and denmark has a new king, after queen margrethe abdicates as europe's longest reigning monarch. live from our studio in singapore, this is bbc news. it's newsday. hello and welcome to the programme. we begin with the latest from iceland, where a volcano is erupting in the southwest of the country. you're watching live pictures from the area — and while it's now dark there, you can still see lava glowing and smoke rising into the sky. this follows a similar eruption in the same area last month —

this time, it's much closer to the fishing town of grindavik. people living nearby have already left the area and local authorities have declared an emergency. jessica parker has this report. this was a worst case scenario that's now unfolding in front of the world's eyes. a wave of molten rock is carving its way into what was a thriving fishing town. grindavik�*s been evacuated, again, but abandoned homes and businesses lie in the path of an overwhelming natural force. this, it appears, was the first house to fall. translation: while this is a bit surreal to watch your family - homejust disappear, i'm still realising what's happening. trucks building defensive barriers against the lava suddenly found it surging towards them. fiery liquid burst out

into the open on sunday morning. another fissure then tore up through the earth. tonight, iceland's president addressed the nation. translation: today is| a black day for grindavik and a black day for iceland. but the sun will rise again. together, we will deal with this shock, whatever may happen. we reported from grindavik back in november, before eruptions began. people had to pack up their belongings as earthquakes ripped the town apart. this is now the second eruption on the reykjanes peninsula within a month and follows several others in recent years. before that, this part of iceland hadn't seen volcanic activity for 800 years. there was a period called the reykjanes fires, and that's when multiple fissures just opened up on the peninsula, kind of sporadically, and did pretty

much what we're seeing today. and then it went quiet for 800 years and then it now seems, since 2021, we've began a sort of new volcanic area. people here are no strangers to earthquakes and eruptions, but this kind of potential destruction of people's homes and livelihoods hasn't happened for half a century. translation: i think the point is that we've had quite a lot - of experience in dealing with this, even though this is perhaps the most serious threat of volcanic eruptions in iceland since january 1973. the land of fire and ice is an endless display of nature's awesome power. this time, what's playing out makes for an astounding but awful sight. jessica parker, bbc news. extraordinary pictures there.

china's top diplomat has warned that any steps towards taiwan's independence will be severely punished. it follows the election of william lai as the island's new president — he's viewed by beijing as a dangerous separatist. speaking during a visit to egypt, china's minister of foreign affairs, wang yi, had this to say. translation: taiwan's election is a regional affair within china. | no matter what the results of the election are, they cannot change the basic fact that there is only one china and taiwan is a part of it. taiwan has never been a country. it wasn't in the past, and it certainly won't be in the future. meanwhile, china has accused the us of sending "a gravely wrong signal" to those pushing for taiwan's independence. us secretary of state antony blinken congratulated president—elect william lai on saturday. that message was seen by beijing as a violation of washington's commitment to maintain only

unofficial ties with taiwan. for the very latest, let's take you live to taipei and the bbc�*s steve lai. steve 7 steve? yes, it is notjust words of steve? yes, it is not 'ust words of congratulations _ steve? yes, it is not 'ust words of congratulations from]— steve? yes, it is notjust words of congratulations from the - steve? yes, it is notjust words of congratulations from the united i congratulations from the united states. there's more than that. just yesterday a delegation arrived consisting of former national secured adviser stephenj hadley and former secretary of state. they are set to meet a range of figures today, so that is something we are going to watch out for, and we can also speak to someone right now who has been watching developments that have unfolded over the last few days. bonnie glaser. she's a taiwan—china affairs expert at the german marshall fund of the united states. bonnie, the us wasting no time in expressing their support for the ruling party, the dpp, and the new president william lai was blue yes,

the sending of a delegation of former senior officials is the sending of a delegation of former senior officials- former senior officials is not unprecedented. _ former senior officials is not unprecedented. the - former senior officials is not unprecedented. the unitedl former senior officials is not - unprecedented. the united states did send a _ unprecedented. the united states did send a delegation in prior taiwan elections — send a delegation in prior taiwan elections. but i would emphasise, yes, it _ elections. but i would emphasise, yes, it has — elections. but i would emphasise, yes, it has always been a former senior_ yes, it has always been a former senior officials, and frankly in my discussions — senior officials, and frankly in my discussions with some experts, i since _ discussions with some experts, i since they— discussions with some experts, i since they find this reassuring. they— since they find this reassuring. they know _ since they find this reassuring. they know steve hadley and jim steinberg and they expect that the message _ steinberg and they expect that the message is that they will be sending to taiwan's — message is that they will be sending to taiwan's new governments, incoming — to taiwan's new governments, incoming government, will be those that are _ incoming government, will be those that are also in beijing's interest, so i actually think that this delegation is welcomed by at least some in china.— delegation is welcomed by at least some in china. could you elaborate on that a bit _ some in china. could you elaborate on that a bit more? _ some in china. could you elaborate on that a bit more? why _ some in china. could you elaborate on that a bit more? why china - some in china. could you elaborate| on that a bit more? why china sees this delegation perhaps is not such a threat to their ambitions over taiwan? �* ., , ., ., , taiwan? again, these are not sitting

senior officials. _ taiwan? again, these are not sitting senior officials. the _ taiwan? again, these are not sitting senior officials. the united - taiwan? again, these are not sitting senior officials. the united states i senior officials. the united states did not— senior officials. the united states did not send anybody who is currently _ did not send anybody who is currently a state department official— currently a state department official or a national security council — official or a national security council official, but these two individuals have participated in track— individuals have participated in track two — individuals have participated in track two interactions and also had a lot of— track two interactions and also had a lot of dealings with chinese officials — a lot of dealings with chinese officials when they were in government, so they understand what is necessary— government, so they understand what is necessary in order to preserve peace _ is necessary in order to preserve peace and — is necessary in order to preserve peace and stability in the taiwan strait. _ peace and stability in the taiwan strait. so — peace and stability in the taiwan strait, so china does not like all of the _ strait, so china does not like all of the messages that they will convey. — of the messages that they will convey, but at the same time they understand — convey, but at the same time they understand that these people know that, first _ understand that these people know that, first and foremost, we have to prevent _ that, first and foremost, we have to prevent war — that, first and foremost, we have to prevent war and maybe they will convey— prevent war and maybe they will convey some message to the incoming president— convey some message to the incoming president in— convey some message to the incoming president in taiwan about policies that they— president in taiwan about policies that they hope and united states hopes— that they hope and united states hopes that will be pursued, that will contribute to stability, and i think— will contribute to stability, and i think that — will contribute to stability, and i think that william lai will be on the same — think that william lai will be on the same page, because he does not

want to— the same page, because he does not want to seek instability in the taiwan— want to seek instability in the taiwan strait either. so want to seek instability in the taiwan strait either. so you're not exectin: taiwan strait either. so you're not expecting any _ taiwan strait either. so you're not expecting any military _ taiwan strait either. so you're not expecting any military actions - taiwan strait either. so you're not expecting any military actions to l expecting any military actions to take place him more exercises in the taiwan strait, as a result of this election and the congratulatory messages from the united states? i messages from the united states? i think that china has been conducting various— think that china has been conducting various military exercises on virtually _ various military exercises on virtually a _ various military exercises on virtually a daily basis. they have been _ virtually a daily basis. they have been operating aircraft and drones in taiwan's— been operating aircraft and drones in taiwan's air defence edification zone _ in taiwan's air defence edification zone that— in taiwan's air defence edification zone. that will continue. i do not think— zone. that will continue. i do not think we — zone. that will continue. i do not think we will see a large—scale exercise — think we will see a large—scale exercise that was similar to what the chinese displayed after the speaker— the chinese displayed after the speaker of the house nancy pelosi visited _ speaker of the house nancy pelosi visited taiwan in august of 2022. one of— visited taiwan in august of 2022. one of the — visited taiwan in august of 2022. one of the factors is that the weather— one of the factors is that the weather is quite bad this time of year _ weather is quite bad this time of year i_ weather is quite bad this time of year i do— weather is quite bad this time of year. i do think we will see other actions _ year. i do think we will see other actions taken by beijing, and what i am expecting is the re—imposition of

tariffs _ am expecting is the re—imposition of tariffs on _ am expecting is the re—imposition of tariffs on some of taiwan's products that were _ tariffs on some of taiwan's products that were included in a free agreement that was signed between beijing _ agreement that was signed between beijing and taipei in 2010. this is the economic cooperation framework agreement. china already reimposed tariffs _ agreement. china already reimposed tariffs on _ agreement. china already reimposed tariffs on i _ agreement. china already reimposed tariffs on i think 12 products, about— tariffs on i think 12 products, about a _ tariffs on i think 12 products, about a month ago, and they are likely— about a month ago, and they are likely to — about a month ago, and they are likely to reimpose tariffs on more products. — likely to reimpose tariffs on more products, possibly in weights, but he wants— products, possibly in weights, but he wants to spend the entire agreement, because it includes electronic— agreement, because it includes electronic components and semiconductor chips that china is very dependent on.— semiconductor chips that china is very dependent on. thanks very much, bonnie, very dependent on. thanks very much, bonnie. for _ very dependent on. thanks very much, bonnie, for sharing _ very dependent on. thanks very much, bonnie, for sharing your _ very dependent on. thanks very much, bonnie, for sharing your insight - bonnie, for sharing your insight with us this morning, bonnie glaser there, china affairs expert at the marshall fund. that is it from me on newsday, i will be back for abr in a

little while. back to you.— little while. back to you. steve lai re ”ortin little while. back to you. steve lai reporting on _ little while. back to you. steve lai reporting on the — little while. back to you. steve lai reporting on the taiwan _ little while. back to you. steve lai reporting on the taiwan elections. to america now, where the presidential election process begins in earnest this monday, with the republican caucuses in the state of iowa. the latest polls show donald trump well ahead of his main rivals. figures from the des moines register and nbc news show mr trump could count on the support of 48% of iowa republicans. former south carolina governor nikki haley hasjumped to second place with 20%, leaving florida governor ron desantis in third place with 16%. speaking at a rally on sunday, donald trump urged his supporters to get out and vote. one day from now, we're going to win iowa's first in the nation caucuses — we kept them first in the nation — in a historic victory, a victory that will echo throughout the country and

all around the world. tomorrow, january 15, i need each and every one of you to get out, everybody get out, just get out and vote. we say plus ten, so plus ten or plus two or plus 20, but bring them all out, because we have to set the stage for november. live to iowa now and our north america correspondent gary o'donoghue. gary, great to have you on the programme. there seems to be a lot of concern about the weather. i hope it is not too cold where you are. is it is not too cold where you are. is it likely to impact turnout? i it is not too cold where you are. is it likely to impact turnout?- it likely to impact turnout? i think there's a lot _ it likely to impact turnout? i think there's a lot of _ it likely to impact turnout? i think there's a lot of concern among - it likely to impact turnout? i think| there's a lot of concern among the campaigns that it will. i think outside here, we arejust campaigns that it will. i think outside here, we are just inside the door here at this our bq joint where one of the candidates is has been giving a speech, but outside, it is in the mining 25 celsius region, and it could be a lot lower than that tomorrow, monday, when the caucus takes place, possibly up to —35 —40

with the wind chill factor. the people of iowa pretty hardy, they are used cold winters. they're not used with this cold, so if you think it will be dark when they caucus at 7pm, dark and icy driving home, that is going to be a disincentive to some people, but they do cherish their place in the process of nominating for the presidential candidates in this state and some of them are very dedicated in doing it. and donald trump has a lot of support in iowa. i mean, what are people telling you, why are there convictions so strong? he people telling you, why are there convictions so strong?— people telling you, why are there convictions so strong? he has got a lot of loyalty. _ convictions so strong? he has got a lot of loyalty. a _ convictions so strong? he has got a lot of loyalty, a lot _ convictions so strong? he has got a lot of loyalty, a lot of _ convictions so strong? he has got a lot of loyalty, a lot of loyalty - lot of loyalty, a lot of loyalty from last time around, a lot of loyalty from the four years he spent in the white house, he has a prig organisation nowadays, but the these are extraordinary. the polls suggest here he has a 28 point lead. it has been higher than that at various points as well, more than 30 points.

that is unheard of in these kind of processes. no one has aptly voted yet, so we will see if that translates, but i would be amazed if that disappears. i don't think that is very likely. and not —— that is reflected across the nation in republican vote. he has captured quaison plea the republican party, there is no doubt about that, it is donald trump positive party now, and in many ways other candidacy here are duking it out for second place. candidacy here are duking it out for second place-— second place. gary o'donoghue, in iowa, second place. gary o'donoghue, in iowa. ahead _ second place. gary o'donoghue, in iowa, ahead of— second place. gary o'donoghue, in iowa, ahead of the _ second place. gary o'donoghue, in iowa, ahead of the beginning - second place. gary o'donoghue, in iowa, ahead of the beginning of. second place. gary o'donoghue, in| iowa, ahead of the beginning of the presidential election process on monday. many thanks. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. analysis from a uk transport safety charity suggests that very few injuries involving e—scooters

are being reported to the police. it's calling for more data to understand the dangers that they pose, asjon donnison reports. e—scooters — a decade ago, almost unheard of. these days, they're a common sight. but now a charity that advises the government says injuries from e—scooter accidents are being under—reported and data needs to be collected more rigorously. the study looked at 300 e—scooter casualties recorded by hospitals over a two—month period in 2021. it found only 10% of them were also recorded in police statistics. of the most serious injuries, only a quarter were reported to the police. one reason might be that it's illegal to ride private e—scooters on roads or pavements in the uk. trials of rental e—scooters in dozens of towns and cities are ongoing. jon donnison, bbc news. you're live with bbc news. the uk foreign secretary says it was right to carry out air strikes on houthi targets in yemen

without consulting parliament. lord cameron said the government was willing to back words with action, after repeatedly warning the houthis to stop attacking merchant ships in the red sea. labour leader sir keir starmer, who's supported the government's decision, has denied he's changed his position on military action abroad. here's our political correspondent leila nathoo. britishjets took off late on thursday night to join us air strikes against houthi targets in yemen. the uk said the group had had warning after warning to stop their attacks on ships in the red sea, such as this one they filmed. the houthis have been targeting vessels for months that they say are linked to israel. today, the foreign secretary david cameron insisted that the uk had no choice but to take military action to protect a critical global trade route. not acting is also a policy. it wasn't working and it's right we have sent this very clear, very unambiguous message that we are prepared to follow our words and warnings with action.

lord cameron insisted the air strikes would not escalate tensions in the region and defended the decision not to seek parliamentary approval in advance. i don't think it would have been right to have a debate and a vote before this sort of action, because i think it is important, for reasons of operational security, to, on this occasion, take the action and then have a statement in parliament afterwards. the labour leader, sir keir starmer, was briefed by the government before the strikes went ahead, and supported them. he had previously promised to create a new law requiring commons consent before military action could be taken — not inconsistent, he said, with his backing for action against the houthis. there will always be urgent situations where parliament can't be consulted before hand. but the principle that if there is to be a sustained campaign, if we are going to deploy our troops on the ground, that parliament should be informed, there should be a debate, the case should be made

and there should be a vote, i do stand by that. there won't be a vote here tomorrow. rishi sunak will make a statement to the commons and take questions from mps. the government will be watching closely how the situation in the red sea develops and says it will consider any next steps carefully. opposition parties will want to hear ministers make that case. the questions now — do the houthi attacks continue? do the americans come knocking again? how involved will britain become? leila nathoo, bbc news, westminster. thousands of people gathered on sunday in the israeli city of tel aviv to mark 100 days since the start of the war against hamas. demands continue in israel for the release of more than 130 hostages held in gaza since october 7th, when 1,200 people were murdered by hamas gunmen. israel has since vowed to crush hamas — designated a terrorist organisation by several western governments. the hamas health—run ministry says more than 23,000 people have been

killed since israeli strikes began. wyre davies reports. a solemn commemoration, as israel marked its most traumatic period since independence 75 years ago. 0ver 2a hours, thousands of people gathered in tel aviv in a collective sense of grief to mourn the dead of october the 7th and to support the families of those abducted to gaza 100 days ago. there's three generations of my family that has been disappeared. three generations of my family that disappeared. and the war is keeping silence and asking us to stop and stay calm. i cannot... i cannot get it any more. many here say that october the 7th changed israel for ever. israelis feel more vulnerable than ever. and while their priority remains releasing the remaining hostages, they support their government's war aims in gaza. and there are very few voices now calling for tolerance and coexistence.

just after dawn, 100 days ago, thousands of heavily armed hamas fighters stormed through the border fence, attacking kibbutzes, military bases and a music festival. 1,200 people were killed along the length of the border as israeli defences were caught completely by surprise. later that same day, israel embarked on an unprecedented bombing campaign in gaza. its goal — the complete destruction of hamas and its support structure. much of the territory from gaza city in the north to khan younis in the south has been destroyed. and the number of civilians killed in gaza has been huge — very nearly 2a,000 dead according to the hamas—run health ministry, many of them women and children. it's a situation the un's humanitarian chief has

described as intolerable. faten abu shahada needs regular kidney dialysis and her family has been forced to move south, home now a plastic tent in khan younis. translation: gaza j has been destroyed. there is no gaza left, no hospitals, no education, our children have lost their school year. gaza is no longer alive. israel says it won't stop fighting until hamas is completely defeated. the immediate future across the region, and especially in gaza, looks very bleak. wyre davies, bbc news. well, hamas has released a video which it says shows three israeli hostages alive in its custody in gaza. in the footage, the woman and two men speak direct to the camera urging the israeli government to act to bring them home. the three were among those taken on october 7 and it is not clear when the video was filmed.

earlier, the militant group's armed wing said the fate of many of the captives was now unknown. let's take a look at some other stories in the headlines. the french coastguard says five people attempting to cross the channel in a small boat died early on sunday morning. it's understood more than 70 people, including children, were on board, when it got into difficulty in french waters. dozens were rescued. a landslide at an illegal gold mine in northern tanzania has killed more than 20 people. a district commissioner said the accident happened on saturday in the simiyu region after a group of people started mining in an area where activity had been restricted due to heavy rains. south east asian leaders gathered in brunei for the climax of the ten—day wedding celebrations for prince abdul mateen. the couple made their first public

appearance in a lavish procession through the streets of the capital. 32—year—old abdul mateen is the son of the world's longest reigning monarch, sultan hassanal bolkiah. from one royal family from one royalfamily to from one royal family to another. after more than half a century on the throne, queen margrethe of denmark has abdicated, with her son frederick becoming king in a ceremony this afternoon. 0ur royal correspondent daniela relphjoined the crowds in copenhagen. more than half a million people live in copenhagen. it felt like most of them were out on the streets today. every vantage point made use of to see the first change of monarchy in 52 years. queen margrethe's abdication on new year's eve shocked denmark. today, just two weeks later, she made herfinal carriage ride as queen. independent, artistic, eccentric at times, she has been a hugely popularfigure in public

life, and the crowds wanted to be here to say goodbye. it's very special. i'm very glad to be a part of it. but it's very cold! she's done so well, and it's good for her also to get some time for herself. she's the whole mother _ of the country, and it's going to be so amazing to see her son and her daughter—in—lawl take over this. it'sjust amazing. this was the official moment queen margrethe stepped aside. she signed the declaration of abdication at a specially convened government meeting. quietly, as her son took his place at the table, she said her last words as queen. they were, "god save the king." gud bevare kongen. cheering denmark does not have a coronation ceremony. instead the new king, frederik x,

was proclaimed from the balcony of the danish parliament. as he took in the size of the crowd there was no hiding the emotion he felt. king frederik inherits from his mother, strong, consistent public support for the monarchy here. but it is his wife, queen mary, the australian outsider, who married into european royalty, who may be key to the success of his reign. the couple met in a bar in sydney during the 2000 olympics, where she worked in advertising. today, she stands alongside her husband as queen. but the couple come to the throne amidst rumours of problems in their marriage. this, though, was a united front... ..as king frederik and queen mary begin their reign. daniela relph, bbc news, copenhagen.

that's all the time we have for you here on newsday. dude stay with bbc news. hello. we have got a cold, wintry week of weather ahead. we may well see a bit of disruption down to the fact that we've got plenty of snow showers in the forecast, particularly towards the north, mainly across parts of scotland, in fact. fewer showers around further south. but it is going to be cold and we're going to see some sharp overnight frosts. could be some icy conditions around, too. cold weather down to the fact that low pressure is out towards the east of the uk, opening the doors for these cold winds to come in from the arctic, so i think wind chill will be a significant factor through the next couple of days. next few hours, more of those snow showers pack in, particularly across the north of scotland. temperatures overnight are falling to —2 or —3 widely, even in our towns and cities — colder than that in the countryside.

through monday, then, more snow showers across the northern half of scotland, gales up towards shetland still and some snow and icy conditions across northern ireland, so we have got yellow warnings in force here. could be the odd wintry shower around exposed parts of these irish sea coasts, perhaps around the east coast of england, down towards norfolk and the north york moors. temperatures for most of us about 2 to 5 degrees, but when you add on that wind—chill, it is going to feel bitterly cold. it'll feel more like —7 or even —8 across the north—east of scotland. as we continue through monday evening and overnight into tuesday, we're watching this area of low pressure, this weather system, which moves its way from west to east across the northern half of the uk. now, that could cause a bit of disruption on tuesday. tuesday morning, we're expecting snow to be quite persistent through the central belt of scotland, could be about 2 to 5 centimetres of snow here, pushing slowly across scotland. across the higher ground, there could be ten to even 20 centimetres of snow on tuesday. a mix of rain, sleet and snow for northern ireland and for northern england, too. we've got some sleet,

some snow over the higher ground. it looks drier with some sunshine further south. but tuesday, again, feels cold wherever you are. into the middle of the week, we're keeping a close eye on this area of low pressure. most of the computer models keep it over france, but we've got the cold air in place with those northerly winds across the uk. if this system's a bit further north, we could see some snow around southern counties of england for a time. but i think it will predominantly be heavy snow showers again for the north of scotland, northern ireland and around any of those coasts exposed to that northerly wind. it is going to feel cold again, not quite as windy, but temperatures only a few degrees above freezing. more wintry showers for many of us on thursday. perhaps a little milderfor some of us, though, by friday.

this is bbc news. we'll have the headlines for you at the top of the

hour straight after this programme. welcome to hardtalk. i'm stephen sackur. does israel's continued military assault on gaza represent an act of genocide? thanks to south africa's intervention, the question is now before the international court ofjustice in the hague, something which most israelis have greeted with a mix of disgust and disdain. my guest today is gideon levy, journalist, commentator and long—time critic of his own country's leaders. three months into this war, prompted by hamas's attack on southern israel, what has happened to the israeli mindset?