hello and welcome to bbc news. france's so—called "gilets jaunes" movement brings protesters onto the streets. for a seventh weekend. organisers blame the festive season for a slight drop in numbers. voting has begun in bangladesh, following an election campaign plagued by violence and complaints of intimidation. with more than 200 people arriving in the past two months, the uk government defends its handling of the increase in migrants crossing the channel. after the christmas chaos at gatwick, local police say some of the drones seen over the british airport may have belonged to their own force. hello, darling, i'm having awful trouble deciding what to give you tonight. the actress damejune whitfield has died at the age of 93. she was best known for her roles in the british sitcoms terry

and june and absolutely fabulous. france's so—called gilets jaunes movement is blaming the festive season for a drop in protestors on the street. across the country, roads were blocked, barricades and vehicles were set alight, as some marches became violent. in paris, demonstrators camped outside media outlets as they vowed to continue fighting for better living standards into the new year. georgina smyth has the story. the seventh saturday of yellow vest protests, and the streets of france are still burning. this scene, filmed by onlookers on the streets of paris, the latest in a movement that ignited with fuel tax increases and exploded into so much more.

an olive branch of tax and salary concessions was offered by president macron earlier this month, but anger is still high across france. in bordeaux, police barricades were hijacked by demonstrators, stacked high, and set alight. further north, in nantes, canisters of teargas were deployed as peaceful demonstrators turned violent. translation: we will continue until we win, until macron backs down and gives us what we deserve. more purchasing power. less taxes, a healthy life, without having to tighten and tighten our belts at the end of every single month. in the capital, yellow vests converged on the steps of media outlets, ensuring the movement stays firmly on the news agenda. translation: i don't think we are slowing down. i think there is a desire to discredit the movement, a willingness to say the yellow

vests are slowing down, but that is not the case. organisers of the capital's new year's eve fireworks and light show say preparations will continue for the event, despite plans for more protests on the night. a message to the government that the movement will not fade for 2019. and you can find much more about the yellow vest protests on our website, including this analysis on whether president macron‘s concessions have been enough. head to our website, bbc.com/news. you can also download the bbc news app. voters are preparing to go to the polls in the democratic republic of congo's presidential election. the build—up to the vote has been marred by unrest, and the head of the country's electoral commission has said key opposition candidates have refused to sign a statement which spells out terms to avoid violence during the polling. caroline rigby has more. let's go live to our bbc

correspondent. how is polling looking now? well, so voting booths opened here two hours ago. i was at one earlier, and already, even before 8am when polls open, there we re before 8am when polls open, there were lots of people waiting outside. it is still largely a paper ballot, so it is still largely a paper ballot, so it is ona it is still largely a paper ballot, so it is on a piece of paper that they will make their choice. but for they will make their choice. but for the first time in a national election in bangladesh, electronic voting machines are also being used in six constituencies. as you said, you know, in the run—up to this election we have seen several violent incidents, several people being killed, scores being injured, so being killed, scores being injured, so there is a heavy security deployment all across the city, as

well as the country, and in fact even mobile internet has been slowed down for security reasons. so are we expecting this to be a comfortable victory, then? well, that is what is widely expected. the opposition, as you have said, has accused the prime minister and said that this is not a fair election, that they have set the election commission was biased in favour of the prime minister's party, and several of their candidates were disqualified. they said that the police were acting as an extension of the ruling party and arbitrarily arresting entertaining opposition activists and supporters. now, i put all of these questions to prime minister sheikh hasina when i met her two days ago. she says none of these allegations are true. she says the opposition has lost the support of the people and that is why it is making these allegations. but it is notjust the opposition. we have also had the us state

department raise concerns, agencies like human rights watch saying there isa like human rights watch saying there is a politically repressive environment in the city. on the ground, our experience is that when you drive around the city of dhaka, pretty much everywhere you will see posters of ruling party candidates, of league candidates, it is quite ha rd to of league candidates, it is quite hard to actually spot any kind of campaign material from the opposition. and on the ground, when i asked people what they were voting for, it was quite a mixed bag of opinions. some people have said that prime minister hasina, her main pitch, she has brought development to this country, she has sparked economic growth here, they said their lives had become better. prime minister hasina, when i spoke to her, said she has brought down poverty levels in this country. but on the other hand, i also made a lot of people saying that they feel that, you know, they have... increasingly dissent is being stifled in this country, that they feel they are not being free to express themselves clearly, and that is why they will be voting for democracy. voters are preparing to go to

the polls in the democratic republic of congo's presidential election. the build—up to the vote has been marred by unrest, and the head of the country's electoral commission has said key opposition candidates have refused to sign a statement which spells out terms to avoid violence during the polling. caroline rigby has more. tensions have been rising ahead of this long overdue election. delayed for two years, their run—up has been marred by unrest. on the eve of sunday's vote, the three front—runners met in an effort to agree terms on how to avoid further violence. translation: we have just signed this accord which says that we are committed to not having any violence. we call on the congolese to go and vote massively, without violence, without protests, in favour of these elections, to elect the new president. we have just signed, and there are no more problems. thank you.

optimism for presidentjoseph kabila's favoured successor was tempered by criticism from two key opposition figures. they both refused to sign the statement after officials rejected their suggested changes to the text. for the first time, electronic voting machines will be in operation, despite concerns they could be used to rig the vote. some worry these elections might not be free and fair, but after significant delays, many are eager to cast their ballot in what could mark the country's first democratic transition of power, after decades of authoritarian rule, coups and civil war. yet more than a million people will not get to take part in sunday. the electoral commission has postponed voting in three districts until march, blaming insecurity and the ongoing ebola outbreak for its decision. despite this, authorities still plan to swear injoseph kabila's replacement next month. let's get some of the day's other news:

egypt says it has killed a0 people it accuses of planning attacks against tourist sites and state institutions. the country's interior ministry says it happened on hideouts in giza and north sinai after it received intelligence that attacks were being planned. police launched the raids a day after the deadly bombing of a tourist bus near the pyramids outside cairo. flights at germany's hannover airport have resumed after they were suspended when a man drove a car onto the tarmac. police were able to overpower the man and stop the car. police say there is no evidence of a terrorist motive. italy's parliament has approved a revised budget for the next year, amid complaints from the opposition that it was dictated by the european union. the budget proposals were passed with 327 votes in favour and 228 against. the new budget watered down earlier

big—spending measures to avoid disapprovalfrom the european union. the uk government has insisted that it is working very effectively with france to tackle an increase in the number of migrants crossing the channel in small boats. more than 200 people have arrived since the start of november, and there have been calls for more patrol boats off dover. earlier, the immigration minister held talks with border force officials. richard lister reports. you're iranian? you have to be desperate to make this journey. these migrants were picked up crossing the channel earlier this month. others arrived yesterday — part of a growing number using ill—equipped boats to flee war zones, persecution and poverty. in dover today, the immigration minister met border force officials to consider their response. the home secretary, sajid javid,

cut short his christmas holiday to tackle what he has declared a major incident. the government says french cooperation is vital. what we want to make sure is that we continue to work with the french, so that people are prevented from leaving beaches in northern france, to make sure that we are providing joint operations, both in terms of intelligence and policing. the number of migrants heading for these shores is minuscule compared to the million or so who tried to cross the mediterranean three years ago. but the figure is rising — up from about a dozen or so who successfully crossed the channel last year to more than 220 who have made the crossing since the beginning of november alone. so why the sudden surge? in the autumn, french police intensified efforts to clear migrant camps around dunkirk and calais, leaving large numbers of people looking for ways to leave france. secret filming by the bbc a few weeks ago revealed that people smugglers have now become

increasingly organised in helping migrants cross the channel. translation: a boat, it will cost you £3,000—4,000. it is border force vessels like this one that have to intercept them. there is only one on active patrol here at the moment, and some say there should be more. there is no resilience within border force. we've got no spare capacity to increase and put resources into trying to stop this, trying to deal with these large numbers as they arrive. we are stripped to our bare bones. there is nothing more that border force has got to give. the government is weighing up whether deploying more patrol boats would deter migrants and save lives, or if it would give these desperate people more of an incentive to make the crossing. richard lister, bbc news, dover. the two—year—old boy whose yemini mother fought for a us visa —— yemeni.

to visit him in hospital has died. abdullah hassan was on life support by the time his mother was granted a us visa to visit him. she was initially prohibited from traveling to the us because of president trump's ban that restricts yemeni nationals from entering the country. thousands of people have marched through the serbian capital, belgrade, in the latest mass protest against president aleksandar vucic and his governing serbian progressive party. opposition groups accuse mr vucic of being autocratic and establishing total control over the media. the protests against him began after an opposition leader was beaten before a political gathering in central serbia last month. british police have acknowledged that some of the sightings of drones over london's gatwick airport may have been devices belonging to the force. an estimated 140,000 people had their travel plans ruined before christmas as experts tried to find

the illegal drone operators. police say they have not yet found the drone that caused the runway closure. gatwick airport is offering a large reward for any information leading to the arrest of those responsible. our correspondent andy moore has been following the story. last weekend, police said they found a damaged drone near the perimeter of gatwick airport, and they thought this may well be the drone that had caused so much problems for about 140,000 people. well, today giles york said that in fact two drones have been found near the airport, but he was ruling both of them out of police enquiries. again, last weekend, a senior officer from the force said there was a possibility there were no drones over gatwick. mr york said today that was not the case. he said, "i am absolutely certain that there was a drone flying throughout the period that the airport was closed." now, he also said, for the first time, i believe, that police drones were launched to survey the area, to look for suspects. he said they could have

caused some confusion. 115 sightings of this rogue drone, at least 93 of them credible, say the police, but no video footage. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: a heartwarming tale — how a puppy trapped in a frozen lake was rescued by a turkish police diver. the most ambitious financial and political change ever attempted has got underway with the introduction of the euro. tomorrow in holland, we're going to use money we picked up in belgium today and then we'll be in france, and again, it'll be the same money. it's just got to be the way to go. george harrison, the former beatle, is recovering in hospital after being stabbed at his oxfordshire home. a 33—year—old man from liverpool is being interviewed by police on suspicion of attempted murder. i think it looks good. just good? no, fantastic.

that's better. welcome back. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: for the seventh weekend in a row — france's so—called ‘gilets jaunes' movement brings protesters onto the streets. organisers blame the festive season for a slight drop in numbers. voters go to the polls in bangladesh — following an election campaign plagued by violence and complaints of intimidation. the comedy actress dame june whitfield has died.

she was 93. she was best known for her roles in the bbc comedies absolutely fabulous and terry and june as well as starring in a number of carry on films. her career began in the 1940s and she was still working up until a couple of years ago. sarah campbell now looks back on her life — in entertainment. kiss me, kiss me, bite me! bite me! i can't, dear, i'm a vegetarian! in a career spanning seven decades, june whitfield played alongside some of british comedy‘s greatest talents. what's it like, living in the jungle? well, it's... drums play. it's rather dull and boring, really. i realised very early on that i was never going to play the glamorous, you know, leading lady roles. and serious roles, i always thought, ooh, i'd better not do that. they might laugh at me.

and laugh they did. as a comedy performer, she first found fame on the radio in the 1950s, appearing in take it from here oppositejimmy edwards. but june whitfield's unfailing ability to conjure characters seemingly at the drop of a hat saw her become a foil for benny hill and frankie howerd. in the 1970s she teamed up with her regular comedy partner, terry scott, in terry and june. hello, darling. i'm having awful trouble deciding what to give you tonight. well, you can start on an explanation. i'm talking about food. what about eating out? what about the garage? 0h, i'd much prefera restaurant. # wheels on fire. but, to younger audiences, june whitfield will be best known as edina's mother in ab fab. inside of me, there is a thin person just screaming to get out. just the one, dear? and, even in old age, she continued to delight audiences on programmes like radio's news huddlines. a versatile and reliable

performer to the end. earlier, i spoke to the actress helen lederer and i asked her what her memories were of working withjune whitfield on the tv show absolutely fabulous. they were just really warm, happy memories, in a cast full of, you know, stars and budding stars, and the popularity of the programme sort of grew from the first episode. and june was always the same, always consistent, always the person you wanted to sit next to, and she would always do the crossword. she would always go around with ab fab scripts and get people to sign them to charity. a lovely person, but very, very focused. she made us laugh. when she would want her motivation, she would say, but why would i be walking across there? why would i be going through my handbag? she was very good at seeing the humour, never appeared to take

itself too seriously, but very, very professional. part of the genius of absolutely fabulous was, i suppose, that there was this woman who in her later years was perfectly coiffed, playing it quite straight, with some really quite naughty exchanges written byjennifer saunders. yes, the thing about actors — i saw a quote that she had said work is more fun than fun. june was one of those people who loved to work. you know, as i said, she wouldn't take itself seriously. she would enjoy — the twinkle in her eyes, we can all see that she would enjoy playing it straight. she was the perfect person to give a feed line, because of course she had grown up

being the one woman in a troupe of men, because of course that's how it was over several decades. and to give a feed is as good as doing the punchline well. both are as important as the other, and she knew that. you rightly mentioned that she was working in a world of men. do you think she was rightly recognised as a comedic trailblazer? i think, in those concepts and terms, they didn't exist in the olden days. i think, you know, quality work has always been valued. but the role of the female comedy icon has been invented more recently, as it should be, as we evolve, and as parity emerges. i don't thinkjune herself would have seen herself as a trailblazer. she was somebody who clearly loves her work, loved it, and she was a very decent and warm human being at the same time. the tv producerjon plowman talked

about her ability to place and land a comedy line. she really was quite a genius with her comic timing, wasn't she? well, there was a combination of somebody who was very trained, very articulate, excellent delivery, but also very knowing in how — yes, how to place a line. i think it was just instinct, as well. she just enjoyed the work, and always got it right. i think one of her great gifts was to appear natural, which is quite a difficult thing to do. i mean, to appear natural is an art, when you are an actor. authorities in the peruvian capital, lima, have destroyed a mausoleum housing the remains of eight left—wing shining path

rebel fighters. the controversy over the grave site began two years ago when a video — circulated on social media — allegedly showed family members celebrating the achievements of the guerillas. our americas editor, candace piette reports. b eight shining path rebels had been killed during prison rights more than three decades ago. their remains have been relocated to the grave which was built in 2016 by their relatives. groups of supporters protested as the structure was destroyed, saying their rights were being ignored. but their rights were being ignored. but the mayor insisted the removal had treated the body is respectfully. —— bodies. translation: we respect the members of the family members of those who we re of the family members of those who were in this illegal structure. we have preceded one by one. it was

verified by a prosecutor's offers for crime prevention, one by one. the bodies have been 80 following every established health protocol and they have been respectfully buried. the grave site, known as the terrorist mausoleum, was declared illegal because it lacked the necessary permits. there are thousands of plan design cemeteries throughout baru, thousands of plan design cemeteries throughout ba ru, a thousands of plan design cemeteries throughout baru, a legacy of decades of fighting between the government and the shining path during which 70,000 people were killed or disappeared —— baru. the remains we re disappeared —— baru. the remains were removed from the more than —— mausoleum before the demolition began and were moved to a different pa rt began and were moved to a different part of the same cemetery in northern lima. and finally a heart—warming story from turkey, where a puppy has been saved from a frozen lake by a police diver. he braved the waters to rescue the animal — who had become trapped in the ice around one hundred and fifty meters

from the shore. and even when the puppy was finally recovered rescuers still feared the worse. the dog was suffering from the effects of hyperthermia. butjust two days later — she made an amazing recovery. and now the rescued dog has a new home. the police officer who rescued her has decided to adopt her. he named her buz — which means ice in turkish. new year's eve is fast approaching — and one of the biggest celebrations is in new york — where they've been rehearsing. it is flying a write out of times square. it is a competitive tornado. confetti blew across the crowds in times square, but it was just a practice run for the big bash itself — and the confetti went everywhere. fantastic to see. you are watching bbc news. to stay with us. hello.

we've had some fairly quiet weather over recent days, with high pressure mostly in charge. has been a little bit wet and windy across some northern parts of the uk, but this picture was taken on saturday afternoon by one of our weather watchers in sterling. and i think as we head through the next couple of days, the last few days of 2018, that mostly dry theme will continue. fairly cloudy, certainly mild. there will be a bit of rain, mostly across the northern half of the uk, particularly for parts of scotland over the next few days. we've got a weather front which is just pushing its way west to east across parts of scotland and england at the moment, but it's high pressure that is largely dominating the weather. a fairly chilly start to sunday morning, especially across some southern and eastern parts where we have the clearer skies for longest overnight. so we start with a lot of cloud, some drizzly outbreaks of rain, particularly in the north and the east.

now, most of that rain will clear. it'll linger longest for the northern isles. best of the sunshine, then, will be for eastern scotland and eastern england too. further west, thicker cloud is likely to bring a little bit of drizzle, perhaps some low cloud and mist over the hills in the west, too. but temperatures 10—12 degrees — still reasonably mild for this time of year. and then we keep with that reasonably mild and largely dry theme through the course of sunday evening, and overnight too. still a bit of light rain and patchy drizzle for some northern and western parts. clearer skies for a time towards the east. so i think monday morning, this is the dawn on new year's eve, we should see largely frost—free conditions, but perhaps some fairly chilly weather first thing across some eastern areas with those clearer spells. now, looking through the day

on new year's eve, monday, high pressure well and truly in the driving seat. we have got weather fronts to the far north—west and tighter isobars here. so breezier conditions, certainly, for northern and western scotland, with a bit of patchy rain too. but for much of the uk, new year's eve monday is looking pretty much the same as the last few days — largely dry, fair amount of cloud, and the best of any sunny spells will be for eastern counties of england and eastern scotland. temperatures around ten or 11 degrees for new year's eve on monday. if you've got plans to see in the new year overnight new year's eve night, most of us should stay dry. fairly cloudy conditions, but there could be a spot or two of rain, particularly across part of scotland, perhaps northern ireland too. so that's all courtesy of this fairly weak weather front which is just slowly slipping south as we head into new year's day but for most of us, high pressure still in charge of the weather. so a largely dry, still mild picture on new year's day, but then things are turning colder, a little more wintry, as we look ahead into the first week of 2019. bye— bye. this is bbc news.

the headlines: for the seventh weekend in a row, france's so—called gilets jaunes movement for better living standards has brought protesters onto the streets. across the country, roads were blocked and barricades were set alight, as some marches became violent. organisers blame the festive season for a slight drop in numbers. voters are going to the polls in bangladesh, with more than 100 million people eligible to vote. heavy security is in place after a campaign marred by violence. over 100 million voters will decide whether the prime minister, sheikh hasina, secures a third consecutive term. the uk government has insisted it is working very effectively with france to tackle an increase in the number of migrants crossing the channel in small boats. more than 200 people have arrived since the start of november. local politicians have called for more coast guard boat patrols. now, at this festive time of the year, it is time for a very