President Trump has said the cost and burden of securing peace in Ukraine must be borne by the nations of Europe, following talks with his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, at the White House. President Macron said Europeans were committed to taking part in such security guarantees in Ukraine, and more fairly sharing the burden for wider European security. But he stressed that any peace needed to be lasting, and could not constitute a surrender by Ukraine. We'll hear a US response to Europe's concerns.

(Photo: US President Trump meets French President Macron at the White House, Washington, 24 Feb 2025. Credit: SHAWN THEW/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock )

The man due to become Germany's next chancellor, Friedrich Merz, has issued a stark warning to Europe that the United States has become indifferent to the continent's fate and it must become independent. The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) had a record second-place result of 20.8%. We're in Berlin to cover the election result.

The centre-right Christian Democrats look likely to lead in the German election, with the far-right AfD party coming second with around a fifth of the vote. We ask what it all means, and hear from politicians of both parties.

Also in the programme: Christians across the world pray for the health of Pope Francis, who remains in hospital in Rome; and after major cuts to jobs in the US federal government, Elon Musk shocks civil servants with an email asking them to justify their positions.

(Photo: Christian Democratic Union (CDU) supporters dance after the first exit poll results are announced in the 2025 general election in Berlin, Germany. Credit: REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch)

Israeli tanks have been sent into the northern part of the occupied West Bank for the first time in decades. Israel has expelled the residents of three refugee camps in the territory as it steps up its military presence there. Israel's defence minister, Israel Katz, said Palestinian camps in Jenin, Tulkarm and Nur Shams were now empty and would be occupied by the military for a year.

Also on the programme: Germans are voting in one of the country's most consequential parliamentary elections of recent times; and we hear from a former BBC entertainment correspondent about the changing art of interviewing stars from Bette Davis to Ethan Hawke.

(Photo: Israeli soldiers stand near a tank as it is positioned just outside the occupied West Bank on the Israeli side of the north barrier between Israel and the occupied West Bank on February 23, 2025. Credit: REUTERS/Rami Amichay)

Economic woes, worries about immigration and the rise of the far right have loomed over the campaign ahead of Sunday's election in Germany. We hear the latest from our team on the ground in Berlin.

Also in the programme: President Trump fires the United States' highest-ranking military officer; and the Vatican says Pope Francis is in a critical condition after a week in hospital.

(Photo: German Chancellor Scholz holds final rally ahead of general election, in Potsdam. Credit: REUTERS/Liesa Johannssen)

Hamas has released more Israeli hostages at highly stage- managed events in Gaza. In all, six men have been freed so far on Saturday. Television pictures of them being handed to the Red Cross were met with cheers by crowds in Tel Aviv’s Hostage Square. In exchange, more than six hundred Palestinian prisoners will be released by Israel.

As Germany's far right AFD party is in second place before tomorrow's election, we hear from one recent Syrian immigrant about her life in Berlin.

And And we take a look at the Trump policies on American science – a Harvard professor tells us what's being cut.

(Photo: The moment hostage Omer Shem Tov is released at the handover. Credit: Reuters)

The Israeli prime minister has accused Hamas of a cruel and evil violation of the ceasefire in Gaza, after forensic testing revealed the body returned from Gaza on Thursday was not that of the Israeli hostage Shiri Bibas. We hear from Jonathan Dekel-Chen, whose son was one of the hostages released by Hamas last Saturday.

Also in the programme: Apple is removing its highest level of data security for customers in the UK; and Newshour's James Coomarasamy is in Germany ahead of Sunday's election.

(Photo: Israelis sit together as they light candles and hold posters with the images Oded Lifschitz, Shiri Bibas and her two children, Kfir and Ariel Bibas, seized during the deadly October 7, 2023 attack by Hamas. Credit: REUTERS/Itay Cohen)

Israel has accused Hamas of violating the ceasefire deal after forensic testing revealed the body returned from Gaza on Thursday was not that of Shiri Bibas.

The three other bodies handed over have been identified as her sons, Ariel and Kfir, who would have been aged five and two, and peace activist Oded Lifschitz, 84, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said. Hamas have said Shiri's remains seem to have been mixed up with other bodies under the rubble of a structure after an Israeli air strike.

Also in the programme: Can Arab countries come up with a plan to change Donald Trump's mind on Gaza?; and a BBC investigation looks into the companies fuelling West Africa's opioid epidemic.

(Photo shows Israeli soldiers carrying the coffins of deceased hostages on 20 February 2025. Credit: Handout via REUTERS)

The news conference with General Keith Kellogg and President Volodymyr Zelensky was due to take place in Kyiv, where they met on Thursday; the cancellation followed a heated exchange between the Ukrainian leader and President Trump.

Forensic medical experts in Tel Aviv are trying to confirm the identities and cause of death of four Israeli hostages handed over by Hamas. It is the first time Hamas has returned captives dead since the ceasefire began last month,

The bodies, taken by convoy from Gaza earlier, are believed to be those of a mother and her two young children and an elderly peace activist.

Also in the programme: As the rift deepens between the US and Europe over whether the Ukrainian president is a dictator or a democrat, how should the British prime minister handle his visit to the White House next week? and the former boss of Spanish football is found guilty of kissing a player without her consent.

(Photo shows a young woman holding an Israeli flag reacting as a convoy transports the bodies of deceased hostages Oded Lifschitz, Shiri Bibas and her two children Kfir and Ariel Bibas nearby in Tel Aviv, Israel on 20 February 2025. Credit: Nir Elias/Reuters)