voice-over: this is bbc news. we will have the headlines for you at the top of the hour, which is straight after this programme. the last of their kind. they have endured the elements... ..fought with nature...

..and secured a future for their children. this is their life's work. wejoined them on one of their last treks to the great pamir, and witness as they struggle to keep their way of life, their language, and their traditions alive. they are the wakhi shepherdesses. the last of them. deep in the karakoram mountains of northern pakistan, a centuries—old tradition is about to unravel. she calls out

every summer, the wakhi shepherdesses travel for several days from their home in the shimshal valley to pamir. they call it "the quoch", which means "departure". they migrate to keep the herd fed and healthy. a timeless way of life soon to be forgotten.

annar is the oldest and the leader of the group. at 88, this will be her last trip. with so few still venturing these lands, the young generation steps forward to help. it's a tough three—day trek up to pamir, at 16,000 feet, almost 5,000 metres

above sea level. bano has been climbing these mountains for over two decades. she knows too well the threats that lie ahead. bano�*s son, wazir, lends a hand. he will accompany the women to the pastures.

treacherous paths, rapidly changing weather, and high altitude are but a few of the challenges they face. like her fellow companions, afroze is very much aware of how times have changed.

shimshal valley remained disconnected from the rest of the world until the early 20005. the wakhi people relied solely on shepherding and agriculture. in the summer, men farming in shimshal and women shepherding in pamir.

they are halfway. averaging eight hours a day, they are undeterred. the end is close.

the hardest trek is behind them. shimshal pass marks the arrival to the pastures. pamir is in sight. it's time to celebrate. singing

for centuries, dozens of women, young and old, would spend their summers here. today, there are only seven shepherdess left in their community.

caring for livestock is a relentless task.

living in the wilderness comes at a cost in this constant balance between life and death.

living in such a harsh environment with no access to health care meant children from the wakhi community had a high mortality rate. on that trip alone, 12 children

died pamir in the summer. looking after the herd isjust one part of the job.

nothing was ever thrown away. shepherding, alongside their dairy products, turned out to be a hugely successful business.

their shepherding marked a turning point for their community. together, they funded the only road out of the valley. this linked the villagers to the karakoram highway, which spans pakistan and china. what would take days to cross was reduced to hours. in less than a generation, shimshal was transformed. bano�*s son, wazir, who accompanied her on the trek,

leads a very different life. he still goes to pamir, but he's not a farmer like his father, or a shepherd like his mother.

fazila is also part of this new generation. unlike her mother and grandmother, she was given a choice.

the valley�*s connection to the world brought with it new ideas and opportunities.

this new generation is venturing into new ways of life. without women like annar, bano, and afroze, this new chapter in the lives of the wakhi people wouldn't have been possible.

singing in wakhi singing continues

singing in wakhi continues hello there. christmas, for most of us, looks likely to be a mild one. in fact, on friday we had

a pretty typical story, quite a lot of cloud around and temperatures 13 degrees across the south coast. but look at this, in the northern isles, just a daytime maximum of one celsius. and yes, there were some snow showers as well. that's because the far northeast of scotland stuck in this cold air. this weather front the dividing line between cloudy and milder conditions down to the south. but as that weather front bumps into the cold air, we're likely to see some snow, 2—10 centimetres forming across higher ground. gradually, that snow will revert back to rain through the day, some of it quite heavy across western and central scotland. cloudier, damp conditions at further south and west. the best of the breaks in the cloud, perhaps east anglia and south—east england. but it is going to be another mild story for most of us. once again, 12—13 degrees, but staying in that cooler air for the far north—east of scotland. now, as we move into christmas eve, once again, the wind direction subtly changes to a southwesterly. milderstill, but look how many isobars. christmas eve is going

to be a windy day. so if you're heading off to friends and family, keep abreast of the forecast. tune in to your bbc local radio station for traffic updates. there will be outbreaks of rain as well coming in from the west at times. but again, it will be mild for most of us with those temperatures potentially 15 degrees. it has the potential, christmas eve, to be the warmest on record. we'll keep you posted with developments of that. as we move out of christmas eve into christmas day, well, we are likely to see some rain around. little in change in the forecast. it stays quite mild for most of us. there will be outbreaks of rain. still in that colder air across scotland, so here we could see a few flakes of snow in those showers. but it's a great day for staying indoors and indulging, really, particularly where that wet weather is sitting and those temperatures peaking, once again, generally between 9—11; degrees. but there is a glimmer of good news as we head towards boxing day. the weather fronts will gradually ease away. a ridge of high pressure builds. so if you want to get out,

get some fresh air and walk off some of the excess of christmas day, you have a chance to do that on boxing day. dry, settled, and sunny for most. merry christmas.

live from washington, this is bbc news. after days of tense negotiation, the un security council acts to boost humanitarian aid to gaza. hamas pledges not to release

any more hostages until the war ends, as we learn a man believed to have been taken by hamas has died. plus, we examine the new challenges to efforts by texas to try to stem the flow of migrants at the southern border. hello, i'm helena humphrey. you with us. after days of negotiations to avoid a us veto, the un security council has approved a resolution demanding large scale aid deliveries to gaza. it stops short of calling for a ceasefire between israel and hamas. 13 council members voted for the resolution, the us and russia abstained. the resolution was sponsored by the uae. its ambassador to the un says the decision �*responds to the dire situation "on the ground. the palestinian ambassador to the un, called it a step in the right direction but reiterated calls for an immediate ceasefire,

saying that 2.3—million palestinians have been fighting for their lives