this is bbc news. welcome if you're watching here in the uk, on pbs in america, or around the globe. i'm reged ahmad. our top stories: carlos ghosn confirms he's now in lebanon. the former boss of renault—nissan said he'd "escaped injustice and political persecution" injapan. trapped on a beach with the fires closing in. eyewitnesses in australia tell us about their narrow escape. we were ready to jump in the water. so we have dodged a bullet here. and i hope other communities in australia can say the same. and encourage you to pray to the god of the bible. us prosecutors file hate crime charges against the man accused of stabbing five jewish people during hanukkah celebrations in new york. and why ‘waking up the world' to climate change isn't enough.

we speak to greta thunberg. i'm being listened to and we, climate activists, are being listened to, but that doesn't mean that what we are saying is translated into action. hello and welcome. the former head of renault—nissan, carlos ghosn, has confirmed he has arrived in lebanon. in a statement he says he has "escaped injustice and political persecution" in japan. mr ghosn had been facing a trial there on charges of financial misconduct. he was released on bail in march, but was not permitted to leave the country. he denies enriching himself at his company's expense and misstating his income.

our correspondent rupert wingfield—hayes is in tokyo. what more can you tell us about this statement he has released? this has come within the last hour or so, released by mr ghosn's agent or advisers in lebanon. it is, as you said in your introduction, quite a dramatic declaration that mr ghosn has said, entity said" eye and fleeing a rigged japanese justice system" he said guilty is presumed, discrimination rampant, and human rights are denied. he said he was not fleeing just as part escaping injustice and political persecution. he is essentially saying what he has said before and what his defence tea m said before and what his defence team has said before, that the case against him was politically motivated by nissan and that they had conspired with the japanese prosecutors' office to trumped up charges against him in order to get

him out of his position as the chairman of nissan and mitsubishi motor corp. that has been the allegation all along by mr ghosn and his defence team. now he has taken this very, very dramatic step to flee japan, to this very, very dramatic step to fleejapan, tojump bail, to this very, very dramatic step to flee japan, tojump bail, to get to lebanon, and now he is essentially, he isa lebanon, and now he is essentially, he is a fugitive from japanese justice. as you say, this statement has just been released. justice. as you say, this statement hasjust been released. but justice. as you say, this statement has just been released. but what do you think is going to be the reaction in japan and you think is going to be the reaction injapan and the investigations into how he managed to get out of the country?” investigations into how he managed to get out of the country? i think there are two very large questions that this raises, the first is the red faces here in tokyo of the people who were supposed to be keeping a close eye on mr ghosn. the police, the courts that had allowed him out on bail, but under very strict bail conditions, he had surrendered his passport, posted 9 million us dollars in bail. he was

supposed to be under fairly close observation, although those conditions had been relaxed in recent months, so he was allowed to travel in japan more recent months, so he was allowed to travel injapan more than originally. so questions will be raised about that. the prosecutors' office, back in march, when mr ghosn was given bail said he was a flight risk saying his wealth and multiple citizenships made him a serious and thatis citizenships made him a serious and that is why they didn't want him released from bail. that is the first question. the second question is why would someone like mr ghosn ta ke is why would someone like mr ghosn take such a big step was back this isa take such a big step was back this is a huge step for someone like him to take. he is, as they say now, essentially a fugitive, presumably japan will put him on the interpol redlihs, which means travelling for him to other countries will be very, very difficult. so why has he taken such a big step and what does that say about japanese justice? because they have been many allegations, not just from him and his defence, that the justice system here just from him and his defence, that thejustice system here is not fair, that he did not face a fair trial,

that he did not face a fair trial, that his defence team couldn't see the evidence against him and that is, perhaps, his supporters would say, the reason he was forced into taking this massive step to flee the country. thank you very much for bringing us up—to—date with all of that. rupert wingfield—hayes in tokyo for us. 4,000 people who've taken refuge from raging bushfires on a beach in the australian state of victoria have been told that the threat has now passed. over the last few days, authorities had warned people in the coastal town of malacoota to leave before it was too late. some pictures sent from the town show the scene a few hours ago. you can see how the smoke has blocked the sun light — lending a very eerie red light. people there have been advised to stay near the beach or take refuge on boats. 0n social media, residents said they were putting on life jackets in case they needed to seek refuge in the water from the fire. david jeffery is the owner of wave 0asis b&b in mallacoota

and is one of those stranded on the beach. he told us what's been happening. we are down on the foreshore camp park beside the inlet and this is where everyone is gathering, i willjust pan around, but we were not like this before. we were actually all terrified for our lives. we were right beside the loader here. we were just below the rock wall and that was where we were going to jump into the water if the heat had hit, which thank god it didn't, which was due to a lot of events, due to mainly wind and a lot of prayer. we were praying like crazy. we certainly had some answers to the prayer. it sounds like a terrifying situation. we've seen some pictures on social media ofjust red skies from those fires. but right now, what is the direction of the fire? what is your situation? yeah, well... 0oh, bang!

big hit. that was a gas cylinder exploding, i would say that's someone's house burning. that is terrible. we love these people, we are a close community like many communities in australia. yeah, that's shocking. look, the fire front came from that direction, the westerly, it came in from that direction, and for us, we were over here and we were bracing for the worst because it was black, like, it should have been daylight and it was black like midnight, and you could hear the fire roaring. i had a good friend, a formerfire chief, a good friend, he rang and said he knew where it was. then i heard the sirens, which i knew had hit town, and the wind had not gone to catastrophic — it was very blustery now, it was not like this. it was sort of like...not still, but it was moving slower. ijust said, "please, you have to stop it, please, can you do something."

the only way, it would have had to come from the east, and it did. forfive minutes, we had it coming from that direction, that is the east over there. it pushed back against the fire. i know there were a few christians there praying. what happened 20 minutes later, it had slowed down, what happened 20 minutes later, that catastrophic wind hit. it it had have been here 20 minutes earlier we would have been gone. it would have come through like a train. the wind pushed it in the wind hit, like it is at the moment, a bit more, gusts. what happened was the sky went red and we thought... oh, no, we're not over it all, it is not the worst, and it looked like the fire front coming, but it was the wind, it was clearing the smoke and the sun was getting through, otherwise it would be black as well and we couldn't breathe. the red was actually the sun shining through.

you know, shining through. we were ready to jump in the water. we have dodged a bullet here and i hope other communities in australia can say the same. i say pray tojesus, pray to god. we certainly can hear that the wind is still strong and of course you must feel like you have had quite a lucky escape. but what happens now? are authorities going to evacuate you and others as you are on that beach? no, we're on the foreshore camp park, there are toilet blocks here, it is a massive campsite, there's 4,000 people on here. the majorfront i believe has passed, it has gone that way, gone towards the north. at the moment, wejust have to sit tight. i will find out myself personally if our place is still there, yet to find that out. it is only about... it is just down here. we are in a good location. but it is still too

dangerous to stay there. what are people...you are sharing that bit of the foreshore, is everyone still quite frightened about what might be to come? no, we are relieved. we realise that the biggest threat of the fire front has passed here and what we are doing now is we're just sitting tight, we are just waiting to see, you know, obviously the embers, making sure that — i am not going to go back to my property at while there is a chance of embers because you could get back there and get a spot fire, you know, there are fires. have a look at what i have got. at the moment, we have the dogs. the other dog was here, that is what we were looking after as well, mikey, and in here, there is max the cat

in there with a rooster. this is australia! in behind there is two baby rescued ducklings that our children had rescued a few weeks ago from a hawk! and this is what we do in australia. you protect your loved ones and the things you love the most. you can't replace human beings and lives and, yeah, whether we are adults walking around, we have to look after each other. a very relieved david jeffery there earlier. he and his animals have had a lucky escape from those bushfires. if you want to get more details about all the fires that have been happening in australia, just have a look back, that is on our website. it gives you a sense of the scale of how many fires are burning and how widespread they are. a lot of them clustered around sydney there and those fires in victoria that they are especially worried about at the moment. that is all on the website for those details. let's get some of the day's other news. the somali jihadist group al—shabaab has for the first time said it carried out saturday's bomb

explosion in the capital mogadishu which killed more than 80 people. it said the target had been a convoy of turkish nationals and apologised for the deaths of civilians. the iraqi prime minister, abdul mahdi, says us airstrikes on what he called "iraqi armed forces" were a violation of sovereignty. iran has condemned the attacks, which it claims left at least 25 members of an iranian—backed iraqi militia force dead. facilities in iraq and syria were targetted on sunday in retaliation for attacks on bases used by american troops. bolivia is expelling the mexican ambassador and two spanish diplomats, accusing them of interfering in its internal affairs. the decision relates to an alleged attempt to extract a former aide to the ousted left wing president, evo morales, from the mexican ambassador‘s residence. dense fog has swept across parts of northern and western india. it's being blamed on cold weather combined with pollution. the conditions have led to disruption on roads and rail, and hundreds of flights have been cancelled. the country's meteorological authority says the north of the country, including

the capital, delhi, is experiencing one of its coldest spells in well over a century. federal prosecutors in new york have filed hate crimes charges against a man accused of stabbing five people at a hanukkah party on saturday. they claim the suspect, grafton thomas, keptjournals containing references to hitler. 0ur correspondent michelle fleury has more details about the case. i think you've got the family speaking through their lawyer, michael sussman, who's representing grafton thomas, the man accused of essentially entering a rabbi's home over the weekend and stabbing five people. he's been saying that his client suffers from mental illness and hospitalisation and that that's what's behind the attack. that being said, if you listen to authorities, they take a different view. you've got the governor, andrew cuomo, who basically wants tougher sanctions on what he

describes as domestic terrorism and now you've got federal prosecutors essentially charging him with hate crime. basically they filed five charges today in the southern district of new york, accusing him of obstruction of free exercise of religious beliefs, involving the attempt to kill and use a dangerous weapon. this is in addition to state charges, which grafton thomas pleaded not guilty to on sunday. this is a gentleman who lived about 20 miles from rockland county, it's a suburban area. and he, allegedly, according to investigators, had been researching places where there werejewish prayer houses, he was looking up places in staten island, in newjersey, and we're still trying to understand more of the motivation, but a journal that investigators recovered seems to be shedding some light, in which he made references to hitler and to israelites.

so this is something that investigators are going to be poring over and going over in more detail to try and ascertain his motivation. michelle fleury with that update. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: the world's waking up to climate change, but needs to take action. we speak to teenage activist greta thunberg. the most ambitious financial and political change ever attempted has got under way 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 will 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 was good. reporter: it was just good? no, fantastic! that's better! big ben strikes the hour this is bbc world news. the latest headlines: the former head of renault—nissan, carlos ghosn, has fled japan, where he was awaiting trial on charges of financial misconduct. in a statement, mr ghosn confirmed that he was now in lebanon. blazes continue to rage across australia. weather conditions already described as "catastrophic" are expected to worsen and thousands are trapped

in one coastal town. a 19—year—old british woman has been found guilty by a court in cyprus of lying about being raped by a group of tourists. she was arrested after withdrawing a claim that she was attacked by 12 israeli men at a hotel in the resort of aiya napa injuly. jon donnison's report contains flash photography. when these legal proceedings began, the young british woman at the heart of the case was a victim making a complaint of rape. she came to court today to be found guilty of making a false statement about what the law in cyprus says was an imaginary crime. the lawyers say both the police investigation and the court process were flawed. we believe that there have been many violations in the procedure

and the right to a fair trial of our client has been violated. we are planning to appeal the decision to the supreme court, hoping that our client will find justice in cyprus, at least from the supreme court. these are the young israeli tourists who originally faced accusations that they'd raped the young woman. they were freed and allowed to fly home after she retracted the allegation. but she says she only changed her story about the young men because she was put under huge pressure by police questioning when she was vulnerable. the british government says it will be speaking to the cypriot authorities about the case. in a statement, a foreign office spokesperson said the uk was seriously concerned about the fair trial issues in what it called a deeply disturbing case. the young woman's lawyers are expecting to base her appeal on the way she says she was questioned by police

for eight and a half hours without access to a lawyer before being coerced into agreeing that her claims were false. and in cyprus there have been questions about the way she's been treated. women's rights activists demonstrated outside the court, arguing that the young woman was a victim, not a criminal. some wore scarves showing lips stitched together. a reminder, they say, that women's voices are not being heard. they say the case is not over. translation: we are here to show our support and solidarity to the victim of this process. a young woman at the heart of the case, who hasn't been allowed to leave cyprus sincejuly, has now been told she will be sentenced on january seventh when she could be jailed for a year. jon donnison, bbc news. the body that decides the laws of football says it will issue updated guidance on the video assistant referee system — or var.

the board of the international football association says the system should not be "too forensic" — and should only reverse "clear and obvious" errors by referees. var has been heavily criticised for disallowing goals as offside. three killer whales have been spotted in the section of sea that separates italy from the mediterranean island of sicily. it's the first such sighting in these narrow straits. marine biologists believe the orcas are from the same group that originally came from iceland, seen off the coast of north—west italy earlier this month. it's not clear why they made such a long migration. the 16—year—old campaigner greta thunberg has said she wants to go back to school as soon as she can. she's been talking to the bbc at the end of a year in which she became known around the world for spearheading a youth movement pressing for more action on climate change. mishal husain went to stockholm to meet her.

she's the girl who galvanised the children to go on strike from school, and people of all ages to march, pushing for more action to control a warming world. it's a mission that's taken greta thunberg around the globe, becoming a distinctive but also a divisive figure. i haven't really grasped what's happened during this last year. i'm being listened to, and we, climate activists, are being listened to, but that doesn't mean that what we are saying is translated into action. she spoke at the recent cop25 un climate talks in madrid, part of the system under which countries make pledges to cut carbon emissions. with the next summit taking place in glasgow, she wants the british government to make sure it succeeds. since the cop25 failed, that just puts co p26 into a different light. we, and they, must do everything they can to make sure that it doesn't fail.

it was outside the swedish parliament in stockholm that greta's activism began as she sat with a sign saying, "school strike for climate." she is still only 16, and her high profile has meant scrutiny and criticism. some see her as unrealistic, a teenager who ought to be in school. on that, she can agree. i hope i don't have to be a climate activist any more. i am really looking forward to going back to school and to just be like a normal teenager. but of course, this isn't normal. . .situation. and we must all do things that we may not feel comfortable doing — we need to step out of our comfort zones. before we go, let's take a look at some footage of a narrow escape for a couple of pedestrians in turkey.

strong winds ripped through istanbul on monday, in this case bringing down a tree which crashed onto a one—way street. cctv caught the moment it was uprooted, almost crushing two men walking down the road. very lucky escape there. no injuries have been reported. two vehicles were damaged, the red one taking the brunt of the impact. along with many other cities around the world — berlin is revving up for its annual new year's eve celebrations. the city's famed for its extravagant firework display and the enthusiastic throwing of fireworks in the street. but things are about to change, as andy beatt explains. germany's capital, counting down to 2020. reparation is very massive party under way at brandenburg gate, where hundreds of thousands are set to see in the new year in style. for the first time, though, they will

face a pyro band, with rockets, sparklers and firecrackers outlawed for safety reasons. translation: we are setting up pyro bands signs to ensure that pyrotechnics and alternative people and people are not put at risk. last year, many things were damaged and some people were injured. that is exactly what we want to avoid. at every turn, highly visible warnings that fireworks for the public are forbidden. the move has been welcomed by environmental groups, who is a one night of fireworks causes as two months of traffic. campaigners have called for bands in almost 100 cities that are failing to reach air—quality targets. almost 100 cities that are failing to reach air-quality targets. we are having the same discussions in australia, and putting the money towards all the bushfires that are happening over there. so i can certainly see their point of view. it would be a shame to miss the fireworks, but... half—hearted about that, so, yeah. buti

fireworks, but... half—hearted about that, so, yeah. but i think this looks wonderful. absolutely amazing. while this public new year celebration may never be quite the same again, private fireworks displays face no restrictions. demand remains high among those wanting to stage their own spectacular. translation: it's just once a year, they only spend money on it on new year's eve. translation: i don't think many will stick to the band. it's great, the coloured lights and everything, the effects and volume. because it's once a year, you are already looking forward to it. —— stick to the ban. a total ban, if enforceable, it would be hugely unpopular. fireworks sales across german “— would be hugely unpopular. fireworks sales across german —— germany totalling over 100 million euros a year. retailers say they have no intention to stop this lucrative seasonal sale. andy beatt, bbc news.

you can reach me on twitter — i'm @regedahmadbbc. hello. the final day of the year and the decade will get off to a fairly chilly note across much of northern england, northern ireland and scotland. this weakening cold front which has been moving its way southwards over the last 2a hours, introducing some colder air. to the south of this, still something milder and actually much more in the way cloud and perhaps even some patchy light rain across south—west of england and the channel islands through new year's eve. quite cloudy skies for much of wales, central, southern england, but the further north and east you go, here is where we will see the best of the sunshine. and away from the far south—west of england and the channel islands, it should be mainly dry. quite breezy for the western and the northern isles, and a colder feel for many — 6—10 celsius typically the high

on new year's eve. this takes into new year's eve night, where for most it will be dry, fairly light winds. we're going to see some mist and murkiness, particularly over higher ground and certainly the cloud already in place across wales, central, southern and south—west england will be slowly pushing its way further north and eastwards as the evening and night wears on. clearer skies across east and north—east england and eastern scotland. but here's a closer look at midnight. most places will be dry, light winds, quite a lot of cloud and, as i mentioned there could be some mist, some patchy fog in places. clearer skies across eastern, north—eastern england and eastern scotland where temperatures by midnight will be getting closer to freezing, and actually falling a little bit lower as the night wears on. where we've got the cloud, temperatures will easily stay above freezing. so here's how new year's day looks — a fairly quite affair across much of the uk, thanks to this area of high pressure. isobars slightly closer together across northern ireland and scotland so a breezier day here and fronts never too far away from the northern and western isles, so thicker cloud here, maybe some light rain. but for much of the uk on new year's day, it is a dry day, but with a lot of cloud. any brightnes or sunshine

really at a premium. the best of it probably to the north and east of high ground. and again, quite a cool day. temperatures for many will not get into double figures. now, as we go into thursday, these frontal systems i talked about to the north and west of the uk will come ever closer, sliding their way south and eastwards. so a wet, fairly windy day across much of scotland and northern ireland and eventually that rain will start to settle into northern england and the far north of wales by the time we get to thursday afternoon. further south and east, it stays dry. again, quite a lot of cloud but for all of the uk on thursday, it is a windier day but starting to push up some milder air again, so we're looking at highs eaily in double figures, 10—12 celsius. through friday and saturday, we are back to something drier, a little bit colder and also a return of some sunshine. bye— bye.

this is bbc news. the headlines: the former head of renault—nissan, carlos ghosn, has fled japan, where he was awaiting trial on charges of financial misconduct. in a statement, he confirmed that he was now in lebanon. he said he would no longer be held hostage by what he called japan's rigged system ofjustice. 4,000 people have sought refuge on a beach in the australian state of victoria as bushfires approach. they have been told the threat has now passed. the last few days authority warned people in malla coota authority warned people in mallacoota to authority warned people in malla coota to leave authority warned people in mallacoota to leave before it was too late. a man accused of stabbing five people during hanukkah in new york state, has been charged with federal hate crimes. federal prosecutors claim the suspect, grafton thomas, keptjournals containing references to hitler. his family say he has a long history of mental illness. those are the headlines.