welcome to bbc news, i'm david willis. our top stories: mission accomplished for lionel messi. he leads argentina to world cup glory as they beat france in the final. very happy. we've been waiting for this tournament for 15 years, and we're so for him and for all argentina. these were the scenes in buenos aires as thousand took to the streets to celebrate their first world cup win in 36 years. as the netherlands prepares to apologise for its role in slavery, some say it is not doing enough to atone for its colonial past.

a warning from the canadian arctic, where polar bears are increasingly threatened by a warming world. and elon musk asks twitter users whether he should stay in charge and promises to abide by their decision. after 29 days, 64 matches, 172 goals and countless broken dreams, the world cup in qatar has ended with argentina as champions. they beat france in a match which many have hailed as the best final ever, despite france's kylian mbappe scoring a hat—trick. it means argentina's lionel messi, who scored twice himself, will end his international career as a world cup winner. we begin our coverage with this

report from tim allman. don't cry for me, argentina, unless they are tears of joy. these were the scenes in doha after the south american team won the world cup for the third time. but despite the celebrations, they know it hadn't been easy. translation: lionel messi and our goalkeeper did - all the work, and we leave happy. it cost us a lot to come here. it has cost us blood, sweat and tears, but we did it and we got the victory, so we could not be happier. translation: a great joy. we deserve to be champions because of the way we played

in this final. we deserve to be here. translation: i'm very happy, apart from the way we won. . it seemed like it got away i from us twice, but in the end we did it. things started well enough for argentina after they won a penalty midway through the first half. up stepped that man, messi, who did what he always does. a little more than ten minutes later, it was 2—0, angel di maria finishing off a well—worked team goal. and that seemed to be that until ten minutes before the end, when france got a penalty of their own. kylian mbappe, competing with messi for the golden boot, converted from the spot. a minute later it was 2—2 — mbappe again, with his second of the match. argentina had to pick themselves up off the floor, and in extra time they were ahead again — lionel messi again. but france are defending champions for a reason, and with a couple of minutes

left, they got another penalty. mbappe becoming the first player to score a hat—trick in a world cup final since 1966. so to the dreaded penalty shoot—out, and the pendulum swung back in argentina's favour. it all came down to this, gonzalo montiel scoring the decisive spot kick. glory for argentina, glory for lionel messi. is he now the greatest player of all time? well, pele says he deserves to win the world cup, so he must be pretty good. shaimaa khalil was outside the stadium for the end of the match, talking to the fans who were lucky enough to have witnessed the historic match live. to call this a nailbiting, edge of your seat match does not do itjustice. this was always going to be tense, but the drama, the goals, the quality of football that the game

delivered was on another level. this was a world cup final worthy of its legends, the ones who played and fought it out until the last minute. kylian mbappe was not going to make it easy for lionel messi's squad. after a 2—0 lead, he equalised, and then after a 3—to lead for argentina, he equalised again. it was down to a penalty shootout, and then it was argentina's moment. for the first time since 1986, they get to celebrate a world cup win, and lionel messi finally gets to lift that trophy and follow in the footsteps of the late legend diego maradona. absolutely, very happy. we're very— absolutely, very happy. we're very happy. lionel messi waited for this— very happy. lionel messi waited for this tournament for 15 years. _ for this tournament for 15 years. so_ for this tournament for 15 years, so we're so happy for him — years, so we're so happy for him and— years, so we're so happy for him and for all argentina. we couldn't suffer more, 2—0, 2—2, ho _ couldn't suffer more, 2—0, 2—2, ho - _ couldn't suffer more, 2—0, 2—2, ho - for— couldn't suffer more, 2—0, 2—2, 3—to — for goodness— couldn't suffer more, 2—0, 2—2, 3—to — for goodness sake! - couldn't suffer more, 2—0, 2—2, 3—to — for goodness sake! it - 3—to — for goodness sake! it was — 3—to — for goodness sake! it was incredible. _ 3—to — for goodness sake! it was incredible. i— 3-to - for goodness sake! it was incredible.— 3-to - for goodness sake! it was incredible. i watch my dad in 1986, with _ was incredible. i watch my dad in 1986, with maradona, - was incredible. i watch my dad in 1986, with maradona, and l was incredible. i watch my dad in 1986, with maradona, and i | in 1986, with maradona, and i am afan,

in 1986, with maradona, and i am a fan, i am a lifelong fan. and today has made my day. the victory is, ifeel, well earned. victory is, i feel, well earned-— victory is, i feel, well earned. ., ~ ., earned. even though argentina one, and messi _ earned. even though argentina one, and messi was _ earned. even though argentina one, and messi was incredible, i think— one, and messi was incredible, i think we — one, and messi was incredible, i think we just saw the distinction between messi and mbappe. mbappe is the future of all, mbappe. mbappe is the future of all. and — mbappe. mbappe is the future of all, and see you in four years, and _ all, and see you in four years, and we're_ all, and see you in four years, and we're going to win in four years — and we're going to win in four ears. �* �* �* years. i'm ok, i'm fine. i'm optimistic _ years. i'm ok, i'm fine. i'm optimistic. it's— years. i'm ok, i'm fine. i'm optimistic. it's like, - years. i'm ok, i'm fine. i'm optimistic. it's like, we - years. i'm ok, i'm fine. i'm| optimistic. it's like, we lost, but — optimistic. it's like, we lost, but it's— optimistic. it's like, we lost, but it's ok _ optimistic. it's like, we lost, but it's ok. they— optimistic. it's like, we lost, but it's ok. they won, - optimistic. it's like, we lost, but it's ok. they won, theyl but it's ok. they won, they deserve _ but it's ok. they won, they deserve it. _ but it's ok. they won, they deserve it, but— but it's ok. they won, they deserve it, but we - but it's ok. they won, they deserve it, but we played l but it's ok. they won, they. deserve it, but we played well, so it's— deserve it, but we played well, so it's fine _ deserve it, but we played well, so it's fine. [it _ deserve it, but we played well, so it's fine-— so it's fine. it wasn't easy. a ve , so it's fine. it wasn't easy. a very. very — so it's fine. it wasn't easy. a very, very difficult _ so it's fine. it wasn't easy. a very, very difficult match, i so it's fine. it wasn't easy. a i very, very difficult match, and mbappe was on fire, but lionel messi is the best.— messi is the best. what an end this has been _ messi is the best. what an end this has been to _ messi is the best. what an end this has been to what - messi is the best. what an end this has been to what has - messi is the best. what an endj this has been to what has been described as one of the most controversial, unique world cup is ever stopped and looked, some of the issues haven't gone away. controversy around human rights records, around how the migrant workers have been

treated, that's still there. but there are many highlights. remember, this is the first time the world cup has come to the middle east. this is the first time a team like morocco, an arab african team, has made it to the semifinals, and after tonight, this will be remembered as the tournament where lionel messi's world cup dreams have come true. shaimaa khalil reporting from outside the lusail stadium in qatar. we can now speak to dan edwards, who is a british football podcast host living in buenos aires, from where he joins us now. mr edwards, welcome to bbc news. the best world cup final in history, some are saying. how does it rate from your perspective?— perspective? hello, good evening- _ perspective? hello, good evening. it _ perspective? hello, good evening. it certainly - perspective? hello, good evening. it certainly has. perspective? hello, good. evening. it certainly has to perspective? hello, good - evening. it certainly has to be one of the most memorable of all time, just because of the context of two of the greatest players of their generation, mbappe and messi, going together and both coming up

with fantastic matches, and just the excitement, the drama at the end. and of course, for all of us who are lucky enough this evening to call argentina their home, an incredible victory celebration which is still very much going on now. just, yes, i memorable, memorable day, a memorable final, and really are brilliant, memorable world cup. and like me, did you think it was all over after those two argentine goals early on? i wanted to. i didn't let myself, because following argentina, you've been down this road before, even in this tournament against australia, the netherlands. the game is never really quite over until it's over, and there was this feeling, you know, just couldn't be that easy. and that's how it proved to be, you know. argentina had those two killer lows in the space of a

minute, a minute and a half, which truly sent them back, and thenit which truly sent them back, and then it was a really different game. but you've got to give credit to them. theyjust kept going, they fought right to the end, they didn't let france just run away with their momentum, and after managing to get the ship back on an even keel get the ship back on an even keel, they got back into the game, back on top. and i think coming up on penalties and winning that world cup was just reward. winning that world cup was 'ust reward. �* ., , ., reward. and two goals in two minutes from _ reward. and two goals in two minutes from mbappe. - reward. and two goals in two minutes from mbappe. you l reward. and two goals in two - minutes from mbappe. you would have to think that a man who scores a hat—trick in a world cup final perhaps is entitled to think that his team has one. yes, there wasn't really much more he could do, plus scoring his penalty in the shootout. he has a lot of cause to feel aggrieved, especially in the second half. a fantastic performance, to drag your side back into it almost single—handedly when it looked like argentina were really going to walk away with it.

mbappe is young, he has already got one world cup winner's metal, a runners—up medal, but i have no doubt that he is 23 and he is going to be back again. he could even have one or even two world cup final �*s to come. looking at this france team and looking at how good he is, there is definitely a chance. is, there is definitely a chance-— is, there is definitely a chance. �* , ., ., ., chance. are truly amazing game. thank you _ chance. are truly amazing game. thank you very — chance. are truly amazing game. thank you very much _ chance. are truly amazing game. thank you very much indeed - chance. are truly amazing game. thank you very much indeed for. thank you very much indeed for joining us there from buenos aires. the netherlands is poised to apologise for slavery later on monday. more than 600,000 people from africa and asia were trafficked by dutch merchants between the 17th and 19th centuries. days before the dutch prime minister planned to deliver the formal apology, the government was accused of ignoring the descendants of the enslaved and adopting a rushed approach that had echoes of colonialism. anna holligan reports.

generations have been waiting to hear this word, but the dutch government's approach to saying sorry for slavery has reignited a sense of exclusion and distrust. the question you have to talk about, slavery, with people from the destination and people here, and we don't accept 19 december. instead, many within the affected communities want an apology scheduled for 1 july next year, to tie in with what will be the 160th anniversary of the dutch emancipation act. within dutch society, support for a formal apology has been growing, with 38% of people now in favour. but almost half the population is still opposed. 0ne far—right leader told me his party doesn't believe in such gestures. quincy garrio argues it's

essential to come together to understand the realities and impact of the past. even the cheesemonger on the street corner was getting paid with funds from colonial winnings. so everyone in our infrastructure and the way of living and our comfort here is directly linked to that abuse and extraction elsewhere. how exactly do you heal and how do you repair the — not just the psychic terror of the past, but also the material inequalities that have come from that? words are fine, but what are actions? well, according to various leaks, the dutch government's apology for slavery won't result in immediate or individual reparations for the descendants of the enslaved people. instead, 200 million euros will be invested in awareness—raising projects and another $27 million dedicated to a new museum designed to highlight and explore this darker side of dutch history.

it's been a busy time for linda nooitmeer. she has been involved in the negotiations with the government. slavery is a crime against humanity, and we acknowledge that people of african descent didn't get the chance to involve themselves as they should. and from 20 december we can work together to fight against everything that is about racism, and it gives me hope that we can do this in this country. formal apologies don't always lead to acceptance or acknowledgement, and in this already polarised society, there are fears of a backlash from those who wish to whitewash and glorify this history. with other countries currently considering their colonial pasts, an official apology from the dutch may encourage other nations to recognise and make efforts to remedy historic and contemporary inequalities in a meaningful way.

anna holligan, bbc news, amsterdam. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: hitting the right note. why her role as a conductor in a male—dominated world may help cate blanchett win another 0scar. the world of music has been paying tribute to george michael, who's died from suspected heart failure at the age of 53. he sold well over 100 million albums in a career spanning more than three decades. the united states troops have been trying to overthrow the dictatorship of general manuel noriega. the pentagon said it's failed in its principle objective to capture noriega and take him to the united states to face drugs charges. the hammer and sickle| was hastily taken away. in its place, the russian flag - was hoisted over what is now no longer the soviet union but the commonwealthj of independent states.

day broke slowly over lockerbie, over the cockpit of pan am's maid of the seas, nosedown in the soft earth. you could see what happens when a plane eight storeys high, a football pitch wide, falls from 30,000 feet. christmas has returned to albania after a communist ban lasting more than 20 years. thousands went to midnight mass in the town of shkodra, where there were anti—communist riots ten days ago. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: argentina have beaten france in the world cup final in qatar, becoming champions for the third time. tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets of buenos aires to honour the players. it's the first time argentina have won the event since 1986. with just a day to go at the cop 15 summit on biological diversity, officials have published their draft proposals,

and among them is a call for countries to take measures to protect at least 30% of the planet's land and coastal waters. that includes the sea ice, which is a vital resource for polar bears. the loss of that ice, in areas around hudson bay in the canadian arctic, is threatening the bear�*s survival, as our science correspondent victoria gill reports. in the hudson bay, the polar bears are waiting for the sea to freeze. sea ice that disappeared over the summer is reforming. this bear is testing it to see if it'll take its weight. along with uk—based arctic scientist professor gareth rees, i connected with the polar bear research team from their tundra buggy — an observation lab on tracks from which they can work and film. that is a live shot, yep. wow! so, that's happening just outside the window here. i'm absolutely fascinated to see where you are and what you're doing.

so, they are slowly making their way to the coast - of hudson bay, and that allows us to come here as well in this| designated area outside . of churchill and just watch the bears until- the ice comes back. how do you see that responding to the impacts of climate change? looking over the last couple decades, we see it forms later and later. it breaks up earlier and earlier in spring. so, this season in between that is ice—free, where the bears are on land and can take advantage of the hunting opportunities, that season is getting longer and longer with warming. and just explain, why do the polar bears need the ice to hunt? they can either sneak up - on seals that have hauled out to rest or a polar bear might wait to dive into that seal. hole and grab the seal, | so they really need that platform to give - them the advantage. and without that platform, as this footage the scientists recently captured shows, a bear very quickly gives up the chase. in open water, the seal has the advantage. by 2050, scientists say this vast bay is likely to have more than 200 ice—free days peryear, pushing bears to the brink of starvation.

these sea ice projections are strongly dependent on the temperature, and the temperature is really dictated by how much greenhouse gases we emit and accumulate in the atmosphere. so, there's this relationship between how much we emit, how warm it's going to get, and what it means for sea ice. and as warming approaches, a critical point here, polar scientists say russia's war in ukraine is preventing them from working in some of the most important parts of the arctic. it's absolutely essential that we collect data from all around the arctic and we've got a big gap now in the russian arctic. it's half of the arctic and we're increasingly losing the ability to measure it and understand it. churchill, manitoba is often called the polar bear capital of the world, and nations are gathered now in canada to reach an agreement to protect habitats like this. but in just three decades, it could be too warm here for the polar bears to survive. victoria gill, bbc news.

more on that on our website. will elon musk still be the head of twitter in the next nine hours? —— eight hours. it's unclear, after the platform's owner tweeted a poll asking whether he should step down and promising to abide by the results. this comes after a series of policy changes and account bans that have prompted a severe backlash from twitter�*s users. 0ur news reporter azadeh moshiri joins us now. what turmoil there has been over the last couple of months, azadeh, since elon musk acquired the company. how did we get to this point?— we get to this point? turmoil is the right — we get to this point? turmoil is the right word _ we get to this point? turmoil is the right word because - is the right word because things are changing so quickly over the platform. the last seven weeks, everything has changed one hour to the next even. when i was about to sit down with you i thought we will be talking about a policy

change but now whether elon musk will be ceo of twitter in the next eight hours. if we take it from the top, earlier on there was a policy change, a sudden last—minute change, in which elon musk said there would no longer be any free advertising of social media platforms other than twitter on his platform, twitter, and he gave some examples of what it would be, so essentially if any user were to tweet their username for another platform, so if i were to say follow me at azadeh? news on instagram, i would be potentially banned or suspended because i'm telling people to leave the platform and go elsewhere. something that has been happening as people have been reacting to the chaos of the last seven weeks. but the problem is there was severe backlash to this and people were saying perhaps this even violated competition rules and so elon musk initially apologised, said he should have consulted users to begin with,

and twitter then put on a pole, suggesting, asking users should we keep the policy? then really escalating this, elon musk said should i even stay head of twitter? �* should i even stay head of twitter?— should i even stay head of twitter? �* ., , ,., twitter? and what, if this poll decides otherwise, _ twitter? and what, if this poll decides otherwise, and - twitter? and what, if this poll decides otherwise, and is - twitter? and what, if this poll. decides otherwise, and is there any logical person in line to take over? is, any logical person in line to take over?— any logical person in line to take over? a good question. this poll— take over? a good question. this poll was _ take over? a good question. this poll was really - take over? a good question. this poll was really quite - this poll was really quite simple. it said should i step down as the head of twitter, i will abide by the results, and he usually does. usually abide by the result of his polls and he would no longer be ceo but it would still remain the owner. there has been a lot of chatter about whether he has a successor lined up. he insists he does not. he says this is a poisoned chalice. 0ne response, we can pull it up, a tweet, he responded to, a user said the user would be willing to take over the post and help out. and elon musk tweeted" you must

like paying a lot. twitter has beenin like paying a lot. twitter has been in the fast lane to bankruptcy since main —— may —— pain.. " he has indicated in the past this was not a ceo role he expected to hold forever, he wanted to pass on the reins, but this feels drastic and sudden. and it almost seems _ drastic and sudden. and it almost seems suicidal - drastic and sudden. and it almost seems suicidal as l drastic and sudden. and it - almost seems suicidal as well, some of the things they've been doing to the platform since he acquired it two months ago. yes, two schools of thought here because the fact is that as he said, twitter has not been making money and so, some people could argue that this is a man with a lot of talent, he has done groundbreaking things at tesla, revolutionary things for spacex and perhaps twitter needs to be shaken up. or you could argue that social media needs a slower pace to leadership, a different kind of leadership, a different kind of leadership, and you cannot shoot at the hip like this.

azadeh, thank you indeed. the actress cate blanchett�*s latest film sees her play a conductor — a woman working in a male—dominated world — who is celebrated but flawed. with the film awards season under way, tar has already won some awards, been nominated for golden globes, and could be in line for oscar nominations, too. our culture editor katie razzall has been talking its director todd field and cate blanchett. lydia tar is many things. tar is very much cate blanchett�*s movie. written specifically for her, the actor is tipped for another oscar for her role as fictional conductor and composer lydia tar. it was such a joy to open the door to music again. i really lapped it up. trumpets play. the film is a portrait of a high—achieving creative genius unravelling as she's accused of misconduct. oh, no.

in this #metoo story, told from the perspective of the alleged perpetrator, writer—director todd field asked questions about cancel culture and society's rush tojudgement. ajudgement is something that is final and absolute and shut down and there's no discussion possible. is there a way to step in someone else's shoes and walk around for a little bit and have a messier conversation? and we may find something within that conversation that allows us to just change the way we think, just a tick, which... you understand a different perspective. yeah. we met at london's famous abbey road studio, where the tar team were recording an album with the london symphony orchestra, with musician and actress sophie kauer playing elgar�*s cello concerto. it's got to be, like, a — just one person singing their heart out. i asked blanchett if she saw

her character as a predator. the word �*predator,’ i mean, it's a — even by the choice of that word, we are framing the conversation. i am so excited for an audience to see it. will they gravitate towards the fact that she is a woman leading one of the world's greatest orchestras? "0h, 0k, it is a movie about a woman in a patriarchal structure! " or will they look at her past transgressions and realise you cannot outrun yourself? it is not like you two are in a relationship... whether straight actors can play gay roles is a question for our times. in tar, blanchett�*s conductor is a lesbian. it's a texture of the movie, it is not what the film is about. you know, i have played a psychic — i'm not a psychic — so i didn't think twice about that. but could there be a conversation where people will say i shouldn't be playing that role? there may well be, and it is an important conversation to have. trumpet plays.

important, too, are the issues raised by this film — a challenging watch with a commanding performance at its heart. katie razzall, bbc news. the film is called tar and this is bbc news. hello. a completely different feel to the weather for the start of the new week. after our lengthy cold spell, things have been turning considerably milder. mild and windy through the day on monday with some outbreaks of rain — some of that rain will be on the heavy side at times. but starting temperatures for monday morning — 8 degrees in aberdeen, 1a degrees in plymouth — waking up to a completely different feel, but we will see a lot of cloud through the day and some outbreaks of rain moving sporadically eastwards. it may be that the skies clear in northern ireland just in time to bring some sunshine before the sun goes down. a few brighter spells elsewhere but it's going to be windy, particularly around western coasts — gusts of 40,

50, maybe 60 miles per hour in the most exposed spots — and temperatures in double digits for just about all of us, and it's quite a while since we've been able to say that! now, as we go through monday night, we will see further outbreaks of rain, particularly down towards the south. as the rain piles up in some southern parts, there is the risk of some flooding. clearer spells further north and west, some showers pushing into northern ireland and western scotland. still mild — not quite as mild for tuesday morning but still, a lot milder than it has been. so, for tuesday, this frontal system may linger across the south east of england for a little while. still low pressure in charge up to the north—west, so that will bring further showers, but there'll also be some spells of sunshine. so, where that weather front lingers close to south east england, it could mean that cloud and rain clings on for a little while. and then, we will see sunny spells. showers most plentiful across northern ireland and the western side of scotland, where it will be really quite windy. temperatures north to south 8—12 degrees — that is a touch above what we'd expect at this time of year. now, for the rest of the week, we see weather systems lining

up in the atlantic and taking aim, bringing further rain at times. it is looking quite unsettled through the week ahead. now, for the most part, it is going to stay mild but we are going to see some colder air close to the north of scotland. and as we head through the weekend, the christmas weekend, it may be that that cold air sinks a little further southwards for a time — there's a lot of uncertainty about that — but, generally speaking, the week ahead will be mild, there'll be some rain at times, but it may turn just a little colder for some of us over the weekend.

this is bbc news. the headlines: argentina have won the world cup for a third time, after beating france in the final in qatar. the game ended 3—3 and had to be decided on penalties. it was a personal triumph for lionel messi who confirmed his position as one the game's greatest ever players. argentinians have been celebrating their team's victory in an outpouring of national pride. tens of thousands crammed into one of buenos aires's main squares to honour the players. it's the first time argentina have won the event since 1986, when diego maradona led the country to world cup glory. twitter�*s billionaire owner, elon musk, has asked users of his social media platform

to vote on his future as its chief executive officer.