this is bbc news. the headlines at 6pm... thousands of people in south—eastern australia are forced to seek refuge on the coast after becoming trapped by advancing bushfires. lebanon says the former nissan boss carlos ghosn entered the country legally and will not face any legal consequences after he fled japan where he was awaiting trial. thousands of iraqi militiamen attack the american embassy in baghdad, angry at us air strikes on theirforces. this is the scene live in baghdad tonight, where the us embassy in on fire. where the us embassy is on fire. the us says it will deploy extra troops to secure the building. sydney welcomes in 2020 with a bang, despite calls for it to cancel its fireworks display as australia's bushfire

crisis continues. and in 20 minutes, sportsday takes a look at the new year's day's fixtures and whether anyone can catch liverpool at the top of the premier league. good evening. thousands of people in south—eastern australia have been forced to seek refuge on beaches and boats after becoming trapped by advancing bush fires. in the state of victoria, 4000 people, locals and tourists alike, prepared to flee into the ocean as a last resort. military aircraft and naval ships are being deployed to carry out evacuations and support firefighters. in new south wales, two more people have been killed and dozens

of properties destroyed along a stretch of coastline. 0ur sydney correspondent, shaimaa khalil, reports. this is what uncontrollable blazes pushed by strong winds have done to towns across eastern australia. and this is what firefighters have been up against for weeks now. this crew trapped in their fire engine as they fight an impossible battle. in the coastal town of batemans bay in new south wales, residents have fled, taking shelter on the beach, desperately trying to escape the hellish fire conditions. 300 kilometres south in the state of victoria, thousands in mallacoota also escaped to the shores. at one point, people were told to jump in the water if the fire came their way. more than a dozen emergency level blazes, spanning 500 kilometres, have stretched across the two states of victoria and new south wales.

several holiday spots along the coast have now been cut off and the main road in the region is closed. military aircraft and vessels could be sent to help rescue efforts and to bring aid to those trapped in the worst hit areas. time and time again, people have told us that the scale of these fires is unlike anything they'd ever seen before and so too is the extent of the damage. and as these blazes continue to rage across eastern and southern australia, many are dealing with the reality of going back home when they've lost everything. the village of balmoral in new south wales has seen some of the worst devastation in recent weeks. everywhere you look is a sign of how the blazes ravaged through the area. rosemary doyle lived in this house for 13 years with her late husband. she tells me she felt relatively safe, living just across the road from the local fire station. but nothing here has been spared.

and then i stood across the road and just watched it burn, room by room, which was really, really difficult. the last room to burn was where i'd left my husband's ashes. soaring temperatures, strong winds and relentless drought have made it impossible to stop the trail of these huge fires and with no rain predicted, australians will now head into the new year with the threat of more blazes looming over them. the former boss of the car giant nissan has fled japan where he was facing trial over allegations of financial misconduct. once one of the most powerful figures in the car industry, carlos goan flew to lebanon to escape what he calls "injustice and political persecution". rupert wingfield—hayes is in tokyo — there's some flash photography in his report. last march, carlos ghosn disguised himself as a construction worker

as he attempted to slip past the waiting media on his release from jail. now, he has succeeded in slipping out ofjapan, perhaps in another disguise. even his own defence team have been left dumbfounded, unable to explain how mrghosn did it. translation: it's a complete surprise and we are perplexed. his passports are with his lawyers. somehow, mr ghosn managed to board a privatejet and last night he landed here, in the lebanese capital, beirut. in a defiant statement he said he had not fled japanese justice but escaped from injustice. "i'm now in lebanon", he said, "and will no longer be held hostage by a rigged japanese justice system, where guilt is presumed, discrimination is rampant and basic human rights are denied." carlos ghosn was born in brazil to parents of lebanese descent.

in the late 1990s he helped save french car—maker renault. in the 2000s, he took on an even biggerjob, turning around japan's moribund car—maker, nissan. he rose to become one of the most powerful figures in the global car industry, but in 2018, he was arrested at tokyo airport on suspicion of financial misconduct. he was held in this tokyo detention centre for more than 100 days, facing daily interrogations. this is a conspiracy. since his release on bail, carlos ghosn has angrily proclaimed his innocence, accusing his former colleagues at nissan of conspiring with japanese prosecutors to manufacture a case against him. the media injapan had been preparing for what was expected to be the trial of the decade. instead, carlos ghosn is now far away in lebanon, a country that has no extradition agreement with japan.

rupert wingfield—hayes, bbc news, in tokyo. new year celebrations have been taking place across the world. australia and new zealand fireworks launched us into the new decade. this now from tolu adeoye on the celebrations so far.... auckland was the first major city to welcome 2020 with a bang. the sky tower at the centre of celebrations. in sydney, the traditional display went ahead, despite some calls for it to be cancelled because of the bushfire crisis. there was singing, dancing and fireworks in pyongyang, as north korea saw in the new decade. whilst a traditional buddhist ceremony was the focus injapan. the fireworks show was scaled back in hong kong because of the recent unrest.

protesters formed human chains in the city. so, not the usual big display in the middle of victoria harbour on this occasion. but still, there was quite some show. and this in bangkok... 2020 making quite the entrance. tolu adeoye, bbc news. london's new year fireworks is organised by mayor of london's office. i'm joined now by the mayor, sadiq khan. good evening. the mayor of london, can you hear me? good evening. what can you hear me? good evening. what can people expect in the coming hours? i don't want to ruin the surprise but they will be the best fireworks london has ever seen. we might be leaving the european union but we are not leaving europe and this is to celebrate us as a global

and european city, and next year we are lucky in london, we will have the european 2020 finals, seven games, the semifinals and three other gamers. it will be a great night. it is interesting that you raise the issue of the european union, because last year the theme was along those lines and there were critics that said that you were being to pro—remain in doing that. what would you say to them if they are critical again this time? i'm sorry, there is an issue with my microphone. can you ask the question again please? you mentioned the eu, there was criticism last year because of the theme, what would you say to the critics this year if they say to the critics this year if they say similar things to you? look, we have more than 100,000 people who will be here in the heart of london, watching these fireworks. millions around the world watching, exclusively on bbc one you can watch the entire fireworks. the great thing about the fireworks tonight is that big ben is once again working

tonight. it is important that we bring our city together again and oui’ bring our city together again and our country as bring our city together again and oui’ country as we bring our city together again and our country as we enter the new decade. i am our country as we enter the new decade. iam not our country as we enter the new decade. i am not pretending that on one that fireworks can do that but it is really important that we celebrate tonight some great things about our city and country. the combination of the music, the fireworks and the people will do just that. you talked about them being the best ever, do you feel every year a greater pressure to somehow make them slightly better than they were 12 months ago? what we must realise is that the world watches london on new year's e. they watches london on new year's e. they watch how we celebrate this. it is really important that we are confident going forward. —— new year's eve. we are probably going to be leaving the eu at the end of january but we are not leaving europe, we are european and global city. what we will see tonight is the best of british music from bastille and storms a, two other great tracks that we associate with

football, being british, and it is important that we celebrate who we are and it is important that we show the world that we are a confident, successful city, confident in our skin, diversity is strength, not the weakness, but we recognise that the next decade brings challenges that we are ready to meet. that element of competitors, if you like, ours will have gone by, we have seen pictures coming out of auckland, bangkok, other parts of the world doing similar things. do you find yourself looking occasionally at the tv thinking, oh, dear, most will have done well this year, we have some catching up to do? it is important for global cities like london to use opportunities like new year's eve to project ourselves and oui’ year's eve to project ourselves and our values to the rest of the world. —— oh, dear, moscow have done well this year. i want to let people know that london is open. the concerns that london is open. the concerns that people have that we are leaving the eu, because a brexit, that

people might think we are inward looking, i want to let people know that they can have confidence, to oui’ that they can have confidence, to our friends around the world, whether tourist or business people, that we will carry on being open—minded and outward —looking. and over the course of this evening you will see the fireworks and you will see that we are a confident city with much to celebrate with great music, and hopefully the best european football we will ever have seen next year with the finals, semifinals and seven games taking place in london. 0k, enjoy your night and place in london. 0k, enjoy your nightand a place in london. 0k, enjoy your night and a happy new year to you. thank you for coming on. sadiq khan, the mayor of london. we will head to london to see what is happening later this evening. and we can join later this evening. and we canjoin lorna gordon now in edinburgh. it wouldn't be hogmanay without the fireworks display, and what a display edinburgh has to

offer. with me is a sign director of the edinburgh hogmanay fireworks display. what have you got planned this year? it is really special with mark ronson's track, which i do not wa nt mark ronson's track, which i do not want to tell you about, i don't want to spoil the surprise, but it is a massive collaboration with a lot of people to put the fireworks to the music and create a performance rather thanjust a music and create a performance rather than just a fireworks display. so we are unbelievably excited tonight. is it a collaboration, do you go back and forward or are you presented with music? mark ronson got it right first time around and then we did some tweaking, but everybody gets involved and imagines how the fireworks will look with the music, then we scurry away into caves and design it and make it happen and we are here now. quite a special setting as well. it is the best setting, i cannot imagine being anywhere else, why anyone would not wa nt anywhere else, why anyone would not want to come to edinburgh on new year's eve, it is beyond me. the castle is the best backdrop. the new

year's eve display started and edinburgh about 25, 30 years ago. how do you do a display like this and how long does it take? we start thinking about it today that we get back next year, and then we hear the creative ideas and then we get the music and it builds from there to the point that we start to load it into vehicles and get it put up with the 19 technicians that we have here. how long does it take to set 7 here. how long does it take to set t here. how long does it take to set up? it takes five days with 19 people and then we have seven, eight hours to clear it all out so that edinburgh can return to normal business. does it start at midnight 01’ business. does it start at midnight or teasers before? teasers at nine, ten and 11 which will raise the excitement of the crowd and give us a chance to see how the fireworks are performing what is near perfect conditions tonight. make sure that everything is in place, build the excitement and then head to midnight. this is your 14th year? yes. some challenges over that time?

always the weather, but tonight it looks about perfect, a tiny breeze from the south—west which will clear the smoke and give the perfect pictures. that was a lorna gordon among those preparing for hogmanay celebrations in edinburgh. the united states is expected to temporarily send additional troops to its embassy in baghdad, following violent demonstrations outside the compound. crowds of demonstrators attacked the american embassy in baghdad, during a protest against us air strikes on an iraqi militia group. we can show you live pictures as we are joined we can show you live pictures as we arejoined by we can show you live pictures as we are joined by another guest now. joan soley joins us from washington... there has been outright condemnation as you would expect, any attack on us military personnel or an embassy anywhere in the world, it is sort of the same old song. the difference

here is that there has been a short series of events, whereby the attack ona series of events, whereby the attack on a base in crawcrook which killed one american civilian and injured several us military and iraqi personnel, then very quickly the us decided a specific group was responsible for that, it is an iranian well—known group in iraq. it isa iranian well—known group in iraq. it is a different thing altogether from the lebanese group. they retaliated and there were air strikes on the 29th of december that killed at least 25 of those militia members. and in the range of 50 others, as they have been described, were injured. part of the outpouring today of rage that you are seeing is the idea that one, this was an attack on iraqi sovereignty, as the prime minister called it. secondly, that some of these injured were

simply bystanders. so, the mood is outright a us right to defend its people and personnel anywhere in the world. and it is a line we have heard before. joan, we will leave it there, but thank you very much indeed for that. and you can see the live pictures from the embassy compound in baghdad, where there we re compound in baghdad, where there were some fires burning. a 10—year—old girl who was hit by an ambulance on an emergency call—out days before christmas has died. she has been named as shaniqua loftman—smith. shanqiua was on foot at the time of the crash, which happened in nottingham at around 6.30 in the evening on the 22nd of december. the chief executive of east midlands ambulance service offered his "deepest condolences" to herfamily.

nottinghamshire police are looking for any witnesses to come forward. thousands of mixed—sex couples in england and wales are expected to enter into civil partnerships from today. it comes after a long legal battle against the law that had previously only permitted same—sex couples to become civil partners. daniela relph's report contains flash photography. cheering. finally, civil partners — something they'd always wanted but, until today, had been legally impossible. rebecca steinfeld, charles keidan and their two young children marked the occasion at chelsea registry office in london. i love you. i love you too! this wasn't a wedding, they didn't even call it a ceremony. this was the registration of a civil partnership, giving the family the legal and financial protection that a marriage provides. when we came here five years ago to try and form a civil partnership it was a very different experience. today, it's been wonderful. we've been warmly welcomed and we've finally been able to say to each other, in front of our very close friends and family, everything we wanted to say and to have legal recognition and status and financial protection that we've sought all along, so it feels incredible. it's just sort of an amazing moment for us. the end of a long journey and the start of a new decade and the beginning of our life together as civil partners in law.

i couldn't have wished for a better moment than that! for rebecca and charles, this is both a private family celebration, and a public recognition of a change in the law — something they have been fighting for through the courts for more than five years. the couple took their challenge to the highest court in the land. the supreme court agreed with charles and rebecca — excluding different sex couples from civil partnerships was ruled incompatible with their right to a family life. i don't believe this change would have happened without charles and rebecca, but whilst, as of today, they are civilly partnered, this is something now which will affect thousands or potentially millions of people across the uk. one of the things people just don't realise until things go wrong in a relationship, is that unless they were married or now have a civil partnership, they're not legally protected. rebecca and charles were amongst the first but the government predicts as many as 84,000 heterosexual couples could become civil partners in 2020. daniela relph, bbc

news, west london. reeta chakrabarti will be here at 6.30 with the national news bulletin but now on bbc news it's time for sports day. evening, we had a bit of a breather from the hectic football schedule today but there are nine matches in the premier league tomorrow. second—placed leicester are at newcastle. the champions manchester city in third are at home everton. can they make up some ground on liverpool who don't play until thursday? even if they do, what difference will it make? jurgen klopp's side currently 13 points clear with a game in hand. it's been a brilliant year for them and this will surely be their season.

lydia campbell reports. it has been a year to rememberfor liverpool fans, six champions league win, world club winners and a 13 point lead at the top of the premier league at the turn of the year. point lead at the top of the premier league at the turn of the yearlj know it was a good year because there were a lot of great moments but we don't count years, we count the seasons. this is only half way through. and maybe he is correct to be apprehensive. it is the fourth time that the ripple have been top of the table that the state of the season. of the table that the state of the season. but they have never been top come the month of may. teams have blown it here before, newcastle had a similar lead back in 1996. but it was manchester united who won the title that year. and what of the chasing pack? if you would have expected leicester city to be among them, but they are second in the

table and have the league cup semifinal to look forward to. table and have the league cup semifinal to look forward tolj think 2020 can be a really exciting time for us. it is a big month of gains and semifinals, then, of course, gains and semifinals, then, of course , out gains and semifinals, then, of course, our objective is to get to wembley. but the focus really above everything is our next game and we need to recover the players. like you have said, it is a really exciting time for the club. defending champions manchester city have been far from unstoppable as they were last season. they have lost seven games so far, three more than the whole of last year already. 14 than the whole of last year already. 1a points behind liverpool, even the most optimistic of city fans must think that the title race is surely overfor think that the title race is surely over for them. think that the title race is surely overfor them. it is think that the title race is surely over for them. it is a think that the title race is surely overfor them. it is a different kind of pressure for the team is down at the bottom. aston villa, watford and norwich make up the relegation spots knowing that with over half of the season gone time is running out. lydia campbell, bbc

news. these are the nine premier league fixtures tomorrow. two lunchtime kick—offs — brighton host chelsea. burnley play villa. matches at newcastle, southampton and watford kick off at 3. more on that west ham game against bournemouth in moment. arsenal against manchester united round things off — 8 o'clock kick—off at the emirates. and then there's the liverpool game at home to sheffield united on thursday. when former premier league referee bobby madley stopped officiating in august 2018, the reason given was that he was re—locating. in a lenghty post online today, the 34—year—old has revealed that he was sacked for filming and mocking a disabled person at his daughter's sportsday. he says he had previously

joked about not taking part in the parents race and talked about being fat—shamed in a national newspaper. he filmed the disabled parent and sent it to a friend, joking that he finally "had a chance of winning the race that year". madley said he was dismissed for "gross misconduct on grounds of discrimination". gerwen price and peter wright have both apologised for their conduct in their ill—tempered pdc world darts championship semifinal. wright won and will play defending champion michael van gerwen in tomorrow's final. meanwhile, fallon sherrock, who this year became the first woman to win a match at the pdc world championship and reached the 3rd round, has withdrawn from the bdo women's world championship next week. a factor behind that decision is the reduction of prize money following poor ticket sales. a couple of other new year's eve headlines... rhys webb will rejoin 0spreys in the rugby union pro14 from next season. the scrum—half has been released from the final year of his contract with toulon. his return means he'll be eligible for wales selection again. maria sharapova will make her comeback

from a shoulder injury in next week's brisbane international. the tournament is a warm—up event for the australian open — the first grand slam of the new year. and how about this for a run out in the australian big bash league? adelaide strikers' peter siddle with the catch, and without looking he removed the bails to dismiss usman kawaja in their victory against sydney thunder. siddle announced his international retirement over the weekend. the ecb have said they're "cautiously" in favour of four—day tests. that's a proposal being looked at by the icc as they look to finalise an increasingly congested cricket calendar from 2023. here's our correspondent katie gornall. supporters of this four—day limit on test matches argue that it will free up test matches argue that it will free up the schedule, ease fixture congestion and could free up around 40 days in the cricketing talent. it could ease the workload on players

and also help cricket to become more accessible to a new audience. —— cricketing calendar. they make the point that most test matches these days do not go the distance. today, the ecb formally gave their support for this for the very first time, they released a statement where they have said they cautiously back the prospect of a four—day test match but acknowledged it was an emotive topic and for those who have concerns about challenging the heritage of cricket. that is what they said. that is just about it for our final sportsday of 2019. what a year it has been. 2019 was the year of british world champions. she is going to take the gold medal! dina asher—smith has done it! going to take the gold medal! dina asher-smith has done it! of world cups. in cricket. netball. guthrie is my girl right there. football.

blasted in by the captain. and rugby union. very good play by tom curry. a year where new stars emerge. dream debut for the 15—year—old. great britain'sjoe fraser as world champion. and others refused to go away. the top seed triumphs in the longest final in wimbledon history. of longest final in wimbledon history. 0f landmarks we thought we would never see. the first man to run a marathon in under two hours. of champions no longer waiting. absolutely incredible performance from judd trump to win his first world championship. simona halep is the wimbledon champion! jade jones, world champion! and record still out of reach. serena williams remains on 23 grand slam titles. a year of opportunities on home soil. the crowd a re opportunities on home soil. the crowd are lifting these players. and new frontiers abroad. we were within

half an hour of the 200 metres going off and it was literally no one here. it was a year of redemption. winners today it is warrington! of comebacks... i am winners today it is warrington! of comebacks... iam not winners today it is warrington! of comebacks... i am not sure i am able to play through the pain. unbelievable. a premier comeback for andy murray. miracles. what a moment, listen... cheering and applause . dominance... absolutely outstanding from adam peaty, he has shattered his own world record. league cup, premier league, fa cup, it is all coming to manchester city. 0ne it is all coming to manchester city. one year in sport, that will be on at 8:30pm this evening on bbc news channel. goodbye for the moment.

australia deploys military aircraft and ships to help evacuate residents and tourists — as bushfires continue to ravage large parts of the country. in the state of victoria, holidaymakers and residents took to the beach, preparing to head into the ocean as a last resort. elsewhere, terrifying ordeals forfire crews who had to shelter inside their vehicles, surrounded by flames. we'll bring you all the latest from our correspondent on the ground. also on tonight's programme... in baghdad, protestors attack the american embassy — in response to us airstrikes at the weekend the former nissan boss carlos ghosn flees to lebanon from japan — where he faces trial over charges of financial misconduct. the first mixed—sex couples enter

into civil partnerships — following a lengthy legal battle for heterosexuals to be allowed to do so. and dazzling displays light up the night skies across the globe to welcome in the new decade. good evening. thousands of people in south—eastern australia have been forced to seek refuge on beaches and boats after becoming trapped by advancing bush fires. in the state of victoria, 4000 people, including locals and tourists, prepared to flee into the ocean as a last resort. fire chiefs have warned that they face a "very long, difficult and dangerous night".

in new south wales — where over a hundred fires are now burning — two more people have been killed, and dozens of properties destroyed along a stretch of coastline. 0ur sydney correspondent, shaimaa khalil, reports. this is what uncontrollable blazes pushed by strong winds have done to towns across eastern australia. and this is what firefighters have been up against for weeks now. this crew trapped in their fire engine as they fight an impossible battle. in the coastal town of batemans bay in new south wales, residents have fled, taking shelter on the beach, desperately trying to escape the hellish fire conditions. 300 kilometres south in the state of victoria, thousands in mallacoota also escaped to the shores. at one point, people were told to jump in the water if the fire came their way. more than a dozen emergency level

blazes, spanning 500 kilometres, have stretched across the two states of victoria and new south wales. several holiday spots along the coast have now been cut off and the main road in the region is closed. military aircraft and vessels could be sent to help rescue efforts and to bring aid to those trapped in the worst hit areas. time and time again, people have told us that the scale of these fires is unlike anything they'd ever seen before and so too is the extent of the damage. and as these blazes continue to rage across eastern and southern australia, many are dealing with the reality of going back home when they've lost everything. the village of balmoral in new south wales has seen some of the worst devastation in recent weeks. everywhere you look is a sign of how the blazes ravaged through the area. rosemary doyle lived in this house for 13 years with her late husband. she tells me she felt relatively

safe, living just across the road from the local fire station. but nothing here has been spared. and then i stood across the road and just watched it burn, room by room, which was really, really difficult. the last room to burn was where i'd left my husband's ashes. soaring temperatures, strong winds and relentless drought have made it impossible to stop the trail of these huge fires and with no rain predicted, australians will now head into the new year with the threat of more blazes looming over them. shaimaa khalil, bbc news, balmoral, new south wales. there've been violent clashes outside the american embassy in the iraqi capital, baghdad. tens of thousands of militiamen attacked the complex, in response to us airstrikes against its members on sunday. president trump has accused iran of orchestrating the violence, and criticised the iraqi government

for failing to prevent it. 0ur diplomatic correspondent, paul adams reports. chanting. furious crowds and an american embassy, the largest in the world, under siege. protesters and pro—iranian militiamen inside baghdad's protected green zone, venting their anger. attempting to breach the embassy walls. 0ne entrance is pushed open, but the crowd is forced back by tear gas fired from inside. a sentry post is attacked. this is a heavily fortified compound. the soldiers inside seem alert, but not yet alarmed. fires are lit outside, the air thick with smoke and anti—american slogans. but the crowd is not huge. sources inside the compound say the situation appears to be under control. no one has been evacuated. directing the protests are some of the country's leading shi'ite militiamen.

they are backed by iran and deeply hostile towards america. translation: this embassy has been proved to be an embassy of plotting against iraq, the embassy of spying on iraq and the embassy of running schemes of sabotage in iraq. tensions rose dramatically over the weekend as american warplanes carried out air strikes against military targets in iraq and syria. at least 25 fighters were killed. the us blamed the pro—iranian group kata'ib hezbollah for a rocket attack on friday that killed an american civilian in the northern city of kirkuk. donald trump points the finger at neighbouring iran. iran killed an american contractor, he tweeted this morning, we strongly responded and always will. now iran is orchestrating an attack on the us embassy in iraq. they will be held fully responsible. he also warned iraq to do more to protect the embassy. but iraq's government is in a bind. the us is still an ally in the fight

against so—called islamic state, but its relationship with iran is much closer. the prime minister condemned america's air strikes at the weekend, but when the crowd moved on the embassy this morning, iraqi security forces did not stop them. paul adams, bbc news. the former boss of the car company nissan has fled japan — where he was facing trial over allegations of financial misconduct. once one of the most powerful figures in the car industry, carlos ghosn flew to lebanon to escape what he called "injustice and political persecution". lebanon said it had no prior warning about his arrival. rupert wingfield hayes' report from tokyo contains flash photography. last march, carlos ghosn disguised himself as a construction worker as he attempted to slip past the waiting media on his release from jail. now he has succeeded in slipping out ofjapan, perhaps in another disguise.

even his own defence team have been left dumbfounded, unable to explain how mrghosn did it. translation: we didn't know anything about it. it's a complete surprise. we still have all his passports. somehow mr ghosn managed to board a privatejet and last night he landed here, in the lebanese capital beirut. he said he had not fled japanese justice, but escaped from injustice. i am now in lebanon, he said, and will no longer be held hostage by a rigged japanese justice system where guilt is presumed, discrimination is rampant, and basic human rights are denied. this is a truly extraordinary development in what was already an extraordinary story. japanese prosecutors will say by fleeing, carlos ghosn is admitting his guilt. but many others agree with carlos ghosn and his defence team that the charges against him were essentially politically motivated.

and that carlos ghosn's real crime was trying to force a merger between a japanese company, nissan, and its french parent, renault. in the 1990s carlos ghosn helped save french car—maker renault. in the 2000s, he took on an even biggerjob, turning around japan's moribund car—maker, nissan. he rose to become one of the most powerful figures in the global car industry. but in 2018 he was arrested at tokyo airport on suspicion of financial misconduct. he was held in this tokyo detention centre for more than 100 days, facing daily interrogations. this is a conspiracy. since his release on bail, carlos ghosn has angrily proclaimed his innocence. accusing his former colleagues at nissan of conspiring with japanese prosecutors to manufacture a case against him.

the media injapan have been preparing for what was expected to be the trial of the decade. instead carlos ghosn is now far away in lebanon, a country that has no extradition agreement with japan. rupert wingfield—hayes, bbc news, in tokyo. our correspondent quentin sommerville is in beirut now. quentin, what are the authorities there saying about all of this? well the lebanese authorities are saying that carlos ghosn arrived in the country illegally using a french passport and his lebanese id card. they say they have no idea how he managed to escape from japan although the lebanese media and arab media have a theory. they believe he was smuggled out in a musical instrument box, of a gregorian charmed band who were performing at his home in tokyo. the former nissan

chairman is 5'5" tall. the local media also say that special forces operatives, former special forces operatives, former special forces operatives were instrumental in the escape plot. carlos ghosn is very highly regarded here in lebanon and was born in brazil, but has lebanese heritage and has great political links. some people in fact have even talked about him being a future lebanese president. he's even featured on a lebanese postage stamp, so is little likelihood that the lebanese will be handing him over any time soon although they say they are keen to maintain friendly relationships with japan which is a big financial donor. quentin somerville in beirut. a 10—year—old girl who was knocked down by an ambulance on an emergency call—out in nottingham has died. shaniqua loftman—smith was hit while walking in the bulwell area of the city three days before christmas. police are appealing for witnesses. an 0xford professor who was forced to retire at 69 was unfairly dismissed by the university, an employment tribunal has ruled.

it found that paul ewart was discriminated against on the grounds of age — but the university says the policy was meant to give younger academics a better chance of promotion. katharine da costa reports. it's one of the world's oldest and most respected institutions. yet oxford university has been accused of ageism. professor paul ewart says his research into developing more efficient engines to reduce carbon emissions was in full swing when he was forced out under 0xford's retirement policy, two years ago. i was very disappointed and frustrated because i felt that i had more to give. i felt there was an issue of ageist attitudes to older people here that needed to be challenged. and thatjust because you reach an arbitrary age, doesn't mean that you cease being useful or can contribute to the work

of the university or society. under current uk laws, there is no set age for retirement but 0xford, cambridge and st andrews universities claim their policy of removing professors over 67 is necessary to refresh their workforce and promote diversity. the tribunal found 0xford's policy had limited success. some experts now feel the ruling could lead to changes. i think it will put pressure on all cause them to rethink their policies because what they will not want is to be challenged again, and in fact it might have an impact on other employers, particularly in a similar environment. professor ewart says he is hoping to be reinstated and continue collaborating with his colleagues in chemistry and physics. but today in a statement, the university said it is considering its options including the possibility of an appeal. katherine de acosta, bbc news, in oxford. from tomorrow, all trains

in the country should be fully accessible for disabled users. but around 1,200 carriages won't be — and ten train operators have applied for a temporary exemption from the law. the rail minister has said it's very disappointing, given the industry has had a decade to prepare. 0ur disability news correspondent, nikki fox reports. do you need a ramp? yeah, ido. my wheelchair space is taken up by a catering trolley. apparently a train straight out of your depot doesn't have a wheelchair carriage on it. just some of the situations disabled people find themselves in when travelling by train, but it's supposed to get easier because in 2020, by law, all trains should be fully accessible. except, they won't be. around 1,200 noncompliant carriages will continue to operate into the new year. it's not like we are asking for special treatment. we are asking to have something approaching the level of access to public transport that non—disabled people take for granted. the simple right to go to the toilet

on a seven—hourjourney to morecambe, for example. this is not new legislation. it was passed back in 1995, which is why disability campaigners can't understand why the deadline's been missed. so, who is to blame? late delivery of new accessible trains like these, delays modifying existing stock, and late decisions by government, are just some of the reasons. i think they call it a system failure, because there are so many people involved. politicians who initially didn't see it as theirjob, because it would be so far down the line, and then train companies struggling to get some permission to go ahead, and maybe even people within the companies initially not seeing how important this change in regulations is. the rail industry says it's rolling out 8,000 new carriages and upgrading hundreds of others, but ten companies have been forced to apply for temporary exemptions to run stock which doesn't comply.

the government says it is disappointed that the rail firms will fail to meet the deadline. but even when there is a fully accessible fleet, there will still be a need for manual assistance at many stations and there is currently no deadline for that. nikki fox, bbc news. thousands of mixed—sex couples in england and wales are expected to enter into civil partnerships from today. it comes after a long battle against a law that had previously only permitted same—sex couples to become civil partners. daniela relph's report contains flash photography. cheering finally, civil partners. something they had always wanted, but until today, had been legally impossible. rebecca steinfeld, charles keaton, and their two young daughters, mark the occasion at chelsea registry office in london. i love you. this wasn't a wedding. they didn't even call it a ceremony. it was the registration of a civil partnership. giving the family the legal

and financial protection that a marriage provides. there are lots of reasons why people don't want to get married. they might have had a previous bad experience of marriage, their own parents marriage, they might have feminist objections like we do. and we feel thrilled and honoured that we have opened up the institution of civil partnership so that everyone can now form one regardless of whether they are in a mixed sex or same—sex relationship. it is just an amazing moment for us, it is the end of a long journey and the start of a new decade and the beginning of my life together as civil partners in law. i couldn't have wished for a better moment than that. for rebecca and charles this is both a private, family celebration and public recognition of a change in the law. something they have been fighting for through the courts for more than five years. the couple took their challenge to the highest court in the land. the supreme court agreed with charles and rebecca, excluding different sex couples from civil partnership was willed incompatible with their right to a family life. i don't believe this change would have happened without charles and rebecca.

but whilst, as of today, they are civilly partnered, this is something now which will affect thousands and potentially millions of people across the uk. one of the things people just don't realise until things go wrong in a relationship is that unless they were married or now have a civil partnership, they are not legally protected. rebecca and charles were amongst the first but the government predicts as many as 84,000 heterosexual couples could become civil partners in 2020. daniela relph, bbc news, west london. new year celebrations have begun, of course, already in some parts of the world, with spectacular fireworks displays to welcome in the new decade. here's dan johnson. his report does contain flashing images. a quiet moment to contemplate what's been before embracing what comes next.

a new year, a new decade, and new zealand kicked it off with auckland the first major capital to welcome 2020. sydney put on a spectacular, despite calls to cancel the fireworks because of widespread bushfires. it's a global stage, after all, and the show did indeed go on. a big bong and a tub—thumping soundtrack saw the start of celebrations in japan, the first new year's eve of a whole new era. across the water, kim jong—un's resisted too many rocket launches this year, perhaps saving north korea's firepower for this display. and in hong kong, the fireworks echoed the firecrackers of protests that have reverberated through its streets. in london, it will be all eyes on the wheel that has become the icon of a global city and the focus for a nation waiting to see what 2020 brings around. dan johnson, bbc news.

that's it for the moment. now on bbc one it's time for the news where you are. goodbye.

the government has announced that the national living wage will go up in aprilfor workers over the age of 25. rising by 6.2%, the living wage from april will be £8.72 an hour. that's an increase of 51 pence an hour on the current rate.

there's also a rise to the minimum wage for 21—24 years — going up to £8.20 — an increase of 6.5%. earlier our economics correspondent andy verity explained to my colleague shaun ley who will benefit from the increase. well, strictly speaking, its 2.8 million people who will benefit directly from the national minimum wage, living wage, going up. but also some people above them will benefit because their wages will be bumped up to maintain the differential between the two. so several million people, but remember, there are 32 million people in the workforce and not all of them by any means will benefit, so if you look at what's happened since 2008, people on the minimum wage have seen their pay go up in real terms above inflation by 13%, whereas if you look at what's happened to the average pay, that's barely budged at all for the last 11 years. in fact it will buy you £1 less after you take into account inflation than it would way back in 2008, so that has, in a way,

reduced income inequality — the gap between the low—paid and the average—paid — but it hasn't helped to improve the fortunes ofjoe average right in the middle. you've got this strange picture where we've got record high employment, three million more people employed than there were a decade ago, and yet people's individual fortunes haven't improved that much. a lot of the economic growth we've seen has just been adding people to the economy, not making individuals better—off. and small firms will be saying, 0k, we want to pay people more but how do we afford it? without gains in productivity, which at the moment is falling, that's very difficult. more than 800 sightings of whales, dolphins and seals have been recorded in british waters this year. wildlife trusts across the country have collated the sightings using a network of specially trained volunteers. thousands of people have also volunteered to clean beaches — amid growing concern over wildlife, climate change and pollution. 0ur environment correspondent, paul murphy, sent this report from the east yorkshire coast,

where more than 300 whales, dolphins and porpoises have been spotted this year. dolphins, whales and porpoises appear to be thriving off the yorkshire coast, with numerous sightings last year from flamborough out to spurn. appearances that have been carefully recorded. we've had a network of surveyors up and down the yorkshire coast looking out for whales and dolphins. we've got about 30 different watching stations, and in that time over 30 volunteers have recorded well over 300 individual sightings of whales and dolphins. that includes things like bottlenose dolphins, minke whale and porpoise. the wildlife trust and its partner, sea watch, have been monitoring from boats and from the shore. and this survey wouldn't have been possible without so—called citizen science. the hundreds of volunteers who are now helping wildlife organisations to gather

huge amounts of data. naturalist craig thomas was one of those lucky enough to spot a humpback whale when it surfaced off bempton in the autumn. it was immediately obvious where the animal was because there was a huge circling flock of birds overhead, which is quite typical of what happens when humpback whales are in the area. birds will flock around them hoping to catch fish that the whale might disturb. we are not sure whether we are seeing an increase in whales and dolphins in our waters or we've just got more people watching. i suspect it's a little of both, to be honest. we've got more eyes and ears on the coastline during the watching for us, which is fantastic. as a result, you do get more sightings and recordings. climate change means the marine environment needs more protection than ever. the data from these surveys will be used to show the strengths and weaknesses of the numerous species that inhabit these waters. paul murphy, bbc news,

east yorkshire. time for a look at the weather with darren bett. hello there, the early days of the new year will bring in some mild air across the uk. it will turn quite windy at times. right now, it is quite cold where we have had the clearer skies and the earlier sunshine across parts of northern england, and indeed, for scotland. we've got more cloud further south. it has been an altogether different—looking day across wales, much of the midlands and southern england, and that cloud is moving northwards. there still may be some pockets of light rain and drizzle, mainly affecting the channel islands if you are out at midnight. elsewhere, it is generally dry. quite chilly though, for the north—east of england and the north—east of scotland. a touch of frost here. and there may be some patches of mist and fog around too, particularly across parts of yorkshire and lincolnshire. as we move into the first day of 2020, we are going to find the wind is picking up in the north—west of the uk. ahead of those weather fronts. that one there still bringing in some pockets of rain in the channel islands, should be moving away.

elsewhere, it is probably going to be dry. a lot of cloud, and there may be some brightness at times, but the best of the sunshine will be towards the north—east of scotland, where it will be more sheltered from those freshening breezes. we may make double figures in the north—west of scotland, likewise in the south—west of england, where it should be a drier and brighter day than today. we are tapping into some very mild air that is coming all the way from the azores on thursday. that is ahead of these weather fronts here, which will bring down some rain from the north—west. we are going to find some outbreaks of rain affecting northern ireland, into scotland. that rain could be quite heavy actually, over the hills of western scotland on thursday, and this band of rain heading down towards the western side of england and wales later. ahead of that, dry and bright, with some sunshine at times. quite a windy day though, everywhere with strong to gale force winds. but it will be mild everywhere, temperatures around 11—12 degrees. that milder weather may not last too long because as those weather fronts take any remaining rain across the uk overnight, the wind direction changes and we draw down some slightly cooler air.

there still may be some cloud and maybe a few spots of rain to clear away from southern england, and through the channel islands in the morning. elsewhere, plenty of sunshine and we pick up a few showers as you head further north. most of those will be across the northern half of scotland. quite frequent, a touch wintry over the highest ground. not particularly cold air, 7 or 8 degrees in the northern half of the uk. into the weekend, where we could see some rain across the far north of scotland. otherwise, it is likely to be dry, some sunshine at times, but still mild for the time of year.

this is bbc news i'm julian worricker. the headlines at seven o'clock. thousands of people in south—eastern australia are forced to seek refuge on the coast after becoming trapped by advancing bushfires. elsewhere, a terrifying ordeal for fire crews who had to shelter inside their vehicles, surrounded by flames. in baghdad, protestors attack the american embassy in response to us air strikes at the weekend. the former nissan boss carlos ghosn flees to lebanon from japan, where he faces trial over charges of financial misconduct. from today, mixed—sex couples in england and wales can finally enter into civil partnerships. new legislation comes into force tomorrow to make trains fully