this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. iran's president rouhani blames israel for the assassination of a top nuclear scientist, saying his country won't be deterred from its nuclear ambitions. a warning that hospitals in england could become overwhelmed with coronavirus cases, if mps don't back new restrictions. a worrying weekend for 13,000 workers at some of the uk's biggest retail names. the group that owns top shop, dorothy perkins and miss selfridge is on the brink of collapse. the eu's chief brexit negotiator, michel barnier, and his uk counterpart are to resume face to face talks in an attempt to agree a post—brexit trade deal. a surprise discovery — a rare plant reappears, more than a century since its last confirmed sighting in the british isles.

and coming up, as argentinians mark the third day of national mourning for diego maradona, we'll be speaking to a football historian about the legacy of one of the greatest players of all time. hello and welcome if you're watching in the uk or around the world. i'm shaun ley. and stay with us for the latest news and analysis from here and across the globe. we start in iran where the country's president claims the assassination of its top nuclear scientist on friday will not slow down its nuclear programme. hassan rouhani has blamed israel for the killing of mohsen fakhrizadeh outside tehran. speaking at a cabinet meeting,

he accused israel of trying to create chaos, but said his country would not fall into a trap. iran's supreme leader ayatollah ali khamenei has promised retaliation for the killing, tweeting that the scientist's nuclear work will continue. israel has not commented , but it has previously accused mr fakhrizadeh of masterminding a covert nuclear weapons programme. 0ur security correspondent gordon corera reports. the scene of an ambush. the highway where gunmen targeted a vehicle carrying one of the most important figures in iran's nuclear programme. mohsen fakhrizadeh was a scientist and senior defence official. but western intelligence services have long believed he was the driving force in iran's quest for a nuclear bomb. iran has always said its nuclear programme was peaceful — but it's been claimed fakhrizadeh was leading work on project amad to develop a weapon. in 2018, he was singled out by israel's prime minister. this is how dr mohsen fakhrizadeh, head of project amad, put it —

remember that name, mohsen fakhrizadeh. so here he is, right here. and he says, "the general aim is to announce the closure of project amad." but then, he adds, "special activities" — you know what that is. iran's foreign minister quickly responded to his death with this tweet... israel is widely assumed to have been responsible. but why now? iran's nuclear programme was constrained under an international deal signed in 2015. but in 2018, president trump pulled

the us out of the deal — and iran has been growing its stockpile of nuclear material. mr trump is reported to have looked at — and then decided against — a military strike just two weeks ago. but israel may now be seeking to take advantage of the window whilst he's still in office. this is very clearly timed in order to impede restoration of the iran nuclear deal. trump has made it very clear he's wanted to kill the deal, he hasn't succeeded in four years, he has two months left. and this is an effort to do so in order to provoke iran's own hardliners into resisting diplomacy. the killing is already causing anger in iran, but it's not yet clear how it might retaliate — and what that would mean for attempts to resurrect the international deal. iran has been under economic blockades for the last few years. it is a country of 80 million people facing the most severe covid pandemic in the region under sanctions in which it cannot access basic medicines and health care, and medical equipment for its people.

it is important to bear that in mind, and the iranian government surely is aware of the extreme pressures it's facing at home. emergency vehicles were still at the scene hours after fakhrizadeh's death. the struggle over iran's nuclear programme has been going on for close to two decades. but, in the midst of an american presidential transition, this looks set to be a moment of tension and uncertainty. gordon corera, bbc news. drjulie norman is a lecturer in politics and international relations at university college london — with a particular focus on the middle east. thank you for being with us. it is no surprise he was a target, he was heavily guarded, but what is surprising is the attackers were successful. that's right, and one of

the things the irani regime will be looking into now, how terrace got so close to an important scientist to carry out an attack. and this is just months after another assassination of an al-qaeda operative also in iran, so this is definitely a blow to their security apparatus and their own intelligence. does it matter from the nuclear programme's point of view if he's dead? certainly mohsen fakhrizadeh has been a leading figure in their nuclear programme for decades, which they have always maintained is for peaceful processes , maintained is for peaceful processes, but he has been cited by america and israel as being a leader in the more weapons capability side. that being said, the weapons programme has presumably developed over the decades with him in the

leadership role, but what we heard from iran is that the programme will not stop with his assassination, and i think it can be assumed there would be others who would still be carrying the programme forward. but this is still quite a blow for the iran nuclear development. in the light of presumably mr rouhani saying that retaliation will follow at some point, unspecified and in what form he didn't say, israel has a p pa re ntly what form he didn't say, israel has apparently put its embassies on high alert. again that is not greatly surprising given the tensions between the two countries. perhaps more interesting is the potential impact on joe biden, more interesting is the potential impact onjoe biden, the us president—elect‘s hopes of re—entering the iran nuclear accord that donald trump left a couple of yea rs that donald trump left a couple of years ago. that's exactly right. we've heard from biden throughout the campaign, and in the past few weeks, that one of his priority foreign—policy items would be to re—engage with iran alongside european allies to try and come to some diplomatic agreement with

regards to the nuclear deal from a few years ago, or building on that in some kind of way. this really throws a wrench in those plans, and makes it very difficult for the biden administration coming into follow—through on that kind of agenda, and it also puts iran in a difficult position to come back to the negotiating table so soon after a strike like this. something like this will embolden hardliners, especially in the lead up to iran's own elections, which are coming up later this spring. doctorjulie norman, thank you very much. thank you. the cabinet office minister, michael gove, says hospitals in england could be overwhelmed, if the government's new coronavirus restrictions aren't voted through next week. some conservative mps are unhappy with the tougher tier system, which begins on 2nd december. in a newspaper article, mr gove urges mps to ‘take responsibility for difficult decisions' and argues the virus isn't confined to constituency boundaries.

here's our political correspondent, jonathan blake. preparing for life after lockdown under much tighter measures than before. kent will be one of the places in tier 3 of the new system, which many conservative mps argue is unfair. we had tier version one a couple of weeks ago. we have just lived through lockdown version two. but now we have vastly more people moved up a phase, despite being told, this is the last push, this is the new panacea, get through this, and we will start seeing the sunny uplands. from next wednesday, the vast majority of england will be under the high or very high covid alert level, tiers 2 and 3, where no household mixing is allowed indoors. 0nly cornwall, the isle of wight and the isles of scilly will be placed under looser restrictions, in tier 1, or medium risk. less than 2% of the population. defending the new measures, the cabinet office minister michael gove has said the previous

tiers weren't effective enough, and tighter restrictions were grimly, inevitably necessary. writing in the times, he warns the level of infection is still threateningly high, and the pressure on hospitals severe. it comes as the number of people in hospital with covid—19 in four nhs regions of england reached higher totals this month than during the first peak of the pandemic. the thing that really worries us is that if we get very large numbers of covid patients injanuary, and we have a cold snap, there will be a danger that the nhs gets overwhelmed. labour hasn't yet decided if it will support the new measures, but warns that changes to economic support for businesses will leave local authorities stretched to breaking point trying to help. meanwhile there is some extra advice for the christmas period, when the rules will be relaxed. government scientists say people should consider meeting outdoors where possible. children should share bedrooms with their parents

if staying overnight. and quizzes might be a good alternative to board games, which involve close contact. the government's likely to get its way here at westminster, despite opposition from mps, and so restrictions will remain a reality across england well into the new year. jonathan blake, bbc news. with me as our political correspondent ellie price. this business of going out of an england wide lockdown, and for most of england going into restrictions that we re england going into restrictions that were tougher than before the lockdown, it's not going down very well? it is not, and it's something the prime minister focused well? it is not, and it's something the prime ministerfocused on in his press co nfe re nce the prime ministerfocused on in his press conference on thursday. these new tiers are still less bad than the full lockdown, but they are pretty strict, and they are for many people far stricter than they were before the lockdown. i think something like 98% of england will be in these tier 2 or tier 3, which means they can't meet up with other households indoors. and as you say,

a number of conservative mps pretty worried about it. there are two things, areas where there is a low prevalence being lumped in with those where the virus is at a higher rate, so we have heard a lot about mps in the county of kent where there is a big discrepancy, and the government's argue to that is that the virus travels, you may live in one area, you've got to go shopping, you might need to go to hospital in another area, so the boundaries need to be clear, but there is this long read in the times this morning from michael gove. if you are not going anywhere today, and have times to read two full pages! it is about four times longer than most articles. and it is largely aimed mainly at his own backbench mps, because it is about these new measures in the tier system, this is something we need to save the nhs, he says it is as a risk of being broken, and he addresses this idea about the broad areas and saying the

virus doesn't pay any attention to boundaries. he also issues a challenge and says, these tough decisions need to be made by mps as well as ministers, because parliament will vote on these new tier system on tuesday, and there is a growing rebellion. we have done the maths in the politics department. ten mps so far i have said they will vote against the measures on tuesday, another 20 or so say they are unhappy. a number of them are waiting for an impact assessment at the government is going to release on monday, which may give some kind of cost benefit analysis type stuff which might be enough to ward off their concerns. but we saw it before when conservative mps, but we saw it before when conservative mp5, 34%, voted against lockdown when that came in at the beginning of november. so it is not easy but it will also depend on what labour day when they haven't decided. so if the opposition party vote with the government, the prime minister is probably home and dry, he can survive a significant

rebellion? he can, and at the moment it doesn't look like it will be as significant as the one at the beginning of november which wasn't enough to defeat the government. so it is uncomfortable, and as i say this article is as much about trying to get your mps on side is when the vote on tuesday. ellie price, thank you very much. pubs, restaurants and bars in wales are to have tougher restrictions imposed on them following a rise in coronavirus cases. it comes less than three weeks after the lockdown in wales was lifted. the measures, which are yet to be finalised, will come into force next friday. around 13,000 people employed by one of the uk high street‘s biggest retailers — arcadia — are waiting to hear if theirjobs are safe — with the company described as on the brink of collapse. administrators could be appointed to the group — which owns brands such as topshop, dorothy perkins and burton — as early as monday. in a statement arcadia say they're working on a number of contingency options to secure the future of their brands. we can speak now to the consumer and retail expert

kate hardcastle. thank you for being with us on bbc news. the prospect look rather bleak. is it just news. the prospect look rather bleak. is itjust the consequences of coronavirus which has given a hell of a pounding to retail all over the country? certainly bricks and mortar retail has been affected by the pandemic, because of the lockdown is on the nervousness that consumers have shown, which we see through the indicators such as footfall. it just hasn't through the indicators such as footfall. itjust hasn't returned to the same levels even when lockdown's have been lifted for periods. but that isn't just a have been lifted for periods. but that isn'tjust a case have been lifted for periods. but that isn't just a case for the arcadia group. it would be really unfairto paint arcadia group. it would be really unfair to paint that picture. the brands within the group have been suffering for years, through underinvestment, when perhaps the organisation could have made decisions about redeploying money into the brands rather than making dividend payments, as these fashion brands have had to evolve quickly to

make new ways of contacting and engaging with a very demanding consumer, but in addition to that, also sorting out its pensions deficit, which is one of the things dogging it right now. the only consolation on that i suppose from pensioners and those who were by hoping to drop pension in future yea rs hoping to drop pension in future years as i understand the pension fund gets first pick as it were of the money, and it clearly needs it. there are regulators as well which can help support it, and we can't talk about this without shining a light on notjust the employees of the organisation but all those affected in its supply chain as well. talks of numbers of up to 30,000 jobs may be affected, and whilst we hear and see every single day about organisations within the e—commerce environment making bigger, bolder decisions with taking on staff, particularly with the on the operational, delivery systems etc, this is a very challenging news story for our high streets. we have to understand our high street can't just hang its hat on retail any

more, that is not possible. but in the short term we are possibly going to see a lot of store closures which then has a knock—on effect, because around it it cast a shadow on other organisations, other stores, that might been dependent on footfall that once went into stores that we might see close as these brands may be sold off, and the future for a lot of the brands within the portfolio is sold off successfully we would be looking very much towards an e—commerce presence rather than just bricks and mortar stores. and some of these brands have a critical mass effect on the high street. we talked a lot earlier this year about marks & closing its doors and the effect on smaller, perhaps poorer towns which have a less diversified range of shops and opportunities for people, they might just go online instead. but are there other shops in the sort of area that have managed to pull this off in area that have managed to pull this offina area that have managed to pull this off in a way that the arcadia group hasn't? absolutely, the press is

very much citing brands like the boohoo group, the jewel in the crown for sir philip particularly, who a lwa ys for sir philip particularly, who always seem to be at the photocalls for topshop, they talk about boohoo coming in and disrupting the marketplace, painting a picture as if e—commerce doesn't have the same associated cost as bricks and mortar, but it has different costs. it has higher return rates. it is not an easy game to play. i would also highlight brands like primark. they have done some online, but they have a similar number of followers on their social media account, 10 million, as topshop does, so even though it is not trading online, it has conversations, it is in the presence, on social media, with its co re presence, on social media, with its core customers, building relationships, and that is perhaps where brands could be looking for the arcadia group if they hadn't had their eyes taken off the ball.“ only. kate hardcastle, thank you very much.

face—to—face talks have resumed in london to reach agreement on a brexit deal between the eu and the uk. the eu's chief brexit negotiator michel barnier said deep divisions remain. borisjohnson has also spoken to the irish prime minister and underlined his commitment to reaching an agreement, which respects the uk's sovereignty. the number of coronavirus cases recorded in the united states has passed 13 million as the pandemic continues to surge. nearly 265,000 americans have died with covid 19. around 90,000 are in hospital. a further spike in the infection rate is expected, as millions have travelled for the thanksgiving weekend despite public health warnings to stay at home. 0ur north america correspondent david willis reports. in the worst affected nation on earth, coronavirus cases are growing at an alarming rate. the united states added more than a million new cases of covid—19 in the space of less than a week, and on hospital wards and amongst health care workers,

the strain is starting to show. when the news says we've reached a new death toll, i don't understand that. but as a front line health care worker, i can understand, and i can describe the sound a zipper on a body bag makes. health experts urge people to avoid travelling over thanksgiving, fearing the holiday weekend could turn into a super spreader. some chose to ignore that advice, although bargain hunters were noticeably thinner on the ground on what's known as black friday, traditionally america's busiest shopping day of the year. some, though, see a deadly virus has little deterrent. kyle camped outside a video game store for two nights to get his hands on a cut—price playstation 5. it gave me some big concerns that we would all be squashed up less than six feet together.

i try to wear my mask as much as possible to limit the risk of getting covid, in case there was someone who had it. but i felt for the most part pretty safe. away from the shopping malls, online sales are booming this year. by the end of the holiday season, they're expected to reach $10 billion, a 40% increase on last year. whilst his successor has vowed to make tackling the coronavirus his number one priority, the current occupant of the white house has seemed more focused on perfecting his golf swing and disputing the result of the election. donald trump once again found himself in the rough after an appeals court judge in pennsylvania rejected an attempt to prevent certification ofjoe biden's victory there. certainly i will, certainly i will. and having said on thursday that he would leave the white house if the electoral college formalised mr biden's victory nationwide, the president then appeared

to backtrack, writing on twitter, but whether mr trump likes it or not, joe biden will be the president onjanuary the 20th, at which point he will be responsible for the country's response to a virus which is now spreading so fast that officials in los angeles county, the largest county in the country, are preparing to introduce tough restrictions aimed at keeping people at home. some wonder here if a long, dark winter might be just beginning. david willis, bbc news, los angeles.

shops in france havejust reopened four weeks after the country enforced a partial lockdown to fight the resurgence of coronavirus. french stores are hoping for a sales bonanza on a delayed black friday, which the government put back by a week to stop online retailers getting an unfair advantage in the run—up to christmas. today marks the last of three days of national mourning in argentina for diego maradona. the former attacking midfielder and manager suffered a heart attack at his home on wednesday and was buried in a private ceremony on thursday after a day of emotional scenes in the argentine capital buenos aires. we can speak now to the football historian john foot, author of calcio: a history of italian football, who joins us from bristol. thank you for being with us. the releva nce thank you for being with us. the relevance of that is that maradona isa relevance of that is that maradona is a player reached his peak while he was playing in italy. tell us about that period of his career, because it is less reported. about that period of his career, because it is less reportedlj about that period of his career, because it is less reported. i think he was at his best when he was in naples in the 80s and early 905.

napoli naples in the 805 and early 905. napoli had never won the thing before he really got there, and he took them to two championships, and he also won the world cup there. he became a god in the city. loved by everybody, and he still is, even though it's a long time ago that he left. that is interesting you say that, because a lot of people won't be, that they are not interested in football, won't be surprised to see that a national sporting hero should provoke 5uch emotions in his country of his birth, and the country for the international team he played, but is interesting to see him getting that kind of affection. given that he was such a troubled man, he seems to have been a very charismatic personality as well as an extraordinary player. yes. he was a lwa y5 an extraordinary player. yes. he was always out in the city, for good and bad reasons, and everyone has a maradona 5tory. bad reasons, and everyone has a maradona story. when i gave a talk about him last year in naples, they all said, i met him, isaw about him last year in naples, they all said, i met him, i saw him dancing, i saw him play. and so

there was a really strong identification with him as a man of the people who had come from poverty, and even the way he looked seem poverty, and even the way he looked seem to identify with the city. and of course he took them to their first and only real victorie5 of course he took them to their first and only real victories in their history, so you can't walk around naples without seeing images of him absolutely everywhere. the president of argentina described him pretty much as the embodiment of the nation, and it looks like that with the scenes we saw, particularly the extraordinary scenes when the police tried to close down the visiting right5 tried to close down the visiting rights to see the body lying there in the presidential palace, and it practically caused a riot when they did. la5t thought, briefly, if you can. what do you think his legacy will be? i think one of the greatest player5 will be? i think one of the greatest players of all time, but also a story which is very rich and with

lots of dark a5pect5, story which is very rich and with lots of dark aspects, which is part of the fascination of maradona, he wasn't a saint but he was an amazing player, his career was very short but he won a lot. it is the contradictions that make it interesting. john, thank you very much for talking to us. you are watching bbc news. it's a big night for an amateur choir in yorkshire. after losing two of its members to coronavirus, the huddersfield choral society wanted to do something special to honour them. restrictions meant they couldn't meet up to perform in the usual way, so they enlisted the help of the poet laureate simon armitage to create two new works, which will premier online this evening. 0ur entertainment correspondent, colin paterson reports. choir sings. the huddersfield choral society, refusing to stay silent.

in march, for the first time since the choir was formed in 1836, rehearsals were not allowed due to lockdown. then, within a matter of days, two members died from covid. stephen brooke, who had sung with them 44 years, and philip carland, described a5 a backbone of the group. for the music to suddenly stop was very difficult, particularly as in that two—week period, we actually lost two members of the choir. everyone was devastated. it was such a shock, and so sudden. they'd been there, and then they weren't. it was through that an approach was made to simon armitage to see if he could write something that was so relevant to what we were going through. the choir responded to the tragic events by deciding to create something new. they commissioned two pieces

with accompanying films, illustrating the separation felt by many this year. huddersfield's the home town of the poet laureate, and he agreed to write the lyrics. i have grown up with the noise of choirs in these valleys. women's choirs, male voice choirs, choral 5ocietie5, amateur operatics and dramatics. so i guess the noise in my head was one that's been almost a constant soundtrack since growing up. how was it to hear the finished piece5? yeah, it was very moving, actually. particularly when i saw them together with the films that have been made. you know, these are songs and films that are populated by real people expressing things that are very important to them, so i had a little weep, actually, when i watched the films. and the choir are thrilled that at 7:30pm the pieces

will receive their premiere online, and at last they will be able to have a moment they can share with others. it has lines such as "cobweb heart", or "a blackbird stirs "and opens its throat". and i think that really captures how notjust the people in the choir, but people generally feel. i think it's going to be really exciting. it'll be exciting to hear them and to see the films. it recogni5e5 what everybody‘s been through in this, and that, yes, we will be back again. colin paterson, bbc news, huddersfield. a rare plant has reappeared, more than a century since its last confirmed sighting. known as grass—poly, the pink flower came out of hiding after seeds were disturbed during restoration work at a pond in norfolk. scientists say conservation efforts could lead to the return of other forgotten species.

a lot of christmas lights are going up this weekend, and if you're planning to impress anyone with a grand "switching on" ceremony, here's a valuable lesson in the importance of timing. four, three, two, one... that was the mayor of bridgwater, in somerset — and a council colleague — being a bit slow with the ceremonial plunger. u nfortu nately unfortunately the timing was a bit out. but in the spirit of christmas, well done. bridgwater always puts on a cracking show at christmas. i was going to ask for one of those ceremonial plungers in my stocking, until i saw that. time for a look at the weather with louise.

milder, but a little