clinics of the disaster. medical clinics here, very small clinics, there are no hospitals in the region. they are reaching down past where i am, towards ta njung lesung, reaching down past where i am, towards tanjung lesung, where we have bad reports of damage, with hotel owners saying there are more injured and that bodies are piling up injured and that bodies are piling up in their hotel. on the sumatra side, officials working to get to some areas but the response has been much quicker than what we saw after the previous tsunami. this area, fairly accessible, just a few hours drive from jakarta. this is a popular holiday destination for people from the capital and they came down here for the holiday period. now people are rapidly trying to get out of here. . thanks for joining trying to get out of here. . thanks forjoining us. sussex police say they're forensically examining a damaged drone found near the perimeter fence of gatwick airport, as two people arrested on friday are released without charge. the airport was badly disrupted

for more than 36 hours last week by drones flying close to the runway. our correspondentjenny kumah is at gatwick now. what more are the police there saying? police say they have made a significant development, they say that they discovered a damaged drone near the north perimeter of the airport and they are forensically examining it. these details emerged after they announced they'd released without charge two people they arrested in connection with illegal drone activity. they say that the pair fully co—operated and that they are no longer suspects. they say that doesn't mean they are back to square that doesn't mean they are back to square one. that doesn't mean they are back to square one. they are pursuing a number of lines of enquiry. meanwhile gatwick airport say they are offering a reward of £50,000 for any information leading to an arrest oi’ any information leading to an arrest or conviction. the situation here in terms of flights, things are pretty

much back to normal with some 760 flights going in and out but there continues to be a military and police presence here. thank you. figures from the charity, crisis, suggest that more than 170,000 households in britain are experiencing extreme forms of homelessness — including rough sleeping and living in hostels. it blames the problem on a shortage of social housing, benefit payments failing to cover private rents and a lack of homelessness prevention schemes for people leaving care. the government says it's spending more than £1 billion addressing the problem. angus crawford reports. tea, biscuits, a listening ear and a chance to be with others at christmas. roland knows just how bleak it can be. i was on the street and i slept on benches. i remember one occasion when ijust woke up and had like a layer of snow on my coat. so it was quite shocking.

amongst the volunteers, a famous face, coming here for years to offer her help and her voice. it'sjust becoming easier to become vulnerable and in trouble. it can be anything from a few missed mortgage payments, to a broken down marriage, to your partner dying, to just having an argument with your family. over the next week they will serve more than 7500 meals here. people will come to eat, sleep and get access to advice and there are 14 more centres just like this across the uk. today's figures show 170,800 households and lone individuals were homeless last year. 38,000 of them were under 25. in total 12,300 people were sleeping rough. it's something that we think is totally u na cce pta ble.

we are notjust talking about people on the streets, although the numbers of people rough sleeping are higher than have ever been recorded. we are talking about people in hostels and night shelters, bed & breakfasts, even sleeping in cars and tents and public transport. this is a situation that can't continue. the government says it is spending £1.2 billion to tackle the problem and is committed to ending rough sleeping by 2027. sausage and mash on the menu, experts at hand and, for tonight at least, somewhere to sleep that's safe and warm. angus crawford, bbc news. the uk is being inundated with fake designer goods on a scale never seen before, according to the trade body, the anti—counterfeiting group. an undercover investigation by the bbc has discovered vast quantities of fake, replica clothing, trainers, perfumes and electrical goods being sold from living rooms,

car parks and even high street shops across the uk. trading standards says there's a link to serious organised crime and the treasury is losing millions in unpaid taxes every year. our special correspondent colin campbell has the story. it's christmas and black market britain is booming. we've got two left. they're fake, are they? everything's fake, mate. i'm in manchester, where replica designer goods are being sold from shops on an industrial scale. they're not real? nothing real, man. through this doorway, an aladdin's cave of fakes, spread out over three levels. belts, bags, coats, jumpers. all forms of fake counterfeit goods in there. brazenly breaking the law, the area is known as britain's counterfeit capital. it's estimated that between 50 and 100 shops are involved. yves saint laurent. michael kors. chanel.

it's just endless. outside, amongst the hoards of christmas shoppers, an army of lookouts to spot police. there are regular raids, but it's not enough. they can't stop it, they can't do much about it. they can if they want to but they've got other things to do. we showed our footage to the anti—counterfeiting group, which represents over 3000 brands. 4% of all imports into the uk now are fake. they're destroying jobs, they're destroying the high street. they're crippling our industries and we seem to be allowing it to happen. from the north of england to the south, we found scores of dealers knowingly selling fake goods, many openly advertising on social media. can you get into trouble for it, then? you can, yeah. you've got to prove where you got them from. where we get them from, there's no receipts available. in a bradford car park, replica nike trainers. got these new in today. from a living room in hull,

a catalogue of fake, phony designer gear. yeah, please. how much are they again? 25. in stoke, imitation beats headphones. the thing that lets them down is tagging. they've only got the one tag. generally they've got two. in bristol, fake north face hoodies and jackets. they're replica once but they're all right, are they? in northampton, another digital del boy selling replica perfumes and cosmetics. the sale of counterfeit products is linked to serious and organised crime, terrorism, people trafficking, arms sales. this is a significant problem that people perhaps don't realise they are funding that level of criminal activity. britain is awash with counterfeit designer goods. everywhere we went we were able to source fake or replica products. this stuff is being peddled from towns and cities across the uk. manchester city council says it's doing more work than ever to tackle the problem but with cuts to funding across the uk, enforcement

authorities are, it seems, struggling to cope with the flourishing counterfeit industry. colin campbell, bbc news. football now and rangers are back up to second in the scottish premiership after they came from behind to beat stjohnstone 2—1. it means the side are now just a point behind league leaders celtic. andy swiss reports. some eight seasons after their last league title, could this once again be rangers‘ year? they had been resurgent under steven gerrard until a recent stumble, and, despite playing in orange, it was their opponents who looked brighter. liam craig should have put stjohnstone ahead and just before the break matty kennedy did, in some style too, to give the hosts the half—time advantage. rangers rung the changes and eventually they paid off. with less than half an hour left alfredo morelos ruthlessly levelled it up as the visitors chased a sorely needed victory. with st johnstone's keeper

zander clark standing strong it seemed they would be frustrated. with just two minutes left rangers‘ persistence paid off. morelos with the clinical and potentially crucial winner. his side just a point behind leaders celtic, the title race is very much on. the actor michael sheen is helping to pay for security to protect the latest artwork by banksy, which has appeared on a garage wall in port talbot. the image, which is entitled season's greetings, has now been covered in a protective screen. last night, a man tried to damage the mural, but was chased away by a security guard. that's all for now. we're back with the late news at ten o'clock. now on bbc one it's time for the news where you are. goodbye. good afternoon. a rescue effort is underway in indonesia to try and locate any more survivors from a tsunami that's already known to have killed more

than 200 people and injured nearly 900 others. the islands of java and sumatra were affected by the giant wave, thought to have been triggered by underwater landslides from an erupting volcano — anak krakatau. our correspondent rebecca henschke reports from the area. a popular local tourist destination, now a disaster zone. the only road in, cleared to allow aid supplies to get through. people here now trying to piece together their lives. a work party to celebrate the end of the year. onstage, the stars of the night, a local rock group, in full swing. the next second, a wave engulfed the stage. the lead singer confirmed that four

band members had died and that his wife is still missing. this coastline, where the band were playing, is now littered with rubble. rani says she doesn't know how they will rebuild. translation: we were all set up for christmas and the new year holiday period, but it's been destroyed by the waves and the rest has been stolen. what am i going to do? families here say they had no warning and there was confusing information coming out from the government. translation: what was the government doing? at first they said they hadn't been a tsunami last night. they took ages to act. these waves were devastating. it was clearly a tsunami. over here, an image

that gives you a sense of the power of the waves. these cars, i'm told, were parked on the other side of the road and they have been pushed into each other on top of what was a holiday villa — full at this time of year. here at this local clinic, desperate families are looking for their relatives. the injured are still arriving, and the death toll is still rising. translation: the victims were local people who own shops and stalls here, but there were many visitors too. we were trying to open the access road. last night, a lot of debris had been dragged in and it clogged the road. officials believe underwater landslides, caused by eruptions at the nearby anak krakatoa volcano, may have triggered the huge waves. it's still active.

authorities are warning that there could be another tsunami and telling people to stay away from the beaches. let's get more from rebecca in banten in indonesia. just tell us what the devastation is like that you had seen since this tsunami hit? well, all along the coast here on this temple that goes on the west coast of java, you're getting patches of complete devastation on the side of the road, next to the beach where you would have had stalls, houses set up for this holiday period, places where people would sell to tourists, trinkets and also food. they have all been completely reduced to rubble. the other side of the road, as we have travelled alone, more

substantial hotels and villas have also been badly damaged. in one place we saw cars smashed together, there also been a lot of boats that have been damaged and as we head further towards the edge of java to sumatra, the scene gets worse. we are hearing from hotel and delete my own as they are of most of their hotel is destroyed, many injured and also the death toll the rising. we visited a health clinic earlier today that was a chaotic scene. this area really not prepared for a disaster like this. just small health clinics here. they've been having to evacuate the seriously injured out of this area to hospitals closer towards the capital, jakarta. that must be quite a problem, the facilities that are available there, if it's not up to the standard they need, they are having to evacuate people. what

other problems are the rescuers facing? yes, the access to this area is certainly much better than what we saw in the earthquake in palu. they have had to clear the roads today, a lot of debris and fallen trees on this one road which runs along the coast. also, the issue with the rescue work is the fact that authorities are warning that there may be another tsunami. the weird or strange nature of this tsunami, the fact it wasn't triggered by an earthquake but appears to have been triggered by underground volcanic activity of the volcano anak kra katoa, underground volcanic activity of the volcano anak krakatoa, that sets off the coast where i am, that volcano is still active. so authorities are saying that they cannot rule out another tsunami happening. so the

situation here is quite tense. rescue workers coming in, but also wanting to be careful themselves. would you say that people there have been prepared for this, given there has been some volcanic activity? were they prepared, did they get any early warning that this was coming? no. people say there was no warning whatsoever. there has been volcanic activity at that volcano in the middle of the sea, that rises on the place of the historic krakatoa volcano, one of the biggest volcanic eruptions ever recorded in the 18005. it's eruptions ever recorded in the 1800s. it's been erupting for months. it's a relatively small volcano by indonesian standards. there was nothing to warn people that something bad was going to happen. the waves hit late at night, pitch black, as you can see, this area not well lit. ten people were either sleeping in some places they

we re either sleeping in some places they were celebrating end of the parties, not looking at the beach and they we re not looking at the beach and they were caught completely by surprise. i guess that is telling in the death toll that continues to rise today, as well as the huge number of injured, given that this place is a very popular holiday destination. so all the hotels in this area was full of people. 0k, rebecca, thank you very much indeed for speaking to us this evening. a man and a woman, who were arrested in connection with drone activity, which caused widespread disruption at gatwick airport, have been released without charge. sussex police say a damaged drone has been found and is being forensically examined. flights were grounded for more than 36 hours when drones were first spotted close to the runway on wednesday night. earlier, i spoke to detective chief superintendent jason tingley from sussex police about the investigation. in relation to the two people released from custody, it's really important that we publicly say i am satisfied they aren't suspects

with regards to this incident. i should also say they have fully co—operated all the time they've been in custody. we were working on information from a member of the public to progress that investigation. we have been dealing with that with a very open mind over the last couple of days, whilst they've been in custody. we have also been furthering other lines of enquiry in terms of persons of interest, house—to—house inquiries where we've known the drone sightings have been, and lastly, what is a significant part of the investigation, the finding of a damaged drone close to the perimeter fencing at gatwick yesterday morning, which obviously we are investigating in terms of the forensic opportunities that may bring, both in a digital sense and also dna and otherwise. that is being done currently. we aren't back to square one, we are progressing as we were and will respond to any information or intelligence we get. to return to the couple

who you were questioning, some will say they've been treated rather unfairly, they had done absolutely nothing wrong and yet images and names splashed all over the newspapers, and they are completely innocent. well, i'm satisfied the arrest of those two individuals was lawful. we've treated them and made sure we are looking after them in terms of that welfare and support after their release from custody. what i will say about the disclosure of personal details and parts of the investigation in relation to those arrests, we will never from a policing perspective disclose that information. that has been disclosed through the media, and it causes some frustration in terms of the investigation itself, but more importantly the impact on those two individuals. we will pursue and progress information given to us, particularly from members of the public or intelligence

from agencies. i can't stress enough the impact on those two individuals of what has been released, and we would not have chosen in any event to provide that information to anyone, and we wouldn't do that in any normal investigation. secondly, it frustrates the investigation in terms of that information being released in the public domain. particularly when there are specific parts of the evidence and investigation that we would rather not be out in the public domain. it frustrates the effective and thorough investigation, and one might say that has probably hindered us in terms of how quickly we've been able to get to a resolution in terms of them being released from custody. how challenging has this investigation been? you're talking about a damaged drone that you have found. it sounds as if it's near to the airport. how certain are you that might have been one of the drones involved? it will be a working assumption that it may be connected.

again, we have to look at this with a completely open mind. we will be forensically examining it, which is happening now. we are also going through a number, or many reports of sightings of drone activity over the last few days. we are meticulously going through that information, to see if it produces any further lines of enquiry and also where we may focus efforts in terms of house—to—house inquiries, cctv footage and any other information that will help us work through this investigation. you say you've got a completely open mind, are you even considering the possibility that there may not have been genuine drone sightings in the first place? that will always be a possibility, but what we are working with is a range of information from a number of people. that's members of the public, police officers and staff working at gatwick, who say they've seen a drone or something that looks

like a drone in the sky in the previous few days. we have to work on that basis. we cannot discount the possibility that there may have been no drone at all, but actually if you think about the recovery of the drone itself i mentioned earlier, and also the number of people that say they have seen a drone, we have to work with that information. we will review that at every stage of this investigation, whilst working in full consultation and engagement with gatwick airport ltd, and we have a strong relationship with those members of staff in terms of that gold command, and we'll review that as we work through many aspects of this investigation. let's return to our lead story and

the devastating tsunami that has hit indonesia. we can talk now to natasya phebe, an emergency response health specialist from the aid organisation world vision who is in banten at the moment. thank you for speaking to us this evening on bbc news. i understand you were there on holiday. tell us what you have seen in the last day 01’ what you have seen in the last day orso? it was about 6:30pm and i went out for dinner, just near the beach. and then we could see at the time, the level of the water is actually already high. it is not common. but some people say it is because of the moon, so it's ok. and then we ? inaudible i'm sorry, we can't actually hear

ten by mike and indonesia. we will try and get back to her. we are having some troubles with the sound. new figures from the charity, crisis, suggest that more than 170—thousand individuals and families are experiencing the most extreme forms of homelessness, which include sleeping on the street. it says many people are also living in what it describes as "unsuitable temporary accomodation". the singer, ellie goulding, is an ambassador for the charity and has urged people to interact with the homeless so they do not feel "ignored". she's been speaking to our correspondent angus crawford. i love the work that crisis do. i've been working with them for a few years now, i'm now an ambassador. i love the service they provide, the volunteers are really, really great.

people can come here off the streets, they opened at 10am this morning. they can come from various other overnight shelters, come here for the day, get in the warm, have a tea, have a shower if they need to. it's just a really nice atmosphere and safe environment. what do the people who come here say about what it does for them? what it makes them feel like? if anybody comes and talks to me, they always say how great crisis are and how much they've helped them. i see similarfaces. i see faces i've seen in previous years, and new faces too. i like to be here and listen to the stories, if they want to talk about them. you're a londoner, do you get a sense of how easy it might be, but for a few bad outcomes, for someone to end up on the street? do you get that? yes, i think there is a big misconception about why people end up being homeless. it's been on the rise every year

for different factors, but it's just becoming easier to become vulnerable and in trouble. i think one thing that has occurred to me in the past couple of years is younger people perhaps coming out as gay or as transgender, and their parents or family not really accepting it, and so they feel like they have no choice but to leave that environment. so, there's the hidden homeless. does this place give you some measure of hope? it does. crisis and other charities in london do such brilliant things to help short—term. there does need to be more action taken long—term. more affordable housing, and i think the government has pledged to end homelessness by 2020 or something like that. either way, it's unrealistic with the help that's being given right now. i always say to my fans and to people who ask, interaction with someone is sometimes more important

than giving money. just talking. that was ellie goulding speaking at the crisis centre in north london. mps are warning that the way childcare is paid under the government's flagship benefits policy — universal credit — is preventing people accepting jobs. a report by the work and pensions committee says making parents pay for childcare costs up front, then claiming the money back from the government, can leave households waiting weeks to be repaid. now it's time for a look at the weather. hello. thankfully christmas week won't be as damp as most have experienced. there will be some frost and fog, which could cause an issue for those on the move. dense fog in northern ireland in central scotla nd fog in northern ireland in central scotland tonight and later across parts of eastern wales, the midlands

and north—west england. claudia is towards the south—west, where rain will continue into the channel islands. 10—11 here. elsewhere, quite a frosty start to the festive week. lots of sunshine around, some lingering fog in northern ireland, east wales and the midlands but for most, sunny spells. even the rain in the south—west will fizzle out. my old est the south—west will fizzle out. my oldest here are 11—12, for others, a pretty cold day. fog could be more ofan pretty cold day. fog could be more of an issue in eastern parts, where wind is light as. light and patchy drizzle lightly in the west. but for the vast majority, christmas day will be dry. some festive rust in the east, where it stays cool, my old est the east, where it stays cool, my oldest in the west. bye for now. hello, this is bbc news. the headlines: a tsunami hits indonesia, causing widespread devastation. at least 220 people have been killed and more than 800 injured.

the death toll is expected to rise. emergency services rush the injured to safety. eyewitnesses describe scenes of chaos after waves struck during the night. over here, an image that gives you the tenth of the power of the waves. these cars, i'm told, were parked on the other side the road and they been pushed into each other on top of what was a holiday villa. a man and woman arrested in connection with drone sightings that grounded flights at gatwick airport are released without charge. uk homelessness reaches a record high, according to the charity crisis. tributes continue to be paid to former liberal democrat leader lord ashdown — who's died at the age of 77. sport now, and for a full round up from the bbc sport centre, here'sjeanette. thank you very much.

good evening. plenty of football to get through, but let's start with the scottish premiership, where two goals from alfredo morelos against stjohnstone has pushed rangers within a point of league leaders celtic. a fourth consecutive win for rangers at mcdiarmid park, asjoe lynskey reports. it's more congested than we're used to in the scottish premiership. right now, rangers have celtic in sight at the top, but to keep up the challenge, they would need perfection in perth. this side hasn't lost at stjohnstone in eight years, but that was under threat when matty kennedy put the home side in front. steven gerrard, though, is learning patience with this side. it helps with a striker who steps up when it matters. this equaliser was alfredo morelos‘ 18th goal of the season, but he knew 1—1 wasn't enough, and with missed chances, rangers‘ time is running out. kyle lafferty was stopped by a lunge and a save.

but with two minutes left, back came their colombian. this may become morelos‘ most important moment, a goal that takes rangers within a point of the top. there is more work still to do, but comebacks like this can revive a title bid. the last game before christmas in the premier league is under way. it‘s at goodison park. everton are yet to win this december. it‘s been a real goal fest so far. tottenham are looking good for their fourth league win in a row, and that would move them two points behind second placed manchester city. everton took the lead through theo walcott, but spurs hit back with two goals from son heung min and others from dele alli, two from harry kane and a goalfrom christian erikson. gylffi sigurdsson got everton‘s second. the score is currently 6—2. leeds united are back on top of the championship for christmas

after beating aston villa 3—2 at villa park. villa were 2—0 up inside 20 minutes through tammy abraham and a long distance effort from conor hourihane. a win would have taken them to 2 points off the play—off spots. but with just over half an hour to play, leeds hit back through jack clarke then pontus jannsen. it was heading for a draw before poor defending teed up kemar roofe. a 95th minute winner to send leeds top, 1 point ahead of norwich. former manchester united goalkeeper peter schmeichel says the club should appoint a director of football and believes he is the man for the job. his comments come after united sacked jose mourinho as manager on wednesday and brought in ole gunnar solskjaer as caretaker boss. schemeichel says more changes are needed at the club for them to get back to their best. it isa it is a good idea. if not for forever, at least a period of time. what‘s really important is to get the manchester united culture back. we would be like to see somebody

who‘s actually played there and understands it and bring some of the sir alex mentality back in the whole of the football club. to be com pletely of the football club. to be completely honest, i think about putting my name in there. i will throw my hat in, my name in the hat. bath have moved into the top six in rugby union‘s premiership with a 24—14 win at wasps. 19 of bath‘s points, including the opening try came from their fly half fredie burns, but wasps have now won just one of their last 12 games. our rugby union correspondent chrisjones was watching at coventry‘s ricoh arena, and alongside the england women‘s scrum half, natasha hunt. both teams are really struggling for form coming into this fixture and it‘s back to of come to the arena and geta it‘s back to of come to the arena and get a hugely significant win on the road, being cheered on by their supporters and doing the lap of honour behind us. how impressed were

you with that‘s commitment? they really die gobbi when. massively. we spoke pretty much about the fact they were going to play the territory. they were looking to be really smart with the ball. they had and they did that so well. for whatever was unbelievable. defensively, they were fantastic and fair play to come here and get a ten point win and dogged out. brilliant. freddie burns has had his ups and downs this season, has the? 19 points today. a brilliant individual try and he was the man of the match annually orchestrated parts of this crucial win. when you got momentum, on the front foot, he played so well today. he managed it impeccably and they are good for the win, aren't they? 24-14 it has finished. for wasps, they‘re tricky run sport

continues. —— their tricky run of form. so confirmation there of that wasps—bath score. there was one other match today. bottom side newcastle were leading against third place gloucester but were eventually beaten 20 points to 17 at kingston park. just one match in the pro 1a today. zebre beat benetton 10—8. boxing promoter eddie hearn says that there is a very, very good chance that dillian whyte will face anthonyjoshua for his world heavyweight titles in april. whyte is expected to be confirmed as the mandatory wbo challenger after knocking out dereck chisora in london last night. it was a big night for boxing, because josh warrington successfully dedended his ibf featherweight title against carl frampton in manchester. james burford reports. boxing day may still be a few days away, but is a very good chance we have already had it. these all british nights under the lights don‘t come around too often. the fa ns don‘t come around too often. the fans of the sport and its christmas

come early. they say it‘s better to give than to receive. you sure can certainly agrees. but his punches are the sort of present no one wa nts. are the sort of present no one wants. it was billed as a featherweight classic but with the power on show, these two are giants of the sport. brandon‘s fireback deserves credit that his was a debt too large. warrington dominant throughout, his 20th win in succession. want to get into the building, iget succession. want to get into the building, i get in a changing room, i would do anything to win. absolutely anything to win. i disco this bundle of energy from somewhere. i train hard in training like a somewhere. i train hard in training likea man somewhere. i train hard in training like a man possessed. and so, the london‘s o2 arena were the rematch between dillian whyte and dereck chisora surfeit of all the brutality of their first out. this is chisora surfeit of all the brutality of theirfirst out. this is perhaps as heavy—handed as boxing gets. it‘s taking quite literally. the best way to describe it. this fight had an airof to describe it. this fight had an air of pressure throughout. chisora

unrelenting, but his was a bubble about to burst. dillian whyte may be nicknamed to the bodysnatcher this was no stolen victory. one of patients and your power. with anthonyjoshua watching patients and your power. with anthony joshua watching ring sentiment whyte still has hopes of facing his old foe again. if they are available, let‘s see if he‘s got it. unhappy with the response, dillian whyte walked away from the ring but this was an a to be remembered in british boxing. these matches might be happening more in 2019 to live because there are so many potentially great sites out there involving british fighters, whether it's to british fighters in the same ring or british fighters taking opportunities against those from overseas. but whether abroad or closer to home, as more and more interest over the belts. and the doubts. england‘s james wade recovered from 3—1 down to beat compatriot keegan brown 11—3 and reach the last 16 of the pdc world darts championship.

ninth seed wade was booed by the crowd at alexandra palace following his behaviour in the previous round. he had celebrated in his opponent‘s face and later apologised, saying he had a "hypomania episode". wade will play unseeded ryanjoyce in the next round. and finally, fans of spanish club real betis gave hundreds of local children an extra special christmas gift during their game yesterday. responding to a pre—match appeal, they threw thousands of teddy bears and other soft toys from the stands. the toys were gathered up before the second half and will be distributed to disadvantaged families in the region. how lovely. that‘s all the sport for now. tributes have been paid to the former liberal democrat leader, lord ashdown, who died yesterday at the age of 77. paddy ashdown led the party for more than a decade until 1999 and is credited with making the lib dems a significant

third force in politics. theresa may said the former royal marine had dedicated his life to public service. our political correspondent jessica parker has more. the military man turned diplomat and politician. paddy ashdown cut an impressive figure, and a popular one. his success in building up the liberal democrats after its painful merger in the late ‘80s means he leaves an undoubted legacy. the action man, unafraid to push political boundaries. come and join us. he never had the slightest sign of cowardice. he faced each situation calmly and in the light of the facts and so on, and with a determination to have the best possible outcome. that courage, and a passion forforeign affairs, could cause some concern amongst colleagues. he took a great interest in the balkans, even when he was leader, and i used to try quite a lot of the time to persuade him not to go,

because he exposed himself to risks, for example, going into sarajevo, running the gauntlet of snipers and shelling and things of that kind. but that‘s the kind of person he was. what you saw, you got, and a great deal more as well. although he never held high office himself, lord ashdown helped set the foundations for what the liberal democrats would eventually become, a party of coalition government, and he was never afraid to offer some sage advice to his successors. he came to see me in my office when i was deputy prime minister, and he said, "i have to talk to you about something which is highly important, and would have a big effect on my political fortunes and that of the coalition." and i thought, "what have i done wrong now?" he said, "you‘ve got too fat. you must lose weight." and so anyway, i received those instructions from him, and did try to act on them as well, as i always did. outspoken, dynamic, paddy ashdown was a man of irrepressible energy. it could sometimes exhaust his colleagues, but more often

it would inspire them. jessica parker, bbc news. someone who worked with him for many years was fellow liberal democrat baroness shirley williams. she has been speaking to the bbc about the man she knew. i knew paddy in two contexts. i knew him quite well as a fellow campaigner. and in a small party like the liberal democrats, you are battling all the time. he was brilliant at that. he and i met quite often on the campaign trail in britain and occasionally outside it, in particular the occupation of kosovo. at the time of the collapse of the whole yugoslav structure. that was rather unusual. we spent a lot of time together at that time in a fairly risky situation. and i got to like him tremendously partly because, first of all, he never exaggerated.

secondly, he had a very strong sense of his responsibility, not only to our people but to people in other countries as well, a commitment to bringing democracy through trying as far as possible to make people behave well, and also because he never had the slightest sign of fatigue. —— slightest sign of cowardice. he faced each situation calmly and in light of the facts, and with a determination to have the best possible outcome. there was almost an unbroken legacy between his military background... because he had a distinguished military career. people often forget that, but he worked not only in the diplomatic service but perhaps most significantly within the forces themselves. and people do not remember now that he was, for example, with a small boat squadron, which is a risk—taking squadron, people who put torpedoes

under large ships in wartime. he also worked very hard on things to do with discovering, for example, whether other bigger countries should intervene. a typical example was that tony blair asked him to tell him, then the prime minister, whether we should intervene in kosovo to try to prevent what was becoming an increasingly awful situation. not so much terrorism but a lot of sniping, a lot of quite poor behaviour. there was a sense with paddy that he was part of the same man. he was a man who could live his way through very tough situations and treat it always with seriousness. on the other hand, he was somebody who would enjoy himself in private, talking to friends, going out to dinner together and so forth. a very wonderful combination of people. that was surely williams reflecting

on the life of paddy ashdown. the headlines on bbc news: a tsunami strikes indonesia. at least 220 people are dead and more than 700 injured. the death toll is expected to rise. two people arrested in connection with drone sightings at gatwick are released. police say they are no longer suspects. uk homelessness reaches a record high, according to the charity crisis. the us government will remain partially shut down over christmas after politicians in the senate failed to resolve their differences over the budget during a special session. democrats oppose donald trump‘s plans to use federal funds to build a wall along the us—mexico border. there was further bad news for mr trump, as his top official in the fight against so—called islamic state quit over the decision to pull us troops from syria. chris buckler reports. in the us, some government buildings

have been closed and many federal employees have been told not to go to work, not because of christmas but because of a government shutdown. senators, however, were working. they were called to a special session of congress to try to find a funding deal acceptable to all. but without any sign of compromise, democrats and republicans were left simply blaming each other. they brought this about because they are under a lot of pressure — we all know this — from theirfar left, and feel compelled to disagree with the president on almost anything and certainly this. the rows about donald trump‘s long promise for a physical barrier along the border between mexico and america. he‘s been unable to get mexico to pay for the controversial border wall. and in the us, democrats have refused to give the president the $5 billion he says he needs to build it.

so mr president, president trump, if you want to open the government, you must abandon the wall, plain and simple. relationships between the white house and even some republicans in congress were damaged during the last week, after president trump made a surprise and sudden decision to pull us troops out of syria. it led to the resignation of his defence secretary, jim mattis, and now another member of his administration is leaving as a result of the president‘s plans. brett mcgurk is the us special envoy to the global coalition fighting the so—called islamic state group. in his resignation letter, he made clear his concerns that the president‘s claims that is had been defeated were premature. only a week ago, mr mcgurk raised fears of an early end to the campaign in a bbc interview. the point is, the military commitment does not end with the end of the caliphate. that is absolutely right. there is no timeline on it?

no timelines. washington is preparing for a short christmas break but goodwill is in short supply, and with a government shutdown and questions about presidential policy, this seems like a less than happy holiday for donald trump. chris buckler, bbc news, washington. a rescue effort is under way in indonesia to try and locate any more survivors from a tsunami that‘s already known to have killed more than 200 people and injured nearly 900 others. the islands of java and sumatra were affected by the giant wave, thought to have been triggered by underwater landslides from an erupting volcano — anak krakatau. steve mcandrew is from the international federation of red cross and is injakarta helping with relief efforts. thank you for speaking to us here on bbc news. telles some of the challenges that rescuers are facing at the moment after this tsunami. right now, with the rescuers, we are

working through the night. it‘s a lot more difficult. people cannot see. there‘s debris everywhere. it‘s dangerous to work in these areas where we are still looking, the search and rescue teams are still out there having to use flashlights and head lamps. he challenges are ongoing but the local red cross teams we have here are really up to thejob. we are teams we have here are really up to the job. we are working teams we have here are really up to thejob. we are working hand—in—hand with the government, and we‘re just not giving up here. we know that hundreds are dead and injured bulls of have you any idea how widespread that‘s been affected or is there no way of knowing completely what‘s gone on there? we are still doing assessments this evening, and by tomorrow, we will have more of an idea ofjust how widespread it is. our feeling is that it will not expand or get much more figure in

terms of the scopes of the damage but we are still out there looking at everything, as far as we can on both sides of the strait there, to see where we can find where the needs are and help people who need it. i —— andjust —— and just talk at the facilities. how many. is it possible to treat people there on the ground or are you having to evacuate people? we're doing both. at the moment, we have five mobile medical teams, and they have orthopaedic specialists on the teams. at the red cross teams. at the same time, the government has multiple teams out treating people at the same time, doing triage. as far as we know, there are no damage hospitals but the hospital‘s capacities... there under heavy pressure at the moment to treat all the wounded people coming in. it‘s a

big challenge and race against time, we have a lot of different assets going into the region. we disturbing water, we have search and rescue still going on, we have first aid teams. we are also starting to the attribute —— to release relief supplies to help people out in different shelters where they are. people in makeshift shelters, people in mosques, in municipal buildings. with our partners, we are able to channel the support through to national society, the indonesian red cross here. so far, we have a lot of support from a lot of our partners, including the british red cross, and we are still responding to choosing nominees and earthquakes that —— two tsunamis and earthquakes that ivan earlier this year. the operation is

going full speed and we‘re just keeping at it. i was going to ask you about that, about whether of the teams have experienced. presumably a lot of people out there working of the area well and have sadly been in this situation before. the area well and have sadly been in this situation beforelj the area well and have sadly been in this situation before. i think indonesia‘s probably got some of the best teams in the world, especially when it comes to the red cross teams that we have here doing first a common search and rescue and response to tsunamis. ourjob is just to get them the supplies, the fuel and the materials they need to keep doing the work. as far as experienced teams, we have the best in the world here. and is it possible to assess how long you will be there on the ground, trying to deal with the aftermath of this? we know we‘re going to be here for at least months and we are already looking at a two 1/2—year response

to the snye earlier this year. —— to the two nominees that it occurred. these people, we are counting on us. they put our hopes into the emergency teams and the red cross teams, and they don‘t want... there is no deadline on hope. we‘rejust going to keep going at it. we do going to keep going at it. we do going forward and as long as it. best of luck with the work you are doing there. steve mcandrew with the red cross injakarta. if you are speaking to us this evening. —— thank you for speaking to us. when donald trump announced that he was withdrawing us troops from syria and afghanistan, it caused grave concern amongst some allies. there are fears the president‘s decision may have a negative impact in the fight against the so—called islamic state and militants in afghanistan. the bbc‘s martha kearney has been to kabul — where she spent time with british

forces — who may now have to work without us help. british helicopters over a military base in kabul, but how much longer can they rely on us allies, after reports that 7,000 american soldiers are to be sent home in the coming weeks? especially since it seems the security is worsening. the soldiersjoke this is a kabul taxi. helicopters like this and black hawks are in constant use over kabul. it is a sign of how the increased security problems mean that road travel is more dangerous than it was in the past. the recent spike in violence makes the idea of speedy us withdrawal all the more surprising. 30 countries support the coalition, but the us provides most of the infrastructure, and it seems that america‘s closest allies may not have known about the trump plans. before the news broke, i spoke in kabul to the head of the uk armed forces. everything i‘ve seen during my visit here over the last 2a

hours or so would suggest they are wholeheartedly committed to this particular mission, as is nato and the international community more broadly. at the recent geneva conference, the international community enhanced that commitment. so i think these are different missions with different requirements. we are in the back of a british army vehicle, known as a foxhound, a heavily armoured vehicle. travelling from the green zone, where the government departments, nato headquarters, a lot of embassies are. until last night, the city was on black, which meant there was a risk of threat. vehicles like this couldn‘t go out. but that has been lifted so we are able to travel through the streets now. the british forces here in afghanistan were increased this year by 440. but it‘s afghan forces who actually fight the taliban. nearly 30,000 have been killed since 2015. those are big numbers, and the question of whether

that is sustainable is a question we all ask ourselves regularly. on the other hand, that is why peace is important. i think afghans are much more committed to this idea than once before. it gives everybody hope. there may be some optimism about the current peace talks, but this is certainly a volatile time in afghanistan with presidential elections next april. and now, the prospect of us troop withdrawals, which could ultimately lead to the end of the international coalition here. that was martha kearney there, reporting from kabul. now it‘s time for a look at the weather with phil avery hello again. if you‘ve got travel plans for the next few days, it looks like christmas week isn‘t going to get in your way. settled, fair, thanks to an area of high pressure, although really rather dull and grey for many of us. it doesn‘t look particularly settled for the rest of the day and overnight, simply because we have this weather front close by to the southern

counties of england. at least that helps to keep your temperatures up there. elsewhere, under clearing skies, it will be a cold start to the new day on monday. christmas eve, of course. and there will be some fog in the forecast for northern ireland, around the merseyside area as well. but monday shaping up to be a really decent sort of day. late in the day, i think we‘ll find fog forming again across the line of the a1 corridor. throughout the day, the cloudiest skies down towards the south—west. here we are, christmas day itself, a lot of cloud around. the best of the brightness somewhere across the eastern side of both scotland and england. mildest out towards the west. despite the sunshine, pretty chilly in the east. this is bbc news. the headlines at 6pm: a tsunami, triggered by an erupting volcano, hits indonesia causing widespread devastation. more than 220 people are dead and more than 800 injured. emergency services are battling to save the injured. eyewitnesses describe scenes of chaos after waves struck at night. over here, an image that gives you a

sense of the power of the waves. these cars, i‘m told, were parked on the other side of the road and have been pushed into each other, on top of what was a holiday villa. sussex police are examining a damaged drone found near the perimeter fence of gatwick airport, as two people arrested on friday are released without charge. uk homelessness reaches a record high,