BBC News Briefing

3 March, 2025

Sofia has long brown hair and brown eyes and is wearing a green top.

Sofia Lotto Persio

Hello. A man has been arrested after a car drove into a crowd in the German city of Mannheim, killing at least two people and injuring several others. My colleagues bring you the latest. After the notoriously secretive North Korea cautiously reopened its doors to foreign tourists, Jean Mackenzie hears what travellers thought of the country. And finally, Windsor Castle hosts an open Iftar event for the first time.

TOP OF THE AGENDA

At least two deaths in suspected car attack

A black car is shows behind a crime scene tape. The car is tilted to one side where a tyre has gone flat. Its windshield is broken and it's missing a headlight. A police officer wearing a white hazmat suit and gloves stands nearby.

The city hosted a large parade on Sunday as part of the ongoing carnival season in Germany. Credit: EPA

At least two people have died and 10 were injured after a car drove into a crowd in the German city of Mannheim, police said. A 40-year-old German man was arrested at the scene. A statement from a German prosecutor said the suspect had appeared to show "concrete indications of mental illness" and that he shot himself in the mouth after the incident, but his condition was stable after receiving medical treatment. Earlier, police said their early investigation had not revealed any indication of an extremist or political motive. Germany has endured two other deadly car attacks in recent months, one in December in Magdeburg and one last month in Munich.

Read now

GET UP TO SPEED

Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has grey hair and is wearing a blue suit and tie and a white shirt

Hegseth pauses US cyber-offensive against Russia

Operations aimed at strengthening Ukraine's digital defences are likely to be among those affected.

What to know >

Kelly Smith has light brown, shoulder-length straight hair and is wearing a beige blouse during a court appearance.

Mother on trial over daughter's abduction

The case sent shockwaves across South Africa and, despite a highly publicised search for Joshlin, she is yet to be found.

Read more >

An American and a Canadian flag hang from two flagpoles in front of a bridge where several trucks can be seen in a queue on a foggy day.

US tariffs on Canada and Mexico to come into effect

President Donald Trump has said 25% tariffs against the US's neighbouring countries will go ahead on Tuesday.

What to expect >

AT THE SCENE

Rason, North Korea

A glimpse of post-Covid North Korea

A person wearing a hat and a face mask cycles down an unpaved road. two tall buildings rise in the background against a mountanous landscape.

Some tourists thought Rason looked dilapidated, with "awful" roads and run-down buildings. Credit: Mike O'Kennedy

North Korea sealed its borders at the outset of the 2020 Covid pandemic, shutting out diplomats, aid workers and travellers, and making it nearly impossible to know what was happening there. After a five-year hiatus, a small number of travel agencies have been given the green light to restart their tours, although the capital Pyongyang remains off limits.

Jean Mackenzie, South Korea correspondent

Greg Vaczi from Koryo Tours, one of the few tour companies allowed back in, admits the current itinerary lacks the "big-hitting monuments" of Pyongyang. He suspects authorities have chosen Rason as their guinea pig because the area is relatively contained and easy to control.

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Joe Smith, a former writer for the specialist North Korea platform NK News, is a seasoned traveller on his third trip to the country. His hotel room was old-fashioned and filthy, he said. The whole window was cracked. "They've had five years to fix things. North Koreans are so sensitive about what they show tourists. If this is the best they can show, I dread to think what else is out there", he said.

Read in full

Watch: Tour operator Young Pioneer Tours shared footage from the trip, including a choir of schoolchildren singing in front of a video showing ballistic missiles striking their targets.

A young boy with red hair sits wrapped in a blanket with a beagle dog. They are both sat in a checked armchair in a house.

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

Temperature check

Finding the optimal indoor temperature for your health and comfort can be tricky.

Here's why

And finally... at Windsor Castle

More than 350 people gathered in St George's Hall at Windsor Castle to break their Ramadan fast on Sunday, marking a first in the royal residence's 1,000-year history. "It's an amazing atmosphere - it just doesn't feel real," one attendee told the BBC. Another added: "We never thought we'd be here breaking Iftar. We've come a long way." Take a look at pictures from the event.

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