welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. my name is lebo diseko. our top stories: donald trump says he will dissolve his controversial charitable foundation to avoid any conflicts of interest. israel's prime minister orders a review of his country's relationship with the united nations after a vote condemning settlement building. in his christmas message, pope francis denounces the suffering of children around the world as security is tight at the vatican. and hard—rocking status quo guitarist rick parfitt has died at the age of 68. donald trump's announced that he will be dissolving

his charitable foundation. the president—elect says it's to try and avoid any conflicts of interest with his presidency. the trump foundation has been under investigation by new york's attorney—general since september over suspected impropriety. us media says the foundation is under scrutiny over a donation it made to a group backing a republican politician in 2013. mr trump released a statement saying: lynn sweet is a journalist for the chicago sun times, based in washington. i spoke to her a short while ago about the foundation and why the president—elect has decided to close it.

it has been a big controversy triggered by stories in the washington post and the bottom line here is that donald trump does not give any of his own money to the foundation. he has not given any of his own money, between 2009 and 2014. so at the heart of this is a foundation that goes to other people to ask for money. then there is another set of controversies, and this is what the attorney—general in new york is looking at, and that is weather or not there is self dealing. you are not supposed to use a non—profit foundation in the united states to make vidigal contributions or to help your business. that is at the heart of it. how was it going to work? he says he is closing down, but the attorney—general says that he cannot while they still investigating. both can be right. donald trump can say he is not going to raise any more

money. he can say that he is finding the paperwork —— filing the paperwork to close it down. that does not wipe the slate clean. the attorney—general can still continue to investigate it. how damaging is this for donald trump, or does it not matter in terms of his presidency? one of the things we have learned in this very historic campaign leading to the presidency of donald trump is that nothing seems to hurt him. controversies that would take out other political figures in the united states didn't have any impact on him, and he ended up have any impact on him, and he ended up getting elected and will be sworn in onjanuary 20. so i think that this foundation controversy as one of many dealings with his conflict of many dealings with his conflict of interest issues that have not been resolved, and by that, i mean his complex web of businesses that he is yet to tell anyone how he is going to divorce himself from, from his family business, before he becomes president. israel's prime minister benjamin

netanyahu says his country will reassess its ties with the united nations. this comes after the security council adopted a resolution demanding an end to israeli settlement building on occupied palestinian land. it passed after israel's traditional ally the us abstained, which was a break with long—standing practice. mr netanyahu also praised donald trump, who's suggested he will reverse america's position on the issue at the un after his inauguration. translation: the decision that was taken at the un yesterday was part of the swansong with the old world, against israel. we are entering a new era and, as the president—elect donald trump said yesterday, this will happen sooner than people think. the passing of the resolution has been celebrated by palestinians, as our middle east correspondent yolande knell explains. here in bethlehem, there is a festive mood outside the nativity church,

but many palestinians feel they have an extra reason to celebrate after this un security council resolution, which said that israeli settlements are a flagrant violation of international law. it has been welcomed by all the different palestinian political factions and they're hoping that it will strengthen their legal case when they pursue action against israel in the international courts. for its part, israeli officials have come out and said that this is a disgraceful, shameful resolution and the israeli prime minister benjamin neta nyahu says he will not abide by its terms. there are more than 600,000 israelis who live in settlements in the occupied west bank and east jerusalem, that is on land that israel captured in the 1967 middle east war. and the us really feels that at the un security council it was betrayed by its closest ally, the us, which usually uses its veto power to block any resolution that is critical of it.

now it is looking to president—elect donald trump for a lot more support. he has already come out on twitter saying that things will be different afterjanuary 20, which is of course when he takes office. amid heightened security, pope francis has celebrated mass on christmas eve for thousands of worshippers gathered in saint peter's basilica. david willey has this report. the pope spoke of the plight of today's children. perhaps he was thinking of those in aleppo in syria, hiding underground to escape bombardment, and those sleeping rough on the pavements of large cities, or lying at the bottom of a boat crammed with migrants crossing the mediterranean. translation: let us the mediterranean. translation: let us allow ourselves to be challenged by the children who are not given

the chance at life, for those who cry because they are hungry, for those who do not have toys in their hands, but instead weapons. a day after the killing in the line by italian police of the suspected perpetrator of the burly and christmas market massacre, unprecedented security measures were in force around the vatican. —— berlin christmas market. soldiers and police were stationed every 100 metres and worshippers were required to pass through metal detectors before entering the basilica. more than 100 skiers have been rescued after being trapped in cable cars above the mountains in italy. high winds caused one of the ski lifts to fail, leaving those heading back to the valley after a day on the slopes stuck swinging 30 metres in the air. caroline davies reports. lowered back to firm ground,

after—hours stock hanging above it. —— stuck. these skiers in italy were rescued and winched to safety after strong winds stopped their cable cars. the breakdown happened in northern italy at the alpine resorts of cervinia. it is one of your‘s highs skiing resorts, and skiers we re highs skiing resorts, and skiers were capped at an altitude of the 2000 metres while rescuers tried to reach them. heavy winds meant rescu e rs reach them. heavy winds meant rescuers could not use helicopters to reach those trapped. translation: there was much wind. we stopped at the pillar and remained there for two hours. it took more than eight hours to bring down all 130 stranded skiers. fortunately the weather was mild and none of them suffered from cold exposure. we have been lucky. the gondola was heavy, but there we re the gondola was heavy, but there were moments with gusts of 150 kilometres an hour, during which the

gondolas were almost horizontal, and it was a scary moment. the resorts set on social media that nobody was in danger during the rescue. those who are safely out ofjust pleased to be back before christmas. thousands of people have started evacuating their homes in the philippines as a powerful typhoon heads towards the island nation. typhoon nocten, known locally as typhoon nina, is forecast to bring heavy rain and strong winds of up to 138 miles per hour when it hits on christmas day. boats have been grounded and extra emergency staff called out to help deal with the damage expected from the storm. more than 6,000 people died and 200,000 homes were destroyed when typhoon haiyan hit the country in 2013. for more, here's bbc weather‘s louise lear. it's late in the season for a significant storm to strike through the heart of the philippines, but that's exactly what typhoon nock—ten is likely to do. you can just about make out the eye of the storm on the satellite

picture as it continues to move in a westerly direction, and expected to make landfall during christmas day. this is going to be a significant storm. the potential for category three or four. there will be a lot of heavy rain associated with it. strong to damaging gusting winds and a significant storm surge ofjust 2.5 metres, that's eight foot. it will rip through the heart of the philippines close towards manila. the wider white circles show the track once it makes landfall. we will of course keep you updated. but it's a significant storm and it will cause some issues. 200—300 millimetres per day, which will result in flooding and some landslide. gusts of up to 160 mph, certainly want to keep a close eye on. how unusual is this? sadly it is the third storm to arrive during christmas day. the last one was in 1981 and before that 1947.

these were both category two and as i say nock—ten looks likely to be more powerful. rick parfitt, guitarist with the band status quo, has died in spain at the age of 68. he was being treated in hospital for a severe infection. the musician was still recovering from a heart attack he'd had earlier this summer. david sillito looks back at his life and career. i have gotten to where i wanted to go, you know, to become a pop star or a rock star. to quo fans, he was easy to spot. he was the man with blond hair and was responsible for some of the greatest riffs in rock ‘n‘ roll. 1972's piledriver was the beginning

of a run of 40 hit albums. 57 top 40 singles. no other rock band comes close and it all began here. rick parfitt met francis rossi when he was a teenager. their first single was a bit of 1960s psychedelia. but their passion for something a bit more raw — a hit making rock ‘n‘ roll formula. all our records do sound the same because it is status quo. i am not trying to get out of a corner here. of course it is going to sound like us. who is it meant to sound like? as soon as i had the idea i couldn't think of anyone better to open this. # here we are, here we are, here we go. # here we go, rocking all over the world. and when it came to sex drugs and rock'n‘ roll,

rick parfitt did it all. this riff arose after a huge dose of amphetamines. he told us he had a riff he wanted to do. we told him good night and left. we came back at 11:30 the following morning and rick was still there. he hadn't been home yet. nearly 12 hours he had been sitting there, after too much speed the previous day. he married three times. of course he has a particular type of woman. blondes. and his health, even after recovering from surgery, he was smoking and drinking. i was smoking and drinking in hospital. it was the rock ‘n‘ roll lifestyle. but when it came to turning rock into hit songs, he was one of the best.

the guitarist rick parfitt who has died aged 68. stay with us on bbc news. still to come, who needs a sleigh? why this father christmas has decided waterskiing may be the best way to deliver presents. 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 of shkoder where there were anti—communist riots ten days ago. this is bbc news. i'm lebo diseko. the latest headlines: donald trump says he will dissolve his controversial charitable foundation to avoid any conflicts of interest. benjamin netanyahu has ordered a review of israel's contacts with the united nations after a resolution demanded a halt to israeli settlement—building on occupied palestinian land. boko haram has no place left to hide, says nigeria's president. it's after the army captured a key base of the islamist militants he said the camp in the sambisa

forest in the northeast of the country was taken two days ago. but the group till carries out suicide bombings in the northeast and in neighbouring niger and cameroon. bbc africa's editorjames copnall says the nigerian government still has some way to go before victory over boko haram is a reality this comes in a long line of strong statements from president muhammadu buhari about boko haram. one year ago he told bbc that the war against the militant group was technically won, and yet, in that past year we have seen suicide bomb attacks, other attacks by boko haram. what is clear is that the militant group have lost some territory and do not control big towns. it seems now according to the president's statement that they may have lost their territory in the forest in the north—east of the country. the group's tactics have changed and they have become an organisation that uses more suicide

attacks and sneak attacks, rather than holding onto territory. i think it would be premature to say that boko haram were finished, they still operate in tunisia and other regional countries. it was also striking that president muhammadu buhari referred to new efforts to get the release of the chibok girls, the schoolgirls who were taken 2 years ago. around 200 are believed to still be in control and under captivity. he did not say they had taken them back from control into camp. it was assumed they had been captured. the implication would be that they don't know exactly where these chibok girls are and that boko haram are still in place in many places in nigeria. the nigerian government are saying that this is a major step forward however. security forces in tunisia say they've arrested three members of a terrorist cell linked

to anis amri, the tunisian who killed twelve people by driving a lorry into a christmas market in berlin. the interior ministry said one of those detained was amri's nephew. 24—year—old amri was shot dead by police in milan in the early hours of friday morning. bethany bell reports. this is anis amri, the man who is suspected of being behind the attack on a berlin christmas market, in the name of so—called islamic state. and now authorities across europe and the middle east are trying to piece together his extremist connections. the 24—year—old tunisian made this video shortly before driving a lorry along a crowded street, killing 12 people. now, a clearer picture of his network is emerging. officials in tunis say he was connected to a militant cell which included his sister's son.

amri is thought to have sent him money to help him come to germany. the nephew now in custody in tunisia. two others have also been arrested. spanish authorities are investigating whether anis amri may have had links to an extremist in spain. hundreds of people in tunis today took to the streets to demonstrate against extremism. they gathered outside the museum that was attacked last year. in recent years around 5,500 tunisians have joined jihadist groups, making the country one of the largest exporters of militants in the region. translation: the terrorists damage the image of tunisia in the world and harmed expats living abroad. 0ur message is from the heart. it is a panic wave and you need to understand, tunisians are afraid but we will not stay silent. we are standing by our country. this was how anis amri met his end, shot dead

in an exchange of fire with the police in the italian city of milan. 0ne police officer was injured. he is now recovering in hospital. the hunt for more clues goes on. what began as a horrific attack here in germany has become an investigation that spans europe and beyond. the german officials want to know if amri had supporters, people who may have helped him plan the attack and his escape. as the city shuts down for christmas, the authorities are still working. so following the arrests in tunisia, are the suspects now likely to be extradited to germany? the bbc‘s rana javad is in the capital tunis. it is highly unlikely that they will be extradited. i spoke to an

official at the foreign ministry here earlier asking if there were any request from the german authorities in that regard. he said so authorities in that regard. he said so far there is no request but in any case this is a matter that would be handled internally here with their own investigation. he also said that, um, there is no hesitation on the tunisian part to co—operate fully with the german authorities. given the information that has so far been made available to us it does not seem to suggest that this is, that the berlin attack was something that was necessarily planned from here but, rather, that he tried to link recruit his own nephew in recent months and so conceded in doing so. if the state m e nts conceded in doing so. if the statements we have gone so far are accurate. as well as to other people that he willing to as well. —— that he was linked to as well.

an indian woman whose family thought she'd died 40 years ago, has surprised her middle—aged children by re—appearing. she'd been bitten by a black cobra and herfamily assumed it had killed her. because she'd supposedly died from a snake—bite, she was not cremated but left floating in the river ganges. but she was rescued by boatmen hundreds of kilometres away, and later taken in by a family. she lost all memory of her two earlier marriages and children, she re—married. only a recent chance encounter with a woman from her home village hasjogged her memory. and she returned there aged eighty years old, as if back from the dead. president 0bama has delivered his last christmas message from the white house. sitting alongside his wife michelle he said it had been an honour to serve as america's president merry christmas, everybody. one of the best parts of the holiday season is spending time with the best people in your life. and for me, that is getting some help from my best friend for our annual weekly address. given how our first weekly address went, i realised barack needed all the help he could get.

this is our first address and we... laughter stop it! you have got to stop it! get it together, you're going to have to pull it together. celebrating the holidays in the white house over the past eight years has been a true privilege. we have been able to welcome over half a million guests, our outstanding pastry chefs have baked over 2000 holiday cookies and barack has treated the american people to countless dad jokes. they are great jokes. not so funny. a few got a frosty reception. merry christmas, everybody. and we wish you and your family a happy and healthy 2017. thanks, and god bless. if you have small people in your

home you would probably know they are looking forward to the progress of this man behind me. irrespective of whether you have been naughty or indeed is nice, father christmas was on his way. and like every year, the north american aerospace defence command, or norad, gave people the chance to track his progress. before setting off on his herculean task, santa — well, let's be honest, a guy dressed up as santa — took time out for some waterskiing in the us state of virginia. notjust him, his elves and reindeers gave it a go. some not as successfully as others. in belarus, hundreds of people dressed up as father frost and his granddaughter the snow maiden, taking part in an annual parade. translation: it's always a joy and a celebration. it is important to be festive in your heart, and then it spreads to both children and adults. although in the orthodox church christmas does not come until next month, they were still celebrating in this part of siberia —

underwater, for some reason. a special party taking place in lake baikal. despite temperatures reaching —20, they still managed with a tree and wine. in colombo they have put up what they claim is the world's tallest ever artificial christmas tree, 70 metres tall and painted in a million pine cones. the organisers say they wanted to promote religious harmony. for many, christmas is about food. but injapan this festive meal is a little unusual. 0n offer, locust canapes and a cake made with strawberry and earthworms. i think i might stick with turkey. we have the headlines injust a moment. good morning, and merry christmas to you.

now, if a sledge was on your wish list, you might be disappointed with this forecast. an incredibly mild christmas day, breezy with some rain in the story. the reason being all tied into this deep area of low pressure which is connor on its way. going to dominate across the northern uk on boxing day. a wind direct from the southwest. ahead of it, weatherfronts straddling the country, producing a lot of cloud. dragging mild air across the country. from the word go, temperatures likely to be in double figures across central and southern areas. there is only one place for temperatures to go, they continue to climb. cloud with outbreaks of drizzle, persistent rain moving through scotland and northern ireland. by the afternoon, a scattering of showers. still could be potentially quite mild, 14— 15 degrees is not out of the question in sheltered parts of eastern scotland.

a band of persistent rain sinking south and east, ahead of it, across northern wales we could see midteens. a fair amount of cloud around. the cloud thick enough for perhaps the odd spot of drizzle. will it be a record—breaking christmas day? perhaps not. we need to see 15.6 degrees to equal the record, and that has happened on two occasions. it will be a pretty mild story for all. as we move through christmas day evening, more persistent rain will push steadily south and east. that is yet to clear away, and that is when we will see the strongest winds on the back of this area of low pressure. storm connor could produce some disruptive gusts particularly across the far north. an amber weather warning. going to be a windy day on boxing day. if you are going to be out and about to try to walk

off some of the indulgence, again, quite cloudy, with outbreaks of showery, drizzly rain to the south and squally, heavier showers to the far north and west. as we move away from boxing day, we will start to see a change. from tuesday, high pressure builds. quieting the story down nicely. that could bring a new set of problems, fog could be an issue. once it lifts, it will be noticeably cooler across the country with a little more sun in the afternoon. the latest headlines from bbc news. i'm lebo diseko. donald trump says he intends to dissolve his controversial charitable organisation to avoid the appearance of any conflict of interest during his presidency. mr trump said the foundation had contributed millions of dollars to worthy causes but he would pursue his interest in philanthropy in other ways. israel's prime minister benjamin netanyahu says his country will reassess its ties with the united nations. he was speaking a day after the security council passed a resolution demanding a halt

to israeli settlement—building on occupied palestinian land. pope francis has celebrated a christmas eve mass for thousands of worshippers at the vatican amid heavy security. pope francis denounced the suffering of children, saying the world should be challenged by the sight of children crying with hunger or child soldiers holding weapons rather than toys. theresa may has urged britain to unite and move forward in her first christmas message as prime minister. mrs may said the vote to leave the eu would offer britain the opportunity to carve out a bold new role in the world.