BBC News Briefing

26 March, 2025

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Alex Binley

Hello. The fallout from the Signal chat breach continues, as a top US official says he takes "full responsibility" for what happened. We have the story of an iPad unearthed from London's River Thames which helped solve a six-year-long attempted murder investigation. Plus, take a look at an "unprecedented" Iron Age hoard discovered in the UK.

TOP OF THE AGENDA

Mike Waltz takes 'full responsibility' for Signal group chat

US National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, wearing a suit, throws his hands in the air in a shrugging motion while talking to journalists at the White House

Mike Waltz says he doesn't know the journalist who was added to group chat. Credit: Reuters

One of President Trump's top officials has said he takes "full responsibility" for the "embarrassing" security breach in which a journalist was inadvertently added to a messaging group discussing planned attacks on Houthis in Yemen. Speaking to Fox News, US National Security Advisor Mike Waltz was unable to explain how Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of the Atlantic, came to be on the chat, and said he has asked Elon Musk for help in finding out what happened. Trump has downplayed the security breach but Democrats have described what happened as "sloppy and incompetent".

Five takeaways: Exactly what was discussed in the supposedly private chat?

Watch: How the Signal group chat fallout unfolded over 24 hours, in less than 100 seconds.

US vs EU: Disparaging remarks from top American officials in the Signal chat have caused European leaders and policy-makers to feel "sick to the stomach", writes Europe editor Katya Adler.

WORLD HEADLINES

A man wearing a dark suit, white shirt and yellow tie, with a white comb-over sits behind a desk with his fingers steepled. Behind him are lots of photos.

Trump signs order aimed at overhauling elections

Changes would include requiring voters to show proof of citizenship and limiting when states can receive mail-in ballots.

Order explained >

A woman and man stand next to each other. The woman is wearing a grey dress and has black and grey hair parted on the side. Next to her the man is waving a wearing a navy blue suit, with a white shirt and red tie.

JD Vance will join wife on Greenland trip

The vice president said he would join his wife because he “didn’t want her to have all that fun by herself”.

More on the row >

A huge fire burns at night time. Electricity pylons are silhouetted against the flames.

At least 24 dead in South Korea's 'worst ever fires'

Many of those who died are in their 60s and 70s and more than 23,000 people have fled their homes, authorities said.

Watch as fires rage >

A large crowd of men walks down a street in the same direction. Many can be seen chanting.

Largest anti-Hamas protest in Gaza since war began

Hamas militants, some armed with guns and others with batons, intervened and dispersed the protesters, assaulting some.

What happened >

A young man with short, ginger hair wears a white T-shirt with a dark jacket over the top. He has the sun in his face, his head on the side and is smiling. He is surrounded by smiling children.

Harry quits charity set up in Diana's honour

The Duke of Sussex said he and the Prince of Lesotho left amid a row between the trustees and the chair of its board.

Read more >

BEYOND THE HEADLINES

How iPad recovered from a river after five years solved museum thieves' murder plot

A split image shows the mugshots of three men. The man on the left has ginger hair and beard and blue eyes. The man in the middle has very short black hair, stubble and brown eyes, and the man in the right has short brown hair and a beard.

The three men were undone by tenacious detectives who found their throwaway piece of tech. Credit: Metropolitan Police

A Ming vase stolen from a Swiss museum. A shooting at a comedian's house in an affluent London suburb. The robbery of a luxury apartment in a small town nearby. These seemingly unconnected events were all part of a web of international organised crime that police untangled after discovering an iPad buried in the banks of the River Thames.

Read now

An illustration shows a woman lying on the floor on her pelvis, her hands on her sides propping herself up in a common back stretching exercise. superimpose over the image of the woman are vital signs tracker showing a heart and a chest.

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

Future physio

How an AI-powered app is helping patients to manage back pain symptoms.

How it works

And finally...

One of the "largest and most important" Iron Age finds ever has been uncovered in the UK. The Melsonby Hoard, which was discovered by a metal detectorist, boasts more than 800 items, including cauldrons and ceremonial spears from 2,000 years ago. Take a look.

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– Alex

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