commodity of all, their time, to support those around them in greatest need. together with the many charitable organisations which do such extraordinary work in the most difficult circumstances. our churches, synagogues, mosques, temples and gurdwaras have once again united in feeding the hungry, providing love and support throughout the year. such heartfelt solidarity is the most inspiring expression of loving our neighbour as ourself. the prince and princess of wales recently visited wales, shining a light on practical examples of this community spirit. some years ago, i was able to fulfil

a lifelong wish to visit bethlehem and the church of the nativity. there i went down into the chapel of the manger and stood in silent reverence by the silver star that is inlaid on the floor and marks the place of our lord jesus christ's birth. it meant more to me than i can possibly express to stand on that spot where, as the bible tells us, the light that has come into the world was born. while christmas is, of course, a christian celebration, the power of light overcoming darkness is celebrated across the boundaries of faith and belief. so whatever faith you have, or whether you have none, it is in this life—giving light, and with the true humility that lies

in our service to others, that i believe we can find hope for the future. let us therefore celebrate it together and cherish it always. with all my heart, i wish each of you a christmas of peace, happiness and everlasting light. # 0 little town of bethlehem # how still we see thee lie # above thy deep and dreamless sleep # the silent stars go by # yet in thy dark streets shineth # the everlasting light # the hopes and fears of all the years

# are met in thee tonight # how silently, how silently # the wondrous gift is given # so god imparts to human hearts # the blessings of his heaven...# crowd cheers # no ear may hear his coming # but in this world of sin # where meek souls will receive him still # the dear christ enters in # 0 holy child of bethlehem # descend to us, we pray

# cast out our sin and enter in # be born in us today # we hear the christmas angels # the great glad tidings tell # 0 come to us # abide with us # our lord emmanuel #. we will take a break in a moment but before we do that, some breaking

news from iran. the reuters news agency reporting that iran's revolutionary guards have arrested seven people today including dual nationals linked to the united kingdom, overthe nationals linked to the united kingdom, over the anti—government protests, according to a statement published by state media. they say that seven main leaders of the recent protests related to the uk were detained by intelligence services of the revolutionary guard, including dual nationals who were trying to leave the country, that's what the statement says. the unrest, we know was triggered back in september after the death in custody of mahsa amini, the 22—year—old who had been arrested by the morality police. we have seen months of protest since then. the biggest challenge to the islamic republic in decades, and increasingly we have seen really brutal crackdown by the authorities with recent executions. but that news coming in, being reported by the reuters news agency,

the iran revolutionary guard arresting seven people today, including dual nationals linked to the united kingdom. that's the only detail coming in from that user so far but we will bring you more as it comes to us. now on bbc news the weather with louise lear. hello there. merry christmas, one and all. if you haven't stepped outside yet, you're not missing much. it's a rather grey story for christmas day. it's mild for most of us, but there are some nuisance showers around as well. some clearing the far southeast. but this weather front here, well, that's going to enhance the showers into the far northwest, and gradually, as the day continues, drag in some cold air tucking in behind, but most of us staying under the yellow hues, that means it's mild for the time of year. this is the latest radar. the rain easing from the southeast. plenty of sharp showers pushing in along west—facing coasts and yes, even some wintriness to the tops of higher ground in scotland. that means that this christmas day is probably likely to be classed as a white christmas. we just need one snowflake falling on christmas day, and we'll see further snow showers as we go into the evening

and overnight to close out christmas day. we will start to see some accumulations developing in scotland, maybe as much as 5 to 10 centimetres to higher ground. so that's certainly worth bearing in mind. elsewhere some showers, which will mean some icy stretches into northern ireland, but largely fine and quiet, and a little bit milder to start boxing day across england and wales. so first thing on boxing day, some ice to watch out for through northern ireland and into scotland. further snow showers, further accumulations into the far northwest are likely here. but elsewhere we should see some sunshine coming through on boxing day. there will be further showers, particularly on exposed west—facing coasts. the best of any shelter, the best of the drier weather. we should see double figures, 10 degrees quite widely across eastern england. now, as we move out of monday into the start of tuesday, we're likely to see this weather front introducing milder air once again, but unfortunately, more of an unsettled feel. so tuesday, we'll see,

on the leading edge, some snow for a time, but it should turn quickly back to rain for most at lower levels in scotland. some heavy rain along west—facing coasts, driven by some gusty winds, a0 to 50 miles an hour on exposed coasts, 30 miles an hour inland. so tuesday will be a wet and windy day for many. we're looking at temperatures 4 to 7 degrees in scotland, maybe as high as 11 celsius down in the southeast. and that showery, windy theme is set to continue for the remainder of the week, but largely mild for all. take care.

this is bbc world news, the headlines: king charles pays tribute to his late mother queen elizabeth — and reflects on the cost of living crisis — in his first christmas message. at least twenty people have died in extreme winter storms in the us and canada — more than one million people are without power. police in liverpool are hunting a gunman — after a 26—year—old woman died, and four were injured in a pub shooting on christmas eve. as ten civilians are killed by russian shelling in the city of kherson, president zelensky says airstrikes will not diminish the spirit of ukrainians. one final story here, iran's

revolutionary guards have arrested seven people, including dual nationals linked to the uk, over months of anti—government protests. that statement just coming months of anti—government protests. that statementjust coming into being reported on the reuters news agency. we will keep an eye on that and wring you any it comes into us. we will keep an eye on that and wring you any it comes into us. now on bbc news, it's time for review 2022. the death of her majesty the queen and accession of king charles created headlines around the world in september. just three months earlier the royal family had marked queen elizabeth's platinum jubilee. daniella relph reports on a year of upheaval and transition in the royal year: (tx next) a year the world mourned queen elizabeth ii. # i am the resurrection.