Author: BBC News

A ship is preparing to set sail from France to lay the next section of the largest ever sub-sea internet cable. The 2Africa cable is an incredible 45,000 km long and stretches around the entire continent. But even as the world celebrates ambitious projects like getting more people online, internet freedom is on the decline around the world. Subscribe here: For more news, analysis and features visit: www.bbc.com/news #BBCNews source

A former sex addict says the condition took over her life and ruined her relationship. Rebecca Barker, 37, originally from North Yorkshire but now living in France, said she wanted sex with her partner five times a day at the height of her addiction. Her story comes as the charity Relate calls for more help to be available on the NHS for sex addicts. Please subscribe HERE source

Piers Morgan has denied telling anyone to hack a phone, after a judge ruled he was involved with the practice while editing the Daily Mirror. In a statement, he says it’s inexplicable that claims made about him weren’t challenged in court by lawyers representing the paper’s publisher. Earlier, a High Court ruled that Prince Harry was the victim of phone hacking by Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN) – and awarded him £140,600 in damages. Subscribe here: For more news, analysis and features visit: www.bbc.com/news #PrinceHarry #PiersMorgan #BBCNews source

The Israeli military says it will hold a daily “tactical pause of military activity” along a road in southern Gaza to enable more humanitarian aid to enter. The pauses, which are said to have begun on Saturday, will last from 08:00 local time (05:00 GMT) until 19:00 local time until further notice. It comes after eight Israeli soldiers were killed in a blast in southern Gaza on Saturday, Israel’s military said, the deadliest incident for the army in the war since January. Subscribe here: For more news, analysis and features visit: www.bbc.com/news #Israel #Gaza #BBCNews source

Ukraine has destroyed a strategically important bridge over the river Seym, as it continues its incursion into Russia’s Kursk region. Russian officials have been quoted as saying the operation near the town of Glushkovo has cut off part of the local district. The bridge was used by the Kremlin to supply its troops and its destruction could hamper their efforts. President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukrainian troops were strengthening their positions in Kursk, and called the captured territories an exchange fund, implying they could be swapped for Ukrainian regions occupied by Moscow. Subscribe here: For more news, analysis and features visit:…

The UK, US, France, Italy and Germany have issued a joint statement urging Iran to end its threats of an attack on Israel. They called on Iran to “stand down its ongoing threats” and “discussed the serious consequences for regional security should such an attack take place”. Fears of a wider conflict in the Middle East have been growing following the recent assassination of senior Hezbollah and Hamas leaders. Subscribe here: For more news, analysis and features visit: www.bbc.com/news #Iran #Israel #BBCNews source

The six-tonne Altar Stone at the heart of Stonehenge came from the far north of Scotland rather than south-west Wales as previously thought, new analysis has found. It means that the stone was brought about 700km (434 miles), from Scotland, to the ancient monument, near Salisbury in south-west England. The discovery shows the construction of Stonehenge was a far greater collaborative effort than scientists realised. It also suggests that Neolithic Britain was a far more connected and advanced society than earlier evidence indicated. Subscribe here: For more news, analysis and features visit: www.bbc.com/news #Stonehenge #BBCNews source

Negotiators seeking a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal will meet for a second day in Qatar. Hamas representatives will not be in attendance and said the group would “not engage in negotiations for the sake of negotiations in order to provide cover for Israel to continue its war”. The talks are still expected to take place even without Hamas, as US, Egyptian and Qatari mediators say they could use them to put together a plan that resolves the remaining issues. They suffered several setbacks last month and have been suspended since Hamas’s political leader and chief negotiator, Ismail Haniyeh,…

A second region in Russia has declared a state of emergency, as Ukraine’s incursion into the country enters its second week. The governor of Belgorod said daily Ukrainian shelling is destroying homes and killing civilians, and Russia’s defence ministry says it shot down 117 Ukrainian drones over several regions overnight. Ukraine launched its surprise attack into the Kursk region earlier this month, in what is their deepest and most significant incursion into the country since Moscow’s full-scale invasion began. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Kyiv would receive what he called a “worthy response”. Subscribe here: For more news, analysis…

Ukraine has ordered the evacuation of the city Pokrovsk, as Russian forces approach the region. In a post on Telegram, the head of the city’s military administration says it’s important residents “don’t delay” their evacuation, as Russian troops are “rapidly approaching the outskirts of Pokrovsk”. The city was the focus of the highest intensity of fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces on Thursday, according to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. In a post on X, President Volodymyr Zelensky said the city was a key focus for defence forces and was one of a number of areas…