questions are raised over the environmental effects of farming christmas trees. # last christmas i gave you my heart...# and wham! — beats sam to top the uk christmas charts for the first time — 39 years after their song was released. russia s representative to the un, vassily nebenzia, said that too much ground had been ceded to the united states and israel, calling the american�*s conduct in the lead up to this vote �*shameful�*. the united states very pretext have been dragging out the negotiation process deviating from the norm mineral transparent negotiation works. , . , ., ., works. instead they have resorted to their favourite _

works. instead they have resorted to their favourite of _ works. instead they have resorted to their favourite of pressure, - their favourite of pressure, blackmail and twisting arms so that in the last minute, they have been able to present the members of the council with a an ultimatum either the council adopt a text that is convenient for washington or the washington united states will block the adoption of any product. yossi mekelberg is an associate fellow at the middle east and north africa programme at chatham house. i asked him how much of a difference he thinks this resolution will make. yes there is one step forward in terms of aid. this aid is needed desperately considering the 1.9 million palestinians displaced out of 2.3 million. but as you say, we have to look at the bigger picture. as we are gradually moving towards a cease—fire, i think it is a great

time to consider the continuation of fighting otherwise the nights is one of each of this resolution into extent it would've been more of a riley's leave then dealing with the situation right now in gaza, but the question is at what point in washington will decide that enough is enough and a cease—fire must be called because of the level of death and suffering and deposition of gaza not only morally, but confusing for the future of gaza and repeating any peace process. lior peri, is the son of chaim peri, who is being held hostage in the gaza strip. his father appeared in a hostage video released by hamas this week. mr peri told me his father is suffering the consequences of the violence in gaza.

it was in the beginning it was a it was a great moment for all of us, for all the family to see him alive and speaking and retaining his anger. you can see he was angry, but also exhausted and tired and thin and very pale. so it was a great feeling for us to see him. but at the same time, the distance between us, the is growing bigger because, not physical distance, but the distance of him getting released. and do you feel differently having seen that video? i understand that it's you know, it's a difficult thing to have seen. but you say the distance is growing, but does that video give you hope in any way? not really, no.

because on one hand i see him and his friend and they are growing weaker by the minute, not by the day, by the minute they�* re growing weaker. and my government is doing exactly the opposite of what they should do in order to release them. so... in terms of your father's approach, attitude, view of the situation between palestinians and israelis, do you think his view will still be maintained given what he's gone through? i think his views will be even stronger since he is the victim of an ongoing war solution throughout the years. if someone in the government and the israeli governments in the past, in the last 20 years, would have chosen a different path, a path of negotiation, a path of peace, and a path

of trying to... ..to speak to other people rather than ongoing rounds of violence. maybe this wasn't the outcome, but he's suffering the outcome of ongoing violence. so he is now... so i don't think there's going to be any any changes in his views, no. and how do you feel about what the israeli authorities have done so far in terms of prioritising hostages? and how would you like to see that change? as long as it keeps saying that they have two priorities, they have two goals. it means they are giving up on the most important one because destroying the hamas and releasing the hostages doesn't go like yossi before me said,

they are not going hand in hand. they are exactly the opposite directions. and as we saw, the israeli government thought that applying more military pressure will bring hamas to the negotiation table. and they were wrong. it only made hamas dig deeper in this point of not negotiating. and i really don't see the how the israeli government is trying to go back to the negotiation table. my feeling is that they gave up, that they don't want to to have negotiations in order to release the hostages. this is how i see my government acting. the son of a hostage still being held in the gaza strip.

between today and sunday. train services have been recovering after yesterday's severe disruption. these passengers at leeds were travelling home. i these passengers at leeds were travelling home.— travelling home. i was glad it was not auoin travelling home. i was glad it was not going back — travelling home. i was glad it was not going back last _ travelling home. i was glad it was not going back last night - travelling home. i was glad it was not going back last night so - travelling home. i was glad it was not going back last night so i - travelling home. i was glad it was not going back last night so i had| not going back last night so i had friends that were going from houston and everything was chaotic. stress because i had _ and everything was chaotic. stress because i had seen _ and everything was chaotic. stress because i had seen some - and everything was chaotic. stress because i had seen some trains i and everything was chaotic. stress | because i had seen some trains get cancelled _ because i had seen some trains get cancelled so i was not sure so write now it _ cancelled so i was not sure so write now it looks — cancelled so i was not sure so write now it looks all right.— now it looks all right. there have been lona now it looks all right. there have been long queues _ now it looks all right. there have been long queues at _ now it looks all right. there have been long queues at dover's - now it looks all right. there have | been long queues at dover's their reports down to a higher demand at a strike at your eternal which also affected euro star. in northern ireland the latest in a series of strikes and spot public transport to

a halt. across the country millions of people are driving to visit friends and family today and tomorrow. friends and family today and tomorrow— friends and family today and tomorrow. . ,,., ., , tomorrow. predicting saturday will be the busiest _ tomorrow. predicting saturday will be the busiest day _ tomorrow. predicting saturday will be the busiest day for _ tomorrow. predicting saturday will be the busiest day for travel - tomorrow. predicting saturday will be the busiest day for travel of - be the busiest day for travel of this christmas period. if you're planning on driving longer than usually doing so is good advice to check your vehicle over before you set off and have essentials in the car as well should the worst happen. drivers got a musical bulk of at this service station in gloucestershire. at another on the m1 in west yorkshire peoples journeys had mostly been smooth. mil journeys had mostly been smooth. all great. journeys had mostly been smooth. all great- halfway- _ journeys had mostly been smooth. all great. halfway. it— journeys had mostly been smooth. all great. halfway. it has— journeys had mostly been smooth. all great. halfway. it has been _ journeys had mostly been smooth. all great. halfway. it has been windy - great. halfway. it has been windy but relatively _ great. halfway. it has been windy but relatively clear. _ great. halfway. it has been windy but relatively clear. sheffield - great. halfway. it has been windy but relatively clear. sheffield wasj but relatively clear. sheffield was a bit busy with roadworks. obviously family christmas _ a bit busy with roadworks. obviously family christmas rather— a bit busy with roadworks. obviously family christmas rather would - a bit busy with roadworks. obviously family christmas rather would go - family christmas rather would go today— family christmas rather would go today than tomorrow.— family christmas rather would go today than tomorrow. where are you cu s today than tomorrow. where are you au s off today than tomorrow. where are you guys off to? — today than tomorrow. where are you guys off to? scarborough. _ today than tomorrow. where are you guys off to? scarborough. who - today than tomorrow. where are you guys off to? scarborough. who are l guys off to? scarborough. who are you seeing? nine. upgrades means that some disruption over the next

week or so for example no trains in or out of london paddington station between christmas eve and the 27th of december. however you are getting about the traditional seasonal advice stands. check before you travel. bring a different stories from across the uk. meet wilson. the foot six x taylor's manikin. who quit life in the fashion industry to help the local community. we had real problem with traffic flow coming through the village. far too fast. we coming through the village. far too fast- we put _ coming through the village. far too fast- we put a _ coming through the village. far too fast. we put a primary _ coming through the village. far too fast. we put a primary school - coming through the village. far too fast. we put a primary school at . fast. we put a primary school at the bottom of the school the children have to walk home fast and the only way to calm traffic down was to put a deterrent. i way to calm traffic down was to put a deterrent-— a deterrent. i think it is brilliant. _ a deterrent. i think it is brilliant. absolutely - a deterrent. i think it is - brilliant. absolutely brilliant. it doesn't — brilliant. absolutely brilliant. it doesn't stop traffic. they are going more _ doesn't stop traffic. they are going more slowly. doesn't stop traffic. they are going more slowly-— more slowly. please hear say that manikin is — more slowly. please hear say that manikin is not _

more slowly. please hear say that manikin is not impersonating - more slowly. please hear say that manikin is not impersonating a i manikin is not impersonating a police officer, so as long is that long is not a hazard in this find to be on patrol. many believe that he is real. sinnott great at helping lost motorists, but his effect on calming speed in this village is very real. you're live with bbc news. these girls spent years on the open door in the list and this year each received a new heart. now — for many people — this time of the year is a time to reflect and be thankful —and that's particularly true for these three young girls and their families. beatrix, grace and moor spent years

on the organ donor list — and this year each received a new heart. along the way they've forged an extraordinary bond, as alison freeman reports. reunited for christmas. the last time these three girls were together, they were each waiting for a heart transplant. beatrix, noor and grace. beatrix, from county durham, had spent almost half her life in hospital being kept alive by this mechanical heart, before a donor was found in the summer of this year. no pipes. her parents have campaigned for more to be done to encourage donor families to come forward. what's it like seeing the girls all back together again? really special. noor�*s dad pointed out that it's the first time the two girls have been walking together without their pipes, without their machinery. so that was really a poignant moment. grace was the first of the three girls to be admitted to newcastle's freeman hospital, at the age ofjust six months. she waited two years for her new heart. we speak to our donor family regular, becky does. we've met with them and... they're amazing. yeah, they are amazing. and their little girl, obviously, that, erm, grace, grace received her heart,

mia, literally her legacy will live on and we'll never forget her. i thanked him, but it still don't seem enough. no, it doesn't. they deserve so much more. yeah, they do. they do, cos, in their darkest hour, they've gave life. haven't they? no—one else knows unless you've been in that situation. so they understand everything and we talk to them about everything that we've been through together. they have been there in your darkest days. when you think you're having a bad day and you see one of the parents and theyjust lift you up. i griffith family set such an examplel of how to cope with such a traumatic experience, and grace did as well. to see her walk out - of the ward and to go home wasjust so inspiring. in the hospital, three orfour families were like one family, one family, like one family, were meeting all together, everyone is here to say it's hard today, it's easy. noor was the oldest of the girls when she was admitted to hospital, aged eight.

she took on the role of the wards big sister. she was missing her brothers and sister, wasn't she, so much? i think she took a lot of pleasure out of looking after bea and being involved in bea's care and just... it might sound bizarre, but so many happy memories of them playing i together, you know, and drawing, | playing doctors, playing outside, | you know, all while the pair of them are connected to the machines. - she even helped bea learn to walk. one year after she arrived at the freeman, noor received a donor heart, too. i can't believe it. she's back to life. back to school. back to home. back to family. she missed all that in one year. what it's about, isn't it? organ donation ultimately isn't about death, it's about life. and there's nothing more powerful than being able to save somebody's life.

alison freeman, bbc news, newcastle. now — how do you get rid of �*spacejunk�*? they've finally done it — a record—breaking 39 years after it was first released, wham's �*last christmas' is officially the uk's christmas number one song. here's our music correspondent mark savage. for the first time in the history of this song, last christmas is your official christmas number one today! # last christmas i gave you my heart but the very next day you gave it away... 13 million. that's how many times last christmas was streamed over the last seven days. and that is why it is christmas number one, for the first time since

it was released 39 years ago. i am delighted. it has been a long wait in many respects but it was a song george wrote with the intention of being a number one, and to finally achieve that goal, it is humbling. top of the pile is a great place to be. what do you think george would make of it going to christmas number one after all this time? you would be absolutely over the man. he wouldn't have cared for the amount of time it took to get there but better late than never. wham's classic fended off a challenge from eurovision star sam ryder his song, your christmas to me, took second place. while mariah carey came third.

after shane mcgowan�*s death last month, there had been a campaign to get the pogues's fairytale of new york to number one, but in a busy week it had to make do with sixth place. christmas is the peak sales period for the music industry which is why you see records like this back on the shelves and in the charts every december, and for the artists, it is still an honour to be christmas number one. it is the best thing, i keep saying to people this is my version of the world cup final, it is that big for us here on the official chart, the christmas number one. it doesn't get bigger than this. outside of the singles race, the rolling stones top to the albums chart with hackney diamonds, a late birthday present for guitarist keith richards who turned 80 on monday. once a year, mariah carey defrosts. ..

we can speak now to martin talbot, chief executive of the official charts company. there are many christmas classics out there. what makes last christmas such an enduring one. i out there. what makes last christmas such an enduring one.— such an enduring one. i think there's a _ such an enduring one. i think there's a whole _ such an enduring one. i think there's a whole number- such an enduring one. i think there's a whole number of. such an enduring one. i think - there's a whole number of things, i think there is a nostalgia about last christmas it was produced in it. when 80s music was at its peak, where there were lots of people who are now in their 40s and 50s who remember listening to the band and loving them at the time and it has been one of the greatest classic christmas songs for many, many years and it is just great that finally it takes the prize that it has deserved all of this time. it is the christmas number one. just as george michael wanted to be.

just fantastic news. so how has a near 40-year-old _ just fantastic news. so how has a near 40-year-old song _ just fantastic news. so how has a near 40-year-old song become l just fantastic news. so how has a i near 40-year-old song become the near ao—year—old song become the christmas number one now. how does that work? {iii christmas number one now. how does that work? .., , .., . , christmas number one now. how does that work? , . , ., that work? of course, the concept of christmas music _ that work? of course, the concept of christmas music has _ that work? of course, the concept of christmas music has fundamentally i christmas music has fundamentally changed over the last 20 years where it was first started in 2a it has been made available lots music which had not been released or had not been available for 20 or 30 years —— 2004. and at that point last christmas was 20 years old itself. and what has happened in those intervening years is that digital music, downloading and streaming has made all of those great classics available again. after they were originally released, they were not in the position they want to it. they would be deleted and the record labels wanted you to buy the album

coming out the singles so all of those tracks for many years were not available, but now they are and anybody who puts out a christmas song now is competing against the greatest christmas songs of all time. so last christmas is undoubtably one of those. quite. see r der one undoubtably one of those. quite. see ryder one of— undoubtably one of those. quite. see ryder one of the _ undoubtably one of those. quite. see ryder one of the ones _ undoubtably one of those. quite. see ryder one of the ones trying - undoubtably one of those. quite. see ryder one of the ones trying to - ryder one of the ones trying to compete but has he broken the eurovision curse by coming in second? . . . eurovision curse by coming in second? . , , ., ., , second? he has been an absolute su erstar second? he has been an absolute soperstar this _ second? he has been an absolute superstar this week. _ second? he has been an absolute superstar this week. all _ second? he has been an absolute superstar this week. all of - second? he has been an absolute superstar this week. all of us - second? he has been an absolute superstar this week. all of us at l superstar this week. all of us at the official charts really take a heart to him. he is but in so many miles and has done so much work. at last count he had performed something like 26 times in six days and that was around a day and a half ago so he's probably over the 30 mark now. he isjust ago so he's probably over the 30 mark now. he is just put in so ago so he's probably over the 30 mark now. he isjust put in so much work because that is what you need to do to have a chance of winning this race. maybe over the last few years, all of the campaign records, the key thing is you need a song

that connects with people, but you have to work and make people aware that the records are available. if it is a brand—new truck that is much more difficult because you have not got the residual awareness and familiarity that classics like last christmas have got. so sam ryder, hats off to him. to be sandwiched between wham! and mariah carey, what a great place to be. irlat carey, what a great place to be. not a bad place — carey, what a great place to be. not a bad place at all. thank you for sharing your thoughts on that. chief executive of the official charts company, thank you forjoining us. now — how do you get rid of �*spacejunk�*? it is a growing problem — with thousands of defunct satellites, orbiting the earth — posing some obvious dangers. nasa released these

pictures on friday. it's the international space station getting rid of its �*waste material�* by deliberately sending a small spacecraft — the cygnus craft you see here detaching — into a re—entry path, where it's incinerated in the earth's atmosphere. i spoke to space journalist jonathan 0 callaghan about how to dispose of rubbish in space. a lot of waste over there, human waste and other things they can't get rid of, so they pack it into this spacecraft. a few of these go up every so often, that gets seorbited from the space station, heads back to the atmosphere and burns up in the atmosphere on reentry. there are a couple of other vehicles that can bring stuff back to earth, experiments and some other rubbish that they are trying to get rid of, but this is one of the methods for doing that, for keeping the station nice and clean. and how wide a problem is the issue of space junk, and how might we be able to make it less of a problem? spacejunk is a huge problem. you know, we have millions of pieces of debris up there at the moment.

thousands of satellites, lots of dead satellites that are all swarming around. this spacecraft is a good example of, you know, how we can do other things safely. this thing detaches, it comes back down. we fire thrusters and it's kind of comes back to the atmosphere without causing any problems. but there is lots of debris up there that is kind of not brought back in that safe way, either runs out of fuel or doesn't have a means to do that. it might be a piece of satellite or an empty racket or something like that. this is demonstrating, you know, how you can do that in a nice, responsible manner, maybe setting a nice example for satellite operators. just briefly with that question, how do you make this into something that all countries uniformly have a similar approach to? so there is no real kind of law at the moment around space debris. it's kind of a loose guideline to bring stuff back within 25 years, but no strict penalties, really. so experts are trying to welcome that at the moment, push more stringent things in place.

say, "bring stuff down within five years to stop clogging up earth's orbits." and there are big benefits of doing so. if you leave stuff up there that is kind of, you know, unmaintained, drifting aimlessly through space, it can cause problems for other satellites. you have to dodge out of the way of that. you've got to collation avoidance manoeuvres happening, so, yeah, there is a good benefit for doing it companies themselves, as well as having any laws in place that would make that happen. have you thought about how having a christmas tree affects the environment? millions of young trees are harvested every year from plantations. in france, where the growing area is the burgundy mountains, local activists are demanding that we change our habits. hugh schofield reports. for some people up here in the hills, christmas trees are not an ancient festive symbol, but an ecological danger. in this small plantation, you can see the effects of chemical treatment. the ground beneath is dead. good for the trees — no competition, no predators — bad for wildlife, bad for rivers. for muriel, a local farmer and activist, the conclusion is clear — we must wean ourselves off our seasonal need for baby firs.

translation: we all- remember our childhood - the decorations, the smell of the christmas tree. but, come on, times have changed. we are in an ecological transition, a climate transition. everything that pollutes has got to stop. more than a million saplings are being cut every year in the burgundy hills and then transported in lorries down to cities like here in paris, where there is evidence that consumers increasingly are asking questions about how christmas trees are cultivated and the potential consequences for the environment. translation: the environment is definitely part of my - decision, but it's tough. do i buy a tree which will last for two weeks, or something plastic, which has to come from a factory? translation: where they grow the trees, i guarantee they're i using a heap of chemicals, and that's land that could be used for other purposes. back in the burgundy hills, that growing awareness among

consumers is having an effect. here at one of the biggest producers two weeks before christmas, and it's the end of the rush. most of this year's trees have been netted and dispatched. it's a moment to show off what they say is the progress that has been made towards more responsible cultivation here. for example, by reducing treatments, they've ensured there's still life among the trees. translation: we've made huge - progress, and today our translation: we've made huge progress, and today our plantations have become a refuge for biodiversity. there are plants and animals. it's out of respect for this beautiful countryside, which we love too. producers argue that christmas trees take up only 1% of viable agricultural land in this area.

that's true, but it's also true that the cultivation is almost entirely non—organic and that inevitably has some consequences on the natural world all around. hugh schofield, bbc news in the burgundy hills. stay with us here on bbc news. hello there. full christmas forecast coming up in just a moment, first of all, i thought we'd start off with these rare nacreous clouds that are once again being spotted overhead in the uk. these form really high in the earth's atmosphere — between 13 and 19 miles above the ground. that's two or three times the height of which aeroplanes fly at and you need temperatures in this part of the atmosphere to be at —78 celsius or even colder. normally, that really cold air is concentrated around our polar regions, but right now it's moved a bit further southwards. and it's cold enough across the uk for next week or two to see some of these rare clouds. best chance before sunrise or just after sunset, so eyes to the skies. further down in the atmosphere, we've got this mild flow of air to take us through the rest of the night. it will be quite a damp night across western areas. some heavy rain

for western scotland. as that rain band bumps into the cold air across northern scotland, some of it turns to snow. could bring some disruption here as we head into the first part of saturday morning. 2 to 10 centimetres possible, the larger amounts over the hills. if you're planning a journey maybe set out later in the day because it will eventually turn milder, the snow eventually will turn back to rain. lots more rain to come across western scotland. it's been a very wet month for these areas and so this extra rain could bring some flooding concerns. some damp weather elsewhere in the west of the uk. best chance of any cloud breaks east wales, the midlands, east anglia and southern parts of england. for most it will be quite a mild day. saturday night sees heavy rain set up across mid—wales, could bring some localised flooding here. it's also been another part of the world where we've seen more rain than average so far this month. sunday, which is christmas eve, another big travel day and it's going to be a windy day, particularly for western and northern scotland over and to the east of the pennines — where we could get gusts of wind of 50 to 70 miles an hour. those stronger gusts could knock down a few high sided vehicles,

maybe even blow over one or two trees. so the message, if you're planning a journey on christmas eve, check conditions out on the roads and the railways before heading out. there could be some disruption. christmas day, monday, we've got these south—westerly winds, mild air across vast majority of the uk. so not a white christmas for most of you. a gray, cloudy, wet and windy christmas for many. the one exception really is across the far north of scotland, where we still have that colder air with us. some of the rain could start to turn to snow over the hills here. so forjust one or two of you, it might yet be a white christmas. bye for now.

hello, i'm rajini vaidyanathan. you're watching the context on bbc news. translation: the result of the vote is as follows - 13 votes in favour, zero votes against, two abstentions. the draught resolution has been

adopted as resolution 2720. the resolution the uae has put in blue this morning responds to the call for a sustainable cessation of hostilities and a massive scale—up of humanitarian aid. it took many days and many, i many long nights of negotiating to get this right. an effective aid operation in gaza requires security, staff who can work in safety, logistical capacity and the resumption of commercial activity. these four elements do not exist. welcome to the programme. after days of delays and backroom negotiations, we finally have a result. the un security council has voted

through a resolution focused on getting humanitarian aid into gaza, but it stops short