the us house of representatives has passed a crucial aid bill for ukraine totalling nearly $61 billion. if passed by the senate, the long—awaited funds will provide roughly $23 billion to replenish us weapons, stockpiles and facilities, more than $11 billion to fund current us military operations in the region. and another $14 billion to help ukraine buy advanced weapons systems and other defence equipment. republican house speaker mike johnson — who brought the bill to a vote — said it was the right thing to do. from the capitol, our news correspondent helena humphrey, told us more about today's vote. after a rare show of bipartisanship the us is one step closer to sending long—awaited aid to ukraine along with israel and the indo—pacific region after this vote from us house of representatives. it now heads to the senate.

president biden has called to advance it swiftly so it can head to his desk in the oval office so he can sign off on it. the pentagon for its part watching the political infighting going on has been trying to pre—position weaponry where it can so that those weapons can head to ukraine, head to troops on the ground sooner rather than later. potentially within days as opposed to weeks. that doesn't rule out the prospect of further political infighting despite the fact that congress woman nancy pelosi had called to sign off on the bill for ukraine. we know that it had been facing resistance from the republican party. they had wanted ties to strict immigration laws, stricter border security with the us—mexico border. that particular vote failed. they needed a two thirds majority so that did not come to pass. instead what you saw with the ukraine bill is that more republicans

voted against it. than actually voted in favour. we know that republican congress woman marjorie greene has signalled her intention to potentially oust the republican house speaker mikejohnson over this filing a motion to vacate. mikejohnson. she said she will not pull the trigger on it. that's not to say it couldn't come in days or weeks ahead. the vote had been delayed for more than six months because it ukraine to lose ground for the ukrainian president zelensky on twitter for the passage of the bill saying... this will keep history on the right track for democracy and freedom will always have a global significance and will never fail as long as america helps to protect it. the vital usaid bill passed by the house today will keep the war from expanding. and save thousands and thousands of lives and help both of our nations

to become stronger. our correspondentjames waterhouse has more. the our correspondent james waterhouse has more. the bills ”assin waterhouse has more. the bills passing has _ waterhouse has more. the bills passing has been _ waterhouse has more. the bills passing has been met _ waterhouse has more. the bills passing has been met with - passing has been met with relief in ukraine, it's been a costly six—month sport ukraine. this sizeable offering from the us has gotten bogged down in washington, ukraine has lost men and it has lost territory with soldiers finding themselves with doodling ammunition in the face of their greater russian invaders. this is a big boost for ukraine. it is a big boost for ukraine. it is a big boost for ukraine. it is a war when good news has been rare for kyiv of late. this package will provide much—needed ammunition, air defences and reports suggest it could be arriving within days. that will certainly be the hope, it is by no means a silver bullet. this does not mean ukraine is suddenly going

to be liberating sways of territory as it did in 2022, bought it crucially does for kyiv is it keeps it in the fight. the near term objective will simply be to try and stem the tide of russian occupation as it continues to seize hundreds of square kilometres of territory in the east and where we see ukrainian cities in an incredibly perilous situation. it keeps ukraine in the fight and it keeps negotiating table at bay. this is a huge moment for ukraine to feel the weight of america's support behind it. the foreign secretary had described as a bad deal for secretary had described as a bad dealfor vladimir putin but his invasion has many more days left in it. now it is a private moment of celebration for kyiv in these times of war. let's go live to the russia deputy team lead and analyst at the institute for the study of war. we heard, is this a bad

day for vladimir putin? what will this infusion of aid men fought ukraine on the battlefield?— battlefield? thank you for havin: battlefield? thank you for having me _ battlefield? thank you for having me on _ battlefield? thank you for having me on the - battlefield? thank you for having me on the show. l battlefield? thank you forj having me on the show. it battlefield? thank you for i having me on the show. it is battlefield? thank you for - having me on the show. it is a bad day for vladimir putin, he has been focusing a lot of strategy on prolonging the war and making sure that the west is not going to take decisive measures to support ukraine. a lot of information operations that the russians have been taking on for the past months have been specifically targeting the west and the us, to make sure that our decision—making is slowed and conflicted and debated and prolonged and so on and so on. it's a sad day but for vladimir putin but it is not the final battle. there is probably going to be a lot more issues in debates that ukraine, the us and west will have to take on as the war continues. this bill, it passed _ as the war continues. this bill, it passed the - as the war continues. this bill, it passed the house, | as the war continues. this| bill, it passed the house, a lot of republicans did not vote

for it. i'm curious if you could assess how successful what you call an informational war by russia has been when it comes to the debate that is big hat in the us about the war in ukraine and the us�*s role in it? i ukraine and the us's role in it? ., . ., ukraine and the us's role in it? ., _, ., ukraine and the us's role in it? ., ., ,, it? i cannot comment on us domestic— it? i cannot comment on us domestic politics _ it? i cannot comment on us domestic politics given - it? i cannot comment on us domestic politics given our. domestic politics given our institutional policies, i can definitely say that the russians had been implement in several key narratives to slow down our decision—making not just in the us but also worldwide. some of these rhetoric is in good nuclear threats, they also push narratives about negotiations that russia is ready to negotiate with the west over ukraine's fate. as well as the rhetoric about not crossing russia's redlines by having the us or the west provide additional military material or long—range artillery systems and other equipment. i5

long-range artillery systems and other equipment.- long-range artillery systems and other equipment. is this a ackaue and other equipment. is this a package to — and other equipment. is this a package to you _ and other equipment. is this a package to you think - and other equipment. is this a package to you think and - and other equipment. is this a package to you think and we l package to you think and we know it is being delayed about six months since us resident joe biden first requested it, do you think it is coming too late? how much has russia been able to take advantage of the rationing of artillery by ukraine to take more territory on the battlefield? it is coming _ on the battlefield? it is coming too _ on the battlefield? it is coming too late, - on the battlefield? it is coming too late, we . on the battlefield? it is| coming too late, we are on the battlefield? it 3 coming too late, we are seeing russians consistently make tactical gains in the battlefield also since january one russians already captured 360 square kilometres which is the size of detroit across different frontlines. we have also seen russians increasingly degrade ukraine's defence umbrella and that resulted in pretty devastating losses fought ukrainian energy infrastructure as well as transportation infrastructure and logistics. it is coming too late but hopefully this will be a long—term lesson for us on why a productive war is so important for russians and why

it is beneficial to them. we have been _ it is beneficial to them. we have been speaking with a guest earlier who showed some scepticism that ukraine can still win this war. you wrote backin still win this war. you wrote back in february that ukraine's counteroffensive and still succeed. is that how you feel? how do you rate the chances ukraine can still take back the territory lost from russia? ukraine can absolutely still succeed but that all depends on a transparent policy here in the us and also in the west in terms of long—term support for ukraine. we are seeing that ukraine. we are seeing that ukraine is trying to revitalises its fans industrial base, it is working with european partners to secure joint partnerships and it is also trying to solve its mobilisation issues as of current. all this will take time for ukraine to be self—sufficient and it will require transparent aid from the us from the west and from all of our ukrainian allies. without that transparency is a very challenging thing for

ukrainian generals to plan long—term operations which would include and require significant sacrifices in terms of material and personnel on the ukrainian side. we of material and personnel on the ukrainian side.— the ukrainian side. we only have 45 seconds _ the ukrainian side. we only have 45 seconds left - the ukrainian side. we only have 45 seconds left but. the ukrainian side. we only have 45 seconds left but i l the ukrainian side. we only - have 45 seconds left but i want to ask about russia, we have seen massive sanctions against the country, big losses on the battlefield for russia will somehow do you think it's been able to keep up this war effort, despite all that? russia is a pretty large country, with sufficient stocks in the soviet equipment that they have. they are launching mobilisation strategies and are recruiting personnel from financially incentivising them and they are circumnavigating a lot of sanctions through iran, china, north korea and other partners it has on board so russia is still able to play the long—term game and we have to be prepared for that.

katarina, russia deputy team lead and the institute for the study of war, thank you very much. . ~ i. alongside money for ukraine, the aid package would also see the us send $26 billion to the middle east. $17 billion of which would go to israel — to buy things like air defence missiles and advanced weapons systems, and $9 billion will go to humanitarian relief for gaza — something democrats insisted be included, over the objections of some conservative republicans. that boost in aid and in weapons comes as unrwa, the un agency responsible for getting aid to palestinians, says the risk of disease in gaza is rising. the un warns the situation could deteriorate if israel goes ahead with a planned ground offensive against hamas in the southern city of rafah — where an estimated 1.5 million palestinians are sheltering. wyre davies reports. the real threat of a direct war between israel and iran appears to have diminished somewhat

after both sides either played down or completely ignored the events of recent days. events and tensions in the regions remain very high. in the last 24 remain very high. in the last 2a hours in iran allied military base in a uluru appears to have been attacked, no—one has claimed responsibility for the attack in which one person is said to have been killed but images seem to show the aftermath of an explosion. on israel's northern border that have been exchanges of fire across the frontier with militants from hezbollah engaging with israeli troops and in the palestinian occupied west bank israeli troops have been involved in a two—day operation which has left apparently ten people dead including a senior commander from palestinian islamichhad. there were israeli tanks and aeroplane attacks, military jets bombing places in central gaza and in southern gaza in

particular, the city of rafah. apparently nine people were killed including several children. israel said it was targeting military infrastructure and armed terrorists. there are concerns about the dire humanitarian situation in gaza where more than a million people are now seeking refuge in the town of rafah. a lack of aid and aid and starvation and more eaters getting through. the international community including the american government want the israelis not to proceed with a full—scale military operation in rafah because israel says it has to tackle hamas completely and defeat hamas completely if the war is to be one. benjamin netanyahu has so far ignored those warnings of the americans and the british among others are not to go in full on in rafah but benjamin netanyahu is adamant he will proceed with a full—scale military operation because he cannot declare

victory in gaza of the israeli hostages will not be released until the operation is complete. the focus has been on tensions between israel and iran will take you inside iran clerical regime appears to be cracking down on women again. a renewed presence of the so—called rowdy police on the street as big as verified by bbc persian show, our correspondent and there are counts of violence in this report. iran is fighting on two fronts simultaneously. launching missiles and drones at israel and flooding the streets with police. to force women to wear the mandatory headscarf. could the two campaigns linked. it seems likely that _ campaigns linked. it seems likely that they _ campaigns linked. it seems likely that they are - campaigns linked. it seems likely that they are related. because of the timing of the campaign against women. many believe that the real reason behind the move is the regime is a brief earful about the

possibility of another uprising against it, especially if a ride back is weakened by a possible israeli attack. in this video verified by bbc persian, a woman is violently arrested by the morality police in tehran. as bystanders argue with them. another video that shocked the nation shows a girl being seen having a seizure after being confronted by the police over her refusal to wear a headscarf. another woman who was beaten by the morality police shared her experience with bbc persian. to protect our identity a journalist will read her accounts. g, our identity a journalist will read her accounts.- our identity a journalist will read her accounts. a big male officer kicked _ read her accounts. a big male officer kicked me _ read her accounts. a big male officer kicked me very - read her accounts. a big male officer kicked me very hard i read her accounts. a big male officer kicked me very hard in | officer kicked me very hard in the back, later i began urinating blood. the doctor told me my kidney was partly torn, the court find me $50, thejudge wanted me if i was detained again i would go to prison and be banned from travelling abroad.-

prison and be banned from travelling abroad. despite the threats, many _ travelling abroad. despite the threats, many women - travelling abroad. despite the threats, many women are - threats, many women are refusing to cover their hair. their campaign started after the death of mahsa amini, nearly two years ago. the girl who was detained by the morality police for allegedly not wearing herjob properly. they died in custody. protests what the country and over i've hundred and 50 people were killed in the government crackdown. according to the un, the reappearance of the rowdy police in such numbers follows an order —— morality police, follows an orderfrom an order —— morality police, follows an order from the commander—in—chief. translation: commander-in-chief. translation: , ., , ., translation: everyone must a bab hi'ab translation: everyone must a baby hijab law. _ translation: everyone must a baby hijab law. | _ translation: everyone must a baby hijab law, i believe - translation: everyone must a baby hijab law, i believe the - baby hijab law, i believe the government and judiciary should carry out their lawful and religious responsibilities in this regard.— this regard. despite such warnings. _ this regard. despite such warnings, iranian - this regard. despite such warnings, iranian women this regard. despite such - warnings, iranian women are refusing to give up under dream of freedom. saturday marks 25 years since the 1999 mass shooting at columbine high school that killed 12 students and one teacher — and wounded

more than 20 others. the massacre is widely—regarded as the first major mass shooting at a us school in the modern era — marking a turning point for the country. on the eve of the anniversary, community members gathered in denver, colorado to remember the lives lost. candles flickered on 13 empty chairs — one for each of the victims — as short biographies were read out. after each, the crowd replied together "never forgotten." since columbine, gun violence in the united states has become increasingly severeboth in schools and in wider communities. according to data collected by the washington post, there have been more than 400 school shootings since 1999 — exposing more than 370,000 students to gun violence. so far this year alone, there have been 120 reported mass shootings — that data coming from the gun violence archive. on saturday, us presidentjoe biden issued a statement to mark the anniversary of columbine and condemn gun violence.

but gun control is a highly polarizing issue in the us. many democrats advocate for stricter gun laws, while republicans tend to view gun ownership as a fundamental right. to take stock on gun violence prevention efforts in the us, i spoke to david hogg. —— i spoke to chris brown. thank you for being here with us, a quarter century after the columbine high school shooting. what has the us done and sent, has it done enough to prevent identical similar incidents from happening again? ida. identical similar incidents from happening again? no, we're not. we from happening again? no, we're not- we have _ from happening again? no, we're not. we have done _ from happening again? no, we're not. we have done a _ from happening again? no, we're not. we have done a lot - from happening again? no, we're not. we have done a lot but - not. we have done a lot but there is still needs a lot more laws that need to be passed. we need better enforcement of the laws we have. 25 years ago today, car crashes with the number one killer of our

children. today it is gun violence and 76% of all school shootings, the shooter gets they come from a home where it is not safely stored. when i think about the things that i would love americans to be doing, one is that want policymakers to pass things like an assault weapons ban, thatis like an assault weapons ban, that is often the mass shooters of choice. i want expanded brady laws and i want everyone who has a firearm to safely store those firearms, if everyone in america did that tomorrow than we would cut gun deaths in half and we would drastically reduce access by individuals intending to do harm to themselves and others. where does the political situation on the sorts of legislative actions, where does it stand right now?— it stand right now? thankfully we have and _ it stand right now? thankfully we have and president - it stand right now? thankfully we have and president biden, one of the most committed and active presidents in the united

states history, eager to combat nonviolence. he feels strongly as someone who has survived horrible loss in his own life, i have witnessed him connect with victims of gun violence and their parents who have lost children at school. this is a uniquely american epidemic and his administration has expanded the brady law, they have regulated ghost guns, they have set up the office of gun violence prevention in the white house. all of these actions, they have done basically to executive action and they also helped pass the bypass and said the communities act and ifeel bypass and said the communities act and i feel great about those kinds of compliments. what makes me upset is knowing that congress still has not passed legislatively the universal background checks, even though 97% of americans want that. there are things that are still missing at the

federal level and at the state level that we know work, things like expanded ready background checks, expanded permitting systems in the state which study after study show saves lives, we don't have enough of that in this country. it takes an election in america focusing on candidates thankfully we have many who are putting gun violence prevention as a top priority to make the difference. it's about votes for gun violence prevention and not boats too often for the gun industry. jae not boats too often for the gun indust . g ., �* not boats too often for the gun indust .g ., �* ., ,., industry. joe biden also... crosstalk _ industry. joe biden also... crosstalk when - industry. joe biden also... crosstalk when it - industry. joe biden also... | crosstalk when it comes industry. joe biden also... i crosstalk when it comes to buying a gun at a gun show. this had been called the gun show loophole. it was done a matter of days ago. that's something i think you support, how would that change of the level and when it comes to buying a gun in the united states? , �*

states? president biden actually signed - states? president biden actually signed into - states? president biden actually signed into [awl states? president biden i actually signed into law the bipartisanship of communities act, congress passed a law that gave the atf, the bureau of alcohol tobacco and firearms authority to do everything to tighten the regulation of how god is sold in the country and at gun shows and also of the atf rule covers both of those kinds of sales, right now they are not covered. you could be a private seller and sell guns no questions asked, no background checks. this rule addresses that, it is a big change in the law that we support but one in five guns sold are sold with no background check at all and it does as much as possible without a universal background check to close those sales and it will save lives.— it will save lives. briefly, with 30 _ it will save lives. briefly, with 30 seconds - it will save lives. briefly, with 30 seconds left, - it will save lives. briefly, | with 30 seconds left, you touched on this already but the perception is in the united states that is a country very divided when it comes to gun control and gun rights. where

does any sort of agreement lie when it comes to guns here? we are seeing _ when it comes to guns here? - are seeing a lot of progress across states that are passing laws to protect public safety. if you look at the polls, americans are not divided. the vast majority wanted assault weapons ban, 90% of americans want universal background checks. we are living with the reality of gun violence being the number one killer of our kids. the early place it is really divided is in the house of representatives and too often in the us senate. for americans that want to make a change we have to look at this election, this november, where we are electing a third of the senate, all of the house and the next president because that will determine whether we tackle this issue or not. chris brown, president _ tackle this issue or not. chris brown, president of- tackle this issue or not. chris brown, president of brady i brown, president of brady united against violence, thank you very much. united against violence, thank you very much-—

thousands of people are protesting against the mass tourism in the canary islands, the spanish archipelago located off the northern coast of africa is a popular tourist destination, protesters are too many visitors are damaging the environment and pricing locals out of the housing market. there are now calls for the spanish government to limit the number of visitors there. here is simonjones. in the baking spanish heat, that helped bring in 16 million visitors to the canaries last year, locals are under the collar, the message from the wreck, tourism has gone too far. translation: ., ., , , translation: the canary islands say enough _ translation: the canary islands say enough is _ translation: the canary islands say enough is enough, _ translation: the canary islands say enough is enough, they - translation: the canary islands say enough is enough, they have l say enough is enough, they have a limit. re sources and population cannot take anymore. the environment is continue to deteriorate and presidents are suffering as well. the demonstrators - suffering as well. the demonstrators insist | suffering as well. the - demonstrators insist they suffering as well. the demonstrators insist they are not against tourism itself, it is vital for the economies of the islands. they want controls, is particular concern about the supply of water in such a dry climate and they

clambers too much focus on building hotels rather than local housing. making the area increasingly unaffordable for residents. the beaches are particularly popular with the brits, the authorities in the canaries stress they remain open for business, the spanish government admits it's about ending the right balance to holidays can continue harmoniously. simonjones, bbc harmoniously. simon jones, bbc news. this probably what, is a huge shock to swift is or anyone who is paying attention, telford's new album release has a ready broken a number of records, the highly anticipated torture poets department which turned out to be a double album became the most streamed album in a single day on spotify and amazon music. taylor also becoming the most streamed artist in a day on spotify, the album broke the record for the biggest pop album of all time by first day streams on apple music, just more records for taylor swift. we will have

plenty more coming at the top of the ala. stay with us right here on bbc news. hello there. it's been a chilly start to the weekend. we've got some cold weather overnight where we have the clearer skies. temperatures may be a bit higher in scotland, mind you, because we've seen this cloud moving down from the north and we'll continue to see a bit of light rain or drizzle on that weak weather front there as it runs into our area of high pressure. now, in between those two weatherfronts, the potential for some slightly warmer air across scotland where we get some sunshine, and particularly northern ireland. but for england and wales, we're still in the cold air. so it's not going to be too hot for the runners in the london marathon.

it should stay dry. there will be a cool northeasterly breeze and a top temperature 11 or 12 degrees. we will see some cloud developing in east anglia in the south east that could bring the odd light shower here and there. otherwise, some sunny spells for other parts of england and wales, plenty of sunshine for northern ireland, much more cloud in scotland. we've got this rain and drizzle in the east pushing into the far north of england, pegging temperatures back here, a little bit warmer in western scotland where we've got some brighter skies, but the highest temperatures are going to be inland in northern ireland, a pleasant 17 or 18 degrees. the center of the high pressure is just getting pushed towards the west of the uk. it allows these weather fronts to take the cloud and rain southwards and this time we've got a cloudy picture. on monday we're going to find some rain and drizzle at times for england and wales. it should turn drier and brighter with some sunshine in northern scotland. it may stay dry in northern ireland, but we've got more cloud around on monday. there is still some semblance of some warmer air in western scotland and northern ireland, but it's pretty cold elsewhere, particularly so across the south east

of england after a chilly night and that cloud then coming in over the top and that cloud continues to push its way southwards together with those weather fronts and with the high out towards the west, we're left with a northerly breeze again on tuesday. still a bit of patchy light rain or drizzle to clear in the south. otherwise that northerly wind will bring a lot of cloud to eastern areas and maybe the odd shower near the coast. but out to the west, this is where we've got the best of the sunshine. and those temperatures getting up to 13, maybe 14 degrees, but particularly cold across the eastern side of the uk, 8 to ten celsius here. now, when is it going to warm up? well, no time soon. it looks like through the rest of the week we're still in this colder air. and if anything, with the pressure tending to fall, there's a risk of a bit more rain as well.

voice-over: this is bbc news. we'll have the headlines for you at the top of the hour, which is straight after this programme. i've been an opera fan for decades and i want to share my passion with you. so, i'm on a mission to find out how opera is trying to attract new audiences and reinvent itself. this time, i meet welsh bass baritone sir bryn terfel, a giant in the opera world both in achievements and physical stature. sir bryn terfel is an artist who's just known all around the world. he's sung all the great opera roles. when he's on the stage,

you cannot take your eyes off them. —— eyes off him. bryn has so many fans who follow him, both physically and emotionally, around the world. he's taking us behind the scenes not only at london's royal opera house, where he's a regular star performer, but right back to where it all started — here in his native wales at the welsh national opera in cardiff. bryn terfel is a passionate advocate of music and culture and nurturing the next generation of talent. for any welsh singer, bryn's a massive inspiration and he's still at the top of his game. what sir bryn terfel�*s long and stellar career tells us about how to make opera fit for the future. let me take you to the opera.