japan is to resume commercial whaling, in defiance of a global ban. the move has provoked international criticism — whale hunting will start in the summer. retailers pin their hopes on boxing day sales as shops try to make up for weak trading in the lead up to christmas. a powerful earthquake hits sicily around europe's most active volcano, mount etna. and how this premier league footballer brought some christmas joy to a charity in liverpool. good afternoon. there's been international criticism of japan's decision to withdraw from the international whaling commission and resume commercial hunting. the government of australia described it as regrettable, while new zealand said the practice was unnecessary. japanjoins iceland and norway in defying the moratorium

on commercial whaling, which was introduced in the 1980s. navtej johal‘s report contains some distressing images. it's a bloody business. ships like this are only catching and killing whales for what the japanese authorities claim are research purposes. but japan wants to commercially hunt species too. officials in the country say eating whales is part of their national culture. translation: at the international whaling commission meeting in september, it became obvious that it is not possible for states with differing views to exist side by side, which led to our decision to leave. the hunting of whales was banned by the international whaling commission in 1986, after they were almost driven to extinction. but countries like iceland and norway still hunt mainly minke whales, which are not endangered. and japan catches between 200 and 1200 whales a year under

a programme of scientific research. this move has brought condemnation. conservationists argue it could undo the progress made over the last few decades. it's not just about what japan does. it's about whether other countries will follow suit and step outside the whaling commission, because ifjapan, if you like, get away with this, other countries might want to do the same thing. then more and more populations could be exposed to whaling. so we are very concerned about the potential for an expansion again of whaling outside of any international control. japan's withdrawal from the commission means it will resume commercial whaling byjuly 2019. it claims it will be restricted to japan's territorial waters and economic zones, meaning ships will cease whaling in the antarctic 0cean. and japanese boats will only hunt species with healthy population numbers. but this controversial

practice is now likely to face renewed scrutiny. navtaonhal, bbc news. hundreds of bargain hunters have been hitting the high street for the annual boxing day sales, with some starting to queue from as early as midnight last night to bag a deal. shoppers are expected to spend around £4 billion today, even after prices were slashed before christmas. 0ur correspondent joe miller has more. it is site that will bring much—needed festive cheer to britain's ailing retailers, buoyed by the promise of bumper discounts, shoppers in manchester, newcastle and cardiff queued from the early hours of the morning. boxing day is great, because you have your christmas presents and you can see what you want to match them. boxing day is nice to come out and get fresh air. millions more are expected to visit shopping centres across the country but the starting

gun for seasonal sales was started a few weeks ago. black friday, an american import is getting popular both online and the high street and shops have cut prices a month before they used to. after a miserable year, these sales could be the last chance saloon for many struggling shops. but even a busy boxing day might not be enough. their warehouses are piled high with unsold goods and it is forcing them to offer steeper discounts in what is becoming a race to the bottom. in london's's west end, things are looking up. there is a boxing day bounds in the west m. a lot of customers driven by the low pound, people want fresh air and take 70% off with good bargains. in the next few hours, more than £50 million is expected to be spent in central london but household debt is rising and shoppers have less disposable

income. britain's struggling high streets will be hoping the christmas splurge stretches well into the new year. three migrants have been rescued from a small boat as they tried to cross the english channel in the early hours of this morning. it follows the rescue yesterday of a0 migrants, including two children. the home office has blamed organised crime. 0ur correspondent emily unia is in dover for us this lunchtime. emily, why the recent spike in numbers? it is thought to be a combination of factors. but the fact the weather has been good so the sea has been calm. but also it is the holiday period and not that many ferries are crossing the channel and the big ships are not going in such great numbers. what is a very dangerous crossing at the best of times for people in tiny boats is perhaps that little bit safer in the past couple of days. emily, thank you very much. a man has died after being hit by a police car in liverpool last night.

the victim was knocked down near the wallasey tunnel, just before 7:00 yesterday evening. it's being reported that the police car was responding to an emergency call, when it collided with the victim as he was crossing the road. the incident is now being investigated by the independent office for police conduct. syrian state media says israeil war planes carried out a series of air strikes overnight on a weapons depot near damascus. it's understood that the depot was hit and three soldiers were injured. israel has not confirmed the attack, but said it had activated its own air defence systems to bring down a syrian missile. scientists in cambridge have created a 3d digital model of a cancer. the tumour sample, taken from a patient, can be studied using virtual reality. researchers hope it will provide new insights into how cancers spread. fergus walsh reports. this is 21st—century pathology. on a conveyor belt is a wafer thin slice taken from a human tumour. multiple slices, each just one cell thick,

are analysed to reveal all the characteristics of the cancer. then, the sample is reassembled digitally so it can be studied, using virtual reality. we are on the bleeding edge of nearly every technology. greg hannon, director of cancer research uk's cambridge institute, showed me round his virtual lab, where we are transformed into avatars. this giant multicoloured cloud of bubbles is the virtual tumour. the tissue sample it came from was the size of a pinhead. the purpose of this project is to understand how each of these cell types influences each other. what messages do they send to each other and how does that influence their behaviour? this shows how the incredible diversity of cancer cell types interact in order to evade the body's defences. now that knowledge may ultimately help in the search for new treatments. at this point, we decided to go and

explore the tumour in more detail. i think you can really start to appreciate its structure. i'm noticing something interesting here. we willjust move around. it looks to me like there are sets of tumour cells that are floating above the structures, almost as if they are streaming out. it is when those cells leave the duct to become invasive disease is when they become really dangerous. so here, are you capturing potentially the moment when this cancer begins to spread? yes. i think that is what is really remarkable here because i think unless we're looking at the tumour in this detail, this resolution, in this many cells in this dimension, we would never be able to find such an event. researchers at the crick institute in london say that the virtual tumour will help explain how cancers interact with healthy cells and eventually spread.

it is a huge step forward. it is so much more dynamic and real than what we've been able to do in the past by looking at very static analyses of what is happening in essentially two dimensions. this virtual pathology lab can be accessed by researchers anywhere in the world, helping scientists share knowledge in the fight against cancer. fergus walsh, bbc news, cambridge. another earthquake has hit sicily around europe's most active volcano mount etna, injuring at least two people. some buildings were damaged in what was the latest in dozens of tremors since etna erupted on monday. james reynolds reports. the earthquake hit the slopes of mount etna at around 3:20am. it damaged nearby homes and buildings. in a nearby village, an 80—year—old man had to be rescued from his home.

translation: my father-in-law remained under the rubble. it is a miracle, he's born—again. it's a miracle we're still alive. some decided to take shelter in their cars or in local gyms. anywhere just to be safe. people here are used to living with the constant fear of eruptions and earthquakes. mount etna dominates the island of sicily. it is the biggest active volcano in europe. in recent days, scientists recorded more than 100 tremors, causing the authorities to restrict flights to the regional airport in the city of catania. 0ne official concludes, "our country is unfortunately very fragile". james reynolds, bbc news, rome.

a collection of old signs from the moscow underground system have sold out — just a few hours after going on sale. some of them date back to the time of the soviet union and officials say more will soon be available. tim allman explains. these aren't so much train stations, but palaces underground. the moscow metro system is one of the most spectacular in the world and now, a small part of it is up for grabs. passenger signs, no entrance, no exit, that sort of thing, on sale and selling fast. translation: i live nearby so i decided to run here instead of having my breakfast. when i arrived there were some signs left and now i'm a happy owner. work began on the network

in the mid—1930s. it was supposed to glorify the wonders of the communist system. in fact, it outlasted the soviet union itself. these are relics of an earlier age and this, isjust the beginning. translation: there will surely be a second bunch, they are already in our warehouse. we have been collecting the very best. they will be of interest, not only for our passengers, but for collectors and designers as well. well, here's one customer who feels she is heading in the right direction. tim allman, bbc news. most of us will have spent christmas day surrounded by family and friends and loved ones. but premier league footballer trent alexander—arnold chose to spend his with strangers. the 20—year—old liverpool star volunteered for a local charity buying presents and dinner for families who have fallen on hard times.

judith moritz reports. between morning training and evening match prep, trent alexander—arnold could have been forgiven for spending yesterday afternoon at home. but instead, he chose to bring christmas to a roomful of children who wouldn't otherwise have had much to celebrate. applause. hello. the liverpool defender bought them all sacks of presents. he takes his role as a charity ambassador very seriously, understanding that though he's just 20, he's already a role model. i probably am and the kids are probably looking up to me and i think that, yeah, once you understand that you're a role model, these sorts of things are something that you want to do more often, because people might want to follow in your footsteps. and seeing me do these type of things, hopefully they'll do it in the future, and that's something that can only benefit the whole city. though there were a few everton fans in the room, the children were thrilled with their scouse santa.

it felt amazing to actually meet a football player, and to get a present off a football player, just — i can't describe it, but it just feels amazing. sometimes i like talking about everton, sometimes i like talking about liverpool. i just... you didn't mind meeting a liverpool player though? yeah, i'm — i'm completely fine with it. the player also paid forfamilies to eat christmas dinner. the whole thing co—ordinated by a charity called an hour for others, which encourages people to volunteer for the local community. trent's no different to anyone else, he'sjust a normal lad. it's a genuine thing, it's from his heart. he understands the importance of sticking together in hard times because he's lived in hard times himself, and he just wants to give back to his city. after injury, trent alexander—arnold is back to full fitness as liverpool face newcastle today. he didn't get much of a christmas break, but says putting a smile

on young faces was more important. judith moritz, bbc news, liverpool. merry christmas. there's more throughout the evening on the bbc news channel. we reported last week on the homeless people who were left disappointed when the hotel in hull which had been booked for them by the charity raise the roof homeless group cancelled the reservation for christmas eve and christmas day. thankfully, another hotel stepped in and 28 men and women were able to enjoy the festive period in warm and cosy surroundings. we can speak now to the founder of the charity, carl simpson, who joins us via webcam from hull. how did it go? fantastic, brilliant.

we had christmas dinner with them yesterday and there were so many happy faces. you have been through something of a roller—coaster. remind us how you felt when you have the first hotel had cancelled the booking. absolutely gutted. when we booked it we told them it was the local community project and what we we re local community project and what we were doing and then two days later were doing and then two days later we we re were doing and then two days later we were floored when they cancelled it. what reason did they give? we did not get any reason whatsoever for two days and they would not get a reason and then after the media attention they put out a statement saying it was cancelled because the previous hotel had been trashed by your previous visit last year which was untrue. luckily the ibis came forward and confirmed there were no incidents last year. you are looking

at disappointed people and then someone at disappointed people and then someone stepped in. yes. i was dreading telling them and then all ofa dreading telling them and then all of a sudden the halton doubletree came forward in a fantastic gesture and offered everybody the room for three for two nights, breakfast and christmas dinner. what was the reaction to those who presumably we re reaction to those who presumably were looking at christmas on the streets to walking into a hotel like that on christmas eve? it was a really strange atmosphere. some of them could not believe it. even checking and they did not... they thought something would go wrong. you should have seen the smiles on the faces of the people. the hilton gave them gift bags with toggles and toiletries as well. it was beautiful. i am looking at the smile on yourface

beautiful. i am looking at the smile on your face that tells the story. it makes christmas. definitely. this was definitely a christmas miracle. it is just beautiful. was definitely a christmas miracle. it isjust beautiful. when you spoke to them after they had had that first night how did they find it? we had one guy who literally checked in and went straight to his room and fell asleep and he did not get up until the next afternoon so he had nearly 2a hours of sleet and he said he did not want to get out of bed because he felt safe. the general state of the city has been phenomenal. they have gone to other places for breakfast and dinner and stuff like that. they have been spoiled. this is going to be christmas they will remember forever. that is fabulous but it is tonight days in the year, there is a bigger wider issue. yes. we are

hoping this actually motivates people, like a carrot for them to start acting so they can see what they can have, what they can achieve, what it is like to have the riff over their heads. we have kept everybody safe over christmas. the hope is they will interact more with services now and take up offers of support and get more permanent accommodation. is there one moment that bands out for you? of this? yes. yes. christmas day dinner when i went yes. yes. christmas day dinner when iwent in yes. yes. christmas day dinner when i went in there yesterday there was a couple of guys that pulling christmas crackers and there was a few tears of appreciation of what we had done, that is one of them. lots of moments, the staff at the hilton have been fantastic. for them to

behave the way they have done towards them is awesome. behave the way they have done towards them is awesomelj behave the way they have done towards them is awesome. i am sure they said it to you, but thank you and thank you for your time. the foreign secretary, jeremy hunt, has ordered a review looking at the way britain could help persecuted christians around the world. the review, led by the bishop of truro, will look at government efforts to help some of the 215 million christians who faced discrimination and violence last year. there are people in very poor countries, themselves very poor, who can suffer terribly for no other reason than their faith, and when that faith is christianity, that is not a reason to do nothing. we need to do something, just as we would if they were muslim or buddhist and being persecuted for the same reason. a little earlier i spoke to wilson chowdhry from the british pakistani christian association. he said persecution against christians was on the rise. the figures speak for themselves, 250 christians allegedly killed every month. this is a report written by open doors, a christian charity

created specifically because of the rise in christian persecution across the globe. this report will hopefully address matters such as issues regarding pakistani christians who still are regarded as a country where persecution does not include christians by most countries in the west, including britain. making it extremely difficult for asia bibi seeking asylum for her to come to the uk. that word persecution can cover so many things. what are the issues? take pakistan, what are the issues that face christians? christian women have a really untenable situation. 700 christian girls are kidnapped, raped and forced into islamic marriage every year. one million christians working as slaves in pakistan despite pakistan having adopted anti—slavery laws in 1992. we have attacks on churches, 11 attacks on churches in the last seven years with a death count

of over 500 and an injury count of over 3000. demoralising aspects as a christian in pakistan. this is not a new issue. why do we tend not to talk about it as much as we do others? is it a case, there is speculation that we are concerned political correctness is taking over? of course it is political correctness. i spoke to an appg for international and religious freedom, working with lord alton andjim shannon, and i remember at the meeting lord alton came up with a wonderful idea of altering the way we put our focus across for christians who have been persecuted by calling for genocidal victims to be regarded as a priority for asylum in the west. it beggars belief that countries, wealthy countries, in the middle east, like dubai and qatar, are unable to provide asylum to muslims and hindus. the only place christians can

safely go is the west. sport now and a full round up from the bbc sport centre. there is speculation you have a birthday coming up. or has it been? boxing day is the busiest day of the footballing calendar and it will be some homecoming for ole gunnar solskjaer as he manages manchester united at old trafford for the first time since becoming the caretaker manager. after winning his opening game in charge, 5—1 at cardiff, he's hoping his players can show more attacking flair against huddersfield. iam i am pleased with all of them, every

single one of them. it is a thread with rashford. it is exhilarating to watch and as long as they keep up that standard we will pick up points. the first game of the day is already underway at craven cottage where bottom side fulham are taking on wolves — the score is 0—0 at half—time. elsewhere, liverpool will aim to keep their li—point lead at the top of the premier league with a win over newcastle at anfield. second—placed manchester city are at leicester looking to bounce back from that shock home defeat to crystal palace, while third—placed tottenham host bournemouth. highlights of all the games will be on match of the day at 10:20pm on bbc one. celtic will be aiming to stay top of the scottish premiership, when they travel to aberdeen this afternoon. brendan rodgers's side are currently one point clear but a win for the dons would take them level on points. if celtic fail to win, second—placed rangers could go above them with victory over hibernian at ibrox.

australia opening batsman cameron bancroft has confirmed that david warner was the one to suggest he should tamper with the ball during australia's test match in south africa. bancroft was caught on camera trying to manipulate the ball with sandpaper and was later suspended for nine months. now he's told former australia wicketkeeper adam gilchrist on fox sports that warner had asked him to manipulate the ball and he had readily agreed. bancroft says he did not know any better, and just wanted to fit in, and feel valued. warner and australia test captain steve smith received 12 month suspensions. on the field, india took early control of the third test against australia in melbourne. the tourists won the toss and decided to bat first. the home side took only two wickets — both thanks to pat cummins. debuta nt mayank agarwal and cheteshwar pujara both made half centuries to take india's total to 215—2 at the close

with pujara not out on 68. the series is tied at one test all. in christchurch, 1a wickets fell on the opening day of the second test between sri lanka and new zealand. the tourists bowling out new zealand for 178. tim southee top scoring for the home side with 68. suranga lakmal taking a career—best five for 5h. southee then took three wickets, as the tourists reached 88 for 4 at stumps. dale stain has become south africa's all—time leading wicket taker in test cricket, after pakistan's fakhar zaman became his 422nd victim on the opening morning of their first test in centurion. pakistan won the toss, and decided to bat first, not the best decision. they finished the innings 181 all out. south africa are out now, and are currently 23—1.

rarely has a horse been more suitably named than "waiting patiently". the seven year old is making his comeback at boxing day's big race, the king george the sixth chase, at kempton. he's not raced since he beat cue card at ascot in february. but he's now got his chance to finally compete again. brian hughes will be on board, trying to guide him to victory, over the horse's first attempt at the three mile distance. the big favourites though will be former winners thistlecrack, and might bite, and the cheltenham gold cup hero, native river. the race gets underway just after 3pm. that's all the sport for now. you can keep up—to—date with all today's action on the bbc sport website. that's bbc.co.uk/sport. time now for the weather with thomas schafernacker. the weather on boxing day is turning out to be fairly calm as expected.

some of us have sunshine. for most of us it is cloudy. relatively mild for this time in december and this mild weather is here to stay for the coming days. well into the new year we are expecting the mild weather to persist. that is the current thinking. a lot of cloud which we are stuck with, most of us. the winds coming out of the south—west pushing the mild air across the uk and some of that is reaching central parts of europe were so far it has been pretty chilly and they have had a white christmas but it looks as if the thought will be setting in in central parts of europe. a little bit of rain in western parts of scotland. tonight in some areas these guys will clear. we have some sunshine in one or two back areas. that will lead to the clear skies and a frost overnight. towns and cities around two or three agrees

but outside of town i would not be surprised if the depths below freezing. frost first thing in the morning on thursday, regularly in the south, not necessarily in the north. in the afternoon not looking bad. sunshine for aberdeen and the north—east and the south. those temperatures in the south or north will be around 8—10d. the end of the week, friday the weather front moving into scotland, in early in the day this will bring some rainfall but it quickly moves out of the way. this is the rain in the morning. it will have moved through belfast earlier. through the afternoon the wind has switched direction and the weather is looking fairly decent for glasgow and edinburgh and further south apart from a bit of quote here and there. nine in london, 11 in belfast. into the weekend, it is looking more or

less the same, a of cloud across the uk with temperatures around 10 degrees.