welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore. i'm karishma vaswani. the headlines — as president zelensky returns to ukraine, we get the latest update from the front line. for all the sophisticated weaponry and all the ammunition, this is what it comes down to in the end. men, mud and an enemy which is rifle range. the us is in for the coldest christmas in four decades, as a major winter storm sweeps the country. former cryptocurrency boss sam bankman—fried is released. bail is set at $250 million. heated scenes in the scottish parliament, as controversial

legislation is passed, making it easier for people and we take a journey through david hockney�*s imagination, as he describes his new immersive exhibition. hello and welcome to the programme. the kremlin has strongly criticised president zelensky�*s visit to washington, accusing the us of fighting an indirect war against it. in a speech, president putin said a new patriot missile defence system would simply prolong the war, and that russia would find an antidote. the ukrainian leader is now back in ukraine. well, ten months on since the start of the conflict, ukrainian forces have regained some areas taken by russia. but people across the country are without power because of russian aerial attacks, and some are without family members, killed in the conflict. the bbc has been following one soldier, lieutenant eugene gromadskyi, as he fights

to defend his country, at great personal cost. our correspondent quentin sommerville, and camera—journalist darren conwayjoined him at an undisclosed location, near kupyansk, in the country's east, where fighting continues, amid appalling winter conditions. when the enemy is on your doorstep, sacrifices must be made. this is home for a platoon from ukraine's 92nd brigade. they have a few small rooms in an abandoned house. they're crammed in tight. meals are eaten standing up. not that senior lieutenant eugene grabowski gets to spend much time here. he's had only two hours�* sleep, but again needs to head out to the front. there's a russian counter—attack under way. this war has shaken the world and ukraine, but the 22—year—old

lieutenant hasn't wavered. he's been fighting since the war�*s very beginning. when his army veteran father was killed, on the first day of the invasion, he didn't falter. this was nine months ago, when i first met eugene at the start of a conflict that would transform him and his country. he'd just recently graduated. he and ukraine were ill prepared. today, eugene and his country bear the scars of lessons learned. there've been a lot of casualties in this war. you've lost a lot of people. do you fear death? translation: the person who is not afraid is already dead. if you meet death with open arms, it will avoid you because death loves the brave.

that's why i don't think about death. i only think about life — the lives of my comrades and the lives of those in my unit. these are the men who have eugene�*s back. who stand at the ready, in this winter wasteland, exposed to russian firepower and the elements. (shouting). they're trying to hold a russian breakthrough. there's hardly any cover here, so they move as fast as the cold allows ..knowing that russian guns will soon find them. explosion.

translation: the enemy's positions are being hit by fire. they're trying to advance, but our artillery is helping our infantry with a counteroffensive, and we will keep fighting until the end. it's our land. it's our blood. time is up. the russians are targeting them. let's go. their aim for now is off, but it's closing in. artillery strikes a nearby tree line. eugene�*s comrades hit the trenches. there's fierce fighting up ahead. the ukrainians have taken a lot of ground here. but for all the sophisticated weaponry and all the ammunition, this is what it comes down to in the end — men, mud and an enemy, which is within rifle range. ukraine is still advancing here, but winter is coming, and the next few months are going to be a slow, hard grind. but in these conditions, it's tough maintaining momentum.

when ukrainian soil turns into soup, regaining every step of territory is a slog. translation: we need to work on that village over there. - gunfire. it's one of only a couple of dozen villages still in russian control in kharkiv region. every day is a battle for the upper hand. the road they must travel is dangerous, pitted with russian hits and misses. in the freezing cold, everything is an effort. they've lost men on this route, and the bitterest months still lie ahead here. movement is spotted.

gunfire. translation: a little bit to the right, - on the corner over there, right behind the hangar. these are the daily battles the men face. today, some ground is won, but tomorrow, it may be lost. and so it repeats, as the casualties mount on both sides. translation: to be honest, there were many comrades . who died, who i knew personally. they were ideological people who kept moving forward, who never stopped. but it's a war, so there is no time to be sad. some 13,000 soldiers have already died defending ukraine, and away from the front, millions more will spend

a freezing winter in darkness, because of russian missile attacks. and this christmas, it will be candles for the fallen that light the homes of ukrainians. natalia had two heroes in her life. her first, her husband. he was killed on the first day of the war as he defended the city. can you describe your husband to us? what kind of a man was he? translation: he was a patriot. a real patriot of our country. he was a ukrainian. and natalia's trials are far from over. her other hero is her only child. she's eugene's mother,

the young lieutenant fighting at the front, seen here with 0leg, his father, who died in battle. she has given everything for ukraine. 18 months into this war, do you have a message for other ukrainian mothers? translation: i want to wish them to always believe that everything will be ok with our children, and to always wait for them. mothers' love is a big power. we need to believe that everything will be fine. surely. quentin somerville, bbc news, kharkiv. to the united states now, and forecasters say a major winter storm, which is sweeping

the country this week, may bring the coldest christmas in four decades to parts of the country. there has already been major snowfall in many areas. more than 90 million people in 37 states are set to experience sub—zero temperatures, including places as far south as texas. tom brada reports. a fierce winter storm is sweeping across the united states. more than 100 million people are under winter weather alerts, with warnings of ice, snow and freezing winds. at a white house briefing, president biden called for caution. this is really a very serious weather alert here, and it goes from oklahoma all the way to wyoming and maine. it's not like a snow day when you're a kid, this is serious stuff. meteorologists say the winter storm could become a bomb cyclone — an unofficial term for a certain type of powerful storm, which rapidly builds in strength. heavy snowfall and strong winds

are expected to cause damage and power outages in the midwest and canada. damage and power outages in the midwest and canada, and travel chaos is expected, as people head home for christmas, with thousands of flights already cancelled. it's been a little crazy. i got here early to make sure i got my flight. i was doing frontier, and the app never notified me that the flight got cancelled, so i was sitting there an extra hour, and then security told me it got cancelled. so, then i came here, then my otherflight from frontier got cancelled. the national weather service has warned temperatures could dip below —45 celsius by the end of the week in some parts of the country. with christmas fast approaching, millions of americans will hope the ferocious cold won't ruin their festive plans. tom brada, bbc news. i've been speaking to jaden pappenheim from live storm chasers. he's in south bend, indiana, and he's been telling me about the situation there.

iam in i am in south bend, indiana right now, currently under a blizzard warning, and snow has started to fall here in the last couple of hours. about 4p emits when the heavy snow bands started moving into the area and conditions are already worsening out by the minute here. i have noted a car crash about a block away from my hotel, so things are basically going from zero to 100 here across portions of the midwest and really much of the us is under the gun for this big winter snowstorm.- under the gun for this big winter snowstorm. what our authorities _ winter snowstorm. what our authorities saying _ winter snowstorm. what our authorities saying about - winter snowstorm. what our| authorities saying about how bad it might get over the next couple of days, particularly over the christmas period, you know, at a time when loved ones and families try and travel and get together?— and families try and travel and get together? yeah, you know, it could get _ get together? yeah, you know, it could get really _ get together? yeah, you know, it could get really bad, - it could get really bad, especially holiday travel. that is a big story. in particular, my area specifically could see

anywhere from six to 12 inches with 55 mph gusts, and that creates big problems, especially when you have a huge influx of travel along the major interstates, through cities, and just lately to make east, about five hours, buffalo, new york, through sunday could experience one to three feet of impactful snow. 65 to 75 mph winds. this is a big deal. not only that, the arctic blast that has moved through much of the region, a small town in montana yesterday got to —72 fahrenheit, and that is with wind chill, so a very impactful system. anybody that's travelling through the holiday period here in the us, definitely stay warm, have your emergency gear in your car in case you get stranded. we are 'ust case you get stranded. we are just seeing _ case you get stranded. we are just seeing some _ case you get stranded. we are just seeing some images - case you get stranded. we are just seeing some images of i case you get stranded. we are i just seeing some images of what the situation is right there now. in your time monitoring the weather, how bad is this in comparison to what you've seen before? to comparison to what you've seen before? ., . �* comparison to what you've seen before? ., ., �* ,

before? to what i've seen before? to what i've seen before in _ before? to what i've seen before in my _ before? to what i've seen before in my young - before? to what i've seen before in my young stormj before in my young storm chasing career, you know, i think this is just the start. who knows what we could see out of this? i have no problem calling this the start of a historic event.— calling this the start of a historic event. ., . historic event. right how much ressure historic event. right how much pressure do — historic event. right how much pressure do you _ historic event. right how much pressure do you think - historic event. right how much l pressure do you think ambulance services and emergency services have been under, and what are they saying about how people should keep safe at this time? they are under a lot of pressure right now. big workload, you know, you can only have i guess so many emergency crews at one time, and then what starts happening is you get all these car crashes that start stacking up and that pulls resources away from your new or more households and stuff like that. —— normal households with stops at this time especially in the heavy blizzard conditions, emergency responders, first responders definitely have a lot of pressure on them to keep everything in working order and make sure they can get to people safely.

if you wanyt to get in touch with me i'm on twitter — @bbckarishma. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme — we take a journey through david hockney�*s imagination, as he describes his new immersive exhibition. 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 says 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 commonwealth i of independent states. day broke slowly over

lockerbie, over the cockpit of pan am's maid of the seas, nose down 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 shkoder, where there were anti—communist riots ten days ago. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm karishma vaswani in singapore. 0ur headlines: as president zelensky returns to ukraine, we get the latest update from the front line. the us is in for the coldest christmas in four decades, as a major winter storm sweeps the country. the scottish parliament has passed controversial legislation which makes it easier for people to legally change gender.

they'll no longer have to get a medical diagnosis before being allowed what's called a gender recognition certificate. the vote was greeted with cheers in the chamber from supporters of the bill, and cries of �*shame on you' from opponents. here's our scotland editorjames cook. for years, this nation has been divided politically. now there's a social split, too, on that hottest of topics — gender. trans rights! not everyone in scotland is invested in this debate, but those who are tend to be fired up. and so, here at holyrood this afternoon, there was both delight and disgust. and the gender recognition reform scotland bill is passed. applause thank you. shame on you! that followed days of delay and debate, not least about people born male accessing female—only spaces.

i will do everything i can to protect women's rights for as long as i live, but i also think it's an important part of my responsibility to make life a little bit easier for stigmatised minorities in our country. while there may be a majority in this chamber later today to support this legislation, a majority of the public oppose the bill, including most snp, labour and liberal democrat voters. this bill reduces women's rights and potentially risks women's safety. but what is the new process for changing gender in scotland? well, it will be faster. instead of living for 2h months in your new gender before applying, adults will now have to wait only three months. younger people will also be able to apply — the age limit drops from 18 to 16, although the process will be slower for this group. and it will be easier, because the requirement for medical reports to back up an application is being dropped. but will holyrood have the final say?

the uk government says it's considering whether it can block the legislation or challenge it in court. if it does, expect yet another row. viewed from afar, some of history's great social upheavals look much less contentious — votes for women, gay rights. supporters of this change say that's going to happen here, that controversy will fade over time, but opponents say it will intensify as the impact of this new law becomes clear. either way, perspective often shifts with distance. james cook, bbc news, edinburgh. spanish lawmakers in the lower house have also passed a transgender rights bill allowing anyone 16 and over to change gender on their id card. it's legislation that has divided spain's left—wing government and its feminist movement. the bill now moves to the senate where, if left unchanged as expected, it will become law within weeks. the move will make spain one of the world's few countries

to allow transgender people to change their status with a simple declaration. let's take a look at some other stories in the headlines. the founder of the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange, ftx, has been released by a new york court after agreeing bail set at $250 million. sam bankman—freed will also have to stay at his parents' home in california and surrender his passport while awaiting trial on fraud and money laundering charges. mr bankman—freed is accused of stealing billions of dollars from ftx to prop up another of his businesses. a belgian court has told the greek politician at the centre of a corruption scandal in the european parliament that she must remain in custody for another month. eva kaili was stripped of her role as vice president of the parliament over the case earlier this month. she denies accepting bribes from qatar. muslim countries including saudi arabia and iran have criticised the decision by afghanistan's taliban

government to bar women from attending university. the saudis said afghanistan should abide by islamic principles regarding women's rights. the us senate has approved a huge government spending programme worth nearly $1.7 trillion. it includes another $115 billion of support for ukraine. the house of representatives has yet to vote on the bill. the white house says north korea has delivered rockets and missiles to the wagner group, a private russian military company based in saint petersburg. it's estimated that around 50,000 wagner group soldiers are fighting in ukraine under independent command from the russian military. north korea have denied the reports. ambulance workers in parts of england will head out on strike again for two days next month over a pay dispute. this comes

after yesterday's industrial action which lasted for 12 hours. 0nly action which lasted for 12 hours. only the most serious emergency calls were dealt with and members of the military were called in to help in some areas. he's one of the most popular and influential artists of ourtime, and now david hockney, yorkshire born and well into his 805, is pushing the boundaries once again, of what's possible in art. our culture editor, katie razzall has been to meet him. david hockney gets a first glimpse of his new show. colour is a joyful thing. i want my art to be joyful. we're on an immersive journey, as the final tweaks are under way, with one of britain's best—loved artists. water is a surface that's elusive, in a way. all the patterns that you see on it

are just on the surface. the show�*s called bigger & closer, not smaller & further away — 60 years of his life and art. have you just always been better at looking than the rest of us? i do look closely at things. i can look at a puddle and get pleasure out of them. most people think it's just raining, don't they? hockney has been painting on his ipad in recent years, most famously the arrival of spring in his home in normandy. this year, we discovered he was back painting on canvas when this self—portrait was revealed, and there's much more work still unseen. i have been doing paintings. how many? well, about a0. i painted my cook, the man who comes to do my feet, because he's a bit of a dandy. have you painted harry styles, is that right?

yes. in person? yes. he came to see you? oh, yeah, i mean, all the paintings are done from life. he wanted me to paint him. he had a few little outfits, and i chose this yellow sweater. yellow is a hockney favourite. how many pairs of crocs have you got? well, i've only got one, actually. these are the only shoes he wears now, he says, deemed "beautifully chosen" by king charles when they met — a rare outing for hockney. i'm usually drawing or painting, yeah. i mean, it's all i want to do now. i mean, i'm 85. how much longer do i have? i'm a smoker. but i might have five years, i don't know. yeah, i've had a very, very good life. i mean, i say i live

in the now. it's the now that's eternal, isn't it? eternal too — hockney�*s joyful art. katie razzall, bbc news. really remarkable stuff there and three years in the making. it really looked like an immersive experience indeed, just wish we would all have the chance to get a look. and that's it for the last programme of the year — the final newsday of 2022. can you believe it? to all of our wonderful viewers who tune in to this show, wherever you may be watching from, all over the world, on behalf of everyone here at the newsday team, i want to wish you a very merry christmas for all of those celebrating, and a happy holiday season to all of you. stay safe, stay well, and have a little fun if you're able to. i'll see you in 2023,

until then, happy new year. hello there. for most of us, temperatures for the run—up to christmas and indeed into the christmas period will be above the seasonal norm. so, it's staying mild for most of us with quite a lot of rain at times. that'll be followed by sunny spells, scattered showers for christmas eve and christmas day. however, there will be some snow around friday, and certainly into the start of the christmas period across the north of the uk, as cold air tries to push southwards, and eventually, it will win out for a time as we move through boxing day, but it will be short—lived with milder air returning into the run—up to new year. now, today, it's a very wet start across southern and western areas. this band of heavy and persistent rain slowly pushes its way northwards — some thundery bursts of rain perhaps on it as we head into the afternoon.

but it brightens up in the south — quite windy, though — strong south—westerly winds. to the north of this rain band, it's sunny spells, scattered showers. these will be over wintry elements over the hills. and it will be chillier in the north, ranging from around 4 to maybe 13 degrees in the south. that milder air will push northwards behind the rain band. but as this rain band pushes into the cold down the north, you'll likely see some transient snow in the north penines. the southern uplands will see some significant snowfall, i think, across parts of the highlands and the grampians. it will be quite a wet start to christmas eve here. but further south, generally dry and relatively mild. so, for christmas eve, itself, its going to be pretty wet and quite windy across scotland, further snow in the hills, but as the milder air in the south pushes northwards, it'll revert back to rain. and we'll see sunny spells, scattered showers, most of the showers southern and western areas. the winds will be strongest around the irish sea coast and up to 12 or 13 degrees in the south, seven or eight degrees in the north. as we move out of christmas eve into christmas day,

similar story — we're in a run of south—westerly winds, sunshine and showers. could see some rain, but that weather front scrapes the southeast through the day. and then this weather front spreading south eastwards into boxing day will introduce a line of showers, but also more crucially, a spell of colder air which will move south across the country. and that'll bring a mixture of sunny spells and wintry showers, particularly in the northwest corner of the country. but you will see that the cold spell is short—lived as we move out of boxing day and beyond. it's likely those temperatures will be rising above the seasonal norm. don't forget you can see detailed weather forecast for where you are and where you're going by checking out the bbc weather app.

this is bbc news. we'll have the headlines and all the main news stories for you at the top of the hour, straight after this programme. it's going to happen. something's going to happen. whose streets? rennes our streets! — whose streets? rennes our streets! if whose streets? rennes our streets! ~ ~ . whose streets? rennes our streets! ~ ~' . ., , streets! if mike pence does the riaht streets! if mike pence does the right thing. _ streets! if mike pence does the right thing. we _ streets! if mike pence does the right thing, we win _ streets! if mike pence does the right thing, we win the - right thing, we win the election. 0n on january 0njanuary six, on january six, 2020 0njanuary six, 20201,000 of donald trump supporters stormed the us capitol building, intent on disrupting the certification of the 2020 election results. hundreds of police officers were injured. 0ne, brian sid

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