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BBC News with Chris Barrow.
The Artemis II mission is arcing back towards Earth after completing its flyby of the far side of the Moon. The four astronauts were out of contact with NASA's ground control for about 40 minutes as they flew around the part of the Moon not visible from Earth. The first voice to be heard when they came back online was that of mission specialist Christina Koch. "Houston, we have you the same and it is so great to hear from Earth again. To Asia, Africa, and Oceana, we are looking back at you. We hear you can look up and see the moon right now, we see you too." "Integrity from Earth, our single system, fragile and interconnected, we copy. Those of us that can are looking back." "We are happy to say we copy." It will take four days to make the return journey to Earth. The crew will be aiming to splash down in the Pacific Ocean. President Trump has claimed Iranians want the United States to bomb their country. He's also repeated his threat to destroy Iran's civilian infrastructure unless the Strait of Hormuz is opened by Tuesday night. From Washington, our U.S. correspondent Ione Wells reports. Mr. Trump said the entire country of Iran could be taken out in one night and that night might be tomorrow. He provided a specific timeline, saying that between 8 p.m. and midnight Eastern Time tomorrow, the U.S. would attack Iran's power plants and bridges. He was less specific, though, about what any deal to prevent that happening would look like. He said the U.S. wanted the free traffic of oil through the Strait of Hormuz and that any agreement had to be acceptable to him. Iran, though, has rejected the idea of a temporary ceasefire without guarantees about a longer-term end to the war. Targeting civilian infrastructure could be a war crime but Donald Trump said he was not worried about this and claimed a war crime would be allowing "a sick country with demented leadership to have a nuclear weapon." The World Health Organization says it's suspending medical evacuations from Gaza after one of its contracted employees was killed on Monday. The Palestinian Red Crescent said the driver died when Israeli troops opened fire on a WHO vehicle near the Rafah gate linking Gaza to Egypt. Two staff members were also present and were slightly injured. This man was also in the vehicle. "They fired directly at us and I miraculously survived sustaining shrapnel wounds to my hands and body." There's been no word from the Israelis. Earlier 10 Palestinians were killed after fighting broke out between members of Hamas and a pro-Israeli militia in the Maghazi refugee camp. Cuba is suffering a growing humanitarian crisis, according to the United Nations top official in the country. Francisco Pichon warned health care, sanitation and food supplies were all affected. Cuba's economic plight has worsened since Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs on any country which sold oil to the island. World news from the BBC. The British right-wing populist party, Reform U.K., says it would refuse visas to people from countries seeking compensation from Britain over its role in the historic slave trade if the party were to come to power. Several Caribbean nations have said they want to seek reparatory justice including a formal apology, development support and possible financial compensation. Lawyers representing the controversial influencer Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan say a Romanian court has lifted legal restrictions imposed since early last year after they were placed under investigation on suspicion of human trafficking. They'd been under orders to check in regularly with Romanian police. The brothers deny wrongdoing. Seven players from the Eritrean national football squad have failed to return home after playing a match in South Africa last week. The team had scored a victory against neighboring Eswatini to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations group stages. Dozens of Eritrean athletes have absconded after international competitions in recent years. The managing director of a British music festival has defended the decision to book Kanye West as the headline act in July. Known as Ye, the rapper released a song in praise of Adolf Hitler and sold swastika t-shirts. Melvin Benn said West deserved forgiveness. Noor Nanji reports. In a statement, Melvin Benn said the festival was not giving West a platform to extol opinion of whatever nature, only to perform songs that are currently played on radio and streaming platforms and listened to and enjoyed by millions. His remarks come at a tricky moment for the festival. Its headline sponsor Pepsi as well as the drinks giant Diageo and the brewing company behind Budweiser, A-B InBev, have all withdrawn their support. It's also emerged that the online payment platform PayPal will not allow its branding to be used in promotional materials. Kanye West, now known as Ye, issued an apology for his anti-Semitic comments in January, attributing them to his bipolar disorder. BBC News. |