this is bbc news: i'm sally bundock with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. us president—electjoe biden names a key appointee to his administration — longtime aide ron klain will serve as white house chief of staff. the tigray region of northern ethiopia orders its people to be ready to fight as violence rages between the region's troops and federal foces. virus cases climb in russia — while the big cities are prepared, the poorer regions feel the pressure. one day off to celebrate 70 years of duty. the uk gets another national holiday for the queen's jubilee in 2022.

hello and welcome. president—electjoe biden‘s announced a key appointee to his administration. his longtime aide ron klain will be his chief of staff. he served in a similar role during mr biden‘s vice—presidency. meanwhile, georgia's top election official says the state will conduct a recount of all paper ballots cast in the election — because the margin is so close. but he says there is no sign of widespread fraud. our correspondent, peter bowes, joins me from los angeles. let's just start with joe biden‘s key appointment. this is someone journos extremely

well. yes, he is a long—time washington insider as well and a key appointment. often described as the gatekeeper for the president, the chief of staff as the person who determines who is in the meetings, an important meeting. he is the person who will call the president in the middle of the president in the middle of the night if there is a crisis. he does have a lot of experience as a chief of staff are to biden and his vice president goal and was in charge of the ebola response under president obama and also vice president gore back in the clinton era. a lot of experience in washington and clearly a key position as mr biden manoeuvred himself in this difficult time. and how is he viewed from the point of view both sides, republicans and democrats. it is seen as a safe pair of hands? i think you

certainly seen as a safe pair of hands because of his experience in similar positions in terms of dealing with people and very high office. he clearly knows his way around the white house and he has been involved in administration at times of crisis as well. so all of those things together i think it seems on paper that he has the credentials, he has the experience to deal with the situation he is facing now. recount to take place in georgia. how long will that take? they are doing it because it is very, very close. 14,000 votes joe it is very, very close. 14,000 votesjoe biden it is very, very close. 14,000 votes joe biden is it is very, very close. 14,000 votesjoe biden is ahead and thatis votesjoe biden is ahead and that is just really a wafer thin advantage. and when the voters this then there an automatic recount but this is something that the trump administration have been pushing very strongly for. they

put a lot of pressure on the secretary of state for georgia who has a republican, to move forward with this recount. we don't expect, and this is really common with all the accounts. we don't expect it to unearth a lot of those that have not been counted or change the way a lot of people are voting. maybe a handful or a few hundred votes will change. there may be some discrepancies and some people might have voted twice or who were not eligible to vote but in terms of what it can make of that number of votes, 14,000 or more againstjoe biden, very debatable. thank you. thank you. the united nations remains deeply concerned about the ongoing battle within northern ethiopia. at least 11 thousand ethiopians have fled to neighbouring sudan and the regional government in ethiopia's northern tigray region has ordered the total mobilisation of its people against federal troops. hundreds of fighters from both sides are reported to have been killed during a week of clashes and fears a civil war. mark lobel reports.

the stability of africa's second most populous nation is at stake. after a week of heavy fighting, hundreds of ethiopian soldiers have died. tensions remain high in ethiopia's north. translation: we could hear a lot of gunfire. the whole village panicked but thanks to oui’ village panicked but thanks to our special forces and militia a lot of our soldiers lives we re a lot of our soldiers lives were saved. with peace talks rejected by the central government, the authorities are taking the dramatic step of asking all locals to take matters into their own hands. the heavy fighting began after forces loyal to the local leader attacked a military base

and attempted to steal equipment. government fighter jets have been bombing targets there and now the ethiopian military has seized the airport the people's liberation front say they have been unfairly targeted. once a key member of the ruling coalition before it was dissolved, now unhappy national elections were postponed due to coronavirus. it defied the ban inflaming tensions. the african union wa nts tensions. the african union wants an immediate ceasefire and this battle between a nobel peace prize winning prime minister against the leadership of this region which the government regards as illegal and so should be crushed. on the weekend, the prime minister publicly blamed the region's leaders for human rights abuses and corruption. their objective was clear. to make the country ungovernable by instigating divides. now the un warns of a region under threat. we are

told communications continue to be disrupted and there are reports of interruptions to the electricity supply as well as shortages of basic commodities such as flower and fuel. the closure of banks and an accessibility to the region have required humanitarian operations. the humanitarian crisis is forcing people to the beyond ethiopia's borders to seek refuge in neighbouring sudan. thousands of refugees have fled so far with the un warning of up to 9 million at risk of displacement. both sides are digging in. there are fears about what could happen next and desperate appeals for calm. next and desperate appeals for calm. let's get some of the day's other news. the us is seeing a surge in coronavirus. currently an average of over 900 people a day are now dying with the disease.

experts warn hospitals across the country could soon be overwhelmed. the uk has become the first country in europe — and the fifth in the world — to record more than 50 thousand deaths because of coronavirus. four fifths of the deaths registered in england and wales were people over the age of 75. italy has passed the milestone of more than a million covid cases. the health ministry reported 623 deaths, a level not seen since early april. and this time, it's not just wealthy lombardy in the north that's suffering — but campania and calabria in the south, two of the eu's poorest regions. this summer russian politicians declared victory over the coronavirus. but the infection rate is surging again, and this time it's the poorer provinces that are being hit the hardest. while wealthy, well—resourced

moscow is opening vast temporary hospitals, a thousand kilometres to the north they're running out of beds, and ambulance crews are struggling to cope. our moscow correspondent, sarah rainsford, sent this report from the town of kotlas. tell them to stop calling for ambulances, the paramedic pleads. she says there is no one left here to respond. just picking on one patient with covid, the team has already been called out again and they are taking precautions but may collea g u es are taking precautions but may colleagues have fallen sick, piling even more pressure on the rest. this does not look like the victory over the virus writer's politicians once claimed. a record surge in infections is now hitting remote regions like this one hard. another ambulance has just arrived with medics in

full ppe so presumably more covid patients on board. in fa ct, covid patients on board. in fact, there is a lot of activity here at this hospital. a senior official recently said that they were very few beds left and they were operating under extreme pressure and the number of covid patients and new cases in this region are still rising. these were the scenes in c —— still rising. these were the scenes in c —— scenes still rising. these were the scenes in c —— scenes inside. the sick left in corridors even in benches. this medic says she is caring for 100 patients on her own. meanwhile in moscow they are treating covid patients on an ice rink. a giant field hospital where the screens now show films for the second set of the hockey scores. cases arising here too but there are far more resources . but there are far more resources. and the chief doctor is insistently upbeat. translation: we are fully

prepared for the surge in infections. you can see we have plenty of reserves. i it shows that no access restrictions or lockdown will happen. 1000 kilometres north there is no lockdown here either. there are lots of facemasks. this babushka does worry about getting coronavirus but said she needs to come out to sell her cabbages. life here is a world away from the wealthy capital but the virus does not care. these are both health workers under angry local officials did not use the summer to prepare for this and the risks they are taking ona for this and the risks they are taking on a minimal wage. translation: it makes your hair stand on end. i don't know where this is all going. we sometimes panic about when it will end. their own town

hospital has turned two floors into covid wards and the second surge has only second just begun. let's get some of the day's other news. a british nurse has been charged with murdering eight babies, and the attempted murder of another 10 at the countess of chester hospital. lucy letby was previously arrested in 2018 and 2019 as part of a probe into deaths at the neo—natal unit. she's due to appear before warrington magistrates court on thursday. the former leader of bolivia, evo morales, has returned home from exile, a day after a member of his socialist party was sworn in as the new president. mr morales was bolivia's first indigenous president and left the country a year ago after losing support of the army following a disputed election. australia will appoint a ‘special investigator‘ to prosecute allegations of war crimes by its troops in afghanistan. the announcement was made as the australian government prepares to release a long—awaited report into the conduct of special forces during the conflict.

prime minster scott morrison said australia had to confront "brutal" truths about the actions of some armed forces. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: one day off to celebrate 70 years of duty — the uk announces another

this is bbc world news, the latest headlines. us president—electjoe biden names a key appointee to his administration — longtime aide ron klain will serve as white house chief of staff.

the tigray region of northern ethiopia orders its people to be ready to fight as violence rages between the region's troops and federal foces. there's been international criticism of china after pro—democracy lawmakers in hong kong resigned en masse from the legislative council. it came after four of their colleagues were expelled for backing independence. the us has warned of imposing further sanctions on china. have you resigned or do you intend to? yes, i will be delivering my resignation letter in two hours' time. and did tell us in more detail why before colleagues of yields we re before colleagues of yields were expelled? they were expeued were expelled? they were expelled because the chinese

government cannot have enough patience and endurance to implement the country two systems. but what on basis that they expel them? endangering national security but i can say with my experience with them that they are not that radical. they are very polite and moderate people. but because the chinese government is change their attitude they cannot endure any opposition any more. , as you say, the four members of the legislative council that were expelled, very polite and not radical and some of them not outwardly supporting the pro—democracy movement so it seems interesting that these four individuals were picked out? welcomer they may be the first batch to be picked out but

eventually if communist china does not want any opposition voice in hong kong and they wa nt to voice in hong kong and they want to kill the system after 23 yea rs' want to kill the system after 23 years' time they would do it step—by—step. 23 years' time they would do it step-by-step. if you all resign en masse and as you say, you're putting in your letter in two hours' time, where does that leave the pro—democracy movement if there is no voice within the legislature? in the last one and a half months we just utilised our maximum capacity to speak to the full maximum time. but because they don't want to ensure and they wa nt to don't want to ensure and they want to expel several of our colleagues. there is not very meaningful to remain behind. if

even oui’ meaningful to remain behind. if even our speaking opportunity will be removed. i am told we are out of time but thank you very much for being on the programme and we will keep a close eye on what is happening where you are. close eye on what is happening where you are. let's speak to james to, a democratic party member announced his pick to lead a new cabinet. the former president was impeached over bribery allegations. but protestors furious at the impeachment are still marching on the streets of the capital lima, despite appeals for calm. aruna iyengar‘s report does include some flashing images, from the start. further unrest on the streets of lima former. of lima these further unrest on the streets of lima these protesters think the new proposal would damage their country. police fired tear gas and arrested people.

translation: they have damaged private property and continue to come. we have to disperse them. politicians call for unity currently up in flames. the row flared up after monday's impeachment of the former president on bribery allegations, prompting his removalfrom office. allegations, prompting his removal from office. protesters are unhappy at this change with the election is months away, with the country in the midst ofa with the country in the midst of a coronavirus crisis and with economic policies to usher m, with economic policies to usher in, as the country battles a recession. moments after the vote live television, one protest had this message for a politician who backed the removal. protesters coup as an interim government is swiftly ushered in. the interim president, this man, has been sworn in. the speaker of congress, a businessman and a member of the centre—right popular action party is peru's

third president in four years. seeking stability, he has chosen an experienced former defence minister who was sworn in on wednesday, to lead his cabinet. translation: public security, peace, economic challenges, finding people work. those are the challenges. also there are at the and we need to hand over power to whoever is elected. the new prime minister also appealed for protesters to come down to help the government get out of the crisis. but with a nationwide protest called for thursday evening there may be a few stormy days ahead. thursday evening there may be a few stormy days ahead. time for the sport now. this is your thursday sports briefing. we start with golf in

the 84th masters which gets under way on thursday. usually it is the first of four majors but in the year blighted by the pandemic this year's masters is the last of three having been delayed by seven months. it includes the defending champion tiger woods who is believed to have the opportunity to play for the green jacket he has held for the last 19 months. it has been incredible to have the jacket and to have it around the house and are shared with people. but to have at this long, it is not the way i want to have it. i want to earn it backin to have it. i want to earn it back in april and we do not have it. we have an opportunity to play this week in delhi in the year we didn't think we would have this opportunity the last four places at next year's european championship finals will be decided on thursday. eight teams have made it through to the play—off finals including georgia and north

macedonia who face each other. both teams are hoping to qualify for a major tournament for the first time as independent nations. we have to dream. and the dreamers, and i think everybody knows, for what we are going to go there because it is the only thing, the only chance for every player to play for his country and to get the history. it is difficult to say, because it is final. everything can happen. there has been another blow to liverpool's defence following confirmation thatjoe gomez suffered a knee injury whilst on england duty. gomez has pulled out of the squad to face the republic of ireland, belgium andi the republic of ireland, belgium and i stand and return to liverpool for further diagnosis. the england boss gareth southgate says it's too early to speculate exactly about the injury. what was upsetting was to see that he

was ina upsetting was to see that he was in a fair bit of pain and he was, there was nobody around him when the injury happened. soi him when the injury happened. so i did not like that element of it. but we've just got to wait and see what the scans show and, you know, we are all hopeful for show and, you know, we are all hopefulfor him. fellow show and, you know, we are all hopeful for him. fellow english premier league side manchester city have injury concerns at their own. this defender was injured after just five their own. this defender was injured afterjust five minutes of the netherlands one all draw with spain on thursday. the 25—year—old who has made six appearances for the side this season went off with a hamstring problem. the british government has announced there will be an extra bank holiday injune 2022 to mark queen elizabeth's platinum jubilee — that's 70 years on the throne. our royal correspondent nicholas witchell reports. no british monarch has

celebrated a platinum jubilee before. by the time the country much the queen's 70 years on the throne in 2022 she will be 96. none the less the government says this milestone will be marked by what it calls an extensive programme of public events which will mix traditional pageantry with cutting—edge technological displays. events are at an early stage of planning. they are likely to echo some of the features of previous jubilees. the queen marked the 25th anniversary of her accession with her silverjubilee back in 1977. 50 yea rs with her silverjubilee back in 1977. 50 years on the throne we re 1977. 50 years on the throne were celebrated by the golden jubilee in 2002 when she undertook a lengthy series of visits to different parts of the country. most recently in 2012 she marked 60 years on the throne with her diamond jubilee which was also celebrated across a long weekend. there was a pageant on the thames which was handicapped by the weather and after a service of thanksgiving at st paul's cathedral, an appearance on the palace balcony in front of

large crowds. whatever may be in—store to mark her 70 years on the throne it will be an opportunity for the country to its appreciation for a monarch who continues to break records. isaidjune who continues to break records. i said june 2020 which has been and gone. the extra holiday will be in june and gone. the extra holiday will be injune 2022. just to clarify that for you. just to clarify that for you. an extremely rare purple—pink russian diamond has sold at auction in switzerland for 26.6 million dollars. the 14.8—carat diamond, called "the spirit of the rose," is the largest of its kind to be auctioned, as almost all pink diamonds are under 10 carats. it was sold to a telephone bidder who chose to remain anonymous. the diamond was named after a ballet performed by the legendary russian dancer vaslav nijinsky in 1911.

hello there. the weather will quieten down for a day or so before it turns more unsettled as we move towards the end of the week and the weekend. but today's dry and settled weather is thanks to a ridge of high pressure. but it won't last long as cloud and showers start to push into western areas. now that's the overnight wind and rain clearing away from the east coast. this ridge of high pressure settles things down briefly before the next low pressure moves into the west of the uk through the afternoon. so we could have a hang back of clouds and showers for a time across the east, hanging around shetland pretty much all day. and much of the country is dry with plenty of sunshine around, but you'll see the clouds thickening up out west. outbreaks of rain pushing in here, more prolonged rain pushing in

for western scotland by the end of the day, along with the strengthening winds. temperatures down on what we had yesterday, 10—13 celsius. now it's dry for much of central and eastern parts of the country as we head through the course of the night, but this band of rain, some of it heavy, and strong winds slowly pushing eastwards followed by some blustery showers. very windy conditions across the northwest of scotland, but a pretty blustery night for most areas. those temperatures generally in single figures — high single figures, mind you, we could see 9—10 celsius across the south of england. so this is the pressure chart for friday, low pressure to the north west of the uk, lots of isobars in the northwest, so very windy here. but it will still be quite gusty with this band of rain lying through central parts of the country for friday morning. that should eventually clear way to the north sea, and skies will brighten up for most of the afternoon. but there'll be lots of showers rattling into northern and western areas — some of these will be heavy and quite frequent with rumbles of thunder across the northwest of scotland. those temperatures 10—13 celsius, and with the wind it

will feel on the cool side, despite it being fairly mild. the low pressure really dominates the scene as we head to the weekend. you can see lots isobars on the chart, particularly across the south of the country, and plenty of weather fronts indicating some rain. after the last few cool days, it looks like it'll turn milder again into the weekend, particularly on saturday. something slightly cooler pushing in from west as we head through sunday, especially across the north of the uk. so a pretty wild weekend in store, some heavy rain around, strong winds, gales across the south coast. very mild for a time on saturday, feeling a little bit fresher on sunday.

this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. running out of road — the government launches a taskforce to prepare business for brexit. but just a quarter of firms say they are ready. plus, is time up for tiktok? the chinese—owned social media giant faces a us ban from today, as it battles allegations it's a security risk to americans. hello again. we begin with