i m going to miss her terribly. i can hear that. i m going to miss her terribly. i can hearthat. ian, incredible broadcaster as well. thank you forjoining us. janice long who has died and her friend long who has died and herfriend ian mcnabb paying tribute to her. now on bbc news it is time for year in review. there s never been a sporting year quite like 2021. it would, though, take a little time for the volume to be turned up. like everything else, it had to wait. as the year began, the backing track was the sound of silence. fans were still some way behind. covid s cancellations and chaos continued, the pandemic still providing all the background noise. the empty stadia a stark, constant reminder that no amount of fake sounds or even fake crowds could drown out. that was over here. over there, well, this was how the world s best tennis players were preparing for one of the first major sporting events of the year, the australian open. strict hotel quarantine divided opinion
hello and welcome if you re watching in the uk or around the world. tributes have been paid from around the world to archbishop desmond tutu one of the leading figures in the fight against white minority rule in south africa, who has died aged 90. desmond tutu s tireless campaigning against apartheid was rewarded with the nobel peace prize. south africa s president cyril ramaphosa described him as a patriot without equal . the former us president barack obama said he had been a mentor, friend and moral compass. current us presidentjoe biden said he was heartbroken . our africa correspondent, andrew harding, looks back at his life. raise our hands and we say, we will be free! desmond tutu was a man of hope. a south african priest who became one of the world s great moral voices. it was during south africa s long and violent struggle against white minority rule that desmond tutu rose to prominence. a diminutive priest, defying the apartheid government, comparing them
[inaudible] the role that [inaudible] have had in strengthening the iraqi kurdistan? you repeat that? yes. if you could please comment on the role that exxon, the oil company exxonmobil. yeah, sorry. okay. thank you. exxon is one of a number of large international oil companies that have signed exploration and production agreements with the regional government. they did that under threat from baghdad, that they might lose their positions and privilege to develop oil fields in parts of iraq. p.m. .. they need a banking sector they need to be involved in regional trade, but oil is king, and exxon has played a leading role. seems like a good place to leave these things. david, once again, you have given us a comprehensive sweep of the kurdish issue as well as the politics of the entire region. again, the book is o the kurdish spring: a new map of the middle east. and here with author david phillips. please join me in thanking him for his insights today. [applaus