the head of the who has called the health care situation in gaza, �*catastrophic�* — what are your colleagues now seeing on the ground there? that is not an understatement, from what my colleagues are describing this is a full—frontal military attack on an entire population, who has nowhere to go, nowhere to escape and part of this has been a systematic destruction of the healthcare, so it direct bombing destruction of the healthcare, so direct bombing of healthcare facilities, bombing of ambulances including very clearly marked vehicles, doctors without borders vehicles and the siege—style warfare in which there is a denial of the most basic items necessary to do medical care but also the most basic items necessary for survival, food, water, the medical supplies and so on. really, the systematic nature and the brutal nature of the way hostilities are being conducted represent egregious violations of international humanitarian law that very likely amount to war crimes. i'm sure your colleagues are seeing terrible scenes of people being killed or injuries but on top of that i understand now severe concerns about the spread of diseases as well, which can prove deadly. tell us about what they are seeing in terms of health conditions and potential for more disease? right, as the health system in the north has been all but annihilated, doctors without borders has moved further south supporting some clinics in the south and hospitals and what my colleagues are describing are the continued injuries so the results of the bullets and the bombs, really an overwhelming number of injured people and because we cannot do proper wound care, we cannot do disinfection care, we are seeing 60% of the wounded people — and the majority of these are women and children — are showing up with infected wounds, sometimes with worms inside the wounds. there are way too many injured people, many, many thousands now to deal with properly and as you indicated now we are starting to see these secondary impacts. so as people are getting more tightly squeezed into tiny little sheltered areas or, in many cases, just sleeping out on the streets and being exposed to colder temperatures, of the shelters and clinics doctors without borders is serving, up to 600 or more people per toilet. there is not adequate water available, clean water available, there is not enough food, so these conditions are an absolute recipe for outbreaks of diseases and we are seeing it. we are seeing now respiratory tract infections, diarrhoea, and the situation from a disease standpoint is really set to get much worse. qatar's prime minister says that israel's continued bombardment of gaza is �*narrowing the window�* for a new truce. qatar, you�*ll remember, played a key role in brokering the first humanitarian pause between the warring sides, and says it will continue to push for a ceasefire. a senior hamas spokesman said that not a single hostage will leave gaza alive, unless there are negotiations over the release of palestinian prisoners. israel says that 137 people are still captive in gaza. the un general assembly is likely to vote on a draft resolution demanding an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the conflict on tuesday. last week, the us vetoed a un security council demand for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire. for more on the us perspective, i spoke with congressman seth moulton, who�*s a democrat from massachusetts and sits on the house armed services committee. congressman, thank you for being with us on bbc news. as you know we are two months into this conflict and the secretary of state said today, talking about the conflict in gaza, we are doing everything we can to ensure civilians are protected. what are your thoughts on that? is america doing enough in that regard? the bottom line is israel is not doing enough and i say that notjust because of the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in gaza, and the terrible loss of civilian life, but the fact israel will not achieve its military objectives if it kills so many civilians this is a principle of counterinsurgency warfare that this tends to help terrorists recruit more to their cause. we all want hamas to be defeated and israel must succeed in that mission. my concern is by killing too many civilians it is notjust a moral mistake but a military mistake as well. of course the us is a key ally and supporter of israel israel in this. secretary blinken said the administration is in almost constant discussion with israelis to make sure they know what their obligations are when it comes to the protection of civilians, at the same time, we have seen the administration bypass congress to send more tank ammunition to israel. do you think that is sending the right message? i think israel should be held to the same standards, no more, no less, than every other nation to which we send military aid. and that should be the standard. we should not be making exceptions for israel but we also should not be holding them to different standards than we apply to everyone else. some people who say we should condition aid to israel, suggest we should ratchet up conditions on israel we do not have on nations like saudi arabia and that is obviously inappropriate. do you think congress should have signed off on that shipment? as a member of congress, i would much prefer we sign off on the shipments. i�*m certainly not going to abrogate the duty we have in congress so i do not like to hear when the state department is bypassing us on anything, whether it be aid to israel or anything else. you yourself are a veteran — i want to touch on your latest op ed in time magazine entitled the lesson israel must learn from america�*s fight and in it you quote the us defence secretary lloyd austin saying in this kind of fight the centre of gravity is the civilian population. if you drive them into the arms of the enemy you replace a tactical victory with a strategic defeat. do you see that as a possibility, palestinian civilians being driven into the arms of hamas? yes, i think it is a real distinct possibility if israel continues killing so many innocent civilians in the course of its military campaign, with the rightful goal of eradicating hamas. there is a poll done with palestinians in the gaza strip just before october 7th, and it showed 62% of palestinians did not want to live under hamas, this is not surprising, nobody wants to live under a terrorist regime. but i am concerned what that poll would say today. we have a principle in america called insurgent math, where there is an estimate that for every innocent civilian you kill, it creates 10 terrorists, 10 new adherents to the cause. by that math, israel has created 100 thousand new terrorists as they have gone about this campaign. that does not bode well for israel in the long run. congressman, let me ask you this, how does america take on that lesson which you just set out, that lesson from iraq while continuing to support its key ally, israel in the wake of the atrocities of the 7th october to make sure something like this never happens again? there is a couple of things we have to do, one is that we are in constant communications with the israelis and we do know they are listening to us. we received a classified briefing in congress about the beginning getting of the ground operation and then it was significantly delayed because they were listening to our advice on heeding the warnings of the administration. the second thing we need to do is make sure that we get everyone on board with the principals of this conflict, which is hamas has to go and if everyone can agree hamas has to go, on both sides of this whether you are primarily concerned about israel�*s success or primarily concerned about the fate of the palestinian civilians, you can realise we all share the same goal, we want to get rid of hamas we do not want to kill innocent palestinians and at the end of the day, neither israel nor the palestinians will have security if israel is not secure, if palestinians are not free, and if this killing on both sides does not come to some kind of peaceful conclusion, that i think ultimately must be a two—state solution. as you are well aware senate republicans blocked foreign aid to ukraine and israel over border demands this week. are you concerned that infighting in washington risks making the us appear to be an unreliable partner on the world stage? yes, absolutely. let�*s be clear, there is infighting primarily in the republican party. there is a civil war playing out in the republican party. it came to a head in the house a couple of months ago when they could not even have a speaker for three straight weeks, something has never happened or an american history, what is happening right now is republicans are playing politics with national security, with aid to essential allies, and that is sending a message to our adversaries. people like vladimir putin and xijinping in china who is contemplating doing in taiwan exactly what vladimir putin has done in ukraine. it sends a message to them they may be able to get with this because america is not going to stand by our democratic allies. we need to get our act together at home, provide the aid republicans and democrats know needs to be provided and stop playing politics with something that is essential, notjust to israel, notjust to ukraine, but fundamentally essential to our national security as well. ukraine say russia has launched an overnight air assault on kyiv. military officials say ukraine�*s air defence systems shot down eight missiles, targeting the capital and debris fell onto several districts, injuring at least two people and damaging a residential building. reuters news agency has spoken to witnesses who heard several loud explosions soon after 4 o�*clock in the morning, local time. it comes as president biden invited president volodymyr zelenskyy to the white house this week. mr zelenskyy has warned that his country risks losing its war against russia if new funding is not available. a new military support package for ukraine remains stalled in the us congress. 0ur north america correspondent, shingai nyoka has more. this is president zelenskyy�*s third visit to the us since the war broke out in february last year, and it is hugely significant. there�*s been a sharp drop in the us�*s public and political support for the war in ukraine and the two presidents are hoping that they will break this impasse. the stated aim of this visit is for the us to reaffirm its unwavering support for ukraine and also for the two countries to discuss the urgent needs that ukraine has. this comes as president biden has faced resistance in congress. he has asked for us$60 billion in military and humanitarian aid and the republicans, many of them in congress, want to see greater accountability for the money that the us has already committed. last week, president zelenskyy dispatched another delegation — his chief of staff and defence minister — to washington, where they stressed the urgent need for this new aid. they say that without it the troops on the ground will not be able to maintain the ground that they�*ve retrieved from russia. they also say that some people will not be able to survive through winter. now, some members of the white house are optimistic that this deal will be passed but the christmas break is coming up. mr zelenskyy is expected to meet the republican house speaker mikejohnson, who is one of his strongest critics, all in a bid to ensure that this new aid is passed before the end of the year. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. let�*s look at what�*s making news in the uk. it�*s a big week for prime minister rishi sunak. on monday, he gives evidence at the covid inquiry and on tuesday, mps will vote on his revised plan to send some asylum seekers to rwanda. that plan has faced strong criticism from former immigration minister robertjenrick, who gave the bbc his first broadcast interview since resigning. i think that a political choice has been made to bring forward a bill which doesn�*t do thejob. and i think that at this moment, when you�*ve got a small boats crisis, where iia,000 people have crossed the channel on dangerous, unnecessary, illegal small boats, that we cannot take that risk. cabinet minister michael gove also spoke to the bbc�*s laura kuenssberg. he�*s defended the plan, saying only a "vanishingly small" number of appeals would be allowed under the new scheme. rishi sunak has staked part of his political reputation on stopping small boat crossings, so the coming days are seen as a crucial test. you�*re live with bbc news. argentina�*s new far—right president has vowed to deliver economic, "shock treatment" in his first speech after formally taking office. mr milei, a right—wing populist outsider, has warned argentines "there is no money" and has committed to a set of austerity measures. mr milei has taken over from the unpopular centre—left president alberto fernandez, but will need to negotiate with rivals since his coalition only forms a small bloc in congress. mr milei gained popular support for radical proposals, including scrapping the central bank and allowing people to make money by selling their organs. argentina is experiencing its worst economic crisis in decades as inflation in argentina is rapidly increasing. 0ur south america correspondent katy watson has more on mr milei�*s first day in office and what to expect from his first term. javier milei was handed the presidential sash among chants of, "yes, he can!" and "freedom!". certainly, this is a hugely different political path that argentina is about to embark on and in his speech after being sworn in, he talked about this new era for argentina after years of decay and decline. he also likened argentina to the fall of the berlin wall — a big change in history. he dedicated most of his speech to the economy. he talked about the fact that argentina — argentinians wanted this change. there was no going back. you�*ve got to remember in argentina, inflation is about 150% per year. about four in ten argentinians are now living in poverty. he said what was needed was a shock, there was no other option, that life would get harder with the economy, with wages, with poverty, but that was what argentina needed — it had no money. so, certainly, javier milei was continuing along the lines of what he promised in the campaign — a radical new change for argentina and trying to improve the economic crisis. i think everybody�*s wanting to understand exactly how tough and radical he�*ll be because, of course, he won�*t want to make things worse and i think his honeymoon period will be short lived because argentinians are so fed up with the status quo, they�*ll want to see change and they�*ll want to see it quickly. the philippines has summoned china�*s ambassador to manila over what it calls china�*s "aggressive" actions against its vessels in the south china sea. the philippines foreign ministry says the philippines has filed diplomatic protests against china over the use of water cannon by its coast guard vessels against manila boats. china�*s "aggressive" actions against philippine vessels in the south china sea were a "serious escalation" on the part of beijing�*s agents, manila�*s national security council spokesperson said on monday. it was after two days of confrontations between boats from the philippines and china in contested waters. let�*s get some of the day�*s other news now. polls have closed in hong kong after the first local elections in which pro—democracy candidates were banned from standing. the turnout was a record low 27.5%, down from a historic high of 71% in 2019. with no opposition candidates to vote for, the turnout is being seen as an indication of the level of support for china�*s tightening grip on hong kong. voters are going to the polls in egypt, where president abdel fattah el—sisi hopes to win his third term in office. if successful, he will retain power until 2030 — a victory his critics say is already inevitable. voting will be spread over three days with approximately 67 million egyptians eligible to vote. and one of the staples of south asian cooking, onions, has doubled in price after india announced an export ban on the vegetable. india, the world�*s largest exporter of onions, extended an existing ban until march next year to contain a rise in domestic food prices. hundreds of onion farmers blocked a key highway to protest against the ban, saying it would affect their income. she was donald trump�*s ambassador to the united nations. now, nikki haley is taking on her former boss for the republican nomination to run for us president next year. as un ambassador, she was the first american of indian origin to hold a cabinet—level position in the us. now, she�*s hoping to take her political career right to the top. 0ur north america editor sarah smith reports from iowa. god bless you. thank you. nikki haley tells supporters that she is so often underestimated, it�*s become a superpower. and in this race, it�*s worked again as she has quietly risen to overtake most of her rivals. she�*s promising tax cuts, beefed—up border security and smaller government if she becomes the first female president. wielding their puppet right up here tonight... four televised debates saw her shine with her rising profile making her a target for the others. i love all the attention, fellas — thank you for that! laughter. her campaign here in iowa has been boosted by big influential donors who are giving billions to try to cement her as the sole anti—trump candidate. —— donors who are giving millions to try to cement her as the sole anti—trump candidate. so, there�*s chaos all around us but what i know is you don�*t defeat democrat chaos with republican chaos, and that�*s what donald trump gives us. i see nikki haley as too much of the establishment. i don't agree with her views on ukraine or the world environment at all. nikki, she's much more composed and calm in i everything she says which is — it establishes a lot _ of confidence in her as well. i think she does a good job of walking the middle ground, too, of not being so party versus party. you�*ve supported trump in previous elections and now, you�*re backing nikki haley. yes. why? you know, i see her bringing people together. and with donald trump, there�*s a lot of divisiveness and i don�*t think our country needs that right now. nikki haley, ambassador to the united nations, has been very special to me. haley did work for donald trump. she says he was the right president at the right time but the country now needs more sober leadership. and she quotes recent polls that suggest she is more likely than trump to win. in every one of those polls, i defeat by 10—13 points. applause. nikki haley is selling pretty traditional conservatism. it could�*ve won her the nomination a few years ago but, don�*t forget, the republican party�*s been transformed by donald trump and many of them now reject this kind of establishment politics. there is a big chunk of the republican party still looking for a trump alternative. but even if they all coalesce around haley, they still seem likely to lose to the former president. nikki haley is doing well in what right now is really just a battle for second place. sarah smith, bbc news, clear lake, iowa. a huge fossil of a 150—million—year—old sea monster has been unearthed from the cliffs of thejurassic coast in southern england. it belongs to a pliosaur — a giant predator that dominated the oceans at the same time dinosaurs like t rex were roaming the earth. 0ur science editor rebecca morelle went to see it. 0k. oh, wow! there you go. it�*s huge! unveiling a jurassic sea monster. this is the 2m—long skull of a pliosaur, one of the most fearsome predators the planet has ever seen. it�*s got big teeth — excellent for stabbing and killing its prey. it doesn�*t chew its food, itjust breaks into bits. steve etches led the effort to unearth this enormous fossil. so, what makes this unique is it�*s complete. so, the lowerjaws and upper skull are meshed together, as it would be in life. to find that, i think worldwide, there�*s hardly any specimens ever found to that level of detail. it�*s one of the best fossils i�*ve ever worked on. i�*ll never probably work on another one. this is one of the pliosaur�*s teeth. around here, the back is flat and there are these two sharp edges and an extremely sharp tip. around here, though, there are these fine ridges and these would�*ve helped it to sink its teeth into its prey and pull them out again. this really was a killing machine. the snout was discovered by a fossil enthusiast near kimmeridge bay in dorset. i just found something quite extraordinary. it must�*ve just come out of the cliff up there somewhere. the rest was excavated by a team dangling off ropes halfway down a fast—eroding cliff face. it was all followed by a bbc documentary team and sir david attenborough. in these waters underneath my feet, lurked the ultimate marine predator, the pliosaur. this gigantic reptile grew to more than 12m, powering through the water with huge paddle—like limbs. it would have terrorised the oceans. this is a surface scan of the skull of the pliosaur. scientists have learnt that it had a bite force similar to a t rex. what we�*re looking at here is the top predator in the environment. you know, this animal had a huge bite. it would�*ve been able to eat pretty much everything else that was around in the water at that time, including some other very large animals. the exact location where the pliosaur�*s head was found is a closely guarded secret. the rest of its skeleton is probably still there and the team wants to get it out. the pliosaur will go on display in dorset in the new year, providing a close—up look at this monster of the seas and the world it lived in all those millions of years ago. rebecca morelle, bbc news, thejurassic coast in dorset. thanks for watching bbc news. stay with us if you can. hello. for the second evening in a row, we�*ve seen gusts over 70mph hit wales. of course, on saturday evening, it was storm elin that brought the very strong winds whereas sunday evening, it was storm fergus with a top gust of 74mph recorded at aberdaron. now, those very blustery conditions will tend to ease over the next few hours but the winds picking up for a time across the midlands, east anglia and southern counties of england. might be strong enough to wake you from your slumbers. further north, the winds will be that bit lighter and it�*s here where we�*ll see the lowest temperatures. in scotland, 2—5 degrees. otherwise, the winds keeping those temperatures up for northern ireland, england and wales, so between 6 and 9 degrees, so quite a mild start to the day on monday. now, monday, any rain left over across eastern england clearing pretty quickly but there will be some patches of light rain coming and going for the day across eastern scotland. some showers work in across merseyside, greater manchester, and north—west midlands but otherwise, it�*s a day where the weather will continue to get brighter and brighter with sunny spells breaking out widely and those temperatures lifting in places into double figures. make the most of that relatively quiet spell because on tuesday, we�*re back to another area of low pressure. this one slowly rolling in off the atlantic, bringing with it some persistent rain in scotland. aberdeen�*s already had over a month�*s worth of rain, so we could see some localised flooding impacts. bit of snow over the higher scottish mountains but nothing to get excited about — it�*s really high up. blustery conditions in the southwest with plenty of showers, some of them turning quite heavy with an odd rumble of thunder. temperatures again quite widely into double figures but again, scotland seeing temperatures around 6 or 7. now, that low pressure starts to pull away during wednesday. as it does so, the winds go round to a northeasterly direction, bringing some damp weather to eastern areas of england but also dropping the temperatures progressively through the day such that by the time we get to the afternoon, we�*re looking at temperatures typically around 6 or 7 degrees — feeling quite a bit cooler — but in scotland, around 3—4 for some. and then, we have a weather front moving into that cold air wednesday night. could turn to snow for a time over the hills above 300m elevation. the snow is short—lived — it will turn back to rain as slightly milder air begins to push in off the atlantic once again. that damp weather, then, continues eastwards on thursday. high pressure then takes over, giving us quite a long spell of dry and sunny weather but you have to wait until friday to see the best of that. will have the headlines for you at the top of the hour, which is straight after this programme. welcome to hardtalk, i�*m stephen sackur. today i am in oslo for the annual award of the nobel peace prize. this year, the prize—giving ceremony will be notable for the absence of the recipient, narges mohammadi, the iranian human rights campaigner currently incarcerated in around�*s notorious evin prison. to the fury of the rulers of the islamic republic, narges mohammadi�*s voice of resistance will not be silenced. back in 1979, the iranian revolution swept the shah out of power and ushered in the rule of the shia clerics, led by other tile amenities. narges mohammadi was just seven at the time. the revolution changed her life. she changed as a scientist but having seen family members arrested and imprisoned, she was drawn to journalism and to protest. she married academic and political dissident targets remedy, they became a power couple in iran�*s