this is bbc world news today. i'm samantha simmonds. our top stories. three and a half years after the eu referendum — the british parliament finally backs boris johnson's brexit bill now is the time to act together as one reinvigorated nation. one united kingdom. the duke of edinburgh is admitted to hospital in london for treatment for what buckingham palace describes as a pre—existing condition. the international criminal court's chief prosecutor says she wants to open an investigation into alleged war crimes in the palestinian territories. and — stuck in orbit. why boeing's plans to launch to the international space station didn't go as planned.

hello and welcome to world news today. the british parliament has given its backing — by an overwhelming majority — to boris johnson's eu withdrawal agreement. the vote makes it almost certain that brexit will happen by january 31st — ending decades of uk membership of the european union. the prime minister won with a majority of more than 100 votes including six from the opposition labour party. the withdrawal agreement — now approved in principle by mps — says. the uk will leave the eu on the 31st of january and imposes a transition period until the end of 2020, during which britain will still abide by eu rules. it says we will pay the eu a ‘divorce bill‘ of around 33 billion pounds. and it sets out a plan for dealing with the northern irish border — with a possible customs border down the irish sea. our deputy political editor

john pienaar has more. we're leaving. we're through the looking glass. everything looks the same, but nothing will be the same again. the last lonely protester was there, fighting a cause that, today, became officially lost. the ayes to the right — 358. the noes to the left — 234. cheering. a thumping victory for borisjohnson‘s eu divorce deal. but from the start, today, his big win was guaranteed. he came with an appeal for unity on his terms, to seek reconciliation in tones of triumph. this is the time when we move on and discard the old labels of leave and remain. in fact, the very words seem tired to me, and so now is the moment to come together and write a new and exciting chapter in our national story, to forge a new partnership with our european friends, to stand tall in the world,

to begin the healing! this moment in history was his. three and half years after the referendum, the new pm felt strong enough to declare britain after brexit would set its own rules and standards, not follow the eu's. the very essence of the opportunity of brexit is that we will no longer outsource these decisions. with renewed national self—confidence, we will take them ourselves. and that's what worried his beaten rival. we warned before the general election the prime minister's brexit deal was a terrible deal for our country, and we still believe it's a terrible deal today. this deal will be used as a battering ram to drive us down the path of yet more deregulation. and towards a toxic deal with donald trump and... what's new in the withdrawal agreement bill? the pledge to match eu workers' rights, like other earlier compromises, has gone.

ministers now say a new uk law will guarantee those rights. on child migrants, no eu obligation now to take in unaccompanied minors with british relatives. but the pm says the uk will go on taking them in. and no extended brexit transition. the law will require the uk's clear of eu rules by december 2020, with or without a deal. so the pm winning the brexit war doesn't mean peace. the snp sees brexit as a spur to independence. the people of scotland must have their say over their future, rather than the broken brexit britain that he wishes to impose upon us. the election and brexit has left a bitter legacy, wounded brexiteers feeling vindicated, remainers defiant on their pro—european values. those values are now under threat from this trumpian, populist government from right—wing populism bigots everywhere. we were told we were fascists,

we were nazis, we are extremists, and what did we want? all we wanted was to honour the referendum. brexiteer ministerjacob rees—mogg kept a low profile during the election. not today. at last, we've got the result we need. we will now get brexit with the majority of 124 and the sun is metaphorically shining. and look at this at the bottom of your screen. the uk's celebrity pm signing autographs for tory mps. so, reason for celebration in government tonight, we will leave the eu by january the 31st at the latest. but, defining and negotiating britain's future relationship with the eu and the world could be tougher and take longer than boris johnson predicts. no doubt who's in charge now or whose job it is to make brexit work. the duke of edinburgh has been admitted to hospital in london, to be treated for a pre—existing condition.

buckingham palace says prince philip travelled there from sandringham in norfolk this morning following advice from his doctor. here's our royal correspondent nicholas witchell. they are saying that this is a precautionary measure and certainly i sense no alarm. concern, of course, because the duke of edinburgh rose 98. edinburgh is 98. there is no sense of alarm that i can detect. he was brought by road, from the queen's estate in norfolk this morning. he travelled not in an ambulance, but in an ordinary royal vehicle. we are told that he walked into the hospital and perhaps the most telling indicator is that is the duke was being brought from norfolk by road to london, queen elizabeth was travelling by railfrom london to norfork to begin her christmas to norfolk to begin her christmas break. so no sense of alarm, no changing of the plans at all. but what might this pre—existing condition be? buckingham palace saying absolutely nothing about that, a year and a half before the duke had a hip replacement operates in six years since he had

abdominal surgery. eight years since the most serious health incident when he was admitted as an emergency to pa pworth hospital and having severe chest pains, his stint was inserted in an artery on that occasion, whether any of those conditions are involved on this occasion we do not know. but we are told that they expect him to stay in for observation and some treatment for a few days and i sense that the hope would be that he will be back with the royal family at norfolk in time for christmas. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news. officials in russia say they've established the identity of the gunman who opened fire at the headquarters of russian‘s main security agency, the fsb. one fsb officer was killed on thursday, while a second officer has died from his wounds in the last few hours. another four people were wounded. the motive for the attack remains unclear. poland's parliament has passed a law that makes it easier for the government to fire judges, despite a plea from the european commission to wait. under the new legislation, judges can be dismissed, fined or demoted for dissent,

including questioning the legitimacy of newjudges chosen by a government controlled body. a french court has found the telecoms firm, orange, and its former boss didier lombard, guilty of "moral harassment" over a spate of suicides at the company. 35 employees took their own lives a decade ago as management carried out a vast restructuring plan. mr lombard's lawyer says he will appeal the sentence the international criminal court's chief prosecutor says she believes war crimes have been committed in the israeli—occupied palestinian territories. fatou bensouda now says she wants to launch an investigation but needs the court to establish first if they have authority over these areas. here she is speaking a little earlier. in brief, i am satisfied. one. that war crimes have been committed in the west bank, including eastjerusalem and the gaza strip. two, the potential cases arising from the situation will be

admissible and three, that there are no substantial reasons to believe that an investigation would not serve the interests ofjustice. our middle east analyst alan johnston explained the background to this case. well, this whole affair goes all the way back to 2015 when the palestinian authority joined the international criminal core to claims against the israelis in the occupied territories at that point, bensouda who you saw moments ago opened an initial probe, and open examination and more than four years on today, she finally delivered her verdict on that initial probe. as you heard, she said that she was satisfied that there have been war crimes or are being war crimes committed in the west bank ofjerusalem and gaza.

she did not give anything away as to what she thinks the nature of those crimes may be importantly, she said that before she opens the full investigation which she feels this case no deserves, the icc must confirm that it does actually have jurisdiction over these areas because the israelis argue that it absolutely does not. that the court does not have any moral authority, any legal authority in these areas. that is the israeli view. there's been a very angry response from israel. tell us more about their reaction and the palestinians. the media's furious response from the israelis, prime minister benjamin netanyahu making public a letter in which he said a case of this kind can't be brought by the palestinians because they are not a sovereign territory, very angry language talking about this being a dark day forjustice, the court being used as a political tool, as he put it. on the other hand, the palestinians

are very pleased, saying was long—awaited and welcoming bensouda's statement. they often feel that the international community does not address their complaints of concerns in the way that it should and they will see the international criminal court suggesting that an investigation is required and they will see that is a rare bit of good news. prosecutors in the uk have charged the wife of a us diplomat with causing the death by dangerous driving of a teenage motorcyclist in a road crash. after harry dunn died, anne sacoolas flew back to the united states under diplomatic immunity. extradition proceedings are now underway but mrs sacoolas says she will not return voluntarily to the uk. duncan kennedy reports. i'm just hoping it's going to be the right choice today. ha rry‘s pa rents, charlotte and tim, travelled to london not knowing what today would bring. but, at the cps headquarters, they were told the main suspect was being charged with

dangerous driving. harry's family have spent four months waiting to see if charges would be brought in his case. we really do feel it is one huge step towards that promise to harry, and that in itself is one hell of an achievement as a family to have, and as parents we can't be any more satisfied with ourselves. harry's dad, tim, was also moved by today's events. bit speechless at the minute. i am still in shock from the meeting, and... i'm sorry. anne sacoolas has already said she was driving the car that collided with harry dunn. there was no sign of her at her home outside washington, dc today, but her lawyers said anne is devastated by this tragic

today's decision to charge anne sacoolas comes nearly four months after harry died, here on this road in northamptonshire. in statements through her lawyers, she has already admitted driving on the wrong side of the road, and now harry's family say it's time for her to return to britain. it was near this american air base the accident happened. harry was killed last august. two weeks later, anne sacoolas left the uk, claiming diplomatic immunity. last month, the family launched legal action against the foreign office for its handling of the case. the foreign secretary, dominic raab, today called on mrs sacoolas to return, and legal experts say the chances of extradition are good. i think they are extremely positive, because, as far as i can see, every request that

has been sent by the united kingdom to the us has been successful. harry dunn's family and their supporters have fought this case together and have been told the home office will launch extradition proceedings next week. his parents say they will now put up a christmas tree for the son they refuse to give up on. stay with us on bbc world news, still to come: another televised debate for the democrat white house hopefuls — so are we any clearer who'll take on donald trump in 2020?

this is bbc world news today. the latest headlines. british mps have voted to approve

boris johnson's brexit plan for the uk to leave the eu on 31 january. buckingham palace says britian‘s prince philip, the 98 year—old husband of queen elizabeth, has been admitted to hospital to treat a pre—existing condition. donald trump is entering 20—20 as the only president to ever seek re—election after being impeached. and a slowly—shrinking field of democrats is keen to make sure it's his last year in office. they took the stage in california last night for nearly two and a half hours to make their case to voters. nada tawfik reports. last a bit of the year, the seven democratic candidates for president had to not only so their vision for america, but there billion to beat donald trump. without the gate, support for impeachment united them. if the president claims that he is so if the president claims that he is so innocent, then why doesn't he have all of the president's meant

testify was blue we have a president who was running the most corrupt administration in the modern history of this country. but they differed on how to address key issues, including the economy, climate change and health care. is planned, we retain the status quo. that is not true. attacked both by his fellow moderates and progressives. his support has searched among voters in iowa, the first nominated contest, making him a popular target. the mayorjust recently had a fundraiser that was held in a wine cave full of crystals and served $900 a bottle wine. the only person on the stage who is not a millionaire or a billionaire. there is also questions on the lack of diversity and the lack of candidates. it is the only as well as age and gender. you would be the

oldest president. i would also be the youngest woman inaugurated. joe biden came out largely unscathed, with one eye on the general election, he said he could work with republicans stop if anyone has any reason to be angry at the republicans and not want to co—operate, it is me. republicans and not want to co-operate, it is me. the way they have attacked me, my sun, my family. i have no love. we have to be able to get things done though. joe biden is still the front runner in this race, for the primer is quickly approaching in february, can he maintain that lead? two cruise ships have collided in the port of mexico's resort of cozumel. the ships belong to the luxury cruise operator carnival corp, who said the stern of a 290—meter long vessel was crushed when it hit a second cruise ship of a similar size. one person was slightly injured while evacuating a dining room, but the operator has said the seaworthiness of both vessels

has not been affected. houses for the week before christmas. . dozens and dozens of liverpool fancier, many more from brazil and flamingo around the city at the head of the club world cup final tomorrow. let us get a little bit more of the match from andy from

the field. this is great, isn't it. a bit ofa the field. this is great, isn't it. a bit of a christmas warm up and liverpool can become row champions in the next 2a hours. liverpool can become row champions in the next 24 hours. before the big week next week, it is a massive opportunity for them to win the first world cup. a little bit of revenge, they beat liverpool earlier. we need to shut them up about it. still singing about it, there are literally still singing about it, this still have a song about it, this still have a song about 1981. we need to settle that score, don't we? a little bit, towards christmas time the sun is blazing and if be a good day. and it is just blazing and if be a good day. and it isjust wrapping blazing and if be a good day. and it is just wrapping up and slowly trickling in, we have been here all week for the semifinals. we see friendly faces and it is fantastic, walking to the hotel lobby. what is it mean, this tournament, because british clubs have been accused of

not taking it seriously, it is not their priority but congress of row champions, that sounds quite special. we have not taken it seriously in the past, 2005, we missed three goals in the final. not saying that it was a bit iffy, but let us just leave it there. we won the european cup, if we win this one, we can because of the champions of the world. many thanks indeed, enjoy the match tomorrow. and how can you not? the sunshine here. mikel arteta says his first task as arsenal head coach will be to get the team playing fast—flowing, attacking football. he's has been appointed on a 3—and—a—half—year deal, replacing fellow spaniard unai emery who was sacked in november. arteta won the fa cup twice in a 5—year career with arsenal and since then he's been working as a coach under pep guardiola at manchester city. (tx sot)

we have to try to engage everybody. but i want to do, how i want to do it, we have to have a different process , it, we have to have a different process, a different way of thinking andi process, a different way of thinking and i want to get on this staff and everybody at the club with the same mindset. we have to sustain. if you do not have the right composition, it will all shake. this is how we are going to lead and if you're going to be part of this decision, it has to be on these terms and in this way. shaheen af—ridi took his first 5—wicket haul to lead pakistan's fightback —— after sri lanka gained a first innings lead in the second test in karachi on friday. the pace bowler took 5 for 77 to restrict the visitors to 271. by the close of play on day 2, pakistan had wiped off 57 of the deficit for no loss, but they still trail by 23 runs. and brazil's italo ferreira upset

countryman gabriel medina to win his first world surfing title in powerful but less—than—perfect waves at hawaii's famed banzai pipeline on thursday. he used perfect timing and positioning to negotiate the biggest, most critical waves. 5 surfers went into the final event of the season in contention for the title, but it all came down to the brazillian pair with ferreira lifting the trophy. that's all the sport for now. america's progress towards being able to return to putting its own people into space has hit a hurdle. nasa hopes the boeing starliner could be used to ferry passengers to and from the international space station — but a test flight in florida failed to go as planned. jonathan amos reports. and lift off for the starliner, a new era in human space flight.

a new era perhaps, but notjust yet. boeing launched its starliner capsule on time from cape canaveral in florida, but the automated ship then failed to carry out its commands properly. when it came off the top of the rocket, it was supposed to fire its engines to increase its height. it did, but at the wrong time and for too long. the starliner put itself in the wrong part of the sky. it can no longer reach the space station and will have to come home. the american space agency has been overseeing the development of the capsule. nasa has provided milestone payments to help boeing bring the vehicle into operation. and despite the setback, the agency is staying positive. if we would've had crew in there, number one, they would have been safe. to be very clear, our crew would have been safe. and in fact, had they been in there, we very well may have been orbiting or docking with the international space station tomorrow had they been in the spacecraft. so a lot of things went right today, and i want to be really clear,

a lot of things went right and this is why we test and because we are now in orbit and because in fact elevating our orbit, we are going to get a lot more data and a lot more information in the coming days. so this is all very positive. nasa has not been able to launch its own astronauts to orbit nearly nine years. when it retired the shuttles in 2011, it ceased to operate space vehicles. and it bought seats to the space station in russian capsules instead. nasa would rather spend its money handling rides on american—built space taxi services. another enterprise, the california space—x company, has already completed a test flight of its astronaut capsule. the dragon craft made a flawless trip to the orbiting lab in march. space—x looks set to start flying astronauts for real in the next few months. don't forget you can get

in touch with me and some of my team on twitter — i'm @samanthatvnews what is soaking day, particularly across england. showers and dry for many of us, persistent rain where it is been so wet and further rain is not going to help with the risk of further flooding, many flood warnings particularly across with more rain to come, flood warnings and weather warnings and our website and we are seeing how things are shaping up and we are going to bring a fresh batch of showers, heavy with the rumble of thunder, showers of the northwest scotla nd thunder, showers of the northwest scotland and some fog developing in northern ireland and that could be dense, slow to clear in the morning

as well. across northern britain close to freezing for a touch of frost and just holding up the further south you are. after the weekend, this is what is bringing the early showers but more weather fronts are coming in with the rain really just staying across southern areas as we go through saturday. but more rain where it is not really very welcome. saturday brings a few showers northwards early on in the day, remember that fog is slow to clear northern ireland but many of us clear northern ireland but many of us into the afternoon will have a dry, some sunny spots around here comes the rain pushing in from southern england, most of us in the single figures, saturday evening at night then. the rain continues a little bit further north into parts of the midlands and east anglia before clinging onto parts of the east and in england on sunday morning. across northern britain, it could be a touch of frost and also some fog patches slow to clear on sunday morning. but then on sunday, eastern england with the rain

pulling away in many places breaking up pulling away in many places breaking up after some early mist and fog that some showers on western areas as the days go on. and these could be on the heavy side and the breeze with the double figures for the sake but for most it is around six to nine celsius with a top temperature. that is of the weekend is shaping up and in the christmas week we'll start with further showers and then it turns drier around christmas itself. that does not mean that any christmas know i am afraid, but the rain as well looks all too brief and that looks like a turns drier around christmas itself. that does not mean that any christmas no i am afraid, but the rain as well looks all too brief and that looks like a transmitter again later in

this is bbc world news. the headlines: borisjohnson‘s brexit plan has easily passed its first parliamentary hurdle, paving the way for the uk to leave the european union at the end of next month. prince philip, the 98—year—old husband of britain's queen elizabeth, has been taken to hospital for treatment of an existing condition. buckingham palace says the admission was "a precaution". the international criminal court's chief prosecutor says she wants to open an investigation into alleged war crimes in the palestinian territories. the icc has been examining a case brought by the palestinians since 2015. israel says the move is "baseless". and two cruise ships — both operated by the cruise line carnival —