so that was tokyo bringing in 202a. and here is the scene live in seoul, south korea — which is also ringing in the new year. some of these are happening as we speak and will continue as the day goes on. you can view all the latest new year's celebrations around the world on our website. plenty of fireworks pictures for you that as well. turning now to the middle east — because the us military says its helicopters have destroyed three small boats in an attack on a container ship in the southern red sea. it's the second assault by iran—backed houthi rebels on the ship within 2a hours. the us says the gunmen —

who launched the raid from yemen — attacked in four boats, coming within 20 metres of the vessel. the fourth craft fled the area. the houthi rebels say their actions are in protest against the gaza war, where there were more air strikes by israel overnight. israel's prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, is insisting that the war in gaza will continue until all hostages have been released — and hamas has been dismantled. shaimaa khalil reports from jerusalem. street by street, the battles on the ground in gaza rage on. israel is concentrating its ground offensive on the centre and the south of the strip. with hamas fighters continuing to resist the idf�*s advances. translation: the war is at its height. - we are fighting on all fronts. we have huge success but we also have painful cases. central gaza is the latest focus of israel's military operation, with heavy bombardment

on the densely populated nuseirat refugee camp. further south, in neighbouring deir al—balah, palestinian rescue workers stand around the body of their colleague. he was killed in a strike near the al aqsa hospital where many of the wounded are being treated. this is the safe area where palestinians were told to come to escape the fighting in the centre. but as the military operation expands, safe areas for gazans keep shrinking. the southernmost city of rafah has now become the last stop for hundreds of thousands of displaced people fleeing the heavy bombardment in khan younis. many using makeshift shelters near the border with egypt. there is nowhere else to go from here. translation: | hope - that the war will end soon. i hope we can return to our homes, go back to school, return to everything that is familiar in the new year.

the fallout from the war in gaza continues to be felt in the red sea, with yet another houthi attack. the us central command said that navy helicopters destroyed three of four small boats used by the iranian—backed militants as they attempted to board a container ship. this footage released last month shows some of the group's armed militias dropping from a helicopter and seizing a cargo ship in the southern red sea. the houthis have claimed that their attacks on this vital shipping route are directed at vessels linked to israel in response to its conflict with hamas. as this year draws to a close there is no end in sight for the war in gaza or the suffering of its people. we are joined now by dr sabri saidam, deputy secretary general of the palestinian fatah party's central committee. he's in ramallah. thank you very much for being with us. i want to look ahead, if i can to what happens after a potential

war and there is some suggestion that your party has been having conversations with the us about potentially taking over control of gaza in the event of an end to this war. can you tell us about those conversations on what you have decided? , ,., ., conversations on what you have decided? , ., , decided? yes. good to be with you. ha - decided? yes. good to be with you. happy 2024- _ decided? yes. good to be with you. happy 2024- shortly _ decided? yes. good to be with you. happy 2024. shortly the _ decided? yes. good to be with you. | happy 2024. shortly the palestinian happy 202a. shortly the palestinian authority are caught in the situation whereby they have to discuss the day after whilst the today has not been resolved. atrocities is quite depressing, as the world is celebrating new year we are that it might have more bombings of women and children in safe havens and somehow we're supposed to be immune to all this. the american consulate does not seem to made up its mind but maybe it is time that we hear from the americans as to whether they would like to help. secretary blinken is visiting the

region, the us secretary of state, he is thought to have some new ideas and we would like to hear from he is thought to have some new ideas and we would like to hearfrom him as to as faras we and we would like to hearfrom him as to as far as we are concerned, then benjamin netanyahu is just wasting time, he has the idea of expelling palestinians and annex gaza and maybe the west bank next. 50 annex gaza and maybe the west bank next, , ., annex gaza and maybe the west bank next, y., annex gaza and maybe the west bank next. ,, i. ., ., annex gaza and maybe the west bank next. ., ., , next. so you say you are not sure what the americans _ next. so you say you are not sure what the americans are - next. so you say you are not sure. what the americans are proposing. with the palestinian authority be capable of taking over security responsibilities in gaza if there were a ceasefire and end the conflict? , ., ., , , , , conflict? the short answer is yes. we have been _ conflict? the short answer is yes. we have been working _ conflict? the short answer is yes. we have been working in - conflict? the short answer is yes. we have been working in gaza - conflict? the short answer is yes. we have been working in gaza for years. yes we have had problems since 2007 but we continue to work so the continuation of work will not be a problem it's the issue of occupation and israel's potential

plan to annex gaza. we had today a statement from the israeli prime minister saying that the palestinians ought to leave gaza, they are tired and exhausted, might as well go as well. and the israelis want to go back to gaza, it's a nice place and they would like to establish their own settlement. these are statements coming out of israel. they want to expel palestinians.— israel. they want to expel palestinians. , ., , . ~ palestinians. just to bring it back to the palestinian _ palestinians. just to bring it back to the palestinian authority - palestinians. just to bring it back to the palestinian authority and l to the palestinian authority and your party that controls that. a recent poll by the palestinian centre suggests that 88% of palestinians would prefer mahmoud abbas to resign, we are talking about the day after, i know we are still in the current situation but we clear need to look at the day after. is the departure of mahmoud abbas an essential part of how you run things after this? figs abbas an essential part of how you run things after this? $5 i abbas an essential part of how you run things after this?— run things after this? as i said earlier on _ run things after this? as i said earlier on bbc, _ run things after this? as i said earlier on bbc, during - run things after this? as i said earlier on bbc, during the - run things after this? as i said - earlier on bbc, during the presence at the time, we were told that the

palestinian authority is redundant under the leadership ought to be changed and there has to be a new leadership. this is for the world to change its mind afterwards. going back to the broken record we are the underdogs, the world community decides on the fate of palestinians and how they ought to have their leadership, how to breathe, how to live. it's nothing but another israeli propaganda. we have heard and we have seen many examples. we are not in any way facing an issue thatis are not in any way facing an issue that is very serious, what is very serious in stopping the hostilities and reversing the plans that they have the annexation. and the ongoing atrocities not only in gaza but also in the west bank. it is ongoing. the concern is not about leadership it's about the cessation of hostilities in the west bank and gaza and the total disruption of benjamin

netanyahu's plans of annexation and distillation of palestinians. thank ou. -- distillation of palestinians. thank you. -- displacement— distillation of palestinians. thank you. -- displacement of- you. -- displacement of palestinians. _ russian president vladimir putin says his country will never back down — as he addressed the nation in a new year's eve speech. his remarks come as russia carries out more drone attacks on ukraine, with reports of explosions in a number of cities, including kharkiv and kyiv. kyiv says it destroyed almost half of the drones launched by russia. the missile strikes on central kharkiv injured at least 21 people, including two teenage boys. the strikes are in apparent retaliation for ukraine's drone attack on the russian city of belgorod yesterday, which killed at least 20 people. and reuters is reporting the governor of belgorod has issued a warning more missiles are heading towards residents there. the kremlin has requested an urgent meeting of the un security council. here's our russia editor, steve rosenberg. explosion caught on dash cam, a giant explosion in the centre of belgorod. there was panic, as people ran for cover.

siren wails not everyone could. russia says at least 20 civilians were killed and more than 100 injured after a series of ukrainian strikes on the heart of the city, although the russian military claimed it had shot down most of the missiles. as emergency crews rushed to the scene, the scale of the damage became clear. billowing smoke making belgorod look more than ever like a front line city. ukraine's border is just 20 miles away. the local governor, vyacheslav gladkov, said these were the deadliest consequences of ukrainian shelling that his region had experienced. explosion the attack came just a day after russia had carried out a huge explosion the attack came just a day after russia had carried out a huge

wave of strikes across ukraine with missiles and with drones. at least 39 people, kyiv said, were killed. belgorod has come under attack before... ..with explosions like this one at the airport and at a power station. this kind of thing never happened before russia launched its full—scale invasion of ukraine. now, a deadly new strike on the eve of the new year holiday. russia has already hit back with new attacks of its own. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. explosion. the eurostar service from london to paris has resumed, following a day of cross—channel chaos. all trains were cancelled yesterday due to flooding in tunnels under the river thames. these pictures are of passengers boarding at st pancras this morning. eurostar says all services will run to and from london, but there are warnings that delays are still likely. ellie price reports.

the first eurostar train to leave london since friday night pulled away just after eight o'clock this morning. 41 services were cancelled yesterday, leaving lots of passengers disappointed and stranded, and madly trying to reorganise their new year plans. a little bit anxious because i'm just waiting to travel, spend the new year with my fiance. he is french and lives in paris. so we're just waiting to see. he works for french border police. so we'lljust see what happens. we tried flying to brussels. that didn't work out either. and now we're back to take a train today, hopefully. they gave all the standby seats away so they didn't have - any seats on the plane. so it's been a disaster from start to finish? yes. it was all caused by flooding in two high—speed rail tunnels under the thames. pumping this much water out wasn't a quickjob. we have cleared the water from both of the tunnels that were impacted yesterday under the thames

and we are looking to run a near normal service this morning. it's had a knock—on effect on domestic high—speed services, too, though most seem to be running on time now. eurostar say all speed restrictions on the line have now been lifted and all services will be travelling at normal speeds. but for many it wasn't quite the bon voyage to 2023 they were looking for. ellie price, bbc news, st pancras, in london. a crackdown on xl bully dogs comes into force in england and wales today. gfx it means owners must follow strict rules on how it means owners must follow strict rules on how they are handled in public, including keeping them muzzled and on a lead. our north of england correspondent, danny savage, has more. police at the scene of a dog attack, one where an xl bully type killed a man. elsewhere, this dog was handed in by its owner after it bit them. it was put down soon after we filmed it. too many such incidents have led to a ban on these dogs. but, of course, the issue is that the aggression of a minority of xl bullies has led to all of them

becoming a banned type, and all face the consequences of the law change. from today, these dogs can only be out in public if they're muzzled and on a lead. that's it. you're all right. from today, it's also illegal to breed, sell or abandon an xl bully. that means rehoming them will be impossible. if they're not wanted, they're likely to be destroyed. we won't be able to take in any xl bullies. we won't be able to rehome any xl bullies. people are concerned about how to do muzzle training. so there's some really good advice out there on how to muzzle train yourdog. but they're also concerned about the dog not being able to be let off—lead. so a dog that is an xl bully and registered won't be allowed to be off—lead in a public place. and you can see how much he loves snuffling. so, for him, this activity is going to be perfect. for months now, some xl bully owners have been taking their dogs to training...

bingo. ..to get them used to a much more controlled life. good boy. at first everyone thought a ban means that, ok, that's it. you know, you have to say goodbye to your dogs. thankfully, a lot of good information came out quite quickly, and so people were able to see that that's not the case. but yeah, panic, stress, they're loved fam... they're part of the family. can you judge a temperament like this or do you need longer? really, temperament's hard because, for example, if we were saying this dog's safe, i don't think we can ever say a dog is safe. police will be calling on people who haven't declared their dogs. existing xl bullies can still be kept if owners can prove to a court they're responsible. in cases where we believe the court may, you know, sort of approve an exemption, is we'll speak to the owner and say, "look they're obviously going to have to be spayed or neutered. the decision is with the court. but if you wanted to go ahead and do that now, things like the microchipping, the insurance and things like that." and also getting the home environment ready for the dog's return. good lad. xl bullies have caused too many problems for

the government to ignore. yes, its left many owners upset, but this is seen as the most effective way to deal with them. danny savage, bbc news. now it's time for a look at today's sport with sarah. thank you very much, lauren. two games this new year's eve in the english premier league and arsenal are bidding to go back to the top of the table. they're away to fulham. they need a win to do so. it's just gone into the second half there. it is 1—1. bukayo saka put arsenal ahead just five minutes in before rauljimenez. in north london, tottenham can move to within a point of the top four if they win. they are doing that so far. ahead early on. that's just got under way in the second half.

hugo lloris came onto the pitch at the tottenham hotspur stadium to wave goodbye to the spurs fans. he's agreed a deal to go to mls side lafc when the window opens. new zealand skipper mitchell santner took four wickets as they beat bangladesh by 17 runs in their third t20 match in mount maunganui. he helped dismiss the tourists for a modest iio but new zealand collapsed to 49—5 before recovering to within 16 runs of victory, when heavy rain halted play. they were ahead of the dls rate at that stage and the match was eventually called off, giving the hosts the win which ensured the series finished all—square. at the united cup tennis in perth, taylor fritz has led the usa to an impressive comeback win over great britain. katie boulter gave britain the lead with the best win of her career, beating world number five jessica pegula in three sets but fritz was too good for cameron norrie, levelling the tie and taking it to a deciding mixed doubles match. boulter was back, paired with neal skupski

and they raced through the first set 6—1 but fritz and pegula won it on a super tie—break to reach the quarter—finals. novak djokovic won on his united cup debut with a straight sets victory over china s zhang zhizhen. the ten—time australian open champion is currently playing alongside olga danilovic in the mixed doubles, where they lead after his first match, where they lead. the detroit pistons�* record—tying losing streak in the nba has finally come to an end. they'd lost 28 games in a row, but they squeezed past toronto raptors 129—127, cade cunningham with 30 points and 12 assists. oh, man, ifeelamazing. yes, this is my first time trying not to be

cheesing right now in this interview but i feel good. it's been a long time coming. i want to go back to where we were. the dallas cowboys have ended the nfl season with a 100% home record for the first time in 42 years. they onlyjust held off the detroit lions though, winning 20—19 — it was a controversial ending, with the lions penalised when jared goff found lineman taylor decker in the end zone for the two points that would have given them the win — but the officials said decker hadn't reported as an eligible receiver. later, the san francisco 49ers can clinch the number one seed in the nfc if they beat the washington commanders. the philadelphia eagles, tampa bay buccaneers and jacksonville jaguars will also clinch a playoff spot if they win their matches. and the miami dolphins have a chance to win the afc east if they beat the in—form baltimore ravens. a win will mean the buffalo bills can't catch them in the division. you can follow all these score on the bbc sport website later, but that's all the sport for now.

ican i can also tell you looking to the tv on my right that fulham have taken the lead at the moment against arsenal. arsenal, remember, are trying to go back to the top of the premier league table. they need to beat fulham to do so but they are trailing at the moment. that is it for me for the moment. sarah, thank you very much indeed. the un says around 300 people die every year from lightning strikes in bangladesh. that's in comparison to fewer than 20 people annually in the us, which has almost double the population. lightning is now considered a natural disaster in the country alongside cyclones, floods and earthquakes. our correspondent rajini vaidyanathan reports from bangladesh. a day of celebration turned into a lifetime of grief. mamun was due to get married when a storm struck. his family took shelter under a tin shed. it was hit by lightning.

instead of his wedding, mamun was arranging funerals. translation: i ran to the river bank and found bodies lying everywhere. l i was at a loss. i couldn't even decide who to go to first. all the dead and injured were my close relatives. when i found my father's body, i simply burst into tears. lightning is a big killer in bangladesh, claiming more lives than floods annually. the government says extreme storms due to global warming have led to a rise in fatal lightning strikes over the years. a singed football shirt — a painful reminder of how deadly lightning can be. it belonged to abdullah, a farmer who worked these fields when a thunderbolt struck him. for his wife, rehana, a loss that's

hard to even understand. it was in the field? translation: my husband fell down i here when the lightning hit him. i some of the farmers brought him to this roadside shop. by then, he was dead. this is an irreplaceable loss for me. he won't come back. how do i raise my little boy now? he's only 14 years old. now, she's terrified every time she sees a cloud in the sky. the majority of victims of lightning strikes in bangladesh are farmers. working in the open, they're more vulnerable to the elements, especially in the monsoon months. despite the risks, farmers here say they have no choice but to work these fields, even if it leaves them exposed. so, what can be done to protect them? well, the government says it's planting more tall trees to attract

lightning and it's developing an early warning text message system. but with hundreds of deaths in bangladesh every year due to lightning, is that enough? it's hoped these workshops, run by a local lightning awareness group, can help educate people about what to do in the face of a storm. but for families like mamun�*s, it's all too late — i6 relatives taken by lightning. rajini vaidyanathan, bbc news, bangladesh. more now on new year's celebraukland in new zealand became more now on new year's celebrations around the world.

aukland in new zealand became the first major city to mark the start of 202a. and in sydney, australia huge crowds gathered for one of the world's most spectacular fireworks displays over the harbour bridge and the opera house. rachel mcadam reports. five, four, three, two, one! new year celebrations have officially begun. auckland in new zealand became the first major city to mark the start of 2024 with this light show on its harbour bridge and sky tower. residents of the line islands in kiribati kicked off the new year an hour earlier. sydney followed on from auckland with huge crowds gathering to watch a spectacular firework display over the harbour bridge and the opera house. countries across the rest of the world are still gearing up for midnight celebrations and in some places preparations are still under way. in london, the fireworks display later is over in minutes, but is months in the making.

planning started in august, but a small team of 22 have spent three long days on the final touches. 10,000 fireworks are loaded onto three barges ready to head down the thames to the london eye, where they'll be set off at midnight. we've got over 30 tonnes of equipment that gets loaded onto the barges, 50 kilometres of cable and wiring, 11,500 cues that are all need to be wired in and tested already for the midnight moment. preparations on the day itself are often close to the wire, with the london eye rigged just two hours before the display starts. with everything set, the sky a blank canvas, the teams will be hoping it all runs like clockwork. rachel mcadam, bbc news.

and there is plenty more on our live page on the bbc website if you want to see more fireworks. that's it for me now. stay with us here on bbc news. hello. we are ending the year with a day of sunny spells but also rather blustery showers. there will be some heavy downpours still to come a time some hail and thunder always possible. the ground is already saturated in a few spots. a number of flood warnings in force, do take a look at the bbc weather website for more details on those. any extra rainfall really not welcome in a few places. low pressure centred across the uk will be slowly pushing eastwards for the rest of the day. blustery showers swirling around. very strong winds towards the south coast of england and wales, a weather warning in place there. gusts of wind across the devon coast

could get up to high as 60 or 70 mph. lighter winds to the centre of the low across northern england and scotland and ireland. perhaps rain edging to parts of aberdeenshire by the end of the day. temperatures little lower than they were yesterday. lots of people out out tonight bringing in the new year, a scattering of showers to the south of england to the south of england and here the winds are still strong and could quite possibly hamper any fireworks displays. a few showers across the south—east and east anglia but more showers across the midlands and the north—west of england feeding down this north—westerly wind across northern ireland and south—west of scotland. largely dry for much of scotland. it will be a drier looking day tomorrow looking day tomorrow but more rain edging in from the south—west by the time we get to the end of the day. tomorrow though, looking largely dry through the morning for new year's day. if you are out for a new year walk there will be some sunshine around the cloud increasing the cloud increasing for the south later

with eventually outbreaks of rain. looking driver scotland northern england and northern ireland throughout the day. temperatures are a little lower. that rain is going to be pushing northwards and eastwards as we head through monday night, again, a lot of that will be heavy over saturated ground. there is another know that going to be spinning in from the south on tuesday as we go through the morning into the afternoon eventually clearing northwards. some more snow perhaps over the tops of the hills in parts of aberdeenshire with a brisk south easterly wind here. temperatures dropping but milder towards the south of england and wales. a few more showers possible on wednesday and thursday. it will turn colder by the time we get to the weekend. bye for now.

you're watching bbc news. the headlines... us navy some three houthi rebel boats after they try to board a container ship off the coast of yemen. the ship had come under attack for the second time in 24—hour is. russia has carried out more drone attacks on ukraine with reports of explosions across the country. in kharkiv, the city's mayor says residential buildings have been on fire. moscow has been retaliating after ukrainian strikes on the russian border city of belgorod.

eurostar services have resumed between london and paris. disruption had been caused by two flooded tunnels blocking the high speed rail line —— leading to disappointment for tens of thousands of travellers. a spectacular fireworks display in sydney. the australian city welcomes in 2024 — as new year's eve celebrations continue around the world. now on bbc news, 2023 in review — the biggest stories. there's a huge barrage going on overhead just at the moment.

yevgeny prigozhin seemed determined to march his men