metal detectors beep. and is this the sound of hidden treasure? hopeful hunters follow a map marking the spot where german soldiers are believed to have buried valuables worth millions. hello and welcome to bbc news. after nearly three years of covid lockdowns, china is scrapping its quarantine rules for travel from sunday. but as soon as restrictions were eased over the last few weeks, infections started to spread rapidly causing many countries to introduce compulsory covid tests for travellers from china. there are also concerns that china s borders are opening just as the country prepares to celebrate its annual lunar new year. for more on this story i m joined now by the bbc s martin yip who s at the hong kong zhuhai macau bridge checkpoint. thank you forjoining us, martin. how are people feeling about these restrictions being eased fairly quickly? we have heard travellers from china can visit abroad and now these restrictions being eased for inward visitors. restricti
in court to wire fraud. the ceasefire in ukraine declared by russia, for the orthodox christmas has come to an end. clashes between ukrainian and russian forces continued throughout the 36 hour period. president zelensky said vladimir putin s offer was deceitful he said peace in ukraine would only be restored when russian forces were expelled. and moscow said it reserved the right to return fire if its troops were attacked. our correspondent, james waterhouse along with producer siobhan leahy and cameraman paul francis sent this report from the eastern city of bakhmut, on the front line. you leave civilisation behind on the journey to bakhmut. we are heading to one of the most hostile parts of the front line. and coming into view is a city in the middle of it. the russians are just a mile away. ukraine is fiercely defending here. invading forces have thrown everything at the city, leaving it almost deserted. braving it above ground is a ukrainian soldier. translatio
kevin mccarthy has been elected speaker of the us house of representatives after heated exchanges which almost saw fellow republicans come to blows. it took four days, 15 votes, and numerous concessions, but the 20 or so rebels within his own party were eventually persuaded. sancha berg reports. after more than four days, it was over. ..of which the honourable i kevin mccarthy of the state of california has received 216. cheering and applause ..to cheers from republicans in the house. chanting: usa! usa! the democrat leader, hakeem jeffries, handed over the gavel. kevin mccarthy. cheering and applause ..to the new speaker s clear relief. that was easy, huh?! laughter i never thought we d get up here. this should have been a straightforward process, after republicans won a slim majority in the house last year. it usually takes just one ballot. not this time. a speaker has not been elected. a speaker has not been elected. it took 15 ballots because right wing republicans refuse
the authorities in south sudan are facing calls to release journalists who were arrested after video footage appeared to show the country s president wetting himself. welcome if you re watching in the uk or around the world. kevin mccarthy has been elected speaker of the us house of representatives after heated exchanges which almost saw fellow republicans come to blows. it took 15 rounds of voting for mr mccarthy to win the powerful role, even though his party has a majority in the chamber. no government business can be carried out unless a speaker is in place, as our washington correspondent gary o donoghue explains. it took them four days and 15 separate ballots before they finally got there. the honourable kevin mccarthy of the state of california, having received a majority of the votes cast, is duly elected speaker of the house of representatives. cheering not since the american civil war more than 160 years ago has it taken this long to elect a speaker. that was easy,