Israeli air strikes test ceasefire with Hamas

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This is the Global News podcast from the BBC World Service.

I'm Ankar Desai, and in the early hours of Monday, the 20th of October, these are our main stories.

President Trump says the ceasefire in Gaza is still in place after Israeli airstrikes killed more than 40 people and aid deliveries were suspended, as Israel and Hamas blame each other.

20 years of socialist dominance comes to an end in Bolivia as the centuries politician Rodrigo Paz is elected president.

A Buckingham Palace source tells the BBC there may be more days of pain ahead as a result of the ongoing scandal surrounding Prince Andrew.

Also in this podcast, thieves loot the Louvre in a daring daylight raid, escaping with priceless jewels from the famous French museum.

I was in truck actually.

I couldn't believe that something like that would happen.

When we were in the museum, we also told that the security was very low.

It didn't look much.

It's like a scene from a film.

Yeah, you could not make it up.

And short stories by Harpali, the writer of To Kill a Mockingbird, that were found after her death, are being published this week.

We begin in the Middle East, where the fragile ceasefire appears to be back on course after Israeli airstrikes killed dozens of people.

It was the worst day of violence in Gaza since President Trump gathered world leaders in Egypt last week beneath a banner proclaiming peace in the Middle East.

Mr.

Trump said he was confident that the Israel-Gaza ceasefire was still in place and played down the role of the Hamas leadership in the latest violence.

We want to make sure that it's going to be very peaceful with Hamas.

And as you know, they've been quite rambunctious.

They've been doing some shooting and we think maybe the leadership isn't involved in that, you know, some rebels rebels within, but either way, it's going to be handled toughly but properly.

More than 40 Palestinians and two Israeli soldiers were killed as both sides, Israel and Hamas, blamed the other for violating the ceasefire.

Our Middle East correspondent Lucy Williamson reports.

Nine days of quiet, then this

Gaza's ceasefire hung by a thread as Israel struck targets across the south and center of the strip

in response, it said to attacks by Hamas on its troops among the targets at Beachfront Cafe where a senior Hamas commander and five other fighters were killed

but doctors said many of those arriving at hospital were civilians including children

where is the agreement demanded displaced resident Rafat al-Makdid where is Trump and where are those who guaranteed this weak deal Israel's army has denied reports that its response was triggered by a clash between Hamas and a pro-Israel militia in Rafah, saying Hamas had launched several direct attacks on its troops.

It released footage showing the moment it says Hamas fighters crossed into an area under Israeli military control and were hit by an airstrike.

Following Hamas's violation, Shosh Bedrossian is a spokesman for Israel's prime minister.

The IDF announced terrorists fired an anti-tank missile and gunfire towards our troops operating in the area of Rafah to dismantle terrorist infrastructure, all in accordance with the ceasefire agreement.

Now, in response, the IDF began striking in the area to eliminate the threat.

Hamas said it remained committed to the truce and had found the body of another Israeli hostage, which it would hand over if field conditions allowed.

But its presence on the streets is a reminder that the next steps in this deal, including a transfer of power, still have to be hammered out.

Until then, this truce is holding Gaza in a fragile limbo between an unfinished war and a yet unknown peace.

Lucy Williamson in Jerusalem.

To Bolivia now and after more than 20 years, the South American country has swung away from left-wing politics.

The newly elected centrist president Rodrigo Paz has defeated a right-wing candidate, Jorge Quiroga, in a runoff vote.

Both are fierce critics of of the socialist Maas Party, founded by the former president Evo Morales, which saw its support collapse in the first round of voting in August.

Our correspondent Ayoni Wells has been following the story from neighbouring Brazil.

The central senator Rodrigo Paz Pereira has been elected as Bolivia's next president and as you say this brings an end to nearly 20 years of continuous rule by the socialist movement for socialism party known as MAS

in Bolivia.

Now I think that the circumstances of this is that there has has been this severe economic crisis, severe shortages of fuel leading to long queues at petrol stations, but also a shortage of US dollars in the country, soaring inflation, also a lot of infighting within the ruling Socialist Party, which led many voters to essentially just want change.

And I think that is something that Mr.

Paz represents for them.

And you've mentioned some of the issues that are facing Mr.

Paz as he enters leadership.

But in terms of how the country might change over the course of his leadership, how do you predict that might look?

Well, he has sort of framed himself as somebody who wants to push certain free market reforms, but also still commit to certain social programmes to help the poorest in society.

His slogan was capitalism for all.

So he's pledged certain economic overhauls, things like making it easier for small businesses to access credit, lowering certain taxes, reducing import tariffs to try and encourage more international trade, but also has been clear that government fuel subsidies that have kept prices lower but have meant that the prices have been below the amount that fuel costs to import, which has led to these shortages, are unsustainable.

And he's said that those subsidies must be reduced.

So I think we can see, or we're likely to see, the price of fuel go up in the country, something that could be controversial.

I think also his victory will potentially change Bolivia's position on the world stage.

Particularly, I think he will try to thaw relations with the United States.

The United States and Bolivia haven't had ambassadors, for example, since 2008.

The two countries haven't really had much diplomatic, kind of a diplomatic relationship since then, as a result, with the US repeatedly accusing Bolivia of not doing enough to tackle cocaine production, for example, in the country.

So, I think Bolivia is going to try, certainly as part of its trade strategy as well, to try and build relationships with the US, with other neighbouring countries, sort of distance itself perhaps from some of its more traditional recent allies, including Venezuela, for example.

I think particularly because Mr.

Paz will be keen to try and secure new foreign investments and exports, particularly of its potentially lucrative supply of lithium and other natural resources.

And just lastly, Ione, how do you sense the mood of the country will be in wake of this news and in the coming days, do you think?

Well, I think one of the big challenges for him is that he inherits not just these difficult economic circumstances, but also a very bitterly divided country.

For the first time in decades, one person who wasn't on the ballot was the former President Evo Morales, who was disqualified from running for election again because of a ruling that you can't run for more than two terms as president.

But he has a very loyal base of supporters who are furious that he wasn't able to run, that have been sort of protecting him as he's been essentially living in hiding in the country at the moment.

And there have been some

clashes that have at times been violent between some of his supporters and some of his opponents.

So I think there are are certainly still factions in the country, and Mr.

Paz will have to try to unite a country that's been so bitterly polarised.

Ioni Wells reporting from Brazil.

A manhunt is underway in Paris after thieves broke into the world-famous Louvre Museum and stole priceless jewels in broad daylight in a crime which has stunned France.

The gang used a truck with a mounted extendable ladder to gain access to the upper floor gallery where some of France's most treasured artefacts were on display.

In their rush to make a clean getaway, they dropped a diamond-encrusted crown that once belonged to a French empress who was the wife of Napoleon III.

These tourists who were at the museum were stunned by what happened.

I was in shock actually, I couldn't believe that something like that would happen.

When we were in the museum, we also told that the security was very low.

It didn't look much a security.

It's like a scene from a film.

Yeah, you could not make it up.

Our Paris correspondent, Hugh Schofield, has been following all the drama since it unfolded early on Sunday morning.

In broad daylight, then with visitors and staff members in the museum, this gang of four people drove up outside the Louvre on the Seine River side of it, parked this vehicle, which is like a vehicle used by removals companies, which has an extended ladder, and using that, they got access to the first floor of the Louvre, where there's this place called the Apollo Gallery, which they broke into through the window using a disc cutter.

Alarms went off, of course.

They were in.

They had to act very quickly.

They threatened the staff who were there with their disc cutter and approached two display cases, broke into them, got these jewels, got out again and were gone within seven minutes.

So the museum staff saw them and followed protocol by alerting police and then keeping visitors away, making sure that human lives were not in any danger.

And by the time police could get there, they'd gone.

It was all over.

They took eight items of jewelry.

They took nine, but left one behind, possibly the most valuable.

These items come from what you might call the French crown jewels.

Now, the French don't have crown jewels in the same way that the UK, England has crown jewels because they had the revolution and most of what had been part of the crown jewels then were all sold off or lost or stolen.

But some were retained and more importantly, after the revolution in the 19th century, there was a succession of empires and kingdoms of France, Napoleon, Louis-Philippe, Charles X, Napoleon III, who had their own jewels made, which were used to adorn their wives, their queens and empresses.

And so, what was taken was this, 19th-century jewelry mainly, diadems, necklaces, brooches, eight in all, which were taken, belonging to these eminent women.

What the material value of it is all, I don't know, it'll be a lot, but I mean, quite clearly, what upsets most French people is that it's immense historical and cultural value.

These are part of the royal historical patrimony of the country.

Hugh Schofield in Paris.

If Prince Andrew had hoped to stop distracting from the work of the royal family here in Britain by giving up his titles and honours on Friday because of his connections with the convicted sex offender Geoffrey Epstein, it hasn't worked.

Police are looking into new claims in the British media that he asked one of his police bodyguards to get personal information about Virginia Dufray, the woman who alleged she was forced to have sex with him several times, including including when she was 17.

The Mail on Sunday reported that emails show Prince Andrew passed on her date of birth and social security details to the protection officer, also suggesting she had a criminal record.

Prince Andrew has previously denied Ms.

Duffray's allegations and said he cannot remember ever meeting her.

Senior Government Minister Ed Miliban says the police should investigate the new claims.

They are deeply concerning allegations.

I think people will want to look at those allegations and what the substance is behind them.

But obviously,

if that is correct, that is absolutely not the way that close protection officers should be used.

So, what lies ahead for the British Royal Family?

Here's our Royal correspondent, Daniela Ralph.

It's been a really tricky weekend for the Royal Family and for the King in particular, and it's likely to be a bit problematic in the days ahead as well,

particularly with the publication of Virginia Dufray's memoir, which officially goes on sale on Tuesday.

Now, rather surprisingly, we were were able to buy a copy of the memoir this afternoon in a high street bookstore, which had accidentally put the book on sale early.

It is not a book that is full of fresh allegations, but it is a really vivid account of Virginia Dufray's pain and anguish.

She writes about the BBC Newsnight interview with Prince Andrew.

She is critical of the Prince.

In the book, she says that he failed to communicate any sympathy for Epstein's victims, and she goes into great detail about her treatment at at the hands of Epstein and Ghelane Maxwell, saying that she was used as a sex slave.

Now, all of this is obviously really tricky to shut down for the royal family in any way.

There's no getting away from the challenging weekend it has been.

Giving up his titles and honours just hasn't taken the heat off Prince Andrew.

A royal source told me this evening of their frustration, saying that the headlines are taking a lot of oxygen out of the royal room.

They're hoping things will settle, but another source has also said that they are expecting more days of pain ahead.

And that is really difficult in a week when the king has some really powerful engagements, including that state visit to the Vatican.

Daniela Ralph.

Still to come on this podcast.

I flew 25 hours to get here.

Only reason, the man, Tadei Pogaca, yeah, he's the man.

Cycling fans have flocked to Slovenia to take on the greatest of all time, Tadei Pogaccia, in his own backyard.

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China's top leaders are gathering in Beijing this week to decide on the country's key goals and aspirations for the rest of the decade.

With a slowing economy and a trade war with the US, this meeting of the country's highest political body, the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, is an important one.

What it decides will eventually form the basis of China's next five-year plan, the blueprint that the world's second largest economy will follow until 2030.

I've been speaking to our China correspondent Stephen MacDonald in Beijing.

In theory,

it's China's most important body, but in practice, we don't really know.

Why is that?

Because it's all behind closed doors and we just get this communique at the end which tells us basically what they've decided.

Now, one of the things officially they're supposed to be looking at is the next five-year plan.

This is the economic vision for the country over five years.

But whether or not they're just going to rubber stamp it through or actually sit down and go through, oh, should we have more of this and less of that?

We have no idea.

It's even said that the delegates to this body stay where the meeting's on to avoid anything leaking out during the process.

That's how little we're getting from what's happening.

But people who follow the Chinese system will know.

Imagine it's like a pyramid.

There's Xi Jinping at the top.

Under him is the Politburo Standing Committee, seven people.

Under that's the Politburo, two dozen people.

Now they're day in, day out running the country.

Then once a year, this group...

the central committee of with hundreds of delegates gets together and they're having what's called a plenum and that's what this meeting is to approve the five-year plan also

make sort of appointments kick some people out of the party now the reason this is important is because last Friday we got this information that all these senior generals have been purged and the thinking is they've been purged at that time so that the central committee can stick new people into the for example the central military commission that's the body which runs the military here so a significant gathering of men in suits so what would the ordinary chinese person make of this meeting then?

I don't think they'll be paying much attention to it at all.

I mean, really, because

like us, they just get an announcement at the end of what's been decided, and that's all that matters.

I mean, it's not like we're getting a day-in, day-out indication of this and that.

But that said,

if the announcement comes at the end, that there will be more of, for example, more emphasis on electric car production or on solar panels, high-tech.

And this is all likely to be in it because China's really kicking goals in this

part of the economy.

They'll be looking to, I suppose,

try and put a greater emphasis on domestic consumption.

Now, what that means has got to be, if they want to, if they're serious about it, and it's not just rhetoric, it's more money into family disposable income.

Now, of course, people are going to be paying attention to that.

If something comes out and they say, for example, we're going to make childcare more affordable, or we're not going to charge you for this, or we're going to give you some money for that.

Well, they'll definitely be paying attention if an announcement like that comes on Thursday.

Stephen MacDonnell in Beijing.

When Cyprus was partitioned in 1974, Turkish troops occupied the northern third of the island in response to an attempted coup that aimed to unite Cyprus with Greece.

Still controlled by Turkey, Northern Cyprus has just voted its president, Ersin Tatar, out of office.

Instead, voters have overwhelmingly chosen the opposition candidate, Tufan Eruman, who has promised to be a unifying influence.

And I make this commitment.

From this moment, I am no longer the leader of the Republican Turkish Party.

From this moment, with complete impartiality, I promise to be a president for all our citizens, irrespective of whichever party they may support.

Mr.

Ehurman is much more supportive on talks with Greek Cypriots to try to reunify the island than Mr.

Tatar, who was implicitly backed by the government of Turkey.

Michael Daventry has more details.

For the past 20 years, no sitting president has won a second five-year term in office, and that now also happened to Arsin Tatar, who is seen as close to the government in Ankara.

Indeed, several allies of Turkey's president, Rejeb Taib Erdouan, campaigned for him in recent weeks.

Yet, voters have opted overwhelmingly for his main opponent, Torfan Arhuman.

He wants talks with the internationally recognised Greek Cypriot government.

Its president, Nikolos Kristolo Lides, said he was looking forward to meeting him.

Michael Daventry reporting.

Now, the likes of you or I don't usually get the chance to test ourselves against a top sports person.

But at the start of this week, the world's greatest male cyclist Tadei Pogacha gave amateur riders the chance to do just that.

The idea was simple.

He would give them a head start, then chase them up his favourite mountain climb in his home country, Slovenia.

More than a thousand people registered to take part, including our Balkans correspondent Guy Delaunay, who is also a serious cycling enthusiast.

So he took to two wheels, grabbed his microphone and recorder at the ready to face off against the champion, and he also managed to bring us this report.

I think what I've engaged to do involves several stupid things at the same time.

Firstly, though I ride my bike every day, it's generally for a bit of commuting.

Nothing like

the 14 kilometer drag of Carvavet with its gradient of more than 20%

in parts.

Secondly, it's my first time riding a road bike for more than 30 years.

Yeah, that could be quite stupid, of course, if you think about it, to challenge the best cyclists in the world at that age and with a lack of experience.

Mark Korge is a former sporting director for one of the world's top women's cycling teams.

But on the other hand, it's also a unique opportunity to measure yourself with Tadei Pogacha, the absolute best in cycling.

So it's really special to him.

At least I wasn't going to be facing the world's greatest male cyclist by myself.

The day before the foggy challenge, hundreds of people were in a marquee in his home village, Comenda, watching him add the Giro de Lombardia to his Tour de France, World, and European titles.

People from 36 countries were taking part, including Tang Li, who traveled from China's southern Guangdong province.

I flew 25 hours to get here.

Only reason, the man, Taday Pogacha, yeah, he's the man.

Today Pogachar credits the ride from Comenda to the top of Carvarets for making him the all-conquering rider he is today.

Staging the challenge is a tribute to everyone who supported him along the way.

And for his mum, Marietta, it's a way to ensure her superstar son comes home for a few days at least.

We are very happy, but really, we don't have time to celebrate.

Yeah, you wanted to slow down?

Yeah,

it would be great.

Perhaps in next year or the year after it will happen naturally like this.

There are too many people wearing world champion jerseys.

How will I know when it's Tade Pagacha?

And there he goes.

Today Pagacha just whooshed past me.

That didn't take long.

Hoggy passed me within the first two kilometers, which was pretty much what I expected.

But I was in good company because despite the head start, only one challenger stayed ahead of the champion until the misty mountaintop finish, 40-year-old British lawyer Andrew Feather.

In fact, today was very much in party mode and even seemed happy that someone had beaten him.

You cannot win them.

It's an Englishman, a beaty.

Yeah, he's

climbing very good, eh?

What's next for you, though?

Because you've conquered everything this year, more or less.

How do you keep yourself interested?

If you love what you do, then motivation shouldn't be difficult to search for.

I'm pretty open for anything.

That sounds rather ominous to me.

Potential poggy challenges.

Consider yourselves warned.

Short stories by Harper Lee, the writer of To Kill a Mockingbird, found after her death, are being published this week.

They were written before the novel that made her name, but share similar concerns.

Our culture editor, Katie Razzle, has been speaking to two of Harper Lee's relatives about what they call her apprentice stories.

The new work, The Land of Sweet Forever, is a time capsule on Harper Lee's early writing, an insight into some of the themes and characters she would return to later to such critical acclaim in To Kill a Mockingbird, a child's perspective on the world, race relations in segregationist America, and even a young girl called Jean Louise Finch, Scout's real name in Lee's landmark novel.

Discovered in her apartment in New York after she died in 2016, the short stories were written at the very start of her career.

She was just a great storyteller.

Her niece, Molly Lee, and nephew Ed Lee Connor say they provide a new understanding of the author.

It's interesting interesting to see how she improved and how she evolved.

You see aspects of her as a human being, as a writer and as a human being that you don't see in the other works.

A writer in the making, still experimenting with her craft.

Ahead of her, a Pulitzer Prize, and a novel that defined, perhaps even changed, America.

Katie Razzle reporting.

And that's all from us for now, but there will be a new edition of the Global News podcast later.

If you want to comment on this episode or the topics covered in it, you can send us an email.

The address is globalpodcast at bbc.co.uk, and you can also find us on X at BBC World Service, or you can use the hashtag globalnewspod.

This edition was mixed by Zaviola Korush and produced by Paddy Maguire and Stephen Jensen.

The editor is Karen Martin, and I'm Uncritici.

Until next time, goodbye.

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