hamas. mr biden�*s interview with spanish language network univision that aired on tuesday but was recorded last wednesday. the president is also calling for a unilateral ceasefire between israel and hamas. his comments are his most critical yet of mr netanyahu and a considerable shift in tone by the us president. here in washington, the wars in the middle east and ukraine took centre stage on tuesday at a high—level meeting in dc between america and britain's top diplomats. uk foreign secretary lord cameron and us secretary of state antony blinken discussed support to ukraine, as well as the humanitarian situation in gaza. lord cameron's visit comes as the uk takes part in the biggest airdrop of aid into gaza since the israel—hamas war began. in all, nine nations, including the us, delivered critical supplies to the territory. lord cameron confirmed that uk arms sales to israel will not be suspended but that he still has concerns about humanitarian access in gaza.

mr blinken, meanwhile, said the us has not been given a date by israel for its threatened ground offensive into the city of rafah. the bbc asked the diplomats about last week's air strike that killed seven aid workers, and whether there'd be meaningful accountability concerning how israeli forces have conducted the war. we are looking very carefully at the conclusions of the investigation that israel conducted. we are asking questions about it, we are engaged with the israelis, we are engaged with humanitarian organisations, and we want to make sure that, again, the investigation produces real change. let me be clear, though, we continue to have grave concerns around the humanitarian access in gaza, both in the period that was assessed and subsequently. we have seen a welcome increase in trucks with,

as tony said, perhaps as many as 400 going in yesterday, the highest since 7 october and public commitments from israel to flood gaza with aid. the united nations says famine is imminent and aid agencies say israel is not ensuring enough access for food, medicine and other needed humanitarian supplies. a deadly, mass famine in gaza would likely accelerate violence and ensure a long—term conflict, us defense secretary lloyd austin told a senate hearing on tuesday. our diplomatic correspondent, james landale, joined the royal air force flight delivering aid to gaza on tuesday and filed this report. at an airbase injordan, piles of humanitarian aid — stacked into individual pallets adorned with their own parachute, all of it bound for gaza. on the tarmac, 14 military aircraft getting ready

for the largest coalition air drop since they began last month, a special delivery to mark the end of ramadan. inside, pilots and crews from different nations being briefed on the operation, safety a key concern in the small airspace over gaza. outside, the raf plane is loaded, each palette containing flour, rice, sugar, beans, baby food, oil and water — the basics for a meal — this, the raf�*s sixth airdrop so far. it is not that much, but i tell you what — it's the effort that counts. as in, every little helps. i'm quite proud and privileged to be involved in this sort of mission. but is it enough? will it meet the needs of the people in gaza? the aircraft's carrying 12 of these pallets. now, each of them are about a tonne, so that means this entire payload is worth about one truck crossing a border on the ground. the aircrews here insist that, cumulatively, the air drops

are beginning to have an impact. this is a sustained effort. we've been here for three weeks now, and we're continually delivering the aid. the people of gaza are very grateful for the efforts that we're going to and we'll keep delivering and keep delivering until we can't give them any more. in the air, we fly the short distance to gaza, then we're over the drop zone. the pilots are satisfied no—one�*s below and the back ramp lowers. these airdrops are expensive and inadequate, a symbol of the failure to get aid in by other means. but, we're told, they're better than nothing and they are making a difference. 12 boxes out, all on target on the northern shore. these airdrops can be dangerous — people have been crushed in the stampede to get to the pallets — but there's little that can be done from the air. so, today, the skies over gaza were filled with parachutes.

israel says more aid trucks are getting through, but how many is not clear. this aid from the air will not fill the gap, but the aircrews involved hope — believe — that it is making a difference to so many facing famine on the ground. james landale, bbc news over gaza. germany is defending sending military aid to israel, saying its history means israel's security must be at the core of its foreign policy. lawwyers for the german government were making their case tuesday to the world's highest court. nicaragua, whose governement is strongly pro—palestinian, brought the case to the court, accusing germany breaching the genocide convention and international humanitarian law by supplying israel with weapons. anna holligan has more from the hague. shortly after the hearing and, germany's legal team came out and gave a very short statement to the media in which they said

germany was striving to do justice to both sides and was well aware of its responsibilities under international law. during the hearing, germany took each one of nicaragua's allegations and presented its site so on the subject of funding, cut supporting palestinians in gaza, is that humanitarian assistance and aid has increased threefold since october 23. through organisations like the red crescent but directly through air drops. on the sending of military equipment, germany said it had a strict arms export licensing system in place. there were stringent checks and most of the equipment sent to israel since october has been for defensive and training purposes. germany also said this court cannot make a ruling on whether germany has been involved in the commission of genocide

because it has not been found that any unlawful act has actually taken place. until now, the icj has determined only there may be a possible risk of genocide. this case is really focusing on the liability of third countries and it's increasing the focus on israel and its international allies. the panel of 60 internationaljudges will deliver an order, if they decide to have jurisdiction and it is necessary, within the next few weeks. nicaragua, to remind you have asked for this court herder for remind you have asked for this court herderfor germany remind you have asked for this court herder for germany to stop sending military equipment to israel and to refund the palestinian refugee agency in gaza. talks between the uk and us also covered the war in ukraine. the two governments are providing kyiv with billions of dollars in military aid. but the pentagon has spent almost all the money budgeted for the war effort, and further funding is stalled in the us

congress. us central command says it's sending guns and ammunition it seized from an iranian ship. the weaponry includes ak—47s, ammunition, and rocket—propelled grenades was allegedly on its way to the iran—backed houthis in yemen. diverting seized weapons like these are one way the us can help ukraine without funding from congress. for more on the uk—us talks on gaza and ukraine, here's our state department correspondent, tom bateman. it was on march eight, that lord cameron had said he expected to get advice within days on whether or not israel had breached international humanitarian law in gaza. here we are a month later and there has still been no word on that. i asked mr cameron at the news conference whether or not there had been a decision by the uk government. on that particular issue. and in his answer he made a significant announcement

because he said he had now reviewed the latest advice and that his decision was there would be no change to the export control regime when it came to military sales to israel. basically what that means is the uk will continue to sell arms to israel and that matters because there has been significant pressure, growing pressue, on the uk government over its weapons trade with the israelis, in light of the humanitarian situation on the ground in gaza. one caveat to that is although it is clear from what lord cameron said that there has been a review that he has seen, that contains legal elements to it, this is a sort of policy—based review, and their decision is to continue to sell arms, the bar on that is whether there is a "clear risk that weapons could be misused". he said they still have grave concerns about the situation, given the humanitarian

catastrophe on the ground, he said they would continue to review the situation. mr cameron was here because he said he had come to try to persuade us lawmakers to unblock military assistance to ukraine, basically meaning those republicans, particularly those loyal to donald trump, who do not want to forward the $60 billion package for more weapons, us weapons, for ukraine, so he said he was going to continue to have meetings about that on wednesday. i asked about some of the tone he had come with and he said he had not come here to lecture but try to persuade. a group of older swiss women have won the first ever climate case victory in the european court of human rights. the women, mostly in their 70s, said that their age and gender made them particularly vulnerable to the effects of heatwaves linked to climate change.

the bbc�*s imogen foulkes has more. this is a historic ruling. for the first time ever, the european court has ruled there is a link between global warming and the protection of human rights. the more than 2000 older swiss women who brought the case had clear evidence that their health, and their health particularly, is vulnerable to climate change. they talked of heart attacks, dehydration suffered during the increasing number of heatwaves that switzerland is experiencing. switzerland, although it has a reputation for having a pristine environment, is not on track to meet its paris accord global accord climate change targets, but neither are many other european countries. that is why this case could have a big ripple effect right across europe. other countries will be looking hard at this verdict because switzerland cannot appeal it. it is binding and it will have

to show it is doing more to it to tackle global warming. imogen foulkes, bbc news. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. let's look at another story making news. the man who led the campaign against the post office in the wake of the horizon it scandal, alan bates, said the company was run by "thugs in suits" in 2010. he's been giving evidence to the public inquiry into the scandal in london. hundreds of sub—postmasters were wrongly prosecuted of fraud due to the faulty software. the post office has previously apologised. zoe conway has more. alan bates may have reached national treasure status following the itv drama, yet, he is still fighting for compensation. he says he has been offered a sixth of what he asked for. i'm trying to fight for everyone that needs financial redress on this. but i've also got to

fight for my own as well and i have no doubt that there is a bit of vindictiveness coming in from the department. and the post office. the inquiry is now in its final stages. at the end of may, it will hear from former chief executive paula vennells for the first time. you're live with bbc news. on the campaign trail, presidentjoe biden and former president donald trump are neck and neck in most of the seven swing states that could decide the november election. the candidates are continuing to make campaign stops with mr biden in wisconsin this week touting his economic policies and mr trump in pennsylvania and michigan, that's where bbc news chief presenter caitriona perry has been on the ground speaking to voters. motown music and motor city — for decades, detroit was booming but then came bankruptcy, blight, decline. detroit is turning itself

around with a low unemployment and falling inflation yet only one—third of residents make a living wage. michigan is a key swing state, barack obama won comfortably here, donald trump flipped the state in 2016 by a margin ofjust over 10,000 voters, joe biden flipped it back, to win in 2020. both men notably difficult to win the white house without winning michigan. both candidates have been trying to shore up the blue—collar workers here, including those on strike with the united auto workers union last year. help the middle class! joe biden has an endorsement from the union but that does not mean an automatic blessing from the members. i feel depleted.

i feel like there is no solid choice for the working class. i don't feel like anyone represents our best interest and i feel like we are again in another situation where we have to go to a ballot box and vote against somebody instead of voting for somebody. the republican party is not the republican party anymore, it is a party of trump. as far as the democratic party, being an american mexican, i have criticism towards the democratic party because of their lack of movement on any immigration policy. i feel like my demographic has been taken advantage of and they think we automatically will vote for them. people are living paycheck to paycheck and really having hard times, interest rates are astronomical and it's hard hard to find good jobs and it's almost impossible for my generation to buy a house let alone a brand—new car. we work in the auto industry and be real the fact that these that these cars are not selling because interest rates are so high. this is the most heavily populated arabic state in the country.

the administration's policy on what's going on in the middle east, i mean, it could cost him michigan, for sure. that issue has fuelled the uncommitted campaign, which saw 100,000 refused to vote forjoe biden in the democratic primary here, so what could that mean come polling day? we cannot let our taxpayer dollars used to commit a genocide and ethnic cleansing of an entire group. we are asked to choose between bans or bonds, so i believe there are going to be folks that are going to be, especially with the american muslim community, who will not be able to bring themselves to vote forjoe biden, nor can they vote for donald trump. so i think there will be a large number of voters that will skip the top of the ticket. but at this biden michigan campaign office, concerns about israel policy, economy or immigration are not deterring the team.

the president shares with many of the folks who voted and committed on the primary, he shares the vision of a just and lasting peace in the middle east so as a campaign we are committed to having a dialogue with those folks who care about the same things just like the president does. talk alone will not cut it, says the merit of dearborn, the largest arab american majority city in the us. i'm always advocating for a conversation but to have a conversation for a photo op or to take a picture or video or to advertise some sort of campaign stop is nothing we are interested in at this time. i think you'll find many in the community who are reluctant to sit with the president because for us what is unfolding is than an election, it's an issue of morality and decency and humanity. that is what is on this ballot, come november. can he win back support? i think some he can win back and some that are lost forever. for those who are lost, i don't know how you engage them again knowing you could have set a line in the sand

months ago but it never happened. you could restrict military aid in preventing american bombs from killing ourfriends and family overseas and that didn't happen. for many of them, the vote is lost. the community previously considered to be part of a democratic base can no longer be counted on. both parties wait to see what way they go. to trump, a third—party candidate, orjust stay home, come november. caitriona perry, bbc news. one day after donald trump said abortion should be left for individual states to decide, the arizona supreme court revived a near—total ban on abortion dating back 160 years. the law bans abortion in all cases except for when the mother's life is at risk. the ban was first on the books in 1864, nearly 50 years before arizona was a state. the law makes providing an abortion or helping woman obtain an abortion punishable by two to five years in prison.

however, shortly after the ruling the state's top attorney general vowed not to enforce it. lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have publicly condemned the court's ruling, which comes into effect in 1a days. for more, i spoke to one of the top attorney's on the case, pima county attorney laura conover. she's been working to repeal the law. since december 2022, abortions have been allowed for women pregnant up to 15 weeks based on a lower court ruling. but the state's supreme court has changed that and reverted to a civil war era law which essentially bans all abortions. what is your reaction? fin essentially bans all abortions. what is your reaction?- what is your reaction? on the outside, what is your reaction? on the outside. i'm _ what is your reaction? on the outside, i'm appalled - what is your reaction? on the outside, i'm appalled and - outside, i'm appalled and frustrated. the dobbs decision made clear they were sending theissue made clear they were sending the issue of abortion rights back to the states and what we argued in the lower courts was that the state of arizona had

spoken repeatedly in the last 50 years, including most recently abortion rights up to 15 weeks, and we said that if theissue 15 weeks, and we said that if the issue was to be decided by the issue was to be decided by the state then you have to harmonise the laws we have in place. the court of appeal is in a sound decision agreed with us and we have had reproductive healthcare lawfully in arizona since that time. we are disappointed that the arizona supreme court has largely ignored everything that has been spoken on the issue and reverted back to an 1864 near total ban. reverted back to an 1864 near total ban-— reverted back to an 1864 near total ban. ., ., ., ., total ban. planned parenthood in arizona _ total ban. planned parenthood in arizona said _ total ban. planned parenthood in arizona said they _ total ban. planned parenthood in arizona said they will - in arizona said they will continue offering abortions up to 15 weeks for a period of time. they cited the maricopa county superior court order. can you explain what that is and how it has a bearing on the

decision today? the and how it has a bearing on the decision today?— decision today? the silver linin: decision today? the silver lining from _ decision today? the silver lining from the _ decision today? the silver lining from the arizona . decision today? the silver - lining from the arizona supreme court is that the stay of proceedings will stay in place for some indeterminate length of time while additional issues are sorted back in the trial court. he does allow for myself as the southern arizona top prosecutor and planned parenthood and the attorney general�*s office to my courthouse and continue legal analysis and legal proceedings. during that time, i will strive to say that i want providers to continue to have trust in their leaders, that care is safe and legal, and i want both providers and those in urgent need, victims of sexual assault, those in crisis, and those in need of care to rely

that it those in need of care to rely thatitis those in need of care to rely that it is safe and i hope, going to be provided, while we continue this legal fight. if the fight does not go your way, doctors face potential imprisonment if they perform an abortion. will you enforce that law? i abortion. will you enforce that law? ., ., . ., law? i have made clear in southern _ law? i have made clear in southern arizona, - law? i have made clear in southern arizona, along l law? i have made clear in i southern arizona, along with law? i have made clear in - southern arizona, along with my chief of police and town mayor, and my sheriff, that we had very precious limited resources. that we focus on violent crime and victim crime and property and neighbourhood crime and none of us intends to use those precious resources to go after those who would provide appropriate credentialled care. again, i am somewhat gratified that services continue to hear in southern arizona, throughout the last two years, throughout the last two years, throughout

the confusion, because they entrusted their local elected leaders to do the right thing. with such limited and precious resources. with such limited and precious resources-_ resources. many democrats in arizona have _ resources. many democrats in arizona have already - resources. many democrats in arizona have already spoken l resources. many democrats in l arizona have already spoken out against the decision. now we're starting to see some republicans changing their tune in the wake of ruling. i can see carrie late, he praised the law two years ago, said it was out of step with people from arizona. how big an issue do you think this will be in the upcoming presidential election? first i want to say, i'm not surprised at all. every poll statewide in arizona shows anywhere between 80— 90% do not want reproductive healthcare want reproductive healthca re criminalised. want reproductive healthcare criminalised. what's more, when we make these kinds of these steps as a state, it undermines public health, public safety, and frankly the economy. we need to keep talented healthcare providers here and

why would they stay if we continue to keep our lord's influx? i think the ruling today will absolutely have a profound impact on upcoming primary and general elections but also the people of arizona, under our right to an initiative, will have a very loud and clear vote in november, two constitutional lies the right to have autonomy over your own body.— over your own body. thank you so much for— over your own body. thank you so much for taking _ over your own body. thank you so much for taking the - over your own body. thank you so much for taking the time . over your own body. thank you so much for taking the time to | so much for taking the time to talk to us today popularly thank you very much. king charles came face to face with his own portrait on the new british banknotes on tuesday. at buckingham palace, the king was presented with the first of the new £5, £10, £20 and £50 banknotes which will go into circulation injune. existing banknotes will

continue to be used alongside the new notes. stay with us here on bbc news. hello there. tuesday, unfortunately, brought more stormy weather with it and coastal flooding with the high tides, as well as inland flooding. a brief ridge of high pressure is pushing that low pressure out the way, but the weather fronts are hot off the heels again off the atlantic with more rain to come through the day ahead. this is what we had on tuesday — 60 millimetres and more across beddgelert in north wales. many of the other wettest places seeing 30—40 millimetres of rain. and despite the showers having ease, the rain and the winds through the night and it turns chilly with a touch of frost, potentially a few areas first thing and some mist and fog in the south. already, temperatures are rising in the west ahead of the next band of rain that you may have seen there. so wet through the morning rush

across northern ireland, underneath this weather front. and as it comes in, it's introducing milder atlantic air. so it will turn misty and foggy over the hills as well as the fog first thing further east. once it sets in across scotland on and off through the day, early brightness and sunshine in the east replaced by that rain as it meanders its way eastwards through the day. you can see it does ease off a little bit in southern parts, but it's got a legacy of cloud left in its wake. so a mild day, where we see any breaks — perhaps 16 in northern ireland. but there's a met office warning for the west of scotland. again, another 40 millimetres, possibly more over the hills. further south, there'll be a steady spell of rain and lots of misty, murky weather over the hills. another pulse comes in through the evening overnight, particularly scotland and northern ireland. it tends to weaken as it pushes southwards, but all the cloud and the wind and the winds will be strong again today, perhaps not as strong as yesterday, but they hold the temperatures up through the night.

and a fairly brisk wind will continue with us on thursday. maybe some mist murk first thing, particularly in the south under the remnants of this weather front. but actually, once that clears out the way, we might see some brighter skies and sunshine coming through before the next pulse of rain starts to materialise across western parts again. but look at the temperatures on thursday. it's looking mild, in fact, warm in the strengthening april sunshine. and that milder, warmer atlantic air is with us through thursday and indeed friday to end the week, perhaps even start the weekend, but not for long because we get some colder air starting to dig in behind it. and you can see for the weekend or by the end of the weekend, it's a return to slightly cooler weather for most.

voice-over: this is bbc news. we will have the headlines for you at the top of the hour, which is straight after this programme. welcome to hardtalk. i'm stephen sackur. there seems to be no end to the suffering of the people of zimbabwe. a prolonged drought is threatening to spread mass hunger in a country grimly familiar with political repression and economic chaos. but no amount of popular dissatisfaction seems to loosen the grip of the ruling party, zanu—pf. my guest is one of zimbabwe's highest—profile opposition figures, job sikhala,

recently released from almost 600 days in prison without trial. is real change ever going to come to his homeland? job sikhala, in a location that we have agreed not to reveal, welcome to hardtalk. thank you very much, steve, for your invitation to this important interview. well, it's important to have you on this show. you emerged from more than a year and a half of pre—trial detention in zimbabwe earlier this year.

we saw photographs of you last year, shackled,