a warm welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to our viewers in north america and around the globe. my name's mike embley. our top stories: bugle sounds japan's prime minister pays his respects at an american military ceremony in hawaii. 75 years after japanese attack on pearl harbor. dozens of ships are still searching for remains of a russian military plane that crashed into the black sea, with 92 people on board. vera rubin, the pioneering astronomer whose work led to the discovery of dark matter, has died aged 88. time's running out fast for the cheetah: scientists say urgent action is needed to save the world's fastest land animal from the brink of extinction. hello.

the japanese prime minister, shinzo abe, is making a historic visit to hawaii, 75 years after the japanese attack on pearl harbor that brought the united states into the second world war. first, shinzo abe paid tribute to the american dead at the national memorial cemetery of the pacific. before he left tokyo, he said he wanted to send a message that japan would never repeat the atrocities of past wars. laura bicker reports. archive: december 7th, 1941 - a date which will live in infamy. the japanese attacks came in waves during a deadly two hours. bombs ripped through us battleships, crippling the pacific fleet and killing over 2000 americans. survivors recalled that the once bustling port burned for hours. i had a fire hose in one hand, trying to put out the fires, and with the other i went around memorising these nametags so i could write to their parents and tell them what

happened to their sons. after 75 years, a sitting japanese prime minister will attend a service to pray for those lives lost. shinzo abe arrived in hawaii to reaffirm a solemn promise never to repeat the horrors of that war. he will also hold a final meeting with the outgoing us president. the two leaders have developed strong ties over the last eight years. barack 0bama was the first sitting president to visit hiroshima, a powerful symbol of reconciliation. we force ourselves to feel the dread of children confused by what they see. we listen to a silent cry. shinzo abe spoke of an alliance of hope, as the first japanese prime minister to address the us congress. i offer my eternal condolences. this bond of friendship is hugely important to japan. tokyo feels under threat

from a strengthening china and a north korea which is developing nuclear weapons. cheers. kanpai. some fear for the future of the relationship under a new president. archive: those who lost their lives at pearl harbor would never be forgotten. but these few days will be about remembrance and laying to rest the final ghosts of a world war which brought out the worst in humanity. laura bicker, bbc news, washington. we can now speak to a professor formerly from the university of hawaii. what do you make of all this? well, i think it is a very nice opening for prime minister aby to be here. it will have an impact

injapan. —— abe. to be here. it will have an impact in japan. -- abe. you will be meeting shinzo abe. there is always politics being played. i think this isa politics being played. i think this is a return visit. president 0bama went to hiroshima and this is the return bringing prime minister abe to pearl harbor. that symbolism of the two places in the united states's imagination, pearl harbor and hiroshima are linked. they were the beginning and the answer to the war. in japanese the beginning and the answer to the war. injapanese society, there is a very strong memory of hiroshima and their victimisation but they do not link it to pearl harbor at all. that

is not part of their imagination of how the war began and how the united states got into it. i think this visit i abe will make that linkage for people in japan visit i abe will make that linkage for people injapan and will help them see a more balanced view of the way in the post— wall period the two countries have become so close as allies. —— post—war. countries have become so close as allies. -- post-war. how does this feel for people in hawaii? allies. -- post-war. how does this feelfor people in hawaii? people here are happy to see good relations with japan. we have a substantial japanese and american population in hawaii, including the descendants of people who lived through pearl harbor and some of the actual people who wear there 75 years ago are still around so that part of it is very clear. during the war, hawaii was basically under military rule and ourjapanese population was

shipped off to —— was not shipped off to the mainland but was kept in hawaii. not many people would put in camps during the war. that is a lively memory still around but there are also 75 years of very positive relationships between hawaii and japan. we have many, many tourists coming from japan, a continuous strea m coming from japan, a continuous stream of immigration and relations are good and people want to make them assa and better. and historic visit in many, many ways. professor, thank you very much. russia has observed a day of mourning for the death of 92 people on sunday, in the military plane that crashed into the black sea. forty ships and more than 3000 people are searching the crash site. one of the main targets is the aircraft's black box flight recorder, which is likely to contain information about the cause. steve rosenberg reports from moscow. across russia, they

prayed for the dead — for the 92 victims of yesterday's plane crash. there was a special service today in every orthodox church in russia. this is a day of national mourning. as a sign of respect, russian flags were flown at half—mast. this is thought to be the last picture ever taken of the tupolev154. a few hours later, it crashed into the black sea. the search operation continued today, not for survivors — there were none — but for bodies. and for the plane's black box flight recorders. translation: divers have already lifted two parts of the aeroplane's control mechanism.

the serial numbers allowed us to determine that these parts belonged to the missing plane. russia's transport minister said that technical failure or pilot error may have caused the crash. terrorism is thought less likely. killed in the crash, more than 60 members of the russian army's song and dance troupe. they'd been on their way to syria for a new year's concert. outside the musicians' headquarters in moscow, there is now a shrine, which grows bigger by the hour. as well as bringing flowers and icons and candles here, people have been leaving messages. this one says, "you were killed on take—off. farewell, friends. you won't be returning. we couldn't save you." natalia's son used to work in the ensemble, but left. "we mourn with everyone else," she says. "there is pain deep in my soul." officially, there is one day

of national mourning, but for many russians, the sense of loss from this disaster will last much longer. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. in other news: the us president—elect, donald trump, has described the united nations as "sad". on twitter, mr trump said the organisation had great potential, but suggested it was a place for nothing but talk. last week he was involved in an effort to postpone a security council vote condemning israeli settlements in the west bank. columbian authorities investigating the plane crash last month, which killed 71 people, have concluded the aircraft ran out of fuel. the plane, carrying brazil's chapecoense football club, crashed near the city of medellin. there were only six survivors. on a leaked tape, the pilot is heard warning of a "total electric failure" and "lack of fuel". he never made a formal distress call, and did not survive. turkey has appealed for air support

from the us—led coalition in syria to help drive fighters of the extremist group, the so—called islamic state, out of al bab, a key town in the north—east. caroline davies reports. one of islamic state strongholds targeted from above. this video from is‘s newsagency says it shows the buildings and cars destroyed by turkish airstrikes, while on the ground turkish—backed rebels fill their cartridge belts ready for another assault. this is the siege on the syrian town of al—bab. since launching a major incursion into syria almost four months ago, turkish forces have cleared a wide area on the border of both is and kurdish miltants. since then they have been focused on al—bab, about 20 kilometres from the turkish border. turkey says it killed more than 220 fighters so far but it has come at a cost. last week, it suffered substantial

losses around al—bab. wounded soldiers were rushed here, to a turkish hospitaljust over the border. 14 were killed, mourned on the street by their families. now turkey has asked for support from the us led coalition. translation: we would like to emphasise that the international coalition must carry out its duties regarding aerial support. it is unacceptable that certain circles who always criticise turkey in its fight against daesch are not giving necessary support to the operations. there is no sign as yet that the coalition has who are bombing is nearby has directly joined the turkish operation. syrian activists say that the turkish airstrikes have also killed more than 80 civilians in al—bab. the turkish government have said that they are sensitive to preventing the casualties. despite losing a lot of ground, is it still able to put up a fight. the new appeal for help could be a sign of how tough the battle for al—bab has become.

caroline davies, bbc news the astronomer vera rubin, one of the pioneering scientists who discovered compelling evidence of dark matter, has died. she was 88. she found that stars at the edges of galaxies moved faster than expected and that something like dark matter may be the reason. it was groundbreaking work and she won numerous awards and honours, although never a nobel prize. that was the evidence needed which we now call dark matter. some sort of gravitating new particle not yet discovered that producers of these gravitational force that makes the stars go faster than they would otherwise ago. she looked at more

than 200 galaxies in some details. she was also a champion of women in science and in a very practical way? she was very practical, very upfront about it. she never shied away from saying what she thought. for example, when she applied to graduate school, she applied to princeton, my university here, in the late 40s. she got a reply back from the dean of admission saying we do not accept women so there is no point in sending you an application for graduate school. she replied back to them saying it was not appropriate, not fair to women but, of course she applied elsewhere. it is interesting to note that a few yea rs is interesting to note that a few years ago she received an honorary degree from princeton university and it just shows degree from princeton university and itjust shows how long we have all

come since then. and she... forgive me, she would bring conferences and complain if there were no women on the bill. were she in sparring to women? she was enormously inspiring to women. she kept pushing women, encouraging them, inspiring them, telling them they can do what ever they desire to do and not let any obstacles stand in their way. many women have responded enormously warmly to her. she had many, many friends are among women, and men, and many have responded today via e—mails and phone calls and letters. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: the tributes from fans and fellow artists alike for george michael following his death at the age of 53 the most ambitious financial and political change ever attempted has got underway with

the introduction of the euro. tomorrow in holland, we're going to use money we picked up in belgium today and then france and again the same money, it's got to be the way to go. george harrison, the former beatle, is recovering in hospital after being stabbed at his 0xfordshire home. a 33—year—old man from liverpool is being interviewed by police on suspicion of attempted murder. i think it was good. just good? no, fantastic. that's better. this is bbc news.

i'm mike embley. the latest headlines: japan's prime minister is on an historic visit to hawaii where's he's paid his respect at a us military cemetery. it's 75 years since the bombing of pearl harbor which drew america into the second world war. a typhoon has hit the philippines, forcing tens of thousands to seek refuge in emergency shelters. typhoon nock—ten, with gusts of more than 160kph, at least 100mph, has killed several people and damaged homes. it's also caused flooding in coastal communities and disrupted air and sea travel. richard gordon is in manila. what are you up against? we have managed to free up a lot of people, we have given hot meals, we managed to help people evacuated into the evacuation

centres. we have about 87,000 people in evacuation centres. now it's going down as the typhoon moves further and further away. we are now getting the data, the data is beginning to come in. how many houses in one town right on the pacific ocean, we don't know. nine out of ten homes have been destroyed we suspect. we are verifying all of that. we have people on the ground doing rapid assessment. by this afternoon we should have a good figure on how many more people we need to help in this area. it has affected 30 provinces. it has an area of 400 miles, or 400 kilometres, so we have our hands full. we have volunteers in practically every village in the country and we are trying to get that information because they are wanting to get out of being hunted

down near the typhoon. typhoons have hit the philippines many times, were people able to be warned in time and get out as far as you know? the number of casualties show we were able to warn them in time. right now we have three confirmed dead, two who refused to leave, they left too late and they ground already at a difficult time. one got hit by a fallen tree. so far they use are the deaths we have recorded. that those are. we have 800,000 in evacuation centres so that should give you a good idea. in the area on the coastal side we have standing room only in the evacuation centres. transportation is going to be difficult? definitely. lot of the posts are littered all over the highways. there were some floods last night and power is yet to be

restored. some are predicting one week before we can restore power but week before we can restore power but we will be able to provide support to clear the debris, the trees, the electrical posts and we should be able to retain cellular phone service. as we go on every day we will get better. i know we have been hit many times but there's no expertise here, we just hit many times but there's no expertise here, wejust need hit many times but there's no expertise here, we just need to save lives, and we are doing that well, but the damage still needs to be overcome. i'm sure everyone watching will wish you the best of luck. thank you so much for spending your time with us. the world's fastest land animal, the cheetah, looks to be heading, rapidly, for extinction. a study by the national academy of sciences in the us says cheetahs are increasingly in conflict with human beings, as they roam far beyond protected areas. there are only around seven thousand now in the wild across africa and in a small area of iran. here's matt mcgrath. all across its traditional habitat, the sleek spotted cheetah is speeding towards extinction.

in zimbabwe, the population has fallen from about 1200 to just 170 animals in 16 years. asiatic cheetahs have been almost wiped out, with around 50 left in iran. the common problem for the surviving animals who are mainly in southern africa is they range far outside the boundaries of protected parks in search of prey. as a result, they coming more and more into conflict with farmers who see them as an enemy. cheetah numbers have also suffered from the illegal trade in live cubs, which are in demand as fashion accessories, mailny in the gulf states. matt mcgrath, bbc news the music world has been paying tribute to the singer, songwriter and activist, george michael, who died on christmas day of heart failure. he was 53. he sold more than 100 million albums in a career spanning nearly four decades. his partner, fadi fawaz, has said he will never stop missing him. 0ur arts editor will gompertz looks back at george michael's life. # wham bam, iam a man # wearing a bikerjacket and a white tee, george michael takes his first steps

into the limelight as one half of the pop duo, wham!. # if notjust stop, don't stay there and rot # back then, he had big hair and a perma—tan — it was his idea of early ‘80s glam. the reality was a little different. so they stuck us in this hotel that couldn't have been more than 80p to a quid a night. audience laughter and i was sleeping the night before my first top of the pops i had polystyrene sheets and it was a childsize bed! audience laugh so i was like this... i was sat with my feet over the end, thinking, ? this is not how it's supposed to be! # club tropicana drinks are free fun and sunshine ...# he continued to live the dream with feel—good pa rty—pleasing chart hits. # ..all that's missing is the sea # but don't worry, you can suntan #. then came a change of tone and direction...

# i'm never gonna dance again. # guilty feet have got no rhythm, though it's easy to pretend...# ..leading to a career as a soulful solo artist. # ..without devotion # well it takes a strong man baby...# his first album, faith, sold over 25 million copies, garnered awards galore, and sealed his reputation as a major international artist. # i gotta have faith...# it was, "oh my god, i'm a massive star," right? it was like, "oh my god, i'm a massive star. and i think i may be a poof, what am i going to do?!" cheering and applause this is not going to end well, you know! i'd just like to say... that was the turning point for me. that was the point at which i had to negotiate some new relationship with celebrity that was not

going to destroy me, you know? on stage, that was no problem. his talents were widely admired. but his private life was a different matter. the homophobia was just flying! they were loving it! to be able to say that this man who had hidden from them for the best part of six years, by then, or seven years, the idea that he had been this tragic, old—fashioned, stereotypical cottager, they just loved it! # take me to the places that i love best...# the whole experience led to this song, and its ironic, cheeky video. there were other problems with drugs, addiction and a spell injail after crashing his car into a shop in london. but his sense of humour remained. what you get up to in your spare

time is up to you, alright. then why can't i come to comic relief? because you're a joke, george! it's embarrassing. i can't walk into comic relief with you. comic relief's about helping people like you! he collaborated with many other singers, including elton john. .. # cause losing everything is like the sun going down on me...# ..who today wrote, "i have lost the kindest, most generous soul madonna also bade him farewell. his old wham! partner, andrew ridgely, wrote: tonight his former partner, kenny goss, gave a statement saying, # all you do is love and love is all you do # i should know by now the way ifoughtforyou...# that george michael was one of britain's biggest pop stars

is without question. the 100 million—plus albums he sold, the continual presence of his music on our radios, and the sold—out arena tours stand as testaments to his talent. # i know you think you're safe mister...# he was a generous man who made several private donations to individuals he didn't know but cared about nevertheless. he made life—affirming music that touched, and will continue to touch, millions of fans the world over. george michael, dead at 53 and lots of stuff emerging about how generous george was, not necessarily publicly but often in secret. thank you so much for watching.

hello there. after the fairly windy spell of weather that many saw over the festive period, things are turning colder and much quieter too. here's the scene in highland scotland on monday, some snow over higher ground. some sunshine to see out boxing day too across the isle of wight. high pressure is dominating the weather for everyone as we head through the day on tuesday. the isobars fairly widely spaced for the most part, much less windy than in recent days. frost and fog patches around especially in parts of england and wales, further north, more cloud and breeze around. looking around the country at 9am, across the bulk of england and wales, a fine start to the day. pretty chilly, the coldest night we have seen in a little while, some frost around and a few mist and fog patches. further north across northern england and northern ireland, more cloud and again a chilly start to the day, some isolated showers in the far north—west of scotland, perhaps some rain for a time towards the northern isles but that should clear then looking dry

across—the—board on tuesday. a really decent day for heading out into the countryside for a walk, lots of sunshine on offer, some patchy cloud here and there and in a few places the mist and fog will be slow to clear. so colder than we've seen recently, highs between 6—8. tuesday evening looks a bit chilly but clear and dry. the main problem will be mist and fog building once again. as we head into the middle part of the week, high pressure stays with us across the country and with those light winds and relatively clear skies, i think we will wake up to scenes like this. locally some dense patches of fog around, especially on wednesday onwards, through the rest of the week it will cause some disruption. if you have travel plans by air or road it could be a foggy picture by the time we get to wednesday, particularly across england and

wales. less fog in scotland and northern ireland, more breeze and cloud around here. plenty of sunshine on offer by the afternoon. temperatures between 3—9. where the fog lingers in a few pockets it will be pretty cold and grey for much of the day on wednesday. where the fog clears, some glorious spells of sunshine. into the latter part of the week, a weather front to the far north—west of scotland, a bit breezy here and perhaps rain later on on thursday but it is high pressure dominating really. looking ahead to thursday and friday, things are mainly dry, there will be variable amounts of cloud but watch out for the potential for some mist and dense fog around too. bye for now. the latest headlines from bbc news. i'm mike embley. japan's prime minister has paid his respects at an american military ceremony as his historic visit to hawaii gets under way. it's 75 years since japan's bombing of pearl harbor, which killed 2400 soldiers and marines and drew the us into world war ii. dozens of ships are still searching for what remains of the russian military plane that crashed into the black sea on sunday with 92 people on board. investigators are looking

for the black box flight recorder. there are unconfirmed reports that fragments of the tail section suggest the pilot tried to land on water. the world's fastest land animal, the cheetah, is said to be heading rapidly for extinction. the national academy of sciences in the us says cheetahs are increasingly in conflict with humans, as they roam far beyond protected areas. there are only around 7000 left in the wild. coming up next on bbc news, it's reporters.