Welcome to bbc News Broadcasting to viewers in the uk and around the world. We start in the us where four people have been killed and nine others injured in a shooting at a school in georgia, 50 Miles North east of atlanta. Police have named a M Year old Colt Gray as being the suspect of killing two of his fellow students, and two teachers, at apalachee high school. One eyewitness who lives across from the school described what he saw. Crazy, like it, it looked like. I didnt really pay attention at first, i was like those sound like they were at school, and i look over and the alarm started going off. The School Alarms and people were going out around the school. Like, they were doing like the drill, the fire drill stuff. I knew something was seriously wrong then. You dont hear about that happening. You hear about it happening all around the world, but it shows that it can happen anywhere, you know . The local sheriff, jud smith, spoke at a News Conference earlier about how the incident will not break the town. I was born and raised here. I went to school in this school system. My kids go to this school system. Im proud of this school system. My heart hurts for these kids, my heart hurts for our community. But i want to make it very clear that hate will not prevail in this county. I want that to be very clear and known. Love will prevail over what happened today. I assure you of that. President biden says we cannot continue to accept this as normal. And, the Vice President , Kamala Harris, has spoken about the shooting at a Campaign Event in new hampshire. Now, our hearts are with all the students, the teachers and their families, of course. And we are grateful to the first responders and Law Enforcement that were on the scene, but this is just a senseless tragedy on top of so many senseless tragedies. And it is just outrageous that every day in our country, in the united states of america, that parents have to send their children to school worried about whether or not their child will come home alive. It is senseless we have got to stop it, and we have to end this epidemic of Gun Violence in our country once and for all. You know, it doesnt have to be this way. It doesnt have to be this way. Our North America Correspondent peter bowes, with more on what we know about the suspect. Colt gray is his name, 14 years old, as you say. He was apprehended at the school. It seems quite quickly by a two School Resource officers. These are in effect Law Enforcement officers assigned to the school. It happens quite frequently across this country now that Police Officers are assigned to individual schools. And it was those officers that apprehended the suspect without, it seems, any further incident. He was taken into custody for questioning. We know that he will be charged with murder and tried as a an adult. Clearly it is very early in the investigation, but the fact that the suspect is still alive, which is not always the case in shootings like this. It means that the youth authorities, that the Police Detectives can talk to the suspect about a possible motive, talk to the suspect about the gun, where did someone of 14 years old get a gun from and was able to take it into a school . Those are the questions on so many peoples minds after, well, yet another School Shooting Tragedy that has become all too familiar in this country. Another one, as you mentioned, peter, 14 years old, that is a very young age for the shooter to be. And to be tried as an adult, certainly more information we are looking forward to coming out of this as we follow the story. I want to get your reaction to as well what we have seen from Kamala Harris, we heard from Joe Biden as well, giving his comments. This is happening, you know, in the Run Up to the election come november. How else have candidates been responding . Well, it is, as Kamala Harris said, it is an election issue. Ive got to say it isnt at the moment one of those issues thats been uppermost. Weve heard a lot about immigration, the american economy, not necessarily guns and long running problems with guns in american society, but clearly Kamala Harris would like to make it one of those big issues. We also heard from Donald Trump, the republican candidate. He didnt talk about guns as an issue, but i willjust tell you a few of the things he had to say on Social Media. He said, our hearts are with the victims and Loved Ones of those affected by the tragic event in winder georgia. He said, these chairs children were taken to as far too soon by sick and deranged monster. The words of Donald Trump. It clearly as you imply, steve, there will be politicians around this country once again raising this issue and i think suspect many americans asking the question, will anything actually change . Because theres been so many attempts in washington in congress to change Gun Law and a big part of that will depend on the makeup of congress, the political makeup after the november election. Staying with the us which is trying to counter what it sees as russian attempts to influence the upcoming president ial election. Sanctions have been imposed on 10 people including the two top editors of the russian state funded Broadcaster Rt. They are accused of using american Social Media influencers to try to influence the 2024 election. These websites were designed to appeal to american readers as if they were major us news sites, like the Washington Post or fox news. But in fact, they were fake sites. They were filled with russian Government Propaganda that had been created by the kremlin to reduce international support for ukraine, bolster pro russian policies and interests and influence voters in the united states and in other countries. Internal documents of the kremlin described the content as, bogus stories disguised as newsworthy events. This malign Influence Campaign has been referred to as doppelganger. The russian Public Relations companies drove viewers to these websites by deploying influencers and paid Social Media advertisements. They also created fake Social Media profiles, posing as us citizens, post comments on Social Media platforms with links to the site. According to sdas records, it actively sought to, eliminate the possibility of detection of the russian footprint. Richard fontaine, is the ceo of the Center For A New American Security an organization that conducts Research And Analysis on national security issues. He told me the sanctions the us government has put into place are appropriate. Russias behaviour is shocking, but it certainly not surprising that the russians interviewed in the 2016 president ial election and as recently as 2022 in the midterm elections in the united states. So they are shocking, they are not surprising, the indictments and the kind of sanctions that the us government has put into place are good but they are also limited. We have tried these kinds of measures before, you can shut down the means through which russia operates but you are not going to be able to shut down all of them. In the russian see this generally is a low cost potentially high Consequence Way to interfere in what they see as a hostile nation state. Give us a sense of how complicated these techniques are to try to influence elections . Are to try to influence elections . � , ,. , elections . Theres Plenty Of tools out elections . Theres Plenty Of tools out there, elections . Theres Plenty Of tools out there, but elections . Theres Plenty Of tools out there, but they i elections . Theres Plenty Of. Tools out there, but they seem tools out there, but they seem to increase by the day by malign actors who wish to use them according to the documents. The russians employ fake websites, they hire companies inside the united states and underfalse states and under false pretences to be able to intern higher influencers. They also use Artificial Intelligence to create images which were then propagated on Social Media platforms. They use Chat Gpt in order to generate messages and proper english and so forth. So theres a lot out there to be able to use, and of course, the digital space is a big Surface Area in which to be active. And Thatis Area in which to be active. And that is where this is mostly being waged. That is where this is mostly being waged that is where this is mostly being waged. This is in part why authorities being waged. This is in part why authorities want being waged. This is in part why authorities want social| why authorities want Social Media platforms to be more accountable for the content that takes place on their platforms. It that takes place on their platform that takes place on their latforms. , ~. , platforms. It is. And of course it is else platforms. It is. And of course it is also. We platforms. It is. And of course it is also. We should platforms. It is. And of course it is also. We should say it is also. We should say that Social Media platforms generally speaking, especially since 2016 have increased our efforts to root out some of this, but its difficult and its not going to always be a complete solution to this phenomenon. Really, theres going to continue to happen until either of the russian government or whoever else might do this and there is evidence that iranians in chinese and others are involved in these kinds of things. You either believe their actions arent going to be successful or that they are going to pay a cost higher then the benefit they think they might get, so thatis they think they might get, so that is why the us imposing costs on the government of russia needs to come into play. With regards to this specific case, do we have a sense of what Outcome Russia is looking to gain . What Outcome Russia is looking to aain . ~. ,. , what Outcome Russia is looking to aim ~. ,. , to gain . Well, again, according to gain . Well, again, according to the us government to gain . Well, again, according to the us government officials, j to the us government officials, they have a favourite candidate in Donald Trump and the president ial election and would like to channel sentiment in that direction. I think he would be lighter on ukraine and its defence than would Kamala Harris if she were elected, so they have a perverted candidate they have a perverted candidate they would like to see support to go toward. And they also want to soften up any support for continuing assistance in ukraine which of course has to be appropriate by the congress. Beyond that, Dissension And Confusion inside the body politic, theyve got a lot of kindling to work with, given our own divisions, but in the russian mind, divided america is one that is less threatening to them and that is one they would like to see happen. More than seven years after a fire tore through Grenfell Tower in london killing 72 people an inquiry has blamed a series of failures by successive governments, the Construction Industry and what it called dishonest cladding firms. The blaze broke out on the fourth floor of the Tower Block in 2017, before spreading up the sides of the building with the help of cladding. The inquiry said a company had deliberately concealed fire risks, while previous governments had ignored, delayed or disregarded concerns. Tom symonds reports. There have been seven years of mornings over grenfell with no definitive answers to the question why did this happen . Today was different. But this is how it all began. A fridge caught fire. The owner called 999, then got out, then turned on his camera. 31 minutes later, flames reached the roof, then unstoppable. Buildings are designed to prevent fires spreading. As these pictures show, this one totally failed. Nick burton was among the few rescued, guided to safety. I dont actually remember coming out into the light. I dont remember, like, being handed over. I dont remember when i took my first real breath. I know that i thought i was going to die and melt at some stage. He coughs. In the tower. They call that the grenfell cough. But he lost his wife, pilar, after the fire. She was the last of its 72 victims. And this was the final conclusion of the chairman of the seven year public inquiry. The simple truth is that the deaths that occurred were all avoidable, and those who lived in the tower were badly failed over a number of years and in a number of different ways, by those who were responsible for ensuring the safety of the building and its occupants. The largest group representing victims of the fire have always said exactly that. Human life was never a priority, and we lost friends, neighbours and Loved Ones in the most horrific way the largest group representing victims of the fire have always said exactly that. Human life was never a priority, and we lost friends, neighbours and Loved Ones in the most horrific way through greed, corruption, incompetence and negligence. If youre looking for the one Person Or Company that might have been to blame for the deaths of 72 people at grenfell, you wont find it in this massive seven volume report, because this was a failure of the system at all levels across the board, and it started at the top with Governments Labour and conservative. They were warned. Fires involving flammable cladding over 18 years. Six died at Lakanal House in south london, but ministers and civil servants didnt change the regulations governing building materials. In 2010, David Cameron and nick Cleggs Government wanted a bonfire of regulations to help businesses. In the Run Up to grenfell, the inquiry says matters of safety were ignored, delayed or disregarded. In 2016, the ageing west London Block was refurbished with new cladding to make it look good next to a newly constructed school. But look at the Design Sheets of Aluminium And Plastic shaped into square boxes. A multinational, arconic, made the sheets. It didnt come up with the design, but it knew the Box Shape was extremely dangerous, according to the inquiry. It had commissioned tests and found the boxes collected molten plastic. Yet this was deliberately concealed from the construction market, and arconic must take responsibility for the use of cladding at grenfell, the report says. A host of contractors were involved in the work itself, including an architect, studio e, a cladding installer, harley facades, and a project manager, rydon. They were incompetent, the inquiry found, and passed the buck when it came to safety. That night, firefighters had to improvise a plan to evacuate grenfell when the fire got out of control. No one, the inquiry said, appeared to have thought they needed to be trained. The London Fire brigade said today thats changed and hundreds of lives have been saved. In the commons, this was the prime ministers response. I want to start with an apology on behalf of the british state to each and every one of you, and indeed to all of the families affected by this tragedy. It should never have happened. The prime minister visited grenfell two weeks ago without any publicity, leaving a wreath. Today, he said it was imperative there was a swift police investigation. And he went further. So i can tell the House Today that this government will write to all companies found by the inquiry to be part of these horrific failings, as the first step to stopping them being awarded government contracts. And we will, of course, support the metropolitan police and the prosecutors as they complete their investigations. No charges are expected until the end of 2026 at the earliest, nearly ten years after grenfell. Tom symonds, bbc news. Around the world and across the uk. This is bbc news. Israels prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, has again insisted that israeli forces will not leave the Philadelphi Corridor a strategically important strip of land in Southern Gaza along the border with egypt. Thousands of people are demonstrating again in israel, accusing Mr Netanyahu of sacrificing a Ceasefire Deal with hamas that would bring the hostages home. But Mr Netanyahu argues that israeli troops must remain in this Buffer Zone to prevent weapons and possibly hostages being smuggled across the border. That Philadelphi Corridor became completely porous. The other borders controlled by us. But once this was perforated, even though the policy of egypt was to prevent it, you know, it didnt necessarily work. It didnt succeed. And this border, once we left our side of the Philadelphi Corridor, rockets went in, missiles went in, drones went in, ammo went in, Weapons Manufacturing Equipment came in, Tunnel Drilling Equipment came in. Once we got out, once we left the Philadelphi Corridor, iran could carry out its plan to turn gaza into a base, a terrorist enclave. Nomi Bar Yaacov is an international negotiator and Senior Fellow at chatham house. I asked her for her reaction to netanyahus comments. Well, i have to say, um, it doesnt surprise me, but, um, its not necessary for the Israeli Army to stay in the Philadelphi Corridor. Its notjust me saying that. Its also the israeli defence minister, yoav gallant, the entire defence industry, the head of the internal security forces, the head of mossad and the head of the idf, the Israeli Army. So its not, um, essential. There are other means to secure the corridor. The united states have stated that clearly, and the egyptians have. And the egyptians object vehemently to any israeli presence on the Philadelphi Corridor. So what is this position that netanyahu is taking, then mean for any potential Ceasefire Or Hostage release . It means that the lives of the remaining 101 hostages in gaza, the majority of whom are dead. It means that the ones who are alive are at serious risk of dying. And it also means theres a serious risk of escalation for the whole region. So without a ceasefire in gaza, there is going to be a massive escalation. It does seem that every time we get closer to it a Ceasefire Deal, a new issue pops up. Now its the Philadelphi Corridor. Now, whats your sense of how netanyahu is sort of carrying out this war into gaza . Well, my my sense is that he is prolonging the war. My sense is that he is trying to get, um, Donald Trump elected as president in the united states on the 5th of november, and that hes likely to escalate the war in gaza, um, and make it more difficult for Kamala Harris to win. And hes risking not only the lives of the hostages the israeli citizens held hostage. Hes also risking lives of innocent, many innocent palestinians. And as i said, theyre going to be theres going to be a regional escalation as a result. So unfortunately, it looks like a very, very dangerous and volatile moment, a Tipping Point for the region. Their problems on both sides and they havent showed any signs of being particularly forthcoming either. So you have got two leaders in israel leading respectively the Palestinian Population into a disaster. So Palestinian Population into a disaster. ,. , Palestinian Population into a disaster. , disaster. So how do you see this playing disaster. So how do you see this playing out disaster. So how do you see this playing out in disaster. So how do you see this Playing Out In The disaster. So how do you see this Playing Out In The nextl this Playing Out In The next sort a few weeks ahead and beyond that . Sort a few weeks ahead and beyond that . Sort a few weeks ahead and be ond that . ,. , beyond that . Given that the us elections are beyond that . Given that the us elections are coming beyond that . Given that the us elections are coming up beyond that . Given that the us elections are coming up in elections are coming up in november, the 5th of november, we are likely to see an escalation not only in gaza but also in the. Benjamin yahoo managed to totally avoid the subject of lemon on and the over 100,000 evacuees from the northern area. But clearly there is a very serious problem there is a very serious problem there and his being a long arm of substate effectively of iran and parts of the lebanese Fabric Part of the government there as long as there isnt a Cease Fire in gaza, everything is intertwined Comments Part of one big matrix, one big puzzle and the key to a is without gaza being a result there is a serious risk of regional escalation with with serious ramifications globally. To the Po E s ramifications globally. To the pepe S Tour ramifications globally. To the pope S Tour to ramifications globally. To the pope S Tour to age ramifications globally. To the pope S Tour to age of ramifications globally. To the | pope S Tour to age of pacific, pope � S Tour to age of pacific, pope � S Tour to age of pacific, Pope Francis used his first speech of his trip to call for the strengthening of the interreligious ties to help fight Extremism And Intolerance urging leaders to work with other faiths. Urging leaders to work with otherfaiths. He made the comment after meeting Indonesias President on wednesday, seen here embracing the pope outside the president ial palace injakarta. Presidential palace in jakarta. Members president ial palace injakarta. Members of the public had lined the streets to meet the 87 year old Pontiff Whod been discussing relations between religions in a speech to officials and diplomats. 0n officials and diplomats. On thursday, the pope will visit southeast asias largest mosque and leaders from six religions in indonesia. Now the Mexican Congress has approved Controversialjudicial Reforms in a marathon overnight session. The proposals will still need to be approved by Senate But President andr s Manuel L Pez 0brador� s supporters have a comfortable majority there. Under the plans, Seven Thousand magistrates and judges including Supreme Court justices will be elected by popular vote. The opposition and rights groups say its an effort by the president to concentrate power in the hands of his party. Officials in bangladesh say a further 8,000 muslim rohingya have crossed the Borderfrom Myanmar following the increased violence of the past two months. The acting Foreign Minister said bangladesh no longer had the capacity to shelter new arrivals. More than One Million rohingya live in overcrowded camps having fled religious violence seven years ago. A council of new zealands indigenous Maori Chiefs has chosen the late kings only daughter as the new queen. She was selected as king Tuheitias Successor and was cheered as she sat on a wooden throne during an elaborate ceremony in the countrys north island. Shes 27 and will be the second maori queen. The first was king tuheitias mother. A flotilla of War Canoes is carrying the new Queens Father for burial on a sacred mountain. The former king who used to be a Truck Driver died last week at the age of Sixty Nine following Heart Surgery. He had been recovering from Heart Surgery and had also been celebrating 18 years since he had become king. Thats all for now stay with bbc news. Hello. Were expecting a real mix of weather over the next couple of days. For some northwestern parts of the uk, its going to turn sunny and very warm, but further south for southern England And South wales, were expecting some Heavy Rain. Perhaps in one or two locations, a Months Worth of Rain Injust a couple of days that could cause some disruption. Its all because low pressure is continuing to swirl to the south of us, this band of rain here becoming quite slow moving, particularly, i think, across the southwest of england. But around that area of low pressure, were drawing in some humid air, so further north and west with some sunshine it will feel very warm. Now, during thursday, these Southern Parts of England And South wales will see some rain at times that Rain Turning Heavy and persistent in the southwest later on. Further north, a lot of Low Cloud, mistand murk, some spots of drizzle, but the best of the sunshine where you get some shelter from the breeze. Western scotland and northern ireland, temperature wise, well, maybe along some North Sea Coastjust 15 or 16 degrees, but elsewhere 18 21 with a slightly more humid feel. But as we head into the evening, this Heavy Rain affecting south west england, clipping into South Wales, and overnight, it looks like we will see more rain pushing along the south coast. So with that rain really totting up, there is the risk of flooding, some disruption. Further north, largely dry, some Mist And Murk and Low Cloud for North Sea coast. Quite a muggy start to friday morning. More rain through the day on friday across southern england, perhaps pushing northwards into South Wales and the midlands, perhaps East Anglia as well as we go through the day. Further north, while still some areas of Low Cloud, Mist And Murk for some northern and eastern coasts, but further west, some good spells of sunshine, and look at the Temperatures Liverpool at 26 degrees, parts of Western Scotland at 25 degrees, so feeling warm and quite humid into the weekend. 0ur Area of low pressure continues to swirl to the south of us, throwing some showers northwards. Still quite a lot of Mist And Murk and Low Cloud. Could be some fog around to start, saturday morning. Should see some spells of sunshine, and again, in the sunshine, feeling very warm with those temperatures, perhaps up to around 25 degrees. Into sunday, more of the same, really. Some showers, particularly in the south. Some sunshine, too. Still feeling warm and muggy. Us president Joe Biden will reportedly block the Nippon Steel takeover of Us Steel. Well explain why the deal has become such a contentious election issue. And well have a Special Report from bangladesh, on how the countrys bustling Textile Sector is navigating political turmoil. Hello and welcome to business today. Im steve lai. Us president Joe Biden is planning to block the takeover of Us Steel by japans Nippon Steel on national security grounds thats according to multiple us media reports. The 15 Billion deal would have created one of the worlds largest steel companies outside of china, and had been hailed by investors as an answer to the us compa ny� s financial woes. Shares in Us Steel fell more than 20 after reports of the decision. Heres Ritika Gupta with more
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