a period of national mourning following a crush in the capital, seoul, that killed at least 150 people and injured dozens more. huge crowds of teenagers and young people had jammed into the narrow streets of the itaewon district to celebrate halloween. the area is known for its busy nightlife. a fire service spokesman said most of those who died were in their teens or early 20s. earlier, on social media, people had spoken of the streets being so busy that they felt unsafe. our correspondent in seoul, jean mackenzie, has this report and a warning you may find some of the images distressing. young people out to party, having fun, until things suddenly change. oh, my god! by the end of the night, bodies lined the street, some in costume. others were carried into ambulances lifeless and barefoot. the chilling sign of people who have tried to run but not been able to. the crush started in a small alleyway it was so packed, people were stuck, elbow to elbow, they had barely an in
into ambulances lifeless and barefoot. the chilling sign of people who have tried to run but not been able to. the crush started in a small alleyway it was so packed, people were stuck, elbow to elbow. they had barely an inch to move when the crowd surged forward. translation: the incident happened as large numbers of people fell down during the halloween festival, which caused serious injuries. this area of seoul is one of the most popular places for a night out, for locals and tourists. it s the place to celebrate halloween and it s estimated 100,000 had come tonight. there were so many people to the point we were being crushed on the pavement, to the point where we had to spill onto the road where there were cars. no one really understood what was going on. but there were already several police cars at the scene in front of itaewon station, and police standing on top of their police cars, desperately trying to tell people to leave the area as soon as possible. sirens w
a warm welcome to bbc news. the former pope, benedict xvi, has died at the age of 95. the vatican says he passed away this morning at his residence there. his health had been worsening in recent weeks. benedict served as head of the roman catholic church for eight years until 2013, when he became the first pope in 600 years to announce his retirement. he was german by birth, and was known for his conservative theological outlook. bell chimes this was the moment his death was confirmed in rome the bells ringing in st peter s square in vatican city. the vatican says pope benedict s body will lie in state from monday in st peter s basilica and that pope francis will lead the funeral on january 5th. the first pope to do so in recorded history. here s our religon editor, aleem maqbool. cerebral by character, benedict was a prolific author and more at home with scholarship than pastoral work. he led the world s catholics for eight years and then abruptly resigned, the first pop
welcome. russia has launched another barrage of missiles at cities across ukraine in the second big attack in three days. a number of explosions were heard in the centre of the capital, kyiv. residents there have been told by the authorities to remain in shelters. from kyiv, hugo batchega sent this report. on new year s eve, another wave of russian missiles. the air raid alerts sounded at lunchtime on a day families usually celebrate together. this woman was at home when her district in kyiv was hit. translation: me and my husband were literally - thrown into the corridor. we heard glass shattering and then there was an explosion one after another. we came to the street and saw ambulances and casualties. you can see the point of impact where debris from a missile that was intercepted fell from the sky. one person was killed there a mother of two who was in the kitchen, making dinner to celebrate the new year. president zelensky accused russia of deliberately targeting civ
around the world. this the scene live in dubai. hello and welcome to bbc world news. russia has launched another barrage of missiles at cities across ukraine in the second big attack in three days. a number of explosions were heard in the centre of the capital, kyiv. residents there have been told by the authorities to remain in shelters. from kyiv, hugo bachega sent this report. on new year s eve, another wave of russian missiles. the air raid alerts sounded at lunchtime on a day families usually celebrate together. this woman was at home when her district in kyiv was hit. translation: me and my husband were literally - thrown into the corridor. we heard glass shattering and then there was an explosion one after another. we came to the street and saw ambulances and casualties. you can see the point of impact where debris from a missile that was intercepted fell from the sky. one person was killed there a mother of two who was in the kitchen, making dinner to celebrate th