this is bbc news. i'm lukwesa burak. the headlines at 2pm? six people have died after a seaplane crashed into a river in australia — it's thought four of the victims may be british. the plane has hit the water and has subsequently sunk. it is sitting in approximately 13 litres of water. sydney becomes the second major city after auckland to usher in the new year with a traditionally spectacular display on the city's harbour bridge. theresa may and jeremy corbyn reflect on the past twelve months and look ahead to 2018 in their new year's messages. making a success of brexit is crucial but it will not be the limit of our ambitions. we also have to carry on making a difference here and now on the issues that matter to people's daily lives. we are the

government in waiting host the conservatives are weak, divided and stuck in and out dated rot. and i will be looking back any momentous yearin will be looking back any momentous year in politics that saw the brexit negotiations getting under way and the snap general election. good afternoon. a seaplane has crashed into a river near sydney, killing all six people on board. reports suggest four of the victims are british, although this has not been confirmed by police. the foreign office here is in contact with officials in australia. the aircraft — on a sightseeing trip ahead of the new year celebrations — came down in a river close

to the suburb of cowan. ian palmer reports. police divers have spent the day searching for bodies. the seaplane is underwater. the party was returning from a trip to a restaurant, before crashing into the river. six people were on board. for reasons that are not known at this stage, the plane has hit the water and it has subsequently sunk. it is sitting in approximately 13 metres of water. at the time of the collision, the plane had a pilot and five passengers on board. i can confirm the six people on the plane are deceased. the aircraft crashed just after three in the afternoon, local time. it is operated by the company sydney seaplanes. a major tourfirm, it offers many sightseeing trips across australia. in a statement the company says: sydney seaplanes is deeply shocked by this incident and the resulting

loss of life. we wish to pass on our heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of the passengers and pilot who were tragically killed. an eyewitness says he saw the single—engine plane make a tight turn before dipping its wings and nosediving into the water. police have recovered six bodies from the wreckage. their identities have yet to be confirmed. people in the area of hawkesbury river described the flying conditions just before the crash happened. a little bit bumpy coming over with the weather, but it was nothing to be concerned about. like, i mean, iwasn‘t frightened. there are unconfirmed reports that four people from britain are among the dead. the foreign office says officials from the british consulate are in contact with local authorities. it says staff are ready to provide consular assistance. ian palmer, bbc news. an eyewitness said that it took a

tight right—hand turn and nosedived into the river north of sydney. a full—scale search was under way but there was no survivors. australian police divers saying that they have recovered six bodies. on—board the cpa by passengers and the prevalent. they were leaving the seaplane —— a restau ra nt they were leaving the seaplane —— a restaurant at jerusalem be they were leaving the seaplane —— a restaurant atjerusalem be on the way to rosebery in sydney harbour. this was a journey that would normally take about 20 minutes. australian police say they will not be speculating on media reports that four of the victims were british national is another one of the passengers was an 11—year—old boy. we do know that you crash investigators from the australian transport safety bureau and expected at the accident site early on new

year's day. their job at the accident site early on new year's day. theirjob is to piece together the last moments of the seaplane and to establish how and why an aircraft on a routine flight from a beautiful wilderness area on the hot the river to sydney harbour should end in catastrophe. auckland in new zealand became the first major city to celebrate the beginning of 2018. the city put on its traditional firework display from the auckland sky tower. around 3,000 fireworks lit up the night sky, lasting for more than five minutes. next it was australia's turned to usherin next it was australia's turned to usher in the new year with a spectacular display on sydney's harbour bridge. five, four, three, two, one. that was sydney harbour bridge

celebrating bringing in 2018. we will be covering many of the large cities around the world as the usher in the next year. i think later we will be heading to japan and your cole hammer to see how they celebrates 2018. here, the metropolitan police say a ‘proportionate' number of officers will be on london's streets this evening to ensure the safety of new year revellers. scotland yard say there is no intelligence to suggest any threat against the celebrations in central london or anywhere else. a spokesman said there would be a visible police presence and gave this advice to people coming to celebrate. if you are coming to this particular event, only, the ticket. there will not be tickets available on the

door, as it were. they will be lots of people here but we don't want to be overcrowded if we can help it. for those people wishing to come to central london, wrap up warm, it is chilly. if you're coming on transport, plan your journey, chilly. if you're coming on transport, plan yourjourney, it is never easy to travel through london on new year's eve. if you are meeting people, set yourself up with a prearranged meeting place so people do not get lost. be reassured that the metropolitan police service and partners are here to look after you. it is set to come to london on this new year's eve. be alert but don't be alarmed. if things look out of place or are suspicious, please tell us. thousands of rail travellers face disruption to theirjourneys today as workers from two train companies stage 24—hour strikes. members of the rmt union on south western railway and crosscountry are taking action in disputes involving the role of guards, and rosters and sunday working. anisa kadri is at london busiest station waterloo for us now. trains are running from here to

places like berkshire, surrey and hampshire. there are also posters up in that station behind me warning of disruption. there are reduced services running according to south western railway. most posters it is written that they are expecting it to be particularly busy deceiving. new year's eve this evening which means you might know what you are doing but do you know how you will get there and how you will get back? if you are using the station, according to south western railway, they will running a reduced service on most lines and are expecting one quarter of trains not to run. the quarters of trains will be running. it is not just quarters of trains will be running. it is notjust heard that there is disruption. it is also happening on the cross—country network. that

network means services between edinburgh and newcastle are limited. as for between aberdeen and glasgow, they are not running at all. the advice is to check for updates. this strike action is expected today and is expected to continue into the new year. it is over the role of guards on trains and rmt union members who are striking, they believe the driver only trains are unsafe. the government says this willjust cause misery for passengers on new year's eve. bulgarian authorities have restricted access to the application telegram. two protesters had been killed in dorud. the died of gunshot

wounds but denied that the police offered —— open fire. the protests have spread to several major cities including tehran. a crack of gunshots as panic ripples the a crowd in the western city dorud. later, a wounded man is carried through the streets. it is being reported a number of people have been killed following an escalation of violence and three days of unrest. late into the night, demonstrators attacked targets with links to the government and the ruling clerical elite. in karamabad, the governor's office was burned. in the northern city of a mashhad, police motorbikes were set alight while crowds taunted the security services. what started as a provincial protest about rocketing prices has become

deeply political and moved to the capital tehran, where offices were pelted with stones near the main university. riot police were used to quell the disturbance. this video shows a baby being taken to hospital, apparently suffering from the effects of tear gas. it is thought the iranian authorities have reacted by cutting access to the internet in many cities, especially to mobile phones. iranian officials have vowed on state tv to double their efforts to resolve the economic problems and ploughed ahead with commemorative pro—government rallies on saturday. but further protests are expected over the coming days and experts say opposing the islamic republic will be a colossal challenge. do not underestimate the repressive capability of the revolutionary guards, the resiliency of the islamic republic.

this regime is well institutionalised in iran and can deal with protest movement such as the one that we have witnessed in the past few days. iran's ultraconservative regime is facing its biggest threat in nearly a decade, but what lengths will it go to to survive? with me is bbc persian tv correspondent kasra naji. everybody is watching events taking place in iran. we have from donald trump saying that we are watching and we're hearing from borisjohnson saying we are watching. how helpful are those comments to people in the streets in iran? i think it would be generally seen by the demonstrators asa sign generally seen by the demonstrators as a sign of encouragement. a positive sign. they would like it so that other of these powers outside

the country will support them in a sense. the authorities, the government, the leaders of iran will be very angry. they will see this as interferon mint in iran's internal affairs. —— interferon mint. interferon mint in iran's internal affairs. -- interferon mint. we have not heard from help from the prime minister. what is he likely to say? i have no idea, we have to wait and see. there was a news item that he would speak today and then they cancel that and the newsagency degree the news item. and they have came up with the same thing. it looks as if there is quite a bit of doubt about the effect of his speech. he is going ahead it looks

like. he have to try to, i suppose, too, the situation rather than the provoke of the situation. given the fa ct provoke of the situation. given the fact that iranians, the anti—government demonstrators, have been denouncing him on the streets in the last few days, i am not sure whether he is in a good place to try to placate the demonstrators, tried to placate the demonstrators, tried to calm down these protests. to placate the demonstrators, tried to calm down these protestsm to placate the demonstrators, tried to calm down these protests. it is not just to calm down these protests. it is notjust him to calm down these protests. it is not just him that to calm down these protests. it is notjust him that is being denounced. significantly, we are also hearing the criticism of the supreme leader and there is the question now of when will i get to see the appearance of the revolutionary guards. do you think it will go that far? the revolutionary guards have held back so far. i do surprised by that?

iam. there back so far. i do surprised by that? i am. there is not even a statement from them as an organisation. we had some commanders saying this that, but they have not issued a statement, they have not come out on the streets to deal with the protests in a way that we expected. a very high—handed way, beating people up, trying to disperse the crowds in various parts of the country. they have not done that, andi country. they have not done that, and i assume they have done that for fear of provoking demonstrators and protesters. but they will do that. the supreme leader of the iran has not said anything either. people on the streets have been calling for him to step down, the end of the clerical regime in iran, basically calling for the overthrow of the government. he has not said anything. we will have to wait and see what line he will take. generally, when you hear the politicians, the ha rdliners, generally, when you hear the politicians, the hardliners, even the reformers, islamic reformers, islamic hardliners, speaking these

days, they seem to agree that we have to acknowledge that there is widespread discontent, particularly on economic issues. can the people of iran really achieve change on the street? difficult to say. i do not know where this is going to go. nobody seems to know. we have not been here before. these are very spread out through the country, even in small town dail. wejust spread out through the country, even in small town dail. we just have to wait and see how this is going to develop. —— in small towns. wait and see how this is going to develop. -- in small towns. thank you very much. the headlines. police have confirmed that six people have been killed after a seaplane crashed into a river north of sydney. there are reports that four of the victims may be british. fireworks and

festivities are sure in the new year. sydney becomes the second major city to welcome 2018 with a spectacular display on the city's harbour bridge. after three days of political protest, iran's revolutionary guards warned demonstrators they face the nation's i fist. a photo of a man found collapsed outside a hospital in london has been released in a bid to find his family. the man has been placed in an induced, —— an induced coma at university college hospital, having suffered a heart attack on boxing day afternoon. his condition is described as life—threatening and the metropolitan police wants to trace his family "as soon as possible". criminal gangs who claim benefits under a false identity are to be targeted by the government using artificial intelligence. the department for work and pensions says it will use sophisticated computer programming to detect fraud taking place to claim universal credit and jobseeker‘s allowance.

political leaders have been reflecting on the past 12 months in their new year's messages, with theresa may calling 2017 a "year of progress" for the uk. the labour leader, jeremy corbyn, said the hope of a new britain is closer than ever. with more here's our political correspondent, emma va rdy. after a political year dominated by brexit, it's no surprise the subject played a key part in theresa may's new year's message. she said the government has pursued our brexit objectives with steady purpose and progress will continue in 2018 as the talks move on to trade. but not for the first time, theresa may made clear she wants to be more than madame brexit. making a success of brexit is crucial but it will not be the limit of our ambitions. we also have to carry on making a difference here and now

on the issues that matter to people's daily lives. that means building an economy fit for the future and taking a balanced approach to government spending. so we get our debt falling but can also invest in the things that matter — our schools, our police and our precious nhs. mrs may says next year we will continue the fight against all forms of extremism and she believes 2018 can be a year of renewed pride in our country. meanwhile, the tone ofjeremy corbyn's address was rather different. he said we are being held back by a self—serving elite and pointed to the gains labour made at the general election, saying this was a year when people said, "no more." the old political consensus is finished. we are staking out the new centre ground in british politics, backing the things that most people want but are blocked by vested interests. we are a government in waiting while the conservatives are weak, divided and stuck in an outdated rut

with no new ideas. the hope of a new britain, which runs in the interests of the many, not the few, seems closer than ever before. the new year messages brought to a close what has been politically dramatic 12 months. emma vardy, bbc news. the un secretary—general has called for global unity in his new year's message. antonio guterres urged leaders to bring people together around common goals. he also expressed his concerns about deepening conflicts and violations of human rights. on new year's day 2018, i am not issuing an appeal, i am issuing an alert, a red alert for our world. conflicts have deepened and new dangers have emerged. alert, a red alert for our world. conflicts have deepened and new dangers have emerged. alert, a red alert for our world.

conflicts have deepened and new dangers have emerged. global anxieties about nuclear weapons are the highest since the cold war and climate change is moving faster than we are. inequalities are growing and we see horrific violations of human rights, nationalism and xenophobia on the rise, and as we begin 2018, i call for unity. i truly believe we can make our world more safe and secure, we can settle conflicts, overcome hatred and defend shared values, but we can only do that together. at least 36 people have died in a head—on collision between a lorry and a bus in kenya. police say the incident took place on a notoriously dangerous stretch of the main road between eldoret and nakuru. it's believed that over 100 people have died in the same area on the highway in recent weeks. south korean authorities have seized a second ship suspected of supplying oil to north korea in violation of international sanctions. the panama—flagged tanker is being held at a port near the western city of pyeongtaek.

south korea has already impounded a hong kong—registered ship, the lighthouse winmore, that it suspects of secretly transferring 600 tonnes of refined oil to a north korean vessel. the sacked president of catalonia, carles puigdemont, has used a new year message to urge the spanish government to reinstate his regional government. elections a week ago gave pro—independence parties a slim majority. mr puigdemont insisted he was still the president of catalonia but spain's prime minister, mariano rajoy, described the claim as absurd. bill hayton reports. carles puigdemont is a fugitive in exile. he still faces criminal charges in spain over catalonia's unilateral declaration of independence. but regional elections ten days ago gave a narrow victory to the separatists and mr puigdemont insists that means he's still the rightful leader of catalonia. translation: the spanish government

has a new opportunity to behave as the european democracy it claims to be, and therefore recognise the results of the elections that took place on december the 21st, and in this way to start a political negotiation with the legitimate government of catalonia. but the spanish authorities are showing no signs of compromise. the charges remain in place, and speaking on friday, the spanish prime minister dismissed as absurd the idea that mr puigdemont might try to lead a new catalan government from abroad. translation: i will no longer give you a legal reply. i will give you reply based on solid common sense. it is absurd to try to be a president of a region while living abroad. it makes no sense at all. catalonia is currently without leaders. the prime minister wants the new regional parliament

to convene on the 17th january, but that is only the first step in what is likely to be a drawn—out process to form a government. technology is giving historians a new insight into everyday life in ancient egypt. researchers at university college london have developed scanning techniques that show what is written on the papyrus that a sarcophagus case is made from. our science correspondent pallab ghosh has this exclusive report. the hieroglyphics found in the tombs of the pharaohs show the lives of the ancient egyptians, but the paintings are what the rich and powerful wanted the people to know. they are the propaganda of their time. but now there's a wealth of information about ordinary people being discovered using a new scientific technique. with a specially—modified camera, researcher cerys jones takes photos of a mummy‘s case at chiddingstone castle in kent.

you can't see anything with the naked eye, but using infrared, a name is revealed, irethoreru. a common name in ancient egypt. it is a stephen or david of its time. it is amazing. everyone in the room gasped and people jumped up and ran for the computer, because in that one image, you could read it. these scraps of papyrus are more than 2,000 years old. they were recycled to make the breastplate that covered a mummified body. the writing is obscured by the plaster and paste that hold them together, but researchers can see what lies beneath by scanning them with different kinds of light which makes the inks glow. these now constitute one of the best libraries we have of waste papyrus that otherwise would have been thrown away, so it includes things like tax receipts, and everyday information that we would nowadays throw away. back then, they would have thrown it away, but fortunately it was recycled into these objects. our knowledge of ancient egypt is through the eyes of pharaohs

and the very wealthy who were buried with their possessions, but this new imaging technique is enabling researchers to find out about the lives of ordinary egyptians. until now, the only way to see what was written on the papyrus was to destroy these masks, leaving egyptologists with a dilemma. do they destroy these precious objects or do they keep them untouched, leaving the stories within them untold ? i am really horrified when i see objects like these papyri cartonnage being destroyed in order to get at the text inside. they are finite resources and we now have the technology to both preserve those beautiful, precious objects that tell us about ways of dying, but also looking inside them in order to understand the ways that the egyptians lived. there are hundreds of cases and masks that can be scanned, each one telling its own individual story of everyday life in ancient egypt.

pallab ghosh, bbc news. as we head into the new year, darren bett has the all—important weather forecast. thanks very much. good afternoon. storm dylan is heading out of the way into the north sea so we are starting to see the winds easing down. it is a little chilly this afternoon and it was this morning. we are seeing lots of showers coming in, possibly heavy, possibly with hail and thunder. we will pick up winds with these in the south—west, driving the niece during the evening. if you are seeing in the evening. if you are seeing in the new year, expect showers around. probably drive in the north—east of scotla nd probably drive in the north—east of scotland and north east of england for a time. winds lighter than they we re for a time. winds lighter than they were today. we have some sunshine and showers might as we head into the new year but the spell of rain in the morning, running east across

southern parts of england and wales, then a slice of sunshine, before the winds blog in showers the western scotland, northern england, and north wales. temperatures tomorrow lower than today. around 8 degrees, typicalfor lower than today. around 8 degrees, typical for the lower than today. around 8 degrees, typicalfor the time of lower than today. around 8 degrees, typical for the time of year. a cold night to come tomorrow night and a very wet and windy week ahead. this is bbc news, our latest headlines. a seaplane has crashed into a river north of sydney, killing all six people on board. police say the aircraft was on a sightseeing flight ahead of new year celebrations at sydney harbour when it came down. there are unconfirmed reports that four of the victims may be british. fireworks and festivities usher in new year — sydney becomes the second major city to welcome 2018 — with a spectacular display on the city's harbour bridge. iran imposes restrictions on social

media after demonstrations against the ruling clerics continue. political leaders have delivered their messages. theresa may says that britons will feel renewed