welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. my name is mike embley. our top stories: donald trump lashes out at his own party — after the republicans‘ shock defeat in alabama. a lot of republicans feel differently. they are happy with how this turned out. but as a leader of the party, i would have liked to have had the seat. the ayes to the right — 309. the noes to the left — 305. the british government loses a key vote in parliament on brexit — just before a crucial eu summit. and we have a special report from the democratic republic of congo where violence could be pushing the country into famine. and — up, up and away — how prisoners in the uk used remote—controlled drones to smuggle drugs inside. hello.

the democrat doug jones has spoken of a new momentum in american politics. his surprise win in the alabama special election is the first time the conservative southern state has sent a democrat to the senate in 25 years. mr trump has been distancing himself from the defeated republican candidate, who he endorsed during the campaign, but the loss complicates the president's chances of passing major legislation. alabama's new senator—elect has said he wants to work with politicians from both parties. i want to sit down with folks from both sides of the aisle, both sides of the issue. i think that's where the problem is. i want to talk to people from both sides of the issue, notjust political parties, to learn what they can and make an informed decision. the result hasn'tjust shifted the political landscape in alabama, it might have impact across the country, as the bbc‘s nick bryant reports. amidst all the noise and rage

of american politics, it's worth remembering elections are often decided in quiet suburbs. that was true in alabama, where moderate republicans didn't turn out for their party's radical, scandal—hit candidate, and where many don't much like donald trump either. it's a rejection of donald trump. tracy james is a lifelong republican, who yesterday went democrat. it was also a protest vote against the president. i do think donald trump has a problem in the republican suburbs. you don't know what's going to come out of his mouth next. you don't know whether we're going to go to war with north korea. you don't know if he's going to insult a woman in congress. i think they're very uncomfortable with that. modern—day democrats aren't supposed to win in staunchly conservative states like alabama. it hasn't happened here for 25 years. no wonder the blizzard of confetti. alabama has been at a crossroads. it has been at crossroads

in the past and unfortunately, we have usually taken the wrong fork. tonight, ladies and gentlemen, you took the right road. the losing republican candidate, roy moore, thought he was on his way to washington, but he was hit by allegations, which he denies, of sexual misconduct against teenage girls and shunned by senior figures in the republican establishment. that's where the anger of his dejected supporters was directed. it's really sad for the people of alabama what took place in this state tonight. you think you've been betrayed by the republican establishment? absolutely, no doubt about that. # you can't always get what you want #. it's true, you can't always get what you want. a lesson for donald trump, who has strongly backed roy moore. so get out and vote for roy moore. do it.

so this is a big black eye for the president and also a failure of the trump political playbook, to deny accusations of wrongdoing as fake news and to attack accusers. with a republican majority in the senate reduced to a single seat, it will be even harderfor the president to enact his stalled legislative agenda. the democrats hope this result is indicative of an anti—trump wave which will help win them back capitol hill in next year's congressional elections. this senate race doubled as a battle for the soul of the republican movement and thus marked a defeat for conservative insurgents against the party establishment. that too is a setback for donald trump and his unorthodox brand of politics. the british prime minister, theresa may has suffered a significant defeat in parliament over her brexit plans. rebel members of parliament from her own conservative party put forward an amendment, that means the government will have

to put the final brexit deal through full parliamentary scrutiny. this is how the result was announced — and it was close. the ayes to the right — 309. the noes to the left — 305. 0ur political correspondent, alex forsyth said the result is a blow to theresa may's authority. it's a blow for her authority, because it shows she can't get everything she wants to through the houses of parliament without being challenged, and sometimes by mps on her own side. and this comes just before she goes to brussels tomorrow to meet other eu leaders, so it's unwelcome timing. the government did all it could today to stop this happening. but it's worth saying this was a very narrow vote. there were just four votes in it, and there were 11 conservatives that voted against the government. so the numbers aren't huge, but what it really highlights is, because there was a general election injune in the uk, theresa may lost her majority

in parliament, and that means she has to rely on every vote, which shows just how tight the parliamentary maths is, how she is beholden to mps on her own side, and other parties, which of course makes her position in these negotiations with brussels very difficult. and tonight, we've seen it play out, the impact that can have. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news: the us federal reserve has agreed to raise interest rates by a quarter of percentage point — the third rate rise this year. policymakers say it underscores what they called a solid gains in the us economy. the fed also boosted its economic forecasts projecting growth of 2.5% in gdp in 2017 and 2018. the vice—president of ecuador has been sentenced to six years in prison in connection with corruption at the brazilian construction firm, 0debrecht. prosecutors sayjorge glas took $13.5 million in bribes. he's the highest ranking politician to be convicted in the scandal. mr glas says there was no evidence against him. benjamin neta nyahu says

he is unimpressed by statements at a gathering of muslim nations. it follows bitter criticism of president trump's recognition ofjerusalem as israel's capital. the palestinian leader, mahmoud abbas, told the meeting that his people would no longer accept an american role in the peace process. hundreds of thousands of people — most of them children — face starvation in the democratic republic of congo. the crisis is centred on the central kasai region where fighting erupted last year following the killing of a traditional leader in clashes with security forces. since then anti—government factions have been locked in a spiral of violence with government troops and otherforces backed by kinshasa. the bbc‘s africa editor, fergal keane has gained rare access to this unfolding tragedy. some parts of his report are distressing. has envelooped kasai.

in a place so green, a land so fertile, a manmade hunger has envelooped kasai. we walked for three months to get here. my heart was full of sadness what i saw my daughter sick. children make up the majority of the nearly 1.5 million people displaced here. it began injune last year after a local chief rebelled against a corrupt and brutal government. he was killed. in the terror that followed, both sides committed atrocities. translation: we were sleeping when they entered our place and asked who are all these people sleeping here? we can kill the men who are here and then after killing them we will tell our chiefs and show off how many people we have killed in this village. a nurse points to the swelling caused by malnutrition. by pressing the skin,

he can assess the severity of the condition. imagine walking on these legs. with the worst fighting over, people are returning to their villages. but they find homes burned, property looted. translation: we were starving, for we have no food. we headed to the main road to look for food but there was nobody. 0nly dead bodies. then, a young woman, weakened by disease. she has been taken home to die. at this food distribution, only half rations were being given out. the world food programme is running out of money to feed the hungry and is warning that many will die without international support. money that may have helped provide nutrition and healthcare has been stolen by a corrupt elite, aided by foreign corporations. this is the heart of the matter.

as i put it to the governor. as a government official do you any sense of shame about the looting of the corruption that has helped to bring your people to this misery? translation: this concept of corruption cannot be challenged. but it should not be tied to congo or africa and use it to justify the absence of action. the most important thing is that when you give money you get some guarantee that this money is well used. this is the government run hospital in the second city of the province. this three—year—old has just passed away. a distraught mother waits for news of another sick child. and a lullaby as tiny lungs fight to survive. just some lives from so many here, hanging in the balance. european leaders are to meet

in brussels on thursday to discuss the issue of migration. the talks are expected to focus on extra funding to stem the flow of people from sub—saharan africa. it comes as more than 100 men and women were rescued from a sinking boat off the coast of libya as they attempted to cross to italy. the number of people migrants in the mediterranean has passed 3000 for the fourth year in a row. andrew plant reports. soaked through, shoeless and limping along. 114 migrants all from sub—saharan africa rescued off the libyan coast as their boat began to sink beneath the water. we almost died, you know. thanks to the libyan navy helped us out of the sea. 0ur boat almost capsized. we lost everything, it break in the middle,

we thoughy all of us were going to die. these people had been on their way to europe, their boat thought to have left the coast of libya about 100km east of tripoli towards the town of misrata. they'll now be moved to detention centres outside the capital. almost 1,000 migrants arrived in sicily over the past few days, successfully crossing the mediterranean. it's estimated around 3,000 have died on the same journey. those that succeed often complain of mistreatment at the hands of libyan guards. meanwhile, this detention centre in benghazi, libya's second largest city, is restocking for the winter season with blankets and mattresses in preparation for more arrivals. the policy here is to repatriate the men, women and children who arrive. more than 4,000 sent back to their home countries this year. translation: there are still some

nationalities that are difficult to deport, such as somalians, if europeans and eritreans because of the problems in their countries. but other nationalities are being deported everyone's in a while. around 164,000 migrants have arrived in europe in 2017, that's less than half the number last year. at its height in 2015, the number was more than a million. but with southern european countries still bearing the brunt, all 28 eu leaders are due to discuss the issue at talks in brussels on thursday. andrew plant, bbc news. stay with us on bbc news — still to come: a whole new ball game — how rugby is making inroads in a country that is devoted to football. after eight months on the run, saddam hussein has been tracked down

and captured by american forces. saddam hussein is finished because he killed our people, our women, our children. the signatures took only a few minutes but they brought a formal end to 3.5 years of conflict that has claimed over 200,000 lives. before an audience of world leaders, the presidents of serbia, bosnia and croatia put their names to the peace agreement. the romanian border was sealed and silent today. romania has cut itself off from the outside world in order to prevent the details of the presumed massacre in timisoara from leaking out. from sex at the white house to a trial for his political life. the monica lewinsky affair tonight guaranteed bill clinton in his place in history as only the second president to be impeached. this is bbc news.

the latest headline: president trump is distancing himself from the controversial republican candidate roy moore after his loss in the alabama senate election. well, for more on this, i spoke a little earlier to republican pollster whit ayres, who told me voting patterns in alabama's special election should concern republicans. roy moore was a particularly toxic candidate. but there are still disturbing candidates for republicans, the kinds of people who voted for roy moore in alabama at the same kinds of people who voted for the democratic candidate

governor in virginia. that is especially true of college—educated suburban women. the pattern is disturbing. that does not mean republicans will lose the house or the senate next year. midterm elections in america are always difficult for the party in power, and next year looks to be very challenging for republicans. there are worries about that, aren't there? although mr trump says now, and whatever he said before the campaign got going, he backed roy moore quite publicly as did steve bannon and the national committee. is it possible we are reaching the limits of the effectiveness of the donald trump approach? well, both roy moore and donald trump, as well as steve bannon as chief strategist, have followed a strategy of appealing to a very narrow slice of the electorate. and i think we saw with roy moore's loss yesterday the limits of that strategy. chris kofinis is ceo of park street strategies, a research firm in washington, dc. i asked him whether the vote was a sign of things to come for the republicans. i don't want to exaggerate

the significance, but you have to understand and appreciate that this is an incredible body blow not only to the republican party, but to donald trump. one thing that surely is significant, chris, in alabama is a significant demonstration of the power of the black vote, when people can get to the polls and are actually allowed to vote. what does that tell you? well, what's interesting i think about alabama — you've got two dynamics. on one side, you have a very flawed candidate, who depressed his base's turnout. but, on the other side, you had an incredibly excited democratic base. the african—american turnout was incredibly significant. you know, i am very close to the folks that ran the jones campaign. they were not expecting, even though they were incredibly aggressive in terms of their grassroots turnout efforts, they were not expecting the turnout to be close to 30%. and that's what some of the exit polls had, in terms of the african—american vote. you had significant gains in terms of women, young people. so, if you're looking forward

to 2018, from the democratic party's perspective, they see that as the type of energy, excitement, that you want in your base in a mid—term election, considering that a mid—term election is more about the base, whether republicans and democrats turn out, than it is about winning over independents and swing voters. here in the uk, eight people have been sentenced for smuggling drugs into prisons by using drones. police have identified at least 49 drone flights carrying contraband thought to have been worth as much as $1.6 million. daniel sandford has the story. cameras, originally set up to take pictures of wildlife, catching instead britain's most prolific drone smuggling gang, recording the pilot, mervyn foster, time and again flying the drone from the field outside hewell prison in worcestershire, its illegal cargo hanging underneath on fishing line. from the field, the smugglers had a view directly into the jail and the prison block, where the drone's cargo was pulled in through the windows. over the months, the gang grew

in confidence and sophistication. they had started by simply throwing the drugs over the prison wall. but then they started using drones, and they added to the contraband — mobile phones, weapons, screwdrivers and even a freeview box with a remote control. cameras inside the prison caught one of the ringleaders, john hickinbottom, with an improvised hook used to catch the fishing line and recover the contra band. the gang, led by armed robber craig hickinbottom, is thought to have smuggled in over £1 million worth of drugs and phones, continuing even after they had been arrested and charged. the contents of the loads, on at least 49 flights, were specifically ordered by individual inmates from the midlands to scotland. the recent epidemic of drones being used to airlift contraband into prison grew from nothing injust four years. we didn't see this one come in. so the drones literally came

from nowhere, they were flown in, and it actually just was a game—changer for us. so we had to really look at our systems, our procedures, and our methods of gathering intelligence. and it gave the gangs an opportunity to breach the perimeter and the walls here almost effortlessly. to crack the case, officers downloaded the memories of the drones they seized, and linked that to mobile phone calls the smugglers were making. the prisons minister has had to invest millions of pounds in a new national network of police and prison officers working together, which helped catch this game. what we've shown here is that this is the most prolific gang we've come across, and we've been able to deal with them. they are going to be serving jail time. and that is huge success. but, with huge profits being made by the smuggling gangs, keeping drones away from prisons is going to be a lengthy battle. daniel sandford, bbc news, at hmp hewell in worcestershire. the us federal communication commission is expected to vote

on replacing so—called net neutrality. the proposed plan would allow telecom companies such as verizon and at&t to charge internet sites to deliver their data to consumers' homes. but do we know what it all means? dave lee has been finding out. not good. have you heard of it before? yes. no. the more you pay for internet, the more you have got, or the faster. i don't know anything about net neutrality at all. companies like, cast and all of the other internet providers will put a higher premium content. they are trying to make it so that corporations can make its lower to connect to certain sites. corporations can make its lower to connect to certain siteslj corporations can make its lower to connect to certain sites. i did see that his sonjohn 0liver but i don't rememberall that his sonjohn 0liver but i don't remember all the details about it. in india they have tried to do this

also, and a lot of people don't like it. all internet traffic is treated the same, no matter where it has come from, where it is going or what it is doing. that is something we call net neutrality. internet service providers might be able to intentionally sir dominic slowdown your internet connection unless you pay more for things like internet streaming, or they warned there could be some kind of internet fast lane, where big internet companies could pay to make sure their sites loaded quickly, other smaller sites would be stuck in the slow lane, instead. ok, interesting. it should be fairand instead. ok, interesting. it should be fair and equal for all. basically it is really stripping down our freedoms. i don't think it should be different for different websites. as faras larger different for different websites. as far as larger companies being able to have access to their content a

little easier, notched so sure i agree with that —— i'm not so sure i agree with that —— i'm not so sure i agree with that —— i'm not so sure i agree with that. it is the internet. everybody should have access and should have the same speed, no matter what side you are looking at all what side you are going to. we will let you know what happens on that one. in brazil, football is like a religion, the entire country seemingly obsessed with the exploits of the national team. but one of the fastest—growing sports in brazil is rugby, and proponents of the oval—shaped ball are hoping the game can change lives, as tim allman reports. well, that's the question being asked at this favela in rio de janeiro. boys and girls playing a different kind of ballgame, something that took a little getting used to. we arrived four years ago,

with four 0xford rugby players, and the reaction from the kids was obviously, like, "what are you doing here?" this is quite an isolated favela. so there was a mixture of having an oval ball and having four massive rugby players from the uk and one from australia coming, was a bit of a shock. the kids train twice a week, supported by volunteer coaches. but, if they want to play, they have to go to school. this isn't just about sport. it is also about raising ambitions. translation: in brazil, they say for example that because i'm black i'll never manage anything in life, that i'll obviously become a builder or a drug—trafficker. being a builder is a good job, but why can't i become an architect, a doctor, or a lawyer? translation: i find it cool, and it keeps us busy. doing a sport we love, as well as going to school, allows us not to worry about what is going on in the favela.

the team from the favela even get the chance to play against a side from a private school. crossing social divides, improving lives — in brazil, they know how important sport can be. tim allman, bbc news. cricket now, and play is under way on the first day of the third ashes test at the waca, in perth. england are 2—0 down in the five—match series. well, england won the toss, elected to bat, and a few moments ago were 89—2. alastair cook was out for seven. and, before we go, a baby king penguin has made its first public appearance in singapore's jurong bird park. it is the first of its kind to be hatched there in nearly a decade. the two—month—old is called maru, which means "round" injapanese. and this was the first time the adult penguin group have seen maru, and they seemed very curious about their new family member. well, after a very brief mild spell, those temperatures are coming down

again for the next few days, and into the start of the weekend. and, for thursday, it's low pressure which dominates the scene. tightly packed isoba rs across the country meaning fairly windy, and they'll be blowing in lots of showers, particularly to western areas of the country. and these showers will be of a wintry mix during the overnight period and first thing on thursday. some snow to the higher ground of scotland, northern ireland, northern england, wales, maybe the south—west of england, and some wet sleetiness down to lower levels for a time, too. so, first thing on thursday, we are again looking at an ice risk, particularly from the midlands, north wales northwards, so watch out for these. there could even be some lying snow around on some of the higher routes, for example the pennines and across scotland. but we start thursday off on quite an unsettled note. it's going to be windy, particularly across the west, maybe gales in exposure, showers here and wintry over high ground,

wintry showers as well for parts of wales, in towards north—west england. ice to watch out for, too. largely dry to start in eastern and south—eastern parts. there'll be some early sunshine around, but it will be quite chilly. same too east of the pennines, eastern scotland. but further west, loads of showers, and again some heavy, and even some sleetiness down to lower levels as well. and then, through the day, very little change. it stays blustery, i think the winds slowly easing down through the day. they'll continue to be strong across the north, and certainly the south—west, with gales here. plenty of showers, with wintriness again over the higher ground, but central and eastern parts of the country should be drier, with some sunshine. but notice the temperatures down on wednesday's values, in single figures for all. it's going to feel cold if you add on that wind. then, as we head on in towards friday, we open the floodgates again to the arctic, as this area of low pressure moves across in towards scandinavia. so it does mean a cold, frosty start in places for friday, and also a risk of some ice.

but i think, generally speaking, friday is looking like being a quieter day. we should have more in the way of sunshine around, lighter winds for many. still fairly breezy around the coasts, where we'll see some wintry showers at times. now, that cold air is with us obviously through friday and into the start of the weekend. but then, for the second half of the weekend, we'll start to see this plume of milder air slowly making inroads. so it's a cold start saturday — again watch out for some ice. some sunshine around through the morning. i think that's slowly fading as more cloud piles in from the west, maybe with a few showers, and it's going to be another cold day. for sunday, though, there is more cloud generally. i think sunshine will be very few and far between, and there will be a few showers, but that milder air slowly making inroads. this is bbc news. the headlines: the democrat doug jones has spoken of a new momentum in american politics — after he clinched a surprise victory in the alabama senate race. democrats are calling for the postponement of a final vote on president trump's planned tax reform. the president wants that vote to be held next week. the british prime minister theresa

may is preparing to meet european union leaders in brussels — hours after a parliamentary defeat on a key piece of brexit legislation. mps voted to give parliament a legal guarantee of a vote on the final deal. 11 members of her own conservative party rebelled. the united nations is warning that a reduction in the number of peacekeeping troops in the democratic republic of congo is likely to lead to more instability and loss of life. the unfolding humanitarian crisis has lead to severe acute malnutrition affecting hundreds of thousands of children. now on bbc news, hardtalk.