| | | Hello. I come with breaking news that two American hostages have been released by Hamas - they are the first captives to be freed in since the 7 October attack. Meanwhile, the Rafah crossing between Egypt and Gaza is still closed, but could open up for humanitarian aid starting tomorrow, reports Paul Adams. And I’m sure you will beat me on this week’s news quiz, where I achieved a woeful 1/7. |
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| | | | Get up to speed | | • | American hostages Judith and Natalie Raanan have been released by Hamas, Israeli officials have confirmed to the BBC. The mother and daughter are the first hostages released by the group. Follow our updates live. | | • | Republican lawmakers have voted to remove Jim Jordan as the party's nominee for Speaker of the US House of Representatives, after he failed three times to get elected in the house. | | • | A New York judge has threatened Donald Trump with jail for a "blatant violation" of a gag order in his civil fraud trial. |
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| | Expert Insights | Rafah crossing | | Diplomatic scramble to open Rafah crossing | | | | Trucks are still waiting at the border between Egypt and Gaza, two days after US President Joe Biden said humanitarian aid would be able to enter the enclave. The UN World Food Programme said it had “less than a week of food left” in Gaza. | | Trucks are still waiting at the border between Egypt and Gaza, two days after US President Joe Biden said humanitarian aid would be able to enter the enclave. The UN World Food Programme said it had “less than a week of food left” in Gaza. | | | | Paul Adams, Diplomatic correspondent |
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| UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres sounded extremely frustrated when he spoke in front of the still-blocked Rafah crossing earlier. It's not clear why today's experimental aid convoy – just 20 trucks – has still not crossed into the Gaza Strip. Guterres spoke of "conditions and restrictions" which needed to be addressed, but didn’t elaborate. Despite the deal between Israel and Egypt, brokered by US President Joe Biden, it seems there are still issues to be resolved. Israel insists that the trucks only carry food, water and medicine, and that none of it reaches Hamas. Its military campaign, which includes relentless air strikes, has also involved depriving the entire Gaza Strip of food, water, electricity and fuel.
Having instructed civilians in the northern part of Gaza to move south, the IDF has started telling people to head to open ground between Khan Yunis and al-Mawasi where aid will be available. Asked about the hold up this evening, a senior Israeli official told the BBC there were "ongoing issues which are being solved", adding that there was “a good chance" the 20 trucks would enter Gaza tomorrow. But the UN says that’s a tiny fraction of what's needed. |
| | | | • | In Washington: In a rare address to the nation from the Oval Office, Mr Biden said he would send an urgent funding request - expected to be $105bn (£87bn) - to Congress on Friday to help Ukraine and Israel. | | • | Anger in Tel Aviv: Families of hostages try to put pressure on the military as polls show support for the government is waning. | | • | The endgame for Israel: The defence minister of Israel has suggested that the long-term aim of its military campaign in Gaza is to sever all links with the territory. |
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| | Questions Answered | | What to make of China’s nuclear stockpile | | | | Xi Jinping has reportedly ordered his defence chiefs to develop the military capability to forcibly re-take Taiwan by 2027. Credit: Reuters |
| | An annual Pentagon report noted an expansion in China’s nuclear arsenal, now estimated to be holding some 500 operational warheads compared to around 400 in 2021. The report also said Beijing hopes to double its arsenal to over 1,000 warheads by 2030. But it said China remained committed to a "no-first strike" policy. | | | | China increasing its stockpile, according to the Pentagon. Why? | | President Xi Jinping has declared China will field a "world-class military" by 2049. Since he came to power in 2012, he has sought to modernise the country's armed forces. Lyle Morris, a senior fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute, told the BBC that developments such as hypersonic missiles were making China reconsider its second-strike policy, forcing the expansion of its stockpile. | | How does China compare to other nuclear-armed countries? | | While the report said the growth exceeded projections, China's stockpile is still dwarfed by Russia and the US. Russia has a nuclear arsenal of some 5,889 warheads, while the US can field 5,244, according to the independent Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. Henry Boyd of the International Institute for Strategic Studies said the reported rate of increase did not look "hugely exceptional". | | What else was in the report? | | The report also noted that Beijing has "amplified diplomatic, political, and military pressure" against Taiwan over recent months. Mr Xi has reportedly ordered his defence chiefs to develop the military capability to forcibly re-take the island by 2027. A series of ballistic missile overflights of Taiwan, increased flights into its airspace and a series of military exercises around its waters have been ordered to destabilise the island, the Pentagon report added. | | | | • | Reshuffle: Last summer, Mr Xi replaced two leaders of an elite unit managing its nuclear arsenal. |
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| | The big picture | | A zoo without animals | | | | The hologram system tracks everyone in the room and reacts accordingly. Credit: Hologram Zoo |
| | Visitors in this Brisbane zoo can’t touch the animals - because they don’t exist. My colleague Phil Mercer tells us of Australia's Hologram Zoo, where 50 lifelike displays - from dinosaurs to gorillas - have been crafted from lasers. But behind the trickery is a technology that might prove useful for surgeries or blood tests. | | | | |
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| | | For your downtime | | Thames immemorial | | Two experimental archaeologists take up stone age rowing. | | |
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| | And finally... in the Czech Republic | | In a strange sequel to the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, a Czech parish priest has admitted to smashing a dozen Halloween pumpkins carved by children and displayed near his church. Father Jaromir Smejkal has apologised for the gruesome act of vandalism - see for yourself. But he defended himself, saying his “duty as a figure of authority and a priest is to protect children and families from hidden evil”. |
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