hello you're watching bbc world news. i'm adnan nawaz. a deadly inferno in mexico — after a chain of explosions at a fireworks market. at least 29 people have been killed and dozens more injured at the open—air market in tultepec — north of mexico city. welcome to the programme — our other main stories this hour — german officials say investigators won't rest until they've caught those responsible for monday's truck attack in berlin. police have released the man who was their sole suspect. president obama bans oil offshore drilling in much of the arctic for five years, in the hope of blocking some of donald trump's energy plans. out of the stratosphere — and into history: we hear from the man who made a 15 minute freefall to earth. i'm sally bundock.

in business — the bell tolls for the world's oldest bank. italy's banca monte dei paschi di sienna faces a deadline to raise $5.2 billion from private investors today. if it fails, state intervention is unavoidable. living under a cloud — the millions in north—east china stranded by extreme air pollution — we are live in beijing for the latest. a series of explosions has killed at least 29 people at mexico's most popular fireworks market. it happened in the middle of the afternoon on the outskirts of the capital. local police say dozens of people have also been injured. similar incidents destroyed parts of the same market in 2005 and 2006, as will grant reports. ca ptu red captured on mobile phone footage, the moment the fireworks market was

engulfed in flames. within minutes, the entire site destroyed in a blaze of smoke, noise and deadly explosions. 0nce of smoke, noise and deadly explosions. once the smoke cleared, the scale of the damage became clear. a fire at the main fireworks market outside mexico city was a lwa ys market outside mexico city was always likely to have devastating consequences. most big celebrations in mexico involved fireworks so in the run—up to christmas, it was full of shoppers. the local authorities have already confirmed around 30 deaths and many more injured. 0nce nearby residents got over the initial shock of the blast, they did what they could to assist the emergency services. translation: we were in the area when there was an explosion at the shop at the end of the road and then

a series of blasts came one after the other and people started to fall down. they started running and pieces of concrete and brick started falling all over the street. translation: it was very loud, there was several explosions and we saw the smoke. we thought it was a gas station that we saw it was the fireworks. we had several very strong explosions and then the smoke came up. for the time being, authorities say they are still investigating the cause of the tragedy but word ever is behind it, this is not the first explosion here. in 2005, just before mexican independence day, the market caught alight, injuring more than 120 people. at the time, the mexican government vowed to put strict rules on the fireworks industry but the rules are often never enforced. these people lost their lives

through a potentially avoidable accident. 0ur americas editor leonardo rocha has also been following the story, and has more details. 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. 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. the authorities said they retrieved 26 bodies from the location that 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 have urged people to be on heightened alert as they search for the driver of the truck that ploughed into a christmas market in berlin on monday evening, killing 12 people. a pakistani asylum seeker arrested shortly after the attack was released without charge. the authorities said there wasn't enough evidence to link him to the attack. they believe the perpetrator, possibly armed, is still on the run. catriona renton reports. it is still not known who crashed

the lorry or where they are. this is the lorry or where they are. this is the immediate aftermath. i2 the lorry or where they are. this is the immediate aftermath. 12 people we re the immediate aftermath. 12 people were killed, dozens more injured when the christmas market here was attacked on monday evening. this woman's family in italy fear that she may be one of those who died. the lorry itself is key to the investigation. it appears it was hijacked. it is owned by a polish man. he said his cousin should have been at the wheel. he was found shot deadin been at the wheel. he was found shot dead in the passenger seat. police have arrested a man from pakistan who came to germany to seek asylum early this year. he was released without charge. the so—called islamic state group claimed the attack but the person or people behind it are still at large. more

eyewitnesses have come describing what they saw. at first, to some, it seemed like an accident. the impression we all have in general was that a truck lost control and it just crashed by accident into the christmas market but the speed... the speed of this truck needed to have two crash such a big part of the market was just too much. have two crash such a big part of the market wasjust too much. this had been a place filled with festive jov- had been a place filled with festive joy. now silence and sadness as people come together to support each other. members of german's muslim community stood outside the church asking for peace. translation: we want to clearly distance ourselves from every person that attacks our society. germany is our home. we love germany. we want

to live here. early on is our city and we won't allow our life to be threatened. last night, berlin's brandenburg gate was lit up in the colours of the german flag. residents are urged to be vigilant but not lock themselves in their homes while the search for whoever did this continues. catriona renton, bbc news. police have arrested six people in relation to the assassination of the russian ambassador in turkey. the turkish officials said it will not derail... their negotiations about the war in syria. more than 20 people have been killed in protests in the democratic republic of congo. there's been gunfire in the capital kinshasa, where people blocked roads and burned tyres, and in the eastern

city of lubumbashi. violence broke out after presidentjoseph kabila refused to step down when his mandate expired on monday. elections have been postponed until 2018. a spokesman for the former wimbledon tennis champion, petra kvitova, says her doctors are optimistic she will be able to play tennis again after undergoing surgery on her racket—holding hand. she was injured in a knife attack at her home in the czech republic. researchers in france say eating too much cured meat such as ham and sausage might make asthma symptoms worse. a study suggests that preservatives in the meat could irritate the airways. processed meat has already been linked with cancer, heart disease and obesity. at the end of the road where i used to live in italy was a branch of the

bank monte dei patchy dtn. more now on our top story. the clock is ticking for the troubled lender banco monte dei paschi di sienna. the italian bank is seeking just over $5 billion in new investment to help it stay afloat — today is the final deadline for existing investors and other retail investors to purchase new shares. the new italian prime minister has sought parliamentary approval for an emergency bailout package worth some $20 billion in the event that private sector assistance doesn't materialise. this would prove contentious as investors who have already lent to the bank will be penalised under eu laws which came into force earlier in the year. poor quality loans are one of the biggest issues facing italy's banking sector. in total, the country's lenders sit on around $370 billion worth of bad debt. this accounts for about 40% of all the non—performing loans in the eurozone. you can see how exposed italy is. we will be getting an expert view on

that later on in world business report. also, we are live to china. the chinese capital beijing has been blanketed in thick smog since the weekend leading the authorities there to take drastic action to minimise the pollution crisis. factories have been forced to slow down or pause production, flights have been cancelled and highways closed because of low visibility. yet, despite these "red alert" provisions the air pollution situation continues to deteriorate. it is having an impact on international businesses who choose to work in beijing. they are rethinking their policy. we will be talking about that and we will have all the other business stories in about 20 minutes. in one of his final moves to protect the environment before leaving office, president obama has banned new offshore oil drilling in the arctic, and off much of the atlantic seaboard. the incoming trump administration favours more drilling and more use of fossil fuels, but mr obama invoked a law from the 1950s which will be difficult for the incoming president to reverse. peter bowes has been

following this story. well, it is a widely used provision in the law that he is invoking to take this action — a provision that gives the president the power to withdraw federal 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, donald trump's attempt to pursue more oil and gas drilling 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 general noriega and take him to the united states to face drugs charges. the hammer and sickle was hastily taken away. the russian flag was hoisted over what is now no longer the soviet union, but the commonwealth of independent states. day broke slowly over lockerbie, over the cockpit of the pan—am's maid of the seas, nose—down in the soft earth. you could see what happens when a plane eight storeys high, a football pitch wide, falls from 30,000 feet. christmas has returned to albania after a communist ban lasting more than 20 years. thousands went to midnight mass in the town where there were anti—communist riots ten days ago.

this is bbc world news. the latest headlines: at least 29 people have been killed and dozens more injured after explosions tore through a fireworks market in mexico. german officials say investigators won't rest until they've caught those responsible for monday's truck attack in berlin. police have released the man who was their sole suspect, due to lack of evidence. syrian government forces are preparing to take full control of aleppo, following evacuations over the past few days. more than 25,000 people are already said to have left. the bbc has been speaking to activists about their journey from the former rebel—held areas which were beseiged by the syrian army. stories of leaving aleppo. the british government has proposed new rules requiring anyone who buys a drone to have it registered and to take a test to prove they know how to fly it safely.

59 near misses involving drones and airliners have been reported in the uk over the past 12 months. here's our technology correspondent, rory cellan—jones. earlier this month, son made first delivery by drone on. just one potential use of an exciting new technology. but after a number of reports from pilots of near misses with drones, there is now mounting concern about safety. if people do not use drones responsibly and follow the rules and regulations which are in place, obviously that isa which are in place, obviously that is a safety issue, first of all, that it could also affect the long—term future of drones as well. there are already at 20 of regulations. i would there are already at 20 of regulations. iwould not there are already at 20 of regulations. i would not be allowed to fly this year, because we are too close to buildings and people. but while professional uses of drones have to registered with the civil aviation authority, anybody else can just buy one and start flying. the government is consulting on regulations which would mean you drones would have to be registered.

users would have to pass a theory test, much like that the drivers. and there would be tougher penalties for using drones in no—fly zones. peter galbavy, an experienced drone user, believes the rules are already too complex. if you put regulations in place that are too complicated and they scare people off, then you are going to deny that future industry this pool of talent that we need. there will be thousands of new drone earnest this christmas. whenever new rules come in, they are being told they will be safer if they followed the drone coat. —— whatever. a british—chinese photographer, jacky poon, is among very few professionals documenting the endangered animals that are hidden deep in china's mountains and valleys. jacky spoke to us about what it's like to be part of the budding wildlife movie industry in the country. 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. if you're scared of heights, close your eyes now. one man who isn't is alan eustace. in 2014, he broke the world record for the highest parachute jump, and the spacesuit he wore is now on display in the united states. jane 0'brien reports from the air and space museum in virginia. what goes up must come down, but simply reaching the earth's stratosphere was the first challenge for alan eustace. it took more than two hours to ascend 25 miles and around 15 minutes to parachute back to earth, at times travelling faster than the speed of sound. previous explorers used complicated platforms and capsules, mr eustace used a balloon and a very special suit.

what was really unique about this is we tried to build a space suit that was equivalent to scuba diving, where the tanks were included so that i didn't have to disconnect from a capsule, i didn't have to have a heavy capsule to go up. all i had to do was like scuba diving. ijust went up in a suit in an environment that was capable of sustaining me during that period of time. that suit is now on display at the national air and space museum in virginia, home to many other artefacts of space exploration which in the 1960s inspired mr eustace. everyone i know dreamed of being an astronaut. everybody i know dreamed of being above the atmosphere, to be able to look at the curviture of the earth, the darkness of space, the beautiful thin atmosphere. and i guess in my case, that dream never really went away. even at 57 years old, i'm stilldreaming. remarkably, the record—breaking suit

was made relatively cheaply, using exhisting technology and materials. mr eustace and his team simply discovered new ways to apply it. such as how to heat thermal underwear with the water system. the hot water just circulates around my chest and then on my legs and then goes back to be reheated. why do you need to be kept warm? because it is cold up there. the higher that you go through the troposphere, the colder it gets, and eventually, we'll get up to minus 110—120 degrees fahrenheit. mr eustace, a keen skydiver and pilot did not have to spend years at nasa learning how to be an astronaut. so, could anyone do this? could i do this? you could certainly do this. the way we designed the system was, you know, if everything went wrong, if i was unconscious, they had to be able to get me from 135,000 feet down to the ground safely if i did nothing. so, if you are capable of doing nothing, i think you could do it. with many sights set on the moon and mars, the earth's stratosphere

remains largely unexplored. but this suit, or something like it, puts it within reach of scientists and one day it might even be adapted to bring people back from the international space station. how are you doing? i am tired but healthy. jane 0'brien, bbc news, virginia. coming up injust a couple of minutes, sally has all the latest business news in world business report. first, a look at the weather where you are. here is a message you might want to pass on, wouldn't you know it, things might turn stormier, especially in the northern half of the british isles. wednesday looks like a good day. two weather fronts. quite a few isobars. there will be many more. it will be strong winds by the end of the week. wednesday, we have got a wet start

and a breezy one in east anglia and the south—east and the midlands. then a second front will drag rain down across initially the north of england. come mid—afternoon, my word, it will get dark quickly given the cloud and rain. in the latter part of the afternoon, the leaden skies will appear. it will be mild compared to the north where you have brighter skies in the afternoon in the north of england and the north of wales. but look at this. a raft of showers coming in on a strong wind from the west and south—west. not overly warm, two, three, four degrees. that will bring snow to low levels. there may even be some thunder. they keep on going through the evening and overnight. further south, we get rid of the rain. that allows us to see sunshine across a good part of england and wales to start the day.

yes, some showers will pop up, but they would not be as intense as showers we will see in northern ireland and scotland yet again. there will be wintry and down to low levels. wind will be a noticeable feature. nowhere near as strong as what we expect to see as the second main storm of the season rattles in from the atlantic. it is called storm barbara. that is because of the winds. and that is why we have the amber warning. 70 miles an hour in the north of england. further north, as strong as 90 miles an hour. that is disruptive and certainly could well be damaging. as we move on towards christmas itself, it looks like that second feature could in its own right produce severe gales, especially in northern parts of britain. take care. goodbye. this is bbc world news,

the headlines. 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. german police have urged people to be on heightened alert as they search for the driver of the truck that ploughed into a christmas market in berlin on monday evening, killing 12 people. a pakistani asylum seeker arrested shortly after the attack has been released without charge. 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. at least 20 people have been killed in clashes in kinshasa,