hello. i'm mike embley with bbc world news. our top stories: the american actress and singer, debbie reynolds, has died at the age of 84, just a day after the death of her daughter, carrie fisher. the us president—elect attacks the un again over the security council vote condemning israeli settlements on palestinian land. where do you see the un's solving problems? they don't, they cause problems, so if it lives up to the potential, it's a great thing, if it doesn't, it's a waste of time and money. israel's prime minister condemns as "biased" a speech by the outgoing us secretary of state. john kerry said israel will never find peace unless it resolves the settlement issue. police in germany detain a tunisian man in connection with last week's berlin truck attack. hello.

within the past few hours it's been announced that the veteran actress and singer, debbie reynolds, has died, just a day after the death of her daughter, carrie fisher. it's reported she was taken ill at her son's house in beverly hills, while discussing her daughter's funeral. earlier our correspondent david willis in los angeles gave us some detail about the relationship between mother and daughter. they were not speaking for quite a while, mike, there was a 10—year period in which they didn't communicate very much at all, and then they refound each other, if you like, and were very close towards the and of carrie fisher's life. but, you know, terrible news coming just 2a hours after we heard about the death of carrie fisher, now we are able to report that her mother, debbie reynolds,

a hollywood icon, 84 years of age, has herself passed away. looking at what carrie fisher said about her mother in that interview in november on npr, in fact, she said, very few women from her generation worked like that, kept her career going all her life and raised children and had horrible relationships, as she put it, lost all her money and got it back again. she had an amazing life. she was someone to admire. absolutely, and debbie reynolds herself was able to even poke fun at herself about her choice of men, she said, i have terrible choices, i make terrible choices when it comes to husbands. her first husband, of course, eddie fisher, who was a very popular crooner here in the us, went on to have an affair and subsequently marry elizabeth taylor, who was a friend of debbie reynolds at the time. the two women apparently later made it up onboard a seagoing cruise they both happened to be booked on. but this was somebody who, as you say, was very adaptable, she had this film career,

she went on to have a television career, she had her own tv career, although quite short lived, and of course becoming a star of the stage as well, and she was a businesswoman. she had her own hotel in las vegas and quite a reputation for accumulating memorabilia. unfortunately, the choice of husbands said to have contributed to the fact that her finances didn't hold up and she was eventually forced to sell not only the hotel but the memorabilia as well. in the latest sign of the huge political gulf between the incoming and outgoing american presidents, and the likely impact of their very different worldviews, donald trump has again attacked the united nations. the president—elect had already criticised the un for a security council resolution last week that condemned illegal israeli settlements on occupied palestinian land. unusually, the us did not back israel in that vote. mr trump, just three weeks from taking office, spoke outside his home in florida. the un has such tremendous potential

and it's not living up to its potential. there is such tremendous potential, and it's not living up to it. when do you see the united nations solving problems? they don't, they cause problems. so, if it lives up to the potential it's a great thing and if it doesn't it's a waste of time. jewish settlements are one of the most contentious issues between israel and the palestinians, who see them as an obstacle to a palestinian state. they also affect attitudes to israel worldwide. the us is israel's major backer, but in the last weeks of the obama administration, frustration with the hardline attitudes of the netanyahu government have boiled over. outgoing secretary of statejohn kerry said today israel would never find peace, without resolution of the settlement issue. yolande knell reports from jerusalem. another bitter row between outgoing and incoming us presidents, this time over israel.

donald trump's complaining the country is being treated with total disdain and disrespect, but telling it to stay strong until the 20th of january when he takes office. it was the idea of tonight's speech byjohn kerry that angered the president—elect. he said the chances of peace with the palestinians were slipping away. the truth is that trends on the ground, violence, terrorism, incitement, settlement expansion and the seemingly endless occupation, they are combining to destroy hopes for peace on both sides. this follows last week's un security council resolution, calling for a total halt in israeli settlements on occupied land. the us didn't use its veto power to protect israel, as it customarily does. the obama administration has just three weeks left, but it is still trying to make a difference here in the middle east, knowing that

when donald trump takes over he will be much more supportive of israel and its position on settlements, and jerusalem in particular. if possible it would like to tie his hands. the secretary of state claims those in the right—wing government are defining the future in israel. a prominent person in the governing coalition was quick to give his response. it was a good speech, but totally unconnected to reality. what kerry is leaving behind is the middle east in flames, a genocide in syria, iran dashing towards nuclear weapons and now throwing israel under the bus. the us oversaw two rounds of peace talks between israel and the palestinians during the obama years. both broke down acrimoniously. the white house would like to advance peace efforts in the coming days. the danger is that it's too little too late. in response, prime minister netanyahu has accused the obama administration of paying "lip

service" to what he called palestinian terrorism. president—elect trump has told israel to "stay strong" until he takes office next month, and mr netanyahu also suggested good relations between the us and israel would be restored, in three weeks. i have no doubt that our alliance will endure the profound disagreement we have had with the obama administration and will become even stronger in the future. but now i must express my deep disappointment with the speech today byjohn kerry. a speech that was almost as imbalanced as the anti—israel resolution passed last week. in a speech ostensibly about peace between israelis and palestinians, secretary kerry paid lip service to the unremitting campaign of terrorism that has been waged by the palestinians against the jewish state for nearly a century.

what he did was to spend most of his speech blaming israel for the lack of peace, by passionately condemning a policy of enabling jews to live in their historic homeland and in their capital, jerusalem. we've heard from palestinian president mahmoud abbas, senior palestinian official, saeb erekat, said mr abbas was convinced peace with israel was achievable, but only if israel halts settlement building. president abbas is fully convinced that a just, comprehensive and lasting peace can be achieved and is doable on all core issues on the basis of the peace initiative, specify terms of reference, which guarantees to fully and the israeli occupation. i've been speaking to guy ziv from american university

in washington, who's been analysing israeli politics. he sastohn kerry's speech reaffirms the idea of a two state solution. i certainly think that kerry's speech would have made a greater difference had it been made a few years ago. it is better late than never. i think in the remaining weeks in office this administration should be doing everything possible to save the two—state solution, which is presently on life support, from collapsing. but can it really? mr trump is unequivocally pro—israel, so are the people he is appointing. i think it depends how you define pro—israel. i don't think trump's inflammatory tweets will bring peace and stability to the middle east, or security to israel, nor will controversial moves like moving the embassy in israel to jerusalem or supporting settlement expansion. none of that is going to help strengthen israel or help resolve the israeli—palestinian conflict.

so, i certainly hope trump will work in a responsible manner with the israeli and palestinian leadership in order to pursue the two—state solution, because it is the only viable solution to this conflict. it is the only solution that can address both the palestinian national aspirations and israel's security needs. why do you think mr kerry said what he said, apparently aligning the outgoing administration much more with the arab view of israel, is this partly because everyone now has a very close eye on iran? i think that, first of all, there is international consensus thatjewish settlements in the west bank in eastjerusalem are illegitimate and undermine the goal of the two—state solution. i think it was important for kerry to reaffirm it, just as it's important to emphasise the need for a palestinian state, to recognise a jewish state,

for the palestinian people to recognise a jewish state, and for the two people to live separately in peace and security, and that was very important for kerry to reaffirm what bill clinton first did when he left office and issued the clinton parameters. george bush also had the roadmap for middle east peace and every president since bill clinton has endorsed this idea of a two—state solution. german prosecutors say a ao—year—old tunisian man has been detained in connection with the truck attack in berlin earlier this month. police raided the suspect‘s home and workplace after his number was found on the phone of anis amri, the man who drove the truck into a christmas market, killing 12 people and injuring nearly 50. catriona renton reports. security is tightened in berlin ahead of new year celebrations, coming so close after the attack

on the christmas market. 12 lives were lost and dozens injured when the truck ploughed into the crowds of christmas shoppers on the evening of the 19th of december. the man who was driving, anis amri, from tunisia, was shot dead by police in milan four days later. now, another man, a ao—year—old also from tunisia, has been detained in connection with what happened here. german prosecutors say his number was found on amri's phone. it has been reported police raided his home and workplace in berlin. officials have until thursday to decide whether to formally arrest him. the man who should have been driving the lorry, lukasz urban, was found dead in the passenger seat. his body has been taken back to poland, where he came from, to be examined. and other details about the investigation are emerging. the lorry had been moving at speed. it has been reported that

investigators say its automatic braking system, which is triggered when an impact is sensed, may have prevented the loss of many more lives. germany is on alert. at the last new year's celebrations in cologne, dozens of women were assaulted. and now, with the attack on berlin, cities across the country are stepping up their response. let's round up some more of the main news for you briefly: the organisation for security and co—operation in europe says it came under a major cyber attack in november. it said the incident had put the integrity of its computer network at risk, but that the systems were safe now. the osce said that it didn't want to speculate about reports that russian hackers were behind the security breach. police in pakistan have arrested three men accused of preparing home—made liquor mixed with aftershave, causing one

of the country's deadliest cases of mass alcohol poisoning. 3a people died and many more were hospitalised after they drank the mixture on christmas eve. 13 people have died in peru after their bus fell 300 metres into a ravine. the accident happened in the central peruvian region of ayacucho. the bus was headed towards huanta, in the district of ayna san francisco. one person is still unaccounted for. the russian defence ministry says salvage teams have recovered a second flight recorder from the military plane that crashed into the black sea on sunday, killing all 92 people onboard. russian media report that there may have been a problem with the wing flaps, which control lift. they report that recordings of the cockpit conversations on another black box found on tuesday suggest the crew were struggling to keep the plane airborne. stay with us if you can on bbc news. much more to come, including this: out with the old. new yorkers say good riddance to the worst of 2016. the most ambitious financial and political change ever attempted has got underway with

the introduction of the euro. tomorrow, in holland, we're gonna use money we picked up in belgium today, then we'll be in france, and again it'll be the same money. it has just got to be the way to go. george harrison, the former beatle, is recovering in hospital after being stabbed in his oxfordshire 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 world news.

the latest headlines: the american actress and singer debbie reynolds has died at the age of 84, just a day after the death of her daughter carrie fisher. the us president—elect has again attacked the un, in the wake of last week's security council resolution condemning illegal israeli settlements on occupied palestinian land. more on our top story: the hollywood actress debbie reynolds, who has died just one day after the loss of her daughter, the film star carrie fisher. the hollywood journalist jeanne wolf told me just now of the impact carrie fisher's death had on her mother. you how to understand that carrie fisher never regained consciousness. so her mother saw her daughter lying there, and sent out messages that she was in a stable condition, but she knew carrie was going to die, and so it wasjust too much for her.

her son said she wanted to be with her daughter. i don't know all of the details, but i know that debbie has been in fragile health. just last year she was honoured by the screen actors‘ guild. and debbie loved to dress up in sequins and get applause, she loved the attention, and she was too ill to show up. and carrie accepted the award. if you see debbie reynolds at 19 years old in singin‘ in the rain, you would never forget her. she went on to do tammy and the bachelor and the unsinkable molly brown. they called her unsinkable. she tried to be a survivor, just like molly brown. what did she say about the iconic role in that iconic movie at the age of 19? you know, she was up for it. she said it was just

a wonderful blessing, something that came to her unexpectedly. she was determined to keep up with gene kelly, keep up with the pros, and she did. she was so sweet and so lovable, so optimistic. you had to help her on the set, and they could see she had magic in that. that movie, singin‘ in the rain, you have to watch it again. it's really something. as carrie said, she said i'll be princess leia forever, and my mum will be tammy forever, because not only did tammy and the bachelor succeed, she had the hit song, tammy. she could sing, dance, charm anybody. in her later years, she spent a lot of time in vegas, doing an act.

everyone thought that debbie was miss perfect, but i can tell you, her act in vegas was pretty bawdy. she had a mouth on her. and the audience, theyjust loved her, related to her, they thought they knew her, they thought she was her mum, too. she was very much beloved. carry‘s grandmother said go for it, and boy did she ever go for it. this death of her daughter, in a way that no—one could have ever predicted, did sink the unsinkable. there are reports, jeanne, that debbie reynolds was carrying out funeral arrangements when she suffered a stroke. there with reports they did not always get on, did they? that was in the younger days.

in the younger, most turbulent times, debbie thought she would lose carrie to drug abuse. and then, later on, they lived in houses next door to each other, and they were in and out of each other‘s kitchen. remember carrie had a daughter, debbie's granddaughter. debbie and billie just got along great. they would play cards, sing and act together. she is now in her young 20s, and is an actress on television. and from what i understand, she's, you know, quite a solid creature, from all that her mother and grandmother have gone through. you can understand that really losing her mother and grandmother within days, that is who you really have to worry about. south african satirists say they are struggling to keep up with the pace of events at the end of a year when president zuma has survived several attempts to force him to step down.

the established comedians are urging a new generation to step forward and hold their leaders to account through humour, both on stage and on social media. our southern africa correspondent karen allen reports from johannesburg. politics has long been fair game for comedians and south africa, but brawls in the national assembly have offered extra food for thought. order, order! it has been a year when is truth has been stranger than fiction. dubious political influence, shady deals, internal party feuds and a succession battle, all rich material for others party feuds and a succession battle, all rich materialfor others in a country with a proud history of speaking out. south africa's leaders have long been lampooned. the problem is, it no longerfeels have long been lampooned. the problem is, it no longer feels like a joke. the mood here is problem is, it no longer feels like ajoke. the mood here is ugly. the mood is angry. the mood is kind of desperate. met jonathan shapiro. he has dodged jailfor his biting satire but his latest drawings, which show president zuma out of

control, looks like reality is having the last laugh. you are dealing in the hypothetical and the hyperbole. you exaggerate things, and you say what if it got even worse? but when it gets so crazy, how much worse can you even think of a scenario than some of the things we have got at the moment. it makes it quite difficult to be a cartoonist. we can't accuse him of this! press freedom has been robustly defended here. it has allowed one of the oldest satirists in the business to do his job. irregular expenditure. what does that mean? means stealing! he credits the late nelson mandela for using humour to heal divisions, and wa nts to using humour to heal divisions, and wants to see younger satirist taking leaders on. if you are angry enough to ta ke leaders on. if you are angry enough to take your anger and make me laugh at that anger that i don't want to think about, then you are on the right track, and you will find people who want to kill you, and just do enough to make them laugh so

loudly that by the time they shoot the gun you are out of sight. at the younger generation has found new ways to poke fun of power through social media, with means and captions like this. it has been an inspiration for mainstream comics like mark. as a comedian i am sometimes quite annoyed by it, because sometimes you think you're so because sometimes you think you're so clever and you are thinking about a 939 so clever and you are thinking about a gag and already ten minutes later it isa a gag and already ten minutes later it is a meme and out there for eve ryo ne it is a meme and out there for everyone to see. for us as south africans it is very important to be looking at the funnier side of life as well, and in many respects i think that has been our saving grace, at times. people say to me, marc, you mustn't diss the politics of the candidate. it keeps you comedians in business. it has been a tough year for many, and new yorkers have been making the most of good riddance day. it is now in its tenth year, with festivities taking place in times square, as catharina moh explains. the first smashing of the day.

junk and clutter, be gone! you can all relate to that. it is good riddance day in new york, which means getting rid of the negativity from 2016... how does that feel? oh, that feels good! ..to make space for all the possibilities that 2017 might bring. crowds of people gathered in times square to take part. some made their grievances public, others preferring to toss their bad memories straight into the bin. good riddance to tiny thumbs on twitter. i want to shred the stress and the anger. this was, like, the last connection to my cancer. it takes a lot of courage to share that with us. thank you, arlene, right? that's amazing. how does that feel? that feels great, great. whilst the majority wrote their memories on pieces of paper bound for the shredder, others came with photographs, bags of bills, anything associated with discontent. it's a lot of stuff that i brought.

as the negative vibes were being thrown out, people also began writing wishes, and making resolutions for the new year. a small crowd has gathered at debbie reynolds star on the hollywood walk of fame. flowers and a candle have been laid across the star. the veteran actress and singer died just a day after the death of her daughter carrie fisher. she was 84, and had been rushed to hospital with a suspected stroke. a leading hollywood lady in the 1950s and ‘60s, debbie reynolds was best known for her performance opposite gene kelly in the musical singin‘ in the rain. very foggy once again out there, and

on top of that we have got freezing fog, so some of those roads will be slippery. take it steady if you are travelling. that vote will persist through the morning into the afternoon and through the whole day into the evening hours. it won't be widespread or thick everywhere, in fa ct widespread or thick everywhere, in fact it could be quite patchy. so probably a situation where you are driving down some of those motorways 01’ driving down some of those motorways or country lanes, fog free, and then you run into some very thick fog and then back out of the fog again and backinit then back out of the fog again and back in it again. so it will be really hazardous in some areas. you can see the extent of the fog across england. now, these westernmost extremities of the uk, certainly england and wales, not getting too much fog and by the time we get to northern ireland in scotland it is just too much of a breeze here, and

also some light rain or drizzle. so this is not conducive for fog formation, but the thickest of the stuff will be across england and where it sticks around it is going to bea where it sticks around it is going to be a very, very chilly day. but for some of us it is not going to be too bad. they will be some sunshine round as well. i think the best probably around 11 degrees here in stornoway, for most of us around six to eight degrees celsius but i think these areas could be pretty persistent, so we are talking about parts of the midlands, in the east anglia, down in the southern parts of england as well. and there is even a chance that temperatures will barely get above freezing where you get those big banks of persistent fog. now this is the following night, so thursday evening, into friday, there could be some for reforming once again, particularly across the south—eastern portion of the uk. however, these isobars, these pressure lines, mean there will be a bit more of a breeze. so that means that as you head into friday afternoon, i think much of

the country it would be just a bit too breezy for any fog. now, the country it would be just a bit too breezy forany fog. now, new year's eve some rain across northern areas, this weather front will be bringing thick cloud and rain to glasgow, belfast, northern parts of northern england. the south should probably stay dry and then beyond that as we head into 2017, it looks as though that cold front is going to sweep through. so we are looking at the potential for some colder, northerly wind. so it is going to feel chilly. the thinking is probably on the first of january 2017. this is bbc world news. the headlines: the hollywood actress, debbie reynolds, has died just one day after the death of her daughter, carrie fisher. she was 8a. she's best known for starring opposite gene kelly in singin‘ in the rain. the us president—elect donald trump has made another attack on the united nations after last week's security council resolution condemning illegal israeli settlements on occupied palestinian land. israel's prime minister has described as "biased" a speech by the outgoing us secretary of state, john kerry, that was one of the most highly critical in years, by any senior american official.

mr kerry said israel would never find peace until it resolved the settlement issue. german prosecutors have detained a ao—year—old tunisian man in connection with the truck attack that killed 12 at a christmas market in berlin. his number was found on the phone of anis amri,