tonight — millions of rail passengers face severe disruption with new strike action in the lead—up to christmas. industrial action will take place in four periods in december and january — the rmt union claims a likely deal is being blocked. we have been reasonable but it is impossible to find a negotiated settlement when the dead hand of the government is presiding over and blocking a resolution. the dispute is overjobs, pay, and working conditions — the train companies say strike action will not bring about change. putting strike action on will not resolve that situation. it is actually sitting at the table and making sure that we can try and get

a final agreement. we will be asking why it is so difficult to resolve things. also tonight, more controversy in qatar — but no dispute about the football... commentator: they're - all at sea suddenly argentina, and they're now behind! in one of the biggest shocks of the world cup — saudi arabia ranked 51st in the world — have beaten mighty argentina. cristiano ronaldo is to leave manchester united with immediate effect — following his outspoken interview about the club and its manager. and the first state visit of the king's reign — as the president of south africa is welcomed with full ceremony. and coming up on the bbc news channel: we'll round up all the action from the world cup, as defending champions france cruise to victory over australia, with majestic main man mbappe among the scorers.

good evening. the 12 days leading to christmas, and the first week of the new year, are likely to bring severe disruption for millions of rail passengers, with four periods of strike action announced by the rmt trade union. services have already been badly disrupted in recent months, in a long—running dispute over pay, working conditions and job security. the rmt says the latest action will send �*a clear message' that staff want a better deal. the union's members at network rail and 1a train companies voted last week in favour of renewed action. industrial action will take place during four 48—hour periods,

on 13th and 14th, and then the 16th and 17th of december — and then in the new year on the 3rd and 4th, and the 6th and 7th of january. on top of that, there's to be an overtime ban over christmas and new year, which means there'll be industrial action of some kind taking place over a period of four weeks. more than 40,000 rmt members are expected to take part. 0ur transport correspondent katy austin has the latest. christmas is coming. but so are more train strikes. this latest round of strikes will show how important our members are to the running of the country and will send a clear message that we want a good deal onjob security, pay and conditions for our people. we have been reasonable, but it is impossible to find a negotiated settlement when the dead hand of the government is presiding over and blocking a resolution in these talks.

two and a half weeks ago, the rmt called off three strike dates and unions and rail employees went into intensive negotiations. today, instead of a breakthrough, the dispute has intensified. the strike days announced will come at a crucial time of year for retailers and hospitality venues and disrupt the festive plans of millions of passengers. the government does have final sign—off on what's agreed, but says it is not holding up negotiations and is for the employers and unions to come to an agreement between them that is fair to workers, taxpayers and passengers. the rail industry argues reforms need to be agreed to afford pay rises, after the pandemic left the railway in a precarious financial hole. the rail delivery group speaks for train companies. i think there's frustrations on both sides. rmt are looking to get a pay offer. we are looking still to try and manage the final details of any reform deal.

mick lynch said today that he'd spoken to you and you had said you couldn't make an offer because the government wouldn't let you. is that correct? i don't get into the details of what we said and what we didn't say. at the end of the day, what we are trying to do is to work with rmt to ensure that we stop these strikes. and that's the important thing. we have to stop the strikes. businesses which depend on people coming to visit, like those in blackpool, see today's news as a blow to their festive season. we are feeling the effects of the cost of living. every time we go out buying food, the costs have gone up and up and up. all our bills are increasing. anything, again, that is going to knock us back at that time is going to have a huge detrimental impact financially. the transport secretary is expected to meet the rmt�*s mick lynch later this week — but as things stand, more travel misery lies ahead. and katyjoins me now.

for those watching, thinking about theirjourneys for those watching, thinking about their journeys around for those watching, thinking about theirjourneys around christmas and new year, wondering what is the exact obstacle here, where is the blockage, what would you say? if you seak blockage, what would you say? if you 5 - eak to blockage, what would you say? if you speak to network _ blockage, what would you say? if you speak to network rail _ blockage, what would you say? if you speak to network rail and _ blockage, what would you say? if gm. speak to network rail and the rail delivery group they insist real progress was made in the talks over the past couple of weeks, and the rmt said, though, new proposals it hoped for and expected did not materialise, and only last week it announced that its members had voted in favour of further strike action, potentially for another six months, and if you listen to mick lynch, it was not the tone of a man who believed a deal was imminent. the government is largely in control of the rail network and its finances but ministers have deliberately kept their distance from the negotiations in this dispute, saying it is not their place to intervene directly, in those talks, and it is on thursday that we are set to see the

meeting between the rmt�*s mick lynch at the transport secretary mark harper which was set up as an introductory meeting. mark harper was only appointed last month, but given these developments, they will clearly have a lot to discuss. katy austin, many thanks. in qatar, the football world cup has featured one of the biggest shocks in the history of the tournament, when saudi arabia stunned the former world champions argentina, beating them 2—1. saudi arabia are ranked 51st in the world, while argentina has a squad of stars, seen as contenders for the trophy. but the controversy surrounding this world cup is still very much in evidence, with a continued dispute about the right of players to wear the 0nelove armband, and a complaint from welsh fans who were told to remove their rainbow hats before being allowed into yesterday's game. 0ur sports editor dan roan reports. it is one of the most politically

charged events in sports history, from player protests and concerns over qatar's human rights record, to accusations of western hypocrisy. this moral lesson giving, one—sided. and now another controversy. former wales footballer laura mcallister, a gay woman, claiming she was asked to remove her rainbow coloured bucket hat, which shows support for the lgbtq+ community, as she entered a stadium here, in a country where being gay is illegal. today in a statement, the football association of wales said it was extremely disappointed by reports that members of its supporters club, which included faw staff members, were asked to remove and discard their rainbow wall bucket hats before entry to the stadium. following wales' draw against the us last night, the governing body said it had gathered information and would be addressing the matter directly with fifa. today, the head of european football's anti—discrimination body told me he was concerned.

what is happening now is also a sort of a struggle for security control of the stadiums. so a very confusing picture and a picture actually that shows much of the political dynamics around this tournament. who actually is in control now the tournament has started? is it fifa or is it the qataris? this comes after england, wales, and a group of other european teams dropped plans to wear an anti—discrimination armband after fifa threatened to book captains, and tonight, one player from another of those teams made clear his dismay. translation: i'm afraid ifi say something about this, _ whether or not i will be able to play on the field tomorrow. unfortunately, this is a situation i have never experienced in football. we are being controlled. and this morning, america's top diplomat, in doha for talks with his qatari counterpart, criticised fifa's stance. it's always concerning from my perspective when we see any restrictions on freedom of expression. it is especially so when the expression is for diversity and for inclusion.

and in myjudgment at least, no one on a football pitch should be forced to choose between supporting these values and playing for their team. while some say that this is no place for a world cup, others fear that sport is now in danger of becoming too politicised, and certainly, the qatari authorities have said that some of the criticism that they have received is hypocritical and prejudiced, and that not enough credit is given to this world cup as a force for change and unity. over the last two years, we have been on a journey to understand and know more about the situation in qatar. australia's players criticised qatar's human rights record in a recent video, but their sports minister told me a clash of cultures can be navigated. when you try and grow the game and go to new territories like this, who is it incumbent on to compromise? everybody should probably yield a little bit, and if you look at what has happened here in qatar, i mean, some of these labour laws that they have now passed, they have now legislated international law, are region leading with respect to workers' rights.

and from western democracies that want workers' rights improved, that is a great thing. so we probably should do more to acknowledge that progress. the presence of several world leaders at this first world cup in the middle east is a sign of the diplomatic forces at play here, and even though the action is now taking centre stage, the event cannot escape the political forces that swirl around it. dan roan, bbc news, doha. qatar's record on the rights of women and lgbt+ groups, not to mention its treatment of migrant workers, means some fans have turned their backs on the world cup. but what is also interesting is the uk's relationship with qatar. even if you're not visiting for the world cup, chances are you may be unwittingly funding

qatar's government — without even leaving home. that's because qatar — a country smaller than wales — owns one of the world's largest natural gas reserves, owns one of the world's largest producing 77 millon tonnes per year. around half of our gas is imported, about half of that via pipeline from norway. but it's qatar that typically takes second place on that list, supplying perhaps 9% of our energy imports. in theory, that's capable of fuelling around a million british homes. that could rise as we look to secure more supply as north sea reserves dwindle and we move away from russia. qatar could be a key part of europe's energy security plan, too. while italy bought more of its gas than we did in 2021, it only accounted for 5%

of the eu's total gas imports. but the bloc�*s biggest gas guzzler, germany, is haggling for a deal with qatar to help replace russian gas. with even more sold to asia, and soaring prices, qatar earned over $50 billion from selling energy in the first half of this year. and it also plans to double output in coming years, to reap the rewards as buyers scramble to secure supplies. just yesterday, china struck a deal to buy $60 billion worth of qatari gas over 27 years. already, qatar is recycling some of those earnings in ways to increase its profile and influence. over £40 billion has been invested here. the qatari government has significant shareholdings in the likes of barclays bank, sainsburys, heathrow airport and water company severn trent.

its immense property holdings include prestige landmarks such as london's shard, harrods and canary wharf. and earlier this year, then prime minister borisjohnson trumpeted an agreement for qatar to invest up to £10 billion over the next five years in the uk, in sectors from cyber security to life sciences. this tiny country has both the cash and energy we want. like it or not, our relationship with qatar seems set to become even closer. thanks forjoining us. as we mentioned earlier, there was a stunning win for saudi arabia against argentina, one of the favourites for the cup, but the saudis surprised everyone with the resilience they showed, as our sports correspondent andy swiss reports. they've turned the world cup upside down.

a day of saudi celebration after one of the biggest shocks the tournament has ever seen. the rank outsiders were up against one of the favourites — argentina and the mighty lionel messi. and when he converted an early penalty, it seemed business as usual. commentator: of course it's him in the headlines already. _ but come the second half, come a quite extraordinary turnaround. al shehri. .. ..has equalised for saudi arabia! how their supporters enjoyed that. but even better was to follow. a moment of pure magic. salem al—dawsari with a stunning goal and a celebration to match. a team ranked outside the world's top 50 was suddenly ahead. so, could they hang on? well, argentina launched attack after attack, but bravely, brilliantly, saudi arabia kept them at bay and the result was this. it's one of the world

cup all—time shocks. argentina's first defeat for some three years, and for the saudi fans, a moment to say, "i was there." i am very, very happy. saudi two, argentina one. crazy, the stadium erupted. it was so fun. first now in the group and they will take, final, world cup. _ for saudi arabia, then, a day to go down in footballing folklore, one they and their supporters will never forget. andy swiss, bbc news. rescuers in indonesia working for a second night to try to pull survivors from the rubble after an earthquake struck the west java province. the number of dead in west java has risen to 268. many of the dead were children, who died as school buildings collapsed. damaged roads and the vast size of

the affected areas making it difficult to locate and help victims. the united kingdom must end its "dependency" on immigration — the words of the labour leader sir keir starmer, who told business leaders today that the days of "cheap labour" had to end. but he accepted the need for skilled foreign workers and promised a "pragmatic" approach to immigration by a labour government. sir keir refused to commit to an overall reeduction in immigration, and told our political editor chris mason that he did not want to give a "fixed number". plenty of businesses, urban and rural, are crying out for more workers. today, farmers gathered to talk about the problem. there's a strong chance that we'll put our business out of business. it's very difficult to see a way forward when we have no clear idea how we're going to recruit next year, and when the cost, the inflation that's built into that workforce every year, is going up in double digits. and are the politicians listening?

it doesn't feel like it to me. enter keir starmer, talking to business leaders and trying to lay on the charm. labour is ready. we are a party that is proud of being pro—business, that respects the contribution profit makes to ourjobs, growth and our tax base. but labour are determined to learn a lesson of brexit — a concern about too much immigration. 0ur common goal must be to help the british economy this off its immigration dependency, to start investing more in training workers who are already here. what a change. yes, it's been in the offing for a while but it's worth emphasising what this amounts to. from the party that oversaw a huge increase in immigration from central and eastern europe less than two decades ago, and from a man who, when he campaigned for the labour leadership three years ago, advocated maintaining freedom of movement with the european union.

so, what does keir starmer say to those businesses desperate to bring in more workers from abroad? you're effectively saying, "no," or not as much as they would like? well, what i'm saying is we've got to look at the short—term, but we can't always just have a sticking plaster. is immigration right now too high? if what's driving it is a skills failure, then we need to address that, and that means that in areas where we are overreliant on immigration because we haven't fixed the skills problem, i'd like to see that immigration come down. i'm not sure that was an answer, though. is it too high? well, chris, i'm not going to pluck an arbitrary number and say that's the right number. but do you want it to come down? one of the drivers of immigration is that we've got hundreds of thousands of people who were in the workforce just two or three years ago and now aren't because they can't get access to health treatment for mental health treatment —

i want to fix that problem. i'll have one more go. do you want it to come down? in some areas, it will come down. over the last few years we've had arbitrary figures plucked out of the air and that hasn't worked for anyone. plenty here don't buy keir starmer�*s argument about immigration, but they are giving labour a fresh look. chris mason, bbc news, in birmingham. in the past couple of hours, the us supreme court has ordered former president trump to release his tax returns to a congressional committee. the move is a significant setback for mr trump, who has tried for years to shield his tax returns from public scrutiny. he had argued that the replaced —— the request by a panel led by democrat politically motivated. gary 0'donoghue is in washington for us now. what do we make of this? o'donoghue is in washington for us now. what do we make of this? donald trum has now. what do we make of this? donald trump has fought _ now. what do we make of this? donald trump has fought this _ now. what do we make of this? donald trump has fought this moment - now. what do we make of this? donald trump has fought this moment to - now. what do we make of this? donald trump has fought this moment to sand | trump has fought this moment to sand nail ever since that moment he came down the escalator at trump tower

and announced he was running for president, defying decades of precedent for presidential candidates to release their tax returns to public scrutiny, arguing all the while that he was under audit and therefore could not do so. his opponents say he did not want to release them because he had overinflated ideas of his net worth and possibly under paid his taxes. now he has run out of eagle road and the treasury department will have to hand over six years worth of tax returns to a democrat —controlled congress. however, that democrat —controlled congress, only remains democrat controlled for a few weeks until the turn of the year when the republicans take over, having won the mid—term elections. the clock is ticking for the democrats to get their hands on these documents and make something of them before christmas. as for the former president himself, he has said nothing about what has happened today. he has kept absolutely quiet about it. but this is yet another

legal decision that has gone against him, one of many in recent months. gary, thank you for the update. gary 0'donoghue in washington, there. in recent months, we've been reporting on the drought in somalia, the worst to hit the country in decades. growing numbers of children are dying, and hundreds of thousands of people are displaced and facing famine. the situation is made much worse by the ongoing civil war between the somali government and the islamic fundamentalist group al shabab. but there are signs the government is gaining the upper hand in that fight, as communities unite against the militants. al—shabab has been active in the country for more than 15 years, and controls large areas of rural somalia, shown here in grey. according to some estimates, more than half the population affected by the current drought are in areas controlled by the militants.

the bbc has gained rare and exclusive access to danab, the somali army's elite special forces unit, which is leading the campaign against al—shabab. 0ur africa correspondent andrew harding joined them in the town of bukure, and sent this report. let's go, let's go, let's go. these are somalia's most battle—hardened troops, setting out before sunrise into a vast and furiously contested region. — — co ntested —— contested wilderness. all eyes alert for ambushes. this special forces unit, trained and funded by america, has spent years trying to crush an islamist insurgency. and suddenly, in the midst of a terrible drought, they�* re making progress. we arrive in the ruins

of a small town. a recent battle here saw the formidable militant group al—sha bab driven out. we managed to kill 60 al—shabab fighters, but right before we reached here, they fled the town. right before they left, they have burned down everything. they destroyed the shops, the houses, the water wells. like, the people right now do not even have clean water to drink. this was your shop, was it? translation: it was. but what's changed here is the mood, no longer of despair but of determination. a popular uprising is under way, locals telling us somalia's drought has left them with no option but to help defeat the hated militants. in the last month or so, these troops have captured vast amounts of territory here in the centre of somalia, liberating dozens of villages, but the question — and it's always the question here in somalia — is, how long can they hold

on to the territory? or will the militants of al—shabab simply melt away into the countryside and then return? al—shabab have hit back hard, with a string of devastating bomb attacks, like this one in the capital mogadishu. but listen to this politician, who's survived five attacks by the militants. you see, when they were taking me... so this is you on the stretcher? yeah, yeah, yeah. he now believes the momentum has shifted. do you think this could be a turning point, then, against al—shabab? i'm sure this is a turning point. i believe that if the government gets advantage of this opportunity, i think it will be the time that al—shabab will be defeated. that confidence is spreading fast, people in newly liberated areas no longer ruled by fear. can you put your hand up if you are glad that al—shabab has been driven out of your village?

that was quite remarkable, to see a village like this with people finally ready to say, "we are glad to see the back of al—shabab," because they've terrorised villages across this region for so long. people have been too afraid to speak out, until now, it seems. will it last? somalia still faces huge challenges. millions here are living on the brink of famine. but if the war ends, then real progress could follow. andrew harding, bbc news, central somalia. cristiano ronaldo is to leave manchester united with immediate effect. the decision follows an outspoken interview in which the portuguese star criticised the club, and said he had "no respect" for the manager, erik ten hag. both sides said that ronaldo's departure was "mutually agreed". it brings to an end ronaldo's

remarkable playing career at old trafford, as our sports correspondent laura scott reports. his first spell at manchester united could hardly have gone better. after six years of success under sir alex ferguson, he left, a club legend. cristiano ronaldo's second stint, however, didn't work out so well. no trophies, no longer the main man. he said he felt pushed out, and after an explosive interview with piers morgan, the writing seemed to be on the wall. yes, ifeel betrayed and i felt that some people, they don't want me here, not only this year but last year, too. and he was highly critical of how he had been treated by their manager, eric ten hag. that's why i say, i don't have respect for him because he don't

show me respect for me. this is why we... we are in that situation. any future at old trafford looked inconceivable, so it came as no surprise when manchester united announced it was ending his £500,000 per week contract seven months early, by mutual agreement. ronaldo, meanwhile, said he felt it was the right time to seek a new challenge. his next step will be captaining portugal at the world cup, but attention is already turning to what he will do on his return. —— reddy turning to what is ageing star with his sky—high wages will do his return. it depends what the motivation is. is it champions league? is it money? is itjust to continue playing somewhere with a nice climate? this will be planned out and be going on behind—the—scenes but we will find out, i am sure, in due course. with manchester united's owners, the glazer family, tonight revealing they might sell the club, the turbulence at old trafford continues. laura scott, bbc news. the first state visit of the reign of king charles is under way. the king and queen consort have welcomed the president

of south africa, cyril ramaphosa, who addressed parliamentarians at westminster, and tonight has been attending a banquet at buckingham palace. mr ramaphosa , one of the chief negotiators of south africa's transition to democracy, is hoping to encourage more british investment in the south african economy , as our royal correspondent nicholas witchell reports. it is the ultimate in state hospitality, deployed for political, diplomatic and economic purposes. it is a state visit, the first of king charles' reign, the first to take place since the pre—covid days of 2019. the state visitor was president cyril ramaphosa of south africa. for him, there was the full ceremonial welcome on horse guards, the guard of honour drawn up, the anthems playing. and then the carriage ride up the mall, the mounted divisions of the household cavalry, the king, queen consort

and the president in the irish state coach, other ministers and officials following behind, and into buckingham palace. there, they viewed a display from the royal collection. president ramaphosa picked up a photograph of nelson mandela with the late queen. "you were lucky if you had known them both," said the king. in the palace tonight, all the glitter and pomp of state banquet, and a welcome in different african dialects. molweni. ndaa. wow! mr president... but there were serious messages, too. the king said the wrongs of the past must be acknowledged, and he called for concerted action on climate change. but above all, this was a demonstration of friendship. i invite you all to rise and drink a toast to president ramaphosa and to the people of south africa. nkosi sikelel�* iafrika. south african anthem plays.