BBC News Briefing

9 August, 2024

Andy McFarlane

Hello. With the Middle East braced for Iran's response to the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on its soil, Hugo Bachega assesses the calculations in Tehran. Amid fears of a regional war, Fergal Keane and Alice Doyard find some rare solidarity between communities in the occupied West Bank. We also look back at Northern Ireland's road to peace, and feature breakdancing, volcanoes and bears. I got a very rare 7/7 in this week's quiz. See if you can too.

GET UP TO SPEED

Russia is still struggling to repel a cross-border incursion by Ukraine, which said it had hit a military airfield deep inside Russia. Meanwhile, BBC Verify has examined footage of a badly damaged Russian convoy.

A passenger plane has crashed in Brazil, killing all 62 people on board.

A huge explosion on a cargo ship that rocked one of China's busiest ports has been caught on camera.

AT THE SCENE

Al Farasiya, Jordan Valley

Confronting violent settlers, together

Gil Alexander has a white beared and wears a white T-shirt and cream cap. He reaches out to touch the arm of Ahmad Daraghme, who wears a grey striped long-sleeved T-shirt and grey hat, and has a dark beard. They are sitting under the shade of a tree, in a dry landscape with sheep and a dog visible in the background

Farmers like Ahmad, left, say access to water for families, crops and herds is regularly blocked by settlers. Credit: BBC

Since the 7 October Hamas attacks on Israel, harassment of Palestinians by Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank has escalated, with the UN reporting more than 1,000 attacks. But one group of activists is showing solidarity with Palestinian shepherds.

Fergal Keane & Alice Doyard, BBC News

Only a fool would walk into the hills and not be on their guard. High on the hill opposite was the Jewish settlement of Rotem. Close by was an Israel Defense Forces post - there to protect the settlers. Anybody looking down would see the gathering at Ahmad Daraghme's home: the Palestinian shepherd; the Israeli activists who support him; the foreign journalists with their camera.

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Chatting to Ahmad was a 71-year-old Jewish man who regularly accompanies the shepherd into the hills, in spite of violence and harassment. Gil Alexander belongs to the Jordan Valley Activists, a group of Israelis committed to protecting Palestinians. "I feel like a representative of a humanitarian religious Judaism," Gil says. "There are few today in Israel."

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The fact that he is a devout religious Jew infuriates the settlers, who believe the West Bank - the ancient lands of Judea and Samaria - belong to the Jewish people. Shai Rosengarten is a leading figure in the Zionist organisation Im Tirtzu, which supports the settlements. Settler violence, he says, is only carried out by a minority. He claims that what he calls "radical" human rights activists are the problem.

Read on

The background: Israel has built about 160 settlements - ruled illegal by a UN court - housing some 700,000 Jews in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. Here's more detail on the Palestinian territories.

War in Gaza: Israel has agreed to send negotiators to a new round of talks over a ceasefire and hostage release deal.

Escalation fears: Iran is keeping the region guessing as it considers its response to the assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, writes Hugo Bachega.

PICKS OF THE WEEK

The mother of detained academic Edni López has long dark hair and wears an orange top. She leans into a woman with long brown hair and a blue-and-white striped blouse, who comforts her. In the background, a man holds a placard reading: 'Edni López - disappeared'

'Give me back my daughter'

Ione Wells reports on relatives' anguish at the detention of 2,000 Venezuelans amid protests over its disputed election result.

Read now >

Blake Lively has long blonde, wavy hair and red lipstick. She looks over her right shoulder and smiles, with a large display of purple flowers visible in the background

'A story that's fun, tragic and inspiring'

Blake Lively talks about her adaptation of Colleen Hoover's It Ends With Us, which some critics argue romanticises abuse.

R ead the interview >

Drastic solution for Romania's bear problem

In July, a 19-year-old hiker was mauled to death by a young bear. In response, the government overturned a hunting ban.

Read more >

A woman performs a breaking move by spinning on her head

Your weekend listening: Making it as a breaker

Breaking is an art form, a cultural touchstone and now an Olympic sport. Hear what it takes to become a champion.

Listen now >

THE BIG PICTURE

The long path to Northern Ireland's peace

A grainy treated image of a man holding a newspaper with the headline: 'It's over'

More than 3,000 people were killed in sectarian violence over a period of 30 years known at the Troubles. Credit: Pacemaker

As we approach the 30th anniversary of the ceasefires that set Northern Ireland on the road to peace, a new project analyses what's been achieved since - and what more must be done. Former BBC correspondent Brian Rowan recounts the secret talks, the political risks and the intervention of Bill Clinton that helped achieve what had seemed impossible.

Read the report

FOR YOUR DOWNTIME

Italy's changing volcanoes

Mount Etna and Mount Stromboli are becoming more lively.

Here's why

And finally... in Colombia

New artefacts have been uncovered on the 18th Century Spanish galleon dubbed the "holy grail of shipwrecks" as part of an exploration that started in May. Among the new finds are an anchor, glass bottles and a bedpan, according to the Colombian Institute of Anthropology and History.

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– Andy

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