this is the world today from bbc news, the headlines the moment hamas leader ismail haniyeh — is told that three of his children were killed in a strike in gaza. israel says they were hamas operatives. biden says the us is considering dropping the prosecution of wikileaks founderjulian assange. and — no longer the domain of amateurs. track and field athletes who win gold at the olympics will be awarded prize money as well. us presidentjoe biden says the us is considering dropping the prosecution of wikileaks founder julian assange, following a request from the australian government.

the wikileaks founder has been held in belmarsh prison in london for five years. our washington correspondent gary o'donoghue had this update following joe biden�*s comment. well, this was pretty much an off the cuff comment that he made as he was sort of walking through the colonnade at the white house and a reporter shouted to him, you know, "will you consider australia's request"? because of course australia, julian assange is australian and the australian parliament has passed a motion asking him to be returned to australia, saying "would you consider ending the prosecution"? he didn't seem to hear the question at first, but it was repeated and he said "we're considering it now". that would be a huge change, given that the us has been pursuing the extradition ofjulian assange from the uk for years and the thing is still winding its way through the courts. the home secretary signed the extradition back in 2022, but there's been court challenges to that and the high court is still waiting for some responses from the us to see whether or not

mr assange could appeal the decision even further and possibly up to the court of human rights. but if america really is thinking about that, that would be a significant move. we'll have to see the extent to which that was a sort of spontaneous comment, if you like, and whether or not it's borne out by the acts of the justice department. but certainly, it will get lawyers talking in london. yeah, as you say, that would be a substantial change of heart by the americans because they have seen very desperate to get hold of mr assange. yeah. and i think it's worth recapping on bear in mind this goes back more than a decade. julian assange was the founder of wikileaks. he published hundreds and thousands of pages of diplomatic cables and other documents that the americans said compromise national security and broke all sorts of laws, they say, in the united states. mr assange then went and sought refuge in the ecuadorian embassy, if you remember, in london.

he was there for, i think, around seven years and eventually he came out and was arrested, and he's been in belmarsh prison in south london since then with these various legal challenges. so this has been a huge saga, and the americans have never shown any sign of letting up right through what are we now, three different administrations in trying to get him back here. and there's been debate about whether or not he'd face potentially the death penalty because, of course, of course, britain is absolutely reluctant to send people back who might face a death penalty. his closest and nearest and dearest have said this would be a death sentence if he was sent back here. his lawyers have called it politically motivated and state sponsored retribution. so there's been endless twists and turns in this case. and if washington really is thinking ofjust saying,

"you know what, just go back to australia", i think that would be a mammoth change of heart. morocco�*s second—largest dam is drying up. satellite images show a stark transformation in the landscape surrounding al massira dam, which sits about halfway between casablanca and marrakesh. six consecutive years of drought have threatened water supplies across the north african nation hitting agriculture in particular. earlier, we spoke to will fletcher, senior lecturer in physical geography at the university of manchester. his research has shown how sensitive morocco is to climate change. we asked him whether this was caused by climate change. yes, certainly. climate change in north africa is driving warmer temperatures that causes more evaporation of water. it's also impacting on the amount of precipitation that's falling each year. the winter season is especially critical for recharging the snow and ice cap over the mountains.

sorry, the snow cap on the mountains that feeds into these these water resources. so there's a combined challenge, a combined problem of meteorological drought, shortage of precipitation. and of course, drought then has social and economic aspects relating to the management of the water that is there. yeah. what does this mean for people then in morocco and surrounding countries? well, it's a huge challenge of course. my insight from this is as a researcher in environmental change and i've been visiting morocco for more than a decade now, and i've seen some really radical, dramatic transformations in some of the lakes and forests that we're working in. but of course, the social impact is, as you ask for people, this impacts on livelihoods. so, morocco has a very large agricultural sector, and many people also rely on livestock. so water resources are critical for them, but also for growing urban areas.

so in common with many parts of the world that are short, that are vulnerable to water shortage, the situation with climate change is making that more challenging, and that's only likely to continue and increase through coming decades. i mean, that was going to be my next question. i mean, this is presumably a problem that is going to get worse rather than better. well, that's right. i mean, of course, there's lots of year to year variability, particularly in places exposed to the atlantic climate system like ourselves. we know how you can have a rainy winter followed by a dry winter. but as you point out, the challenge there in morocco now is severe multi—year drought. this means the systems aren't recharging, those dams aren't refilling and environmental systems aren't receiving the water that they would have been accustomed to over much longer

periods of time. and that situation is is likely to increase. climate change predictions clearly indicate rising temperatures. that's something that we can model and project very reliably heading into the future. precipitation is much more challenging. and this, of course, is part of the problem for drought prone regions. it's very difficult to predict year on year whether the weather, winter rainfall, for example, is going to be sufficient or inadequate. next well fletcher on the drought in morocco. the polls have closed in south korea's parliamentary elections — with a landslide win for the opposition. the democratic party and other opposition groups are projected to win about two—thirds of the 300 seats in parliament. if confirmed, the result would be a blow to the people power party of president yuun sung—nyull, who was elected two years ago. jean mackenzie has more

details from seoul. the first thing to note is that exit polls in korea are unreliable. they have been wrong in the past and they don't take account of the early voting happening here in the past week so we don't want to read too much into them. if they are correct, it means that the liberal opposition party is on course to win a significant majority in the parliament. these elections, although just parliamentary elections, they don't decide the president. they are being seen as a midterm referendum on the current president, yoon suk yeol, who has been in office for two years now. he has been unpopular from the start, but neither side expected him to be punished this much. if his party loses in a big way, it will weaken his authority and make it nearly impossible for him to push ahead with his agenda and pass legislation. the big number that everybody is interested in is 200. this is what is needed to get what is called a supermajority here, and it means that if the opposition party and the smaller parties get 200 seats or more between them, they can join forces to push

through laws the government doesn't want. the president will no longer be able the use his veto and that could make politics chaotic, but we will have to wait until the morning here in korea to find out the results for real and what they mean. but they could have big implications for how this country is run over the next three years. that was jean mackenzie reporting from seoul south korea. still to come on the world today — an aspiring artist's bold bid to get noticed... by smuggling his own art into a munich museum. and italy's controversial former premier silvio berlusconi to be immortalised on a postage stamp. we'll get reaction from rome. around the world and across the uk. this is the world today on bbc news.

with just over 100 days to go until the paris 0lympics, there are concerns that the triathlon event could be delayed — or the swim leg even cancelled, because of poor water quality in the river seine — that's despite more than one billion euros spent, trying to improve it. from the banks of the seine — our correspondent hugh schofield sent this update. the big picture is a good picture. it's a positive picture. the big picture is that the river has been cleaned up extensively over the last 20, 30 years. it's far, far healthier than it was in the �*60s when there were three species of fish left in it. now there are 30 or a0 species of fish. so the general picture is a very good one, but the specific picture is rather more worrying. the specific picture is this bid to get the river swimmable in by the olympics, which was a commitment that the olympics organisers, which president macron made, and which they insist is still on track. but there have been now these findings from an ngo which looks into water quality, which are troubling. this ngo called surfrider has found that in a series of readings it

took over the winter, the bacteria levels are too high, they're above the norms and it's all scientifically kind of organised. above a certain level, you can swim... below a certain level, you can swim, above, you can't. and the levels were above that level. so there are assurances coming from the organisers saying "don't worry, winter water is worse than summer water." there are all sorts of things that have yet to happen which will continue to clean up the river in time. but one can't help thinking that they must be worried. and in the same way that there are concerns expressed about the opening ceremony on the river seine, the security, people are now saying perhaps there should be a plan b in case the water isn't clean enough by the end ofjuly. i think the plan b, as i understand it...

five people have admitted stealing more than £50 million— in what prosecutors say is the biggest case of benefit fraud seen in england and wales. all of them are bulgarian nationals based in north london. they're due to be sentenced next month. here's our social affairs correspondent, michael buchanan. this is some of the almost £54 million stolen from the welfare system. two of the gang treating taxpayers�* money like confetti, celebrating their role in one of britain's biggest benefit fraud operations. investigators found £750,000 in cash in one of the gangs homes. this was a sustained attack on a system that is supposed to protect the most vulnerable in our society. but instead, this gang used it as a cash machine to fund their lavish lifestyles. the group of three women and two men are all bulgarian nationals. they operated out of the wood green area of north london for a four and a half year period before their arrest in may 2021.

the gang made thousands of fraudulent claims for universal credit, forging documents like tenancy agreements to support either real or stolen ids. if a claim was rejected they'd simply reapply, sometimes repeatedly, until it was granted. stealing so much money for so many years raises serious questions for the government. when universal credit was introduced, the government said it had been designed to reduce fraud in the welfare system. that simply didn't happen. fraud increased and billions and billions of pounds were lost annually. the department for work and pensions said the gang had used a sophisticated combination of legitimate and fake documents to make it appear that they were eligible for benefits when they were not. the gang are all due to be sentenced next month. prosecutors will also attempt to confiscate as much money and other assets as they can. michael buchanan, bbc news. the italian government has approved plans to commemorate the former

prime minister and media mogul, silvio berlusconi, with a special postage stamp. it will be issued injune, a year after his death aged 86. the idea to honour berlusconi with a commemorative stamp was proposed by members of his political party, forza italia. silvio berlusconi influenced italian public life for decades and he is seen as a great statesman by many. however, he is also remembered as a controversial figure for his legal troubles and numerous sex scandals. i'v e i've been asking over news reporter in rome about how this decision has been received.— been received. controversial is definitely the _ been received. controversial is definitely the right _ been received. controversial is definitely the right word - been received. controversial is definitely the right word to - definitely the right word to describe a figure like silvio berlusconi, as you said, he builds a political career from scratch, a media empire, he was very

charismatic. and he had a huge influence on italian politics and society. he used to own to football clubs, and he was perceived, is still perceived by italians, as a self—made man, and he became her role model for millions of people. at the same time, he was convicted forfraud and, you mentioned the for fraud and, you mentioned the sex scandals, i'm sure everyone members the bongo bunker, i was here with my colleagues today in the bureau and we selected some of the best words we selected some of the best words we read about silvio berlusconi in the italian papers. let me give you an example to give an idea of the countries thoughts when silvio berlusconi, he is described as the great italian, as prometheus, asgard, and also as the antichrist and immoral, so we certainly know that silvio berlusconi, as soon as

he appears again, his name has a huge impact on the public discourse across the country. what huge impact on the public discourse across the country.— across the country. what has been the reaction? _ across the country. what has been the reaction? are _ across the country. what has been the reaction? are some _ across the country. what has been the reaction? are some people - the reaction? are some people outrage and it that he would be on a postage stamp?— postage stamp? certain people, eseciall postage stamp? certain people, especially certain _ postage stamp? certain people, especially certain journalists - postage stamp? certain people, | especially certain journalists who have been campaigning against him for decades, described him as a criminal, they said he doesn't deserve a stamp, but not the same time, his supporters were very vocal about him. some people think he is still a national hero and he will certainly be remembered for years to come. 0thers, certainly be remembered for years to come. others, they certainly be remembered for years to come. 0thers, theyjust described him as a disgrace. come. others, they 'ust described him as a disgrace.— him as a disgrace. from italy to germany- _ one of germany's largest art museums has sacked a member of staff after he smuggled one of his own paintings in, and put it on display. the 51—year—old man hasn't been

named, but he's reported to have worked as a technician at the pinakotekder moderne in munich — and had �*out of hours access�* to the building. and we can hear from the artist responsible in that case — danai emmano—leedis is a student from cologne. she explained how and why she did it. my my artwork is pretty small so i put it under my sweater and i went into the museum and i put it on the wall with tape will stop the exhibition where i put my artwork was regarding topics of this clinician and racism, and with my action i wanted to send and with my action i wanted to send a statement against racism. next, for decades — gambling and football have gone hand in hand. but concerns are growing that the sheer number of football betting adverts, are leading to a rise in addiction among players, and fans. the former stoke city winger tony kelly almost lost everything through his addiction. so now — he's giving workshops

to teenage non—league footballers to show them the dangers of gambling — before it takes root. james bovill reports. braving the april showers, these 16—18—year—old academy players at bedworth united are training for a btec diploma in sport coaching and development. many will hope for a career in football. but today they are also learning about the darker side of the sport they love. i don't know, to this day, how long i was in that bookmakers for. coventry—born former professional footballer tony kelly is a recovering gambling addict. he made 58 appearances for stoke city in the early �*90s, a career cut short by his addiction. i've gone through a £192,000 bankruptcy file, for instance, in 2010, losing three properties, the breakdown of my 20—year relationship with my partner, mental health issues. i often wonder to myself how did i not get to a point where i've had enough and i've lost hope and i want to take my own life? 0ur message is that there is a darker side to gambling. you know, we don't want

to create another generation of problem gamblers. academy managerjamie lenton says many of his young players already gamble, making early intervention all the more important. we are aware of that young people over the age of 18 do have these gambling apps and are accessing them on a daily basis, so i think it's a case of making sure they are aware of how to manage the time that is being used and the money that is being spent on these apps. it's always on the shirt of, like, clubs, sponsored by betting companies, which means that people are going to want to do it more. whereas i feel like if they got rid of it, plenty of people would stop doing it. i just don't see the point in it, losing money. yeah, although you might win a small amount, you never really win in the long run so i've never, ever been tempted to do it. aston villa is one of seven premier league clubs with a gambling firm as a shirt sponsor. a ban on that comes

into effect in 2026. in the championship, tony's former club, stoke city, is owned by bet365. tony is one of many lobbying for an end to all gambling advertising and sponsorship in football. by educating these players early, it is hoped fewer will fall foul of the dangers of gambling addiction. james bovill, bbc midlands today, bedworth. you're watching bbc news. more than seven million people were stuggling to pay their bills in the second half of last year because of the cost of living crisis — according to a new survey. that number is down from 11 million at the start of last year — but it's still much higher than before the financial pressures began. 0ur cost of living correspondent colletta smith reports. making her money last through the month isn't easy for terri anne. managing herfour boys on her own while working

is a constantjuggle. i manage to pay my bills, but onlyjust. at the end of the month, i'm left with absolutely nothing. and then, naturally now april's come around, all the bills are going up again. the council tax, the water. and it'sjust impossible, really. so two of terri—anne's boys are here at the holiday club of the rotunda community hub. it's an energy boost for hungry tummies and a financial boost for the families who depend on the support here. 0nly yesterday i was talking to a local parent that was really worried about how she was going to get her children to school next week, returning to school, because she didn't have bus fare. more than a quarter of the people surveyed by the financial conduct authority said they were not coping financially. that's less than last year, but still way higher than before the cost of living squeeze. but debt organisations haven't seen a drop in the number of people needing help. we've been seeing things continue to get steadily worse.

so record numbers of people now coming up to us for food, bank referrals, 900 people each and every day. the fca say single parents and vulnerable people are more likely to be struggling to afford basic bills. i have to stop trying to meet here unless i'm going out. i have a disability access. and the bills? more than half of those surveyed who'd fallen behind on payments said they'd avoided speaking to their lender or ignored warning letters. banks and lenders should be making it clear to people that beginning a conversation with them, if you're struggling to keep up with your payments, won't affect your credit rating. if you change your payments as a result of that, it could affect your credit rating, but so would falling behind on your payments. but customers are often frustrated.

they place you on hold for so long, and then they try and give you the hard sell to upgrade your package while you're on the phone. it's never trying to help. it's always the business trying to make more money. the regulator says it's fining companies who don't do enough to help. but with so many struggling with bills now, the impacts will be felt for a long time yet. colletta smith, bbc news in liverpool. in leicester, thousands gathered at victoria park this morning, as our reporter emily anderson of texas. and 9am this morning, hundreds gathered for communal players in victoria park.— gathered for communal players in victoria park. , ., ., victoria park. this marks the end of ramadan, victoria park. this marks the end of ramadan. the _ victoria park. this marks the end of ramadan, the auspices _ victoria park. this marks the end of ramadan, the auspices and - victoria park. this marks the end of ramadan, the auspices and holy - victoria park. this marks the end of. ramadan, the auspices and holy month of ramadan, it's a family event geared towards children, but it would be a great day. find geared towards children, but it would be a great day. and they certainly are. _ would be a great day. and they certainly are, people _ would be a great day. and they certainly are, people have - would be a great day. and they| certainly are, people have come would be a great day. and they - certainly are, people have come to victoria park from all over the city to celebrate, and some have come

from further afield, like this man, who travels from cardiff simply because he loves mr celebrations. rather than celebrating eden, in cardiff, i come to leicester because of the diversity, it brings people of the diversity, it brings people of other places, and it's nice to celebrate here than in cardiff. number then ends with a new moon has been cited, etc it's a start of ede, a time forfamily been cited, etc it's a start of ede, a time for family and friends together to do better and set we fight for 30 days, we fast because to become god conscious and humble ourselves, so it is like a wart reward from god, and is the most fit for reward we could ever receive. that's it for me. it looses up next with the context. stay with us on bbc news.

hello there. it is going to get warmer in the next few days, but the rain is not completely gone away just yet. and the rainfall that we've had this month at edinburgh botanic gardens is particularly noteworthy. so far this month, there's been 81 millimetres of rain, and afterjust ten days, that's twice the average rainfall already. and it follows on from what was the wettest march on record in edinburgh as well. now, we have had some rain in edinburgh today. the heaviest rain has been over the hills in western parts of scotland, and that cloud has been coming in on a south—westerly wind. and it's that south—westerly wind that's bringing in some warmer air from the atlantic. still some rain around this evening. and overnight, the second band of rain will push its way southwards across england and wales. the rain becoming light and patchy. following on from that, we get some clearer skies. we've still got the same south—westerly air mass, still warm air, so temperatures are going to be a lot higher than they were last night — for many staying in double figures. heading into tomorrow, still quite cloudy across southern parts of england and wales. still a bit of light rain or drizzle, particularly in the morning. but away from here, i think

we should see some brighter skies, some sunshine on the way. still got south—westerly winds, but with the sunshine, it's going to be a lot warmer. temperatures could make 19, maybe 20 degrees across parts of the midlands, lincolnshire and across east anglia. still some weather fronts, though, hanging around in the far south, and those will tend to push their way steadily northwards overnight and into friday. and they're going to take rain northwards as well. back towards northern ireland, some patchy rain, and that will push its way into northern ireland, perhaps the far north of england, but to the south it should be dry. after a cloudy start, the cloud should thin and break and we'll get some sunshine coming through. still got south—westerly winds, still very mild air, warm air. so let's look at the temperatures for friday. compare them with average. you can see we've got to 20 degrees at bury st edmunds, six degrees above the average for this time of the year. it's a similar sort of story, really, in aberdeen, 18 degrees on friday. we're missing most of the rain that is coming into scotland. that warm air isn't going to last into the weekend, though. we are going to find cooler conditions moving down from the northwest and pressure

will be falling as well. so the likelihood that things will start to turn a bit wetter. now, i think across southeastern areas, the weekend is still going to be dry. but even here, after a warm day on saturday, temperatures will be lower on sunday. but further north and west, we're more likely to have some showers at times.

hello, i'm lewis vaughanjones. you're watching the context on bbc news. trumpet fanfare the alliance betweenjapan and the united states is the cornerstone of peace, security, prosperity in the indo—pacific and around the world. translation: is a global partner ja an will translation: is a global partner japan willjoin _ translation: is a global partner japan willjoin hands _ translation: is a global partner japan willjoin hands with - translation: is a global partner japan willjoin hands with our- japan willjoin hands with our globalfriends and japan willjoin hands with our global friends and together we will lead the way in tackling the challenges in the indo—pacific in the world. for the biden administration, today'sjapan is really a dream come true. japan is a capable ruling partner that's prepared to step up and deal with global challenges including china _