Plus: The self-styled shamans using psychedelics in South Africa ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
 |
| Hello. Today we're following the latest developments of a momentous day in the Middle East, which has seen all the 20 living Israeli hostages freed by Hamas in Gaza. They are now in Israel, as Palestinian families wait for hundreds of prisoners and detainees to be released from Israeli prisons. We also take a look at ‘shamans’ using psychedelic drugs in South Africa, and the winners of the 60th World Conker Championships. | |
|
|
|
|
TOP OF THE AGENDA | All 20 living Israeli hostages released by Hamas |
|
|  | Twin brothers Gali and Ziv Berman are among the 20 hostages freed in Gaza. Credit: IDF | Twenty Israeli hostages have been freed and returned to Israel, two years after their capture during the 7 October attacks, as Hamas says all living captives have been handed over. In Tel Aviv, a packed Hostages Square has been celebrating their return. In exchange, Israel is expected to release 250 Palestinian prisoners and more than 1,700 detainees. US President Donald Trump is set for a "victory lap" in the Middle East, our US state department correspondent Tom Bateman writes. Trump is about to address the Israeli parliament, where some attendees are donning MAGA-like red hats and chanting his name - follow his speech live. On Air Force One, however, the US president avoided bigger questions about what comes next. |
|
| | | - 'You're coming home': The mother of an Israeli hostage spoke with him via video call for the first time in two years. Watch our coverage.
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| China accuses US of tariff 'double standards' | Donald Trump's tariff threat on Chinese goods is "a typical example of US double standards", China's government has said. | Read more > |
|
| Afghan embassy in India bans women journalists | Female journalists were excluded from a Delhi press event with the Afghan Taliban foreign minister, drawing criticism. | Read the story > |
|
| Mali imposes $10,000 visa bond on US visitors | The West African country has announced that visiting US nationals will need to post a bond of up to $10,000 (£7,500) | Here's why > |
|
| Hackers bring brewer back to pen and paper | Asahi, the maker of Japan's best-selling beer, was forced to halt production at most of its 30 factories, causing shortages. | How it happened > |
|
|
|
|
| | | - Rugby union: Former England centre Luther Burrell says that blowing the whistle on racism in the sport has cost him his career.
- China: Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has demanded that Sir Keir Starmer address "unanswered" questions about the spy case.
|
|
|
|
|
| BEYOND THE HEADLINES | South Africa's 'shamans' using psychedelics |
|
| |  | Psychiatrists say unregulated use of psychedelics presents significant dangers. Credit: BBC | Psychedelic drugs are illegal in South Africa. But in Cape Town, many self-styled healers are openly advertising experiences involving mushrooms like psilocybin and drugs such as MDMA. BBC Africa Eye has met one of them, who claims she is practicing "righteous civil disobedience". |
|
| |
|
|
SOMETHING DIFFERENT | Plastic memory | From Stephen Hawking to forgotten poetry, floppy discs contain troves of knowledge. Meet the people racing to save them from decay. | |
|
| |
|
|
