welcome to newsday, live from singapore. the headlines: president trump is criticised by fellow republicans for ordering the immediate withdrawal of us troops from syria. there has been a sharp increase in violence in indian—administered kashmir. more than 500 people killed this year. we have a special report. indian armed forces are fighting what are believed to be two, perhaps three militants who are hiding in there. this gun exchange has just intensified, but the operation has been going on all through the night, for the past 12 hours. i'm babita sharma in london. also in the programme: america's central bank raises interest rates for a fourth time, despite president trump saying it is a mistake. and choosing your login password — the protocols and the pitfalls. we hear the latest advice. live from our studios in singapore and london.

this is bbc world news. it's newsday. good morning. it is 9:00am in singapore, 1:00am in london, and 8:00pm in washington. president trump's announcement that he is withdrawing american forces from syria has been heavily criticised at home and abroad. donald trump asserted on twitter that islamic state militants in the country had been defeated. 0ur correspondent barbara plett usher reports. donald trump promised to withdraw american troops from syria during his presidential campaign, and he has been looking for a way to do that ever since. now, he is declaring "mission accomplished." the white house said troops

would start to come home. it is true the us and its allies have pretty much expelled is from its so—called caliphate, the vast swathes of land it once controlled in iraq and syria. but even without territory, the militants remain a threat, and mr trump's sudden announcement has upended his administration's strategy to prevent them from making a comeback. just last week, his chief envoy said the military needed to stay and help stabilise war—torn areas of syria. i pressed him on that. but the point is the military commitment doesn't end with the end of the caliphate. that's absolutely right. and there's no timeline on it? no timelines. the president's top officials had little to say about this sudden about—face, no details about a timeline, but senators from his party were quick to criticise. the decision to withdraw american — an american presence in syria is a colossal, in my mind, mistake, a grave error, that's going to have

significant repercussions in the years and months to come. isis is not defeated in syria and iraq. i was there just a few months ago. they've been incredibly hurt, and our troops there are an insurance policy against the re—emergence of isis in syria and iraq. and that's not all. a us pullout could endanger its local kurdish allies. they've been leading the fight against the islamic state group, but turkey sees them as terrorists, and has threatened to attack them. a withdrawal would also strengthen russia and iran's influence in syria, when us policy is to weaken it. it seems the president made this decision without considered consultation with those who'd have to carry it out, so the pentagon and state department are scrambling to figure out how they can fit this into their syria strategy. it is not clear what actually is going to happen. what is clear is this

is another example of president trump's disruptive and disorientating approach to policy. barbara plett usher, bbc news, washington. let's take a look at some of the day's other news: the european union has begun activating its plans for a no—deal brexit. the proposals cover 14 areas, including customs, citizens‘ rights, air and land transport and financial services. but brussels says it cannot counter all the problems it expects if the uk leaves the eu without an agreed deal. here is our correspondent adam fleming. it's not really about minimising disruption on the uk side, it's about protecting the eu's vital interests, that they've identified in this contingency planning process. that stuff about truckers — that's so that eu trucks can go into the uk, too. similarly with airlines — it's european airlines still being able to fly to the uk. and that stuff about limited recognition for financial services, that's for financial services that the eu wants to use in london. this is all designed to send a political message to the uk that the only deal is the deal that's on the table, and it's way, way better than any

of this, and that the only way the uk could get that post—brexit transitional implementation period is by signing up to the deal that's on the table. one thing glaringly absent from all this paperwork today — what's the eu going to do on the irish border if there's no deal? also making news today: the us central bank, the federal reserve, has again raised interest rates, despite repeated appeals by president trump not to do so. they have gone up by 0.25%, taking them to 2.5%. the bank's chairman, jerome powell, said he expected rates to increase more slowly next year. we will have much more analysis of that story in asia business report injust under half an hour's time. korean air has been forced to pay nearly $18,000 compensation to a flight attendant who was subjected to abuse in an infamous "nut rage" incident. the daughter of the airline's chairman had forced park chang—jin to apologise on his knees after she was served nuts in a bag rather than a bowl. but the compensation was far less than mr park had asked for. all flights in and out of london gatwick, britains

second—busiest airport, have been suspended after two drones were seen flying near the runway. the airport has apologised for any inconvenience, but said safety was its foremost priority. washington, dc‘s top prosecutor is suing facebook in the first significant us move to punish the firm for its role in the cambridge analytica scandal. other states and federal investigations are considering similar legal action. this comes as facebook is also accused of giving more than 150 other companies access to personal user data — more than previously thought. there has been a sharp increase in violence in indian—administered kashmir in recent weeks. more than 500 people have been killed, including civilians, security forces and militants. the area has long seen conflict between indian forces and armed insurgents backed by pakistani groups, but this year, the cycle of violence has intensified. yogita limaye reports from indian—administered kashmir. behind the fog, a bustling

neighbourhood now a battleground. these sounds have become all too common in the region. a policeman leads us to safety as a bullet flies over us. indian armed forces are fighting what are believed to be two, perhaps three militants who are hiding in there. this gun exchange has just intensified, but the operation has been going on all through the night, for the past 12 hours. and it's these kind of operations that the armed forces have really ramped up this year. there have been more than 100 in 2018 alone. a few hours later, it ended. six homes been destroyed, three militants killed, scores have been shot down this year. firdaus ahmed mir died

in a similar gun in november. demanding freedom from indian rule, thousands came to his funeral, as they do every time a militant dies. for his family, firdaus man is a martyr, a son they're proud of. translation: it was his mission to fight for the people of kashmir. there are a lot of atrocities committed against our brothers and sisters. he couldn't stand this. 0n the other side of this battle, more death, more grief. army man mukhtar ahmad malik was shot by militants when he was at home on leave. "kashmir is tired of this situation," his mother tells me. "it's better to bomb this place and finish it once and for all." there has been a sharp increase in targeted killings of security

personnel in recent months. with the death toll mounting on both sides, i ask a senior policeman what they're achieving. we cannot sit and keep on watching militants with weapons roaming in villages, attacking people, and gaining ground. no, we just cannot afford to watch that. we have to act. caught in the crossfire, civilians like firdousa sheikh, a pregnant woman who was killed just outside her home. she leaves behind a family in despair. a daughter who is too scared to go out of the house now. in village after village, there are stories like these. in this trail of destruction, no family left untouched. yogita limaye, bbc news, in indian kashmir. the uk labour leader, jeremy corbyn, has denied calling the british prime minister a stupid woman during prime minister's questions.

he was caught on camera appearing to mouth the words during heated exchanges. it caused angry scenes in parliament. mr corbyn later returned to the commons and said he had in fact said stupid people. 0ur chief political correspondent vicki young reports. rowdy scenes in the house of commons — nothing new there, but this went way beyond the usual heated exchanges. speaker: order! calm down! asjeremy corbyn left the chamber, conservative mps accused him of misogyny, and this was what they'd witnessed minutes before. oh, yes, he is! oh, no, he isn't! theresa may with a seasonal, pantomime—themed attack on the labour leader... look behind you! they're not impressed, and neither is the country. jeremy corbyn looked furious, and then this. he insists he muttered "stupid people". plenty of others think

he said "stupid woman." the prime minister's team had to quickly explain to her what they'd seen. everybody in this house, particularly in this 100th year anniversary of women getting the vote, should be aiming to encourage women to come into this chamber. tory mps leapt to their feet. i saw it, sir. i saw him say it. he muttered words which were quite clearly visible, accusing the prime minister of being a "stupid woman". disgraceful! conservative mps and ministers tried and failed to persuade the speaker to watch the video footage circulating on social media. then, a jaw—dropping moment, as the speaker himself came under attack. ..why it is that when an 0pposition memberfound that you had called me a "stupid woman", you did not apologise in this chamber. no, no, no... mr bercow said he'd dealt with that matter months ago.

all political parties say they want to do more to encourage women to take part in politics, but parliament has struggled to deal with accusations of sexism and inappropriate behaviour. today, jeremy corbyn found himself in the firing line. speaker: jeremy corbyn. this afternoon, he had to come back to the commons to explain himself to mps. i referred to those who i believe were seeking to turn a debate about the national crisis facing our country into a pantomime as "stupid people". mr speaker, i did not use the words "stupid woman". senior labour figures say this was a phony row contrived by the conservatives. of course, everyone else will make up their own minds. vicki young, bbc news, westminster. you are watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: how one republican mayor in oil—rich texas is lighting up christmas with renewable energy.

also on the programme: securing a safe login. your favourite pet or loved one may not be the best password choice. we will have all the latest advice. 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, conflict that has claimed more than 200,000 lives. before an audience of world leaders, the presidents of bosnia, serbia 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 lewinsky affair tonight guaranteed bill clinton his place in history as only the second president ever to be impeached. you are watching newsday on the bbc. i'm mariko 0i in singapore. i'm babita sharma in london. our top stories: us forces are being withdrawn from syria following president trump's declaration of victory over islamic state militants. the european commission says it's started to implement its preparations for a no—deal brexit. let's take a look at some front pages from around the world. the international edition of the new york times reports on whatjail time is like for ex—nissan boss carlos ghosn. the paper says the former car mogul, who faces charges of financial misconduct, is sleeping on a basic mat in his cell and can't contact his daughter.

the daily telegraph leads on just 100 days to go until brexit. the paper reports a lack of progress in parliament between the major parties as mps prepare to take a 17—day holiday covering christmas and the new year. the financial times reports on the decision by the us federal reserve to raise interest rates for a fourth time this year. the paper says the us central bank defied donald trump because of slow economic growth aborad. now to the dreaded password. we all know that we should make them as complicated as possible — but with passwords becoming more widespread for all things online you can be forgiven for falling into bad habits and a list has been published of the top 100 worst. topping the list as it did last year is1,2,3,4,5. second place is simply ‘password'.

and new in this year is ‘donald' after a certain president. morgan slain in chief executive of the cyber security firm splash data who collated the information. he told me why people still make bad choices. it's human nature. we want what's simple, what's easy, what's familiar. and those are all good things, but not when it comes to passwords. you really want to use something that's complex and different, not easy to guess. yes, i suppose it's laziness on the part of the user. now, you've been doing this for a number of years. what's the worst offender when it comes to password use? people like numerical progression, so "1231156" has been our most common password for five years running, but the second one is funny, it's actually "password," and then people have keyboard progressions, their favourite sport teams, pet names, family names, things you really want to avoid. and why avoid them? just because they're so easy to guess, and that means that

they'll be cracked very easily by anybody who's trying to get into your login. yeah, being susceptible to all the hackers out there, which is becoming an increasing problem. what is your advice then for that perfect password ? well, just as you said in the intro, you always hear this advice about make your passwords complicated with lots of different characters, and thatjust makes them harder to remember. and so what we suggest is to create pass phrases. so, as an example, liverpool is one of the 100 most common passwords. so if you're a liverpool fan, maybe use a pass phrase where you string some silly words together like "jump into liverpool." it's easy to remember, easy to type and it actually creates a pretty good password. and with that, should we think about uppercase, lowercase and numericals as well? yes, that all helps, although not as much as you think. and with that, should we think about uppercase, lowercase and numericals as well? yes, that all helps,

although not as much as you think. so the list is increasingly showing passwords like "kwerty123", instead of just "kwerty," or "password1" instead ofjust "password," but that doesn't add to the strength, so we really recommwent using a password manager or pass phrase as we talked about before. let's talk about a password manager, because some of the information is automatically stored in your handset, your mobile. is it a good thing, or is it still a problem if the handset is put in the wrong hands, if you see what i mean? sure, yeah, and we get that question a lot. so, password managers are a pretty good solution to this problem. no solution is 100% secure, but it does make it a lot easier for you to manage

different passwords. and the most important thing about passwords actually is to use different ones for different sites, because, if you don't, then if you have one password compromised on one site, which is almost inevitable these days, then you have cascading risk. a password manager application just makes it easier to have different passwords for different sites. you don't have to remember which ones you used where. ever since president trump pulled out of the paris climate agreement, the focus has shifted to what states and local communities are doing to combat climate change. leading that fight, you probably wouldn't expect to find a republican mayor in the state of texas. a majority of the people there voted for donald trump and it's a region where oil and gas reign supreme. but as our north america correspondent aleem maqbool found — this christmas season is being lit with the environment in mind. when it comes to saving the planet, trump's america has come under fire for not doing enough, but one little town is trying to go against the grain, thanks in part to its mayor.

so, here we are in georgetown, texas, on the beautiful town square not only in taxes, but the united states of america, i tell you. this is sort of what heaven would look like at christmas. but let me ask you, for an environmentalist, it doesn't like heaven, does it? it looks like it's a huge waste of energy. what's going on here? it's not, because we are 100% renewable energy, so all these wonderful lights, the whole downtown experience, is funded by wind and solar energy. as a republican from texas, he's an unlikely climate change superhero. but under his watch, this town has become the largest town in the us to switch solely to renewable energy companies. a windfarm in west texas and a massive solar park are the supplies of the town's power, but in the most conservative part of the country, the majority of people also voted for this man. all of this, with the global

warning and that — a lot of it's a hoax, it's a hoax, i mean, it's a moneymaking industry, 0k? this little sandwich shop back in georgetown has now got its own solar panels, and it appears that having a president who says he's not convinced about man's contribution to climate change is inspiring individuals to do their bit. i mean, you have to start somewhere, and if you wait for someone else to do it it's never going to happen. you have to do it yourself. that's the mayor's feeling, too, but here in texas he's seeing a campaign against him by members of his own party. you have these special interest groups that really go out and promote oil and gas interests, and i'm not their number one guy right now, 0k? they don't like i'm out there telling the truth had actually just putting the facts out there. some of those critics say that's because he and others are disrespecting the heritage of the state and the country by demonising the fossil fuel industries. a lot of what this state has seen and prospered from, and what people have done for,

you know, so long was oil. you know, you talk to people across the state and they say, "well, my grandpa was an oil man, and when someone says, ‘0il is evil,‘ i think, ‘my grandpa wasn't evil‘". holiday season excess in georgetown is at least powered by renewable energy, and the town is trying to show you can be conservative in america and still care about the environment. it's just that politics really doesn't make it easy. aleem maqbool, bbc news, in georgetown, texas. it was 175 years ago that one of charles dickens best loved stories, a christmas carol was published. the story of scrooge, the miser who is forced to become compassionate was written to condemn the child poverty that dickens saw around him. the first edition immediately sold out, and the tale has captivated people ever since. one of his descendants has read from an original copy of the book to mark the anniversary. david sillito reports. # god rest you merry gentleman...

"marley was dead. to begin with, there was no doubt whatever about that. the register of his burial had been signed by the clerk." a christmas carol. simon callow is at the moment performing it onstage twice a day in this, its anniversary year. i'm holding this very gently because this is an original a christmas carol, published exactly 175 years ago and they all sold out within five days. and while it would be going too far to say dickens invented a victorian christmas, he certainly, for millions of us, defined what christmas should be. he certainly gave christmas a meaning which it hadn't had before. he says, "it's the only time in the long calendar of the year that i know of that men and women open their closed up hearts freely and think of those below them

as fellow passengers to the grave." a christmas carol, by charles dickens. who are you? what do you want? the story of scrooge and his night of ghostly encounters goes down through the generations. what do you want with me? there have over the years been 73 film and tv adaptations. and marking today's anniversary, a display at the london pall mall gallery. this lost portrait was rediscovered in south africa, much to the delight of charles dickens' great—great—great—granddaughter. this is what he looked like when he wrote a christmas carol. this is him at 31 years old. and the intensity of those eyes. when you think about the campaigning in this book, this is what dickens looked like when he was writing it. thejob now, raising the money to buy it for the dickens museum. time perhaps for a bit of the spirit of a christmas carol. as tiny tim observed,

"god bless us every one." david sillito, bbc news. wishing you a very merry christmas and happy holidays. you have been watching newsday. i'm babita sharma in london. and i'm mariko 0i in singapore. stay with us. business news back. we told you about japan's biggest share listing yesterday — but softbank shares continue to fall. and before we go, it was a secret kept from the world and until now, the late us president george hw bush sponsored a filippino boy called timothy over a ten year period to fund his education and meals. under the guise of george walker, the boy only learned of his mentor‘s identity when he left the scheme at the age of 17. that's all for now — stay with bbc world news. hello there. well, as you've probably already heard, the run—up to christmas is set to be a fairly mild one,

with ouraircoming in off the atlantic. now, it's not going to be completely settled, though. there will be quite a bit of cloud and also some rain or showers at times. but a little bit of sunshine, too. now, for thursday, we've still got low pressure in charge of the weather. it'll be anchored to the north—west of the uk. and we'll have a fair old breeze blowing in from the west, and that will continue to feed in showers, most of them across southern and western areas early on thursday, the odd heavy one, with many central and eastern parts seeing the longer dry spells to begin thursday. so we'll have a split in temperatures. where you get the showers, a bit more cloud. southern and western areas, temperatures around five to seven degrees. something a bit cooler, though, further north. around scotland, maybe a touch of frost around some of the glens, and maybe a little mist and fog, too. but, for thursday morning,

it's going to be a largely dry and a bright one across many northern and eastern areas. showers, though, will get going across the west, and then maybe merge together to produce some longer spells of rain, some of them could be quite heavy. and, again, it's going to be fairly blustery, particularly near southern and western coasts. mild in the south, 10—11 degrees. further north, pretty typical temperatures, for this time of year. as we head through thursday night, it stays quite breezy, quite showery. for a time, showers ease down and then we start to see some wetter and windier weather arriving across the south—west. that's because this next frontal system will move into the southern half of the country during thursday night into friday morning. so it could be quite wet for some. but what it will do is import even milder air across the southern half of the country, as you can see, the yellow and orange colours there. so, although it's going to be a really drab start to friday, a lot of surface spray, standing water on the roads, that rain should eventually clear eastwards. although its northern extent may linger on across parts of northern ireland, northern england, maybe southern scotland. so a bit of a grey day here. to the north of here, again, quite cool with a little bit of sunshine. and sunshine will move in across england and wales. and very mild, 11—14 degrees. now, into the weekend,

it looks like saturday will be the driest day with that right of high pressure. then the weather fronts move in on for sunday. so i think it is a bit of a tale of two halves. there will be one or two showers across northern and eastern areas to begin saturday. 0therwise, with that ridge of high pressured building in, it should turn a little bit drier. the winds a bit lighter, too, still coming in from the west, and we should see a good deal of sunshine around, particularly further south and east where you are. ten to 12 degrees, very mild again in the south. around nine or ten in the north. sunday looks wetter and windier across the board. and, as we head into monday, it looks like it could turn a little bit cooler in the north. you are watching bbc news. our top story: president trump announces the total withdrawal of us troops from syria. the decision by the white house to pull out all of the remaining 2,000 american personnel is being criticised widely by republican leaders. the pentagon has also expressed its reservations. the us central bank, the federal reserve, has raised interest rates for a fourth time by 0.25%. the decision comes in in the face of warnings by donald trump that it would be a mistake.

and this distinctive style of art might be familiar to you. it appeared on a garage in the welsh town of port talbot and has been confirmed as street art from banksy. worth more than the building it was painted on, it has now been fenced off to protect it. that's all. stay with bbc world news. and the top story in the uk: the government has set out its immigration policy for the uk after brexit.