work continues day. the headlines: america's top intelligence chief says no doubt russia tried to interfere in the us presidential election. a car bomb has killed two people in the turkish city of them out. officials say kurdish militants we re out. officials say kurdish militants were behind the attack. as taiwan's president heads to the us on a stopover, with the at its changing relationship with other countries around the world. and what is it like growing up with a future president? we speak to barack obama's half sister about their teenage years in hawaii. announcer: live from our studios in singapore and london, this is bbc world news. it's newsday. good morning. it is eight o'clock in

singapore, three o'clock in the morning in moscow, and seven o'clock in the evening in washington, dc. senior intelligence officials have been giving evidence about alleged russian cyber hacking before a committee. russia has always denied the accusations that relate to last you's us presidential election. nick brya nt you's us presidential election. nick bryant sent this report. washington is investigating what could be the biggest political break—in since watergate. in the ‘70s, it was the building belonging to the democratic national committee that was burgled. in 2016, it was the computer system at the party's present headquarters. a robbery in cyberspace, rather than in person. and us intelligence believes it was orchestrated by vladimir putin, from the kremlin, to help donald trump win the election. i want to welcome all our members back to the committee. today, those allegations were aired publicly on capitol hill at this republican—controlled congressional committee. every american should be alarmed by russia's attacks on our nation. there is no national security interest more vital

to the united states of america than the ability to hold free and fair elections without foreign interference. that's why congress must set partisanship aside, follow the facts, and work together to devise comprehensive solutions to deter and defend against and, when necessary, respond to foreign cyber attacks. america's director of national intelligence, james clapper, said he stood more resolutely by a statement released in october, before the election, that moscow was interfering to help donald trump. he was asked if that was an act of war. whether or not that constitutes an act of war, i think, is a very heavy policy call that i don't believe the intelligence community should make, but it would certainly carry, in my view, great gravity. the president—elect has repeatedly rubbished the notion that he achieved a kremlin—assisted victory, and has publicly poured scorn on america's spies. he's also spoken approvingly

ofjulian assange, the founder of wikileaks, who released the hacked e—mails and claimed the russians weren't involved. that's enraged senators from both parties. who actually is the benefactor of someone who's about to become commander—in—chief trashing the intelligence community? i think there's a difference between scepticism and disparagement. director clapper, how would you describe mr assange? i don't think those of us in the intelligence community have a whole lot of respect for him. then, this blunt and direct message for president—elect trump from a senior member of his own party. i want to let the president—elect know that it's ok to challenge the intel, you're absolutely right to want to do so, but what i don't want you to do is undermine those who are serving our nation in this arena until you're absolutely sure they need to be undermined. and i think they need to be uplifted, not undermined.

trump tower these days has its own micro climate of twitter storms, and today was no different. the president—elect took to social media to complain thatjournalists were being dishonest in saying he agreed withjulian assange, and that he was a big fan of the intelligence community. the president—elect will receive a briefing from james clapper at trump tower tomorrow and that has the potential to be a very frosty meeting. the key question, will it alter his present thinking, that the russian hacking claims are a cia cock—up rather than part of a kremlin conspiracy? as we heard, there were hints of becoming relationship between president—elect donald trump and senior intelligence officials, and it looks like it could be frosty. our correspondent in washington says

tensions are already apparent. it did seem to come across that way. they were careful to to be diplomatic line for as long as they could, but then came the kind of little killer blows, asked and prompted by questions, even by republicans, where they talked about scepticism and donald trump scepticism, but james clapper, scepticism and donald trump scepticism, butjames clapper, the director of national intelligence in the us, said keith scepticism can be healthy, but there is scepticism and then disparagement. there was even a push by the republican, lindsay graham, who came across saying, the president—elect may have his scepticism, but you are the guys who keep us safe, and again, the response came back the confidence in intelligence is crucial to the services, because without it, they can't do theirjobs. it is worth

remembering, these top officials, who gave their evidence today, a very sobering assessment of a russia which they say was not just very sobering assessment of a russia which they say was notjust behind the hacking in the 2016 election, but a russia who cyber activity is growing and needs combating. they gave that message, that sober assessment, and they are the eyes and ears of the us. that briefing with the intelligence services and donald trump taking place late on friday. the moment we get the action, we will bring that to you. the other news stories: a police officer and port official were killed by a car bomb at a courthouse in the western city of izmir in turkey. the government suspects the kurdish militant group, the pkk, of carrying out this attack. turkey's deputy prime minister said weapons suggested a much bigger attack was being planned. this cctv footage silently conveys the scale of the fatal blast in izmir.

now the mangled wreckage of the car bomb litters the police checkpoint where several people have been killed and injured. turkish police said the bomb was detonated after officers attempted to stop a vehicle in front of the courthouse in izmir. eyewitnesses described what happened next. translation: i was at the security cabin when a black car approached and crashed into a policeman. he got out of the car and exploded the bomb he had in his hand. i ran into the market and lay down on the floor. police at the scene shot dead a man they suspected of detonating the bomb, following a shoot out involving police and a number of men carrying machine—guns. the area has now been sealed off for further investigation. the governor of izmir says he believes that kurdish separatists, the pkk, are behind the attack.

the group has not claimed responsibility, however. it was just a week ago in istanbul that 39 people were killed in a terrorist attack carried out by the so—called islamic state. as security forces grapple with the events of today, in the normally peaceful seaside town of izmir, turks again have the sense that they are not safe in their own country. also making news today, a police officer is dead. more than 600 people have been arrested in mexico after violent protests people have been arrested in mexico after viole nt protests over increases in petrol prices. demonstrators are furious about a 20% increase announced by the government five days ago. they have blockaded highways and petrol stations, and looting has broken out in some places. persecuted in the us

city of chicago have charged for people with hate crimes over a video live streamed on facebook in which a bound and gagged man was assaulted. police believe the victim, who was described as mentally disabled, may have been kidnapped for up to 48 hours before the attack. the united states says it has added osama bin laden‘s youngest son to its anti— terror blacklist. the state department says the men, now in his mid— 20s, has become active as a leader of al-qaeda. in the united kingdom, six letters written by princess diana have sold for more than £80,000, sorry, it doesin for more than £80,000, sorry, it does in dollars, in an auction in cambridge. one handwritten letter to princess diana from an ex— buckingham palace seven revealed prince harry was constantly in trouble at school. bidders from as far away as australia, japan and the us all wanted their hands on a bit of royal memorabilia being

auctioned, including a piece of wedding cake. last month, china lodged a complaint with the us after president—elect donald trump spoke to taiwan's leader in a phone call. china sees taiwan as a breakaway province, and although us policy set in 1979 cut formal relations with taiwan, the us is still taiwan's most important ally. in the 1990s, taiwan had dirty diplomatic allies, but now it only has 21. we look at taiwan's changing foreign relations as the island's president stops over in the us. it isa it is a decade—long struggle. the island of taiwan has been ruled separately since 1950. many there wa nt to separately since 1950. many there want to push for formal independence from china. but the communist leaders in beijing who taiwan as a

breakaway province, which must be reunited with the mainland monday. they insist other countries have to choose. they can't have official relations with both beijing and taipei. the result is that taiwan has formal diplomatic ties with just a few countries, and that number is shrinking. in the 1990s, they had dirty diplomatic allies. now that has dwindled to just 21 —— 30. in contrast, china has more than 170. just above month, the tiny african nation in principate resumed diplomatic relations with beijing. days after cutting ties with taiwan. it does not end there. beijing has also reported to be courting the vatican state as well as several of taiwan's supporters in latin america. that may explain the taiwanese president's tour of nicaragua, i do risk, el salvador and guatemala. but planned stopovers in the us are raising eyebrows in

beijing. donald trump spoke directly with the taiwan president over the phone, breaking decades of us protocol. she's not the first taiwan president—elect stopovers in the us. they are one of the few ways a taiwanese leader can stick in meetings with us officials. donald trump has not ruled out a face—to—face meeting with her after he takes over at the white house. china will be keenly watching every minute of the taiwanese leader's time in the us to see what that will mean for the delicate balance of relations between all three players. you are watching you stay on the bbc. still to come: china's great wall like you have never seen before. we meet the man whose obsession with it turned into a 30,000 kilometrejourney. also coming up on a 30,000 kilometrejourney. also coming up on a programme: 30,000 kilometrejourney. also coming up on a programme: inspired

of the huge blockbusters, it has generally been a rather lazy year at the chinese box office. we will be finding out why. the japanese people are mourning, following the death of emperor hirohito. thousands converged on the imperial palace to pay their respects 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. welcome back, you're watching newsday on the bbc. i'm sharanjit leyl in singapore. i'm kasia madera in london. our top stories: america's top intelligence official warns russian cyber attacks pose a major threat to the us, insisting there's no doubt that it tried to interfere with the presidential election. a car bomb in the turkish city of izmir has killed two people. police say they shot dead two militants thought to be behind the attack. a third is still on the run. let's take a look at some front pages from around the world. the international edition of the new york times features china's quest for football glory. china is investing heavily in the game. it has the world's biggest football boarding school that boasts 48 soccer fields.

gulf news talks about friendly phantoms in one of swedish royal family's palaces. sweden's longest serving queen sylvia says she has personally experienced many ghosts in drottningholm palace. but they are pretty nice, according to her. japan times carries a picture of a pricey huge fish and its flamboyant owner. the self—styled owner of one of japan's famous sushi restaurant chains, kiyoshi kimura, nicknamed "tuna king," has paid over $600,000 for this 212 kilogram bluefin tuna. and that brings you up to date with the papers. now, kasia, what stories are sparking discussions online?

yes, sharanjit, let's look at what is trending right now. these images are absolutely gorgeous. a five—month—old baby elephant has been taking a dip in a swimming pool in thailand. it's part of a long rehabilitation process to heal her injured foot. ba by farjam's front left leg was caught in a trap in november and although it healed, she refused to put any weight on it. it's hoped this treatment will prevent her from having to use a prosthetic leg. oh, bless her! his days in office are numbered, and this week barack obama has been working hard to ensure his legacy. but for the outgoing president's half—sister, the end of his administration is as much about family as it policy. maya soetoro—ng grew up with mr obama in hawaii, and tells the bbc about their younger days, and what he'll do when he leaves the oval office. growing up, mum certainly gave us a

wide range of tools to become the people who we are. that being said, my brother was kind of a regular guy who loved his friends, who body surfed and who played basketball. i think that hawaii has given my brother a sort of laid—back attitude and an ease within himself. he wasn't a candidate for school president or anything like that, he didn't have at least vocalised aspirations for that level of civic engagement, and it wasn't until later that he became a little more serious, he became aware, after moving to la and then new york, i think of the challenges that we face asa think of the challenges that we face as a country, as a people and community, and sought to find remedies and think about his place in his community and the country and the world. election night was surreal. i will never forget who

this victory truly belongs to. it belongs to you. it belongs to you. that night i could see all the faces looking at him and they were inspired, it cited, it was quite awesome to just recognise and understand how palpable their hopes and aspirations for his presidency we re and aspirations for his presidency were “— and aspirations for his presidency were —— excited. i do think that he has changed. he has gotten wiser, he has changed. he has gotten wiser, he has become i thinkjust a deeper version of himself. he obviously knows challenges with greater nuance and depth. he has seen a lot of suffering and sorrow, whether it was through international disaster or the result of shootings in our country, and those were for him the most terrible days. so, our hearts

are broken today for the parents and grandparents, sisters and brothers of these little children, and for the families of the adults who were lost. he often has said sandy hook was for him the worst day of his presidency. but i would say that he hasn't changed in any fundamental way. in terms of his relationships, who he is as a man, how he communicates, the things that he values, i think that he has remained remarkably unchanged, actually. he will not miss, frankly, the intensity of the spotlight of recent yea rs. intensity of the spotlight of recent years. i think that he'll continue working, he'll write, he'll speak and hopefully he'll get some rest. president obama's half sister, maya soetoro—ng, and her reflections. despite expectations that china

would surpass the us as the world's largest film consumer in 2017, it remains in the number two spot. 2016 turned out to be a bad year at china's box office. even the us—china mega production the great wall, which featured matt damon, and jackie chan's railroad tigers didn't bring back the crowds as much as hoped. for an explanation, we're joined by patrick frater, asia editor of variety, who's in bangkok. now, patrick, despite all these great expectations and big budgets, china's box office not doing as well as hoped. why is that? good morning. you are completely right. the numbers are certainly a slowdown and a bit ofa numbers are certainly a slowdown and a bit of a disappointment for people who thought that the market was going to continue growing at rates of 30% a year, which is what it has been growing out for the last decade. but i think a slowdown was inevitable and expected. what was

not expected was just how quick and how brutal it happened in the middle of 2016. right, now, 2016 was meant to be the year that china was supposed to surpass the us in the film market, with these movies, we will see some clips of the great wall and railroad tigers, so what was the reason behind them not doing as well? well, the market is still a very young and immature market despite its already great size. we've seen huge numbers of cinema is being built. last year there were 10,000 screens built in china alone, which is bigger than most countries have, and so far those have been in the main big cities where the ticket prices are higher. what has been happening in the last couple of yea rs, of happening in the last couple of years, of course, is cinemas have been built in the lower—priced tier

three and four cities, so there is a lower price built into the system, so we saw an interesting technical factor in that a lot of tickets are sold in china online and there was competition between cinema ticketing agencies using subsidies to attract consumers. well, media, they cut back on their subsidies, which therefore made the tickets higher priced, and made going to the cinema less of a discretionary experience. all right, well, hopefully they will be heading back to the cinemas this year. thank you so much forjoining us. well, we saw the great wall of china in cinematic form, get ready to see some photos. you're about to meet william lindsey and see how his lifelong obsession with the great wall became a 15,000 kilometrejourney. drone photography done by his sons brought him a whole new understanding of the great wall. let's take a look. the great wall is an amazing sight

and it deserves to be shown in its best light. some incredible pictures there. you have been watching newsday. stay with us. we will be taking a look at donald trump's latest controversial tweet. this time he takes a swipe at toyota for its factory plans in mexico. and i'll tell you what, we are really spoiling you with some fantastic images here today on newsday. it's the ice and snow festival which has kicked off in harbin, one of the coldest cities in china. it includes a spectacular display of ice sculptures. visitors have been flocking to the city to enjoy attractions such as the ice slides. last year it brought him 1 million tourists. thanks for watching.

hello there, good morning. yesterday morning we saw the lowest temperature so far in england this winter, we got to —8 in rural oxfordshire. this morning the frost is nowhere near as widespread. there will be some across the south—eastern quarter of the uk but the further west you go a lot more cloud and that cloud is bringing at least some rain and it is also helping to get the temperatures up, seven or eight degrees to start the day in glasgow and belfast. but it will be quite west in the western side of scotland, the eastern side faring better, still cloudy and murky northern ireland first thing this morning. some are infringing into the western side of england and wales. not quite into cornwall and devon at this stage so it is largely dry here. had further east and not just cold and frosty, there will be some patches of fog and some of the fog will be slow to clear and it could be quite dense in places, so buried in mind if heading out on the

roads some fog in eastern anglia, chilly here. chilly here across northern england but a fair bit of cloud and just a little bit of rain first thing. now the main area of rain will topple its way further south and east with through the day, south and east with through the day, so it will eventually get down to the midlands, light and patchy rain here into the afternoon but it never really gets to east anglia and the south—east, here it will stay fairly cloudy into the afternoon with some brea ks cloudy into the afternoon with some breaks but it is also where we see the lowest temperatures. further west mild aircoming the lowest temperatures. further west mild air coming from the atla ntic west mild air coming from the atlantic could get into double figures. and that mild air, the less cold air comes in from the atlantic on the westerly breeze, forcing patchy rain across some parts first thing on saturday but actually into the weekend a lot less cold than what we have seen recently but a lot of cloud across most places through the weekend and a little bit of patchy rain and drizzle but certainly not a wash out, just grey skies. so we do see a lot of cloud on saturday a little bit of rain here and there, maybe a few breaks in the cloud, top temperatures around ten or 11 degrees, so something a lot less cold coming

into the united kingdom but we've got this cold northerly wind across central and eastern parts of europe and it really will be a very cold weekend through the balkans, it could go as low as —10, that'll be daytime temperatures, so contrast across europe this weekend. second pa rt across europe this weekend. second part of the weekend back on our shaws looks like the first part of the weekend, a lot of cloud, not much rain but there will be some and temperatures peaking at around nine or10 temperatures peaking at around nine or 10 degrees and then into the early pa rt or 10 degrees and then into the early part of the coming week we start to see something unsettled developing, and whether phone hacking its way south and east across the uk, and know the isobars on the chart, it will be quite windy, the rain start in england and northern ireland and then a steady progress south and eastwards across the rest of the uk. this is bbc world news. america's top intelligence chief says there is no doubt russia tried to interfere in the us presidential election. appearing before a senate committee, james clapper also warned russian

cyber attacks posed a major threat to the us and beyond. a car bomb in the turkish city of izmir has killed two people. police say they shot dead two militants thought to be behind the attack. a third is still on the run. this video is trending on the run. this video is trending on bbc. it is the ice and snow festival in one of china's coldest cities. visitors have been flocking there to enjoy attractions such as there to enjoy attractions such as theice there to enjoy attractions such as the ice slides. the festival runs for 60 days and enjoys several million tourists each year. that is all from me. stay with us on bbc world news. goodbye. coming up next on bbc news, it is time for hardtalk.