tv The World Today with Maryam Moshiri BBC News June 20, 2025 7:30pm-8:01pm BST
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this is bbc news - the headlines... the ayes have it. unlock! mps vote to legalise assisted dying in england and wales - the biggest social reform in a generation is now likely to become law. iranian rockets injure 20 in haifa - while israeli jets bomb nuclear sites around tehran - as the conflict enters its second week. rescuers in gaza say israeli forces have killed at least 48 palestinians - many while they were waiting for food.
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and - how thailand is managing to secure a remarkable comeback for their endangered tigers. more on the meeting in geneva between the iranians and a foreign leaders, uk foreign secretary david lammy has made a statement. i was in the white house yesterday discussing what is happening in israel and iran and it was important to fly here today to be with european colleagues, sat down with the iranians over several hours discussing... that will endanger the immediate release but also the global community,
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we had constructive discussions today, and we will continue, as europe, to speak to iran and be clear on the issues, as we have done over many years. we will do all we can to facilitate the discussions with the united states but to understand the of the intent of the united states as partners and global allies at this time and our determination. the foreign office confirmed it will withdraw its staff from the office is in tehran on a precursory -- precautionary measure.
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the hamas-run civil defence agency in gaza says isreali forces have killed at least 48 people today - including more than 20 near a food distribution point. israeli tanks and drones are said to have fired on palestinians seeking food near a site run by the gaza humanitarian foundation. the israel defense force said its troops fired warning shots at suspected militants who advanced towards them. the hamas-run health ministry says 400 people have been killed outside the aid centres since they opened last month. the bbc's ione wells is in jerusalem. she gave me more details about what happened at this aid distribution site. eyewitnesses and medics today have reported that these people were killed when israeli troops opened fire on people who were queuing at this aid distribution site. that fire came both from tanks, but also drones above. this has become nearly a daily occurrence now. we've been hearing reports for the last couple of weeks of israeli troops opening fire on people waiting for aid at these new aid distribution sites run by the gaza
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humanitarian foundation, which is this new foundation run by the us and israel to essentially bypass the un as the biggest provider of aid in gaza. now, we've had also a spokesman from the al-awda hospital in the region saying that they received 23 bodies, as well as more than 100 people who were injured after this incident. and we have seen graphic images from the hospital of bodies lying on the floor as they received casualties from this incident. as i say, this has been now a daily occurrence at some of these sites. although the gaza humanitarian foundation has denied that any shooting happened. as you say, ione, this has been repeated almost daily. but what's the israeli explanation for what happened today? is there any indication that they may listen to those appeals coming from the un and humanitarian agencies to change
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this controversial aid distribution system? well, the response we've had from the israeli military today is very similar to the response that they have given on other occasions. they say that their troops fired warning shots at what they described as suspects approaching troops. they then said that essentially planes struck these what they described as suspects, as they continued to approach the idf soldiers on the ground there. they've said that they are reviewing this incident and, as i say, the gaza humanitarian foundation, who run the site, deny that any shooting took place. but to answer your second point about whether they have any plans to change this, at the moment, no. they are continuing to be the main provider of aid
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replacing previous aid agencies in some parts of gaza. it has, as you say, been controversial humanitarian foundation say it doesn't meet humanitarian standards. and there are concerns from organisations including unicef, for example, that confusion as well about the times that aid will be distributed are leading to further chaos and complications at these aid sites. we've seen a lot of images over the last couple of weeks of people desperately crowding some of these spaces, running in cases to get food at the same time as there have been these multiple reports of shootings now as well. the gaza humanitarian foundation said earlier in june that it was looking into some reorganisation, some crowd control measures, which it has blamed for some incidents at the site. but i think at the moment there is no sign that israel is going to change its plans for aid distribution. mohammed mustafa is an australian-british volunteer doctor who has recently returned from his second volunteer medical mission to gaza serving at the al-ahli
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hospital providing critical emergency care. he spoke to me about what he witnessed in gaza. i wouldn't call it a health care system any more. 3630 hospitals have been partially or fully destroyed and when i was there, we are operating on the street and we're treating people on the floor we ran out of basic medicine and aesthetic and we have these mass casualty events, we were already limited and supplies in every day it dwindles further and further and he got to a stage where we had to reuse scalpels, with a wash and reuse scalpels on patients. the volume of patients that we would have would be catastrophic if it even happened in the health care system like the uk. never mind a health care infrastructure that was completely destroyed. essentially, it is not a health care system, it is a partial building with a first aid kit, that's what we're dealing with were dealing with some of the worst trauma injuries in the world. we're dealing with very basic medicine. on the issue of aid and supplies, there was a blockade there that's been partially lifted but what are doctors dealing with?
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on the issue of aid and supplies, obviously there was a blockade there in place. so, uh, you know, right now the united nations population fund, which deals with sexual and reproductive health, has said that they are have run out of half of their essential maternal medicine, which means that babies that are born preterm don't even have milk to be fed, which means that neonatal babies and premature babies will die. we have 55,000 pregnant women who don't have access to any form of health care or basic sanitation. um, we also have now an increasing volume of malnutrition. um, just last month, in may, i think at nasa hospital alone, um, just last month, in may, i think at nasser hospital alone, they had almost 200 children die from malnutrition alone. and malnutrition isn't just a cause of death. it also, um, it also causes children to.. their healing process takes a lot longer, um, when kids don't have the calories to recover.
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so we're dealing with, um, a catastrophic level at all areas of the health care system. now, you've been liaising with some foreign governments about an idea you have, which is to construct temporary hospitals outside of gaza and then move them in. talk to us about that. so look, i've been travelling around the world and we've been talking with the jordanian government. we actually have a hospital, a maternity and neonatal hospital ready to go in jordan. it is made out of caravans. it's essentially refurbished caravans. it has world class operating theatres, neonatal units, icus, pharmacies, pathology labs, um, and it's self-sufficient. it's solar panels powered. it has a sewerage and waterworks system, all operational. so it's a hospital on wheels, essentially. it can be driven into gaza today and it can be operational within a week. now we have the facility and the infrastructure for that. in a regional ally in jordan. not only will it help the people of gaza, it will also help a regional ally as well in the king of jordan, who's under a lot of pressure to be seen to be doing something.
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and this is something that can ease the tension in gaza and can also help a regional ally. have you approached the israeli government about this? so i've approached the australian government. i've approached the british government. to act as your intermediaries is it? well, yeah. i mean, you know, i'm not a diplomat. i'm a doctor. and i'm here to provide a health care service for the most vulnerable patients, probably in the world. and we have a hospital ready to go. and we also have the infrastructure ready to build a paediatric hospital, which can be operational within months. and we can drive that into gaza. what i need, though, is i need my government, which is the australian government and the british government, to come together and work together. i've had meetings at the house of parliaments. i've had meetings with the foreign secretary in australia. what have they said to you, to your idea? well, look, i think what you're seeing now is every time the british government act, they act in coordination with the canadian government, the australian government and the french government. and i think that's the way we have to move forward with this hospital. we have to have a joint coalition. um, you know, we have seen recently on the news of, you know, iranian missiles hitting israeli hospitals and the outrage that has caused around the world.
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but there's no outrage for the fact that all of these hospitals in gaza have been destroyed, and hospitals that can come into gaza to replace those hospitals are not allowed in. so, unfortunately, what i need is i need courage and bravery from governments to negotiate to get this in, because us as ngos, health care workers, we can't do that. i mean, i've done a lot for a doctor. i've built you a hospital, i've got the funding for the hospital, and i've got a whole host of doctors ready to go in to risk their lives, because we still risk our lives going in, to risk our lives to help the most vulnerable population. so what i really need is i need our government to listen. around the world and across the uk,
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keir starmer condemned the action as 'disgraceful', calling it an act of vandalism. the bbc understands that the home secretary will move to proscribe the palestine action group in the coming weeks, effectively branding them as a terrorist organisation. from the base in oxfordshire, phil mackie sent this update. palestine action is a group that until now
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had largely been protesting and in some cases occupying buildings connected to defence companies, particularly those connected to israel. but this action at the raf brize norton airbase is different to that. and it's prompted the government, we think, now to take action to prescribe it, which will mean it becomes effectively a terrorist organisation and to be a member of it would be illegal. now, last night in the middle of the night, they somehow managed to get through the perimeter fence. now we've seen where they breached the fence, which is in some distance down in that direction. they came through one of the weaker points on this very large perimeter. they were able to get their e-scooters straight onto the runway, and then brazenly travel for more than a mile up to the aircraft, use an adapted fire
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extinguisher to spray red paint in one of these airbus voyager planes engines, before going all the way back again and escaping. they're still at large. there's an investigation being led by counter-terrorism officers from the south southeast, alongside raf police who patrol this base, and thames valley police, who have the jurisdiction for this part of oxfordshire. and their priority, they say, is to locate the people responsible and to arrest them for what they say is criminal damage, although it's now being looked at as a potential terrorist offence as well. it's clearly embarrassing for the mod, for the raf that this breach happened. as i say, there are large parts of the perimeter fence which are impregnable. they're really tall metal fences, barbed wire and cameras, but it's so long. there are other weak points. and that's where the palestine action protesters managed to get in last night, not only to get in and carry out the damage on those aircraft, but to film it and post it this morning. the mod has said that the damage is being assessed on that aircraft, but that it won't, they think, at least in the short term, impacts any of its operations. let's take you to saint petersburg. the russian president vladimir putin has been speaking at the st petersburg international economic forum. he said he was worried when asked if he was concerned that the world was heading towards world war three. russia has a strategic
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partnership with iran and president putin is urging the united states not to intervene in the israel-iran conflict. last year's anti-tourism protests in europe drew global headlines. this summer, the tensions are back, with more protests. earlier this week locals in spain have been shooting water guns at visitors saying a flood of summer visitors is driving up housing costs in their cities and pushing out locals. however, many local residents and businesses are concerned that tourists may be frightened away. simon browning reports from mallorca. touch down, majorca. summer 2025 is on. the local time is ten past three. the mass migration south for sun, sea and sights is underway, but unrest remains in our favourite paradise. protesting against tourism on spain's streets is back, and the holiday industry is starting to worry. the issues of overtourism are so pertinent here in palma. i've just been walking through the streets and chanced upon this protest.
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this tent, it represents the main problem we have here in the balearic islands, especially in palma. we have very... we have a lot of problems to afford to rent. if you have to pay this in rent, it's more than your salary. it's impossible to us. a hot issue for the local press - how the surge in visitors and a boom in airbnbs and illegal holiday apartments is making it hard for locals to find somewhere to live. it's no surprise that spain is the uk's favourite holiday destination. just look at it. and here in palma nova in majorca, the restaurant owners and bars are keen to make sure that brits know that it's still open for tourism, regardless of those protests. resorts like this, filled with bars, restaurants and shops were built for our holidays - spain's economy has done very well from them. very few protests happen here. of course i would tell them, don't be afraid. come - come to us. we thrive off of having you. we need... we need the british tourism. spain anticipates 100 million visitors this year - a record. its ambassador to the uk is keen to stress protests are small, and do not represent the view of the spanish people. what does the spanish government want to say to those people that were squirted with water pistols in cafes on sunday, who've paid to come to spain to eat your food, drink your coffee, drink your
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beer, enjoy the sights, and they're met with being sprayed with water pistols? well, all i can say is that we are awfully sorry and that it doesn't represent at all the feeling in spain. you know how well tourists are treated in spain in general - and british people particularly. the atmosphere in spain is not hostile at all. on the contrary, it is as friendly as ever. and we are working hard, as you know, now - not on making numbers grow - we don't want numbers to grow. we want satisfaction to grow in spain. the spanish government has begun tighter regulation of holiday flats. the tourist industry is bitter about the damage rentals have done. a long, hot summer is ahead. thailand says the population of endangered indochinese tigers
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has made a remarkable recovery. officials say the increase is due to a joint project between the thai government and the wwf. the measures include a breeding programme for deer, which then become prey for the tigers. the latest data indicates their numbers ranged around 200 last year compared to about 40 in 2007. to their legions of fans they're fluffy and adorable, to others they look rather scary - either way labubu dolls have become the latest must-have toy accessory. sold by chinese toy maker pop mart, the elfin creature has become a viral sensation, with millions sold. they've also caught the attention of celebrities - rhianna and kim kardashian, among many high profile owners. and competition for those who want to get their hands on one - is fierce. i've been speaking to cathrine jansson-boyd, professor in consumer psychology at anglia ruskin university and asked what's the attraction of these dolls. a lot of it is that there is an element that people
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really want to engage with fun and frivolous things because it reminds them of their childhood. so we kind of almost revisit what it was like to be little, and a lot of us have nice memories from when we were younger. so, you know, i was telling someone earlier on that when i was a kid, we had these cabbage patch dolls, and i vividly remember waiting for this doll to arrive at home with the expectation of seeing whether this doll would have black hair or blonde hair or brown hair, or whether it would have a pink dress or a blue dress. and you didn't know. just like with the labubus, you kind of waited for something. it was the element of surprise. it was fun. it was different. and just because you're an adult, it doesn't mean you forget these fun type of experiences. and we want to have fun. and the expectations of not knowing what you're going to get just heightens
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the arousal, which means that people really engage with it. now, there's been some discussion that because these dolls are made in china, perhaps they're about generating chinese soft power that feel good factor. do you agree with that? no, i don't. just because i think consumers usually when they get carried away and connect with different items, they don't necessarily think about where it's manufactured. even if you ask a lot of the people who have them, they will probably say they have no idea where they're actually from. so, of course, you know, it's always great for a country, regardless of which country, when they kind of hit onto something that's immensely popular. but that doesn't mean that the average consumer
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hello, i'm kasia madera. this is the context on bbc news. the ayes to the right, 314. the noes to the left, 291. the ayes have it, the ayes have it! unlock! it's been a particularly emotional week for me because it was the anniversary of my sister's murder, and that's what brought me here. but jo used to say if good people don't step forward and come into politics, then want do we end up with? i really regret that the house of commons so far is still supportive, but i do think that is changing. we've seen a significant reduction in support for the bill. welcome to the context on bbc news.
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