BBC News

There has been extensive speculation about the extent to which Sir Keir Starmer was aware of the anonymous briefings attacking potential leadership challengers in his own party. Sir Keir Starmer has insisted he has "never authorised" attacks on his cabinet ministers, calling briefings against them "unacceptable".

Adam and Chris are joined by Alex Forsyth to discuss why this could be a sign of deeper problems for the Labour government, rather than just Westminster bubble gossip.

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An NHS manager who sexually abused and raped young girls after grooming them on Snapchat has been jailed for 28 years.

Paul Lipscombe was sentenced after he admitted to sexual grooming, sexual assault and two counts of rape of a child under 13, in a case described as "shocking and terrifying" by detectives.

Lipscombe, 51, who is believed to have earned at least £91,000 a year as an associate director of NHS performance in Coventry, UK, ferried his victims to rented hotels and Airbnbs in a Tesla.

A 15-year-old girl, who was one of six children groomed by Lipscombe in Leicestershire, Norfolk and Lincolnshire, told the BBC she wants facial recognition brought in so predatory adults can't get access to young people on the app.

Snapchat said it was committed to combatting sexual exploitation of young people and worked with law enforcement to help keep "such activity off our platform".

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Israel's President Isaac Herzog has received a letter from US President Donald Trump formally urging him to "fully pardon" Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Netanyahu has been standing trial for the past five years on charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust in connection with three separate cases. He has denied any wrongdoing.

Herzog's office said he held Trump "in the highest regard", but that anyone seeking a pardon had to submit a formal request.

There was no immediate comment from Netanyahu, but he has previously thanked Trump for similar calls he has made in speeches and on social media.

Trump's letter comes following a recent surge in Israeli settler violence coinciding with the olive harvest season, when Palestinians head to their agricultural land around towns and villages in the occupied West Bank.

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Ukraine’s Justice and Energy ministers leave their posts as the country is rocked by a damaging corruption scandal.

Ukrainian anti-corruption agencies revealed that some of President Zelensky’s close associates were allegedly involved in a plot to skim around $100 million from the country’s energy sector.

The BBC’s Diplomatic correspondent James Landale has been telling the Global News Podcast more about the background of the story, and how Ukrainians are feeling about it, as the country continues to endure Russian attacks.

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A committee of lawmakers in the US have released over 20,000 pages of documents from Jeffrey Epstein's estate, including some that reference US President Donald Trump.

One is an email exchange dated April 2011 from Epstein, a convicted sex offender who died in 2019, to his associate Ghislaine Maxwell and reads "I want you to realize that that dog that hasn't barked is trump.. [Victim] spent hours at my house with him”.

The Democrats say the emails "strike a blow against the White House's Epstein cover-up”.

Trump has consistently denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein and the White House said the release of the three email exchanges creates a "fake narrative”.

The White House also says the "victim" referenced in the Epstein-Maxwell emails is "the late Virginia Giuffre, who repeatedly said President Trump was not involved in any wrongdoing whatsoever.

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A man who escaped the last functioning hospital in the Sudanese city of el-Fasher before a reported massacre by paramilitary troops says he has lost all hope and happiness.

Abdu-Rabbu Ahmed, a laboratory technician at the Saudi Maternity Hospital, spoke to a freelancer gathering interviews for the BBC from a displaced persons camp in Tawila some 70km (43 miles) to the west of el-Fasher, the regional hub which was taken over by paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the last week of October after an 18-month siege.

The alleged killings of at least 460 patients and their companions at the Saudi Hospital were one of the most shocking among widespread accounts of atrocities - some of them filmed by RSF fighters and posted to social media.

In a statement of condemnation, the World Health Organization (WHO) said it was "appalled and deeply shocked" by the reported shootings, and by the abductions of six health workers - four doctors, a nurse and a pharmacist.

The RSF has dismissed the accusations as disinformation, declaring that all of el-Fasher's hospitals had been abandoned. It disputed the claims by filming a video inside the hospital grounds showing female volunteers tending to patients.

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Global girl group KATSEYE catch up with BBC News music correspondent Mark Savage to talk about their K-Pop training and Netflix's Pop Star Academy.

Plus their rise to fame, how they handle online hate and their bid to become the biggest girl group in the world.

The six-piece, who were recently nominated for best new artist at the Grammy Awards, also told BBC News that they have received multiple online death threats since they made their debut last year.

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Protesters carrying signs reading "our forests are not for sale" broke through security lines of the COP30 climate talks on Tuesday night in Belém, Brazil.

BBC journalists saw United Nations security staff running behind a line of Brazilian soldiers shouting at delegates to immediately leave the venue.

The UN told BBC News that the incident caused minor injuries to two security staff, in addition to limited damage to the venue.

Social media videos showed protesters that appeared to be from indigenous groups and others waving flags with the logo of a left-wing Brazilian youth movement called Juntos.

Protesters, some wearing what appeared to be traditional indigenous dress, stormed the COP30 entrance, chanting and kicking down doors, before tussling with security personnel, videos posted online showed.

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Authorities in Pakistan are trying to identify an attacker following a suicide attack outside a court in Islamabad.

At least 12 people were killed and 27 others were injured, the country's interior minister Mohsin Naqvi said.

According to Naqvi, a bomber was planning to attack the district courthouse but was unable to get inside, and he said authorities would prioritise identifying the bomber, and that those involved would be brought to justice.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has alleged that extremist groups "actively backed by India" were involved.

A spokesperson for the Indian government denied what they described as "baseless and unfounded allegations".

Jumaat Ul Ahrar, a splinter group of the Pakistani Taliban (TTP), has claimed responsibility, according to local media. But two local journalists have told the BBC that the TTP's central leadership has sent messages to them saying it has no link to the explosion.

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Will the BBC actually end up in court against President Trump?

Where would a potential lawsuit by President Trump against the BBC take place? Is $1 billion dollars a realistic figure? What are the calculations both sides are making? Adam discusses with BBC home and legal correspondent Dominic Casciani.

And, the rate of UK employment has risen to 5%, the highest level since the pandemic. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has dropped the biggest hint yet he is about to scrap the two child benefit cap. Adam is joined by Henry and Dharshini.

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