welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm monica miller. the headlines. daily covid infections in china hit a record high, despite crippling restrictions and snap lockdowns. the un human rights council votes in favour of an international investigation into the violent suppression of protests in iran. the return of anwar ibrahim — malaysia's king installs the veteran politician to form a new government. we look back at thursday's world cup matches — and ahead to friday's as — england take on the usa and wales face iran and big crowds for macy's thanksgiving parade in new york —

as the holiday season kicks off in style. hello and welcome to the programme. we begin in china — which is reporting record numbers of covid infections. cities across the country have imposed new lockdown measures to try to control the spread of the virus. it's led to some protests — as our china correspondent, stephen mcdonell reports from beijing. a variety of lockdown strategies have been put in place in cities right across china. this country has a strict antivirus approach, but it hasn't stopped it recording the highest level of infections since the pandemic began. with zero covid smashing

livelihoods, officials recently announced steps to take the pressure off business. they haven't eased economic stress and have watered down virus protection. many here are now openly questioning the government's approach. translation: it's hard to find a job during the pandemic. - i'm the only child in my family. now i carry the burden of paying for the mortgage and car loans all by myself. it's really more difficult to find a job during the pandemic. translation: only by easing the covid-19 restrictions can l people live a normal life. otherwise everything stops. how many people have the savings to support themselves if things continually stay halted? and even if you have money to stay at home every day, that's not true living. that's lingering on the last breath of air. clashes at the massive foxconn facility have been a key flashpoint for zero covid tensions. the company, which is the world's largest producer

of apple iphones, has struggled to maintain production inside a covid lockdown bubble. it's now apologised to protesting workers, saying there was a misunderstanding regarding the delayed payment of crisis bonuses. but crowds of workers were still leaving the factory today. the streets in beijing are pretty quiet at the moment, following the measures which have been put in place to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus in the chinese capital. i was under lockdown myself earlier today after our compound told us we all had to stay indoors until we'd done a series of pcr tests, then they'd let us out again. well, that's not the same for the residents living in thousands of tower blocks here in beijing. they'll have to stay at home for at least the next few days. everywhere in china, there is covid fatigue. the chinese government seems to have backed itself into a corner with its covid strategy. there is great pressure

on it to change tack. stephen mcdonell, bbc news, beijing. well, for more on that, we earlier spoke to benjamin cowling, professor and chair of epidemiology at hong kong university. i asked him why he thought the cases are so high in china. the latest omicron subvariants are more transmissible than ever before, and i think that the measures that are being used in china are struggling to stop transmission when it happens so quickly and with such intensity, with bas and the latest omicron subvariants more recent than bas. one of the reasons the chinese government says that they are keeping with this zero covid policy is to protect those who are vulnerable and are older. there also seems to be quite a bit of resistance to vaccination. why is there this reluctance to get vaccinated? there's a number of different reasons why older people particularly are less keen to get vaccinated, but i think

one of the major reasons would have to be the zero covid policy. if the government continuously reassures people that there won't be a large epidemic of covid in different cities in different parts of the country, then what's the incentive for older people to get vaccinated? because they are not expected to get covid if they trust the government to protect them against getting covid. so i think clear messaging, like was done in singapore, australia and new zealand, that covid will spread sooner or later and it is better to get vaccinated before getting infected, i think that kind of clear messaging would make a difference in terms of reducing hesitancy in older adults. and not only that, but i think some older adults in china have got three doses. about half have got two doses. quite a number of older people who got vaccinated had their most recentjab more than six months ago, and so actually there's a need to continue the booster programme and even start giving fourth doses as well, as well as increasing the uptake of first and second doses. one of the things we did see in stephen mcdonell�*s piece is a feeling of people

who are just tired, weary and maybe even anxious, depressed. mental health is really taking a toll on many people who have been locked down, as this goes on for and in the past few minutes beijing has reported 424 new local symptomatic coronavirus cases and 14 hundred 36 asympotomatic cases for thursday. still to come a bit later in the programme — we'll hear from the wife of ukraine's president zelensky — as her country struggles to keep the lights on following weeks of russian attacks on its infrastructure. but first. malaysia's constitutional monarch king abdullah has announced that anwar ibrahim will be the country's next prime minister. the decision follows five days of intense negotiations over possible political coalitions. for mr. anwar, who's one of asia's best—known public figures . it caps a remarkable political journey. our south—east asia correspondentjonathan head has the details. a historic moment for malaysia and foranwar ibrahim, as he was sworn in by the yang di—pertuan agong, malaysia's king. was there ever another politician who waited so long for the top job and came so close so often? at the age of 75, mr anwar�*s

appointment marks what is probably the final chapter in a remarkable political odyssey. the past five days have seen constant comings and goings at the royal palace, as the king tried to broker a deal between the various political factions. none had come close to winning a majority in last weekend's election and many of their leaders have personal and ideological disputes which will make working together difficult. a quarter of a century ago, anwar ibrahim also seemed on the brink of power. he was then a rising star in the ruling party, umno, and the anointed successor to long—standing leader mahathir mohamad. but the two men fell out over the asian financial crisis and mr anwar was arrested and charged with sodomy and corruption.

he was to spend the next six years injail. his conviction was eventually quashed and he built a reformist political movement that, ten years ago, came close to toppling umno from its long monopoly on power. then mr anwar was jailed again. but rising public anger over the huge imdb corruption scandal finally helped the reformists to win an election four years ago. and saw mr anwar form an unlikely alliance with his old nemesis, mahathir mohamad, with an arrangement in which the older man would govern first, then hand over to mr anwar. but that deal collapsed and the top job slipped through his fingers once more. now he's got there, but at the toughest of times for malaysia, facing notjust the fragmented political landscape but also an economy struggling to recover from the covid pandemic. jonathan head, bbc news, bangkok. let's take a look at some other

stories in the headlines. the uk has seen one of the biggest days of strike action of the year by tens of thousands of workers angry about their pay and conditions. workers at schools, universities, and at royal mail said they felt they had no choice but to take action. and nurses have becoming the latest group, by announcing they will strike on 15th and 20th december. the lower house of the russian parliament has unanimously passed a law banning all material the authorities deem to be lgbtq propaganda. the ban broadens previous legislation aimed at children. twitter�*s new owner, elon musk has just announced an �*amnesty�* for many banned twitter accounts, after carrying out a poll on the platform. more than 3.1 million twitter users took part in the poll and 72 percent voted in favour of the amnesty. the twitter account of former us president donald trump was reinstated last week

after a similar poll. the un human rights council has approved an international investigation into iran's violent crackdown on protesters. the vote approving the fact finding mission was passed by 25 to six, with 16 member states abstaining. the un says more than 300 people have been killed and thousands arrested since protests began. children are being killed. like this nine—year—old. shot dead by security forces. words have now become people cry amongst iranians. united nations human

rights council said the situation in iran is now critical. situation in iran is now critical-— situation in iran is now critical. . , ., critical. the unnecessary and disproportionate _ critical. the unnecessary and disproportionate use - critical. the unnecessary and disproportionate use of - critical. the unnecessary and disproportionate use of force must come to an end. the old methods and the fortress mentality of those who wield power simply don't work. in fact, they only aggravate the situation. we are now in a full fledged human rights crisis. its members have approved an international fact—finding mission to investigate the crackdown despite a run�*s and diplomats fighting hard to block it. the maccabees once again by arrogant states that antagonise states. it is committed to protecting human rights. it took months of pressure on world leaders to get here. pressure on world leaders to get here-—

get here. the killing of children, _ get here. the killing of children, that - get here. the killing of children, that is - get here. the killing of - children, that is something that has really upset ours. the killin: of that has really upset ours. the killing of children _ that has really upset ours. the killing of children and we are here for all the people they have been killing for 43 years. this investigation could help catalogue abuses by security forces. evidence could then be used in international courts to hold the government accountable. students are still demanding the release of their classmates. families are baking officials for the bodies of the dead. the regime is taking desperate measures. the people of iran are still risking their lives ever since the death of a 22—year—old in police custody. protesters are banking on world power supporting them. first lady, olena zelenska tells the bbc�*s lise doucett her country is prepared to endure further power cuts

president kennedy was shot down and died almost immediately. the murder ofjohn kennedy is a disaster for the whole free world. he caught the imagination of the world, the first of a new generation of leaders. margaret thatcher is resigning as leader of the conservative party and prime minister. before leaving number ten to see the queen, she told her cabinet, "it's a funny old world." angela merkel is germany's first woman chancellor, easily securing the majority she needed. attempts to fly a hot air - balloon had to be abandoned after a few minutes, but nobody seemed i to mind very much. as one local comic put it, it's not hot air- we need, it's hard cash. cuba has declared nine days of mourning following the death of fidel castro at the age of 90. castro developed close ties with the soviet union in the 1960s.

it was an alliance that brought the world to the brink of nuclear war with the cuban missile crisis. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm, in singapore. 0ur headlines. daily covid infections in china have hit a record high — despite crippling restrictions and snap lockdowns. the return of anwar ibrahim — malaysia's king has installed the veteran politician to form a new government. ukraine has said that as much as 50% of the country's electricity needs are currently not being met, after massive russian missile strikes this week. the ukren—ergo power operator said the priority was to fix key infrastructure but repairs were now taking more time. president volodymyr zelensky said "the most difficult situation" with power as well as water supply was in 15 regions, including the capital kyiv.

president zelensky keeps calling for the world's help in his nightly addresses to the people in ukraine. and now, his wife, the first lady, olena zelenska is also taking on an increasingly public role. for the bbc�*s 100 women series, the bbc�*s chief international correspondent lyse doucet travelled to kyiv to speak with olena zelenska. president and first lady. war ripped their lives apart but brought their work closer together. as this war grinds on, lives lost, cold winter closing in, with blackouts provoked by aggression strikes, olena zelenska is speaking out for ukraine. translation: we've had so many challenges during these months, l

such trying challenges, so many victims, so much destruction that, if i'm honest with you, blackout is not the worst thing that can happen to us. recently, an opinion poll was published. ukrainians were asked, how much longer can they endure in these conditions? the majority of ukrainians, over 90%, said that they are prepared to endure this for two to three more years if they can see the prospect of our membership in the eu. two to three more years? translation: at times, it is extremely hard, - but then we find new emotions which help us to keep going. they both work in this heavily guarded compound in kyiv. but he now has to live where he works — separate from her and their two children.

when he first ran for president in 2019, she told him it was a life she didn't want. he won by a landslide with her support. the high school sweethearts filmed this on valentine's day, just ten days before russia invaded and everything changed. he can't travel, so she does. brussels, the eu parliament — a standing ovation for a woman who once said public speaking scared her. washington, the us congress — the first foreign first lady to address this house, even more to ask for weapons. you crossed the line into politics. translation: that was not politics. - that was something

i had to say. i was asking for weapons, not for an attack. i was asking for weapons to rescue us, so that our children would not be killed in their homes. now she calls other first ladies her colleagues. the us's, drjill biden, came to see her, both focused on education, children, families torn apart. ukraine's mourners in chief, public faces of its pain and prayer. translation: for all- ukrainians, peace equates to victory, because we all understand that without victory, there will not be peace in our country. for now, they know peace isn't in sight, just a long cold winter of little light.

lyse doucet, bbc news, kyiv. let's get up to date with the world cup now — and the first round of group stage matches have been completed — with all 32 nations now having tasted some competitive action. switzerland beat cameroon by a goal to nil. and in the other game in group g, brazil were 2—0 winners over serbia. uruguay and south korea played out a goalless draw. but perhaps the most closely watched game featured portugal — who beat ghana 3—2 — because of the presence of cristiano ronaldo. you may recall howjust two days ago he was in the headlines for a mutually agreed departure from manchester united — after that interview where he criticised the club's owners and current manager. well, even as a player without a club, he made his mark for portugal — opening the scoring in his country's win. but that goal also had some historic overtones

in the men's game — here they are:|t made ronaldo the first player to score in five world cup final tournaments. it also made him the only player to be both the youngest and oldest scorer for his country at a world cup finals. and it extended his lead as the highest scorer in the international men's game — with 118 goals — that's 9 more than his closest rival — with power to add more. as ever on newsday — we love to show you the fans — so just take a look at these brazilians in qatar. and this was before the game — presumably their team's victory only increased the level of excitement.let�*s put all the day's events and action into context now — from doha, here's lucy hockings. a match that really stood out to me was the one between portugal and ghana today. ghana is the lowest ranked team here at the world cup, and it is fair to say that portugal is probably one of the favourites to progress for sure.

we had a really uneventful first half, and then the second half was full of drama, excitement and definitely goals as well. five goals were scored in the second half, the first coming in the way of a penalty from no other of course than cristiano ronaldo, who became the first man to score at five world cups. he was playing for the first time since his controversial interview about his time at manchester united and of course his subsequent release from the club. i've been speaking to jeremy darlow, the former director of marketing at adidas, about ronaldo's star power and his value. i mean, there is really nobody in his stratosphere, honestly. i think everybody saw that he reached half a billion followers on instagram recently. i mean, who has done that? nobody. the kind of value that he brings as an influencer right now is one—of—a—kind. you know, you think

about the next club that he goes to, the next league that he goes to... i'm in the united states, worth talking about maybe having him here in the mls. imagine bringing 500 million people to your brand. it is an astronomical number that can change the fortunes of not only a club but a business. a national holiday was declared in saudi arabia when they beat argentina, one of the biggest upsets that we have seen in world cup history. the saudi fan park is right near where we are. there have been thousands of saudis who have travelled here with tickets to come and watch the matches. dan also asked the saudi sports minister about whether this was going to affect their bid for the world cup in 2030. the world cup in saudi arabia, how realistic a prospect is that? why not? who wouldn't want to host the world cup? you know, we host a lot of events in the region. any country, i think, in the world would love to host the world cup. and it is an amazing tournament. you know, beautiful competition that you see, surprises sometimes,

and it is good for every country to host such an event. let's look ahead to friday's action, where the hosts qatar are back in action, this time against senegal. netherlands versus ecuador, wales taking on iran, and england will be hoping to continue their winning form against the usa. the former england internationaljermaine jenas has told me that his hopes and his expectations are high. look, i think england, given how well they performed in that first game, it's hard for the expectations not to be high. i think coming into the tournament, it was a bit doom—and—gloom. their performances failed to deliver, really. but it was free—flowing, it was expansive, it was open, it was goals, it was everything that we know these players can do on a weekly basis

because they show us themselves doing it at club level, so it was great to see them put it all together. i don't see anything other than an england win against usa. that was the former england playerjermainejenas giving his thoughts on friday's fixtures. let's take a look at them in full — the hosts qatar are taking to the pitch again. they play senegal, with both sides looking for theirfirst points. in the other match, the netherlands take on ecuador. in group b — england take on the usa, knowing that a win will guarantee their place in the knock—out rounds. and wales face iran. as always — much more on our website — just log on to bbc.com/news and click through to the world cup section — orjust go via the bbc app. as some of you may know, the us has been celebrating thanksgiving — on the fourth thursday in november — and as ever, one of the highlights has been the macy's parade in new york. things were kicked off

with a bit of a seasonal sing—along. who else but mariah carey, performing all i want for christmas is you. as ever, the balloons took centre stage in manhattan. this is snoopy, dressed to go into space — though his handlers kept a tight grip on the strings to prevent that. stuart the minion made an appearance — apparently chasing some of his favourite snack, bananas — or at least, a few performers dressed up as the yellow fruit. if you are a fan of star wars — you might recognise grogu, from the spinoff series, the mandalorean. and the childrens' literature corner was covered by greg heffley — the main character from the diary of a wimpy kid series. and what parade would be complete without santa. although as you can see here, his sleigh was travelling on the back of a truck rather than flying through the air. that was the 96th annual macy's thanksgiving parade —

and if you're celebrating today — we hope you are having a wonderful time. that's all for now — stay with bbc world news. hello. it's already been an exceptionally wet month, some places breaking record. but again, nearly an inch of rain fell in some parts on thursday along with some really gusty winds. aberdaron on the llyn peninsula, nearly 80 mile an hour, those gusts of wind. even in bridlington, 67 miles an hour. the gusts on this particular weather front, which we call a squally weather front, those winds very squally with the rain pushing through. lots of showers, though, have been following on behind to northern and western areas through the night. still gale force winds here, butjust a little chilly where the winds have eased a little and the shower activity has as we head towards dawn. for the day ahead, it looks drier, brighter, plenty more sunshine than we saw on thursday, but still lots of showers, particularly in the north and west and particularly of scotland, with gales across the northern and western isles, across the highlands as well. still with hail and thunder

here and some snow over the hills and mountains, but fewer showers, less heavy elsewhere. 12 to 14, slightly less windy, so feeling more pleasant out and about. but then through saturday night, it turns quite chilly. we could see a touch of frost, a little bit of patchy mist and fog as well. and further north and west, yes, more rain to come as we head into the weekend. now, it looks as if it'll be initially, for western and northern areas, with the ridge of high pressure holding on in eastern areas for the start of saturday. so the rain may not arrive here until after dark for east anglia and the south—east. but for most, it'll be cloudier with some hill fog, strong winds again returning, potentially gales in southern and western areas. heavy rain here as well. these are the gusts of wind, as you can see, through the day on saturday. so another blustery old day, but mild. temperatures about 12 to 14 celsius. even in the north, 11 and 12, so well above where they should be for this time of year. and a mild night will follow because that rain will push steadily eastwards but become slow—moving, potentially, we think, across southern and eastern areas. and that's the question mark, really, for the weekend, how quickly that rain clears away. it could stagnate in the south and east for a time and then showers follow on behind. once again, it will be another

relatively mild day. not quite as for saturday, but still 11 to 13 celsius. and we keep a showery picture as we move into the beginning of the new week. but midweek onwards, potentially something a little drier but colder. stay tuned.

this is bbc news. we will have the headlines and all the main news stories for you at the top of the hour as newsday continues straight after hardtalk. 107 daily upset of newscasts and american markets tonight here with one of our oldest friends. welcome from brussels. hello, good evening. happy 700 daily newscast.—

daily newscast. that rolls off the tongue! _