this is bbc news. the headlines at 103m. german police say they now regard the killing of 12 people at a christmas market in berlin as a probable terror attack. investigators say the truck was deliberately steered into the market, where it crashed through wooden huts filled with christmas shoppers. we saw the truck just going from our left—hand side right across us, in front of us, maybe eight to ten feet in front of us, ploughing into the store we'd just bought wine from, ploughing into people. it was relentless, it didn't seem to stop. officers say the investigation into the attack is proceeding with speed and care. a man thought to be the lorry driver is being questioned. the german chancellor angela merkel is due to make a statement in the next few minutes. in the day's other main story, moscow sends investigators to turkey after this off—duty turkish policeman assassinated the russian ambassador. he'd been seen in the background as ambassador karlov

addressed a meeting. in russia, tributes are paid to the ambassador, as moscow says his murder was aimed at derailing peace efforts in syria. the russian foreign minister said it would shrink and their resolve to fight terrorism. —— strengthen their resolve. good morning and welcome to bbc news. german police say a lorry that smashed into a christmas market in berlin, killing 12 people, was deliberately steered into the crowds. another 48 people were injured, many seriously. in the past few minutes, there've been reports that security

sources say the suspect is a 23—year—old who arrived from pakistan a year ago. the attack happened at around 8:15pm local time last night, in the heart of the west of the city, when the christmas market was packed. witnesses say the vehicle ploughed into the market square without slowing down. the market is near the popular tourist site of the kaiser wilhelm memorial church, berlin zoo and one of the city's main shopping streets. german police say they're investigating reports that the vehicle was stolen from a building site in poland. under the lights of one of berlin's biggest christmas markets, investigators examine the lorry that has caused so much death and destruction. it was loaded with steel beams when it turned off the road and smashed into the crowds. rhys meredith was visiting with his girlfriend. we heard it knocking down the stalls at an amazing rate of knots. there were no skidding wheels, no attempt to try and slow down, despite him veering out of the market.

translation: i was standing at the entrance and i heard a loud noise and was knocked down by a collapsed market stand. it knocked me flat to the ground. only later did i realised there were many people on the ground who did not move anymore. the driver of the lorry then fled on foot, but was captured shortly afterwards. reports claim he is an asylum seeker from either afghanistan or pakistan who had arrived in germany in february. the vehicle had come from poland, and police say a polish citizen was found dead in the passenger seat. the lorry‘s owner says his driver could not have been responsible. translation: the person who was driving and jumped out of the truck was not my driver. i would do anything for my cry over. they did something to him, and hijacked his truck.

the one who drove is not my driver. 48 people were injured. some are in a critical condition. i hoped we would not experience something like this in berlin. police on the ground are doing everything they can, they are working with fire crews and hospitals and making sure the injured are being taken care of. the situation is under control, now the experts have to do their work, and hopefully we can determine what has happened here tonight. the scenes are a reminder of the lorry attack on bastille day crowds in the french city of nice injuly, when 86 people were killed. authorities say there is no indication of any

further threats in berlin. but the german government has said the evidence so far points to this being a deliberate attack. angela merkel has said this was a cruel attack, she is horrified and shocked and saddened, describing it asa shocked and saddened, describing it as a terrible deed. she said the country is united in mourning. she says, we must issue it was a terrorist attack. she has the greatest trust in the people who have been working tirelessly since last night. she says it would be particularly republican if the perpetrator was somebody who got protection in germany as a refugee —— particularly repugnant. there are reports that the driver was a 23—year—old refugee, having arrived in the country last year. she has said the crime will be clarified and punished as harshly as the law allows. she says she will go to the

scene of the attack later today. angela merkel will go there herself to the scene of that attack. the german security services are calling for christmas markets in berlin to remain shut after that attack, but officials have agreed that christmas markets and other major events across germany should go ahead and decisions about security should be taken locally. decisions about security should be ta ken locally. angela decisions about security should be taken locally. angela merkel speaking there publicly for the first time since the attack happened, saying, we don't want to live with the fear of evil paralysing us. she has said, it was a cruel attack, and she is horrified. she will go to the scene later. our correspondentjenny hill

is in berlin, and sent this update. we are able to see part of the lorry that came ploughing through the market here last night, or rather what is left of it. one can only imagine the horror and fear that people must have felt as it ploughed through the market as people stood around eating, drinking and shopping in this festive place. for the first time this morning, police in berlin have described this not only as a planned act, a deliberate act, but as a suspected terror attack, right in the heart of berlin. two men are believed to have been in the cab when it crashed into the market. one of them, police say, was a polish man in the passenger seat, he died of his injuries at the scene. the police are concentrating their inquiries on their main suspect,

the man they believe was at the wheel when the truck came crashing through the market. they have not yet confirmed reports which are circulating pretty widely in the press that that man was either an afghan or pakistani who arrived in germany as an asylum seeker in february and was living in asylum—seeker accommodation in berlin. their inquiries are continuing this morning, we are expecting an update at lunchtime from the mayor of berlin. for now, not only is there shock and horror at what has unfolded less than a week before christmas, the horror is now compounded by the growing suggestion that this was potentially an act of terror, that terrorists have potentially once again struck in the very heart of a european capital city. a polish man found dead was shot dead, according to the interior minister of brandenburg state. he

said, one of the victims was shot, not specifying whether he was the register driver of the truck, but that would seem to be the suggestion, if it is a polish man found dead after the truck ploughed in. it has been reported that the truck was being driven by a polish driver, having been hijacked in poland, and the driver was found dead. the polish driver was a 23—year—old pakistani —— the polish driver. a 23—year—old pakistani driver. a 23—year—old pakistani driver was at the wheel, it is believed, when the truck drove into the christmas market. security sources believe the driver who drove into the crowd was a23 corralled, reported to have arrived in germany after crossing the border in pascal on the 11th of february. it is believed he lived at a refugee

accommodation centre in a hangar at berlin's airport, and that refugee accommodation centre was stormed overnight i special forces police. leaders from around the world have been reacting to events in berlin on social media. this is angela merkel‘s spokesman steffen seibert. angela merkel has been speaking, describing it as a cruel attack, she said she is horrified and the whole of germany is united in mourning. ibrahim colak witnessed the attack in the city yesterday evening. he described what he saw. after work, it was 6:30pm, we went to the christmas market. we were having a chat, it was quite an international group, americans, holland, german, turkish, italian. at around 8pm, we heard a noise, like one of the christmas markets had fallen down. when i turned my back,

i was on the steps, two metres from where the lorry passed. it was going with full speed into the market. the market was divided with christmas huts on one side and on the other side, it was going literally in the walking area, into all of these innocent people. what went through your mind as you saw that? were you in any doubt as to what was happening? i was quite shocked. i can show you from my balcony. from my house it is a two—minute drive. this is one of the busiest streets. it came from that side. what was on my mind, you cannot think of anything, you are just shocked,

you just want to help those people. people were asking for help. i took the wooden huts off them, but i could not help them all. when you went down, describe what you saw at close quarters. i saw people lying on the ground, bodies being twisted, arms, legs. people were on top of each other. the wooden huts were in the middle. we tried to move them away from the people, but by the time we wanted to move it, they were coming towards us. the police were there in six minutes, the ambulances, they were really quick.

we cleared the whole area. you were there immediately as this happened. i was right in the middle. how were people reacting around you? they were screaming, people were shocked. some of us wanted to help. in that moment, you cannot think that maybe they are going to explode here as well, or use their guns or anything. you don't think of these things, just want to help those people. i saw one girl shouting for her mummy, she wanted to find her mum. they were cuddling. chaotic scenes. i hope nobody can experience such things like this. did you see the driver? i did not. from here and the other street,

you cannot go really fast, because it is a turning point. the kaiser william church is there. you can't go straight, you need to make almost a u—turn. i saw that the truck was making full speed. it went into the open area. luckily, it stopped, it hit an electrical post or something. that is what brought it to a stop, it smashed into something? yes, it smashed into something, and the people were under that lorry. we could not help. there was not much to do. on the line is gavin wyn parry,

he's from cardiff, and is visiting berlin with friends. you were very close by when it happened, weren't you ? you were very close by when it happened, weren't you? tell us where you were and what you saw? we were planning to visit the christmas market that evening. it was so cold and we had been walking all day, we decided to stop off at a bar. everything went quiet and the news came on and it was all in german and we couldn't understand. we had to ask a we couldn't understand. we had to aska barmaid we couldn't understand. we had to ask a bar maid to explain. she explained what happened and how close we were to what happened. you went outside and what did you see? we went outside to get a bit of

fresh airand we went outside to get a bit of fresh air and the amount of ambulances and police vehicles and fire engines going past, it was a nonstop stream of vehicles. obviously, you were incredibly close, it was actually somewhere that you were due to have been. how did you feel realising what had happened? it wasjust incredibly surreal. if it wasn't for the fact that we decided that we were a bit cold and we needed a break and we needed to sit down, if it wasn't for that, we would have been in the middle of it. i have seen on the news before, it is hundreds and thousands of miles away, but to be 50 meters away from where it happened is just incredibly surreal. were you able to hear or see much of what was going on from where you were? no, we werejust what was going on from where you were? no, we were just watching the live footage on tv and seeing the emergency vehicles going past and seeing how the local people were reacting. so what did you do then?

because something was unfolding very close to where you were. when something is happening, obviously, it is unclear as to what might happen next. well, we weren't really sure what to do. our hotel wasn't massively far away, but the advice was to stay indoors so we decided to stay in the bar. the bar was quite full. so we felt safe among other people there as well and obviously it was better to be with german people who could explain in english what was going on because watching the news we weren't able to figure out what was happening. as locals, how where they reacting? they were obviously very visibly shaken. gavin, thank you very much for joining us. thank you. tim stuchtey is from the brandenburg institute for society and specialises in homeland security in berlin. we are all in mourning here in

berlin for those victims and their loved ones. so it's a pretty sad day in berlin this morning. there had been an increased terror threat. there had been warnings and concerns about the potential for something like this. is there any more that security, that could have been done in terms of improving security around markets? well, afterwards, it is always easy to say this or that could have stopped the truck from entering the market, but the bottom line here is, if you have this many christmas markets, that are all spread around the city, in various spots and places, there will always bea spots and places, there will always be a leak where a truck such as this one can break through and drive into a crowd. so honestly, there is not much how this could be avoided. some

have blockades, but then you have just ordinary squares where people put out huts and a fewically mass trees and open up a small chris market. so very little that can be donein market. so very little that can be done in order to avoid something like this. as you trace back the sort of path of what seems to have happened, a truck being hijacked, it seems, in poland, the driver being killed, the truck then being driven to this market. how difficult would it be to try to intercept the planning for something like that? you have cars and trucks being stolen in the area of brandenburg or near the german—polish border all the time. so obviously, it cannot be stopped and it is happening for other reasons, of course people who steal ca rs other reasons, of course people who steal cars to sell them some place else. so this can happen. this is

something that you inspires the magazine of al-anda. they have been promoting among their followers that these kind of homeland attacks, easy to organise, very little co—ordination needed. this is what they have been proposing and obviously someone has listened. we don't know yet what was how the person who drove the truck was inspired and what his causes were, but we have seen a similar attack in nice so it seems that this is the style where our modern societies are very vulnerable and again, if you have a crowd like this on a christmas market, there is very little that you can do. here, scotland yard have released

a statement about the berlin attack. it says, "the metropolitan police has detailed plans for protecting public events over the christmas and new year period. these already recognise that the threat level is at "severe", meaning an attack is highly likely, and have considered a range of threats, including the use of large vehicles. as a matter of routine, as a precaution, we review our plans after attacks overseas, and we are doing so at present following the awful incidents in berlin and ankara last night." chris phillips is the former head of the national counter terrorism security office and said the uk had measures in place to prevent a similar kind of attack. well, it is very difficult once a person is in a truck and a very large truck, and that person is intent on killing people, it is very difficult to stop that. what you then have to do is to reduce the number of casualties. so as an example, 15 years ago in the uk, we started working on protecting our crowded places from these types of

attacks, but of course, if you have got a truck and you've got someone with a malicious intent it is very difficult to prevent any loss of life. we'll have continuing coverage of the attack at the christmas market in berlin here on bbc news. you can also keep up to date with the latest developments online on the bbc news website. some breaking news on fracking. some campaigners from north yorkshire have lost their landmark high court challenge against one of the first planning applications to carry out fracking in england. residents from the village near north yorkshire we re the village near north yorkshire were fighting to block a decision to allow fracking near to their homes inajoint allow fracking near to their homes in a joint application with friends of the earth they wanted the high court to rule the decision was unlawful and quash it. they have lost their challenge at the high court against that planning application which is one of the first applications to carry out

fracking in england. we will keep you updated as we get more reaction to that. russia is sending a team to turkey to investigate the assassination of its ambassador there. andrei karlov was addressing a gathering in ankara, when an off—duty turkish police officer shot him several times in the back and head, shouting "don't forget aleppo" and "revenge". turkey has described it as a "vile and base crime". the russian foreign minister sergei lavrov is currently in talks with his turkish counterpart. let's cross to moscow and speak to our correspondent sarah rainsford. what's the latest reaction from there sarah? talks are taking place between the russian and the turkish foreign ministers, these were talks that were scheduled and they are about discussing the crisis in sir yard. now, those talks are going ahead despite what happened in ankara and it is interesting that as they have been taking place, the two

countries have very much been presenting a united front after this attack. so, rather than presenting a united front after this attack. so, ratherthan pointing presenting a united front after this attack. so, rather than pointing the finger of blamed towards turkey for what happened, russia chose to call this an attack on both countries. the president, president putin talked about it as being a provocation, as an attempt to tear turkey and russia apart and prevent their joint turkey and russia apart and prevent theirjoint efforts within syria. the mood has been extremely sombre here, of course, everyone is extremely shocked by what happened and ahead of that meeting, in fact, the two foreign ministers laid a bouquets of red roses next to a photograph of the ambassador who was killed in ankara before condemning it as killed in ankara before condemning itasa killed in ankara before condemning it as a vile and base attack. as you say, very much united front being put on. what is the broader background to this and relations between turkey and russia? well, the relationship has been through a

really difficult year. it was more than a year ago now that turkish fighterjets shot down a russian plane in the border area between syria and turkey when ankara accused russia of violating its border and straying into turkish airspace and that led to extremely difficult relaugsz, president putin accused ankara of stabbing russia in the back and there were economic sanctions and all sorts and real concerns about the potential conflict, dispute between a nato country and russia. that was resolved recently and the two countries had started to work together particularly inside syria where russia had started looking to turkey as an alternative to the united states in terms of trying to come to some resolution of the conflict in syria. now, russia and ankara are both arguing that what has happened is an attempt to break that process involved. the gunman was shouting about aleppo and the

other suggestion was this was a revenge attack for russian air strikes inside aleppo and syria. our correspondent selin girit is live in istanbulfor us. what's the reaction there? the reaction is sombre. this is the first time a foreign ambassador has been killed in turkey, in turkey's modern history. there have been assassination attempts and consulates were killed, one or two, but this is the first time an ambassador and a russian ambassador lost his life in an attack. turkey is taking this seriously. the mood is taking this seriously. the mood is sombre and everyone in the official circles is condemning what happened and there is strong state m e nts happened and there is strong statements being made from the government and from the president. russian investigators have arrived in ankara. there are 18 of them including forensic specialists. they will take part in the comprehensive

investigation that turkey has been pledged to carry out. it will be a joint investigation and then the ambassador‘s body will be taken to moscow to be buried there. the mood in turkey, as i said, sajid javid frustration because this is an em—— is of frustration because this an embarrassing situation. in the heart of ankara in a place where security should be very high and this 22—year—old gunman was able to enter an exhibition hall showing his police id. he was a police officer. he showed his police id claiming that he was there, he was assigned to protect the ambassador, but in fa ct, to protect the ambassador, but in fact, the reality proved to be the opposite. so this is an embarrassing situation. this is going to be regarded as a serious security

failure on turkey's side and there will be questions asked. it is very interesting to hear the reaction coming out of moscow where the foreign ministers are meeting, had been scheduled to meet anyway to talk about syria. a strong united front being put on. russia saying it is not blaming turkey for what happened here. it has been a difficult year. would you anticipate that things do move on in diplomatic terms from this with no further recriminations or fall—out? terms from this with no further recriminations or fall-out? looking at the statements coming from both ankara and moscow, at this moment, at least, we don't see that there will be any repercussions at this stage because both governments ever adamant that they want to keep the relations as they are at the moment because both countries had suffered from the deteriorating relations in

the last year. there were economic sangses against turkey, russian tourists weren't coming in and after the downing of the russian jet, tourists weren't coming in and after the downing of the russianjet, the relations were at a terrible state for both sides. now, in the last few months both countries managed to bring those relations to a much warmer level and it is known that the russian ambassador andrei karlov played a significant part in thawing the relationships to the stage where they are at the moment. there was reconciliation deals struck teen the two countries. there are economic deals being managed and recently, in aleppo for instance, a ceasefire was, the ceasefire deal was struck teen the two countries and the evacuation is being planned from aleppo with the direction of the two countries. so there is a lot to lose. in syria as well from the prospective of the two countries. in the long run things might change,

but at moment, looking at the state m e nts but at moment, looking at the statements and the attitudes of both governments, we can only assume that they will retain their friendly ties as they are at the moment. we can see the devastation in berlin. the chalk was removed and our ago by investigators as they continue theirforensic our ago by investigators as they continue their forensic examination of the scene. it has been reported that a polish man found dead at the scene had been shot. it has not been confirmed whether that was the original driver of the truck, but the inference would seem to be was, because the reports are that the truck had been hijacked in poland, driven by a polish driver. the polish driver, the report said, had been found dead in the truck, and

the driver at the time of the attack has been identified as a pakistani citizen who went to germany earlier this year. no confirmation that that was the driver, but that 23—year—old pakistani man is in custody and is being questioned. angela merkel says she is shocked, shaken and deeply saddened by the attack that killed at least 12. she told reporters it would be particularly sickening if it turns out the attacker was an asylu m it turns out the attacker was an asylum seeker who sought refuge in germany. but she said the freedom of living in germany must not be threatened by what has happened. she will be going to the scene of the attack later today. she has been speaking to various world leaders, she has spoken with barack obama, who expressed his condolences. she

has also had contact with vladimir putin, who condemned the attack. in germany christmas markets in berlin will be shot for today as a mark of respect —— closed. but in terms of other events, they say that security will be approached at a local level, decisions on tightening security at other major events should go ahead, and decisions on how to best protect those should be made locally. we will keep you updated, of course, on all the latest of elements and reaction to that attack in berlin. the weather is changing today, the jet stream is powering up, we will see low—pressure systems hurtling in off the atlantic. he first arrived

across scotland and northern ireland this afternoon winding gales. further south, a bit of rain across western wales and south england, at a decent day, more sunshine then late, but it will be cold. the wet and windy weather across the north west moves south and east this evening and overnight, followed by blustery showers, some of them heavy, and there will be snow across higher ground. quite windy across southern and eastern areas, with outbreaks of rain. it is blustery on wednesday, gales affecting the north of the uk. frequent heavy showers, snow down to lower levels. for england and where is, it will be a wet and blustery day. the met office hasissued wet and blustery day. the met office has issued an amber warning later in the week for thursday and friday. the gales, storm barbara will reach our shores on thursday. stages to the weather forecast. hello.

this is bbc news. the headlines. german police are investigating a "probable terrorist attack" after a man ploughed a lorry into a christmas market in the heart of berlin, killing 12 people and injuring 48. people were asking for help, i just took the wooden parts on top of them, but i couldn't do much, i couldn't help them all. the authorities have detained a suspect. he's reported to be a pakistani man who arrived in the last year. german chancellor angela merkel said it would be "particularly sickening" if the attacker is proven to be a refugee. scotland yard says it's to review its plans for protecting public events over christmas and new year following the attack in berlin. russia has sent investigators to turkey after the assassination of the russian ambassador to ankara by an off—duty turkish policeman. in moscow, foreign ministers from russia, iran and turkey meet

to discuss the situation in syria. russia says the murder must not derail talks. surgeons claim that a new treatment for ea rly—stage prostate cancer, using lasers and a drug made from deep—sea bacteria, is "truly transformative". we will keep you up—to—date with the latest developments on those breaking stories, but let's catch up with the sport. england were beaten by an innings and 75 runs in the fifth and final test match against india in chennai. england's openers survived until lunch and put on over a hundred before alastair cook went for 49. heat injennings before alastair cook went for 49. heat in jennings fell after before alastair cook went for 49. heat injennings fell after reaching his half—century. there was a raft of cheap wickets, three batsmen fell further four runs. marine ali went

on 1m. england moved to all out for 207, jake ball the last man to go. ravindra jadeja took seven wickets. liverpool have extra reason to enjoy their christmas party later, after victory in the merseyside derby move them up to second in the premier league. it was not until the 94th minute at goodison park that sadio mane reacted fastest to break the deadlock. liverpool are within sight of chelsea, they are six points clear at the top. we deserved to win, but there were a few close situations. it was only because we were still awake that we could win. with the changes we made, we gave the stability and experience. it was good, and of course a bit lucky, but we are good.

really disappointed. we conceded a goal in extra time, eight minutes, it was the fickle, it was already difficult to keep one point. the eight minutes was killing for us. sir dave brailsford has told a committee of mps that the package at the centre of the uk anti—doping investigation in cycling contained an over—the—counter decongestant. it isa an over—the—counter decongestant. it is a legal —— it was delivered to the team bus on the final day of the 2011 criterion to doe fan, one by sir bradley wiggins. scott brash finished joint third in the london olympia grand prix at the international horse show. he won sunday's world cup showjumping event and last night produced an oppressive round in a six wayjump off. but he dropped down after

knocking down a pole will stop the german won the title. that is all the sport for now, you can keep up with all of those stories on the bbc sport website. there will be more throughout the afternoon. let's return now to the berlin lorry attack that's being investigated as suspected terrorism. angela merkel has said she is shocked and saddened by the incident, which killed 12 and injured 48. a man, thought to have been the driver, is being interrogated. the lorry was removed and our or so ago. it is still a scene that is cordoned off, as you would expect, with the debris remaining in place, as investigators continued their

forensic examination of what happened. eyewitnesses describing the lorry as driving at full speed into the crowd of people at that very busy christmas market. we will keep you up to date with all of the latest. we can talk to the former finance and deputy prime minister of poland. what is your reaction to what has happened? good morning, thank you for inviting me. i am deeply shocked. we know that the original driver of the lorry was a polish driver, who seems to have been murdered by the terrorist, apparent terrorist, who then went on to commit this atrocity. it is believed

that it was a polish truck. the details of what happened with that truck are not clear, it is thought that it was on route from keirin, dropping something off in berlin. what are your concerns around the fa ct what are your concerns around the fact that it was a polish truck in particular? the truck was accidental. it is clear that the person who carried out the attack first hijacked the truck and murdered the driver, and then went on to commit the atrocity. obviously, we are all shocked, above all for the 12 people, including the truck driver, who were killed, murdered. obviously hope that the many who have been injured will cover. but what this shows is that

terrorism is international. i am deeply convinced that europe can defeat terrorism, will defeat terrorism, because it is together, as it works together, because of its unity. how did you define where the line should be drawn between protecting citizens and also maintaining the freedoms that people enjoy? angela merkel has said it is important that freedoms are not disrupted, but there had obviously been concerns about the potential foran been concerns about the potential for an attack like this. does security need to be looked at again? some terrorists will always get through. we cannot give up our freedoms. the way to balance the two

is for europe to work together to defeat terrorism. i am sure it will defeat terrorism. i am sure it will defeat islamic terrorism on the one hand and also what may well be a case of racist terrorism in switzerland, although we don't know, with that attack on an islamic press enter. angela merkel has said it would be particularly sickening if it turns out the attack was an asylu m it turns out the attack was an asylum seeker who sought refuge in germany. what are your thoughts? asylum seeker who sought refuge in germany. what are your thoughts7m would be particularly depressing, but on the other hand, if you have a million asylum seekers, you would expect maybe a few to be either originally smuggled in by a terrorist organisation, if that is what happened, or people who turned

that way after arriving in germany. this does not seem like a sophisticated attack, to be frank. it is not terribly hard, if you get ha rd it is not terribly hard, if you get hard of the weapon, to hijack a lorry and murdered the driver. it does not suggest a high level of organisation. it may simply be a copycat loa n organisation. it may simply be a copycat loan walls. sometimes, those things will happen. compared to an operation like the ira, that operated in northern ireland and britain and ireland for 20 years, this is not a very sophisticated... this does not look like the result ofa this does not look like the result of a very sophisticated operation. it has been a very serious attack. extremely serious, and it shows that

people who are willing to die or get caught can kill a lot of innocent people. which is outrageous. going back to the comment about migration, does it change that debate on migration? every time there is an attack like this, it makes it hard for people to be as welcoming as they probably should be, or as they should be of people who are genuine refugees fleeing war and persecution. this is one of the nasties aspects of this kind of attack. our thoughts need to be with the people who have been killed and the people who have been killed and the people who have been injured, and with a determination for all of europe to work together to defeat terrorism, whatever kind of terrorism, whatever kind of terrorism we are dealing with.

including islamic terrorism and possibly racist terrorism that i mentioned, the attack on the zurich prayer centre. we don't know what the source of that attack was. what the source of that attack was. what the motivation of that attack was. although nobody was killed, three people were injured while at prayer. ras earlier i spoke to a german mep. it was a terrible attack in a highly symbolic place. christmas markets are places where people go to celebrate christmas and to have fun. it isa celebrate christmas and to have fun. it is a terrible attack on our civil society. germany had been on high alert with concerns raised about the

possibility of an attack. specifically christmas markets had been mentioned. had enough been done in terms of security? the security is very tight these days, but in berlin alone, there are like five christmas markets. not a fortress, it is an open place where people go and to some extent there are limits to security obviously. describe, i mean, obviously, what your concerns would be. as i mentioned you are on the security and defence committee, but when you're talking about an attack like this, how difficult would it be for the authorities to try to pre—empt something like this?|j the authorities to try to pre—empt something like this? i mean we have been quite successful in these days. imean in been quite successful in these days. i mean in recent days i think the french authorities did prevent an attack on the christmas market. i

think we have been relatively successful, but we are in open free society. this is not a society which is completely controlled. they are open places. they are public places which are hard to protect and so there are certain limits. if a society like europe is under threat by terrorist organisations well organised, there is a certain limit to the security, to the measures you can develop in terms of security. to the security, to the measures you can develop in terms of securitym is believed that the driver of the truck was a 23—year—old from pakistan who arrived in germany around a year ago. what are your initial thoughts on that?” around a year ago. what are your initial thoughts on that? i mean, we have learned that the isis and terrorist organisations want to

attack european societies and obviously there will be a reaction from the right side of the societies, the nigel farage and le pens of the society will go after refugees, but it is obvious that it is relatively easy to infiltrate european member states, it is obvious that in nice the attacker had been a french citizen. to asylum politics is not the way to react. the terrorists want to question our human rights and values and that shouldn't be a proper reaction to that incident, but nevertheless, this dimension of refugees is has a security dimension and certain

security dimension and certain security measures have to be tighter obviously. the suspect, the 23—year—old migrant from pakistan, is reported to have had a temporary residence permit sincejune had a temporary residence permit since june of this had a temporary residence permit sincejune of this year. that's actually being reported in a german newspaper quote ago criminal police report saying that. he was known to police for committing minor offences. the report also said there does continue to be a high threat from islamic terrorism in germany, but no concrete threat and angela merkel has spoken of the attack, saying it would be a terrible shame if the attacker had gone to the country asking for protection and asylum. she said it would be particularly sickening for many, many germans who helped out refugees for many day and for the people who really need our help and are making

an effort to integrate in our country. we will have continuing coverage of the attack at the christmas market in berlin here on bbc news and also keep up—to—date with the latest developments online and with the bbc news website. german police say the killing of 12 people when a truck ploughed into a christmas market in berlin was probably a terrorist attack. the german chancellor angela merkel said those responsible will be punished as harshly as the law allows. moscow sends officers to turkey after a russian ambassador is assassinated. lloyds bank is to buy credit card firm mbna from bank of america forjust under £2 billion. it's the bank's first acquisition since the 2008 financial crisis.

lloyds, which is nearly 7% state—owned, said mbna would be a "good fit" with its own credit card business. the deal is expected to be completed in the first half of 2017. the uk's large legal services sector warns it could be at risk if the government fails to secure guarantees for it after brexit. a new report from the lobby group the city uk says the £26 billion sector will suffer if it loses the rules that require eu member states to recognise and enforce each others' law. the italian government will seek parliamentary approval to borrow up to £17 billion to support its fragile banking sector and potentially rescue the crisis—stricken monte dei paschi. the country's third—largest bank needs to raise 5 billion euros in fresh capital by the end of the month. if it can't do this then a state rescue may come as early as this week.

in case you hadn't noticed, it's almost christmas. and as you all frantically try and get those last minute christmas presents, some industries are looking to do very well indeed. one group of companies that enjoys christmas is booksellers like foyles. foyles' flagship store in london stocks half a million books in the run—up to christmas. frances gertler, head of content for the website at foyles. frances great to have you with us. it isa frances great to have you with us. it is a silly question, no doubt you get a boost from the christmas sales, but just how get a boost from the christmas sales, butjust how important is it for the book business? christmas is hugely important for the book business. a vast amount of books are bought just business. a vast amount of books are boughtjust in the run—up really starting with october and the super thursday when publishers bring out their big christmas titles. frances, what are people buying? what are the titles that are doing well? jk

rowling, of course, another resurgence for her with fan tas beasts and the release of the film and the associated merchandise which we also sell, games, puzzles, toys, harry potter figures. we also sell, games, puzzles, toys, harry potterfigures. books we also sell, games, puzzles, toys, harry potter figures. books about the danish art of living well. it means the danish art of living well. it m ea ns cosy. the danish art of living well. it means cosy. anything from having a candle—lit dinner to freshly brewed coffee or making your home more hooga—like and david walliams is very, very popular with kids and with their parents. jk rowling needs more money, doesn't she? what do book stores have to do to stay competitive and different ate themselves, but say —— differ ate? everything from knowing when they just want to browse to

ate? everything from knowing when theyjust want to browse to knowing when they actually need guidance from a trained book—seller. as well as that, we do things like mulled wine and mince pies while people are shopping, gift wrapping services, it is providing an experience as well as, of course, as events. we run events for children and for adults throughout the christmas period, throughout the christmas period, throughout the christmas period, throughout the year in fact. we appreciate your time. thank you. merry christmas to you. thank you. let's ta ke merry christmas to you. thank you. let's take a look at markets. are they going to happen? the markets are they going to happen? the markets a re pretty they going to happen? the markets are pretty quite et. focus on italian banks, but everyone is getting ready for that christmas break. that's it, joanna! i'm still recovering from yesterday. that's all i'm saying. that was full—on in hamleys. you need to go and have a cup of coffee! i will see you in the next hour. right, let's catch up with the

weather with stav. the met office have issued a warning for strong winds later in the week. i will show you in a moment. this afternoon we have got gales or severe gales to contend with across scotla nd severe gales to contend with across scotland and northern ireland. this is marking the change to the weather after the benign, quiet, is marking the change to the weather afterthe benign, quiet, grey weather that we have seen of late. we have got a little bit of rain across wales and into south—west england. through the afternoon though we have been seeing that sunshine spreading up from the south across much of england and wales. quite a bright afternoon in store for the majority of england. something we haven't seen for a while. it will feel chilly, but at least you have got the sunshine to compensate. fortunately northern ireland and scotland, conditions go downhill. heavy rain and strong gales moving in, but eastern scotla nd gales moving in, but eastern scotland will hold on to the brightness until after dark and then here the wind and rain will spread into this evening. gusts of 50mph, maybe 60mph in exposure across

north—west scotland. wild for a time this evening. a band of rain and strong winds spreads southwards and eastwards towards southern and eastern england. behind it, blustery showers. some heavy and snow over the high ground and winds will be strong and feeling cold. the run—up to christmas is looking wild. we will see sunshine and blustery showers in teen them. this is the picture for wednesday. very windy and blustery across—the—boa rd, picture for wednesday. very windy and blustery across—the—board, but for the northern half of the uk with gales or severe gales, plenty of showers, hail, thunder and snow. gales or severe gales, plenty of showers, hail, thunderand snow. for england and wales, a spell of rain which will move through. a wet day, but there will be a clearance moving in later on wednesday with sunshine. really cold in the north. double figure values in the south. that rain clears away and into thursday, it looks like conditions will be a little bit quieter across the south. sunshine and lighter winds, but the northern half of the uk windy with gales and showers and these will be wintry in nature. as we head on in

towards thursday night and into friday, this is where things really get intense. storm barbara, this area of low pressure has been named, the second named storm of the season. the met office issued an amber warning as we could see storm force gusts across the north and the west of the uk. if you have travel plans, really keep tuned to the weather forecast as it could really affect travel up and down the uk. i'll have more in half an hour. this is bbc news. the headlines: the german chancellor, angela merkel, says those in responsible for an attack on a christmas market in berlin will be punished as harshly as the law allows. in a televised address, mrs merkel said it would be "particularly sickening" if the attacker was

—— particularly difficult to bear if the attacker was proved to be a refugee. investigators say the truck was deliberately steered into the market where it crashed through wooden huts filled with christmas shoppers i saw people on the ground, bodies on top of each other. a man thought to be the lorry driver is being questioned.