Newshour

The candidates are holding rallies in key swing states on the last day of campaigning, as the polls suggest the race is still exceptionally close. We speak to a Democrat who chairs an Election Commission, and a former Trump White House chief of staff. Also on the programme: Eight people have gone on trial in Paris accused of encouraging the killer of Samuel Paty, the teacher who was beheaded on the street outside his school four years ago; and American music giant Quincy Jones has died today - we speak to a British jazz singer who worked with him. (Picture: Campaign signs are seen outside a polling station during early voting in the US presidential election in Florida on November 3, 2024. Credit: REUTERS/Marco Bello)

Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are pushing their closing messages to voters on the last day of campaigning before America decides its next president on 5 November. Also on the programme: The families of Israeli hostages held by Hamas have reacted angrily following court disclosures about a leak of classified intelligence which may have compromised efforts to free them; and Quincy Jones, musician and producer who worked with Michael Jackson, Frank Sinatra and many others, has died at the age of 91. (Photo: Newshour presenter James Coomarasamy in a radio studio in the north of Milwaukee. Credit: Newshour)

With 2 days to go before the US presidential elections, Donald Trump has travelled to Pennsylvania and held a rally in North Carolina, whilst Kamala Harris has been campaigning in Michigan. Also on the programme: Moldova's pro-EU president appears on course for a second term after a presidential election run-off seen as a choice between Europe and Russia; and we head to the nation of Bhutan to hear about its unique musical tradition called Zhungdra. (Photo: A "Vote Here" sign is seen during early voting for the U.S. presidential election at the Detroit Elections Office in Detroit, Michigan on October 28, 2024. Credit: REUTERS/Rebecca Cook)

Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are campaigning in swing states, with just two days to go before America decides its next president. Newshour's James Coomarasamy is in Milwaulkee, a swing state and visits a food bank in Wisconsin. We also hear what issues are important to people. Also on the programme, Angry residents are hostile towards King Felipe of Spain as he arrives in Valencia badly hit by recent floods. And we hear about the deal that saw one of the greatest treasures in Persian art brought back to Tehran: The Book of King, Shahnameh, exchanged for a de Kooning painting. (Photo: Voters participate in early voting at Fulton County's C.T. Martin Natatorium advance voting polling location in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, 31 October 2024. Credit: Erik S Lesser/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

The Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has deployed 10,000 extra troops to the area of Valencia, where record-breaking floods have killed 211 people. It is the country's largest peacetime deployment of troops. We take a look at how environmental factors might have contributed to the disaster. Also in the programme: a strike has injured a number of people at a polio vaccine clinic in Gaza City; and was the COP16 successful in setting out measures to protect biodiversity? (Photo: army troops arrive in Utiel town, province of Valencia, eastern Spain. Credit: Alvaro Del Olmo / Shutterstock)

Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are headlining several rallies on Saturday, with both presidential candidates ending the day with competing events in the key swing state of North Carolina. More than 70 million people have already cast their vote - a landmark number. Also on the programme: Spain has announced its biggest deployment of troops in peacetime to deal with this week's flash floods in Valencia; countries at the world's biggest nature conservation conference have approved the creation of a permanent body for Indigenous peoples that will consult the United Nations about biodiversity; and the British Conservative party has elected Kemi Badenoch to be its new leader. (Picture: Duke University students wait in line with residents of Durham County, North Carolina for early voting on November 1, 2024. Credit: REUTERS/Jonathan Drake)

Newshour goes to the US state of Wisconsin which could be crucial in deciding the election between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. The two are tied in the polls. Also on the programme, more than 200 people are dead and almost 2,000 missing after devastating floods in Spain; and, Hello Kitty, the beloved small white cat character, turns 50-years old. (Photo: Democratic presidential nominee and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris waves at a campaign rally in Madison, Wisconsin, U.S., October 30, 2024. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein REFILE)

The focus in this final weekend is on the swing states where a few tens of thousands of votes could settle the outcome in the US election. Our reporter is in Pennsylvania where polls expect the rural parts will vote heavily for Trump while the biggest city, Philadelphia, has traditionally provided blowout Democratic support. Also in the programme, emergency workers in Spain say more than two hundred people are now known to have died in the floods; and we take a look at a transformative new therapy for people with psychosis who hear voices. Picture: Democrats voters on the campaign trail in Pittsburg in October. Credit: JUSTIN MERRIMAN/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

Join James Coomarasamy and guests in Wisconsin for this special Newshour podcast looking at how the cost of living in the United States could decide the result of the presidential election. With James is Laura Dresser, a labour economist at the University of Wisconsin and Shawn Johnson, who covers politics for Wisconsin Public Radio.

The US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin says about eight thousand North Korean soldiers have now reached the Kursk region of Russia, where Ukrainian troops have attacked Russian forces. As the crisis in Sudan continues, we hear from the coalition seeking to bring the warring sides together at the negotiating table. Also, the thoughts of the political scientist Francis Fukuyama, as America counts down to its presidential election. And the AI artist whose work could sell for up to 200,000 dollars! (Photo credit: AFP)

Spain is reeling from what has been described as one of the worst natural disasters in its recent history. Rescue workers are struggling to find those feared missing and officials say it’s not clear how many people are still unaccounted for. Hundreds of soldiers have been deployed to help. We hear from local people affected by the floods, from the Spanish Red Cross and from our reporter on the ground. Also on the programme: North Korea test fires a ballistic missile which seems to have flown higher and for longer than ever before; and how a comment about women’s self defence sparked a huge social media response. (Photo: Upturned cars, mud and debris line the streets of the flood-affected municipality of Catarroja, Valencia, Spain. Credit: Manuel Bruque/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

Some 50,000 people have fled the Lebanese city of Baalbek as Israel launches a series of strikes against Hezbollah. More than 20 strikes were reported in the Baalbek area, local people told the BBC - with five inside the city itself, where there is a Unesco-listed ancient Roman temple complex. We'll hear from a local MP on the situation. Also in the programme: To mark 50 years since boxing's Rumble in the Jungle, George Foreman joins us on Newshour to celebrate a half-century since he took on Muhammad Ali. (Photo shows a huge column of black smoke rose into the air following one of the strikes in the Baalbek area. Credit: AFP)

Join James Menendez and guests for this special Newshour podcast examining how immigration is impacting the race for the US Presidency. With James in San Antonio, Texas is Rogelio Sáenz, Professor of Sociology and Demography at the University of Texas in San Antonio and Alejandra Arredondo, a reporter based in San Antonio. Photo: Luis Torres/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

The Spanish authorities say that flash flooding has killed at least sixty-two people and left dozens unaccounted for in Valencia. Some parts of the region have been inundated by a year's worth of rain in just 8 hours. Footage shows people clinging to trees as cars float along muddy rivers. At the same time, a major report is released by the Lancet Countdown Project which says that climate change is the greatest global health threat facing the world in the 21st century. Also in the programme: the X influencers making thousands of dollars spreading misinformation ahead of the US election; and we hear from the lead author of a new scientific study about the animals which share our love of alcohol. (Photo credit: A man walks amongst the debris after heavy rains caused flooding, in Letur, Spain, October 30, 2024. REUTERS/Susana Vera)

The director of the hospital in Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza says it's unable to treat satisfactorily the dozens injured in Israel's strike on a multi-storey building. Almost a hundred people were reported killed or missing in the attack. Israel says its operations in northern Gaza are designed to prevent Hamas from regrouping. The UN Secretary-General and the US State Department have expressed their outrage at Israel's decision to ban the UN agency for Palestinian refugees. They've warned there could be consequences. We'll hear from the Arab Israeli politician, Aida Touma-Suleima, about the vote to ban the UN humanitarian agency for Palestinians. Also in the programme: Donald Trump's former strategist, Steve Bannon, has gone back on the attack on his release from prison, accusing Vice-President Harris of lacking substance; and does Africa's original film festival, FESPACO, face an uncertain future? (Photo credit: Reuters)

Israel's allies condemn a parliamentary vote effectively banning the main UN agency for Palestinians. We hear from the UK’s minister for the middle east – but what are the chances the Israeli government will listen? And who is Naim Qassem, long-time deputy to Hassan Nasrallah and now leader of Hezbollah? Also in the programme: Iran executes a German-Iranian activist - we hear from another Iranian dissident; and how a researcher browsing the internet unearthed an entire lost Mayan city in Mexico. (IMAGE: A sign at the entrance to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) offices in Jerusalem, 29 October 2024 / CREDIT: Abir Sultan / EPA-EFE / REX / Shutterstock)

The Israeli parliament has passed a law banning the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, from operating in the country. Lawmakers accused UNRWA staff of involvement in the attacks of October the Seventh and diverting aid in Gaza. UNRWA's boss, Philippe Lazzarini said the measure would only deepen the suffering of the Palestinian people. A US State Department spokesman said Washington had made it clear to Israel that it was "deeply concerned". Also we have a BBC investigation into How fraudsters are cashing in on illegal migration in the UK. And scientists warn one-third of the world's tree species face extinction - we will look at the potential impact. (Photo: Palestinian civilians continue to flee Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza. Credit: Getty Images)

The World Meteorological Organisation says greenhouse gas levels are higher than ever before. So what are the explanations – and why are natural carbon sinks in trouble? Also in the programme: the opposition in Georgia calls for mass protests after the Georgian Dream Party is declared winner of the election; and has a new miniature masterpiece by Chopin been discovered? We hear from the curator who unearthed the piece. (IMAGE: Aerial view of a lignite burning power station in North Rhine Westphalia - Germany. Chimneys and cooling towers releasing smoke and steam into the atmosphere. The power plant is also releasing the greenhouse gas CO2 / CREDIT: Schroptschop / Getty Images Creative)

The Georgian president Salome Zourabichvili , says Georgians have fallen victim to a Russian special operation, describing Saturday's parliamentary election as a "total falsification." The ruling Georgian Dream party, which was said to have won 54 per cent of the vote, has denied the result was in dispute and accused the opposition of undermining the country's constitutional order. Also in the programme: we speak to Palestinian poet Mosab Abu Toha who says more than 20 of his relatives were killed in a strike in Northern Gaza on Saturday; and we hear from the author Hanif Kureishi on the stage-play based on his semi-autobiographical novel The Buddha of Suburbia. (Picture: Georgia's President Salome Zourabichvili visits a polling station during parliamentary elections in Tbilisi, Georgia on October 26, 2024. Credit: Zurab Javakhadze/REUTERS)

Pro-Western opposition parties in Georgia have refused to accept results that hand victory to the increasingly authoritarian ruling party, after a pivotal election focused on the country's future path in Europe. We hear from an international observer who says the ballot was flawed and spoke of a string of violations across the country, from ballot stuffing inside polling stations to intimidation of voters outside. Also on the programme: we hear from the MSF medical aid agency in Gaza after one of its doctors was detained by Israeli forces during a siege on Kamal Adwan hospital, and we consider undecided voters in the United States. (Picture: Fireworks over the Georgian Dream party headquarters after the announcement of exit poll results in parliamentary elections, in Tbilisi, Georgia Credit: REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze)