of haiti's powerful gangs who took over the capital, port—au prince, while he was on a trip to kenya pushing for a un—backed police force. the transitional council, announced by the caribbean community bloc, will be in charge of nominating a new prime minister but haiti's gangs are demanding a seat at the table.0ur central america correspondent will grant is just outside of haiti and sent us this report. this is the dajabon border crossing between the dominican republic and haiti, and we have already seen dominican authorities deporting haitians back in to the poorest country in the americas at a time that it is facing its most acute humanitarian crisis since the 2010 earthquake. it is also that they are being deported into a political vacuum. prime minister ariel henry stood down, citing the fact that his situation was untenable given to the violence on the street of the capital, port—au—prince. his decision came after the caricom group of caribbean nations and the us secretary of state held an emergency meeting injamaica, and made clear that they saw the roadmap towards a transitional administration in haiti starting with his resignation. so, what happens next? well, the truth of the matter is that unfortunately things can still get much, much worse in haiti. the gangs are going to feel considerably emboldened by the fact that that have forced mr henry from power, and they already control around 80% of the capital, port—au—prince. and the hopes for a 1,000—strong kenyan—led security force are beginning to hit difficulties, as the kenyan authorities themselves are saying that you did not deploy police to the streets of port—au—prince without a sitting administration. for more on all this i spoke earlier with vanda felbab—brown, senior fellow at the brookings institute, where she is the director for the initiative on nonstate armed actors. the plan from caricom is for a transitional council to take charge at least temporarily. to what extent do you think haitians and the gangs are on board with this plan? traditional council is already in question. as of this morning, the idea was that the seven important sectors within haiti civil society, the religious sector, business community, key political parties would nominate a representative. that is in question since the morning. some very important actors appeared to be waffling and walking out. some of the very powerful gangs, such as the one led byjimmy cherizier, known as barbecue, have announced this is not going to be satisfactory. at the same time, a man that is currently aligned with at least some of the gangs, including cherizier, guy philipe, wants to be part of the council and or more importantly has declared he wants to create his own separate council that he would lead along with two men. so a great deal of uncertainty as to whether the council will be formed, how fast it form and to whom it would be acceptable. in the meantime, you have this power vacuum, obviously, that the prime minister, having announced his resignation. how concerned are you that someone like a gang leader or maybe guy philipe, a former rebel leader who led a 2004 coup could step in and try to fill that vacuum? that possibility is there and frankly that possibility will remain even if the council is formed. the reality is that street physical control is held by the gangs, including those aligned with guy philipe, so even if the council is formed, the national police, the very small national army that exists, are very weakened, their capacities are significantly collapsed and currently they are capable of holding only very small parts of port—au—prince. that is not going to change even when the council is seated. what could change then is the idea that the international multilateral support force, the mss, would have a chance to arrive. whereas your correspondent said, kenya — a key member — has announced that it's pausing any deployment until there is some governing authority in haiti. is there any cavalry on the way here? there was supposed to be a iooo—person—strong security force led by kenya — that seems to be follow through now that the prime minister ariel henry has resigned. what would that mean for the security situation in the meantime? apparently the security situation is at the mercy of the gangs. essentially, the political announcement has just kicked down the road the can of the gangs attempting to take the national palace and declaring themselves or their allies, such as guy philipe, to be in charge of the country. even if the council is seated, that reality will be there until the cavalry arrives, and the cavalry as you can see right now, faces great challenges and uncertainties and the force is small and they will find it really difficult to take on the gangs, especially if it will have to fight its way in, if the gangs actually seize the airport and continue holding it. currently they are surrounding the airport. the airport is not functional. but they could more physically and dramatically take over it. very briefly, caricom saying that really the idea is to transition to some sort of democratic process to elections. there have not been elections in haiti in many years. do you anticipate elections being held anytime soon in haiti? certainly not any time soon but the hope is and i think appropriately the idea is that the presidential transitional council, the leadership transitional council, would create the political environment to move towards elections. that needs to be however coupled with creating the security foundations and that remains a massive question mark. still an unstable situation there in haiti. vanda felbab—brown, senior fellow at the brookings institute, thank you very much for your insights tonight. thank you. the first ship with desperately needed food supplies for palestinians in gaza has finally set sail from cyprus. the open arms left larnaca on tuesday morning, on a journey that could take as long as two days. the un warns that massive aid shortages have left gaza on the brink of famine. if the first delivery succeeds, other ships will follow, as part of a european and emirati maritime effort. israel says it welcomes the creation of a maritime corridor and that it is facilitating the transfer of aid to gaza while its forces continue to fight hamas. meanwhile, we have a special report from gaza, where medical staff have told the bbc they were detained, beaten and prevented from carrying out vital duties after israeli troops raided their hospital last month. the staff say some detainees were stripped, kept in stress positions for several hours, or had muzzled dogs set upon them. israel said it occupied the nasser hospital site, believing it was used by hamas, and that several freed israeli hostages have said, they were held there. our correspondent, orla guerin, has more on the special report and just a warning — you might find some parts of her reporting distressing. not for the first time in this war, israeli soldiers have been filmed standing over stripped and kneeling detainees. but these are medical staff, detained after the israeli army overran the nasser hospital, in khan younis. most are still being held. for weeks, the medics had witnessed israel's advance as it closed in around the hospital. the fighting in khan younis was fierce. thousands of people who had sought refuge in the grounds fled under fire. even a hospital wasn't safe. one nurse was shot inside an operating theatre through a window. another person shot at the main entrance. the hospital was under siege. then, on february 15th, after giving warnings, israeli tanks rolled in. inside, utter chaos. patients rushed from collapsing wards. israel says it found hamas weapons and medication, which it says supports accounts from israeli hostages that they were held here. in the idf�*s own footage, you can see hospital patients detained outside in their beds and wheelchairs with their hands zip—tied. and this was the treatment for medical staff. at least 49 of them forced to leave their posts and remove their surgical clothing. israel says it was searching for concealed weapons and that among the 200 arrested at nasser were terrorists posing as medics. dr amira azoulay had remained at nasser throughout the siege. before israel's incursion, she risked her life to save others as people were shot inside the grounds. later, she witnessed what happened to her fellow doctors at the bar. translation: it was tough for us to see how the doctors who had bravely stayed at the hospital despite the dangers, were stripped and beaten. their hands were tied behind them and they were left in the sun for hours. dr ahmed sabah is one of very few medics to have since been released. he shows the positions they were forced to adopt for hours and says they were also tortured. his hand was broken by an israeli soldier, he says, and muzzle dogs were set on him. translation: they forced us to kneel down with our eyes blindfolded. there was a pit in the ground and we thought they would execute us and bury us. we said our prayers, but they were just intimidating us. the hospital manager who dealt with the israelis during the raid says with so many staff detained, patients died. translation: eight doctors and nurses were left - treating 250 patients. you can imagine the level of care we could give with no water or electricity in the hospital at that point. during this time, 13 patients and injured people died. israel says any abuse of detainees is against idf orders and is strictly prohibited. the bbc investigation into how israeli troops treated staff and patients at nasser hospital was raised today in the house of commons and the house of lords. the foreign secretary now calling for answers. these are very disturbing pictures and reports that have come out from this hospital and we need to get to the bottom of what exactly happened. and we need answers from the israelis about that. and when we have those, then it'll be easier to comment. in washington too, questions are being asked about the bbc investigation. has the us raised it with israel? i have only seen the report. i don't know if we have raised it, but i would expect that we would as it's the type of cases that we often raise with them to seek more information and to make clear, as we always have, that any detainees should be treated in strict compliance with international humanitarian law. the israeli army says it operated within nasser in a precise and focused manner, and it provided equipment enabling the hospital to function and to treat patients. but with the war continuing, and more than a0 medics still detained or missing, the hospital has been closed for weeks. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. let's look now at one of the more unique stories in the uk now. surfers, paddle—boarders and other water—lovers flocked to the river severn in the uk on tuesday. they were taking part in the severn bore, a natural phenomenon that causes a series of waves. it's the only expected five—star bore of the year, meaning it's the one biggest possible, and it's the first time in years it happened during daylight hours. people came from all over the world to take part. it's the anticipation. it's — i don't know, waking up at the crack of dawn. it's like a stupid adventure, and quite severe as well. here we are first thing in the morning waiting for some wave to appear out of nowhere. there's nothing else like it. it's because you're surfing the wrong wave up a river| inland, isn't it? and this is the one to do! it's great. i must go, cos i'm gonna miss it. - well, fortunately for that man and others, another severn bore is on its way. there is a four—star bore due wednesday morning. so it won't be as high, but it should still be unique. you're live with bbc news. here in washington, the us announced that it's sending $300 million in emergency aid to ukraine. it's the fifth package the us has sent since 2022 and the first since december of last year. additional funds for kyiv remain blocked by republican leaders in congress. presidentjoe biden has said the latest aid package is still not enough. but it will likely include ammunition, rockets and anti—aircraft missiles. i spoke with inna sovsun, a member of the ukrainian parliament, who talked to me about the impact, or lack thereof, she thinks the latest package will have. what is your reaction to this new aid package and what it means and how long do you think it will keep the guns firing, so to speak? we're relieved to hear this information because we urgently help from the united states. we we urgently help from the united states. ~ , ., united states. we understand it is not something _ united states. we understand it is not something that _ united states. we understand it is not something that will - united states. we understand it is not something that will help | is not something that will help us move forward. it will help us move forward. it will help us slightly catch up with what the russians are gaining in terms of equipment, ammunition. unfortunately, we have not been receiving all the aid we had been promised for the last couple of months. the delays in american aid has really had an impact on the front line and the situation over there. this aid will be a small really. it will not last long. but it is something, it is something and we hope it will allow us to survive until the big package of aid will arrive from congress. i what is the state of the war right now on the front lines on the ukrainian side? is that it won't help you advance but keep the status quo. what do ukrainian troops need right now?— quo. what do ukrainian troops need right now? ammunition is a hue need right now? ammunition is a huge need- _ need right now? ammunition is a huge need- we — need right now? ammunition is a huge need. we are _ need right now? ammunition is a huge need. we are so _ need right now? ammunition is a huge need. we are so short - need right now? ammunition is a huge need. we are so short of. huge need. we are so short of ammunition. if you look at the ratio used by the ukrainian and russian side it is 1—6, one —— seven and also air superiority. anyone from the western audience will understand that no western army would go on an offensive until it had air superiority. or at least some control of the air. we superiority. or at least some control of the air.— control of the air. we don't have any — control of the air. we don't have any of _ control of the air. we don't have any of that _ control of the air. we don't have any of that on - control of the air. we don't have any of that on our - control of the air. we don't i have any of that on our side, f-i6s, have any of that on our side, f—i6s, and pilots, they are badly needed right now. and we basically need more things on the front line and we are fighting against the second—biggest army in the world who are continuing to butt up excess space and equipment and doesn't care much for the rest of their soldiers. let's turn to some other news now. allies of the late russian opposition leader alexei navalny say his former chief of staff was attacked outside his home in lithuania. a spokeswoman says someone assaulted leonid volkov with a hammer and tear gas. it's unclear whether the attack is linked to mr volkov�*s political activity. the alleged assailant and their motive is still unknown. there's been another mass kidnapping in nigeria. 61 people were seized in the state of kaduna in northern nigeria. that comes just days after more than 280 school students were taken by gunmen. armed men known locally as bandits are suspected in this latest attack. they've carried out a string of abductions to force ransom payments. more than 11,700 people have reportedly been kidnapped by various groups since nigeria's president bola tinubu came to power ten months ago. the police chief for the texas city where 19 students and two teachers were killed in a mass shooting has resigned. uvalde police chief daniel rodriguez stepped down a week after a report cleared his department of wrongdoing in the response to the 2022 shooting at robb elementary school. it took officers an hour to get inside a classroom and kill the gunman, amid desperate 911 calls from children. the us is now officially set for a repeat of the 2020 election as bothjoe biden and donald trump have secured enough votes to each claim their party's presidential nomination. former president donald trump is the republican party's presumptive nominee for president after voters handed him three more wins in washington, georgia and mississippi. that comes just hours afterjoe biden was projected as the democratic party's presumptive nominee. while the outcomes were expected, it does signal the campaign is now entering a new stage. the early conclusion to the nominating contests means both candidates will now focus on the general election, facing a long stretch of campaigning before november. earlier, i wasjoined by politico's washington reporter daniel lippman. first of all, what would normally be, you know, big headlines — we have the two presumptive nominees on both sides — democrat and republican — but it's basically what we expected. donald trump and joe biden with a rematch looking very certain. does anything change now that essentially this is official? well, both candidates are now going to focus more on their general election, try to move to the middle, traditionally. donald trump doesn't often do that because he wants to focus more on his base, but he's going to have to try to get some of those nikki haley voters. 1 in 7 republican voters during the primary said that they did not want to vote for trump, they were not planning to. so even though trump is ahead in the polls, he needs to try to appeal to them and say, "hey, i'm not going to mess with democracy — i'm just a traditional conservative here. i want to bring back america first," like he did in the first administration. do you seejoe biden trying to potentially attract some former nikki haley voters too — bring them over to the democratic side? i think that's a big focus of his right now. they're reaching out to some of the fundraisers for haley and saying, "hey, can you donate to our campaign?" the biden campaign feels pretty good about the financial position they're in, because they need hundreds of millions of dollars to do all of those campaign ads, and they feel like they can try to shape the election and tear down trump, even by spending billions of dollars and saying, "hey, this guy is not gonna help america." they're going to bring up the nato comments, saying inviting putin to attack nato countries — is that something that most americans want? they're going to say no. the other big news, that testimony by robert hur. neither democrat or republicans were happy with the report he released. democrats said he was not or should not be referring to the age issue, and the republicans say it was double standards about how classified documents have been prosecuted. what was your takeaway? it seemed like political theatre on capitol hill. he wanted to defend himself, obviously, and it becomes almost like sports where every congressman gets a five—minute countdown clock. 5 minutes to get 15 minutes of of fame basically and they do not even listen to what mr hur says. what i want to do is have something they can clip for social media and make their point. that is what congress has turned into, a lot of political posturing and not addressing real issues. nice segue. speaking of social media, the bill regarding tiktok flying through these committees at record time. a house vote expected tomorrow. this will be a bill that, if it does pass, could lead to a ban on tiktok. what do you think the chances are this passes? the senate if it is very sceptical that at the senate is very sceptical on this. there is also the concern of free speech. courts will likely strip this bill down and say it is unconstitutional. interesting is also how donald trump tried to ban tiktok in his administration four years ago but now he wants to reach those young voters, those minority voters using tiktok, so he's now saying nice things and he also wants financial support from one of tiktok�*s major investors, geoff yass. it is interesting how his own aid, kelly and connolly, advocating for the use of tiktok. it is kind of interesting to see. very interesting how this is going. if we see this bill passed, hypothetically, could that be a campaign issue? could that make a lot of younger voters not happy with joe biden? he said he would sign the bill. i do not think it is going to pass through the senate. tiktok is 170 million active users in america monthly. wow. a lot of those people are voters and if they do not want congress taking away one of the apps that they use. they form communities and people on tiktok are rushing through this bill because they don't want to get the wrath of these tiktok creators and just people who love the app, and they acknowledge that there are mental health concerns, addiction issues, but they also say that people would be using another app if tiktok was banned, so kind of interesting free speech versus how big these tech companies and how powerful they are. tiktok incredibly powerful and very popular. we saw the big campaign by tiktok users, calling the congressman to say we want to keep tiktok. trump does not want facebook to gain from this because he does not like zuckerberg. thank you very much. and we havejust one more story for you. japan's space one rocket called kairos failed in its inauguralflight, exploding just seconds after ta ke—off in western japan. the solid—fuelled rocket left behind a large cloud of smoke and its debris was seen in flames on the ground. the company behind the project was aiming to be the first japanese firm to put a satellite in orbit. the rocket was carrying an experimental government satellite. there was no immediate indication of what caused the explosion. it's not clear if there were any injuries. that's all from the team here in washington. i'm carl nasman. thank you for watching. hello there. after a very wet february, the rain has continued to fall during march, particularly across southeast england. here, it's been much wetter than average. we've seen 2 inches of rain, 50mm in some places, and that's more than the average march rainfall, and we're not even halfway through yet. it is looking a bit drier for the southeast in the next few days, but there is rain elsewhere. and we're going to see a spell of milder conditions in the next few days. that's because the air is coming all the way from a long way south, up across the uk, in between these two weather fronts here, and it's this second one here that's focusing the rain as we head into wednesday. now, that is stumbling its way across scotland and northern ireland, heading into northern england and north wales. there's going to be some sunshine following to the north, but the winds picking up, bringing some gales in northern scotland and some showers. and for england and wales, there's going to be a lot of cloud again. still some damp, drizzly, low cloud across western coasts and hills. but further east, with the brighter skies, temperatures could reach 15 degrees and we're going to be double figures in scotland and northern ireland. now, that area of low pressure bringing that windy weather in northern scotland will pull away overnight, so things do calm down. and those weather fronts start to move northwards, back into scotland and northern ireland. here, it will be a little bit chilly first thing on thursday morning, but, again, a very mild start for the rest of the uk. we've got that rain moving northwards into scotland and northern ireland. some sunshine for the north of the country, but we will see further showers coming in to wales, western parts of england, some eastern areas of england, and particularly southeast england and east anglia may well be dry. and we should get a bit of sunshine here, so 16, 17 degrees not out of the question. things are a little cooler still across scotland and northern ireland. that weather front, then, does move northwards, taking rain across more of scotland. the low pressure then driving that system sits across the uk. that weather front will be out of the way for friday. things will be turning a little bit cooler. windy weather actually through the english channel, and we'll see showers coming into england and wales — some of these could be heavy and thundery. bit of snow over the scottish mountains, otherwise it's rain sinking southwards here, a northerly wind pushing down — that's going to introduce cooler air. but we still could see 13 degrees across some southeastern areas to end the week. 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. welcome to hardtalk. i'm stephen sackur. diplomatic efforts to stop or at least pause the war in gaza are not working. every new day intensifies the suffering of the 100 or so israeli hostages being held in gaza and the more than two million palestinians, mostly displaced and desperately short of food, water and health care. a ship carrying aid has set out from cyprus. the americans are talking of building a landing pier. but if the gaza war is a test of international crisis management, then it hardly looks like a success. my guest is the palestinian ambassador at the united nations, riyad mansour. does diplomacy offer any glimmer of hope?