the charity, save the children, has condemned what it called an attack by the myanmar military in which it says at least 38 people were killed. several charred bodies were found in burnt—out vehicles in kayah state. the charity says two of its humanitarian staff are missing. the queen has used her christmas day message to pay tribute to her late husband prince philip. he died in april aged 99 — the couple had been married for 73 years. queen elizabeth said she understood why christmas was hard for those who had lost loved ones, this year. in his annual christmas message to people gathered in saint peter's square, pope francis has highlighted the tragedies in syria and yemen. the pontiff also called for more international dialogue — and warned against a tendency for nations to withdraw during the coronavirus pandemic. now on bbc news, our world:

barbados — road to a republic. filmed in november, in the week before barbados removed the queen as its head of state and became the world's newest republic, british—barbadian daniel henry returned to his ancestral home to find out what islanders make of the move. for nearly 400 years, the british royalfamily has reigned over barbados. but next week, the islands will replace queen elizabeth with a president. my family is british and barbadian. so they have some big questions about it all. change is good. you can't stay the same all the time. i don't accept it. a history of slavery and colonial rule mean some are keen to move on from the past. it was a feudal system.

daniel, you must compose yourself. you look as if you are ready to cry. and now the politicians have had their say, i am here to ask barbadians what it means, and why now. some people would say, why should we have an allegiance to the uk when in our hour of need, they were not there for us? barbados. a tiny paradise island in the blue—green waters of the caribbean. on 30 november, this commonwealth nation will remove the queen as its head of state and become the world's newest republic. the decision was made without a referendum. barbados declared independence from britain in 1966, but now the government has said it is time for barbados to finally leave its colonial past behind. current governor—general sandra mason will become its first president. the mantle of leadership falls

fully to the post—independence generations of barbadians. it is those generations who must now define how our country and citizens will dominate the world stage, create a new vision, and build barbados�* future. barbados to me is where my story begins. i was born in britain, my grandparents are from here, it is happy memories, it is the rum shops, it is the people, but everything that my grandparents showed me when i was growing up, seems to be changing. my grandad's story is typical of many barbadians, or bajans, as we are known. he moved to england as a young man, hoping to better himself.

but what i didn't know is before he did, he worked on a sugar plantation. so this lane might not look like much, but it is special, because we are walking in my grandad's footsteps. and just around the corner is something that ties together the queen, britain, and my family. this is the belle plantation. at its peak, nearly 300 slaves were forced to live and work here. after slavery was abolished, it was bought by a family who were close friends of the queen. she came to visit this place on her last trip 55 years ago. hi! good to see you! good to see you my brother, give me an elbow bump. so this is the belle plantation.

sad to say, but it is faded glory. trevor marshall is a historian and a leading pro—republic campaigner. daniel, this is where the bookkeeper, as it was called, this is where he or the manager paid the workers on fridays. you know, at the desk. the people lined up out here. they lined up out here like, laughs, like if they come for the dole. they filed in, and got there and bowed... they had to bow before they got paid? yeah, they bowed and scraped. it was a feudal system. i know my grandad worked here at the sugar factory at the belle plantation. you are saying he would have had to come here and bow his head before collecting? not everybody was so deferential, but the average

person, it was ingrained in new from the time of slavery. cap in hand, like the typical english labourer, yes guv�*nor, and you know, you are doing yourfavour, you are paying me. daniel, you must compose yourself, you look as though you are ready to cry. careful of the holes here. and you, not only careful of this but the ceiling, the ceiling is disintegrating. can you imagine this in its period of glory? all of this, i mean, look at how many rooms. this was magnificent, so to see it degenerate to this point... it may sound strange, it may sound as though i am seized with that same kind of feudal deference, but we looked on the plantation great houses, as symbols of the importance of barbados.

do you think that those mixed feelings are do you think that we are seeing them as barbados approaches becoming a republic? if we were to have a referendum now, 66% of barbadians would not want the republic. do you think? as high as that? i can tell you, they don't know what it is. as a historian i am called upon a daily, nightly basis to explain to people, and to calm their fears. will the currency be devalued, will we be able to travel to england again, are we going to stop the queen from coming here, the queen and prince harry, what about meghan, are we going to become a banana republic, will we be like venezuela or cuba ? it is such a gap from the man that trevor would have been

talking about, who would have been working here as my grandad was, to the man that i knew, who made a family in britain, and then came back to barbados and made his life. the fact that that is part of his story means that it is part of mine, and being in this building, i am finding that really... difficult to comprehend, really. after he returned from london in 1984, he opened the rum shop. it used to be busy and full of life. this picture here, i think really captures the essence. you have got nan on one side, arm around me, protective. you have grandad on the left, chest out, back straight,

and then me in the middle, of course. he was never shy of an opinion, he knew what he thought, he liked to have a talk, he likes to debate, with all of these changes in barbados, i know he would have had something to say about it. and you know, it is just, just sad that i can't talk to him now. my grandad passed away 14 years ago. i still have family here who knew him well. so we are just around the corner from my auntie marjorie and uncle noel. they were really close with my grandad, and my nan, so if anyone is going to know anything about what they would have made of this, it is them. so it is a good place to start, i think. hello! uncle! good to see you.

flowers for you there. thank you! i will give you a kiss, even though i have the mask, i am double jabbed, they tested me, i am fine. they were supposed to come to my wedding this summer, but the pandemic mean they couldn't make it. it's true. got some pictures for you. i will show you these. this is the closer one of grandad there. it is funny, because grandad always had something to say. i would love what he would have thought about it all. what all these changes... changes good. you can't stay the same all the time. you've got to move on, you can't say the same all the time. i don't accept it.

all of my money is in england still. all the pictures and everything are in england. i have assurances, the pension will still be the same. but things don't say the same, changes bring success sometimes. generations of british influence have left quite a mark here. road signs, and institutions mimic their counterparts across the atlantic. the national sport is cricket, played at the familiar sounding

kensington 0val in the capital bridgetown. roland butcher was born in barbados and moved to england when he was 13. he became the country's first ever black test cricketer. fellow wrote a poem to me, really outlining what a shame it was to have picked a black man to england and so forth and so forth. and the other one was from the west indian fellow, who saw this selection as going back to the days of slavery. exploitation all over again. he has invited me for a knockabout on the beach. roland's debut was against the west indies, right here in bridgetown in 1981. he played most of his career to middlesex, and even met the duke of edinburgh on more than one occasion. what do you think about the republic? what the benefits of being a republic, i don't know. but what i would say is that i think england as a country,

the question is, how they really done enough to stay in the game? is it a sense for you that england, because of its... more than 300 years in control of barbados, ended up taking it for granted? i think what really was needed was for england to accept the atlantic slave trade, accept that as something that happened. also accept that institutions and individuals in england benefit from it, and i believe in a call for reparations. for me, reparations would be, forgiveness of any debts that barbados has, also the building of some schools, we have suffered in the last two years, and we have been suffering in this region for quite a while.

but england really didn't do a great deal, so other people came along and offered their help, and obviously barbados needed it. i think countries like china has been a lot more friendly to barbados. lots of investment and loans, et cetera. so some people would say that why should we have an allegiance to the uk, when in our hour of need, they are not there for us? the government says nothing much will be different after next week. however, work on a new constitution is under way. some of the island's public services like the police will also be renamed. one big physical change here is at the parliament. it's having the biggest renovation in its 130 year history. the timing is a coincidence. we are not leaving any stones

unturned and we're making sure that this refurbishment is one of the most comprehensive that this building will get. tyrell is in charge of the work. it's the biggest project of his career. it has been degraded to such a point that standing underneath, you could not see it. we have a severe termite infestation, some water damage. the very bones of this building affect the way the whole main chamber is laid out. so we are in the house of assembly right now, which is the lower house. right now, obviously everything is gone. but the prime minister would sit on this side of the aisle and the opposition would sit on the other side. the speaker usually sits directly in the middle, and this is where all the great debates and stuff like that happen. almost identical, really, to the uk parliament, in the way that it is set up.

it's really incredible, walking around and seeing so many parts of the building that still look and feel british, given the republic and this restoration, but at the same time, what i think is quite exciting, if you are from barbados, is that this time it is by choice. and in sight of the senate is the highest—profile change so far. last year, to great fanfare, the statue of lord nelson was removed. it stood here for 200 years in the area that used to be called trafalgar square. do you think that anything of material will change on december 1? when everyone wakes up?

i mean nothing will change for the average barbadian. we will still be who we are. in terms of material stuff, we will know that everything that is here, we own, everything that is there is ours, everything that we look forward to, we have to put in place for ourselves. there is no more dependency, there's no more of this looking to someone else — we are just going to be us. there are some people who say "well, �*republic�* means we should tear down all remnants of the british and start from scratch". what you think about that? when you leave home, do you discard your parents? you don't. what you do is that you set up in the new house but you still keep your parents. you understand their role, you understand their responsibilities,

you understand where you came from. your whole bloodline is important, history is important. in recent years, there has been increased awareness of the civil rights of black people after a series of events made headlines around the world. in britain, there was the windrush scandal in 2018, when people who'd legally migrated there in the 19405 found they and their descendants being threatened with deportation. some families, after a lifetime in the uk, suddenly felt unwelcome. hey, daniel! hey! thanks for the lift! welcome to barbados, man! welcome to barbados. good to see you, denise! denise and her husband paul decided to leave london three years ago, and just bought a house here in fortescue. you see all these dead—end rods — they're just the cul—de—sacs that will eventually have the housing. we are driving up to the cliff edge, it's quite bumpy, but worth it when we get there.

look at the potential and the mystery of it. it is so beautiful and awesome. and we will talk about, that is nature, that's natural, right? and then you look across here to fortescue — i mean, it's a very special spot, and it put things into perspective in terms of life. it's home. you get a sense of belonging when you are here. denise has set up her own nail bar. so have you got any bajan nail specialities down there? well, um... wow, that is very patriotic! denise's mother spent most of her life in britain. her parents are part of the windrush generation who went over with the promise of work. but in 2001, she decided to return to the caribbean. barbados is about to make this

change, removing the queen as head of state. what you think about this decision? i don't have anything personally against the queen and the royal family — i believe they are lovely people — but i do believe it is the right time. a sense of identity. a true sense of belonging. you know, there's a lot of things that went on that i think myself, "why is it still an issue because you have a certain background or culture that you are left to feel unwelcome?" obviously, in london, it's great, it's a cosmopolitan city, but there is still an element of you're not quite welcome. with brexit, i think that was the straw that broke the camel's back for me. it was almost like yeah, "if brexit happens, we will get ourjobs back".

"if brexit happens, immigration and foreigners are out". it was like that. ijust think this is probably, i am hoping it will be - a good move. yeah. before i leave barbados, i have been invited to the friday fish fry at the busy market. i am meeting some of my new friends here, roland butcher from earlier. —— roland butcher and the young crickets from from earlier. what's going on fellas? time forfood? any favourites?

again, we have been here a few days and it's not often i've come across people who are as excited about it as you — you two. it does feel like it could be a difference in generation, you know, in terms of perspective and who is excited about this and who is not. can ijust get a show of hands of how many of you are thinking about leaving barbados to work somewhere else? ok, that's pretty much —

that's all of you. um, with the republic coming up, does that change those ambitions at all? if it does, put your hand up. if it doesn't, then leave it down. they may be excited about the change, but not enough to keep them living and working in barbados. what the guys had to say really challenged my perspective on this whole republic thing. i mean, who is it really for? who is going to benefit? is it gonna stop young people wanting to leave the country in search of opportunities, like my grandad had to do 50 odd years ago? i set out to discover what the birth of the new republic means for bajans, and ifound a genuine desire for a new start here. if the move to a republic creates confidence in the country's future, then who knows what barbados can achieve?

hello, there, and a very merry christmas to you. we have seen a band of rain and hill snow working its way northwards across the country to end christmas day and into the early hours of boxing day. most of that rain and hill snow will become confined to the north of the country, certainly across scotland through the day, and then we'll see something a bit brighter with some showers following in across the south. so this weather front has continued to journey northwards as it bumped into the cold air which has been sitting across the north and east of the country — that's where we've been seeing the rain turn to snow initially across the hills of north wales, the north midlands, and also northern ireland, but very much so across the pennines and in towards central and southern scotland, some drifting with the strong winds as we head through the course of boxing day morning. into the afternoon, that rain and hill snow becomes confined to the hills of scotland.

something a little bit drier further south — a legacy of cloud, mind you. and there will be some brightness for northern ireland, wales, the south—west. winds light here but still strong and gusty further north, close to that weather front. and again, it's going to another cold day across northern areas, particularly where we have any lying snow over the hills, versus again something much milder across the south and south—west. as we move out of boxing day, that weather front in the north begins to fizzle out, taking the rain and the hill snow with it. elsewhere, a lot of dry weather, lighter winds, clear spells — a recipe for some mist and fog — but further south, into the south—west, we've got a new weather front working its way in. so some milder, wetter, windier weather arriving here. instead, a cold night to come across the north. so here it is, this new area of low pressure is a weather front swiping the south—west and then the south of the country as we move through the day. i think most of the impact will be felt across france, but we'll still have enough wind and rain for it to be noticeable. initially, south wales and south west england, pushing into the midlands and across in towards the south—east through the day. it'll turn mild

and windy with it. further north, not a bad day to come, particularly across scotland and northern england. it will be chilly but it'll be bright with plenty of sunshine. those temperatures struggling to get much above six oi’ seven degrees. but again, double—figure values across the south. and the mild air really wins out as we move through the new week in the run—up to new year. it could turn very mild for a time — those winds coming up from the south or south—west — but low pressure will always be nearby and, in fact, it will be quite wet and windy at times. but it could become balmy mild for a while across southern areas, even into the first part of january. see you later.

we have a severe termite infestation, some water damage.

welcome to bbc news — i'm simon pusey. our top stories: save the children condemns the military in myanmar, for the deaths of 38 people found in burnt—out vehicles in kayah state. queen elizabeth speaks about her memories of prince philip in herfirst christmas day message since his death. that mischievous, inquiring twinkle was as bright at the end as when i first set eyes on him. the pope uses his christmas message to highlight the tragedies in yemen and syria, which he says are being passed over in silence. and lift—off. the world's most powerful telescope is launched into space to offer unprecedented images of the universe. and after three months of spewing lava and ash, the volcanic eruption

on la palma finally comes to an end.