are more important than the living. he meant the weight of its bloody past. but it's the last two months and more of killing that have sent palestinians and israelis into new and unknown territory. and here in the holy city, which both sides claim as their capital, they are tense, watchful, waiting. choices lie ahead — a cease—fire will come eventually. will itjust be a pause before the next war? or will israel and the palestinians decide that the only way to avoid more sorrow and death is to try again to make peace? arabs and jews have contested the land between the mediterranean and thejordan riverfor more than a century. this is hebron on the israeli occupied west bank. do you have many families left here? i can see since october 7th... and this is issa amro, a palestinian activist. since the 7th of october, palestinians who live near hebron�*s illegaljewish settlement have been mostly under a curfew. so, the army's coming. what do you think they want? intimidation. yeah? everything they do, it's about intimidating the palestinian population and make them scared to make this area empty. that is what they do. issa is well known in hebron, and the army regard him this is hebron, on the israeli occupied west bank. issa is well known in hebron, and the army regard him as a troublemaker. they didn't want us to film, but we did when one of the soldiers butted into our conversation. you don't know what it's like to grow up in israel with neighbours like this. i know them. i live with them. i want peace. they don't want peace. even the ones working for me, they hate me. take your mask off. take your mask off, i'm not your enemy. confrontation is built into israel's military occupation of the palestinian territories. peace is impossible while it continues. can you have peace? with them? no, we should force them to peace, pressure them. you should...? pressure them. pressure them? yes. the international community and the international law must be implemented. the international community should make israel accept peace. do you think that the shock of the war in gaza and everything that's happened, the hamas attacks, everything that israel did that's happened — the hamas attacks, everything that israel did in response — do you think that will change things orjust make them deeper and worse? i think it's two opportunities. it's either we choose to make it deeper and worse, or we make it as an opportunity to solve the conflict and to solve the occupation, to solve the apartheid and make living together possible, because their security solution failed. israel says it has a right to be in hebron and this is security, not apartheid. this was kibbutz be�*eri just after the 7th of october. the government here says the only response is to destroy israel's enemies. vivian silver lived at the kibbutz. she was one of israel's best—known peace campaigners. she believed israelis would never have real security until palestinians had their own state. on the 7th, she was at home in the place where she'd, brought up her two sons. the bodies of israelis killed by hamas were still being recovered when we went there to try to find vivian's house. herfamily hoped she was a hostage inside gaza. as hamas shot their way into be�*eri, she texted her son, yonatan, that she feared a massacre. her house was burnt. a month later, vivian silver's remains were identified in the ash left by the fire. so, you were there, i i was there afterwards, and her bones were in the safe room, all the while. _ yonatan believes the war lacks a political objective. war, if we're not naive, _ it should be a mean, a means, right? but it feels like this war is a cause in itself, - of revenge, of making a point. you are still a believer in peace, even though these people came over into your country and killed your mother? they came into my country and killed my mother- because we didn't have peace, so, to me, thisjust proves the point that we need it. i after the war, the americans want israel's walls and fences, here between jerusalem and bethlehem, to go from a security measure into an international frontier with an independent palestine. the current israeli government says the two—state solution will not happen. so, when the war is over, what needs to go right to give peace a chance? well, first of all, a change of leader on both sides. there's too much bad history and they don't trust each other. next, there has to be even—handed mediation, something the americans have never managed to do. and as well as that, both israelis and palestinians are going to have to accept painful compromises on things that really matter to them, especially territory. so much has to go right to move from war to peace. so much has already gone wrong that peace mightjust be impossible. jeremy bowen, bbc news, jerusalem. peace mightjust be impossible. vladimir putin has said there will be no peace in ukraine until russia has achieved its objectives there. speaking at his first major news conference since the start of invasion, he insisted russian troops were improving their positions along the entire front line. despite the winter weather, there is heavy fighting going on around bakhmut and avdiivka. mr putin says there are currently a total of 617,000 russian troops fighting in ukraine. here's our russia editor steve rosenberg. there haven't been many — actually, any — opportunities for western media to get anywhere near vladimir putin since his his full—scale invasion of ukraine. but today, the kremlin invited us, and the foreign media, but today, the kremlin invited us and otherforeign media to the president's end—of—year tv extravaganza — half press conference, half phone—in. on the war in ukraine, he sounded confident. translation: there will be peace when we achieve our goals. - they haven't changed. practically along the entire line of contact, our armed forces are, to put it modestly, improving their position. they are in an active stage of operation. there was a definite military theme to the show, which was broadcast by every main tv channel in russia and went on for hours. the public had plenty of questions about what the kremlin�*s still calling its special military operation — like, would there be a new wave of mobilisation in russia? mr putin said no. this didn't happen last year — the kremlin had cancelled the annual putin phone—in and his end—of—year press conference following the full—scale invasion of ukraine. the fact that the four—hour tv marathon is back reflects his growing confidence nearly two years into the war. he was asked about two americans being held in russianjails — wall streetjournal reporter evan gershkovich and former marine paul whelan. is a prisoner swap possible? translation: we want to do a deal, but these agreements should be mutually beneficial. we are in contact with our american partners on this matter. a dialogue is under way. it's not easy. i won't go into detail, but in general i think we but in general, i think we understand each other, and i hope that we will find a solution. irina was lucky — she got a question about egg prices. "you're my favourite president," she says. but all i got, afterfour hours, was a sore arm. pity, that. i have so many questions for vladimir putin. another day, perhaps. steve rosenberg, bbc news. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. earlier, i spoke to major generaljonathan shaw, who is a retired british army general, about the significance of this lengthy press conference. it shows how much his situation has improved since a year ago when he cancelled. when he cancelled it. a years ago, his military operation was getting bogged down politically. he was being shunned by all sorts of people in the that should have been in his closest circle. he still had the prigozhin revolt to come. things were pretty unsteady for him a year ago, so he cancelled it. i think what you're seeing now is a man of renewed confidence. i think he's got his power base at home secured. he's doing better on the battlefield. and perhaps more significant than anything, he sees cracks appearing in the support for ukraine from abroad. and that, i think, gives him real hope that strategically, he can outlast the west. so, that's why he's back doing this interview. what is his strategy now? he said that peace with ukraine will only take place "when we achieve our objectives". what do you think his ultimate objective at this point is? well, i think we have to take him at his word — de—nazification, demilitarisation and neutrality — ie, he wants to completely dismember ukraine, either absorb it completely into into the russian empire as as he'd like it to be, or itjust becomes a neutral sort of buffer state between what he sees as the aggressive nato alliance and the russian state. he's playing, obviously, to the russian people, but also on the world stage, knowing that the likes of us will be reporting it and dissecting what he's had to say. when you say that he sees cracks... we've heard news conferences from the eu, from nato, from the us. from the eu, from nato, from the us, obviously president zelensky in the us this week appealing appealing for money. there's a sticking point there from congress, isn't there? is that what you're saying when he sees cracks and how is he going to exploit those, do you think? well, i think yeah, that's exactly what i mean by the facts. and i mean, that last item you spoke about in the introduction about the talking about the american hostages, i think that's him, again, playing to the american republicans to show what a sort of reasonable chap he is. now, you can do a deal with him. and that's exactly the sort of language that trump would seize upon. it's exactly the language that these republicans who are resisting biden�*s urge to give more money, that it will appeal to them. so, putin is, as you say, playing the audience, he's playing our audience. and we should be just conscious of that and know that he's just trying to weaken our resolve, and it's our resolve that's going to decide this battle or not. major generaljonathan shaw. the european council has decided to open accession negotiations with ukraine and moldova and to grant candidate status to georgia. it comes as european union leaders have been meeting in brussels. it's a summit dominated by divisions between hungary and the rest of the bloc over ukraine. high on the agenda is a huge package of financial and military support which hungary has threatened to veto. our europe reporter sofia bettiza is following the story from brussels. quite a big development in the last few minutes after hours of negotiations. eu leaders have reached a breakthrough decision. and what that means essentially is that formal talks can now begin so that ukraine can one day become a member of the european union. we understand that that decision was unopposed, and that comes as quite a big surprise, because for days we've been hearing about the fact that the hungarian prime minister, viktor orban, is very much against ukrainejoining the eu. he kept saying that if the eu were to join the bloc, that would have devastating consequences, and so we were expecting him to veto this whole thing. now, interestingly, we are hearing reports that when this decision was taken a few minutes ago, open, wasn't even in the room was taken a few minutes ago, orban wasn't even in the room and had left the room, so it's a bit unclear how that decision was taken. orban has a few minutes ago said on facebook that eu membership of ukraine is a bad decision, so it's still not very clear what is happening. but that decision has now been taken and this is hugely significant for kyiv. this is something that president zelensky really wants. he said earlier today that a positive decision from brussels would send a very powerful message of hope to his people, to the people of ukraine and to his troops who are fighting against russia. he said that this is a victory that motivates, that inspires and that strengthens. so, a really big day for president zelensky and for ukraine. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news. voiceover: bringing you different stories from across the uk. - this is a place that loads of people in our area and beyond have been drawn to in the past. it's meant such a lot to people. i decided i wanted to paint the piece as a night—time scene because that area is very well known for its dark skies, and also the night—time scene was a perfect way to say goodnight to the tree. lucy never planned to do the painting, but she was inundated with requests after the tree was felled. lucy and her team made a pledge. they plant a tree for every print sold, but they were amazed by the response. with the money from the prints, lucy is going to buy 1,500 trees. now, she's looking for somewhere to plant them. centre stage would ultimately be the sycamore tree, a replica of it. it's my dream to create this beautiful woodland that's very natural space, a beautiful space for people to come and visit and enjoy. you're live with bbc news. the premier league is to have its first female referee. rebecca welch has been appointed as the senior official for fulham's match against burnley at craven cottage later this month. bosses also confirmed they had selected sam allison for a match — the league's first black referee for 15 years. and for decades, football fans have collected stickers of famous male players and put them into albums. now, for the first time, the women's super league has a dedicated collection of its own. here's sarah dawkins. to produce an album of nearly 350 stickers from the women's super league. was unveiled at a special eventin league. was unveiled at a special event in manchester. got, got, need. sticker collecting has been a staple of men's football culture since the 1970s. but now, there are some new faces on the pages. yeah, decent. hit all the right angles. it's a bit surreal, to be honest. i always had a panini sticker book. there are nearly 350 cards to collect, including 12 of these shiny cards, one for each team. one down, 348 to go. it took 41 years for panini to launch a panini to launch a women's collection. from world cup stew domestic leagues, they're now more than making up for lost time. the important thing is it's happening and everyone's jumping on board. it's going to go from strength to strength. it's good because it gives women a chance to express themseleves with football. i would love to be on a sticker and stuck in someone's book. it was always men, so these young girls can dream and believe - they can be in these books one day. whose card are you desperate to get a hold of? mine! these swaps are here to stay, sticking these stars into the history books. sarah dawkins, bbc news, manchester. live now to kinross to hear from sports journalist heather dewar. good to see you. let's talk about this news that the premier league is going to have a woman officiate for the first time at this fulham match. when you heard this news, what did you think? i would be exaggerating when i say it's pretty ground—breaking. —— i would not be. it could be a game changer. this is fantastic news. she started refereeing in 2010 in her late 20s. she is now a0. to see where she's now come from her early beginnings is really remarkable. i really think this will lay the ground for so many other not only young women who want to get into refereeing, but those who are already in it.— refereeing, but those who are already in it. refereeing, but those who are alread in it. ~ , ., ~ �*, already in it. why do you think it's taken so long? — already in it. why do you think it's taken so long? i— already in it. why do you think it's taken so long? ithink— already in it. why do you think it's taken so long? i thinkjust - taken so long? i think “ust maybe the pathways * taken so long? i think “ust maybe the pathways haven't _ taken so long? i thinkjust maybe the pathways haven't been - taken so long? i thinkjust maybe the pathways haven't been where j taken so long? i thinkjust maybe - the pathways haven't been where they should have been. it was announced recently in july that the fa would be looking at new strategy where they want to increase underrepresented referees by up to 50%, so looking to increase female referees by 1,000 by 2026. in scotland, they looked at similar strategies for female referees. but there is something to be said for that old phrase, you've got to see it to be at. a lot of women probably have had the fear to a certain degree to want to get into that. you've got to be extremely fit, it's very time—consuming. if you look at rebecca, she was working for the nhs when she started off her on her refereeing journey. there are a lot of things going on. there are a lot of things going on. there are a lot of female footballers who have to work full—time alongside playing football. it can be really difficult juggfing football. it can be really difficult juggling that. when you look at rebecca, she kind of went properly full—time in 2019. it's not an easy journey for them. i think also, when you talk about the fear, a lot of women think they're going to be looked down upon or there may be a little bit of misogyny when it comes to refereeing. i think the path is now... sarah, i'm going to pause you for just a moment. you are watching bbc news. i want to ask you about the stickers. i lost how much —— count how much i got my two boys. how significant is this? what does it say about the sports today? i think it “ust sa 5 say about the sports today? i think it just says how — say about the sports today? i think itjust says how much _ say about the sports today? i think itjust says how much it _ say about the sports today? i think itjust says how much it is - itjust says how much it is growing in popularity not only among young women, but young boys as well. you look at where we are now in terms of the game and the number of people attending matches, brilliant number attending matches, brilliant number at arsenal recently, for example. we look at the women's world cup. i think it says women's football has its place. it's taken an awfully long time in the wsl. i think this will go down very well indeed. i know my daughter was a massive fan of the panini sticker book and i know a lot of youngsters will love it. ., ., , ., ., know a lot of youngsters will love it. heather, really good to talk to ou. thousands of schoolchildren thousands of school children from around the country have been trying to solve the brainteasers. earlier i spoke to gchq's chief puzzler colin — and as he works for gchq we couldn't show his face, maths teacher gopal rao and one of his year 12 further maths pupils amy, from nottingham girls high school. i started by asking colin how gchq comes up with these puzzles. it's to inspire subjects and different ways of thinking. the puzzles on the car will require different sorts of solving skills, so there is something for everybody. it will hopefully demonstrate teamwork to bring together all the ideas to find the final puzzle. but it is primarily meant to be fun. let's talk to the maths teacher. how did you find them and how did your pupils change them —— find them? we pupils change them -- find them? we did it pupils change them —— find them? we did it pretty fast, but that's not because — did it pretty fast, but that's not because we're special, but because it was— because we're special, but because it was exactly as colin said. it's about_ it was exactly as colin said. it's about teamwork and thinking naturally. we do a lot of the stem subjects _ naturally. we do a lot of the stem subjects with right answers, and the ones you _ subjects with right answers, and the ones you seen in a few of them, you do it_ ones you seen in a few of them, you