a very warm welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to our viewers in north america and around the globe. my name is mike embley. our top stories: explosions tear through a fireworks market in mexico — at least 29 people are killed and dozens more injured. so—called islamic state says one of its militants carried out the lorry attack in berlin — which left 12 people dead. police have released a man detained earlier, for lack of evidence. the body of the russian ambassador killed in turkey is flown back to moscow. six people are detained — as the investigation gathers pace. and president obama bans arctic drilling in the lead up to donald trump. a series of explosions has killed at least 29 people

at mexico's most popular fireworks market, on the outskirts of the capital, mexico city. local police say dozens more are injured. earlier i spoke to our americas editor leonardo rocha for the latest. i saw some of the pictures in the footage that have been shown on mexican television and now everywhere else. which are spectacular in a horrible sort of way. it is an open—air market on the outskirts of mexico city. you see one explosion that then triggers a series of explosions. some of them seem to be fireworks and others seem to be blasts that might be gas canisters because people were cooking and selling food there. it is really shocking. the amount of smoke that suddenly goes up as the explosions just go through, it is a vast area.

some local media say that up to 2000 people were shopping there. it is a busy time of the year with christmas and new years celebrated in most places but in mexico certainly, with fireworks. very difficult to contain and it looks as though it would be difficult for people to escape. and there have been other instances like this before? twice — 2005 and 2006. this location has traditional fireworks used in religious festivals. i heard there were five other smaller incidents in this locality in recent times because where you have fireworks and lack of control, you end up having accidents. this seems to have just gotten completely out of control. it looks as though there would be no certainty over the casualties figures. the authorities said they retrieved 26 bodies from the location that

many people had severe burns and taken to hospitals. up to 70, it was said at some stage. i think initially people didn't realise the scale of the disaster, of the tragedy. german police now say the driver of the lorry that crashed through a christmas market in berlin on monday evening may still be at large — and is believed to be armed. a man at one stage suspected of being the driver has now been released because of a lack of evidence but authorities insist they are following other leads. the extremist group, the so—called islamic state, has claimed responsibility for the attack. when the lorry drove at speed through the popular market at breitscheidplatz, near west berlin's main shopping street, 12 people were killed and around 50 injured, half of them seriously. 0ur correspondentjenny hill has the latest. first light this morning and the sheer violence

of this attack dawns. the lorry crashed through the christmas crowds here, shattering everything, everyone in its path. this footage was taken in the immediate aftermath of the attack. bodies lie scattered under the twinkling lights. moments earlier, these people were eating, drinking, shopping, at one of berlin's most popular christmas markets. it's just amazing how a peaceful festive happy atmosphere just changed instantly and you have this scene of utter devastation. sara and rhys may never forget what they saw. obviously there was people lying on the floor. we weren't sure if it was red wine or if it was blood but we did see — i remember there were people trying to pick up the stalls,

we decided to try to lift the stall up with them and we realised, you know, other people unfortunately underneath were already passed. the lorry itself is key to the investigation. it appears to have been hijacked, it belongs to a polish firm. today, the owner identified the man who should have been at the wheel. he was found shot dead in the passenger seat. even the police admit they still don't know who was driving. last night, they arrested a pakistani man who came to germany to seek asylum earlier this year. this evening, they released him without charge. the so—called islamic state group have claimed the attack. but tonight investigators say the individuals who did these are still at large. translation: we don't know with any certainty whether we are dealing with one perpetrator or with several. we don't know with any certainty whether he or they had any support.

and now, just like nice, paris, brussels, berlin mourns. and the german chancellor must reassure her citizens. angela merkel is under pressure. just the suggestion that an asylum seeker may have been responsible has reignited a national debate over whether her refugee policy has put the country at risk. it would be particularly hard to bear, she says, if it turned out that the person who did this was someone who sought protection and asylum in germany. it would be particularly offensive to the many germans engaged daily in the task of helping refugees. tonight, a stillness in the heart of berlin. what, after all, is there to say? another terror attack in another european capital and 2a hours later it seems no—one here knows who did this or where they are now.

karl kaiser is harvard university professor and an expert on german politics. i spoke to him from cambridge, massachusetts. it will increase tensions, no doubt and also animate the debate on refugee policy. angela merkel had no choice when in 2015 she opened the doors but by now there is a lot of criticism and there is a right—wing movement that has sprung up which will create quite a problem for her re—election later on in 2017. that of course has to be added to the general problem in europe of right—wing movements springing up everywhere and using, like in brexit, the issue of immigration. the formation of a coalition will be more difficult, no doubt. just the suggestion an asylum seeker may have been involved will have a political impact.

is it inevitable the right will gain, that angela merkel will lose or is it not as simple as that? no, it's not as simple as that. at the moment, the alternative for germany is at about 13%. it reached 20% in some regional elections but the fight is still ahead on what to do. angela merkel is not passive. she and the government have adapted to the new situation. basically, two things have happened. the flow of refugees has gone down, and second, the government has moved, so to speak, to the right and meeting some of the demands. the problem for merkel is that she is attacked not only by the extreme right, the new small alternative the germany but also by her sister

party in bavaria which wants and upper limit which she has resisted but probably will accept. last year, 890,000 people came and were registered. this year, around 230,000. so, the flow is going down although there are now more refugees coming from northern africa across the mediterranean to italy and that will of course increase the pressure on the north of europe but the external borders of the european union are much more close than in the past and the policy of countries, including germany which was quite open, are much more closed. turkish police have detained six people after the assassination of the russian ambassador in ankara on monday. it's believed those being questioned are related to the off—duty police officer who opened fire. as the body of ambassador andrei karlov was flown back home, both the kremlin and turkish

officials said the killing would not derail their negotiations about the war in syria. from ankara, mark lowen reports. a farewell to russia's ambassador, but in a way nobody could envisage. andrei karlov‘s body was flown back to moscow, the victim of an assassination. his government called him an "eternal symbol of russian— turkish friendship." his widow was barely able to watch. he was opening an exhibition in ankara last night, behind him, smartly dressed, his killer, a turkish policeman having cleared security with his police id. the gunman paces calmly, gearing up to strike, occasionally fumbling in his pocket. suddenly, he shoots. at the russian embassy today, tight security and tributes to an ambassador who'd served here for three years as russia and turkey fell out over syria. they back opposite sides in the war,

but have recently reconciled. those who knew him called mr karlov a brilliant diplomat. this is a big tragedy for all of us. for all russian people. do you understand why there is anger against russia here? ah... i think i understand, but it is difficult to talk right now. the turkey—russia relationship has always been tricky, but this murder might actually bring them closer against the common enemy of terror. in syria they're helping each other achieve their goals — russian and regime control of aleppo, turkish influence in the north and, lacking many other allies at the moment, turkey and russia need each other. andrei karlov was one of russia's most seasoned diplomats, called softly spoken and professional. the russian embassy street here will be renamed in his honour. both countries have painted this as an attempt to derail ties. president erdogan said he and vladimir putin agreed

it was a provocation. turkey's foreign minister has even suggested the gunman had links to the plotters behind the recent attempted coup. turkey's pliant press found its own conspiracies. some called it a cia operation, others a job by the west. the russian president said an investigation was under way into a treacherous murder and he urged solidarity. could the killer have been brainwashed in the police? these online videos seem to show policemen made to chant nationalist, islamist slogans. one theory is that perhaps hatred was stirred up here. was he a lone wolf, a jihadist sympathiser? either way, a 22—year—old policeman became an assassin and russia wants answers. mark lowen, bbc news, ankara. in one of his final moves,

barack obama has banned new oil and gas drilling in us atlantic and arctic waters — with the co—operation of canada, the outgoing president has invoked a 1953 law which will be difficult for president—elect trump to reverse. it gives the president the power to withdraw purple waters from new oil and gas drilling. now, this is a joint action with canada, the prime minister there, justin trudeau, has made a long—term commitment to protect the arctic from drilling. president obama has said that it is the arctic‘s unique ecosystem that is really behind this decision. the risk of damage from a spill,

the high cost of working in this remote and frigid region, as he put it, and concerns about climate change. he also added that it would take decades to fully develop the infrastructure necessary, on a large scale, to drill for oil and gas in these areas. he said this is coming at a time when we need to continue to move decisively away from fossil fuels. this is being seen, in part, as president obama attempting to secure his legacy in terms of environmental policy. it could also be seen as skippering the future president, and he made no secret of the fact, during certainly the campaign, that he favours deriving energy from fossil fuels. an official at the white house has said they are quite confident that future president trump would not be able to undo this provision announced today by the current president obama.

if he did want to go down that road, it could potentially involve years of legal action and possibly the passage of a new bill by congress. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: chasing china's wildlife — we meet the film—maker hoping to inspire a new generation of native nature lovers. we saw this enormous tidal wave approaching the beach, and people started to run, and suddenly it was complete chaos. united states troops have been trying to overthrow the dictatorship of general manuel noriega. the pentagon said the operation had been 90% successful, but it's failed in its principal objective, to capture this is bbc news. the latest headlines:

at least 29 people have been killed and dozens more injured after explosions tore through a fireworks market in mexico. the extremist group, the so—called islamic state has claimed one of its militants carried out the lorry attack in berlin, which left 12 people dead. police have released a man detained earlier, for lack of evidence. more on that story now. authorities throughout europe have been revisiting their security arrangements for christmas and new year. in britain the threat level remains unchanged at severe, which means a terror attack is highly likely. here's our security correspondent gordon corera. the christmas events that are supposed to be a time ofjoy are now tinged with anxiety. the warning signs were there. just a month ago, the us advised its citizens to be careful around holiday markets in europe. so could the attack in berlin have been prevented and can future events be kept safe? this reconnaissance video was for a planned bomb attack on strasbourg's christmas market in france, in 2000.

that was foiled. this year, security was tightened there, with restrictions on vehicles and checks on people going in. it's raised questions about whether germany did enough to protect berlin. translation: we did increase security measures, but we cannot turn christmas markets into fortresses. we have an unlimited number of soft targets, there are so many possibilities to kill people with a truck. france's bastille day, in nice, showed the carnage a lorry could cause, 86 were killed. so—called islamic state also claimed responsibility for that attack, although authorities never found much evidence of direct contact with the driver. in the uk, there have been years of work to protect crowded places. that included this project, developing bollards and blocks, which can absorb the massive impact of a truck and stop it reaching its target, but one former head of counter—terrorism says

we can't rely on these measures alone. well, more bollards and troops on the streets is not, absolutely not, the answer to this threat. you have to build your intelligence capabilities more. you have to encourage people to come forward. here, at m15, they'll be carefully studying the details of the berlin, trying to understand who the attacker was and if they were connected to anyone else. they'll also be hoping that their intelligence gathering will be able to stop something similar happening here. a dozen terrorist plots have been stopped in the last three years, but the threat level remains at "severe" meaning an attack is considered highly likely. security officials believe the uk is more prepared than the rest of europe, but they also caution that no—one should be complacent about the threat. gordon corera, bbc news. at least 20 people have

been killed in kinshasa, capital of the democratic republic of congo. gunfire has also been heard in lubumbashi. there's anger over presidentjoseph kabila's refusal to stand down — his term officially ended on monday. tomas fessy is in kinshasa. they are blowing whistles to remind presidentjoseph kabila of the end of his term. these young congolese want him step down. and so they are occupying the streets and mountain barricades to show their anger. translation: we will be out on the streets until he leaves. we are not afraid of him and his forces. he has got to go. there was no election as planned this year. it has sparked a political crisis. is translation: we are not here in support of the opposition either. we are here for our own rights. we have seen similar scenes around the city. people are out in the streets shouting "kabila, out, kabila, out," and defying forces.

there is no mass demonstration because of heavy security at the moment but we have seen running battles because of protesters and military forces in many parts of the city. the threat is ever present. the security forces are firing live rounds. and they are also sweeping the neighbourhood, making arrests. earlier on, one of the main opposition leaders, this 84—year—old, atiene, posted a video on social media. translation: i launch a solemn appeal to the congolese people, do not recognise the legal and legitimate authority do not recognise the legal and illegitimate authority ofjoseph kabila, and peacefully resist his coup d'etat. protests were also recorded in other cities across the country. there were demonstrations in lubumbashi, and boma,

where four people were killed. mobs attacked the electoral building. they burnt a tribunal as well. fighting broke out near kananga when a local militia attacked the army. back in kinshasa, the newly appointed prime minister read a short declaration to the press, but he did not take any questions. translation: for the youth, i reiterate my commitment to respond to their expectations and aspirations for the improvement of their own being and i urge them not to succumb this to despair and manipulation. coming from the opposition, he was expelled from his party five years ago. he recently signed a deal with the ruling coalition to accept thatjoseph kabila remain in power. the roads of the main capital were deserted for a second day. but in a city where millions struggle to scrape together daily

necessities, how long can it remain a ghost town? film—makers are turning to china's mountains and valleys to explore the rare and endangered wildlife there. a documentary called the mystery monkeys of shangri—la won an emmy nomination. jacky poon is a british—chinese cameraman. he spoke to us about the budding wildlif movie industry in china. there are only a few thousand yunnan snubnosed monkeys. they are gentle with odd looking noses and prominent forelocks. we have been told by rangers this morning that a monkey is going to come across this way. to become a wildlife cameraman, the most important thing is consistency. now we're up at the top of the mountain. to be patient you have to be consistent with it, you have to keep trying and when you get the shot you want,

you still have to keep trying and make it even better. there are moments of happiness and moments of sort of depression, almost. i think one of the best moments is just that shot when we were able to get of the young monkey trying to climb the tree and then a hand comes down and reaches him and helped him up the tree. that is something that is truly amazing, it's really blown my mind. come on, pandas, where are you? the most depressing part is definitely filming wild pandas, where i was in hiding for 28 days. a lot of waiting time, a lot ofjust looking around, trying to wait to see pandas and be able to film them was so difficult. but when we get it it is most rewarding, for sure. we are finally able to film a panda in a wild environment. no one really has experienced a wildlife documentary movie in china.

born in china — you know, the box office and everything that has come out of the film really is astounding. i thought that this would be a great opportunity for people outside china to know what is like to be inside china but then it would be more amazing for people in china to discover what they have in their own country because people in china have no idea. they did not even know some of the species existed or where they can find them. all they see is brick walls and cities. everyone, in the back of the head knew that this was something that could be done, could be an industry and people are interested in making film and that is the start of something brilliant. jacky poon and his amazing friends.

and you can get in touch with me and most of the team on twitter — i'm @bbc mike embley. thank you for watching. hello. you have probably heard already, but as we go towards the christmas weekend, it looks as if things will turn exceptionally stormy, especially in the northern half of the british isles. i will show you why injust a second. by the weekend, we will show you a pressure chart with more isobars on it than this. a breezier day on wednesday than many of us have seen for a while. two weather fronts to deal with. a lull in proceedings. this more northerly feature will drift away out of the western side of scotland where it will produce a bit of rain. it will weaken as it comes into the north england and england and wales and into the south—west. by the afternoon, maybe the cloud

will thicken again in southern parts of england and wales to produce a really miserable end to the day. it is the shortest day, of course, and i think it will get darker awfully quickly in the afternoon given the amount of cloud we will see. temperatures are at least 10—11 degrees. something of that order. brighter skies behind. as it comes to scotland and northern ireland, cold air dominating the scene. the added strength of the wind here. wintry showers will fall to low levels. showers will keep going in northern ireland and scotland. this area will gradually move off to the near continent allowing a bright and crisp start to the day across the greater part of england and wales. another blustery one for scotland and northern ireland, wintry showers falling to a low level. it will feel very fresh indeed. eventually showers will go up through northern and western parts of both england and wales as well. generally speaking, further south,

a decent day in prospect. although not overly warm. and then it is on into friday where we bring in the second named storm of the season, this is storm barbara. and notice the number of isobars in northern and western parts especially of scotland. that is why the storm has been named and why we have the amber warning from the met office. the strength of the wind. how strong? look at this. close to the centre of the storm could see around 90 miles an hour. to the south, england and wales, the gusts could reach 70 miles an hour. that is disruptive and possibly damaging at the same time. as we move towards christmas day itself, the exact track of this storm is in doubt at the moment. that is why we are just giving an indication. it could produce some severe gales and therefore some disruption. at least 29 people have been killed and dozens more injured in a series of explosions at a fireworks market on the outskirts of mexico city. similar blasts destroyed parts

of the market in 2005 and 2006. the extremist group, the so—called islamic state, has claimed one of its militants carried out the lorry attack on a berlin christmas market which left 12 dead. police say the driver may still be at large, and armed. they've released a pakistani asylum seeker, detained earlier, saying they have insufficient evidence to link him to the crime. president obama has banned new oil and gas drilling in us arctic waters and introduced significant new curbs in the atlantic for the next five years. the move — one of his last major environmental protection actions — could prove difficult to reverse for the incoming trump now on bbc news, it's hardtalk.