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More than 70,000 killed in Gaza since Israel offensive began, Hamas-run health ministry says

BBC News

More than 70,000 Palestinians have been killed as a result of Israel's military campaign in Gaza, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry. The death toll has continued to rise since a ceasefire took effect on 10 October, with Israel carrying out air strikes for what it says are violations of the truce - while bodies continue to be recovered from under the rubble. Among those reportedly killed in an Israeli drone strike on Saturday were two young brothers, Fadi and Juma Abu Assi, whose family said they had been gathering firewood when they were killed. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) told the BBC they had struck two suspects who had crossed the so-called yellow line. The line marks where the Israeli military agreed to withdraw to under a ceasefire brokered by the United States more than seven weeks ago.


Is tracking your adult children OK or should parents learn to let go?

BBC News

Is tracking your adult children OK or should parents learn to let go? Is it caring or overbearing? Many parents are turning to their phones to keep tabs on their adult children - but is this OK (if they agree to it) or is it a sign of mums and dads struggling to let go? Dad-of-two Steven Medway, 53, has his whole family set up on a tracking app and couldn't understand why it was such a divisive subject among fellow parents. He said it became particularly useful when his daughter Martha moved 100 miles away from home for university.


Budget 2025: What's the best and worst that could happen for Labour?

BBC News

Budget 2025: What's the best and worst that could happen for Labour? Any big red box moment is risky. Now the chancellor's big choices are out there, what's the best-case scenario for Reeves and Starmer, and what's the worst that could happen next? On the positive side of the ledger, Labour MPs have gone off to their constituencies in a better mood this week. That is in large part down to the chancellor's decision to scrap the limit on bigger families getting some extra benefits.


Flights returning to normal after Airbus warning grounded planes

BBC News

Thousands of Airbus planes are being returned to normal service after being grounded for hours due to a warning that solar radiation could interfere with onboard flight control computers. The aerospace giant - based in France - said around 6,000 of its A320 planes had been affected with most requiring a quick software update. Some 900 older planes need a replacement computer. French Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot said the updates went very smoothly for more than 5,000 planes. Fewer than 100 aircraft still needed the update, Airbus had told him, according to local media.


Russian drone and missile strikes hit residential buildings in several Kyiv districts

BBC News

A Russian drone and missile attack on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv has killed at least one person and injured seven others, city officials say. Early on Saturday morning residential buildings in several districts were hit and loud explosions could be heard across the city. Kyiv's mayor Vitaly Klitschko said a 13-year-old child was among the injured and four people had been taken to hospital. Earlier this week a similar attack on Kyiv killed seven people, Ukrainian officials said. The latest bombardment came as Ukrainian negotiators were preparing for talks with US officials this weekend on an amended US peace plan.


No, your favourite influencer hasn't got a dozen dachshund dogs. It's just AI

BBC News

No, your favourite influencer hasn't got a dozen dachshund dogs. When scrolling through social media recently, you might have noticed posts which seem a bit off. It's all AI generated and due to its low quality and its inauthenticity, it's being branded AI slop. Both social media users and content creators say they're worried that AI slop flooding feeds is leading to a less authentic online experience - and is drowning out real posts. But a new trend, which sees people adding AI-generated animals to original photographs, has encouraged some content creators to embrace AI.


Cats became our companions way later than you think

BBC News

In true feline style, cats took their time in deciding when and where to forge bonds with humans. According to new scientific evidence, the shift from wild hunter to pampered pet happened much more recently than previously thought - and in a different place. A study of bones found at archaeological sites suggests cats began their close relationship with humans only a few thousand years ago, and in northern Africa not the Levant. They are ubiquitous, we make TV programmes about them, and they dominate the internet, said Prof Greger Larson of the University of Oxford. That relationship we have with cats now only gets started about 3.5 or 4,000 years ago, rather than 10,000 years ago.


Chris Mason: Starmer could have scrapped child benefit cap last year - why did he wait?

BBC News

Starmer could have scrapped child benefit cap last year - why did he wait? I can't remember when I last heard Sir Keir Starmer sounding so passionate. The prime minister's critics regularly lambast him for what they see as robotic or emotion-free communication, but you could not accuse him of that as we spoke on a post-Budget visit to a community centre in Rugby, Warwickshire. I could see it in his eyes and hear it in his tone. I have repeatedly said that I want my government to drive down child poverty.


Australia's beloved weather website got a makeover - and infuriated users

BBC News

Australia's beloved weather website got a makeover - and infuriated users It was an unseasonably warm spring day in Sydney on 22 October, with a forecast of 39C (99F) - a real scorcher. The day before, the state of New South Wales had reported its hottest day in over a century, a high of 44.8C in the outback town of Bourke. But little did the team at the national Bureau of Meteorology foresee that they, in particular, would soon be feeling the heat. Affectionately known by Australians as the Bom, the agency's long-awaited website redesign went live that morning, more than a decade after the last update. Within hours, the Bom was flooded with a deluge of complaints.


Nvidia plays down Google chip threat concerns

BBC News

Nvidia has claimed it is a generation ahead of rivals in the artificial intelligence (AI) industry amid growing suggestions a rival may emerge to threaten to its market dominance - and multi-trillion dollar valuation. Shares in the chip giant fell on Tuesday, following a report Meta planned to spend billions on AI chips developed by Google to power its data centres. In a statement on X, Nvidia, the world's most valuable company, said it was the only platform which runs every AI model and does it everywhere computing is done. In response, Google said it was committed to supporting both its own and Nvidia's chips. Nvidia's chips have become a critical part of powering the data centres behind many of the most popular AI tools, such as ChatGPT.