florida's top court approves a six week ban on abortion, but will allow voters to have the final say in november. hello i'm sumi somaskanda. thank you forjoining us. we start with multiple developments out of the middle east. hamas authorities in gaza say four foreign aid workers and their palestinian driver were killed in an israeli air strike in the central city of deir al—balah. the workers are said to include a briton, a pole and an australian. reuters reports that australian prime minister anthony albanese confirmed the death of one of the workers killed as australian lalzawmi �*zomi' frankcom and is demanding accountability for her death. a medical source at al—aqsa hospital told the bbc that the bodies of four people wearing bullet—proof vests bearing the logo of the ngo world central kitchen arrived at the hospital. in a statement on x,

world central kitchen founderjose andres said: the idf also put out a statement saying that it is: concerns over a wider regional conflict continue to grow after syrian officials say at least 11 people were killed on monday in a suspected israeli strike on the iranian consulate building in the capital damascus. iran's revolutionary guards says seven of its officers, including three senior commanders, are among the dead. pictures of the aftermath show

a multi—story building reduced to rubble. iran's foreign minister says the strike is a breach of all international conventions and has called for a response from the international community. the israeli military has not commented as of yet. but, if it was behind the attack, it would mark a clear ecscalation of the repeated strikes against iranian—linked targets in the region. senior us and israeli officials held a two—hour virtual meeting on monday to discuss alternative proposals to an israeli military invasion of rafah in the southern gaza strip. our state department correspondent tom bateman has more. well, after the meeting wrapped up well, after the meeting wrapped up we have a short statement from the white house about what was discussed. we always knew this was going to be about the issue of rafah and the repeated declaration by mr netanyahu over recent weeks that there will be an offensive against the city of rafah. the israelis say because there are four

hamas battalions there, they say the war can't and without it, in its words, eliminating those battalions. the americans have said they basically do not support a full scale ground assault because of the fact that there are 1.4 million palestinians in the city displaced people, many living outside intense, people sent south earlier on in the war. in the fact that there is nowhere for these people to go. but the fact is this meeting itself has become part of the growing rift between the biden administration and mr netanyahu's government when the israeli delegation was due to come to washington last week, that was cancelled by mr netanyahu in protest at the us abstaining at the un security council on that boat which called for a ceasefire, an immediate ceasefire in gaza, but didn't explicitly make that

conditional on the release of hostages. —— vote. mr netanyahu said he cancelled the delegation going to washington to send a message that he disagreed with that. we have seen this row deepen. but in the end the bedrock of the israel— us relationship, weapons transfers from the americans, remains, and that is despite growing pressure, particularly from within the democratic party, on mr biden to use arms transfers as leverage over the israelis. all sides are that remains off—limits. —— all signs are that remains off—limits. for more on the meeting and the us strategy in the region, i spoke to former us state department official david makovsky. good to have you back on bbc news. i want to start with the joint statement come out of the meeting with the us and israel. the us side expressed concerns over rafah and added, quote: what do you make of that?

can you help us parse what you think that statement means? first of all, good to be with you and good to be with the bbc again. look, i think what's happened is that each side has kind of backed away from the edge when it comes to rafah. israel has agreed to the us idea that needs to be a clear evacuation plan for the 1.4 million palestinians who were in the southern city of rafah, near the egyptian border. so if there is a strike, they're out of harm's way. the question is how long it will take to have an evacuation plan that is acceptable to the israeli and american side — that is the question.

it was artful to say that, as opposed to anything that would suggest, you know, the us needs to be satisfied before then would be a strike. you could say it is an issue of sovereign decisions. but i do think that in principle each side wants to do that in a way that's orderly. the us standard about what that requires might be, you know, a higher standard, and that might take longer. so david, can ijump in there and ask you, if israel were to proceed with an invasion of rafah, despite us opposition, without taking some of these concerns into account, how would the us respond? look, i think it would be very serious. ifind it hard to believe — israel's not going to do this unless it is able to find a way to get 1.4 million people out of harm's way. to me, that's a given. the question is the us will say it isn't enough to move them, we want to know they have sanitary conditions, what is the question of fresh water, what is the question on other things, of shelter —

all reasonable concerns. and here there might be a question of difference of interpretation with israel about what it takes to keep people out of harm's way. and so is it going to take several months, is it going to take a month, is it going to take two months? i think that's — that's the question here. it is a question of the grey zone. a back—and—forth, i hear you saying, david. i want to ask you as well, we're seeing at the same time the us media reporting that the biden administration is considering major new weapons sales to israel — so fighterjets and missiles — with no conditions attached. could you help us understand this white house strategy when you hear this different public and private narrative? right. well, look, ithink the president is very focused, you know, when it comes to the strategic objective, which is topping hamas in power — he hasn't wavered —

and also freeing the hostages. where he has differed sharply from israel, notjust in private, is on the humanitarian implications. but it's not about the importance of toppling hamas. he will say he wants israel to have the tools it needs to double hamas, and a lot of attacks are coming from the iranian side, and "i want israel to be able to defend itself from iran and is proxies." there is such a thing as a national security memorandum that israel needs to certify that their weapons are going to their intended purpose. 0k. that's — that's — they're trying to stave off certain attempts by certain democratic liberals in the senate. criticism indeed. david, just one more question for you. we have seen axios reporting that the us security adviserjake sullivan will go to saudi arabia and meet with crown prince mohammed bin salman. this to discuss a deal including saudi normalisation with israel.

do you think that's possible at the moment? well, this is the $64,000 question. i mean, the whole — america has put all its eggs in one basket, which is to get, like, a six—week pause, to get at least 40 of the hostages, of the 40—130 hostages released, and use that kind of quiet to get humanitarian aid into gaza. and, at the same time, to check — is it possible to do a normalisation deal as part of a us—saudi defence agreement? that is what the us would like, to pivot to a wider frame of regional normalisation. 0h, 0k. and that's the goal. so i think the sullivan trip is very important. david makovsky, great to have you on bbc news tonight. thank you very much. any time, thank you all very much. after two weeks of heavy bombardment, israel says it's completed its military operation at gaza's biggest hospital,

and all troops have now left the area. most of al—shifa's medical complex has been left in ruins as these pictures show. the hamas—run health ministry says dozens of bodies were found following the withdrawal. during the operation in northern gaza, the idf says it killed 200 terrorists, claiming hamas had regrouped inside the grounds. 0ur middle east correspondent lucy williamson gives us a look at the hospita from jerusalem. shifa's protection was its identity. hard to recognise it as a hospital now. the surgery unit, emergency department, wards and corridors, imploded, anonymised by war. patients like jana, trapped inside during the two weeks of fighting. translation: they didn't provide water| for the last two days. there were sounds of shooting and bombing. the explosions from the artillery lit up the room we were in and shook

the whole building. translation: they let in a very small amountl of food that wasn't enough. we're 150 patients and 50 medical staff. no treatment, no medicine, and constant bombing for 24 hours. israel called this a precise and limited operation against hamas fighters. it says 200 gunmen were killed and hundreds of people arrested, and that its right to defeat hamas trumps the protection hospitals have under international law. at home, israel's war with hamas is popular, israel's prime minister is not. for months, benjamin netanyahu has been caught between the demands of hostage families and his own hard right government. now, pre—war protests over his judicial reforms are resurfacing too. tents have once again appeared outside the israeli parliament

with the same simple demand — go. protesters here won't be satisfied even if benjamin netanyahu brings home the hostages or dismantles hamas. there are new posters — "you're in charge, you're responsible," they say. but they wanted him out before the war. now they're back, and they want him gone even more. karen has protested for years against the man known here as bibi. if bibi netanyahu brings the hostages home, will you support him to stay? i don't see the relations between the two. he needs to go just for the fact that 250 people were kidnapped. he needs to go. it doesn't matter if he's bringing them back. the national unity that followed the hamas attacks is breaking down. six months on, israeli soldiers are still fighting an old enemy in gaza. but benjamin netanyahu is facing his own at home. lucy williamson, bbc news, jerusalem.

the first step to restore a sea route into the port of baltimore is under way, nearly a week after a ship collided with the francis scott key bridge, causing it to collapse and killing six people. it left one of the us�*s largest ports inaccessible to shipping. this is the current scene in baltimore. the white house says president biden will visit the site on friday, where he'll inspect the damage and speak with state and local officials. on monday, salvage crews removed the first section of the bridge, and the us coast guard opened a temporary channel to allow some vessels to pass through to the baltimore port. maryland governor wes moore said crews are working to open a second channel. he spoke a little earlier on the challenges of such a massive operation. we need to do more work clearing the channel in order to move forward. i know there is an urgency to move fast. and nobody feels that urgency more than the people standing up here today. but we have to be clear on the risks. this is a steel bridge that is sitting on top of a container ship in the middle of

the pata psco river. we are talking about tons of steel that is mangled, and water that is so murky and filled with debris that divers can't see more than a foot or two in front of them. a situation were a portion of the bridge beneath the water has been described by unified command as a chaotic wreckage. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news. in the uk, energy prices in england, wales and scotland, have fallen to their lowest level for two years. the regulator's new price—cap has come into force, meaning a household using a typical amount of energy, will pay around £1690 a year.

that's a saving of more than £200. rules are different in northern ireland, where prices are also falling. but experts are urging people to stick to savings habits because bills still remain expensive. kevin peachy spoke to one expert for her top three energy saving tips. 0ne, your hot water setting, if it's too hot to wash your hands with, your boiler�*s too high. two, drafts from chimneys to windows and doors, manage those drafts. and three, your showers — you need to stick to four minutes. they should be 1—4 minutes long, less bohemian rhapsody in the shower, and there's the £70 a year on water and energy you could save. forecasts by the energy consultancy cornwall insight suggest energy bills could fall again in the summer, before edging back up in the winter. you're live with bbc news. former us president donald trump posted a $175 million bond in his new york civil fraud case. mr trump was originally ordered to pay a full $464 million

judgement, but an appeals court said he could pay a smaller sum of $175 million if he makes the payment within 10 days. this is in connection to a february ruling by a judge that found mr trump fraudulently inflated the value of his properties. separately, thejudge presiding over mr trump's upcoming criminal trial expanded a partial gag order on the former us president. judgejuan merchan said the former president is barred from attacking mr merchan�*s family members, as well as those of manhattan district attorney alvin bragg. it comes after mr trump took to social media to criticize mr merchan�*s daughter, who runs an agency that works with democratic candidates. mr trump denies any violations of previous gag orders. he was already ordered not to talk about witnesses, prosecutors, and their relatives. the us state of florida's highest court paved the way for the state's six—week abortion ban to take effect,

but is allowing voters to have their say on the issue. monday's court ruling allows the ban to come into effect in may. the limit was cut to the current 15 weeks in 2022, but the state was barred from lowering it further while this case made its way through the courts.but in a separate decision, the judges approved a measure for voters in november to decide whether to allow abortions until about 24 weeks into a pregnancy. that measure would require 60% of the vote. as many as thirteen states could hold similar ballots this year. voters in four states approved abortion rights amendments after the us supreme court overturned roe v wade in june 2022. i spoke to caroline kitchener, national reporter covering abortion at the washington post, for more. i want to start with the court in florida upholding this 15—week ban on abortion, paving the way for a six—week ban. tell us more about what this does. i have been on the phone all night with abortion providers — notjust in florida but across the country — who are really

struggling to put into words the effect this is going to have on abortion access nationwide. already we have, you know, clinics in states like illinois and north carolina, the closest access points for people in the south. they're really struggling to meet demand. now you have this huge state — and florida is the third most populous state in the country — this huge state that will restrict the procedure. so the question on everybody�*s mind is where all these women will go. at the same time we also saw the court allowing voters in florida to decide whether to expand abortion access when they go to the polls in november. so what will this ballot initiative say, what will it do? so this could potentially protect the right to abortion in the state constitution in florida. that would need over 60% of floridians to vote that way. it's — it's a powerful moment i think we're going to see, you know, between now and november. you're going to have

floridians have to live under this abortion ban for many months, and then they will go to the poll and say what they feel about that experience. so i think florida is always closely watched in a presidential race and this is going to add a really, you know, unique and important dynamic to it, the future of abortion access for tens of thousands of women rests on this vote. we have seen campaigners in other states be successful when access to abortion is on the ballot and reproductive rights campaigners are celebrating the fact that it will be on the ballot in florida in november. what are the chances of success? i think it is hard to say. certainly we will see massive organising efforts. the difference between florida and many of the other states

as there is a higher threshold — it's a 60% rather thanjust, you know, more than half. so that will be a challenge for the organisers. but hearing from abortion rights advocates today, people are very optimistic about this, they feel very confident that this is not — this six—week ban is not something that floridians want — so we will have to wait and see. we saw the biden campaign commenting pretty quickly after the two decisions from the florida court, criticising the six—week ban in florida, and said they would "invest in florida" as a pathway to victory. florida is a pretty deep red republican state, at least according to the last elections. will abortion rights be a galvanising factor for voters, there? well, i think, from the perspective of the biden administration, it probably help that it will be directly on the ballot. something we saw in the midterms was when abortion was directly on the ballot, to vote for or against abortion rights, people really did turn out and vote for that. but it didn't necessarily always translate to the candidates, the democratic candidates that were

running on abortion. you did see a lot of republican governors in the midterms, some of the most prominent republican governors signed bans won one by landslides. whether they can embrace the issue for themselves and help voters understand the connection, but, i think, in florida, biden won't have to worry about that, because people will be voting on abortion. just very quickly — we have about 30 seconds left — what are republicans, the former president saying about a six—week band in florida? the republicans, the republicans that i have heard from on the ground in florida are, you know, extremely happy to hear that, you know, this ban is going to take effect. that is an interpretation of the florida constitution they have been making a case for four decades. so i have been hearing

from people in florida that they are, you know, very optimistic about this, and despite the ruling of the amendment, they feel they are going to come out on top. caroline kitchener from the washington post, thank you forjoining us. thank you for having me. now, north korea fired a ballistic missile according to south korea's military. japan's coast guard said the apparent missile had already fallen into the sea outside of its exclusive economic zone. north korea's last missile test was on march 18, when leader kim jong—un guided a salvo launch of six short—range rockets at the same time. the kremlin is dismissing new reports it may be behind the mysterious havana syndrome illness, which has affected us officials for the past eight years. the us has previously said a foreign power was to blame for the sicknesses. but a newjoint investigation by the insider, der spiegel and cbs's 60 minutes has renewed those accusations. the report said moscow could be responsible because a russian intelligence unit was at the scene of reported health incidents involving us personnel. it also reported that members of that unit were rewarded for the development of �*non—lethal acoustic weapons.�* symptoms of havana syndrome meanwhile include migraines, nausea, memory lapses and dizziness.

the symptoms were first reported in 2016, by us embassy officials in the cuban capital havana, which is how the illness received its name. in response to the investigation, kremlin spokesman dmitry peskov denied russian involvement. translation: it is - absolutely not a new issue. for many years, an issue of so—called havana syndrome has been played up in mass media. often it was connected with accusations of russian involvement. but no—one has ever published or expressed any convincing evidence these unfounded accusations anywhere. let's turn to some important news around the world.

one person is in custoday after a vehicle crashed into the front gate of the fbi's atlanta office on monday. fbi officials said the vehicle appeared to try to follow an authorized vehicle as it entered the gate, before a pop—up barrier deployed, stopping the vehicle before entering. an fbi spokesman said the person suffered no injures, and there was no known motive for the attempted break—in. adidas has banned fans from buying german football shirts customised with the number forty four, after complaints were made that it resembled the symbol used by nazi ss units in world war ii. adidas, a german company, said the resemblance to the ss symbol was not intentional and that the numbers had been designed by the german football association. the association said it would develop an alternative design for the number four. in scotland, a new hate crime law has some worrying that it may undermine freedom of speech. the legislation creates a new crime of — quote — "stirring up hatred" relating to characteristics including religion and disability, among others. while the scottish government says the law shields groups from prejudice, critics,

includingjk rowling and elon musk, fear it could be weaponized politically. and before we go, lou conter, the last living survivor of the uss arizona battleship that exploded and sank during the japanese bombing of pearl harbor has died, aged 102. the arizona lost 1177 sailors and marines in the 1941 attack that launched the us into world war ii. the wreckage of the ship still lies where it sank, with more than 900 sailors and marines entombed inside. that and marines entombed inside. is our programme a hour. that is our programme at this hour. i am sumi somaskanda in washington. stay with us here on bbc news. hello there. easter monday brought a day of mixed fortunes, and it's going to be a similar story throughout the week. now, across eastern england, we had some sunshine and where it stayed dry, it was relatively warm — 16 degrees, 61 fahrenheit.

but cloud and rain pushing its way steadily northwards. it stayed rather grey and overcast in western scotland, withjust a high of 5 celsius here. now, that weatherfront is going to linger, weakening all the time. but a brisk northeasterly wind will dominate the story across the far north of scotland. clearer skies for a time, early morning mist and fog, perhaps, for england and wales. some showers easing away from the southeast. but eventually, as we go through the day, we'll start to see some outbreaks of rain pushing into the southwest. and as this front gradually moves its way north, the winds will strengthen here. but ahead of it, with some sunny spells injust a few isolated showers, one or two spots, again, could see temperatures into the mid—teens. not a bad afternoon with a few isolated showers for northern ireland. scotland will stay rather grey and overcast, with outbreaks of showery rain, and that brisk north—easterly wind at times will make it feel rather cool, just a maximum of 6—8 celsius. now, we'll see that frontal system down to the south—west,

bringing some wet and windy weather through the night tuesday into the early hours of wednesday morning. the wind direction coming from the south—west, so it will be a mild start to wednesday, with double figures perhaps likely across the far southeast. but we will see outbreaks of rain gradually pushing their way steadily northwards. the wind direction here is south—westerly, so driving in some milder air, but we still keep that north—easterly feed in scotland — a real contrast with the temperatures over the next few days. so we're looking at 5—7 degrees across the far north—east, highs of 15, possibly 16 degrees once again, somewhere across south and eastern england. now, towards the end of the week, low pressure is going to continue to dominate, but still that wind source coming all the way from the southwest. so it will be mild, but it will still continue to be pretty wet at times. but the mild air sitting across the vast majority, still the far north—east of scotland staying on the cooler side.

so, here, those temperatures will struggle a little, but there'll be showers or longer spells of rain. when we get some brightness, temperatures are going to respond. take care.

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. 0pinion 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?