Philippines. The storm, known as ursula there, has been following a similar track to typhoon haiyan in 2013, the most powerful to hit the archipelago in a long time. Tens of thousands have been stranded at ports, many unable to join their families for christmas. Catherine karelli reports. A far from peaceful christmas in the central philippines. Typhoon pha nfone has brought sustained winds of almost 200 kilometres an hour, terrifying local people. Woman screams. And leaving a trail of destruction. Heavy rain has left many homes flooded. More than 16,000 people had to spend the night in improvised shelters and at least 100 families have been left homeless. In this majority catholic country, the typhoon, which has damaged infrastructure, stopped many people visiting their families for christmas. Filipinos are well used to tropical storms and typhoons, with around 20 hitting the island nation each year. The most deadly in recent times was typhoon haiyan in 2013, where a massive storm surge left more than 7,000 people dead. And many of the areas worst hit back then have borne the brunt of this latest storm. In west africa, more details are emerging about a deadly attack by islamist militants in burkina faso on tuesday that left 35 civilians dead most of them women. The countrys defence minister has said hes confident that if the people unite they can win the fight against the insurgents. Rich preston reports. The militants launched their attack on a military outpost first. Officials say there were around 200 of them, many of them on motorbikes. After shooting up soldiers, they turned their guns on civilians. 35 people, almost all of them women, were killed. Security forces were eventually able to fight back, killing 80 of the attackers. It happened in arbinda, close to the countrys borders with mali and niger. Burkina faso was once a relatively calm country in the otherwise turbulent sahel region. But, as French Forces have suppressed militant groups in neighbouring mali, theyve spilled over the border. Attacks by Islamist Groups have killed hundreds of people in burkina faso and displaced thousands. Rich preston, bbc news. Firefighting teams in australia are bracing themselves for more heatwave conditions as recent cooler weather gives way to higher temperatures. Since september, close to 3000 firefighters have been out nearly every day battling blazes. Almost 90 of those on the ground are unpaid volunteers. Many families in New South Wales are spending the Holiday Season in shelters their villages and towns still smouldering from last weeks fires. 0ur correspondent, phil mercer, is in bilpin, about 80 kilometres north west of sydney. This is bilpin, very famous in australia for its apple production but all the way up this is the bells line of road, the main road going through the area from sydney. It is only recently been opened. When you drive through this area you see vast areas of bushland that have been left in this terrible scorched way and the air is thick with smoke and ash and for quite a long time, it was deemed to be too dangerous for residents and visitors to use this road. You can understand why because the flames would have come very close to this main road. So we now know in New South Wales about 27 about 72 bushland and grass fires are burning, about halfway out of control and firefighters are using more benign conditions to try to get the upper hand. You really do get the upper hand. You really do get the sense in these sorts of areas that australia is almost on a war footing that the enemy is these bushfires and the bushfires can flare up really easily. They spread very quickly and as you can see, they can be absolutely devastating. You get a sense feel from the reports about how hard it is for people to do very much against it. People just watching homes and businesses they worked on for years simply burning, than trying to escape themselves. Some of these are nine metres high. The elderly couple you might have seen, in the shot a few months smoke few moments ago, they the previous owners of this orchard. They built the business up from nothing and theyve come back, sold at 17 years ago, but they came back to have a look and have been in tea rs back to have a look and have been in tears because all of their hard work and the hard work of the recent owners, the current owners, has been reduced to this. It is a mangled of twisted metal and sheer devastation. Busy household appliances, you see picnic tables, the main housejust over the is looking like this. It has been destroyed and sadly this miserable site has been repeated time and time again stop notjust here New South Wales, there are active fires in the states of victoria and very dangerous situations to in South Australia and as you say, in the next few days we are expecting heatwave conditions and much of the fire zones. So conditions far more favourable today but that might not be the case in a few days time. Fill in bilpin, thank you so much for that. Lets get some of the days other news. The authorities in chile say a forest fire that encroached on the port city of valparaiso has destroyed at least 200 houses. Reports say a dozen firefighters were injured while battling the flames. Government ministers said there was a strong indication the fires were started deliberately. Indias National Human Rights Commission has asked police in the Northern State of Uttar Pradesh to respond to allegations they violated protesters civil rights during recent demonstrations against the controversial citizenship law. The legislation has been criticised as anti muslim. At least 2a people have been killed, hundreds injured, in clashes across the country, in several cities, in the past two weeks. Mexicos Foreign Ministry has requested an urgent diplomatic meeting to protest against what it calls harassment and intimidation by bolivian Security Forces. It accuses them of excessive surveillance and trying to impede the ambassadors movements. Bolivia says its only responding to threats made against the Mexican Mission for hosting allies of the ousted bolivian president evo morales. More clashes in hong kong between police and pro democracy demonstrators. Officers have used teargas and pepper spray on crowds, who gathered again in major shopping districts. The protests began back injune, against a proposal to allow suspects to be extradited to mainland china. That bill was later withdrawn, but the demonstrations have evolved into a Broader Movement demanding democratic reforms, and more. Jon donnison reports. Not much christmas cheer in hong kong as Security Forces once again clashed with pro democracy demonstrators. Plain clothed undercover officers using pepper spray on protesters whod occupied a shopping mall, and all this on Christmas Day. We are trying to let everyone to know that we wont celebrate christmas because we want to protest, even on this joyful day. 0utside, Police Used Tear Gas as they fought running battles with demonstrators a far cry from the Winter Wonderland presented on tv by hong kongs beijing backed leader carrie lam. In her festive message, she wished everyone a safe, happy and peaceful christmas. But the protesters are demanding she quit, and later on social media, she called them selfish and reckless. They are certainly prepared to take risks. This young man charges at police before throwing himself over a balcony. Lucky to be alive. The demonstrators have forced the government to make some concessions. But there are now demands for much broader reform, including an investigation into allegations of police brutality. These protests have been going on for seven months. And as the year comes to a close, there is no end in sight. Jon donnison, bbc news. Lebanon is ending 2019 with its worst economic crisis in decades. Growth has fallen to zero. Many companies have been pushed into bankruptcy, others have laid off staff and slashed salaries. The prime minister, saad hariri, resigned in late october because of Anti Government protests. His replacement, hassan diab, appointed only last week, has promised to form a government to deal with the countrys problems. But, as martin patience reports from the town of arsal, many people are losing hope. Its backbreaking work at this stone cutting factory in northern lebanon. These men are the lucky few who have a job. Lebanons economic crisis is hitting hard. 0rders have dried up, workers have been laid off. Despair has set in. Translation the economy is so bad is beyond imagination. This is this worker. Its the worst ive seen in most 30 years. Almost 30 years. For one man at the factory, it was too much. This man had no work for a month and a half. And when his seven year old daughter asked for lunch money, he didnt have it. He hanged himself at the back of the house. Who do you blame for your husbands death . I dont blame anyone. It was my husband who decided to put an end to his life. But it was poverty, it was Economic Situation that pushed him into it. I urge officials to change the situation. As quickly as possible. So there will be no more victims in lebanon. The story of this man might seem like an extreme case but its an end occasion of what is happening across this country. People here are feeling more and more desperate. And many fear a complete economic collapse. This is a country that in recent yea rs collapse. This is a country that in recent years has held together against the odds. But levin on is 110w against the odds. But levin on is now facing its worst economic crisis since the civil war. Martin patience, bbc news. Stay with us on bbc news still to come taking to the waves why this years sydney hobart yacht race is set to make history. The world of musics been paying tribute to George Michael whos died from suspected Heart Failure at the age of 53. He sold well over 100 million albums in a career spanning more than three decades. The United States troops have been trying to overthrow the dictatorship of general manuel noriega. The pentagon says its failed in its principle objective to capture noriega and take him to the United States to face drugs charges. The hammer and sickle was hastily taken away. In its place, the russian flag was hoisted over what is now no longer the soviet union, but the commonwealth of independent states. Day broke slowly over lockerbie, over the cockpit of pan ams maid of the seas, nose down 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 shkodra where there were anti communist riots 10 days ago. This is bbc news, our main headline a powerful typhoon tears through parts of the philippines, leaving tens of thousands stranded. Richard gordon is the chairman of the philippine red cross. I asked him how the country has been coping. Well, first of all it is kind of difficult, firstly it is christmas, there are people who are stranded, you have to support them, and then you have to bring the goods that you have to deliver into several provinces which have been affected. Things are very hard to come by. A lot of people have lost their homes. And they need food, they need hot meals. We are serving hot meals. It is hard enough. Were trying to do that. And then the power has been affected. There is a complete blackout in several areas, that should be solved in the next two or three weeks. The water has been interrupted in certain areas. There are an awful lot of things to be done, while the rescue phase is over, hopefully. We now come in with our support in terms of relief, food, water. We have a lot of first aid. And certainly our doctors will support those. Those who have lost their buildings we will provide beds. To help those who have lost their creature comforts. We are also fighting the earthquake in mindanao at the same time and the recent typhoon in another province. We are not finished there. So definitely there is a lot to do the philippines, in addition to polio vaccination and measles and the like. How does this compare to typhoon haiyan six years ago . This ranks about fourth in terms of intensity. In this year alone. In terms of surprise, this is a surprise. This was a sleeper. It came in and woke up everybody rudely. Everybody was at christmas. It is hard in that sense. In terms of haiyan, it had really powerful winds, this was 120 kilometres per hour. And certainly it damaged a lot of homes, but haiyan had so many thousands of homes damaged. This does not compare close to typhoon haiyan. A lot of properties on the coast just cannot be saved. It is a majority catholic country, thousands of people very unhappy they cant get home to their families for christmas, stuck in ferry ports with no ferry is running. And apart from the deaths we are hearing about, scores of people injured. Yes, you bet. In terms of the port, the red cross is there to provide them with hot meals or food, not very special food, im afraid. Becaues there are quite a few of them. We were caught unawares. But we have chapters in those areas. But certainly the big problem is now those who are homeless, lost their roofs, we have to address their problems and that is why we are rushing in food trucks in the area so we can at least prepare hot meals for them right away. In her christmas address, Queen Elizabeth has spoken of the importance of friendship and reconcilitation, after a year of deep divisions in the uk over brexit. She led members of the royal family at a Church Service on the sandringham estate. Prince andrew, who stepped away from royal duties last month, wasnt present he went to an earlier service. 0ur royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell reports. Morning service at sandringham. Notable for who attended and who was absent. Making their first appearance, 6 year old Prince George and 11 year old princess charlotte. Absent from the main service, prince andrew. He decided to attend an earlier private service for the family. After the 11 oclock service, the queen headed back to sandringham house, where Prince Philip had remained after his discharge from hospital yesterday. That left the cambridges to lead the royal party greeting the crowds. A little daunting for george and charlotte, who havent done this sort of thing before. Unsurprisingly, they stayed close to their mum and dad as they received flowers and, for charlotte, a hug. God save the queen plays. In her christmas message, the queen spoke of her delight at the birth of her eighth grandchild, archie, who is currently in canada with his parents, the duke and duchess of sussex. Turning away from family matters, she acknowledged the efforts being made by young people to protect the environment. The challenges many people face today may be different to those ones faced by my generation but i have been struck by how new generations have brought a similar sense of purpose to issues such as protecting our environment and our climate. For the 75th anniversary. The main theme of the broadcast was the need for reconciliation. The queen recalled the 75th anniversary of d day lastjune. There was a lesson to be learned from it. By being willing to put past differences behind us and move forward together, we honour the freedom and democracy once won for us at so great a cost. The queen said the need to seek harmony and understanding was at the heart of the teaching ofjesus christ. Many of us already try to follow in his footsteps. The path, of course, is not always smooth and may, at times this year, have felt quite bumpy, but small steps can make a world of difference. And it is those small steps, the queen said, which can bring about the most lasting change. That description of a bumpy year is almost certainly a reference to the divisions caused by the brexit debate. But theres no denying its been a difficult year, too, for the royal family. The queen, doubtless, will be hoping for a smoother passage in 2020 both for the country and for her family. Nicholas witchell, bbc news, at buckingham palace. Management at the spanish resort where three people died in one of the swimming pools has declared there are no concerns relating to the pool or the procedures the club carried out. A father and his two children reportedly drowned at Club La Costa world, near fuengirola. Police in spain have launched an investigation. In australia, the annual sydney hoba rt yacht race is getting started. More than a hundred and sixty five teams are taking part in what is the seventy fifth running of the competition. But this year sees something new the first indigenous crew is taking part. The bbcs tim allman explains. Some final checks for the crew of the tribal warrior. In a race steeped in history and tradition, this is a genuine first. This crew represents the Indigenous People of australia, who are, in a way, travelling with them. Very, very exciting. And its brought people from broome, at lightning ridge, at bourke, at coonabarabran, theyre all all the communities are talking and theyre all saying thats our boat and thats very proud. Eight of the 11 crew are aboriginal, representing 800,000 Indigenous People of australia. Some are hoping this race, this experience will write a new page in their history. Its just an opportunity of a lifetime for us to represent our people and, you know, show our youth out there that if theres anything you want to do, you put your mind to it, you just say yes, and dont let fear or doubt stop you, you go ahead and do it. The crew claims certain natural advantages, Indigenous People are, they insist, instinctive sailors. Something they will get the chance to prove in the coming hours as they race into history. See you in hobart tim allman, bbc news. Shes 23 years old, likes to work out, and is a sikh. In the latest in our series about young british people who express their faith in ways you wouldnt expect, youre about to meet gurpreet. She started posting her workouts on instagram but was trolled by people who said it wasnt the sort of thing sikh women should be doing. Now, she wants to prove them wrong. When i woke out, it makes me feel like i am wonder woman and on top of the world. Physically, it does wonders to your body. Im small, petite but it makes me feel like i am peaceful. Iam petite but it makes me feel like i am peaceful. I am 23, from coventry, andi am peaceful. I am 23, from coventry, and i do body weight training and i ama and i do body weight training and i am a sikh. It is unusual in the Indian Community for a sikh to do the exercises i have been some people find it very shocking. In my instagram i have started to get negative reviews from people worldwide, saying a womans place is in the kitchen, you should not be working out. That made me feel angry and build this fire inside of me and i wanted to prove them wrong and show them that women can do whatever men can do. I draw strength from the music i listen to when i work out. I like sikh religious hams. When i am struggling with an exercise, it is extra motivation and it gets me through to the end of my worker, it reminds me who i am. What i do makes me stand out but, as sikh we are meant to stand out from the crowd, thatis meant to stand out from the crowd, that is why we wear the turban, so we can spot out when people need help. Women can also wear the turban. Hopefully, a few years down the line, i hope to start a sikh motorbike group. I feel like we should get out there and lead the world know who sikh are and what better way than riding a motorbike. Divers in the slovenian city of bled have been performing the legend of the submerged bell in lake bles. Thousands of tourists watch this event on Christmas Day every year. It retells the legend of the wishing bell that used to sit on the church tower on the island in the middle of the lake. Legend says when the submerged bell rings, wishes come true. Critically endangered black rhinos have been relocated, with the assistance of british troops, to help protect the animals against poaching. Soldiers from the 2nd battalion Royal Gurkha Rifles worked with the African Parks Conservation Organisation in malawi to help train rangers to crack down on the illegal wildlife trade. They also helped with one of the Largest International rhino translocations so far, offloading 17 animals who travelled by air and road from Kwazulu Natal in south africa. The project will help boost the rhino population in the region. Thank you so much for watching. Hello there. Christmas day brought us a fine settled spell of weather but it was short lived and we are expecting more wet and rather windy weather to move through for boxing day. Very gradually, those temperatures will lift. It will turn milder across the south, initially, and then to all areas as we head on into friday, and certainly over the weekend. Here it is, next area of low pressure bringing the wetter and windier weather here, but still further north and east, its going to be a largely dry start to boxing day. Quite chilly in places. A touch of frost across central, northern and eastern scotland. Compare that to 7 10 degrees in the south and the west. So quite a contrast in weather conditions to start boxing day. Chilly, fairly bright across the north and the east. The winds continue to pick up here. Wetter and windier weather across the west will slowly spread northwards and eastwards. We could see a little bit of snow over the highest ground of the pennines and perhaps southern scotland later in the day. A bit of brightness moving in behind. One or two showers within the next batch of rain moving into the south west. Temperatures here will be in double figures. A blustery day for all but certainly windy further south and west that you are. So as we head for the evening period, that next batch of rain starts to move northwards and eastwards again. Maybe some heavier bursts in it. It will be quite misty and murky as those temperatures continue to rise. 9 11 degrees in the south and west. Six or 7 in the north east. So turning milder for all. This is the weather front bringing that next batch of rain, High Pressure beginning to establish itself over the near continent, and we are going to continue to draw up this south or south westerly wind, with very mild air reaching all areas by the time we reach friday. So all areas will be milder on friday. A rather cloudy picture, with outbreaks of rain, across scotland, north east england. Slowly clearly northwards. It may remain quite cloudy and murky further south. A few glimmers of brightness here and there. But if the sunshine does come out, with highs of 12 or 13 degrees, it will feel very mild indeed. But even double figure values there in central scotland. Theres that area of High Pressure over the near continent, establishing itself, trying to keep these weather fronts at bay but they will try to squeeze in at times, parts of northern ireland, northern and western scotland as we head on into saturday. I think many places will be dry. Variable cloud could see a bit of sunshine. Perhaps some fogginess across the south east to start saturday. And just some rain and stronger winds pushing into the far north west but temperatures for most will be in double digits. Like i mentioned, it stays mild throughout sunday and indeed into the start of next week. It could be mild into the run up to new years eve. But could turn quite windy across the north and the west. This is bbc news the headlines typhoon phanfone has caused major floods and destruction in the philippines. The storm, known as ursula in the philippines, has killed at least 10 people and left tens of thousands stranded, spending the night in improvised shelters. Homes have been wrecked and roads littered with fallen trees. More littered with fallen trees. Details from the insurger attack more details from the insurgent attack on motorcycle riders. Firefighters in South Australia and New South Wales are continuing to battle out of control bushfires on boxing day, before a heatwave brings extreme temperatures to many parts of australia later in the week. Since september, close to 3000 firefighters have been out battling blazes in New South Wales. Now on bbc news one of our highlights of 2019
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