as the violence ridden nation observes easter. king charles attends easter service in windsor with the queen, in his most significant public appearance since been diagnosed with cancer. hello, i'm erin delmore. in the largest demonstration in israel since the start of the conflict in gaza tens of thousands of people joined an thai government protest. they demanded new elections as the prime minister faces criticism over the security failure how mass exploited on october seven. for mr netanyahu it coincided with hernia surgery he underwent sunday evening which is often it was successful. the deputy prime minister will fill his role temporarily stopping before his

procedure mr netanyahu gave a televised address to offer reassurances. �* ,, ~ reassurances. translation: i underwent— reassurances. translation: i underwent an _ reassurances. translation: i underwent an examination, . reassurances. translation: i underwent an examination, i l underwent an examination, i think the people who have called the show concern for my health including reporters, i assure you i will get through the treatment successfully and return to action quickly. fiur return to action quickly. our bbc bureau _ return to action quickly. our bbc bureau chief _ return to action quickly. our bbc bureau chief in - return to action quickly. our bbc bureau chief in the middle east explained the surgery as he navigates health challenges before the calls to step down. i think he was appearing tonight as an act of both reassurance and warning to his friends and critics. so the reassurance that he was still vigorously in charge of his government, as he prepared to hand over the reins of power to his deputy — and a warning there to those people converging on towns around israel, but particularlyjust a few kilometres away outside the israeli parliament, calling for new elections and for him to step down, that those new elections would cause a paralysis. they would hamper negotiations

fastest releases and to them he was warning that no amount of pressure, not from the us or anywhere else, would prevent eventually a military assault on the southern town of rafah when mr netanyahu believes hamas is still holding several thousand of their own and where hostages are likely to be held. joe mentioned prime minister netanyahu said new elections would only paralyse efforts to bring hostages home. he estimated it would set progress back at least six months. organisers are protest against his government say they intend to set up a tent city for four days outside the israeli parliament stopjoe days outside the israeli parliament stop joe floater has also been following the demonstrations and sent these details. let's break down who those people are. so some of them are groups of hostages, families and their supporters

who believe that mr netanyahu doesn't have the commitment to secure a ceasefire deal that would release their loved ones from gaza. their point of view is that it's been four months since the last deal that saw a significant release of hostages — and since then, very little has happened in that regard. they've been joined by other people who object to mr netanyahu, on political grounds — and you'll remember last year, hundreds of thousands of people were paralysing the streets of israel every weekend, protesting against mr netanyahu's planned constitutional reforms. they have now coalesced to try and get mr netanyahu to step down and call new elections. he is very unpopular in the polls, but this war is still something that most israelis think is the right thing to be doing. on the ground in gaza seven journalists including a freelancer working the bbc were injured in an israeli air strike close to the al—aqsa hospital. four members of the

islamichhad militant group and ally of how mass were killed in the attack. al—aqsa is the last hospital functioning in the central gaza strip. pope delivered his annual mass he called for the release of hostages and a ceasefire in gaza. the archbishop of canterbury reflected on the dignified response of the king of england and catherine queen of england and catherine queen of —— princess of wales to the cancer diagnosis. when pope francis pulled out of some easter events, concerns about his health intensified. but the vatican said it was to conserve energy for today. and that seems to have worked. though a little out of breath, easter mass went smoothly. after which the 87—year—old went on a drive about to greet what police estimated to be around 60,000 people who'd come to saint peter's square.

events culminated with the pope's easter message. in it he renewed calls for access to aid in gaza, for the return of hostages held there, and for an immediate ceasefire. he also focused on what children in gaza have been witnessing. translation: how much suffering we i see in the eyes of these children. those children in that area of war have forgotten how to smile. with those eyes they ask us, why? why all this death? why all this destruction? war is always an absurdity and a defeat. celebrations in the holy land this year, including at the church of the holy sepulchre at the site where christians believe jesus was crucified, buried and rose from the dead,

were scaled down. palestinian christians talked of an easter tinged with sadness and many foreign pilgrims stayed away. at canterbury cathedral, archbishopjustin welby did talk of foreign conflicts, but also prayed for the king and princess of wales and others he said were suffering the same way, and he talked of other struggles closer to home. whether it is the evil of people smugglers or county lines in our schools, or the pain and suffering in a family riven with grief or rage or substance abuse, jesus the god man who experienced every pain and temptation is calling you and me to love in action. the archbishop talked of the easter story, giving hope of bringing light to darkness, and here at the vatican the pope ended by saying it was also a reminder of the value of every human life. aleem maqbool, bbc news, in rome.

king charles and queen camilla attended the easter sunday service at st. george's chapel in windsor. it was his most significant public appearance since early february when the world learned of his cancer diagnosis and he alters public duties. he was not expected to mingle but he did, greeting well—wishers and thanking them for waiting out in the cold. the prince and princess of wales and their children did not attend, princess catherine stepping back from the other guy while receiving treatment for cancer. our reporter charlotte gallagher has more from windsor. the king and queen arriving at the easter sunday service, and waves for the crowds at windsor castle. this is an annual tradition but this hasn't been a normal year for the royal family, with both the king and the princess of wales diagnosed with cancer. prince william and catherine

weren't at the service today. they are spending the easter holidays with their three children in private. this was the last time they were all seen together in public — christmas day at sandringham. today marks the king's first significant public duty since his diagnosis last month. happy easter. best wishes for the princess of wales. very kind. you are very brave to stand out here in the cold. - a chance to say thank you to well—wishers. hello, how are you? many had travelled to windsor especially to see the royals. i hope you haven't gotl too cold standing here. happy easter, i hope you are doing well. they didn't expect to meet the king. happy easter, your majesty. remain strong. never give in. thank you very much. he seemed in great spirits, really, he seemed very humoured and i said to him, would you give, you know,

our best wishes from wales to the princess of wales, and i spoke to her majesty the queen camilla as well and, yes, it was a joyful occasion. it's hoped this could be the start of the king making a slow return to public duties. now, we are not expecting him to be immediately carrying out a full calendar of events. but we are perhaps expecting him to be seen more in public and you got a sense today that he has missed being out, meeting people, chatting, shaking hands, and doing a part of the job which he obviously enjoys. lovely to see you. this has been a difficult few months for the royal family, but today seemed a positive sign about the king's health and recovery. charlotte gallagher, bbc news. this easter sunday millions of shoppers may have noticed higher prices or chocolate eggs and bunnies stop.

in the uk customers pay 12.6% more chocolate this year compared to the last easter according the consumer group which. increasing costs stem from a cocoa shortage in west africa specifically in ghana and the ivory coast which harvests more than 60% of the global supply. experts say crop disease and extreme weather events including the el nino phenomenon which has caused drought in some areas and flooding others have attributed to the shortages. however, the recent surge in cocoa prices does not mean a boost in income forfarmers. they typically presell the beans to local dealers or processing plants in advance. to better understand how farmers have been coping with production challenges, i spoke to kwame osei, senior director of programmes at rainforest alliance. thank you for being here. why are farmers facing a drop in cocoa yields? i think in ghana and cote

d'ivoire they produce 60% of the world's cocoa and for that amount a lot of work goes into it. in recent times they have been hit by climate change, causing hotter temperatures and it leads to drought. for crops, it is a big challenge. as a result of that also, there is a disease surge. if you talk about disease, it has really affected farmers. what has also compounded the issue is illegal mining and logging in parts of the country. this has really affected farmers and is the reason why we see a lot of reduction in cocoa yields in africa, especially cote d'ivoire and ghana. tell us how it has affected farmers. what does the drop in yields mean forfarmers producing

the cocoa and their families? it definitely affects livelihoods. income levels have really dwindled and to that effect lifestyles have been affected and even to get money to pay school fees is a challenge, and that is why sometimes you see school dropouts and child labour is also on the rise and cost of buying inputs for the farm is also an issue. for that matter, it has really affected the income levels of the farmers and their livelihoods. we talked about the challenges facing farmers and supply being down overall. but it's not as simple as just growing more cocoa immediately, right? i think there is a great need for companies and traders to support farmers.

they have to be able to have commitments from the industry in terms of contracts, making sure that there is investment in sustainable production. this time around we have regions where even rainforest alliance is investing so much in ensuring that the farmers are able to impact on their farms and to be able to increase their yields, to be able to also impact on their soil quality, so that they are able to produce and make up for the gap. again, i think it is very important that we pay fair prices. we see more and more the companies are not able to do that, to be able to demonstrate that commitment, to be able to support producers. as we see, cocoa prices have really gone up, but farmers are not benefiting.

do you foresee a moment where farmers could ask for higher prices because we know it's common practice for farmers and companies to agree on prices in advance? what would it take for that moment to come? we know that companies are not willing to do that, but it is equally important for them to see this because farmers are really in trouble. if we look at climate change, the bad weather conditions, they are brutally hit. of late, we all know that the cocoa prices have really gone up, but it does not translate into the lives of the farmers because productivity has gone low, the locals in the two countries, especially in ghana, and for that matter, taking advantage of the increase in cocoa prices in the world market is even a challenge. we see more and more when it happens like that, farmers will not see any change in their lifestyle.

kwame osei, senior director of global programmes for rainforest alliance, thank you. thank you for having me. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. let's look at another story making news. the national living wage is about to go up. from monday it will rise byjust over £1 to £11 a0 for an hour to anyone over 21. the government says it will boost the wages of the lowest paid by £1800 per year as marc ashdown reports. the minimum hourly wage employers had to pay their staff will rise from tomorrow. anyone i6 staff will rise from tomorrow. anyone 16 or 17 will see their wage go to £6 40, if you are 18, 19 or 20 wage go to £6 40, if you are 18,19 or 20 will go from £7 49 an hour to 18,19 or 20 will go from £7 49 an hourto eight 18,19 or 20 will go from £7 49 an hour to eight pounds 60 in

the national living wage will be paid to anyone aged over 21 instead of 23, that's going up from £10 42 an hour to £1140 four. , it should be a welcome boost further 2.7 million low—paid workers but some businesses a higher labour costs will make it harderfor them to keep prices down. you are live with bbc news. thousands of people have taken to the streets of haiti to mark easter weekend. the first major national holiday since the country's government collapsed. gangs are taking their grip on the island with violence and sexual abuse. more than 1500 people have been killed since the start of this year. tens of thousands of people have been left homeless. the un has called the situation at cataclysmic. nomia iqbal said this report from cap—haitien. as haiti spirals into violence, people try to hold on to their traditions.

thousands of worshippers walk through narrow, dusty roads in cap—haitien 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 her family every day to make sure they are 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 is at a crucial turning point in history. one of the country's most powerful gang leaders, jimmy cherizier, has said he is 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 to convince many haitians though to accept violent gangsters as future political leaders. translation: when gangs attack, they are 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. turkish president recep tayyip erdogan�*s party has suffered its biggest appeared in municipal elections on sunday. with nearly all votes counted the main opposition chp has achieved its lightest victory in 45 yea rs. it won in the five largest urban centres including turkey's biggest city, istanbul. the leading opposition figure,

istanbul's current mayor ekrem imamoglu, declared victory. he is widely considered the front runner in the general election expected in 2028. in his victory speech ekrem imamoglu said people of istanbul are helping to bring a brighterfor turkey. mr erdogan conceded defeat and promised to listen to messages delivered by turkish voters, saying 31 march is not an end for but a turning point. earlier i spoke to the bbc�*s turkish service who shared the latest. thank you forjoining us. what is the headline today? it is a big win for the main opposition party, chp. last year they lost the general election despite having a coalition with other opposition parties, but this year they had a big win in the local election. for the first time since early 2000, chp managed to control more cities than the government party which is mr erdogan�*s akp. today they managed to get more cities and more votes

and this is a very big morale burst for the opposition in turkey after last yea r�*s election loss. what changed ? why are voters flocking to the opposition party? there might be various reasons. one of them can be the economy, so turkey has been in an economic crisis and people have been feeling the cost—of—living crisis lately and it was mostly due to president erdogan�*s economic policy. on top of that, in some cities, they don't like the akp�*s candidates, they don't find them strong or active and there were accusations of corruption in some smaller cities, but in the bigger cities the main topic has been in the last few years — it has been the cost—of—living crisis and these people in the big cities are feeling more of it because of higher rents and higherfood prices. what does this mean for

president recep tayyip erdogan and his party? it is the worst local election for mr erdogan since he came to power. some political commentators were saying that if he manages to win this election, he may try to change the constitution to allow himself one more term or multiple terms because by the constitution this is his last term. but this did not happen because the chp came with a surprisingly big win tonight. so from now on until the next general election in 2028 it will be a big race between the main opposition party, chp, and mr erdogan�*s party. one of the heated topics will be the economy, so if mr erdogan wants to carry his party to the next election in a successful way, he might need to find

a solution to economic problems in turkey which includes the inflation, around 60%—70% per year. on top of that, he now has a big challenger, the mayor of istanbul, ekrem imamoglu, who managed to win his second term tonight with a much larger difference than the previous election, so he is pointed as the possible opposition candidate in the next election. onur erem, journalist for the bbc�*s turkish service, many thanks. let's turn to important news around the world. demolition crews successfully cut and removed the first section of steel from the collapsed francis scott key bridge in the us city of baltimore. they used blowtorches to slice through the bridge trusses. officials say the wreckage will be lifted away and processed at a baltimore shipping site before being disposed of. the bridge collapsed on tuesday after a cargo vessel lost power and struck it.

six people are thought to have been killed. mexican officials say eight people found dead on a beach in the state of oaxaca were chinese nationals. they died after their boat capsized. the route is regularly used by illegal migrants trying to reach the united states. the seven women and a man were on board a mexican operated boat that set off from chiapas state on the border with guatemala on thursday. germany is part legalising cannabis use for a monday in an attempt to tackle the black market. under one of the most liberal drug laws in europe adults in germany will be allowed to carry up to 25g of dried cannabis and cultivate up to three marijuana plants at home. the government says decriminalising weight will impact the black market and reduce the spread of contaminated cannabis. it has been one of the music sensations of the year but some people say they have a problem with beyonce's new country

album, country carter. # is texas # ain't no hold them # down... fans say five tracks are missing from the final version which include some of the best received songs like ya ya and spaghetti. it is unclear whether all vinyl copies are affected but fans have reported that cd copies are missing four tracks. that's all for me for now. for more on top stories, go to the bbc news website and app. stay with us here on bbc news. hello there. we saw mixed fortunes of weather on easter sunday. a lot of cloud across large parts of england and wales. best of the sunshine across scotland and northern ireland. for easter monday, again, there will be some rain around through central parts of the uk,

top and tail of the country should see some sunshine, but there will be further showers. central parts of the country affected by this weather front, that is where the rain will be through the day on monday. some of it fairly heavy at times, north wales, north midlands, northern england pushing into southern scotland as well, maybe across the irish sea into the isle of man and north northern ireland. much of northern scotland should be dry with some sunshine, best of it in the west. the rest of england and wales, sunny spells, scattered showers, some of these may be heavy and also slow—moving. we will see top temperatures of 14—15 celsius in the southeast, still chilly across this northeast corner with a nagging north—easterly breeze coming in off the north sea. as we head through monday night, looks like the rain shifts northwards into much of scotland. could see a bit of snow on the mountaintops of scotland. elsewhere, largely dry with clear spells. again, a few showers dotted around southern parts of england. temperature—wise, 4—8 celsius for many, still quite chilly, though, across northern scotland. for tuesday, we have a weakening area of low pressure, weather front moving northwards,

but a new one arrives across southern areas later in the day. so it means that england and wales could see quite a bit of sunshine around for tuesday morning. northern parts of the country, particularly scotland, will see outbreaks of rain continuing. again, a little bit of winteriness over the higher ground, but showers will develop across england and wales into the afternoon as temperatures rise. wetter and windy weather arriving across the far south of the country later in the day. again, those temperatures mid—teens in the south, still quite chilly in the north. as we continue to move through the new week, low pressure system one after the other continue to hurtle in off the atlantic. that will bring spells of wet and windy weather, particularly windy towards the end of the week, you can see all the isobars here. in between there will be some sunshine and further showers. a very unsettled week ahead to come for much of the uk, like i mentioned, those areas of low pressure bringing spells of wet and windy weather. but it will be very mild on the flip side, particularly england and wales. towards the end of the week, we could be looking at highs of 17—18 celsius across southern parts of the country, given a little bit of sunshine,

but it is remaining unsettled.

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. when the us supreme court overturned the roe v wade decision, establishing a woman's right to an abortion, it looked like america's so—called right to life campaigners were winning. now? well, it's not so certain. the conservative movement is split on just how far anti—abortion legislation should go. opinion polls suggest most americans don't believe abortion should be outlawed, and some republicans fear this could be a vote loser. my guest is lila rose, described as one of the fiercest anti—abortion activists in america. are her absolutist views turning america off?