welcome to newsday, broadcasting live from singapore, where it's sam in the morning on new year's day. thousands of people have gathered and iconic landmarks to usher in 202a. much of africa has moved. let's take a look at some of them. big ben bongs.

some amazing pictures. let's take you straight to london and edinburgh were some of europe's biggest fireworks were on display. it isa it is a really big deal, traditionally bigger than a christmas here. you can see the fireworks above edinburgh castle. it is a magnificent setting for a fireworks display. 15,000 people here. on the street and centre of the city. they are having a party.

all enjoying themselves. down here, a british band headlining. they are going to come back with the fireworks display over. this is four days of celebrations. a procession on friday. it will carry on tomorrow. tonight though, the main party. a big night of celebrations. the fireworks, a ton of them going off above the castle. . , , ton of them going off above the castle. . , _ ., , , castle. happy new year! this is live in london, _ castle. happy new year! this is live in london, at— castle. happy new year! this is live in london, at the _ castle. happy new year! this is live in london, at the london i live in london, at the london eye~ — live in london, at the london eye the _ live in london, at the london eye. the ten minute spectacular. the biggest fireworks display in europe. people _ fireworks display in europe. people here to watch this spectacular. we are expecting a speech— spectacular. we are expecting a speech from the king. a message will be _ speech from the king. a message will be played out along with

many — will be played out along with many other messages but this is that spectacular, 100,000 people _ that spectacular, 100,000 people got tickets for this. ultimately, this will go on for about— ultimately, this will go on for about ten minutes. it is the biggest _ about ten minutes. it is the biggest fireworks display in europe. 20,000 fireworks and you can — europe. 20,000 fireworks and you can see them. an incredible side _ you can see them. an incredible side you — you can see them. an incredible side. you can actually smell the gun— side. you can actually smell the gun power in the air. it is fireworks _ the gun power in the air. it is fireworks night here. we are now— fireworks night here. we are now officially in 2024. 0ur across the atlantic new year's celebrations are under way. millions of people taking part in worldwide celebrations as sean dudley reports. crowd: five, four, three, two, one, happy new year! this is how new zealand welcomed 2024 in auckland. it was the first major city to show off its stunning display.

fireworks were launched from its tallest building, the sky tower, and its harbour bridge. over the water, australia used two of their most recognisable landmarks to light up their skies. seoul welcomed 2024 at 3pm uk time. tokyo celebrated with 108 strikes of this bell, the last landing at midnight. shortly after, hong kong marked their new year with this fireworks musical. dubai kicked their year off in serious style from the top of the burj khalifa. as people usher in new year's day many will be making resolutions to get it, read more books or break bad habits. how many people can stick to

them and is there even a point in making those resolutions? for more on this spring and a distinguished professor and chair of psychology at the university of scranton. he is an expert on behaviour change has studied the psychology behind those new year's resolutions and gave data on how effective they can be and why they sometimes do not stick. thank you so much for joining us. from your research, what are the most popular resolutions for new year? they tend to change _ resolutions for new year? they tend to change a _ resolutions for new year? they tend to change a bit _ resolutions for new year? they tend to change a bit year - resolutions for new year? they tend to change a bit year to - tend to change a bit year to year, society evolves, always topping the list is to lose weight, exercise more, improve finances, and to drink a little list. ~ , finances, and to drink a little list. g ., ., list. my resolution from last ear list. my resolution from last year lasted _ list. my resolution from last year lasted for _ list. my resolution from last year lasted for a _ list. my resolution from last year lasted for a month. - list. my resolution from lastl year lasted for a month. how common is it for them to actually stick?—

common is it for them to actually stick? well, if you ask peeple. _ actually stick? well, if you ask people, right - actually stick? well, if you ask people, right before . actually stick? well, if you i ask people, right before new year's, 65% of adults will say they are going to make resolutions, but when we ask on january one it is 35% of the people making it. contrary to public opinion, 35 — 40% will make it for an entire six months. so there is good reason to make resolutions they obviously do work for lots of people. and of course if you lose weight, drink weight —— drink less become a better person they have cascading positive effects on not only yourself but family and society. so we like resolutions.- society. so we like resolutions. , ., , resolutions. why do some people fail and for _ resolutions. why do some people fail and for those _ resolutions. why do some people fail and for those what _ resolutions. why do some people fail and for those what advice - fail and for those what advice would you give? psychological science has — would you give? psychological science has lots _ would you give? psychological science has lots of _ would you give? psychological science has lots of advice - science has lots of advice based on thousands of studies and it is largely depending

upon where you are on the stage of taking them. so here we are on new year's eve and new year's day so we hope you have taken a realistic look and you have expressly resolutions into smaller attainable bit, that you develop some genuine self—confidence, psychology? psychologists call this self—efficacy, we hope you have secured some social support we know the buddy system works be that with family or at work, and as you move into january one, you are notjust rooting out old problems but building in new behaviours so you need to develop the new behaviour. is it better to have just one resolution or is it better to have multiple?— resolution or is it better to have multiple? science would sa 'ust have multiple? science would say just take _ have multiple? science would say just take one _ have multiple? science would sayjust take one because - have multiple? science would sayjust take one because we | sayjust take one because we only have so much time and effort, but new science says two resolutions actually work just as well as one resolution

as long as those two resolutions are related copy we call this co— action, like eating and exercise or stress management and doing something at work, the resolutions are related, by all means take two but please, not more than two. i understand this is quite an ancient tradition, how far does that go back?— that go back? oh, the ancient romans would _ that go back? oh, the ancient romans would offer _ that go back? oh, the ancient i romans would offer resolutions of good conduct to the godliness after whom the month of january is godliness after whom the month ofjanuary is named, ancient babylonians would start of the new year by paying off debts and returning borrowed items. so it goes way back in human history. it so it goes way back in human histo . , ., history. it is not quite new year get— history. it is not quite new year get are _ history. it is not quite new year get are you _ history. it is not quite new year get are you planning | history. it is not quite new. year get are you planning to make any resolutions? i year get are you planning to make any resolutions?- year get are you planning to make any resolutions? i am this ear i make any resolutions? i am this year i hepe _ make any resolutions? i am this year i hepe to — make any resolutions? i am this year i hope to take _ make any resolutions? i am this year i hope to take a _ make any resolutions? i am this year i hope to take a little - year i hope to take a little more of my vacation time and try to get on the golf links twice a week.—

try to get on the golf links twice a week. john norcross thank you — twice a week. john norcross thank you for _ twice a week. john norcross thank you forjoining - twice a week. john norcross thank you forjoining us - twice a week. john norcross thank you forjoining us and | thank you forjoining us and happy new year whenever it comes in your city. mr; comes in your city. my pleasure. _ comes in your city. iii pleasure. happiness, comes in your city. m pleasure. happiness, health comes in your city. mg pleasure. happiness, health and peace to you, and the listeners. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. let's get some of the day's other news. two british skiers who died in an avalanche in the french alps on thursday have been named. they were 22—year—old archie vokes, and his mother kate vokes, who was 54, from manchester. they lost their lives when an avalanche swept through an off—piste section of the saint gervais resort near mont blanc. a crackdown on xl bully dogs has come into force in england and wales. it means owners must follow strict rules on how they are handled in public, including keeping them muzzled and on a lead. it comes ahead of a ban in february when it will be a criminal offence to own an xl bully dog in england and wales without a certificate.

a climber has been stretchered off the side of a mountain in the cairngorms after becoming lost in blizzard conditions. rescue crews were called out around half past five last night where they found the climber in a boulder field suffering from exhaustion. you're live with bbc news. 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 24 hours. the us says the gunmen, who launched the raid from yemen, attacked in four boats, coming within 20 meters of the vessel. the fourth craft fled the area. the houthi rebels say their actions are in protest against the gaza war, where there've been more

airstrikes by israel. 0ur correspondent shaimaa khalil is injerusalem. a little earlier, she sent us this report on the situation in gaza, and a warning, you may find parts of her report distressing. 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 deiral—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 one of what israel says are safe areas where palestinians were told to go 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 would 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. the houthis have released a statement confirming that ten militants were killed in the us's response to their attack on the vessel, saying the united states would bear the consequences and vowing to continue targeting what they described as israeli—linked ships. as this year draws to a close, there is no end in sight for the war in gaza or the suffering of its people. shaimaa khalil, bbc news, jerusalem. 0ur washington correspondent gary 0'donoghue has more about why the americans have taken the action that we've seen in the red sea. i think they are under a lot of pressure to maintain what they call freedom of navigation in that red sea area through the suez canal and beyond because it is such an important economic route for the whole world, around 10% world of trade flows through that area. they are also of course responding to these

provocations because they believe iran is behind groups like the houthis and others who have been launching attacks against american bases in iraq and syria, which they have also been responding to. but this is a significant escalation and what we have here is us navy pilots coming effectively face—to—face with houthi fighters in the red sea, killing 10 of them and thinking three of their boats, and i think it will mean in future are certainly a lot of pressure from republicans to do more to combat the threat from the houthis including according to one republican, the house chair of the intelligence committee, potentially striking their capacities inside yemen itself. the israel defense forces said five brigades have been released, with ground operations in gaza having diminished the ability of the palestinian group, hamas, to fire rockets into israel. they said the reservists were needed to return to their normaljobs to

maintain the israeli economy. but the military emphasised that the campaign to eradicate hamas would go on and was expected to continue throughout 2024. here's the idf spokesperson making the announcement. translation: these days i we are also adjusting the plan of forces�* deployment in gaza and in the array of reservists. some of the reserve soldiers will return to their families and theirjobs this week. this will allow a significant relief for the economy, and will allow them to gather strength ahead of the coming activities in the new year. the fighting will continue, and we will need them. these adjustments are meant to ensure planning and preparation for the rest of the 2024. the idf must plan ahead with the understanding that will be required for more missions and the continuation of the fighting all throughout this year. europe's longest reigning monarch, the queen of denmark, has announced live on television that she will abdicate in january,

when she reaches 52 years on the throne. speaking in her traditional new year's eve address, 83—year—old queen margarethe said her son crown prince frederik would take over from her. here's naomi choy smith. a surprise announcement live on national television during queen margrethe's traditional new year's address, translation: on the 14th ofjanuary 2024, 52 years | after succeeding my beloved father, i will step down as the queen of denmark. the 83—year—old danish queen said time had taken its toll on her health and she made the decision to abdicate after undergoing back surgery in february. translation: the surgery naturally gave rise to thinking about the future, whether the time had come to leave the responsibility to the next generation. i have decided that now is the right time. queen margrethe plans to hand the throne to

crown prince frederik, the eldest of her two sons. he's very, very down to earth and very, very modern person. he has four kids. and for most of his kids, they actually went to public school instead of private schools. so people feel very connected to him. for many danes, queen margrethe is the only monarch they have ever known. she's seen here visiting windsor castle in 1974, two years after she succeeded herfather, king frederik. after the death of queen elizabeth, queen margrethe became the longest serving monarch in europe. denmark's prime minister thanked queen margrethe for her service, saying it was difficult to understand that the time had come for a change of throne. a feeling echoed across denmark as the nation prepares to welcome the next royal generation. naomi choy smith, bbc news. let's take a look at some other stories in the headlines. china's president, xijinping, has repeated his claim it's inevitable that taiwan will be reunified with mainland china.

mr xi made the comments during his new year's address, which comes less than two weeks before a general election is held in the self—ruled island that beijing considers part of its own territory. in the speech, president xi also addressed a challenging year for the country's economy, stating it had �*weathered the storm'. police in germany have arrested three people over an alleged plot to carry out a new year's eve attack at cologne cathedral. arrests were made in raids on properties outside cologne. reports say they were islamists planning to use a car in the attack. tight security has been put in place around the cathedral, with around a thousand police on duty. around 300 people die every year from around 300 people die every yearfrom lightning around 300 people die every year from lightning strikes around 300 people die every yearfrom lightning strikes in bangladesh, in comparison to fewer than 20 people annually in the united states. which has

almost double the population. lightnings now considered natural disaster in the country alongside cyclones, floods and earthquakes. officials say climate change is leading to an increase in extreme strong is driving up the number of lightning strikes. a day of celebration turned into a lifetime of grief. mum would was due to get married when a storm struck. his family took shelter under a ten shed. it was hit by lightning. instead of his wedding, he was arranging funerals. translation: i arranging funerals. translation: ., ., translation: i ran to the riverbank _ translation: i ran to the riverbank and _ translation: i ran to the riverbank and found - translation: | ran to the| riverbank and found bodies everywhere. i was at a loss. i could not decide who to go first. all the dead and injured were close relatives. when i found my father's body i simply

burst into tears.— burst into tears. lightning is a big killer— burst into tears. lightning is a big killer in _ burst into tears. lightning is a big killer in bangladesh, i a big killer in bangladesh, claiming more lives than floods, annually. the government says extreme storms due to global warming lead 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 abdulla, a farmer who worked these fields when a thunderbolt strike him. for these fields when a thunderbolt strike him-— strike him. for his wife, a loss that _ strike him. for his wife, a loss that is _ strike him. for his wife, a loss that is even - strike him. for his wife, a loss that is even hard - strike him. for his wife, a loss that is even hard to l loss that is even hard to understand. �* ,, . m understand. translation: my husband felt _ understand. translation: my husband felt down _ understand. translation: my husband felt down here - understand. translation: my husband felt down here when l understand. translation: my. husband felt down here when the lightning hit him. he was

brought to a roadside shot but by then he was dead. this is an irreplaceable loss. my little boy is only 14 years old. now, she is terrified. _ boy is only 14 years old. now, she is terrified. every - boy is only 14 years old. now, she is terrified. every time . she is terrified. every time she is terrified. every time she sees a cloud in the sky. the majority of victims of lightning strikes in bangladesh are farmers, walking into the open, they are more vulnerable to the elements, especially in the monsoon months. farmers here say that have no choice but to work these fields, even if it leaves them exposed. so what can be done to protect them. the government says it is planting more toiletries to attract lightning and is developing an early warning text message system but with hundreds of deaths in bangladesh every year due to lightning, is that enough? it

is hoped these workshops, run by local lightning awareness group, can help educate people about what to do in the face of about what to do in the face of a storm. bufferfamilies about what to do in the face of a storm. buffer families like mamun's, it is all too late. —— but forfamilies. 16 relatives taken by lightning. the australian journalist and documentary makerjohn pilger has died at the age of 84. he went for a number of publications and was highly critical of western foreign policy. tim dawson is a deputy general secretary of the international association of generalist. international association of generalist-— generalist. the stash journalist. _ generalist. the stash journalist. an - generalist. the stash - journalist. an enormously committed journalist, a giant

of journalism committed journalist, a giant ofjournalism notjust in this country but around the world. someone tenacious pursuit changed world affairs. while many of his opinions i do not share, i think he is a shining example of committed, determined journalism who takes that to an entirely new audiences. he had many critics. he had many, many views and it is unsurprising he had many critics. he is quite possibly i would not have voted for had he stood for prime minister but what i want him to be holding a prime minister to account? holding theirfeet to prime minister to account? holding their feet to the fire to make sure they delivered on their promises? i absolutely would. if you read his columns, in particular, he was a very visualjournalist in particular, he was a very visual journalist so in particular, he was a very visualjournalist so he would start with some detail he observed he felt exposed a deeper truth and would explore that before moving to a much broader picture and said something in a context he felt

was important. his early reputation is based on reporting across indochina, the vietnam war and its onward impact in countries like cambodia. many people see him as a champion of that part of the world. it is important work in his country, injustices perpetrated on aboriginals in particular. while he was firmly rooted in london, he was very much a journalist of the world. john pilger who has died at the age of 84. before we go, let's leave you with all the fireworks that we have seen across europe as those countries ushered in the new year.

asian countries welcomed the new year 10—12 hours ago. the americas are next. from the team here in london, thank you for watching and wishing you a very happy new year. hello there. many of us are glad to see the back of december 2023 because it's felt as though it's not stopped raining. now, of course, we've got to collate the official statistics, but it does look likely that the december of 2023 was wetter than average. many of us seeing twice the monthly average rainfall, but eastern scotland looks likely to have seen three times the average monthly rainfall. and we are going to start off the new year with an area of low pressure, keeping things pretty unsettled, but it is not expected to last. so the first few days will be unsettled with some wet and windy weather at times, but it does look likely to turn a little bit colder and drier into next weekend. not a bad start, actually,

to new year's day on the whole. many of us starting off with some sunshine and keeping the sunshine across scotland, northern ireland and northern england. clouding over from wales, central and south—west england — the wind strengthening, the rain will gradually turn quite heavy as darkness falls. here, we'll keep double figures, but where we've got that sunshine, let's say from liverpool, lincolnshire north, it will be relatively dry. but it's worth bearing in mind if you're travelling back after seeing friends and family over the new year period, there will be a spell of wet and windy weather through the early evening of monday and that continues to sweep its way eastwards overnight. and then it's going to be replaced by another batch of heavy rain and strong winds during tuesday. so we will start off on tuesday with some wet weather moving through scotland. a little bit of wintriness to higher ground. a brief window of fine weather before yet more wet and windy weather pushes in across england and wales. we could see gusts of winds close to 50 miles an hour inland, so that's worth bearing in mind. temperatures generally around 6—13 celsius. and then we see another area

of low pressure keeping things on the showery regime, until we get to the end of the week because high pressure potentially builds in from the west. that high pressure, however, will bring a change to the feel of the weather story. we're going to lose the yellows. the milder air is pushed out of the way, going to be replaced by some colder air and a north—easterly wind. so on those exposed east coasts, it really will feel quite different. but at least as we head towards next weekend, we're likely to see single figures. but yes, a lot of dry settled and sunny weather. happy new year.

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. describe erling haaland in one word? �*monster�*. i'll give you two words — 'hard working'. he's tall, he's . strong, he's fast. 'the big viking', as i call him. - it's surreal that one of the most famous footballers in the world has come out of this little place! a childlike erling is spotted from the first kick on the ball, in fact. every time erling changes club, this town changes colour. - fantastic guy, everyone liked him.

he knew and we knew that he had a lot more in store for the future. when i was young, i wanted to become the best in the world. dreams do come true. my name is andreas vollsund. i'm mayor of time kommune. bryne is the big city in this community. bryne is a small place, but a warm place, a place where everyone knows each other. the people in bryne, in time kommune, in the jaeren, as we call it here, is, yeah, friendly people, but working, hard—working people. bryne is the biggest place in an area called jaeren, which is a very agriculture—heavy place, there's a lot of farms. right outside of the city, you can see green grass

everywhere, so we're very proud that we have so many