BBC News Briefing

6 February, 2026

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

Sofia Lotto Persio

Hello. A top Russian general has been wounded in an attack in Moscow. My colleague Paul Kirby has the details. In China, BBC World Service investigates the spread of spy-cam videos filming unsuspecting guests in hotel rooms. And finally, find out how much a previously unknown Michelangelo sketch of a foot has fetched at a recent auction.

TOP OF THE AGENDA

Russian general in hospital after attack

Vladimir Alexeyev has grey hair and wears a military uniform with a blue and white striped tshirt underneath.

Alexeyev was placed under EU sanctions following a 2018 nerve agent attack in Salisbury in the UK. Credit: Russian Defence Ministry

Lt Gen Vladimir Alexeyev has been wounded and taken to hospital after being shot several times in a residential building on the north-western outskirts of Moscow by a gunman who fled. Alexeyev is number two in the main directorate of Russia's GRU military intelligence. His boss at the GRU, Igor Kostyukov, has been in charge of Russia's negotiating team. Alexeyev is the latest high-ranking military figure to have been targeted in the capital. Others include Lt Gen Igor Kirillov, who was killed in an explosion in December 2024, and Gen Yaroslav Moskalik and Lt Gen Fanil Sarvarov, who were killed by car bombs in April and December 2025.

Military communications: The US and Russia have agreed to re-establish high-level dialogue between their armed forces.

In Odesa: A team of divers has been tasked with the dangerous job of de-mining parts of the Black Sea still under Ukraine's control.

Winter Olympics: Italy has foiled "Russian origin" cyber-attacks targeting the event, foreign minister Antonio Tajani has announced.

WORLD HEADLINES

A composite photo of US special envoy Steve Witkoff (left) and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.

US and Iran talks to begin in Oman

The talks come after a US military build-up in the Middle East and Iran's violent repression of anti-government protests.

What to know >

A man carries an injured boy to a hospital following an explosion at a mosque in Islamabad on February 6, 2026

Dozens killed in Pakistan mosque blast, officials say

At least 30 people have been killed and dozens injured in an explosion at a mosque during Friday prayers in Islamabad.

Follow live updates >

Houses of the old town are pictured in Nuuk, western Greenland. Around them are snowy rolling hills and a small mountain in the distance. The houses have snowy roofs, and ar different colours -- red, yellow, teal and blue, and are densly packed by the shore.

Canada and France to open Greenland consulates

Until this week, only Iceland and the US had formal diplomatic consulates in Greenland's capital Nuuk.

Why it matters >

Nancy Guthrie smiles in an undated photo

Guthrie's missing mother 'still out there', police say

Arizona police have yet to identify a suspect in Nancy Guthrie's disappearance, five days after she vanished.

Read more >

The crown of French Empress Eugenie - a gold crown featuring diamonds, emeralds and golden eagles and a red velvet covering. Its decorations can be seen crushed inwards

Louvre crown left crushed but 'intact' after raid

The crown of French Empress Eugenie is missing one golden eagle but retains its emeralds and most of its 1,354 diamonds.

See more pictures >

NEWS FROM THE UK

Lord Mandelson: Government figures are preparing to hand over private messages with the former US ambassador amid Epstein investigation.

Retirement properties: Families have told the BBC they are struggling to sell homes inherited from loved ones, paying hefty fees in the meantime.

Wuthering Heights: Australian actor Jacob Elordi has shared how he practiced the Northern English accent for the role of Heathcliff.