Transcripts For BBCNEWS BBC News 20171224

A Tropical Storm thats wreaked havoc in the southern philippines has left 180 people dead. More than 70,000 people have been forced from their homes. The island of mindanao has been the worst hit area so far and a state of emergency has been declared in several locations there. The storm has now begun to travel west, hitting the popular resort islands of palawan. Andy moore reports. Clinging to the neck of his rescuer, a young boy is carried across the floodwaters. There was little sign of official help here, just villagers doing their best to rescue each other with fragile ropes. In a country used to devastating storms, this took many by surprise. The authorities said too many people had ignored warnings to leave coastal areas and river banks. Many of the casualties were on the main southern island, mindanao. This man said houses were getting flooded but people couldnt escape, so they got caught in the strong currents and swept away. Many places were hit by landslides. Flimsy houses were buried beneath tons of debris. The red cross is helping co ordinate the relief effort. We have already provided water and food, and we have been distributing non food items, certainly blankets, mosquito nets and hygiene kits for those who are in the evacuation centres so we can alleviate the suffering of many of the folks there. The philippines is battered by about 20 typhoons every year. This particular storm is not over yet. As it passes over warm, tropical waters, its winds are set to grow again in strength. Andy moore, bbc news. Nick miller from the bbc Weather Centre has given us an update on the storms path and whether its unusual for the area at this time of year. The typhoon and a Tropical Storm season the typhoon and a Tropical Storm season in this part of the world goes all year. But the recent peak from may to october so clearly we are outside from that peak but it is farfrom are outside from that peak but it is far from unusual to get Something Like this but it has been a rough few weeks for the philippines. A little bit further north, a slow moving storm causing lots of problems as well. It is a combination of the two. Which is why we are seeing the terrible problems with the flooding. An area where it we do not get that many this far south of the philippines, a lot to happen further north but it is not out of the question to Something Like this to happen. Taking a southern track and that is where the storm has gone, overwater, it is expected in the short term to strengthen and become a typhoon, tha nkfully strengthen and become a typhoon, thankfully over portables top then it is on towards vietnams. It is expected to weaken again to a Tropical Storm but areas to the south of the dumb, especially south of penang, will have to be watchful. We are expecting another land for with hundreds of millimetres of rain and destructive winds as well and in november, this part of november vietnam saw a typhoon which caused a lot of flooding. Some of the same areas may be affected again and after that it was back over water and southern areas of thailand but thatis and southern areas of thailand but that is still a few days away. Nick miller. That storm isnt the only disaster that the philippines has to contend with at the moment. At least 37 people have been killed in a fire that swept through the top floor of a Shopping Mall in the Southern City of davao. It started on saturday morning trapping people inside the four storey building. President duterte visited the burning mall, and met the families of the missing the sacked Catalan Leader, Carles Puigdemont, wants to be sworn in again as the regional president , after parties that support independence from spain won a majority in thursdays election. Speaking from self imposed exile in belgium, he urged the Spanish Government to let him return for talks. As James Ransley reports the political instability isnt bringing down catalonias christmas spirit. Catalonia may be facing a political crisis but it has not dampened the holiday it shares of some locals. Translation people are in christmas mood because one thing has nothing to do with the other. People will discuss politics but nothing will happen. So what next for catalonia . That is what everyone in the region is one drink after the elections which gave Pro Independence party a majority once again. Now the separatist leader, carles puidgemont, wants to return from self imposed exile. Puidgemont, wants to return from selfimposed exile. Transaction mac iam the selfimposed exile. Transaction mac i am the president and i have not stopped being it even though they sacked me by the creek by the Spanish Government which has failed in catalonia. Carles puidgemont who is threatened with arrest in spain has called for dialogue with the Spanish Government, even if it falls short of independence. Translation what i say is lets talk. Lets talk about everything but above all about what catalans about everything but above all about what catala ns want. About everything but above all about what catalans want. But the Prime Minister of spain insists of talking to this woman first, ines arrimadas, her party has the largest vote even though it unlikely to form a coalition. It is not clear what would be different this time. Of course, the Spanish Government will say no to the proposal of a legal referendum so in less than half a year, will be on the same situation that we were before the elections. As the crisis continues, it is the economy most at risk. Tourism is suffering and are ready more than 3000 companies are moving their headquarters outside of catalonia. Lets take a look at some of the other stories making the news 32 people have been killed in a bus crash in rajasthan in india. Officials say the driver lost control of the vehicle, which broke through a guard rail and fell thirty metres from a bridge. Venezuela has expelled the brazilian ambassador to caracas, and a canadian diplomat, accusing them of interfering in internal matters and violating the rule of law. Last week, brazil issued a statement accusing president Nicolas Maduro of harassing the opposition. And earlier this year canada imposed sanctions on a number of venezuelan officials. The conductor Charles Dutoit has denied accusations of Sexual Assault made against him, calling the allegations shocking, with no basis in truth. Four women three of them Opera Singers and one a classical musician have accused him of Sexual Assault. The United Nations has for the first time begun flying vulnerable african refugees being held in libya into europe. More direct flights to italy are planned for the new year for those deemed to be extremely vulnerable including single mothers, unaccompanied children and people with disabilities. Andrew plant reports. A military plane touching down in italy. On board, 110 women and children, african migrants. Refugees who travelled to libya, now flown directly to europe for the very first time. They are part of the protection work that unhcr does in libya. We have visited the Detention Centre 995 times this year and 1,200 vulnerable refugees, we have had them released. Tens of thousands of people fleeing their homes arrive in libya each year and attempt to cross the mediterranean to reach italy, their very first footsteps into europe. The risks are enormous. These people were pulled from the water last week when their boat broke in half off the libyan coast, rescued by chance by the libyan navy. This year and for the past four years in a row more than 3,000 people have died trying to make the crossing. Those who survive often say their greatest fear is being sent back to libya to camps like these. Complaints of abuse are widespread, of beatings and ill treatment. Desperation forces many into the hands of human traffickers and into boats overloaded and unfit for the sea. Italy has called this an evacuation, the first they hope of many. These people, the most vulnerable. 50 more are due on a later plane. Translation we managed to intervene in a particularly difficult situation, like the libyan one, and managed to bring women and children to safety, welcoming the refugees and rescuing them from the people smugglers. European leaders met in brussels this week to discuss migration. More than 160,000 people have arrived in europe from africa this year. Thats less than half the number from 2016, but measures to curb arrivals, like a repatriation scheme, on going in libya, are highly controversial. Now italy plans to take the lead, taking up to 10,000 more people from libya in 2018, and is looking to the rest of europe to help to find them new homes. Stay with us on bbc world news, still to come remembering bruce mccandless, the first jetpack astronaut, who has died aged 80. People started to run, and suddenly it was complete chaos. We saw this enormous tidal wave approaching the beach, people started to run, and suddenly it was complete chaos. United states troops have been trying to overthrow the dictatorship of general manuel noriega. The pentagon said the operation was 90 successful but failed in its principal objective, to capture general noriega and take him to the us to face drugs charges. The hammer and sickle was hastily taken away. The russian flag was hoisted over what is no longer the soviet union but the commonwealth of independent states. Day breaks slowly over lockerbie, over the cockpit of pan ams maid of the seas, nosedown in the soft earth. You could see what happens when a plane eight storeys high, a football pitch wide, falls from 30,000 feet. Christmas has returned to albania after a communist ban lasting more than 20 years. Thousands went to Midnight Mass in the town of shkroda, where there were anti communist riots ten days ago. This is bbc news. The latest headlines Tropical Storm tembin has left more than 180 people dead in the philippines. Two days of heavy rain have led to flash flooding and mudslides. The sacked Catalan Leader Carles Puigdemont says he wants to return to catalonia and be sworn in again as the regions president. A wildfire in california is now the largest ever recorded in the state. More than 1,000 Square Kilometres have been affected by the thomas fire, which started in early december. A spokesman for the fire service says the flames are now 65 contained and one of the Key Resources has been the use of convicts on day release. James cook has their story. Its pretty challenging. Sometimes were right there, right next to the fire. Compared to being in prison and being here, its completely different. Here, you feel free. Youre out in the world. The biggest change for me is mental, because ive never pushed myself as hard, ever, in life. California has 4,000 inmate firefighters, men and women. Cutting firebreaks is risky work two have died this year but there are rewards, too, in reduced sentences and a sense of purpose. After being in this programme, ifeel like ive been rehabilitated and ifeel like i can go out there and achieve anything i want to, because ive done this. This is so hard. We were allowed inside this prison camp in malibu. There are no walls or fences here. Violent or volatile prisoners are not allowed to join the programme. With a job like this, there is only time to think about the work. Latoya najar is serving four years for causing the death of her 7 year old son in a drunken car crash. The attraction for me was because of my crime, i could come out here and do something positive. Its challenging mentally to get over something. Im never going to get over it but to try to ease my mind and this has helped. With california facing more frequent and more destructive fires, some critics call this slave labour. But the project is voluntary, it may reduce re offending and it provides some measure of redemption. Everyone is like, we love you, firefighters. We all wave back and we wave to the kids. Its amazing, yes. The work may be exhausting, it may be dangerous, but in the words of one prisoner, its better than twiddling your thumbs injail. James cook, bbc news, in southern california. Russian submarine activity has apparently reached a level not seen since the end of the cold war 30 years ago. That warning comes from senior nato officers. Theyre concerned that russia could target undersea cables linking europe to the united states. The cables provide important internet and communications links. Ive been speaking to Malcolm Chalmers who is the Deputy Director of rusi, a think tank based in london. I asked him if russia was back as a big power to reckon with for nato. I think that is right, in that sense, it is into new, is a trend we have seen over the last decade and a large increase in the Russian Defence budget which has allowed its forces on land and at sea to be much more active, to train more vigorously, to prove the effectiveness of their operations compared with a decade ago and that is reflected in submarines surging into the north atlantic at a rate that they havent before, or for more than 20 years, so starting to match nato in the levels of activity of the maritime forces. Havent we seen sort of peaks and troughs and, you know, it sort apostolate over the years so some searches of activity and then subsides, so would it not just be activity and then subsides, so would it notjust be another one of those high point in that it will taper off ain . High point in that it will taper off again . Of course, that is always possible, but i think this is more about russia returning to a normal level of activity for a force that wa nts to level of activity for a force that wants to actually be seen as credible by nato. For a long period after the end of the cold war, in the early nineteen nineties, russia had a large fleet but it hardly ever went to see and for nato navies came to believe that they didnt have much capability to do them for use them and over the last decade it has changed, i have become more active and serious and one of the consequences have been that nato navies including the royal navy, are having to spend a lot more of their time tracking Russian Submarines to see what they are up to and as a result of the trucking of a one assumes that we have these multiplying reports of russian interest in undersea cables, to track a Russian Submarine takes a lot of effort on how submarines but also surface ships and aircraft. You mentioned the cables, what with interest be in the cables . In the event of a large scale conflict, cutting those cables would be very valuable in terms of disrupting the economy is of western societies. Targeting cables of course is nothing new, the uk destroyed german telegraph cables back at the end of world war i but today, we are much more dependent on those cables because of the central internet and our economies so in the event of conflict, this would be a capability which the russians could deploy, along with all sorts of other capabilities. It doesnt mean they are going to attack is out of the blue but it is one more element to keep nato on its toes. Malcolm chalmers on russias active submarines. Sport now and lionel messi and luis suarez scored as barcelona beat real madrid three goals to nil in la liga, dealing a huge blow to reals title defence. Cristiano ronaldos side now trail their rivals by 1a points in the table. Suarez struck in the 54th minute of el clasico and messi added a penalty 10 minutes later after madrids dani ca rvajal received a direct red card for stopping a goal bound header by paulinho. Messi also set up substitute aleix vidal to round off the win in stoppage time. The victory for Ernesto Valverdes team puts them nine points clear at the top, ahead of atletico madrid. Real remain in fourth place with a game in hand. Onto the English Premier League now and Manchester City have gone 1a points clear at the top of the table. They hammered bournemouth 4 0 at the etihad stadium. Sergio aguero was on the scoresheet twice with Raheem Sterling and substitute danilo completing the rout. The result means city have now won 17 Straight Premier League games. Manchester united conceded a late goal to draw with leicester. Another four goals of course is important for us, to score goals, and it was difficult in the first half because they played ten Players Behind the ball, 5 4, and the striker was bare and when it happens the space is so small and in the second half after the substitute came very second half after the substitute came very jammed more, second half after the substitute came veryjammed more, they try to press in, that is when we found our pace and the right decisions to attack and be finishing in a good way. It has been a difficult ashes so far for cricket fans. They had been hoping to be able to look forward to the boxing day ashes test but australia have already wrapped up the series. Plenty of questions have been asked on the topic of where england go from here. In the days since the defeat in perth in the third test, winning and lost the ashes, the question has been level they go now. The ads are geographically at least is here, melbourne, the mcg, this great cathedral of australian sport. Ahead of the great cricketing occasion, the boxing day test. There has also been debate around the reasons behind this ashes defeat, england have now lost a test matches in a row on these shores, blaming county cricket saying it doesnt produce in a fast bowlers and spinners whereas others are saying there needs to be widespread change in the management of english cricket. The man at the top of the game is ecb chief executive tom harrison and today he faced a few bounces of his own from the media had said there is no need for revolution just yet. We have got a young captain who is doing a great job and have been impressed with him privately and publicly about how he is approaching his captaincy. We have got new players who have come in to the fold and stepped up to the plate. And it isjust in to the fold and stepped up to the plate. And it is just been disappointing that in the key moments of the key matches we havent been able to turn the screw to get on top of the australians and glitzy we can do that over the next two test matches. Another area of criticism has come from an unsurprising source, ricky ponting, the former australian skipper. It has turned his fire onjoe root, the england captain, who says he looks like a boy and he has been soft. Joe root was defended by his wicket keeper, jonny bairstow. Root was defended by his wicketkeeper, jonny bairstow. Look, eve ryo ne wicketkeeper, jonny bairstow. Look, everyone will have an opinion and thatis everyone will have an opinion and that is all well and good and i think he is doing a really good job as captain, i think the tactics he has shown with the ball has been really good and i think he will only grow and learn by doing it. There is very little time for rest over the Christmas Period if you are an england cricketer, they are preparing right through the Festive Season and the boxing day they will walk out with a batting or in the field at this place. It will be packed to the rafters, it will be incredibly noisy, and i think we will find out one or two things about englands character. Patrick gearey at the ashes. The first astronaut to fly freely in space, bruce mccandless, has died at the age of eighty. Hes best known for a photograph in 1984 which pictured him flying above earth with a jetpack. Mr mccandless also served as the Mission Control capsule communicator when Neil Armstrong first walked on the moon in 1969. Lets take a quick look back at what he achieved lets take a quick look back at what he achieved. Roger, copy that, bruce. To finish, lets hear the sound of the czech christmas mass. Hundreds of singers turned out in prague to perform that together. Its a tradition which began in 1989 after the fall of communism in what was then czechoslovakia. In the first year, a few people gathered on the steps of the bridge. Since then its become an altogether bigger affair with the crowd led by professional conductors and soloists with the main train station also turned into a concert hall for the occasion. Lets hear some more. All sing. Dont forget you can get in touch with me and some of the team on twitter, im benmbland. Also plenty more news on our website whenever you want it. You can also download our news to keep up to date with all of the latest while you are and about. News app. This is bbc news. Thank you for watching. Hello again. Although it has been a mild run up to christmas and it will continue today on Christmas Eve i think we will notice a change by the end of christmas day. It is set to get much colder service no risk will increase. The first may get have a White Christmas and it could be potentially pretty windy as well in the next 48 hours. We did have some brightness through the day on saturday. This was durham late in the day. I dont think we will see as much through the day ahead, the reason is this mass of cloud, a weather front, quite an active one, marching into the north and west of the uk now. We still have the tightly packed isoba rs the uk now. We still have the tightly packed isobars so windy weather and they are coming from a mild south westerly direction and behind this weather front the cold air is lying. It stays to the north of the most. We start on a rather mild and murky note. Morning fog around but not as much as yesterday morning. Still rather dank and drizzly and great for most of us as we move into this morning. Ninth and ten is already as we get to daybreak. We will stay drizzly around the coast to much of the day that we may see some brightness inland, just not as much as yesterday, Andrew Little chance of brightness for Northern Ireland and scotla nd brightness for Northern Ireland and scotland because the weather stays put. It does single to be further south as we go through the day at the intensity remains with us to scotland, argon or put in particular, and it gets heavier across Northern Ireland for the afternoon and its fairly brisk wind and that is why im hopeful for the likes of North East Wales and north east england we may see sunnier spells. We may see it to the north of the weather front temporarily. In northern scotland, that is. Through the evening and other weather front joins forces with the one we or you have some are concerned we will see some flooding because it looks i can thoroughly wet 2a hours. Our goal northwards as i say, 80 100 millimetres over the hills. Wind strengthens over the web to weather fronts towards christmas day, the wind looks poorly across england and wales, and stop to move across the western side of england and wales, Northern England, and behind that we get this no risk, so wild and windy airhead, mild and windy airhead but because this note lower havels across north and eastern scotland, possibly Northern England later and evening and overnight across the hills of wales and to the south and west and that is because the cold air is coming back, not just across is because the cold air is coming back, notjust across the north, it looks as if it will filter southwards across many areas by the tomic to boxing day would will fill markedly colder and thats the weather system im talking about, it is clearing up of the weight to it is clearing up of the weight to it is brighter skies but colder than we have this weather system which could also bring a risk of some snow, so please stay tuned. This is bbc news, the headlines more than 180 people have been killed by a Tropical Storm in the southern philippines. Heavy rain has triggered flash floods and landslides. One whole village is said to have been buried. The sacked Catalan Leader, Carles Puigdemont, says he wants to return to catalonia and be sworn in again as the regions president , following the election last week. Hes currently wanted for arrest in spain on charges of rebellion. A wildfire burning in california is now the largest such blaze ever recorded in the state. More than 1,000 Square Kilometres have been affected by the thomas fire, which started to spread early in december. Barcelona have beaten real madrid 3 0, in the first el clasico match of the Spanish League season. All the goals were scored in the second half. Barcelona are now fourteen points ahead of la ligas reigning champions. Now on bbc news, from the engagement of prince harry and meghan markle, to the retirement from royal duties of the duke of edinburgh,