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Hello, I'm Neil Nunes with the BBC News.
The White House has rejected a Wall Street Journal report claiming President Trump had been told his name appeared in files related to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The U.S. newspaper alleged the Attorney General Pam Bondi informed Mr. Trump in May that he had been identified in the documents. Our North America correspondent in Washington is Nomia Iqbal. The BBC has not been able to independently verify the allegation. The White House has dismissed it as fake news. The president has not been accused of wrongdoing related to Epstein, but for years he stoked conspiracy theories that the convicted sex offender might not have killed himself and was in possession of a list of powerful figures involved in crimes. Last month his administration said there was no basis to continue investigating it, sparking a huge backlash among Mr. Trump's political base, which for nearly a decade has been loyal to him. Polls suggest nearly two-thirds of Americans overall disapprove of his handling of the case. The World Health Organization has demanded full access for aid into Gaza as well as a ceasefire, describing the situation there as man-made mass starvation. The head of the WHO said a large proportion of Gaza's population was starving because of Israel's blockade of the territory. The latest round of talks between Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul have ended after less than an hour without any major announcements. Both sides say they agreed to work towards the exchange of more military and civilian prisoners. Ukrainian negotiators said there had been no agreement on a meeting of the leaders of the two countries, but that Kyiv was ready for a ceasefire now. The head of the Russian delegation, Vladimir Medinsky, said the two presidents should only meet once a deal had been agreed. "For this meeting to happen, we need to work out the conditions for a deal first and to understand what will actually be discussed at this meeting. This meeting is not for discussing a deal, but for wrapping it up and signing the final agreement. There's no point in the meeting to discuss all of this all over again." Thousands of people have taken part in protests in Ukraine for the second day running to denounce a new law signed by President Zelenskyy. Demonstrators say legislation which was hastily signed by the president on Tuesday undermines anticorruption agencies. The Ukrainian leader says he's heard the complaints and will submit a new bill. The medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières has told the BBC cases of sexual violence in Haiti have tripled in the last four years. One in five victims are under the age of 18, with gangs now controlling nearly all of the capital Port-au-Prince. Violence and insecurity are worsening. World News from the BBC. The electric car maker Tesla has reported another steep drop in profits. They fell by 16 percent in the last quarter compared with the same time last year. It's the second consecutive quarter in which the U.S. firm has suffered falling profits. The company has faced stiffer competition as well as a consumer backlash over the political activities of its boss, Elon Musk. Researchers have offered encouraging news for those who struggle to meet the target of 10,000 steps a day recommended by fitness tracking devices. The findings of a global study published in the Lancet Public Health journal suggest walking only 7,000 steps brings many of the same health benefits. Conservationists say they've rediscovered the world's smallest known snake decades after it was thought to have become extinct. Its rediscovery in a forest on the Caribbean island was supported by a non-profit conservation group. More from Sanjay Dasgupta. The Barbados thread snake is so small it can fit on a coin. Fully grown, it reaches a maximum of 10 centimeters in length. The snake is blind, burrows in the ground, eats termites and ants, and lays a single egg. For nearly two decades, no one had spotted it, leading scientists to fear it had become extinct. But working in a Barbados forest in March this year, conservationists spotted one tiny member of the species lurking under a rock. The Barbados thread snake was on a list of 4,800 plant and animal species that have been described as lost to science. In football, Spain are through to the final of the Women's Euro 2025 tournament. They beat Germany 1-0 in Zurich. The only goal of the game was scored late in extra time. The Spaniards will now face the defending champions England on Sunday. BBC World News. |