this is bbc news. the headlines: boeing sacks its chief executive to try to restore confidence in the company after two plane crashes that left 346 dead. tottenham say their inquiry is inconclusive so far after chelsea's antonio rudiger said he heard monkey noises during yesterday's match. five people are sentenced to death in saudi arabia for the murder of the journalist jamal khashoggi, but a un investigator says the "masterminds" behind the crime have walked free. the former love island presenter caroline flack pleads not guilty to attacking her boyfriend at her home in london. and we'll be taking an in—depth look

at the papers with our reviewers kevin schofield, editor of politics home, and the broadcasterjohn stapleton. and also, in 45 minutes, private eye's editor, ian hislop, joins the bbc‘s media editor amol rajan to look back on a year of front covers, cartoons and satire. good evening and welcome to bbc news. the chief executive of the us aircraft manufacturer boeing has been sacked less than a week after the company said it would temporarily halt production of its troubled 737 max airliner. boeing has struggled to recover after 346 people died in two crashes involving the 737.

our business correspondent theo leggett has the story. two devastating accidents and 346 people died. the first plane crashed into the sea off indonesia late last year. then, in march, an identical aircraft went down in these fields in ethiopia minutes after take—off. since then, boeing's newest and fastest—selling aircraft, the 737 max, has been grounded worldwide. blame‘s been placed on a piece of flight control software, known as mcas, that activated at the wrong time and forced both planes into a catastrophic dive. boeing's failures and mr muilenberg's leadership have been angrily condemned in the us congress. those pilots never had a chance. these loved ones never had a chance. they were in flying coffins. senator, if i could try to respond to your question. first of all, the premise...

er, that we would lie or conceal isn't consistent with our values. zipporah kuria lost herfather in the ethiopian crash. she says mr muilenberg's departure means little to her. i don't think his resignation is going to change anything for me. maybe for other families, but it's not going to bring my dad home for christmas and it's not going to bring lots of loved ones around the table for dinner this year or any other year to come. so, for us, it doesn't make that much of a difference, but we hope other families don't have to go through what we are going through. the final humiliation for dennis muilenberg came last week when boeing suspended production of the 737 max because regulators still won't let the plane back in the air. it's not clear when it'll fly again. but when it does, one of the biggest challenges facing the new chief executive will be to persuade passengers that it

really has been made as safe as it possibly can be. theo leggett, bbc news. earlier, i spoke to aviation expertjohn strickland. he started by giving me his impression of dennis muilenburg who he met recently. came across much better in person than anything i have seen previously in the media. i watched him in the congressional hearing and the press conferences he had earlier this year and he looked much more like a corporate man oi’ even a and he looked much more like a corporate man or even a rabbit caught in the spotlight. face—to—face he was very contrite, apologised profusely on numerous occasions, he was looking through my notes, he said they did stepped up to the plate, they don't have pilots, it had a personal effect on him meeting the families of the victims of the accidents, and that was very positive, and more substantially he talked about changes in the structure of the company, a much more direct link between engineering and planning on

himself and safety coming from the board, encouraging the employees to whistleblowing. what was behind going's slow response to this crisis? there have been allegations they were putting profits over safety. i asked that question, and he said we would never put profits and safety. i also said how do you square that when companies like ryanair, you square that when companies like rya nair, you have square that when companies like ryanair, you have to cut costs to deliver a financial result that works for yourself, and he said we would never do that, we are under pressure, it is not at the price of safety. when the second accident happened, the company was seen to respond quite slowly, they were relu cta nt to ta ke respond quite slowly, they were reluctant to take on the responsibility, they were putting up press releases such as comments that the changes we make will make the aircraft safer. this is not what you wa nt aircraft safer. this is not what you want when you are involved into tragic accidents.

that wasjohn that was john strickland there. the sports minister, nigel adams, says the government is committed to working closely with football authorities to try to stamp out racism. he says he'll be monitoring their plans after the chelsea player antonio rudiger complained of hearing monkey noises from the crowd during yesterday's premier league match at tottenham. one chelsea fan has been arrested for allegedly abusing tottenham player son heung—min. here'sjoe wilson. antonio rudiger‘s gestures told us what he'd heard — monkey chants playing for chelsea at tottenham, london, not a distant eastern european stadium. on twitter, rudiger wrote: "it is really sad to see racism again at a football match but i think it's very important to talk about it in public. if not, it will be forgotten again in a couple of days, as always." he also wrote: "i really hope that the offenders will be found and punished soon and in such a modern football ground like the tottenham hotspur stadium, with dozens of tv and security cameras, it must be possible to find

and subsequently punish them." well, ultimately, a football stadium is just a place of employment and every employee has a right to work without experiencing discrimination. racist behaviour amongst spectators is interfering with the game. please remember that in football there is no place for racism. there was a warning on the loudspeaker at the game — football's protocols did in some form unfold, but the players‘ organisation now wants the government to act. a racism inquiry. at the moment, most decent people in this country, and i think that's the majority, are being tarnished by the actions of a minority. and all the great things we stood for in 2012 with the olympics and all that inclusivity and tolerance, it's been eroded slowly and we can't allow that to happen. at tottenham's media conference today, the manager was asked if football needs help. i think society needs help, and then football is... a micro society, if you can call it.

do we need help? yes, but society needs help. when england's footballers faced racist chants and nazi salutes in bulgaria, england's manager always stressed there were problems at home. he was right. players may now have confidence to report what they hear. it doesn't mean they're confident that things will change. joe wilson, bbc news, tottenham. earlier this evening, tottenham released a statement saying that their investigating has so far proved ‘inconclusive.’ in it, the club say: "we are able to track every fan via the cameras and have spent many hours reviewing cctv footage. we have engaged lip readers to study the footage and contacted chelsea for further information from their players." "we have also taken statements from other parties present at the time. the police will be reviewing our evidence alongside us. please be assured we shall be exhaustively investigating this

matter." now, it was a murder that shocked many around the world and now five people have been sentenced to death and three others jailed by a court in saudi arabia over the death of the journalist jamal khashoggi. he was a prominent critic of the saudi government and was killed last year when he went to their consulate in istanbul. a united nations investigator who carried out an inquiry into his murder says that the hit men may have been convicted, but the "masterminds" behind the killing have walked free. our security correspondent frank gardner reports. the last public sighting of jamal khashoggi, seen here walking into the saudi consulate in istanbul in october last year. he never came out alive. turkish cctv footage shows a hit team of 15 saudi government agents arriving in istanbul to intercept khashoggi. inside the consulate, they overpowered him,

injected him and suffocated him. his body has never been found. 11 men were eventually put on trial. today, the preliminary sentences were announced. translation: the criminal court in riyadh has delivered the following preliminary sentences for ii of the accused, sentencing five of them to death in retribution. they are the ones directly implicated in the death of the victim, may god rest his soul. at the time of the crime, saudi arabia initially denied responsibility, but turkey, which had bugged the consulate, leaked details of what really happened. in november 2018, the cia said the killing was probably ordered by the saudi crown prince. and injune this year, a un report said there was credible evidence of saudi state involvement. saudi arabia's powerful crown prince, mohammed bin salman, had become increasingly irritated

by khashoggi's public criticism of his policies. he denies any responsibility in the murder. agnes kalamar, who has investigated the murder on behalf of the un, believes those who masterminded it have walked free. the only people that have ultimately been sentenced in the trials are those that i call the hit men. they are at the lowest level of the chain of command. anyone above have either not been charged at all, or if they were charged, they were let free. jamal khashoggi was described by one royal aide as a threat to national security. critics are now calling the investigation into his murder a whitewash. for saudi arabia, this whole story has cast a dark shadow over its international reputation. in riyadh, the authorities will be hoping this verdict draws a line under it.

but others will keep on pressing for answers. frank gardner, bbc news. now, the former love island presenter, caroline flack, has appeared in court and pleaded not guilty to assaulting her boyfriend. ms flack appeared at highbury magistrates court after being arrested and charged with assault by battery following a domestic incident at her home in london earlier this month. helena wilkinson was in court and she updated us a little earlier. caroline flack struggled to get into the court because there was a scrum of photographers here today. her boyfriend, who she is accused of assaulting, was here in the public gallery to support her today. it is alleged that she hit him over the head with a lamp while he was sleeping after she found messages on his phone that led her to believe that he was cheating on her. i think it is in court today said that when

he rang 999 he was almost begging for help when officers went to the flat they found them both covered in blood and one officer likened the scene to a horror movie. also, caroline flack is alleged to have tripped over a table while in police custody and had to be restrained. her boyfriend insists he is not a them. he doesn't want this case to be pursued, but the crown prosecution service don't have to get consent for him if they have not sufficient evidence to take this case to trial. she will return here to face trial on much the fourth. —— march 4th. there are growing indications that the islamic state group, is reorganising in iraq two years after losing the last of its territory in the country. kurdish and western intelligence officials have told the bbc that is is running a sophisticated insurgency, with around 10,000 supporters, 4,000 to 5,000 of whom are fighters. senior commanders of the kurdish

security force, the peshmerga, warn that the militants are moving freely once again in some areas, raising funds and carrying out attacks. from northern iraq, our international correspondent orla guerin has sent us this report. from a hilltop in northern iraq, a sweeping view of territory reclaimed from the islamic state group. the kurdish peshmerga who helped drive them out tell us now they're making a comeback. the militants are exploiting an area of no man's land, disputed terrain between kurdish and iraqi forces. looking at this territory here now right in front of us, do isis have free rein here now? yes, i can say yes. especially between the delta at the tigris river. you can say they're permanent there. are you worried? of course.

of course i'm worried because they are really a big threat. and day by day we can see the movement of isis, the activities, they reorganise themselves. is has done that an hour's drive away in hawija, which was their last stronghold in iraq. the authorities have planted their flag, but the militants are hunting local officials. like the father of these children. he was a mukhtar, a village chief who monitors comings and goings and informs the police. the youngest keep asking when daddy's coming home. his mother is overwhelmed by grief. at the loss of her bright—eyed boy, zakaria taha saleh. shot dead in october. "i swear, i cannot help myself," says um za karia.

:you are my life, you are my soul." she tells me he was their breadwinner, their guide and their shepherd. it is by night that is emerge, spreading their terror as before. this chilling propaganda video shows a mukhtar being led away to his death. nine have been killed in hawija alone. the area is tense. we had to travel with an armed escort. is hit the electricity supply a day before our visit. iraqi forces facing an enemy that is close, but hard to find. well, is can't hold territory here any more but they can still strike. they have been carrying out deadly attacks here and they can still create fear among

the local population. many in the area are too frightened to speak. movement is only possible in daylight hours, not after dark. militia fighters in hawija are on alert. one of their checkpoints was targeted earlier this month. hussain hamada survived but saw two of his friends killed. translation: it's very difficult. i still cannot sleep and i go to a psychologist. they were my guys. we would eat and drink and sleep together. they were my brothers. since the caliphate crumbled, is has been driven underground, to caves and tunnels beneath these mountains. but iraq has seen terror grow

from these beginnings before. and the fear is a new threat is coming for the region, and the west. orla guerin, bbc news, northern iraq. the headlines on bbc news: boeing's chief executive, dennis muilenberg, has been sacked — after serious criticism following 2 major plane accidents, which killed 346 people. the sports minister says the government is committed to working closely with the football authorities, to stamp out racism after chelsea's antonio rudiger said he heard monkey noises during yesterday's match against tottenham. five people have been sentenced to death in saudi arabia — for the murder of the journalist jamal khashoggi. but a un investigator says the "masterminds" behind the crime have walked free.

prince charles says his father, the duke of edinburgh, is being treated very well, on his fourth day in hospital in london. he was speaking to well—wishers, as he visited flood—hit communities in yorkshire. dan johnson reports now from the village of fishlake, hit hard by torrential rain, last month. set up your picnic seat. clear the streets. this was a first for fishlake, an unprecedented visit after an unparalleled flood. the mints were shared. the shoes were shiny. and the south yorkshire handshakes? well, they're not afraid to get a grip. people here seem genuinely pleased to see the prince. thank you for coming, it means a lot. he took the chance to see some of the homes wrecked when the river don overflowed last month. it's been a real battle since it happened because the insurance companies have taken so long. justin's suffered more than most. i said, "where were you six weeks ago?"

this is six weeks since this happened. only now have you actually picked this up. this is... so, yeah. i think prince charles, you know, he understood exactly what i was saying. you know, it's incredibly frustrating. three feet of water submerged the village for more than a week. thousands were affected across yorkshire and the midlands. this is where all the kitchen units were. people who now face a miserable christmas. we're not in a position that we're anywhere that we feel is home. and, to us, christmas should be at home. we've had to explain to everybody, you know, we appreciate you sending christmas cards, but don't be expecting anything from us this year, i'm really sorry. we just don't feel in the mood or in that position to celebrate. the clear up is still going on here and there is an awful lot more to do. these fellows have been filling this van twice a day, every day, for the last seven weeks. so this is notjust about people being out of their homes for christmas, it's going to take

a lot longer than that, way into next year before things are anything like normal again. the prince met local politicians who've called for a regional version of cobra, the government emergency response committee. climate change is undoubtedly a factor. so, we do need to look very carefully at what's happened here. and we need investment. we need to ensure that our flood defences are fit for purpose, because i don't want to be here in five years or ten years having this same conversation. when a royal‘s in town, questions of family are never far away. sir, how is your father? he's all right. once you get to that age, things don't work as well. but today's real focus was on people here who are still facing a pupilfrom a grammar school in bristol has died while on a trip to new york. the 17—year—old was found unconscious in a room at a manhattan holiday inn express on thursday. police say there don't appear to be any suspicious circumstances, but they're awaiting

the outcome of a postmortem. the school said everyone was devastated. australia's prime minister, scott morrison, has restated his support of the coal industry, despite conceding that climate change is a factor in the extreme hot weather that's fuelling the country's bushfires. nine people have been killed and hundreds of homes have been destroyed across large parts of new south wales. mr morrison has been criticised for his response to crisis, but he reiterated he wouldn't adjust policies through panic. a scientist from leeds university is helping to update british sign language, used by tens of thousands of people in the uk. new signs have now been created, describing the latest discoveries in the world of astronomy. this report, by our science correspondent, victoria gill, will be translated simultaneously, into bsl.

so far we have looked at some simple terms such as the moon, sun, northern lights and some of the planets like saturn and jupiter but we do need more new signs. explaining the mysteries of our universe is key in any language. in british sign language, for many of the latest discoveries in the astrophysical world, there are no word so those words have new astronomical signs created. the planets you find in protoplanetary disks are not the same as the x0 planets we observe in planetary systems. teaming up with british sign language linguist, one astrophysicist is helping develop signs to encourage deficits of islamist, students and enthusiasts tojoin the conversation islamist, students and enthusiasts to join the conversation science is rapidly advancing and needs more

language to communicate these new discoveries. personally i found it so discoveries. personally i found it so exciting that i could actually design a sign myself, and together with them i could input into what the sign would be in the sign would be there for ever in british sign language. so it is not implying an orbit. it is more than 20 years since the discovery of the first planet outside our solar system. the first known ex— planet. and today in this small workshop, that discovery is finally being given a sign. some of these complicated concepts have language foundations that already exist. there was a sign for planet but not for x0 planet. it could be a planet that is far away. it is about building on pre—existing foundations as well as visualising the science. once the new sign is decided on it

is added to a video dictionary. this project has made me realise how useful it is. i have been involved in astronomy for a while but i realise how valuable these new terms will be for members of the deep —— deaf community. my interest has increased and it opens access for others full of i think it is important and that it happens across a range of science subjects. beyond just looking at the stars, the hope is that more people will feel empowered to talk about and really see the latest discoveries about the universe. a painting by ls lowry, which had been unknown to the art world, is to be sold at auction next month. ‘the mill at pendlebury,‘ painted in 1943, has never been displayed in public before, and doesn't appear in any books on the artist. the painting features the uk's first all—electric powered cotton spinning mill, and goes on sale after the death of its owner this year. it could fetch up to £1 million.

now it's time for a look at the weather with susan powell. it is finally christmas eve and what does the weather have in store for us? a little bit of a mixture. most of us have a chance of seeing some rain but hopefully a little brighter as the day goes on. in the south—west of england and wales, some showers could turn heavy and thundery. as the driver this front will bring more persistent rain through the early part of the day. things will brighten a little and it will become more showery as things go by. windy to the south, lighter winds for scotland and northern ireland and the showers few and far between. highs of seven for scotland, double figures for south wales in southern england. if you head out later on on christmas eve, things become quieter and the wind in the south eases, the showers clear, if you push into the

north—west of scotland and then it will be wintry across the highlands with temperatures falling away. a frosty start to christmas day across scotland, patchy frost elsewhere with temperatures in towns and cities sitting at three or four degrees. the reason it becomes quiet and chilly, a ridge of high pressure in time for christmas bringing us overall one of the quietest days in terms of whether that we have seen for a month. perhaps some fault to start the day and that could take until the middle of the data clear. patchy cloud, slim chance of a showerfor patchy cloud, slim chance of a shower for scotland but overall a lot of fine weather, sunny spells and temperatures around average, 6-9d. and temperatures around average, 6—9d. however, short lived ridge of high pressure on boxing day and we open up the doors to the atlantic once again. in roles the low pressure strengthening the wind and bringing heavy rain. rain will push into all parts through the course of the day. some snow transits across the day. some snow transits across the pennines and then perhaps sticking across the high ground of

the highlands. brighten the south and a little milder later the day with heavy showers. one of these fronts, however, they get ripped away by the end of the week as high pressure tries to build to the south, and we are left with a friend wriggling away across scotland and northern ireland as we look towards the weekend. for england and wales, things tend to settle down on the outlook with fine weather to come. occasional spells of showers for occasional spells scotla nd scotland and northern ireland.

hello. this is bbc news. we'll be taking a look at tomorrow morning's papers in a moment. i have kevin schofield and john sta pleton. first, the headlines. boeing's chief executive, dennis muilenberg, has been sacked after serious criticism following two major plane accidents, which killed 346 people. the sports minister says the government is committed to working closely with the football authorities to stamp out racism after chelsea's antonio rudiger said he heard monkey noises during yesterday's match against tottenham. five people have been sentenced to death in saudi arabia for the murder of the journalist jamal khashoggi, but a un investigator says the "masterminds" behind the crime have walked free. the prince of wales has visited fishlake in south yorkshire, where hundreds face

christmas out of their homes