tonight at ten — on the eve of the ambulance strikes in england and wales — a warning that patient safety can't be guaranteed. as thousands of ambulance staff campaign for higher pay, nhs leaders express �*deep worry�* about �*the level of harm and risk�* to patients. we have reached the stage where our leaders feel it's necessary to say that they cannot guarantee patient safety. they cannot avoid risks. during the day, nurses walked out in england, northern ireland and wales for a second day — accusing ministers of prolonging the strike by refusing to talk about pay. we'll have the latest on the industrial action

in parts of the nhs, which is due to escalate sharply tomorrow. also tonight... in germany, a 97 year—old woman, a former secretary, is found guilty of complicity in the murders of over 10,000 people. in iceland, more than 1,000 easyjet passengers due to fly to the uk have been hit by long delays and cancellations because of severe weather. parading through the centre of buenos aires. and coming up on the bbc news channel. rangers are at aberdeen as they desperately look to cling on to celtic at the top of the scottish premiership. good evening.

leaders of the national health service have warned that patient safety can't be guaranteed during the industrial action by ambulance workers in england and wales tomorrow. the public is being asked to use services "wisely" and to call 999 only if it's a life—threatning emergency. there's likely to be major disruption, with paramedics, call handlers, emergency care assistants and technicians going on strike. there's no strike action in scotland and northern ireland, but all of wales is affected and all of england apart from the eastern region and the isle of wight. today, there were thousands of nurses on strike for a second day in england, wales and northern ireland in their campiagn to get a bigger pay rise. but some services — such as urgent cancer care — have been maintained. tomorrow, as we said,

ambulance staff in england and wales will be on strike — which prompted one minster to advise people not to take part in contact sports or other activities which might lead to serious injury. in a moment we'll be looking at the areas affected during by ambulance strike but first our health editor hugh pym reports on the latest warnings. what do we want? safe staffing! when do we want it? now! today it was nurses out on picket lines in england, wales and northern ireland. the second strike in their dispute over pay. tomorrow it will be military personnel helping with patients during strikes by ambulance workers. they've been trained to support paramedics during walk—outs staged by health unions. right, you get round there. 600 from the armed forces in total are stepping in to help, though it will be thousands of ambulance staff who are on strike. the military teams are being prepared for what to expect. we're in a position where you guys are going out to support a lack of service. they're not here to do the job of a paramedic,

they're here to do the job of an ambulance driver and they're providing that nonclinical support. they've got a lot of initiative, our troops, so they will be able to support where required. maternity kit. _ so, for delivering babies... as the training continued, preparing for every eventuality, the secretary of state had a message for ambulance staff going on strike. i call on the trade unions to act responsibly. they have said they will provide life—threatening cover, emergency cover. it's essential that they do so to protect patients because if there are delays in ambulances, that impacts very seriously on patient safety. 0ne minister even said, to take pressure off services, the public should modify their behaviour. where people are planning any risky activity, i would strongly encourage them not to do so because there will be disruption on the day. and a representative of nhs leaders warned of serious problems for patients.

we have reached the stage where our leaders feel it'si necessary to say that they cannot guarantee patient safety, - they cannot avoid risks, as these strikes unfold. i but a union leader, challenged by mps today on what might happen, said the situation for nhs patients was already bad. we have to realise that right now, today, people are not getting the ambulances — they are taking themselves to hospitals in a taxi because they can't get the ambulance. people are dying, waiting to be handed over at a&e departments. that's happening today. emergency ambulance, is the patient breathing? at the uk's busiest ambulance service, detailed plans have been made for tomorrow — though with only about 200 vehicles on the road, rather than 450. call handlers will tell the lowest risk patients to make their own way to hospital.

i think tomorrow will be a very difficult day, because we are already extremely busy and hospital handover delays have been very long. however, i am confident that any one who phones 999 who has a life—threatening emergency, we will respond to tomorrow as normal. striking ambulance staff will be outside stations like this one tomorrow, but there is an agreement with management that if there's a life—threatening or another very serious case, they will leave the picket lines and go straight to their vehicles so they can get on the road to the patient. so, how do the sailors, soldiers and raf staff who will be on the front line tomorrow feel about their new role? it's normal to be a little bit nervous, but feeling quite honoured to come down and do my part. it's very fast paced, but all the information is getting taken in, ready for tomorrow. i'm confident that i'm going to help and i'm ready to do it. _ they may be in for a long haul.

the royal college of nursing has warned if there is no movement on pay there will be continued action. other health unions likewise. with no indication of a shift by ministers. hugh pym, bbc news. ambulance services across england and wales have been talking to unions about what level of service they can provide tomorrow. each ambulance trust has agreed something different — so the level of provision will depend on where you live. when you call 999, ambulance staff in england put your call into a category. category i is for life—threatening illnesses or injuries, including cardiac arrest. category 2 is for emergency calls, for example strokes. category 3 is classed as urgent, and includes the late stages of labour. and category 4 is for less urgent calls, for example vomiting.

we contacted each ambulance trust striking tomorrow to ask which of these calls union members will respond to. not all of them replied, and some didn't give specific details. but here are a few examples from those who did. east midlands ambulance service told us that their striking union members would respond to all immediately life—threatening category i calls. in some circumstances they would also respond to the most serious category 2 calls — which are strokes, gynaecology emergencies where a mother or baby is at risk, road traffic collisions where a patient is trapped, or children aged five and under who are unwell. in the north east of england — the response will depend on which union staff are from — gmb members will only respond to life—threatening calls, unison members will also respond to some category 2 calls.

the welsh ambulance service categorises calls slightly differently. they told us their union members would be responding to all immediately life—threatening �*red' calls, and selected �*amber 1�* calls for �*particular complaints�*, which they describe as those with chest pains, strokes, and gynaecology emergencies. they will also respond to road traffic accidents. as you can see, it varies on where people live and it is not a uniform picture by any means. live to westminster and our political correspondent iain watson. with all of this coming up, i�*m wondering what is your sense of the alarm or otherwise amongst ministers?— alarm or otherwise amongst ministers? ~ ., ., ., ministers? we are on the eve of the first work-out _ ministers? we are on the eve of the first work-out of _ ministers? we are on the eve of the first work-out of ambulance - ministers? we are on the eve of the first work-out of ambulance crews l ministers? we are on the eve of the | first work-out of ambulance crews in first work—out of ambulance crews in many parts of england and wales for a generation, so surprising that few

not surprising ministerial nerves are on edge and we had a health minister telling us not to indulge in risky behaviour tomorrow so there are concerns about patient safety but also concerns about who may get the blame if there is more suffering or something even worse because of ambulance delay is happening tomorrow. 0ne ministerial source said tonight that on the unions, but the trouble is, opinion polls suggest a majority of voters do not see things that way. against this backdrop that the prime minister is standing firm on the pay, so is there a way through this? government approach seems to be on the one hand, an olive branch, if the unions get involved, with discussions about next year�*s payable, they could get something more generous, but on the other hand, a stick, trade union legislation coming next year which i�*m told may set out the minimum service levels that have to be provided in the nhs in the event of a future strike. none of this solves

the current dispute so it looks very much like the movie is going to bring new and longer strikes. iain watson, many thanks. in germany, a former secretary who worked for the commander of a nazi concentration camp, has been convicted of complicity in the murders of more than 10,000 people. irmgard furchner — who�*s now 97 — was employed as a typist at stutthof camp from 1943 to 19115. she�*s the first woman to be tried for nazi crimes in a decade and was given a two—year suspended jail sentence. although she was a civilian worker, the judge said she was fully aware of what was going on at the camp. as our correspondent caroline hawley reports, this could be one of the last trials for crimes committed during the nazi era. wheeled in to hear the verdict against her in what could be one of the very last holocaust trials,

irmgard furchner, herface blurred by order of the court, a blanket over her lap. almost eight decades ago she was a typist, a secretary to the camp commandant. but thejudge rejected her lawyer�*s argument that she didn�*t know about the killings and ruled she was complicit in the mass murder of more than 10,000 people. translation: it is easy to say she wasjust a secretary, - but a secretary had an important role in the bureaucracy of a concentration camp. in all, over the course of the second world war, an estimated 65,000 prisoners died in the stuthoff camp in nazi—occupied poland in horrific circumstances. they were killed in its gas chamber, hanged and shot or succumbed to starvation and disease. irmgard furchner, seen here as a young woman, was only 18 and 19 at the time, so, despite her age, was tried in a specialjuvenile court. manfred goldberg, who�*s now 92 years old, was held in stuthoff camp for several months as a young teenager. he told me he wouldn�*t want an elderly woman sent to jail, but... a two—year suspended sentence

is what you might expect for perhaps severe shoplifting or an amateur burglar who didn�*t commit any serious offence, but not for someone who was found to be complicit in the murder of more than 10,000 inmates. it sounds incredibly insufficient. irmgard furchner had tried to evade any kind ofjustice, calling a cab from her care home at the start of her trial and going on the run. but she was arrested and eventually attended court. international lawyers say her case sends a signal to anyone who commits war crimes anywhere. you need to be aware that for ever, for the rest of your natural life, there is a possibility of the tap on the shoulder, an investigation and if necessary, a prosecution, and that applies for example equally in relation to the crimes that are plainly being committed today on the territory of ukraine. i�*m thinking of bucha. the young soldiers who were involved in that and the decision—makers know

that for the rest of their lives they are exposed to the risk of a tap on the shoulder. modern germany is still grappling with the darkness of its past. the public prosecutor said this was a trial of outstanding historical importance. at a time when holocaust denial is on the rise, survivors hope it will make it harder for the world to forget the unimaginable horrors which they endured. caroline hawley, bbc news. in afghanistan, the taliban has ordered an indefinite ban on university education for the country�*s women. the order was signed by the minister of higher education, further restricting women�*s access to formal education three months after thousands of girls and women sat university entrance exams across the country. joining me now is yalda hakim. she has a spirited dream ago reported extensively from afghanistan. when you expected this?

—— she has reported extensively from afghanistan. were you expecting this? , ., , afghanistan. were you expecting this? , . this? yes, i was. we were hoping it wouldn't happen. — this? yes, i was. we were hoping it wouldn't happen, but _ this? yes, i was. we were hoping it wouldn't happen, but we _ this? yes, i was. we were hoping it wouldn't happen, but we now - this? yes, i was. we were hoping it wouldn't happen, but we now hearl wouldn�*t happen, but we now hear that afghan girls and women�*s had their lives turned over a year ago, when the taliban took power, and a58 days they have been denied the right to an education over the age of 12, and if afghanistan is the only country on the planet where girls cannot go to school. the de facto authorities have banned them and other universities. do authorities have banned them and other universities.— other universities. do you think this is a policy _ other universities. do you think this is a policy that _ other universities. do you think this is a policy that would - other universities. do you think this is a policy that would be i this is a policy that would be looked at by the rest of the world as just underlining the further extremist tendency that we have seen in the country? i extremist tendency that we have seen in the country?— in the country? i suppose in many wa s we in the country? i suppose in many ways we were _ in the country? i suppose in many ways we were sold _ in the country? i suppose in many ways we were sold the _ in the country? i suppose in many ways we were sold the narrative l in the country? i suppose in many| ways we were sold the narrative by the tella ban in the lead up to their takeover —— by the taliban, in their takeover —— by the taliban, in the lead up to their takeover, they said, it will be different, we won�*t ban television and radio, we won�*t

ban television and radio, we won�*t ban girls from going to school, and yet today, that is what we are seeing, and so as i said, although we expect of this, we did not think they would go this far. the us and uk have condemned the move. mani; uk have condemned the move. many thanks. charities and businesses have expressed deep disappointment that the treasury has delayed a decision on the support they�*ll get, if any, with rising energy bills once the current scheme ends in march. an announcement had been expected before christmas but it�*s now been delayed until the new year. 0ur social affairs correspondent michael buchanan reports. so, here we�*ve got about 600 portions of chickpea and lentil curry being made. and just over there, you�*ve got 800—plus,

all of the food fresh from the warehouse first thing this morning. the felix project cooks and distributes 3,500 meals each day to needy londoners. the charity works with 1,000 organisations across the city, but could do so much more. people are telling us that they�*re switching 0verall costs are up 25% this year, and the charity is running a £2.3 million deficit. we already have 500 community organisations that are on our wait list asking for support, and that is going up by 20 or 30 organisations a week. and you just can�*t help them at the moment? we would love to, but we are at capacity doing what we�*re doing right now in order to keep our costs at a level that we can maintain. the felix project is not alone in struggling to cope. a survey of more than 600 uk charities seen by the bbc found that

almost three quarters reported rapidly rising levels of need, but almost half of them say they didn�*t expect to be able to meet demand. some organisations are cutting staff or services as costs rise. we had one charity tell us that they were working with the lights off now because that was how expensive their energy bills were, theyjust couldn�*t meet it. 0ne charity that runs a community bus, they were saying actually we can�*t afford the diesel for this any more, we can�*t run the trips we used to. vicki is one of nearly 100 people with complex needs cared for by the hollybank trust in west yorkshire. almost all need electrical devices to stay alive, from hoists and airflow mattresses to feeding machines. it all costs. if government support ends in march, the charity�*s electricity bill will be £606,000 a year, almost a00% higher than it was last march. turning down the heating a little bit might help but actually if people aren�*t mobile, that�*s really difficult, we need to keep people warm to keep them safe and well. we are careful about turning off lights and televisions, but this is a much bigger challenge than that.

this is about government funding and stepping in where it�*s needed right now. the treasury say the energy relief scheme for charities and businesses is expensive, and their review will ensure value for money for the taxpayer. but those at the sharp end of helping the vulnerable are fearful of what that could mean. michael buchanan, bbc news. argentina�*s victorious footballers have returned home with the world cup where they were greeted by tens of thousands of fans in buenos aires. the argentine government declared today a public holiday to mark the nation�*s pride in the team�*s achievement in qatar, as our correspondent katy watson reports. argentina�*s champions are home, to much fanfare and excitement. thousands waited up to greet them in the early hours, not wanting to miss this chance to see the megastars. argentina�*s never seen anything like it, an estimated a million people came out onto the streets

of the capital, the country�*s biggest party in its history. in true argentinian style, the steaks and sausages were slapped on the barbecue from early in the morning. people dressed in messi�*s number ten shirt. this world cup has made him a national hero, standing alongside diego maradona in argentine footballing fame. translation: it's - amazing, it's amazing. i don�*t think any country has lived through what we are living now. nobody is partying like we are right now, nobody! it is something that i will talk with my sons and grandsons for ever. the team made its way towards the centre slowly but had to change route because of the sheer number of fans. the players abandon coming to the 0belisk which has been the players abandoned coming to the 0belisk, which has been

the focal point of celebrations during the tournament. they ended up having to do a flyover in a helicopter instead. the celebrations on sunday after the final were massive but today has been even bigger. no—one can deny how much the argentinians wanted this trophy to come home but i think the outpouring of pride has even surprised the authorities here. while messi is, of course, an inspiration, the whole team is being celebrated. batista is alexis mac allister�*s godfather and former coach, proud of the brighton & hove albion player coming home with the trophy. translation: he started playing here at the age of six. _ today english football is the greatest in the world, where the best players are, and thankfully clubs have been coming for argentinian footballers and that is wonderful because it opens the door to other players. back to the party of extraordinary proportions. a country battered by economic crisis, this has been

a world cup to remember, allowing argentinians to park their worries and really celebrate success. katy watson, bbc news, in buenos aires. with no end in sight to the war in ukraine, cities and towns across russia are scaling back their new year celebrations, cancelling some major concerts and firework displays. at the same time, the russian authorities are using the festive season as a means of promoting patriotism and to celebrate the work of the armed forces. 0ur correspondent steve rosenberg reports from the siberian city of chita. horn blares. at first glance, siberia is a world away from the war in ukraine. but normality is an illusion, because war is changing russia. all of russia. pushing the country in a darker direction. in chita, they�*re preparing

for the ice festival. no santas with reindeers. this year, it�*s soldiers with kalashnikovs, a whole army of them. cold war to glorify the hot war russia�*s waging in ukraine. "we�*re fighting a war," tatyana says. "so it�*s right to have these ice soldiers here." ludmilla agrees. "we�*re defending our country from nazis," she tells me. "russia�*s being attacked on all fronts, including "with lg bt propaganda. we reject these alien values." russians never used to say these kind of things to me. kremlin messaging has convinced many here that russia is in an existential battle with the west. when it�*s 26 degrees below zero, as it is now,

it�*s difficult to speak, let alone to think. and in many ways, the pro—kremlin propaganda that russians are exposed to in the state media here acts like —26. it prevents many people from thinking rationally about what is happening here, and why. comfort and joy are in short supply. but there�*s patriotism aplenty. from siberian snowmen flying the flag to the letter z, the symbol of the military operation. and chita tv showed schoolchildren writing letters not to father christmas, but to russian troops in ukraine. but some russians see patriotism differently. ivan losev is against the war. 0n social media recently, he shared a dream he�*d had in which he met president zelensky of ukraine. for that post and others,

he was taken to court and fined for discrediting the russian army. translation: the closer you get to the downfall of an empire, - the more stupid the laws become. patriotism is loving your country, but criticising it to bring change. patriotism is wanting to make your own city better so that people want to live there, and live well. but russia�*s patriotism is about bombing ukraine to pieces. 0ur leaders don�*t want our country to be better. theyjust want people in another country to live worse. a year that changed russia — and the world — is nearing its end. one thing russians won�*t be celebrating is peace on earth. steve rosenberg, bbc news, chita, siberia. more than 1,000 people who were due

to fly from iceland�*s largest airport have been hit by flight delays and cancellations because of severe weather. the foreign office says it�*s working closely with icelandic emergency services to provide support to stranded travellers. 0ur correspondent sean dilley has been speaking to someone who doesn�*t know if her and her family will be back for christmas. this is not the kind of christmas snow travellers were hoping for. inside keflavik airport, utter confusion. stay in the queue! 0utside, passengers who have accepted they�*re flying nowhere soon have been sent to hotels. forsome, public transport was not an option. thank you, thank you so much! sarah york and her family were rescued by a community volunteer. it felt like a film, it�*s been absolutelyjust chaotic. there was people everywhere, no—one really knew what they were doing, there was between 100km/h and 120km/h winds, we had hurricane warnings.

i�*ll be honest, i�*ve really spent the last few days crying non—stop, as my sisters, my brother has been the one trying to calm us all down. it�*s been really hard, it has been really hard but it�*s notjust us, there are so many other people. ijust want to get home to my family, ijust want to get home, it�*s christmas in a few days. back at the airport, staff are trying to look after the passengers who remain. i think if i'm truthful with you, that iceland should be better prepared for situations like this, it's not like it's a new thing, snow to iceland, is it? so, i think it should be better prepared for travellers coming in so we're not stranded on situations like this. some flights have started to leave keflavik but the weather is still severe. airlines are promising to do all they can to get passengers home for christmas. sean dilley, bbc news. one of the defining voices of british pop music in the 1970s and �*80s, terry hall, has died at the age of 63.

his band the specials were in the vanguard of the revival which swept the charts a0 years ago, achieving seven consecutive top 10 singles including too much too young and ghost town. 0ur correspondent mark savage reports. music: gangsters by the specials. # why must you record my phone calls? # the specials emerged from coventry at the end of the 1970s, bringing black and white musicians together at a time of racial tension. # a message to you, rudy. # fronted by terry hall, their music was upbeat but socially conscious, and their first seven singles made the top ten, culminating in this... # this place is coming like a ghost town...# ghost town, released in 1981 as riots spread and unemployment soared across the uk, and terry hall�*s downbeat delivery captured the despondency. # this town is coming like a ghost town # why must the youth fight against themselves?#

after ghost town, hall formed another band, fun boy three. their songs were often lighter, but hall didn�*t shy away from more difficult topics. 0ne song dealt with his abduction and sexual abuse at the age of 12. # it ain't what you do, it's the place that you do it.# and that�*s when my mental health problems appeared and in that period, the only thing that i could do was take valium, at 1a. although the episode left hall with lifelong depression, music was a solace. he rejoined the specials in 2008 and a decade later, the band scored theirfirst ever number one album. hall said it was a long time coming. in a statement on monday night, the band said hall had died after a brief illness. neville staple, who sang with him in both the specials and fun boy three, said the news was a shock. it's really hit me hard. we fronted the specials and fun boy

three together, making history. i send my condolences to his wife and family. # you�*ve done too much, much too young...# missed he will be, but his legacy, from a golden age of political pop, will never be forgotten. # you�*ve done too much, much too young # and now you�*re married with a son # when you should be having fun with me...# time for the weather forecast, with stav. good evening to you, it has turned very much milder, and the mild weather is expected to continue for the next few days. it will be bringing quite a lot of rain up from the south—west and we do have some flood warnings issued for the south—west, they have been lifted

now but there could be more issues as more rain comes in