i'm sharanjit leyl in singapore, the headlines: counting down the final days in office as congress battle over president barack obama's legacy. we need to remember that we must not give into the false illusion of because in this dangerous time, ocea ns because in this dangerous time, oceans alone will not protect us and the world still seeks and needs our leadership as the one indispensable nation. south korea's president is due in court again to face impeachment charges but will she show up this time? i'm babita sharma in london. a case that's divided israel. one of its soldiers is convicted of manslaughter for killing a wounded palestinian attacker. students in east asia top another educational results table smashing the global pass rate. live from our studios in singapore

and london. this is bbc world news. it's newsday. good morning. it's 9am in singapore, 1am in london and 8pm in washington, where president obama's legacy is being fought over by congress in the final days of his term. the battle lines have been drawn over the future of the president's healthcare reforms known as obamaca re. the incoming trump administration has promised to repeal it as soon as possible and the republican party is now in control of both houses. laura trevelyan reports from washington. they swarmed across capitol hill today with rival entourages and duelling missions. one to protect his signature health—care law, the other to drive a stake through it. president obama and vice president—elect mike pence met with their respective lawmakers to plot their opposing strategies. according to those present,

mr obama encouraged democrats to fight republicans hard, nickname their attempts trump care and not rescue them by helping to pass a replacement law. for his part, mr pence confirmed dismantling obamacare is mission number one for the incoming administration. my message to members of congress is that we are going to be in the promise—keeping business and the first order of business is to keep our promise to repeal obamacare and replace it with the kind of health—care reform that will lower the cost of health insurance with our growing size of government. democratic leaders shot back saying republicans don't have a plan to replace obamacare and that americans will be worse off than before. so, we're here today to warn the american people that the republican plan to cut medicare, medicaid, repeal the aca, will make america a sick again. earlier in the day, president—elect donald trump weighed in in his trademark way. by tweeting that the existing law

might collapse on its own, warning republicans: hanging in the balance is thejewel in the crown of obama's presidency, his single greatest victory it in eight years of partisan fights. applause obamacare, or the affordable care act as it's formally known, expanded healthcare to more than 20 million people. republicans always saw the law as government over reach and the trump campaign seized upon rising costs for consumers as a rallying cry. the question is how to replace it without causing chaos and depriving needy americans, many of them trump voters, of their health insurance. laura trevelyan reporting. let's take a look at some of the day's other news. a military court in israel has found an israeli soldier guilty of manslaughter, after he shot dead a wounded palestinian.

its incredibly rare for a soldier to face charges like this in israel. sergeant elor azaria killed abdul fatah al—sharif last march in a case that has split public opinion. israel's prime minister, benjamin netanyahu hasjoined calls for a pardon for the soldier. our middle east correspondent yolande knell reports. it's minutes after two young palestinian men with knives attacked israeli soldiers in hebron. both have been shot. one is dead and one is clearly still alive. sergeant elor azaria, a 19—year—old medic, helped treat a wounded soldier, and then he did this. gunshot a single bullet to the head killed abdel fattah al—sharif. today the sergeant was in a military court, smiling to see a friend and his mother. but soon after, he was found guilty of manslaughter. judges rejected the soldier's claimed that the palestinian posed a threat and decided he shot him out of revenge. but sergeant azaria has loyal backers in a country where most young people do military service.

they accuse the army of abandoning one of its own. this guy came to do an attack, to hurt families. this soldier is a hero. even the israeli defence minister spoke of this as a difficult verdict. before taking up his post, he made clear his support of sergeant azaria. and that caused tensions with the top brass here in the military headquarters. they said they command according to rules and an ethical code, not public opinion. such a high—profile trial of a soldier for killing a palestinian is very unusual in israel. the outcome was welcomed by the family of abdel fattah al—sharif. translation: i feel like any father would feel after seeing my son executed on tv, murdered. it's so hard to see that. no—one can endure this. it's still hard for me every time

i remember what happened. if he died instantly it would have been much easier than to see your son executed like that. sergeant azaria's crime took place during a wave of palestinian attacks when there was a national debate about how to respond. and his case has proved highly divisive. when he is sentenced, the maximum he could serve is 20 years injail, but he is expected to get far less. and tonight the prime minister has joined other israeli politicians calling for a pardon. yolande knell, bbc news, tel aviv. also making news: german officials say they've detained a second tunisian suspect in connection with the attack on a berlin christmas market. they say the man had dinner and talked intensively with the killer, anis amri, at a restaurant on the eve of the attack. more than 150 activists have been arrested in the pakistani city, lahore, as they tried to demonstrate in favour of the country's strict blasphemy laws, which allows the death penalty. reports say 100 of those held are muslim clerics. a chinese man has stabbed ii children with a kitchen knife

at a kindergarten in pingxiang city in the southern region of guangxi. three of the youngsters were seriously wounded. the attacker got into the school by claiming he was there to pick up his son. a court hearing in south carolina has begun to decide whether the white supremacist, dylann roof, should receive the death penalty for the murder of nine black churchgoers in charleston in 2015. last month he was found guilty of all 33 hate charges against him. the united arab emirates has banned the keeping of wild animals, such as lions or tigers, as pets. for some in the oil—rich gulf state, owning the likes of a cheetah is a status symbol, but they now riskjail or a fine. south korea's president park geun hye didn't turn up on tuesday but the country's top constitutional court is expecting her to be there at a second hearing

in her impeachment trial due to start in a few hours. the first hearing on tuesday was postponed and then ended after just nine minutes as she failed to turn up. the court can proceed without her if she's absent a second time. i asked our correspondent kim kevin in seoul, how likely it is for president park to show up today. actually technically, it's not obligatory for the president to be physically present during the procedures and it's likely she will not be attending the hearing today. it will be the lawyers who will argue both sides of the case. last month, lawyers listed 13 charges including corruption and bribery for grounds of impeachment. the president is suspected of presuring companies into donating large sums of money to private foundations that were controlled by a close friend. president park has also been charged

with negligence for failing to rescue nearly 300 school children who died in a sea ferry disaster in 2014. president park's position is that there are no legal grounds for impeachment and the motion should be struck out by the constitutional court. she's denied direct involvment with herfriend choi soon—sil who has been charged with corruption. the top south korean legal body has six months to review the case and come to a verdict. if found not guilty of the charges, the powers of the disgraced president could be reinstated. kevin, thanks for bringing us up—to—date with the specifics of the trial, but tell us a bit about the latest on the daughter at the centre of the scandal. the woman, choi soon—sil, you mentioned, here daughter

chung yoo ra was arrested in denmark and south korean authorities are seeking extradition. that's right. chung yoo ra, the daughter of the close friend of the president was arrested on sunday on charges of illegal stay in denmark. since then, she has been in custody and lawyers have been appointed. prosecutors in seoul want to question her soon because they feel she is a key witness and will have vital information against her mother but until now, the daughter has distanced herself with charges related to her mother. the daughter herself is suspected of receiving favours in her university admissions process by taking advantage of her mother's ties with the president and criminal extradition process is under way to bring her back to korea. police in turkey have detained twenty people in connection with the attack on a nightclub in istanbul on new year's eve. 39 people lost their lives in the attack. earlier, the turkish foreign minister said the chief suspect had been formally identified, but the authorities have not released his name. our correspondent mark

lowen is in istanbul. well, it's almost four days now since the massacre in the nightclub which left 39 people dead and still the suspect is on the run. the turkish foreign minister says his identity has been established but we do not have a name officially released. very little information has come out about him. some reports that he could be from a central asian country, some video footage suggest he was in the central turkish city of konya in december before travelling to istanbul. there have been tensions in the city of izmir today of dozens of people suspected of having links to so—called islamic state which says it is behind the attack but the gunmen himself is still at large. that is a problem for the country, this nation, they are fearful of any sort of follow—up attacks and also they want proof from the people who are meant to defend them and protect this

country that they really can close in on this man and that he hasn't slipped through the net and possibly even left turkey to go to another country. but really, those crucial hours following the new year's eve attack have now gone and so could the gunmen have been lost to the security services? that is the real challenge now. president erdogan spoke to the country today for his first public address since the new year's eve attack, which is unusualfrom a man who rarely shies away from the limelight. he says the aim of terrorism is to divide and polarise the country but we will stand tall as turks and he said those who allege this is attack on a lifestyle choice in turkey are talking rubbish. that comes from the allegation that the islamist rhetoric of president erdogan and his government has made the secular side of the country feel vulnerable and exposed. but really, turkey is desperately trying to find the man and trying

to reassure a country that is shaken by this attack in the heart of istanbul. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: it's top marks once again for students from the asia—pacific region. the global results are out for the international baccalaureate. also on the programme: a dinosaur on the move. why dippy the diplodocus will be on the road for the next two years. the japanese people are mourning, following the death of emperor hirohito. thousands converged on the imperial palace to pay their respect when it was announced he was dead. good grief. after half a century of delighting fans around the world, charlie brown and the rest of the gang are calling it quits. the singer paul simon starts his tour of south africa tomorrow in spite of protests and violence from some black activist groups.

they say international artists should continue to boycott south africa until majority rule is established. teams were trying to scoop up lumps of oil as france recognises it faces an ecological crisis. three weeks ago, the authorities confidently assured these areas that oil from the broken tanker erika would head out to sea. it didn't. the world's tallest skyscraper opens today. the burj dubai has easily overtaken its nearest rivals. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm sharanjit leyl, in singapore. i'm babita sharma, in london. our top stories: a battle is underway in washington over barack obama's legacy as he counts down his final days in office. in a case that's divided israel, an israeli soldier is convicted of manslaughter for killing a wounded palestinian attacker. and chelsea's 13 match winning—streak in the premier league

is finally over. the blues were sunk 2—0 by bitter rivals spurs, who now move up to third in the league. england's dele alli was on target twice, both times with headers. let's take a look at some front pages from around the world. the philippines star reports on the attack on a prison in south philippines, which led to the escape of more than 150 inmates. police officers, seen here patrolling the outside walls of the jail, say they suspect gunmen linked to islamist separatist groups are behind the attack. the business page of the gulf news reports on india's rupee ban. it says the government's move to scrap two major currency notes will strip the nation of its position as one of fastest—growing economies. and the japan times has a special report on the country's young sports stars who are looking to set new records at the tokyo 2020

olympics. japan won 41 medals at rio games, but its young athletes are hoping to duplicate or even surpass last year's medal tally. now, sharanjit, what stories are sparking discussions online? a new desk top robot with multiple personalities is among the most watched videos online. the robot can play music and control other internet—connected devices as well as offer advice. but the really interesting feature is that it develops a different personality for each user in a household. wa ke wake up. ladies and gentlemen, i am ollie. wake up, ollie. hello, i'm ollie. wake up, ollie. hello, i'm ollie. yourfirst ollie. wake up, ollie. hello, i'm ollie. your first robot with personality. now, to a dinosaur on the move. if you've ever been to london's natural history museum you can't have missed dippy the diplodocus. it's been the centrepiece there since 1905 and even appeared

in two hollywood blockbusters. well, now dippy is going on a two year tour and a blue whale is taking its place. daniela relph reports. it's busy here most days but for those queueing today there was a goodbye to be had. the first sight of dippy has been a lasting memory for so many children. it's the first thing you see when you arrive. the natural history museum estimates around 90 million people have stood here and looked up at dippy. it's not known if the diplodocus is a he or a she but today is the last chance to see dippy at the museum. because it is the last day, people might want to see him if they haven't seen it before, so that's why they want to come over. what do you think of dippy? he goes "roar." it's amazing to think they lived a long time ago and he was walking around. i'm a bit sad that he is going but maybe i can see other dinosaurs, maybe. dippy first came to the museum

more than 100 years ago. made up of 292 bones, the dinosaur arrived in 36 cases. during the second world war, the skeleton was taken to the basement to protect it. the diplodocus is a plaster cast replica of the real thing. it would have weighed 13 tons when alive. it's been cleaned up and cared for since 1979, when it took up its current position. pulling it apart and moving the dinosaur will be detailed, delicate work. in the morning, we'll be starting to take dippy down. we take the glass barrier away and then we start working from the tail back up to the body and then the neck, and over the next month we'll be taking each bone down, each of those 292 bones, we'll be cleaning them, we'll be inspecting them and then we'll be packing up. once cleaned up and reassembled, dippy goes on tour for two years. it begins appropriately on dorset‘sjurassic coast before moving to birmingham, glasgow, newcastle, cardiff

and other locations. and this is what replaces dippy, the skeleton of a blue whale, hung from the ceiling to give the impression of it diving, of it being a living species that needs protecting. but today it's all about dippy. for those feeling little sad at the departure, there are tentative plans to recast the diplodocus in bronze and place it in the museum grounds. but, for now, it's goodbye. it was results time this week for the international baccalaureate diploma. the qualification is a final school exam taken by young people all over the world. and it's probably no surprise that children in asia came out on top again. whilst the global pass rate was 70%, in the asia pacific region it was 91%, over 20% higher. and singapore topped the rankings again with a staggering

97% of students passing. sebastien barnard is a regional communications manager with the international baccalaureate and told me about the qualification. it's essentially, as you mention, a qualification for the 16— to 19—year—old who gets into university, the preuniversity qualification, but what sets it apart is it's more a holistic type of educational programme. it concentrates not only on the content—rich programme but also looks at how to learn. it teaches students the techniques of learning, so that they become lifelong learners. and the idea is that students take these skills away with them into university and beyond, and that will make them much more prepared for the challenges of the 21st—century. now, of course, let's get to the singaporeans, not the first time they've topped education rankings this year, they topped them in math and science particularly. why do they do so well, because there is a lot of criticism that perhaps this is a nation

of kids who are really good at taking exams but not much else? yes, i think it's important to recognise. education has been a really big cornerstone of the singapore success story. singaporean communities take education very seriously. i think it places a lot of value on quality education. and, as a result, students are extremely dedicated, extremely passionate, spend a lot of time on educational pursuits. i also think it's worth mentioning of course that, i think, singaporeans get instilled with a certain educational discipline very early on in life, and i think that carries them through as well. i should say australia also did well, they were second, japan didn't do very well, they were to the bottom, but interesting, though, that there is an increase every year 5%—8% of students taking up the ib system worldwide. why, what does it offer them? you mentioned it preparing them for newjobs and professions of the 21st century. briefly.

historically, it developed along with the international education market but what we are seeing now, certainly in the last ten years, is growth in the private maths institutions, so local entrepreneurs and businesses investing in education. and they are recognising a way of differentiating themselves and they are also recognising this enquiry—based learning has been very useful. before the age of the computer, many of us relied on typewriters and, while they've disappeared into obscurity in most parts of the world, in myanmar lots of people still rely on them. that's because electricity is often unstable and laptops are too expensive. but in spite of their popularity, even in myanmar, they're starting to die out. we've been speaking to a couple of fans who insist they'll always remain loyal. the sad demise of the typewriter. glad that some people still love them. you have been watching newsday. stay with us. coming up — driverless cars hit the road at this week's

consumer electronics show in las vegas. and before we go, how's this for proof that age is no excuse? a 105—year—old french cyclist has set a new record for the furthest distance cycled in one hour. robert marchand, who was born in 1911, completed 22km, 5117 metres in a race against the clock in a category that was created specially for him. that's all for now. hello there, good morning. quite a widespread frost to start the day today. most of us are firmly in some really quite cold air coming down from the north. and the cold feel to things is accentuated by the northerly breeze along the eastern coast. but, elsewhere, the winds are a little bit lighter, the skies are clear, allowing temperatures to plummet away, even towns and cities around of below freezing, rural parts in the heart of england —6 or —7 degrees. so, a really cold for most. not so cold in southern cornwall, five or six here, but you don't have to go too far inland you find

much lower temperatures, —1, —2 at eight o'clock in the morning, so it will be a cold start for england and wales. maybe a little ice for some on untreated surfaces in eastern parts of england where we've seen some overnight showers. some parts of northern ireland have a touch of frost, and it will be quite widespread for northern england into most of scotland, although the northern and western isles just about escaping. we still have the brisk winds into the afternoon for eastern england. maybe still a shower or two. most places will be fine and dry. a good deal of sunshine and light winds as well. but after the cold start, temperatures are slow to rise. maybe only two or three degrees for northern areas, fours and fives in cardiff and london, but sevens and eights out towards belfast and plymouth. early on thursday evening the frost returns for many but, by the end of the night, as cloud and rain moves in, the wind picks up for the north and west of the uk, by the end of the night some frost and fog is confined to the south—eastern corner.

but it will be a pretty grey day for many of us on friday. the fog is slow to clear in the south—eastern corner. it should do eventually. all the rain in the north and west becomes light and patchy with some hill fog to go with that. it is a pretty grey day. the rain into the south—east in the afternoon. starting to turn a little bit less cold. we get up to, what, 5—7 in norwich and london. how to the west, belfast and plymouth, ten or 11 degrees and a mild air continues to filter its way in through friday night and on into saturday. we see the wind coming from the atlantic. always a mild direction. it will bring a fair bit of moisture with it, a lot of cloud and a bit of rain to start the weekend but the rain will be light and patchy and i think many places will be fine and dry. and those temperatures are back up into double figures in the south of the uk, not too far from that for northern areas as well. not so cold to start the day on sunday but it will be another cloudy day.

the wind still coming in from the west and temperatures will be up to about eight or nine degrees quite widely, ten or 11 further south and any rain i suspect will be light and patchy, so turning mild into the weekend, but there is a lot of cloud around, not much rain but a little bit of patchy rain and drizzle. i'm babita sharma with bbc world news. our top story: a battle is under way in washington over barack obama's legacy as he counts down his final days in office. president obama has been huddling with democrats in a bid to save his healthcare law but the incoming trump administration says repealing it is their top priority. south korea's president is due in court again to face impeachment charges but it's not certain she'll show up. the first hearing ended afterjust nine minutes as she wasn't there. and this video is trending on bbc.com. dippy the diplodocus has been the centre piece at london's natural history museum since 1905 but now he's being dismantled to begin a two year tour of the uk. he's being replaced by the skeleton of a blue whale.

you're up to date, stay with us. and the top story here in the uk: sir tim barrow has been announced as britain's new ambassador to the eu as the fallout over