this is bbc news, i'm mike embley. our top stories: president trump and the first lady pay a surprise christmas visit to american troops in iraq, his first presidential trip to a combat zone. a strong rebound on wall street. the dow index has broken a record and for the first time gained more than1,000 points in a single trading session. russia's president witnesses the final test of a hypersonic missile he claims can penetrate any missile defence system. sister wendy beckett, the nun whose passion for art made her a tv star, has died at the age of 88. hello and welcome to bbc news. president trump and the first lady have made a surprise visit to iraq to thank us troops for their service. nearly two years into his presidency, it is his first trip to see soldiers under his command

in a conflict zone, and just days after his announcement that american troops would be pulled out of neighbouring syria — a decision that prompted the resignation of two high—level advisers. back home in washington, government agencies are still in the grip of a partial shutdown. from there, the bbc‘s chris buckler. president trump travelled with the first lady to iraq, to spread some christmas cheer and to thank troops for their service and sacrifice. we came to al asad to share our eternal gratitude for everything you do to keep america safe, strong and free. but, standing with us soldiers on foreign soil, it was inevitable he would be asked about what many claim is his increasingly isolationist foreign policy. last week, in a sudden and surprise decision, he announced that american forces would be leaving syria, causing concern in washington and several corners of the world. but mr trump said he believed a lot of people were going to come around

to his way of thinking. he went on to insist that it's time for us to start using our head. one person who remains unconvinced as the outgoing defence secretary, jim mattis, who resigned over the president's plans. mr trump says he is in no hurry to find a permanent successor to general mattis, a sign that he intends to push forward with what he believes is right. it is reported that the pentagon has been asked to draw up plans to severely reduce the number of american troops in afghanistan. many in the military feel there is still much work left to be done there and in syria. and there has been widespread criticism of mr trump's suggestion that the so—called islamic state group have been defeated. this was the first trip by this commander—in—chief to see his soldiers in a combat zone. but mr trump has given every signal that he wants to be less involved in the middle east, a president who seemingly believes in "america

first", and getting involved in other countries only as a last resort. even with those questions about his foreign policy, mr trump may well feel that that trip to iraq has been a brief break from the battles he is facing in washington, where concerns about the economy, the stock market and the partial government shutdown which left hundreds of thousands of federal workers over christmas either on unpaid leave or not knowing when they will be paid. mr trump insist he will only accept the funding deal if it gives him $5 billion for a border war with mexico. the democrats insist that isn't going to happen. it has left many believing that this shutdown could last for some time to come. more on this now from lieutenant colonel daniel l davis, senior fellow with the think tank defense priorities. i know you have served in iraq and afghanistan. how important is a visit like this?

imean, how important is a visit like this? i mean, what is the point of it, really? well, in terms of the troops on the ground, these kinds of visits are on the ground, these kinds of visits a re really on the ground, these kinds of visits are really important, because if the commander—in—chief of the armed forces doesn't ever go to see the troops actually in the combat zone where he is sending them, you know, that causes some concern and some consternation, especially when it is an american tradition that our president is going to that. this is the first time for president trump, it has probably been a long time in coming, he should have done it before now, but he finally has, and as you have properly seen from a number of the videos and photos that you have been showing, it has been well received by the troops over there. yes, you could say it has taken a good while to get there, hasn't it, nearly two years into his presidency, and if you are being cynical, he has a lot to distract from. the very controversial announcement, the resignation of two very senior people and the partial government shutdown at home. well, yes, but i think we need a little bit of context for those two officials that have resigned and left, because in my estimation, from having served on the ground in

combat twice in both of those two countries, those resignations were probably appropriate, because the fa ct of probably appropriate, because the fact of the matter is the american people voted for president trump specifically because they don't want us specifically because they don't want us to be involved in wars that never ends, and that continue on forever, and both the situation in syria, that will never end, there is no military mission there that can be accomplished, and without some kind of change, we will literally be there forever, as is the case in iraq. i mean, in afghanistan. so both of those two men were advocates of continuing on really without any end, and president trump says no, my foreign policy states that this is not the right path, but there is a better way to do it, and so i think he is right in saying well, he needs officials that will put into effect my decisions, because we can't have, you know, other officials, even the secretary of defence as well respected as general mattis is, to be making their decisions or the opposing the president, doing something he was not elected to do. and yet they were not the only people to react with shock and

horror to the announcement. what do you think that announcement means for iraq and four afghanistan? well, the reason why that was met with so much shock is because that is the standard washington establishment thinking, both the right and the left. and that's why you saw a lot of excitement of both sides. because there is this mentality that, if the us doesn't have military combat troops on the ground, then somehow we don't have influence. and i would argue, again, from having seen it first hand, but that is the worst thing we could do, because that doesn't give us influence, itjust ties are and it causes lots of casualties both on the ground and for our own forces. and so if we wa nt to for our own forces. and so if we want to see something get better, we don't need to disengage from the region. as a matter of fact, it didn't get much press today, but the vice president spoke with the new iraqi pm earlier this month and the secretary of defence both emphatically reinforced that we are not abandoning, we are not leaving the region, and trump reinforced that today. so we are not abandoning, but there are better ways to do it then using combat

troops. thank you very much. always my pleasure, thank you for having me. let's get some of the day's other news: judges in france have dropped a long—running investigation into the shooting down of a plane carrying the former rwandan presidentjuvenal habyarimana. his death in 1994 was a trigger of the genocide. a french inquiry began four years later at the request of relatives of the french crew members who died. us supreme court judge ruth bader ginsburg has left hospital following cancer surgery. the 85—year—old had two cancerous growths removed from her left lung in new york on friday. ms ginsberg is the most senior justice on the supreme court's liberal wing. in ukraine, 30 days of martial law has come to an end, amid continuing tensions with russia in the kerch strait. the measure was in force in ten regions along the black sea and the borders with russia, belarus and moldova. martial law was declared after the capture of three ukrainian naval vessels and 2a sailors by russian forces in november. russia says that reported israeli air strikes on syria overnight

directly threatened two civilian aircraft. the defence ministry in moscow says one of the endangered flights had been landing in damascus and the other in beirut. syria said earlier its air defences had intercepted missiles fired by israeli aircraft close to the capital, damascus. an arms depot had been damaged and three soldiers wounded. israel hasn't commented on these reports. stock markets in the usa have made a remarkable rebound after days of losses, including their worst ever christmas eve. the dow index posted its biggest ever daily point gain, surging by more than 1,000 points in a single trading session. 0ur reporter kim gittleson is here to add some analysis. how significant is this? well, it seems like investors can't make up their mind. let's put this one—day gain in context. it's partially being driven by the fact that we got a lot of good retail data out

suggesting that americans spent quite a bit this holiday season. that of course soothe investors who we re that of course soothe investors who were worried about the growth prospects for the us economy, the fa ct prospects for the us economy, the fact that americans still want to go out and spend suggest that at least in the short we won't be seeing any in economic growth. that certainly helps american corporations like amazon, which is one of the biggest gainers on the stock exchange today. but of course, when we talk about what is going on in markets, we don'tjust talk what is going on in markets, we don't just talk about what happened on one day, even though it's very tempting, because there are a lot fun fact about what happened today. we look at what overall the trend is, and to put that figure in context, the dow would have to seek similargains on context, the dow would have to seek similar gains on thursday at an —— thursday and friday to end the year in the black. so it seems unlikely that this year will once again be a trump bump on us markets. and we don't, as you continually remind us, mistake the stock market for the economy. how is looking for the coming year? there are warning signs, aren't they? 0ne investor

quoted charles dickens and said it has been the best of times in the worst of times, and i think a lot of investors when they look on 2019, they don't think that they will be any more of those good times. i think a lot of things are weighing on them. they are worried about the prospect of tech regular asian hurting a lot of the companies, facebook being the biggest one—day, it has been one of the biggest leaders on the nasdaq, that has led toa leaders on the nasdaq, that has led to a lot of profits for many investors. they are worried that won't last for much longer. and then of course there is the ongoing us china trade war, and of course what will happen with brexit. all of these things are weighing on investors, and that is why even though today they saw a bit of, i don't know, christmas cheer, belatedly, it is not necessarily something that many think will continue well into the new year. thank you, plenty to way there. —— weigh. the united states coast guard said on wednesday it was searching for a british crew member who went overboard from a royal caribbean cruise ship, harmony of the seas, on christmas day. 20—year—old arron hough went overboard some 267 miles off puerto rico.

the coast guard said it continued its search for hough with an airplane and cutter ship. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: weeks on from california's deadliest wildfire, investigators are looking at how this could be prevented from ever happening again. the world of music has been paying tribute to george michael, who's died from suspected heart failure at the age of 53. he sold well over 100 million albums in a career spanning more than three decades. the united states troops have been trying to overthrow the dictatorship of general manuel noriega. the pentagon said that it's failed in its principle objective to capture noriega and take him to the united states to face drugs charges. the hammer and sickle was hastily taken away. in its place, the russian flag was hoisted over what is now no longer the soviet union, but the commonwealth of independent states. day broke slowly over lockerbie, over the cockpit of pan am's maid of the seas, nose down in the soft earth. you could see what happens

when a plane eight storeys high, a football pitch wide, falls from 30,000 feet. christmas has returned to albania after a communist ban lasting more than 20 years. thousands went to midnight mass in the town of shkodra, where there were anti—communist riots ten days ago. good to have you where us on bbc news. —— widows. the latest headlines: us president donald trump and first lady melania trump have the made an unannounced christmas visit to us troops in iraq. the dow has broken a record and gained more than 1,000 points in a single trading session — for the first time ever. president putin says russia has acquired a new type of strategic weapon, after observing the final tests of a nuclear—capable hypersonic missile. mr putin said the weapon could penetrate any existing or next—generation missile defence system. moscow says the avangard missile launched in the ural mountains hit a target 6000 kilometres away in kamchatka. russia last week blamed

the united states for the breakdown of international arms control. mr putin said the new avangard system was invincible. translation: the new avangard system is invincible for today's and future air defence systems and missile defence systems. this is a big success and a big victory. within the next year, the avangard system will be deployed into service. a regiment will be created which will start its combat duty. vladimir putin. from washington we can speak to michael kofman who's a senior research scientist at the cna corporation and a fellow at the wilson center where he researches and writes about the russian military. i know you research and write about the russian military. you know history is littered with weapons systems, defence systems that are supposed to be invincible. what

about this one? i think it is a russian design to get around the potential us missile defence system. the russian dark fantasy is that we are investing in it and that will play down the line in 20 or 30 yea rs. play down the line in 20 or 30 years. this is meant to give them a more credible military deterrent? is it invincible? it is a constant challenge and a constant fight between the sword and the shield. it might bea between the sword and the shield. it might be a good system. but there is nothing really invincible. what is particularly significant about it? to be frank, it is not a hypersonic missile, it is a hypersonic weapon thatis missile, it is a hypersonic weapon that is a re—entry vehicle. it is boosted by a traditional intercontinental ballistic missile. the goes up into orbit and comes down at hypersonic speeds and skirts

along the edge of the atmosphere towards the target and dies down to the target. it is a very complex weapon. the design is sophisticated from the standpoint of physics, materials silence will —— science. they have been testing it since 2004. i don't think it is ready for production for. would doubt it was the reality. -- i doubt it is. more than likely this is the weapon they will be using in early 2020s. why do you think vladimir putin is talking about it in the way he is? to be frank, he has put a lot of local emphasis on the achievement, particularly in the last year, year and a half, it is not simply for a domestic audience. early on this year the russians are switched approach to dealing with united states and they brought a decidedly negative agenda. there is an arms race, not a quantitative arms race, a qualitative arms race. a qualitative arms race is really

being had entirely by russia. the point is let's get together and have an arms race, form a bilateral agenda and have meetings and so on. that is why they keep highlighting. both as a source of technological pride and domestic achievement and is part of the broader agenda for what here in the united states could potentially have to talk about. what here in the united states could potentially have to talk aboutm he right when he says international arms control has effectively broken down? it is breaking down. and it is disappearing. i will be frank, it is very likely we will be living in a world without arms control in the near future. world without arms control in the nearfuture. international world without arms control in the near future. international arms control, it is mostly bilateral arms control, it is mostly bilateral arms control between united states and russia and the agenda that was inherited from the cold war. the extension of the principal arms control treaty, the new star treaty, they mostly have major problems of

violations to the —— with the exception. in that respect he is right, it is russia that is principally responsible for the brecon in arms control. good to talk to you. thank you very much was a —— breakdown. sudan's interior minister has dismissed amnesty international‘s report that 37 demonstrators were killed by the security forces during nearly eight days of anti—government protests. ahmed bilal 0sman, told the al araby aljadeed online publication that seventeen protestors had died and thirty—five policemen had been injured. over the past week, police and security operatives in plain clothes have used live ammunition and tear gas to break up numerous protests across the country. initial demonstrations were against the rising cost of food and fuel but many protesters are now calling for president 0mar el—bashir to step down. it has been just weeks since the camp fire ripped through california — becoming the deadliest and most destructive in the state's history. at least 86 people were killed — many of them trapped in the town of paradise. now as the community looks to recover and rebuild the big

question is how this can be prevented from happening again. james cook reports from california. radio: we have potential for a major incidents. request 15 additional engines... from the very first radio call, just before dawn, the danger was clear. go down into the community and evacuat it. the fire was burning in a canyon east of paradise, fanned by ferocious winds. within hours, the entire town, home to 27,000 people would be ablaze. this is what goes up and down and does the sowing. in paradise, they are still counting the cost. this is all that remains of lori crowder‘s workshop, the home she shared with her husband has gone too. did you manage to get any precious things from your home or from here?

clothes on our back. i grabbed my embroidery files, but all my print files, all my records, everything is gone. so it is notjust the personal loss of your home but it is rebuilding a business as well, it's a big financial burden? mm—mm. but we will do it. we will do it. this is notjust a tragedy for paradise, it's a disaster for california. in the past 20 years, this state has seen 16 of its 20 largest wildfires on record. ten of the 20 deadliest and 15 of the most destructive in terms of property destroyed. so what's going on? president trump blames california forfailing to managing its forests. his administration suggests loggin is the answer. at this saw mill, they agree, saying environmental laws

and a century of suppressing wildfires have left a dangerous landscape which must be thinned. i think the president has a point, that in some instances, the forest management of california did not accomplish what it was supposed to accomplish. we're reducing the density and we're reducing the rate the fire can spread from crown to crown, up high, because that is when they get dangerous and that's when they cover a lot of ground. you'll see here these pine seedlings and saplings growing in afterthe fire... but this environmentalist disagrees. logging, he says, is not the answer. what logging does is itjust creates a lot of combustible/debris — branches and limbs on the forest floor, it spreads very combustible invasive grasses, like cheat grass. it basically reduces the canopy cover of the forest and so, instead of a cooling shade of the forest canapy, you get these very hot, dry windy conditions and that just makes fire spread fast. as long as we keep spending billions of dollars every year on backcountry fire suppression and logging,

we're not using those resources to protect homes. people's appreciation for what firefighters do, for what the public safety folks do. this means a lot to everybody. california's fire chief is adamant wildfires are getting bigger and more dangerous and there will be many more thank you cards for one obvious reason. it is climate change. literally, firefighters are on the front lines of climate change in california and really in other parts of the west we are seeing it, these changes in temperatures, these changes in weather patterns, all of that is having a direct impact on fire conditions. man: tyres popping, tyres are burning... for generations, california has been known as the golden state. woman: we're moving, we're moving... for some it remains heaven on earth but for how much longer? man: yes, people, it is blowing, it's hot... james cook, bbc news, paradise. a story we are very lucky to come

back to. sister wendy beckett, the nun whose passion for art made her an unexpected television star, has died at the age of 88. her broadcasting career began in the early 1990s and she went to appear in several bbc series. david sillito looks back at her life. scripture tells us that the angel gabriel was sent by god to a virgin in the town of nazareth. sister wendy beckett, a nun talking about paintings. who would have guessed that this would have been such a hit? god became man and it happened like this. there was never a rehearsal or a written script, she simply stood and spoke and millions in britain, america, and around the world sat and listened. and here we have the great mythological scene, but i really can't afford to spend time looking at them because i want to get to this huge claude. she was 16 when she firstjoined the

nuns. as a child she was almost too clever. well, i never expected to be able to talk to anybody but i took that for granted, that was how people were. they would never find anybody they could talk to. at oxford tutor wasjr tolkien, it she received so much a degree that round of applause. she went on to write books and then she was asked if she would present a programme on her passion, art. the pressure of work and coping with epilepsy led her to seek almost total solitude. then, during a rare excursion to a gallery, she was overheard talking about art. it was that it led to her tv career. she found the idea of fame and celebrity mortifying. herjoy was silence and solitude. the fame was utterly unexpected for someone who had spent so much of her life in silence and solitude.

even at mass she sat alone in the belfry. well, that is where i am going to live for eternity, i hope, tucked away in the belfry of the graveyard, thanking god for allowing me a life... ..of such unimaginable happiness. lucky me. sister wendy beckett who died today at the age of 88. a us explorer has become the first man to cross antarctica alone and unassisted. 33—year—old colin o'brady finished a race across the ice in 53 days, beating british army captain louis rudd. the trek is 1500 kilometre across the earth's coldest continent in extreme conditions. the journey killed a british ex—army officer two years ago. miley cyrus has confirmed she has

married the australian actor liam hemsworth. she shared images with the ceremony. this was reportedly on sunday on social media. the couple met nearly a decade ago on the set of the film the last song. it was a small ceremony attended by family and close friends. just briefly, that menus again, president trump has made a surprise christmas visit to troops in iraq. his first trip to see troops in a combat zone. it is just after general mattis and another senior advisor resigns after the president's decision to pull us forces out of neighbouring syria. much more new thiney time on the bbc website. —— much more news any time. you can reach me on twitter — i'm @bbcmikeembley. hello there.

it may not have been a white christmas but it wasn't a particularly bright christmas either or many of us. this was how it looked on boxing day in tenby in the south—west of wales. a lot of cloud around and through the day ahead again it will be often cloudy, but it should remain largely dry. we have high pressure still firmly in charge to the south. frontal systems dancing across the far north of the uk so a bit of patchy rain still clearing eastwards across scotland but for many more, it's a dry start and a relatively mild start, although notice, something a little bit cooler showing up across the south of england and south wales. could be at touch of frost here and that is because the skies have been clearing and after any early fog has cleared, across the southern counties of england and the south of wales, that is where we have a decent chance of seeing some sunshine through the day. also, the north and east of scotland, parts of north—east england, maybe north—east wales and merseyside, these areas could see some sunshine. elsewhere, generally a lot of cloud, it may be the odd spot of drizzle,

most will be dry and highs of 8—12. through thursday night, there could still be large areas of cloud and fog floating around but a bit of a change up to the north—west — we see thicker cloud, some outbreaks of rain moving across northern ireland and into western scotland by the end of the night. if the cloud does break for any length of time where you are, you might get a touch of frost but most of us won't. so for friday, we'll see these outbreaks of rain trundling eastwards across scotland. much of the rain quite light and quite patchy. as it clears, the skies will clear too. for scotland and also northern ireland and northern england, maybe down into the midlands, something brighter, some sunshine by friday afternoon, with more cloud down towards the south. and then we get on into the weekend. high pressure still in charge, our familiar friend sitting just to the south. this frontal system actually likely to spin up into an area of low pressure which will pass just across the northern half of scotland.

some outbreaks of pretty heavy rain here and then potentially some patchy rain also sliding into northern ireland and northern england as a day wears on. further south again, a lot of cloud but a lot of dry weather. a mild day on saturday — 10—12 degrees. for sunday, there could still be a little bit of patchy rain around but for most it is more of this largely dry but largely cloudy weather, some sunny breaks here and there and those temperature still doing well for this time of year. 11, maybe 13 degrees in places. for new year's eve and of course new year's day, it is looking largely dry, pretty cloudy, but for most of us, it will be mild. this is bbc news. the headlines: president trump has made a christmas visit to us troops in iraq, his first trip to see soldiers under his command in a combat zone. it comes days after his defence secretary, jim mattis, resigned in a dispute over the president's decision to pull us forces out of syria. stock markets in the us have made a remarkable rebound after days of losses, including their worst ever christmas eve.

the dow index posted its biggest ever daily point gain, surging by more than 1,000 points in a single trading session. president putin says russia has acquired a new type of strategic weapon, after observing the final tests of a nuclear—capable hypersonic missile. he said it was a new year's gift to the nation. mr putin said the weapon could penetrate any existing or next—generation missile defence system. thousands of bargain hunters have been hitting the high street for the annual boxing day sales, with some starting to queue