this is bbc news. i'm lukwesa burak. the headlines at 11pm: the queen and other senior royals will meet at sandringham on monday to discuss harry and meghan‘s decision to step back from their roles. britain's ambassador is arrested during anti—government protests in tehran, after iran finally admits it shot down a passenger plane by mistake. 176 people died. the foreign secretary condemned the arrest of the ambassador as a flagrant breach of international law. the northern ireland assembly resumes for the first time since the collapse of power—sharing three years ago. we can agree that there was too much suffering and that we cannot allow

society to drift back and allow division to grow. and we'll be taking an in—depth look at the papers with our reviewers — broadcaster, lynn faulds wood, and the journalist and commentator, anne ashworth. good evening. senior members of the royal family, including the queen, will meet on monday to discuss the future for prince harry and meghan. it follows their decision, announced last week, to step back from their prominent roles in the royal family. the summit will take place at the queen's sandringham residence in norfolk, and is expected to look at a range of possibilities. the issue of funding is expected to play a central role. meghan is in canada.

it's likely, though not certain, that she willjoin the conversation by phone. our royal correspondent, nicholas witchell, gave us a few more details about monday's meeting. i think officials have a better, not complete, idea of what they want and a range of possibilities will be suggested and a reality check perhaps for the sussex and they hope to agree the next steps. they need to agree the next steps. they need to pin down how much work do the sussexes officially want to do, official royal work, and what will be the rules of the game for their nonroyal work? what will be the protocols that will be there to prevent them, to be brutal, cashing into blatantly on their royal status. it will be businesslike, i'm sure, butan status. it will be businesslike, i'm sure, but an underlying sadness, i would imagine. meghan clearly wants to do this but has harry really thought through the implications of all this? the distress he's causing

his at this point in her life and the potential loss of respect for the potential loss of respect for the likes of the royal marines, he is captain general, and the general sense in the country, not universal, of disappointment. there've been angry protests on the streets of iran after the country's military finally admitted it did shoot down a ukrainian passenger plane, killing all 176 people on board, four of them british. iran says it made a disastrous mistake when it wrongly identified the plane as a cruise missile. tonight demonstrators in tehran have been calling for iran's supreme leader to resign. our diplomatic correspondent, james landale, reports. almost from the moment the ukrainian airliner crashed early on wednesday morning, officials in tehran furiously rejected the growing video and intelligence evidence suggesting it had been hit by an iranian missile. then today, an abrupt about turn.

in a flurry of social media postings iran's president spoke of a "disastrous mistake". the foreign minister talked of "human error". the ambassador in london apologised for misleading the media with "wrong findings". a senior military commander explained that iran's air defences had been on high alert after the attack on us bases in iraq and the aircraft was misidentified as an american missile. he said he wished he could die. translation: we are sorry, we share the sorrow with victims‘ families. we regret the incident. but this was the price we paid for the tensions and us activities in the region. in tehran, people gathered on the streets notjust to mourn some of the 176 dead, but also to voice their anger at the government, shouting "death to liars". in one protest, the british ambassador was arrested and detained three hours in what the foreign secretary said was a flagrant breach of international law.

ukraine's national security secretary told my colleague jonah fisher how iran simply could no longer deny the evidence. translation: this photo shows us the first part of the plane where a rocket hit. it hit the cockpit from underneath. as canada continued to mourn its 57 dead, the prime minister demanded that iran cooperate with a full and transparent international investigation. iran must take full responsibility. canada will not rest until we get the accountability, justice and closure that the families deserve. the question now is how much access iran will give to the crash site and data from the wreckage. only then will we know if today's admission of responsibility will be enough to de—escalate the latest confrontation in the middle east. james landale, bbc news.

a little earlier, rana rahimpour from the bbc persian service told me about previous protests in iran and how todays events compare. there were mass protests in iran in november, 2019. it was violently cracked down, hundreds of people were killed, thousands imprisoned and, at the time, many analysts thought it would take years for the opposition to mobilise itself and energise itself to come back on the streets. but the anger that people are feeling over this incident, the tragedy, has turned the opposition against the government yet again. and that is why, today, we can confirm that there are at least, in eight cities, major cities, ongoing protests against the iranian authorities. so we are looking at the pictures. that was earlier today, and you can see them shouting as there seems to be a police

motorcade driving through. for many watching these events, it's highly unusual to see that, is it safe for people to take to the streets? no. hours after these videos, we have confirmed reports that anti—riot police were deployed, and they are now using gas in order to, tear gas, to disperse people. which creates even more anger among people because they say, ok, you have killed 176 innocent people and we are not able to mourn. that is why we hear many protesters chanting against the leadership, they are calling for the commander—in—chief, which means the supreme leader ayatollah to resign. they're chanting "death to dictator" and they say they've had enough. these protests have continued into the night, we understand.

it's interesting, isn't it, so many commenters, particularly on social media, have said it does bring into question past errors as well that we have never had explanation for. real questioning of the government, how likely is it though that anything will change? to be honest, what has been going on over the last few days has proved again to me that iranian politics is very unpredictable. since the beginning of 2020, a lot has happened. if you asked me to two days ago whether iran will take responsibility for this incident, i would have said it is highly unlikely. at this moment, i think i can see that i don't think anything will change but it really depends how many people will stay on the street and whether the protests continue or not. in terms of cooperation, there have been calls from, a number of calls from governments, saying they want a transparent investigation. ukraine has said they need at least a0 investigators on site. international cooperation and iran, talk us through that. what is it going to look like?

so according tojustin trudeau, the canadian prime minister, iran has been very cooperative in issuing visas for the investigators to go, and mr trudeau asked for accountability, transparency and justice for some the iranian authorities are not famous for any of those but given they have taken responsibilty for the event, which is very unusual, maybe more co—operative? possibly. especially because there are now other countries involved, it is no longer an iranian matter, there is the international community and they want answers, so one can only hope they will cooperate. the northern ireland assembly has sat for the first time in three years after a deal to restore power sharing at stormont. the dup leader arlene foster has been appointed first minister, while sinn fein‘s michelle 0'neill is deputy first minister. chris page reports.

it's been a long, tense, exhausting journey to bring back northern ireland's government. for three years stormont has mainly been a nice venue for runners. now it is a place of power again. 0rder, order, members. in the assembly, politicians appointed the leader of the democratic unionist party and the vice—president of sinn fein to head up the power—sharing coalition. they both put the focus on the future. i'm not sure we will ever agree on much about the past, but we can agree that there was too much suffering and that we cannot allow society to drift back and allow division to grow. let's not re—fight the battles of the past, it's time to bring people together. we can open doors, we can let the future in, we can give people hope and we can give our young people opportunity. so, after more than 1,000 days, elected politicians are now back in control of this part of the uk. the deal to restore the devolved government can be read as an attempt to normalise politics here,

move it away from divisive issues of identity and nationality, and make it more about health, education, the economy. whether your flag is the flag of ireland or the flag of britain, that doesn't really matter when you're not being cared for and looked after. the future of our children and the future of the economy for small business owners, they are all things that are becoming more and more important and people are just not really putting up with excuses any more that will argue about tribal politics. rebuilding political relationships won't be easy after such a toxic stalemate. northern ireland has a road map to stability but there will be tough work ahead. chris page, bbc news, belfast. labour leadership contenders have only two days left to gain the backing they need, to get to the next stage of the contest. so far, six candidates havejoined the race — rebecca long bailey, emily thornberry, clive lewis, lisa nandy, jess phillips, and sir keir starmer.

registered supporters, who are not full party members, will have 48 hours from 14—16 january to secure a vote by paying £25. the ballot will be open from 21st february to the 2nd of april, with the results announced two days later on the 4th. today, it was sir keir starmer‘s turn to launch his official campaign to become the next party leader in manchester. speaking a little earlier, he said that factionalism within labour has to go, and that the party must unite. he also promised to defend the party's radical values. we cannot be a divided party anymore. we need to end the factionalism. being a very, very strong opposition up against borisjohnson and forging that path to victory. what i meant by retaining our radical values is we shouldn't throw away everything in the last four years. we are now the party of anti—austerity, we are the party that believes in investing in our public services and common ownership.

we should retain that. the manifesto i'm focused on is the next manifesto, not the last manifesto. but we shouldn't throw away what we have achieved in the last four years. earlier, our political correspondent, nick eardley, explained what keir starmer‘s campaign launch means for the race. keir starmer has, for want of a better word, momentum at the moment in this race, he is the man to beat, far ahead of anybody else when it comes to mps and the polls of labour members suggest he is out in front. he's not the obvious corbyn candidate, because that is rebecca long—bailey, at the moment, her campaign is struggling to get off the ground. momentum, who are the pro—corbyn grassroots campaign who helped jeremy corbyn win the two leadership elections he won,

they have said they will ballot their members on who to back, but, quite clearly, they want it to be rebecca long—bailey. they're recommending that that's who their members get behind and that will give her a big boost and, although keir starmer appears to be out in front at the moment, i would suggest, over the next three months before we get the next labour leader, there is a lot of room for movement in that race. when it gets going, when some of the more radical pro—corbyn groups start throwing their weight about, i suspect that will work well for rebecca long—bailey. there's other candidates as well. lisa nandi, clive lewis, emily thornberry, jess phillips as well. they'll all be looking to make up ground over the next few weeks. tens of thousands of independence supporters in scotland marched through the centre of glasgow earlier today. the organisers, all under one banner, say around 80,000 people took part in this, the first of a series of marches, the group plans to hold across scotland over the coming year. the uk government has said it does not support a further vote on independence. gillian sharpe reports.

ac of saltires on the streets of glasgow. it took more than rain... their route going from the west end to glasgow green. we have come here today because we feel that really there's no choice now for scotland but to be independent. we are completely on a different track from england, totally. the march is well under way now. the organisers say they just weren't going to let the weather put them off. this is scotland, after all. but a rally due to be held at the end of the event has had to be cancelled. to day's event was billed as an emergency march organised in the wa ke emergency march organised in the wake of december‘s general election. it's another mandate at the end of the day and it shows there is still a appetite in scotland for

independence. the world media is here watching us, we don't always get that. the marchers today say it is time to revisit the question of independence. first minister nicola sturgeon wants another vote this year ‘s. sturgeon wants another vote this year's. ina sturgeon wants another vote this year ‘s. in a state made, uk government spokesperson said: spirits not dampened today despite the rain. several more marches are planned across the country this year. julian sharp, bbc news. the headlines on bbc news: the queen and other senior royals will meet at sandringham on monday to discuss harry and meghan's decision to step back from their roles. protesters in iran have chanted slogans against the country's leaders after the authorities belatedly admitted shooting down a ukrainian airliner on wednesday, killing 176 people.

power sharing is restored in northern irealnd, as key ministers are appointed at the first assembly meeting for three years. sport, and a full round—up from the bbc sport centre. good evening. 16 points — that is the gap between liverpool and everybody else in the premier league, and they have a game in hand. it is after yet another win. they beat tottenham 1—0 in north london for their 20th victory in 21 games this season. they drew the other one. roberto firmino scored the game's only goal in the first half. jurgen klopp's side have broken the record for the best start to a league season in europe's top five leagues. what i know about football is if somebody gives you a trophy or something then it's done. until then, you have to fight as much as you can. and that's what we do in

the start. it is what we have always said. the rest of the start is obviously nearly perfect, but so far it is only the start. and we have to continue, and we will continue, because our contenders are so strong. so city will not give up, whatever guardiola says in public, they will never give up. we have two play it, and that is how it is. i know that is no problem, i have to do the same. so far it is all really good. that gap has widened because second—placed leicester were surprised 2—1 at home by southampton, after a performance manager brendan rodgers admitted didn't merit anything. southampton lost the reverse fixture 9—0, but came from behind at the king power, with danny ings's 10th goal in his last ten starts the decisive strike. chelsea, everton and manchester united all enjoyed home wins. crystal palace drew with arsenal. they stay ninth and tenth. wolves and newcastle also drew 1—1. manchester city are level on points with arsenal at the top of the women's super league. pauline bremer scored two goals

as they beat everton 3—1. city stay second after conceding a late goal. arsenal could re—establish their lead at the top of the table when they travel to brighton tomorrow. zlatan ibrahimovic said his first goal since returning to ac milan made him feel alive. the veteran striker scored the second in milan's 2—0 win at cagliari. given it was away from home, there was no elaborate celebration. he said, when he scores at home, he will celebrate like a god. exeter chiefs have qualified for the quarter—finals of the european champions cup after their game with glasgow finished 31—31 at scotstoun. gloucester are still in with a chance of reaching the last eight after a 29—6 thumping of montpellier at kingsholm, four tries and what could be a vital bonus point, although there are injury concerns to influential fly—half danny cipriani. reigning champions saracens also won to keep their chances alive. serena williams is warming up nicely for australian open in just over

a week, too. she is into the final of the auckland international, after beating amanda anisimova in straight sets. she will play unseeded americanjessica pegula in a bid to win herfirst tournament in three years. she has not won a grand slam since she won the australian open in 2017, but she has come mighty close. an excellent practice for her, reaching the final in auckland. if she wins that final on sunday, it'll be the first title she has one since the australian open title in 2017 and would end a run of five consecutive final defeats. and that is clearly going to do her no harm at all as she chases that record equalling grand slam total at wimbledon. meanwhile, us open champion bianca andreescu will miss the first grand slam of the year as she recovers from a knee injury. the world number six said the tournament came too soon in her rehab. the first of the four divisional round nfl playoff matches is under way in san francesco. the 49ers have a 17—10 lead over the minnesota vikings at the start

of the second half. the winners of this game will be one game away from the super bowl, which takes place at the beginning of february. you're up to date from the bbc sport centre. have a very good night. in taiwan, president tsai ing—wen has secured a second term in office after sweeping to victory in an election dominated by the island's relationship with china. she won a record number of votes, campaigning on a platform that opposed closer ties with beijing. this report from john sudworth in taiwan contains flashing images. not long ago, she was struggling in the polls. now, she is being swept to a second presidential term. her strategy — rallying

voters to a single cause. to show that we can be against the communists. yeah, so this is really important to us. has china been a factor for you? i think yes. it's my reason to vote — to defend our country. beijing's attempts to pressure president tsai with renewed threats to take taiwan by force have badly backfired. do you think you have the chinese president, xijinping, to thank for this victory? translation: the taiwanese people insist on protecting our democracy. i hope china gets the correct message as a result of this election. there is in fact a great irony to these celebrations.

beijing's authoritarian vision of a greater china wholeheartedly rejected in the one place that actually gets to vote on it. she has promised to stand up to china. the risk is it will only antagonise it further. john sudworth, bbc news, taiwan. debenhams has begun closing 19 of its stores as part of plans to try to secure its future. in another blow to the high street, mothercare will stop trading tomorrow, with the loss of 2,800 jobs. our business correspondent emma simpson has the details. from kirkcaldy in fife, and wolverhampton, to walton upon thames in surrey, debenhams is pulling out. not much left for bargain hunters, though. 50 stores are to go, the first wave this month,

the rest in 2021, a restructuring to save the rest of the business. this is altrincham, one of six to close today. will you miss it? no. i'll be honest. i don't ever go in, really, no. everything's online, so we... once our generation is gone, in another30 years, there'll be no shops. this town was named england's best high street, after its successful regeneration, but it has now got a big gap to fill. whilst we'd be happy to speak to any retailer who was interested in the site, there are other things that you can do as well. we've done a cinema on the high street. there are restaurants in the high street as well, so it's about having the control to say, actually, we could do something different. there is optimism here, but as these big anchor stores disappear, along with the other closures still to come,

it ims clear that many of our high streets and town centres will have to make some big changes to survive. for mothercare, the challenges were too great. it has been closing its remaining 79 stores all week. i just feel sorry for all the people who are going to lose theirjobs and got to find new ones. here are some of them heading home for the last time in norwich. another household name that will disappear, after more than half a century on the high street. emma simpson, bbc news. five prison officers had to be treated in hospital after an attack at bristol prison. an inmate was being segregated yesterday after threatening staff when he attacked them with a home—made weapon, knocking one unconscious. the ministry ofjustice said the incident had been referred to the police. tracey miller reports. staff at bristol prison have praised the bravery of their colleagues after an attack by a prisoner that left five officers needing hospital treatment. one was left unconscious,

another with a damaged eye. it happened yesterday, when they tried to move a prisoner who was allegedly making threats towards them. i've been told by the prison officers association that, as staff opened the cell door, the prisoner attacked them with a home—made weapon. prison officers here have put on social media that a request to use protective equipment before approaching the prisoner had not been granted. the prison 0fficers association went to say... but the ministry ofjustice have said that they are investing billions of pounds to improve prisons and increase security. this attack at bristol prison comes after a report lastjune that gave the prison the lowest rating for safety. it was described by inspectors as shocking and unfit for purpose. the injured prison officers

are now out of hospital and recovering at home. the prisoner accused of carrying out the attack is due to be questioned by police. and we will be taking an in—depth look at the papers with our reviewers, the broadcaster lynn faulds wood and the journalist and commentator anne ashworth. that is coming upjust after the headlines at 11:30pm. now it's time for a look at the weather, with phil avery. how is it looking? it has looked a bit wet to say the least today, it follows a succession of fairly wet days across the british isles, windy as well and on the mild side. that is how january seems to have played out for the most part. this was the scene on the roads of alloa late in the day and you weren't alone in alloa because this front brought accommodation of mild, wet and windy weather. you will notice that as

this zone of mild air moves further south, some of the gusts of 50—60 mph, get used to it as they will be back, gives way eventually to something a bit brighter and fresher. that is the way the day finished across the north—west of scotland, parts of northern ireland as well, as the rain has tumbled its way a little bit further south with time through the evening, through the rest of the night it will continue its journey to get into those parts of the south—east that haven't actually seen very much just yet. and that you see the contrast between the mild and cloudy stuff to the south and those clear skies further north. as the temperatures dip away we expect quite a raft of showers across the north and west of scotland. a touch of frost out towards the east, perhaps, away from the cloud associated with those

showers, and a cooler sort of start across the northern half of the british isles. you've still got the leftovers of today's cloud and rain to get rid of from the north of england and the cloud from much of wales in the south of england, but eventually by lunchtime it is a way into the north sea. and then what a contrast. a lovely sunny day in prospect. the rattle of showers across northern and western parts urged along by quite a noticeable south—westerly wind to hit here. but nowhere near the strength of the wind we have experienced through the day on saturday. so that will be a really glorious afternoon. and a fairly chilly night to come, that little ridge of high pressure tending to kill off the showers. the skies were clear and where you don't have the breeze in the north of the

british isles, down in the south you may well have a cool start and a dry one. but all of this behind me, i can't even cover it, is storm brendan, named by the irish whether authorities as a combination of wet and windy weather piling its way into the western side of the british isles, and another very gusty day. this could well be disruptive. the met office have a yellow warning for the strength of those winds, gusts up the strength of those winds, gusts up to 80 mph through the western isles. we will keep a close eye on that. the wind is coming in from the south, so again those temperatures after the chilly start really won't be too low by any means at all. next week storming at times, after some spells of rain, some wet and windy fairand some spells of rain, some wet and windy fair and some disruption to your travel plans. so stay