BBC News

Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced that the UK now formally recognises a Palestinian state.

"Today, to revive the hope of peace and a two-state solution, I state clearly - as prime minister of this great country - that the United Kingdom formally recognises the state of Palestine," he said in a video statement.

Earlier, Canada became the first G7 nation to make the move, closely followed by Australia.

Keir Starmer's deputy, David Lammy, earlier defended the move - telling the BBC "now is the time to stand up for a two-state solution".

Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has previously opposed countries recognising Palestinian statehood, saying it "rewards Hamas terror" and "hardens" the group's "refusal to free hostages".

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A secret Russian-funded network is attempting to disrupt upcoming democratic elections in an eastern European state, the BBC has found.

Using an undercover reporter, we discovered the network promised to pay participants if they posted pro-Russian propaganda and fake news undermining Moldova's pro-EU ruling party ahead of the country's 28 September parliamentary ballot.

Moldova is sandwiched between Ukraine, and EU-member Romania, meaning it has strategic significance for both Europe and the Kremlin, experts have said.

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Today, we look at whether Russia is deliberately testing Nato, after three Russian fighter jets flew into Estonia’s airspace.

Ukraine Correspondent James Waterhouse joins Laura and Paddy from Kyiv to discuss the how Europe is responding.

Laura and Paddy also discuss an early rift in the leadership of Your Party, the new political party set up by former Labour MPs Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana.

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A British couple detained by the Taliban in Afghanistan for nearly eight months have arrived back in the UK after being released.

Peter Reynolds, 80, and his wife Barbie, 76, who lived in Afghanistan for nearly two decades, landed at Heathrow Airport, on a flight from Doha.

They were reunited with their daughter in Qatar on Friday. Their son Jonathan Reynolds told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that he was "ecstatic and massively grateful" to those who were involved in securing their release.

The Taliban, who detained the couple on 1 February, said the pair had broken Afghan laws and were released after judicial proceedings - but the Islamist group has never disclosed a reason for their detention.

Peter and Barbie Reynolds married in Kabul in 1970 and spent the past 18 years running a charitable training programme that had been approved by local Taliban officials when the armed group reclaimed power in 2021.

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US President Donald Trump has said that he and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping approved a deal on the future of TikTok's US operations during a phone call on Friday, although there was no confirmation from Beijing.

Trump wrote on Truth Social that the call was "productive" and he "appreciated" Xi's approval of the deal, which would reportedly see TikTok's US business sold to a group of US investors.

China's official state news agency Xinhua left the outcome of their discussion less clear, with Xi quoted as saying that Beijing "welcomes negotiations over TikTok".

TikTok, which is run by Chinese firm ByteDance, was previously told it had to sell its US operations or risk being shut down.

Trump, however, delayed implementing the ban four times since it was first announced in January, and earlier this week extended the deadline again to December.

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Reports in US media say President Trump’s administration is seeking approval from lawmakers in Congress to sell Israel around $6.4 billion worth of military equipment.

The package is reported to include 30 Apache air attack helicopters costing 3.6 billion dollars, and around 3,250 assault vehicles.

The reported deal comes ahead of the United Nations General assembly next week where the situation in Gaza is high on the agenda.

The UN Secretary General António Guterres called on the international community to end the fighting

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Heathrow is among several European airports hit by a cyber-attack affecting an electronic check-in and baggage system.

The airport warned of possible delays due to a "technical issue" affecting software provided by Collins Aerospace to several airlines.

Brussels Airport said a cyber-attack on Friday night meant passengers were being checked in and boarded manually, while Berlin's Brandenburg Airport also reported longer waiting times due to the problem.

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Estonia has requested a consultation with other Nato members after Russian warplanes violated its airspace on Friday.

Three Russian MiG-31 fighter jets entered the Estonian skies "without permission and remained there for a total of 12 minutes" over the Gulf of Finland, the government said.

Italy, Finland and Sweden scrambled jets under Nato's mission to bolster its eastern flank. A Nato spokesperson said it was "yet another example of reckless Russian behaviour and Nato's ability to respond".

Russia denied violating Estonian airspace. But tensions have been escalating recently, after Poland and Romania - both Nato members - said Russian drones breached their airspace.

Article 4 of the Nato treaty formally starts urgent consultations within the 32-member alliance, which ties the US and many European nations together on collective defence.

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The UK welcomed Donald Trump on an unprecedented second state visit this week, as Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer invoked the help of King Charles III in his efforts to charm the US president. The trip comes as Washington insists it will only apply additional sanctions against Moscow if Europe stops buying Russian oil. So can western allies get President Trump to change his position, and does so-called soft power diplomacy actually work?

To answer your questions, Jamie Coomarasamy and Vitaly Shevchenko are joined by the BBC’s diplomatic correspondent James Landale, who has been observing events in Windsor where the royal family hosted the president and first lady.

Listen to the full episode here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0m3lpzc

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Adam speaks to Leo Varadkar, former Taoiseach on Boris Johnson, Brexit and coming out.

He was the leader of Ireland during the pivotal Brexit negotiations.

Mr Varadkar became Ireland's youngest taoiseach at the age of 38 in 2017.

He had led the three-party coalition government in Dublin, along with Fianna Fáil and the Green Party.

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