the it is imperative there is a definitive ceasefire and the ability to distribute life—saving aid to all those in gaza. christmas celebrations are called off in bethlehem — the usual christmas tree — is replaced by a nativity scene in the rubble. the city is empty from happiness, from joy, from kids, from santa, from joy, from kids, from santa, from every celebration. we start with the war in gaza, where israel's prime minister benjamin netanyahu has dismissed reports — during a weekly cabinet meeting — that the us has convinced israel not to expand its military activity. mr netanyahu said, "israel

is a sovereign nation, our military decisions are based upon our own calculations." israel has pledged to continue its military operations, but admitted that it is "protracted" and "difficult". this is the live scene over the israel—gaza border, where we've seen continued bombardement this weekend. an israel military spokesman said it was expanding its ground operations in both southern and northern parts of the gaza strip. and these are live pictures from outside nasser hospital in khan younis. we've seen more injured arriving there in the past few hours. further north, this was the view across the israel—lebanon border. in the past couple of hours, we've seen a thick plume of black smoke in the sky there. the white house has said that in a phone call with mr netanyahu, president biden stressed

the importance of allowing civilians to move safely away from areas where there's fighting in gaza. greg mckenzie has this report. president biden told the israeli prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, that as israel continues its military campaign in gaza, there's a critical need to protect the civilian population — including those supporting aid operations. but mr biden said that he did not ask the israeli leader for a ceasefire. i had a long talk with netanyahu today and it's a private conversation. meanwhile, in gaza, this is the new normal. drone strikes in the border town of rafah emptying the local market. 17—year—old joe filming on his phone, still clutching his bag of shopping, and calling on god for protection. israel launched its retaliatory operation after hamas fighters crossed from gaza into southern

israel on the 7th of october, killing 1,200 people and taking about 240 hostages. since then, more than 20,000 people have been killed, and 53,000 injured in gaza — according to the hamas—run health ministry. its update this weekend says another 201 people had been killed. these gazans are the latest casualties, rushing to khan yunis hospital following an israeli air strike. israel says it has arrested 200 members of the hamas and islamichhad groups in the past week, and has taken them into its territory for questioning. israel's bombardment and ground assault has displaced some 1.9 million gazans, according to un figures — over three quarters of the population.

but it's hunger that cries in rafah — a city at the southern end of gaza — as thousands queue for something to eat. translation: these foods have run i out at the market so we can't find l anything to cook for the people. perhaps today's the last day we can provide food for the people. we appeal to the nation to provide aid to these people so they don't die of hunger. as the fighting continues, there is now a real risk of famine, according to the un... ..as humanitarian aid is only trickling into the besieged coastal territory. greg mckenzie, bbc news. as the fears of famine grow in gaza, delivery and distribution of very basic humanitiarian aid is coming into focus. children are the most affected by fighting in gaza.

jason lee is the country director at save the children in the occupied palestinian territory. he explained to me earlier the situation in gaza. the situation continues to deteriorate further and further. whilst the rest of the world is now approaching the celebrations for christmas, children in gaza, once are, again facing death and facing starvation, being killed by diseases and not being able to access medical care. it is imperative that there is a definitive ceasefire and the ability to distribute aid, life—saving aid, to all areas of gaza. you know that ceasefire is not coming — after what we saw at the united nations. another 150,000 people have been told to evacuate a central area of the gaza strip. how dangerous is it to actually move once being told

you have to evacuate? there is nowhere for the civilians to move to. many of the people who are in khan yunis had already fled their homes, to be told they are safe there, but now they are not. 1.9 million people, 85% of the population have fled their homes. they have nowhere to stay. they cannot move to rafah, there is ongoing fighting, ongoing military action, and there is nowhere for them to go to. the shelters are full. i was in rafah last week, and when you look around, you will see the streets are full of tents, people putting up whatever structures they can, in any open space — in car parks, next to hospitals, there is no room, no infrastructure, no toilets, not enough food, not enough water to sustain life there. a worker described what he

was seeing and he said children were too tired, too hungry, too scared to even cry. is that what you are seeing is well? —— as well? absolutely. the situation for children is deteriorating rapidly. there are many instances of children so traumatised that they are in a catatonic state of shock. we have seen countless times the lack of aid, the lack of any protection for children, the lack of access to military support, to food, water, and most critically, medical care. there's not a single functional hospital left in the north of gaza, yet hundreds of thousands of civilians that are trapped there still, and with ongoing and escalating fighting, the death toll and casualty rate, especially amongst children, will increase. and children are more susceptible to the explosive weapons that are used — their bodies are smaller, their bones break easier,

they have less blood, which means they bleed out quicker. that is why it is imperative that there must be a ceasefire. it is the only way to protect civilians, especially children. the hamas run health ministryjust updated casualty figures saying at least 166 palestinians were killed in gaza over the last 2a hours, bringing the death toll total to 20,000, since the 7th of october. 166 palestinians killed in gaza in the last 2a hours. this is the scene live in bethlehem, the biblical birthplace ofjesus.

you can see large numbers. the patriarch ofjerusalem has been speaking, addressing the numbers who have turned out despite officials in bethlehem cancelling all facilities. we heard that earlier, bethlehem packed with pilgrims and those celebrating christmas is much more subdued after public facilities were cancelled in solidarity with the people of gaza who are living through bombing and fighting, so these are the live pictures from bethlehem. 0ur correspondent is there. on days like this, joudat and his father would have been talking about christmas preparations. not this year. his family's stuck in northern gaza. he tries to reassure his father that

he'll make it out alive and that they'll be together again. but his dad is overcome with grief. a week ago, joudat�*s grandmother was shot twice in the stomach. his aunt rushed to help her and was shot in the head. joudat�*s parents and relatives had been sheltering in the holy family church. now they've buried their loved ones there. the family blames israeli snipers for their death. the idf says it will continue its investigation. "there's still shelling around us", his father tells me. before he says goodbye, he has one last message for his son. "may god be with you, my son," he says. "take care of your sisters." the war in gaza weighs heavily on bethlehem. visitors from around the world would have been here by now. it's empty. the city is empty from happiness,

from joy, from kids, from santa, from every celebration. there is no celebration this year. we cannot be happy because, you know, we are not in another side of the world. we are like, you know, still in palestine. translation: it's so difficult. we're really struggling. look at bethlehem. it's never been this way. the atmosphere is heavy with absence. the absence of any features of celebration, the absence of tourists, of pilgrims who would normally fill this square. bethlehem is many miles away from the war in gaza, but the pain is felt deeply here. in an unusually empty nativity church, the priest tells me his city feels like a shadow of itself. 12 years here as a priest of this church. and i was born in bethlehem. and i never actually seen like this time of the year. we have also brothers and sisters in gaza. and this is what exactly makes it difficult also to celebrate

and to have maybe music and to celebrate, to have parties usually. but because of this, what's happening, we'lljust pray for them. in manger square, a nativity scene in the rubble has replaced the giant christmas tree, a tribute to the children in gaza and a call to end their suffering. shaimaa khalil, bbc news, bethlehem. the us defence department has accused iran of launching a draw which damaged an oil tanker off the coast of india. the attack happened 320 kilometres southwest of veraval and caused a fire on board, which was extinguished. there were no casualties. iran has not commented. -- iran —— iran has denied being involved in the attacks. our correspondent told me earlier that there were concerns about india's energy supplies.

what's happened in the red sea in the past 48 hours has really shaken the commercial shipping operations. the us central command has issued the latest update, listing out the number of attempts made on tankers and other commercial ships passing through the red sea. they said two antiballistic missiles were fired by the houthi rebels from yemen, and they are regarded as the proxy of iran. none of the ships were damaged. four drones were shot down by a us warship and two other ships were hit, one had a narrow miss. however, another indian tanker was hit by a drone but not much damage or casualties. we were talking about the attack on friday, an india—bound ship which one of the british maritime agency said is an israeli—affiliated tanker carrying oilfrom india to saudi

arabia, that came under attack. that has also shaken the confidence of the industry. the us blames iran, saying for the first time that it was directly involved in an attack, but the iranian authorities deny it. it is still a mystery who carried it out, nobody has admitted responsibility, but what it shows is how one of the busiest routes now has come under attack from these rebel groups or some others threatening the industry. that is the wider concern, isn't it? in terms of what the authorities are saying, what are the indian authorities saying about this? the indian coastguard has given an update on what happened to the tanker that was attacked off the coast of india on friday. this ship was damaged, it caught fire, but it was extinguished, it also took in some water. a coastguard ship is accompanying this tanker, so it is likely to reach the port at mumbai tomorrow to assess damage and carry out any repair work,

then they will decide the future course of action. the indian coastguard also deployed surveillance aircraft to make sure that the ship doesn't have any other threat in that particular area. it is a concern for india, which heavily relies on oil from middle east, so it is not only in the red sea, it is spreading to other areas. people might question how a drone far from any other country, 2,000 kilometres away, can hit a target, whether it was launched from another border or ship. that is a question for different experts to answer. here in the uk, the home secretary, james cleverly, has apologised for joking about spiking drinks. the remark is alleged to have been made on the same day he announced new measures to tackle the problem. our political correspondent ione wells reports. downing street held a christmas reception last monday

forjournalists, ministers and political aides. it was held by chance on the same day the home secretary had promoted a raft of new government measures to tackle spiking — the act of putting alcohol or drugs in someone's drink or body without their consent. the sunday mirror alleges that james cleverly told fellow guests that the secret to a long marriage was ensuring your spouse was someone who is always mildly sedated, so she can never realise there are better men out there. it also alleges he mentioned rohypnol — a drug commonly used to spike drinks. a spokesperson for mr cleverly said, in what was always understood as a private conversation, the home secretary made what was clearly meant to be an ironicjoke — for which he apologises. the shadow home secretary, yvette cooper, said spiking was a devastating crime, and it was unbelievable to make a joke about it. ione wells, bbc news, westminster. now it's time for a look

at today's sport with gavin. hello there. anthonyjoshua took another step back to the top of heavyweight boxing after terrific performance to stop otto wallin early on in saudi arabia. joshua was dominant from the outset, getting the better of wallin before the swede's corner pulled him out of the fight at the end of the fifth round. that bout — the headline event — alongside former heavyweight champ deontay wilder's shock defeat tojoseph parker. many were hoping for a joshua—wilder fight next year, but aj insists it might still be on the cards. i'm not too sure what can happen from here, but i'm sure that the fans will be more annoyed. for me, i understand how this game is, you never know. this is elite—level boxing. it was an amazing card. wilderjust came up short, but he will live

to fight another day. me and him can still get it on, get it cracking. i believe that he is a massive threat, i'm a threat, and it could be amazing numbers if we get it on. so wilder's career, perhaps in the balance, after his loss tojoseph parker, as the co—headline fight on the bill in riyadh. the new zealander parker won on a unanimous points decision — onejudge had him winning every round. for wilder, that long awaited clash withjoshua might be gone and at the age of 38, it looks as though it could be the end of his career. he said he was unsure of his boxing future after this, his third defeat of his professional career. arsenal are top of the premier league for christmas, but only by a single point after they drew at title rivals liverpool. the gunners dominated the early stages at anfield and scored inside the first five minutes thanks to a headerfrom gabriel. but mo salah equalised on the half hour mark and it stayed 1—1. trent alexander—arnold hit the bar in the second half. the point for liverpool sees them move back into second, above aston villa on goal difference it was an unbelievable game of football. it was one of the most intense games that i have witnessed in 20

years in this league, and that tells you a lot about the quality and the level of the game. credit to them, as well, in the way they played. they raised the level really high. ithink we maintained it, in many moments we were on top of it, and at the end the result, yeah, in the last 20 minutes, we wanted more and we tried and we tried and we tried but, broadly, it's a fair result. i'm not sure how many chances arsenal had and how big they were. i don't really remember a lot but maybe they had something. but of course we could have won the game but it's fine, it's a point. two strong sides, massive battle, and that's it. chelsea fans perhaps won't be feeling the festive cheer later when they face a 260—mile round trip to wolves. it's the first christmas eve fixture in the top flight for 28 years, and the supporters trust were furious, sending a message that the premier league could "get stuffed" and that they were "supporters, not customers". it seemed to do the trick — there'll be no repeat next year — and the club has laid on a free coach service.

tom curran�*s appeal against a four—game ban in australia's big bash league has been dismissed. curran was suspended by cricket australia for intimidating an umpire during a warm—up for his sydney sixers side against the hobart hurricanes earlier this month. the conduct commisson found he "attempted to perform a practice run—up — and run at pace straight towards the umpire, who stood in the bowling crease facing curran — and that the umpire stepped to his right to avoid the risk of collision". the 28—year—old england player said he deeply regrets the incident. and that's all the sport for now. laura lynch — a founding member of the us country music band the dixie chicks — has been killed in a car accident in el paso, texas. she was 65. the band said they were "shocked and saddened" by lynch's death. laura lynch — a bassist and later singer — founded the group in 1989 with three other women. a christmas carol lost

for nearly 90 years has been performed in the south yorkshire town where it was originally composed. the song, christmas eve, was written by arthur godfrey, a factory worker from barnsley. here's a quick taste. # the chime of bells inspires the midnight breeze # and greets with fond caress the whispering trees # the moon—white hills around, in snow—shine splendour crowned # with pealing joys resound of christmas bells # glad tidings of the saviour bring # peace reigneth as ye gaily ring # ring on, ring on, ring on # while the merry breezes sing of christmas bells.# tegwen roberts from barnsley museumsjoins me now. that was you singing. give me a

sense of what it was like to sing that carol for the first time a 90 years and what it was like when it was given to you. fire years and what it was like when it was given to you.— years and what it was like when it was given to you. are amazing, what a 'o to be was given to you. are amazing, what a joy to be able _ was given to you. are amazing, what a joy to be able to — was given to you. are amazing, what a joy to be able to sing _ was given to you. are amazing, what a joy to be able to sing that - a joy to be able to sing that beautiful song. a joy to be able to sing that beautifulsong. it a joy to be able to sing that beautiful song. it was found a few weeks ago, we've only had it a few weeks. we were looking for newspaper articles to do with the opening of barnsley town hall which also opened 90 years ago this month and our curator found 90 years ago this month and our curatorfound this carol 90 years ago this month and our curator found this carol that had been published for barnsley people to sing at christmas time and for them to hear it come back to life and the reaction we've had from people has been incredible. it has 'ust sat people has been incredible. it has just sat there _ people has been incredible. it has just sat there for _ people has been incredible. it has just sat there for 90 _ people has been incredible. it has just sat there for 90 years - people has been incredible. it has just sat there for 90 years amongst everything else. tell me a little more about who had originally written it. arthur godfrey mas more about who had originally written it. arthur godfrey was born in barnsley- _

written it. arthur godfrey was born in barnsley- he _ written it. arthur godfrey was born in barnsley. he worked _ written it. arthur godfrey was born in barnsley. he worked in - written it. arthur godfrey was born in barnsley. he worked in the - written it. arthur godfrey was born j in barnsley. he worked in the glass bottle industry for his life. you lived in the middle of barnsley. he wasn't a professional musician but wasn't a professional musician but was very musically talented and he also wrote a number of other hymns and set poems to music. did also wrote a number of other hymns and set poems to music.— and set poems to music. did the erson and set poems to music. did the person who _ and set poems to music. did the person who found _ and set poems to music. did the person who found it _ and set poems to music. did the person who found it recognise i and set poems to music. did the i person who found it recognise what he had found or was it only after he had given it to you? who clicked that this was something of real importance? it that this was something of real importance?— that this was something of real importance? that this was something of real im ortance? .,, ., ., , ,., ., importance? it was an absolute team effort. importance? it was an absolute team effort- michael— importance? it was an absolute team effort. michael spotted _ importance? it was an absolute team effort. michael spotted it _ importance? it was an absolute team effort. michael spotted it and - effort. michael spotted it and realised it was something special, then he give it to me knowing i am a singer and an enthusiastic carol singer. we have a strong carolling tradition here which i am part of. i thought it was an incredible, beautiful tune. the next day, we just recorded a little version on the town hall main stairwell which has a beautiful acoustic, thinking it would be a nice thing to share with the museum team and a few other

people. we never thought it would be as big as it has become but we have the youth choir singing on the town hall steps today and my soul is full of christmas music. did hall steps today and my soul is full of christmas music.— hall steps today and my soul is full of christmas music. did come with a manuscri -t of christmas music. did come with a manuscript and _ of christmas music. did come with a manuscript and lyrics? _ of christmas music. did come with a manuscript and lyrics? tell- of christmas music. did come with a manuscript and lyrics? tell me - of christmas music. did come with a | manuscript and lyrics? tell me about the reaction there has been since it was first publicly sung. it the reaction there has been since it was first publicly sung.— was first publicly sung. it came with four parts, _ was first publicly sung. it came with four parts, it _ was first publicly sung. it came with four parts, it is _ was first publicly sung. it came with four parts, it is all- was first publicly sung. it came with four parts, it is all written| with four parts, it is all written out and it has all the words with it too and if people want to see that there is a blog on the barnsley museum's website and a link to the youtube videos. the reaction has been incredible, people have been recording their own versions, the music club did a brass version, and people from across the country saying they are going to be singing it at christmas. i don't think arthur could have wished for more.

and for barnsley museum is, we feel so overwhelmed and honoured to have been able to bring this amazing carol back to life. i’m been able to bring this amazing carol back to life.— been able to bring this amazing carol back to life. i'm sure that's absolutely _ carol back to life. i'm sure that's absolutely true, _ carol back to life. i'm sure that's absolutely true, you _ carol back to life. i'm sure that's absolutely true, you had - carol back to life. i'm sure that's absolutely true, you had such i carol back to life. i'm sure that's absolutely true, you had such a l absolutely true, you had such a smile on your face during this interview and that tells us so much. thank you for explaining how you came across this carol and what you have done with it. i am back with the headlines in a moment or two. don't go away. good morning. it is looking windy and there could be travel disruption if you are setting out today on the roads, railand if you are setting out today on the roads, rail and airports. if you are setting out today on the roads, railand airports. northern england and scotland will see the

biggest problems. there are a couple of yellow warning from the met office in force, gusts of 50 to 70 mph across northern areas of scotland and to the east of the pennines we can see strong crosswinds. showers across northern and western areas with sunny spells further south, cloudy with outbreaks of rain but it's also going to be really very mild, temperatures up to 13, 14, 15 really very mild, temperatures up to 13, 1a, 15 celsius across england and wales and we could see some temperature records being broken for christmas eve. one of the warmest christmas eve. one of the warmest christmas eves on record, will be keeping a close eye on that through this afternoon. this evening, it will stay cloudy across the south, further outbreaks of rain moving in here, elsewhere clear skies, further outbreaks of rain moving in here, elsewhere clearskies, perhaps cold enough across scotland for a touch of frost into christmas day but another mild night for many of us, double figure temperatures in the south. for christmas day, we've got this boundary between cold air

across scotland and mild air once again of the uk. with that cold air in place and scherer is moving on, there could be snow over higher ground. that would technically make it a white christmas but further south, heavy rain across south wales and southwest england but still very mild across southern areas, temperatures of 13 or 1a celsius but 3 celsius or 4 celsius across central scotland. eventually the colder air will move further southward as we go through the night and into boxing day. you notice those blues taking over the charts. it's going to be colder but lots of sunny weather around on boxing day. perfect if you are getting out and about for a christmas walk, walking off christmas lunch. it could be wintry in the far northeast of scotland, may be some rain later in the day in the far south but temperatures will drop for northern ireland, england and wales, 7

celsius 29 celsius. have a won't fall christmas eve. i by. —— have a wonderful christmas eve. bye—bye.

this is bbc news — the headlines... israeli's prime minister benjamin netanyahu has dismissed reports that the united states had convinced him not to expand its military activity — earlier, joe biden said he told mr netanyahu of the critical need to protect the civilians in gaza, including aid workers, — as the heavy bombardment continues.

the us has accused iran of launching a drone attack that damaged an israeli—affiliated oil tanker off the coast of india. a fire on board the ship was extinguished and no casualties were reported. iran has denied any involvement. christmas celebrations are called off in bethlehem. the usual tree is replaced by a nativity scene in the rubble. organisers had asked their congregations to forget the customary celebrations, while still upholding the spiritual aspects of christmas. now on bbc news, the year in review. # nothing compares.

# nothing compares to you...