whose capital has descended into lawlessness. in gang—controlled port—au—prince, the city is still suffering — with people fighting for basic supplies. most easter processions were cancelled. there was a rare moment ofjoy, though, as children crafted colourful kites — an easter tradition. more than 100 miles away, nun checks in with herfamily every day to make sure

they're still alive. her father says there was a shooting today — everyone is ok. he tells her he feels broken, though. nun left port—au—prince because of the violence. her cousin was killed by a gang in the capital last year. i have friends that, after school, they decided to open a business or things like that, and after some time either they got killed or they got robbed, so it's two ways — either you stay and you fight, or you go. even though i go, i'll come back because i have a plan, i have a dream, and that dream is happening in haiti. the country is now waiting to see exactly who will take on the gangs in the fight for power. a presidential transitional council is in the works, and the group's main goal will be to restore order and democracy to a nation that's at a crucial turning point in history. one of the country's most powerful

gang leaders, jimmy cherizier, has said he's open to a ceasefire. known as barbecue, he and his coalition control much of the capital right now, but he wants a seat at the negotiating table. it will be hard, though, to convince many haitians to accept violent gangsters as future political leaders. translation: when gangs attack, they're terrorising people, - and they don't have any compassion — theyjust kill. the population is dying — it's true — because it's the country which is dying. when the port is dysfunctional, the airport is dysfunctional, and the hospital is dysfunctional, people will definitely die. haiti is a country with a lot of faith, but constant, overlapping crises have pushed it to the brink. and with little change so far, right now hope is all people have. nomia iqbal, bbc news, haiti. from today, people in germany can

legally smoke cannabis — in public. hundreds of people filled berlin's brandenburg gate at midnight for a "smoke—in" as the new law came into effect. the part—decriminalisation follows decades of contentious debate. the rules around medical marijuana are also being relaxed. our berlin correspondent jessica parker reports from dresden. # three little birds pitch by my doorstep, # singing sweet songs...# it's out in the open. adults in germany can now possess up to 25 grams of cannabis in public — enough to make dozens ofjoints — and grow up to three plants at home. while people like marcel are planning newly—permitted cannabis social clubs. not for tourists, though — just german residents. every gram from cannabis which goes from the cannabis social club is one gram that's not on the black market. what do you say to people who say, look, cannabis is addictive and it is harmful, especially to young people? everything has dark sides.

and you have to know about the dark sides and only when it's not illegal, you can freely talk about these dark sides. but these cannabis clubs in cities like dresden won't pop up overnight, and come with their own rules, exacerbating fears that demand will quickly outstrip legal supply. translation: we assume that the black market - will be strengthened, particularly at the beginning in the chaos phase, when demand would be great because of the signal this law sends. the black market and criminal networks will adapt and they will also infiltrate the social clubs. into the highly secure halls of a medical cannabis grower, who are also seeing some deregulation. cannabis will not be a narcotic any more in germany. it will be just as any other pharmaceutical product, which makes it much more easier for patients to get it from a doctor and to get it from the pharmacy.

they keep this room at around 23 degrees, but it's also really quite humid. now, there are 650—ish plants in this room and they are almost ready to be harvested. and the psychoactive substance is... the benefits of medical cannabis are debated, while the relaxation around recreational use has been contentious. this is an argument in germany that likely hasn't yet reached full maturity. jessica parker, bbc news, in dresden. we spoke to a reporter based in berlin. , : :, :, :, berlin. this decriminalisation of cannabis has — berlin. this decriminalisation of cannabis has been _ berlin. this decriminalisation of cannabis has been seen - berlin. this decriminalisation of cannabis has been seen as - berlin. this decriminalisation of| cannabis has been seen as really controversial here in germany, so much so that more than half of diamonds do not like the decriminalisation —— half of germans. on the other side, there are also many thought the

synchronisation, they are for it because they think of us in the end could curb the black—market use of cannabis among young people doubled in the last decade, some needs to be done, and the government wants to curb the black with decriminalisation. : decriminalisation. are there restrictions _ decriminalisation. are there restrictions on _ decriminalisation. are there restrictions on it _ decriminalisation. are there restrictions on it as - decriminalisation. are there restrictions on it as well, i decriminalisation. are there l restrictions on it as well, like driving after using cannabis? from what i can tell, _ driving after using cannabis? from what i can tell, many _ driving after using cannabis? from what i can tell, many things - driving after using cannabis? f'fi�*fl what i can tell, many things are unclear, it is still unclear how much people can in their blood. the transport ministry is working on a new limit, so right now we are still working with the old limit, which means that drivers right now probably cannot consume cannabis at all, but they are working on a new limit. the law was passed really quickly in the last weeks, so they have not done this already, and

there are other things are still unclear. if soldiers should be allowed to consume cannabis or not, things like that, there have been letters around the army would say that soldiers should also be not allowed to consume cannabis, that is what the media reported on the last weeks. and moreover it is unclear if you can consume cannabis and restaurants. there are restaurants in germany where you are allowed to smoke, but will you be allowed to smoke, but will you be allowed to smoke cannabis there? in the end, thatis smoke cannabis there? in the end, that is the decision of the owners, but they have to make that clear on their own, that is all not clear right now, so there could be some interesting situations in restaurants for example coming up. you are watching bbc news. energy prices in england, wales and scotland have fallen to their lowest level for two years today, as the regulator's new quarterly price cap comes into force.

household using a typical amount of energy will see their bills fall by £238 compared to the previous cap. the price drop will affect 29 million households. standing charges — that's a fixed daily charge covering the costs of connecting to a supply — have risen to 60p a day for electricity and 31p a day for gas, although they vary by region and supplier. energy prices in northern ireland are not controlled by the price cap — the government provides support directly to customers. despite this new support for other parts of the uk, charities say customers still owe billions of pounds to suppliers. with more, here's our cost of living correspondent, kevin peachey. here's the business minster kevin hollinrake on bbc breakfast. you've got much better chance of finding a job than you had in 2010. there's 11.2 million morejobs in our economy and 1.2 million people, fewer people unemployment. so really good news all round. and in terms of those price increases you're talking about, of course, the work we've done on inflation — more than halving inflation. it was 11%, now 3.5%, roughly. it will be 2% by the end of the year. those bills aren't rising as quickly

as they would have been. we'll come on to inflation in a minute because bills are still going up, they'rejust going up less quickly. but you say it's good news. it's not all good news, though, is it, this morning? the institute of government analysis says that real incomes are lower than when parliament began in 2019. resolution foundation says that inflation, highertaxes, mean the average household will be £1,900 poorer by january of 2025. more people are paying tax because of that freeze on tax thresholds. 3.2 million extra taxpayers. 2.6 million more people will pay a higher rate of tax. the institute of fiscal studies says that the chancellor's budget plans will inflict more pain than the austerity drive. that's not good news. this is not people feeling better off. well, official fiscal studies you just referenced have said how the budget really helped people lower incomes. and that's what we're here to do and we have done very significantly since 2010. so that rise in national living wage, £10,000

in cash terms since 2010, which is a 35% real terms increase. that's after taking into account all those inflationary things you talked about. the energy price cap is not the only financial change affecting households across the uk from today. the average annual water and sewerage bill will rise by 6% in england and wales, up £27 to £473. council tax rises vary — most will go up 3% or 5%, exceptions are financially troubled birmingham where council tax will go up 21% over two years and scotland where it's mainly frozen. most broadband and mobile phone providers are currently introducing mid—contract price rises of up to 8.8%. and also changing today — the national living wage, known by many as the minimum wage, is going up by more than a pound an hour. the main wage rate goes up from £10.42 to £11.44 an hour, and it will also now apply to workers aged over 21, rather than 23. that means someone working full—time on that wage will have a pay rise

of around £1,800 per year. energy bills have been the biggest financial headache for so many households for the past few years, so any thoughts good news, but it is just one part of a much larger cost of living picture. the question is, once you have worked out what you have got coming in and what will be going out, our households —— our households better or worse off? as usual, each circumstance is going to be different, but other typical energy bills will go down from today, they are not going down to the levels people are used to before the levels people are used to before the current cost of living squeeze. water bills, council tax, the current cost of living squeeze. water bills, counciltax, broadband and phone bills are going up for many people. there is a boost to be minimum wage, and another cut to

national insurance is coming later this week, so that should benefit those in work. but will it be enough to offset frozen tax thresholds? that is essential the process where more of us have been dragged into paying tax or paying more of it. the government are also keen to big up the extension to free childcare, but many nursery operators are telling us we will not be able to offer the extra hours because of our own costs and because of our staffing issues. the reality is as another will be financial winners, for example a 21—year—old on the minimum wage or higher earning parents with kids in childcare, there will also be losers. but this is notjust a question about the financial reality for people, but also about the perception. calculation is a side, do people feel this is a more positive financial year than the last? the answer may well be crucial for the government's fortunes come the election. for the government's fortunes come the election-— the election. time for a look at the

weather. hello there. today we have seen some rain moving very slowly northwards, followed by some sunshine and some showers. that pattern will continue over the next few days. we will keep those colder east or north—easterly winds in scotland, whereas much further south, the winds are south—westerly, bringing milder conditions, and that is where the wet weather will be coming in from. these are our temperatures this easter monday afternoon. probably making 15 in east anglia and the south—east. a bit more chilly underthe rain in northern england and southern scotland. the rain is continuing to move northwards this evening. the showers that follow tend to fade away but we will keep some showers running eastwards across southern counties of england. that rain in northern england and northern ireland pushes further north into scotland. the lowest temperatures tonight will be as the cloud breaks up in the north—east of england. we still have some patchy rain tomorrow in scotland, particularly in the north—east of scotland. early showers in the south—east will be followed by some sunny spells. cloud will build up, showers likely to develop, and then

we will see some further rain in the south—west in the afternoon. temperatures are more widely going to reach 14—15 in the midlands and eastern parts of england with some sunshine and the showers, but quite a bit more chilly in the stronger wind in the north—east of scotland. we have got some rain in the south—east during the afternoon, that is pushing northwards on tuesday night. this area of low pressure will be sitting over the uk on wednesday, keeping it very unsettled. showers or longer spells of rain moving northwards across england and wales, into scotland and northern ireland. southern parts of england and wales probably turning drier with more sunshine during the afternoon. that will give the temperatures a bit of a boost. only 7—8 celsius with the cold north—easterly wind in scotland and also the rain as well. these are the upper level winds, the jet stream pattern. this is going to be maintained over the next few days. the jet stream picking up areas of low pressure and then sliding them up from the south—west, together with the weather fronts bringing the spells of rain. so we have some wet weather to begin on thursday in northern scotland. another band of rain moves northwards, followed by some showers,

and then we see some further longer spells of rain arriving in southern parts of england and wales during thursday afternoon. temperatures show the same sort of theme, milder in england and wales. colder in that wind and rain in the north and east of scotland.

live from london. this is bbc news. most of gaza's al—shifa hospital is left in ruins, there are reports over an explosion in the capital damascus. most of gaza's al—shifa hospital is left in

ruins. by israel's military — which said it was targeting a hamas base there. shock results for president erdogan in turkey's local elections the main opposition party claims its largest victory in almost half a century. scotland's new hate crime law comes into force, but could it harm free speech, as its critics claim? and a baby gorilla's search for her surrogate mother — we'll be speaking to the zookeeper taking care of her. and germany partially legalises catalyst. we'll have a special report coming up. they're hello, i'm kylie pentelow. welcome to verified live, three hours breaking stories and checking out the truth behind them. let's just update you on that breaking news. we are getting reports from syria that there has been an explosion which appears to have affected the iranian diplomatic mission in damascus. the semi—official iranian

news agency, tasnim, is quoting unnamed sources, saying that