welcome to bbc news. i'm david willis. our top stories — hundreds flee the ukrainian city of kherson because of intense russian shelling. we'll have a special report from on the ground. behind me, actually, is where an explosion took place just over an hour ago. five people killed her, 20 were injured. every single day, there are people being killed the city. more than 60 people are killed in winter storms across the united states and canada. president biden approves emergency funding. the un security council denounces a ban by afghanistan's taliban—led government on women attending universities or working for humanitarian aid groups. and who is george santos? we'll tell you about

the ambitious us politician, who seemingly lied his way into congress. a very warm welcome to bbc news, and we start this hour with a special report from ukraine. from the southern port of kherson, which is under increased bombardment from russian forces, and where, today, the maternity ward of a hospital was among the places being shelled. kherson is often called "the gateway to crimea" and, because of its strategic importance, it was one of the first places taken by russian forces at the start of the war. it was liberated last month, in a significant gain for ukrainian troops, but civilians are now living with a daily onslaught of russian shelling. 0ur correspondent yogita limaye has spent the last four days

in kherson, with colleagues imogen anderson, sanjay ganguly and mariana matveichuk, and they sent this special report. i should warn you, it contains some distressing images. kherson is being pounded. this is where one of more than a0 mortars fell in a single day. a city haunted by relentless attacks. another shell hit nearby between a block of homes. as the firemen worked, we heard the sound of more explosions. after a brief pause, they returned to the job, dousing the fire before anyone was hurt. down the road, we found

people in a panic. "punish the russians fortheir crimes, punish them their whole lives", a woman cried. they had just seen a neighbour's home being bombed. she had to be rescued from the debris. over and over, the cycle repeats. the day before, 56—year—old serhii breshun was killed here while he was sleeping. we met his mother tamara. serhii was her only child. translation: | must have feltj something would go wrong that morning, because i urged him to wake up and leave the house, but he didn't, and that was it. 0ur lives are ruined.

she had come to look for his passport amidst the rubble. a document to release his body from the morgue. we had barely finished the conversation and there's more bombing. where do you live? man: more started. this is a picture of what's happening literally every single day in multiple locations, this is the constant she sound that we hear in kherson of artillery fire being exchanged. this city is essentially now pretty much on the front line, close to the river, which has become the de facto front line in the south. behind me, actually, is where an explosion took placejust over an hour ago. five people were killed here, 20 were injured. every single day there are people being killed in this city. six more died later, ordinary people out

at the central market. at a spot where just last month they had celebrated being freed from russian control. surviving in kherson is a matter of chance. viktoria yaryshko, a red cross volunteer, was killed just outside this base, a few feet from safety. in the underground shelter, her mother liudmyla showed us the medal of honour she was given. translation: i'm very happy she helped a lot of people. i she was so kind. but it's also painful for me. i must recover and raise her two children. i tell them they should be proud of their mother, because she's a hero. viktoria's son sasha and his sister live here, clearly comfortable with other volunteers. war and loss bind them together. dmitro was viktoria's friend.

translation: when someone so close dies, it is difficult, - but if we give up and stop, then her death will have been in vain. we work to make sure people live. everything else is secondary. the bombs don't stop. while he waits for emergency calls... ..he checks if his wife and children are ok. then he heads out to evacuate those in need. in the few days that we have been here, we have seen the sentiment of relief that there was in this city after it was liberated from russian control in november change very quickly to one of fear and terror. when the russians withdrew, they pulled back to the other side of the dnipro river, and that's where they're continuously bombarding this city from. hundreds have begun to leave kherson. these roads leading out had been clear until christmas.

have you been affected by the shelling? we asked iryna antonenko why she was going. translation: we stayed this whole time and thought it - would pass, but when the home next to ours and my father's home was hit, it was too scary. at the train station, a mother and three daughters. carrying all they can in small bags and boxes. "it's very difficult to leave, i love ukraine and my dear city, but we have to get out of here somehow now," elena selivanova told us. she doesn't know when she might see these friends again. everyone in this city has a painful choice to make. at least 62 people have been killed in winter storms sweeping across north america.

us officials are calling it the "blizzard of the century", with an extra nine inches of snow expected during the day in new york state, where the city of buffalo has borne the brunt of the arctic conditions. the storm has affected a vast area, from canada in the north, down through the us, and reaching mexico. president biden has approved emergency measures, allowing financial support for new york state. with all the latest, our correspondent nada tawfik reports from new york. buried by record snowfall, buffalo has only begun to dig itself out. up until now, near whiteout conditions and hurricane—force winds created a life—threatening situation, paralysing emergency response efforts and trapping vehicles along the roadways. this once—in—a—lifetime blizzard has claimed the lives of at least 28 people here during the holiday weekend. the fear now is that more

fatalities will be uncovered by the melting snow. the situation is still dire. thousands are without power, and a driving ban remains in place. at grocery stores, reopening for the first time since the storm hit, people queued up to stock up on much—needed essentials and food. authorities pleaded with people to be careful as they slowly open up the city over the next several days. there's a lot of roads that are completely blocked right now, that have no access whatsoever, and people are trying to drive on these roads, or get into these neighbourhoods, and they can't. please, please, you heard the mayor beg, i'm begging, stay home. in other parts of the country, thawing out after the deep freeze has led to a new set of issues. in montana, which recorded temperatures as frigid as —45 celsius, the sudden warming created flash flooding.

in the small town of fishtail, massive chunks of ice blocked roads and covered people's yards. that shift in temperature caused ice to melt very quickly. and itjust released all of the ice off of the west rosebud, causing kind of like a tidal wave. this storm is truly unprecedented in scope, stretching from canada to mexico, affecting 60% of the us population. presidentjoe biden has promised the full force of the federal government to help those most affected, and while the bad weather has already started to ease, problems will likely persist for days. this is a holiday season no—one will soon forget. it should have been a time for cheer. instead, the bomb cyclone has brought misery. nada tawfik, bbc news, new york. let's go to new york now, where we can speak to stef georgiou, who's a uk

expat living in buffalo. welcome to bbc news. you've had a rough few days there in buffalo. are things getting better in any way?- better in any way? yeah, absolutely. _ better in any way? yeah, absolutely. honestly, - better in any way? yeah, i absolutely. honestly, today better in any way? yeah, - absolutely. honestly, today has been a really good day, as far as productivity and towing and getting the streets more cloud. we did get another kind of handful of but definitely improving. handful of but definitely improving-— handful of but definitely imrovinu. improving. the driving ban i | believe are still in force, any sign that might be lifted any time soon? we sign that might be lifted any time soon?— time soon? we don't really know. time soon? we don't really know we _ time soon? we don't really know. we haven't - time soon? we don't really know. we haven't really . know. we haven't really received a lot of information. we did get word from the local government that because of the way the snow is packed, they aren't able to just plough it, they actually have to remove it and move it somewhere else. so

because of that, i'm assuming they are kind of going to give it another few days, maybe two or three, it another few days, maybe two orthree, but it another few days, maybe two or three, but the areas around the city have been cleared to drive n. and what is your own situation they _ drive n. and what is your own situation they are _ drive n. and what is your own situation they are and - drive n. and what is your own situation they are and how- drive n. and what is your own | situation they are and how this christmas for you? it situation they are and how this christmas for you?— christmas for you? it was reall , christmas for you? it was really, really _ christmas for you? it was really, really good. - christmas for you? it was really, really good. i- christmas for you? it was really, really good. i got| christmas for you? it was i really, really good. i got to spend it with my partner. we had a lovely dinner at home. we were very fortunate, in the sense we didn't lose power, we didn't lose heating, which are both incredibly vital right now, and lots of people in the community did. lots of people in the city around estate. as well as there are people who are stuck in cars. so we feel really, really fortunate, very lucky. we had a nice christmas dinner, went down for a nap. again, we feel very, very privileged during this right now. �* ., privileged during this right now. ., , now. but for some people, it must have — now. but for some people, it must have been _ now. but for some people, it must have been an _ now. but for some people, it| must have been an extremely worrying period, i'm thinking

perhaps of elderly people stuck in the homes, people who have been without power and so on. yeah, absolutely. we personally have friends who lost their power. my boyfriend's family lost their power. they live about 20 minutes away across the motorway, so they didn't have power and they ended up going to relatives's house. luckily, they were within walking distance. a lot of people spent christmas day kind of bundled up trying to stay warm. it was really, really unfortunate for a lot of people. i unfortunate for a lot of maple-— unfortunate for a lot of --eole. , , ., people. i hope things improve their soon. — people. i hope things improve their soon, thank— people. i hope things improve their soon, thank you - people. i hope things improve their soon, thank you very - people. i hope things improve l their soon, thank you very much forjoining us here on bbc news. the un security council has denounced a ban by the country's taliban—led administration on women attending universities or working for humanitarian aid groups. in a statement, the council members call for the full, equal and meaningful participation of women and girls. the statement says the restrictions imposed on female aid workers contradict commitments made by the taliban to the afghan people, as well as the expectations of the

international community. mariam atash is an afghan american attorney and women's rights activist, and a member of the us—afghan women's council. she joins us now live from washington, dc. rank you very much for your time. given the international outrage, can these bands ensure, do you think? it is very sad — ensure, do you think? it is very sad for— ensure, do you think? it is very sad for me _ ensure, do you think? it is very sad for me to be - very sad for me to be on this programme began speaking about this issue. it has only gotten worse since the taliban takeover last august, it started with some policies and there has been an encroachment, a slow taking away of afghan women's rights, slowly, by first segregating them in university than preventing girls from grade six from

attending school under the guise that these are suspensions, not bans, but it has only gotten worse, there has only gotten worse, there has been to after decree, limiting women's access to public places, employment, and now it banning them from university access as well as working for international or local ngos. this policy is totally wrong, it goes against islamic law, long—standing afghan law that has just changed by the taliban in a short time, and international law. i short time, and international law. ., short time, and international law. . ., ., , law. i have heard that it is said the — law. i have heard that it is said the international - law. i have heard that it is said the international [awl said the international law could do more to protest these measures, but what more could do? ., ~ ., ., ., ., measures, but what more could do? ., 4' ., . ., ., . do? you know, we have to go and sa , how do? you know, we have to go and say. how did _ do? you know, we have to go and say, how did the _ do? you know, we have to go and say, how did the taliban - do? you know, we have to go and say, how did the taliban come - say, how did the taliban come back into power after 20 years? in the us, not only the us, but nato was also there fighting against this war saying they were terrorists and extremists, basically handing over basically handing over basically that had been rebuilt

back to this group without negotiating how these issues were to be handled. it has been a total failure of the international community including the united nations and the us administration to basically allow this group to come in without any preconditions. there was a chance to negotiate and have an interim government that would happen representative of the afghan ball. happen representative of the afghan ball-— happen representative of the afghan ball. these measures remain in _ afghan ball. these measures remain in place, _ afghan ball. these measures remain in place, what- afghan ball. these measures remain in place, what would | afghan ball. these measures l remain in place, what would be the impact on the people of afghanistan and indeed the country's economy?- afghanistan and indeed the country's economy? right now the afghan _ country's economy? right now the afghan economy _ country's economy? right now the afghan economy is - country's economy? right now the afghan economy is already suffering so much, the brain drain has happened with people fleeing the country because of not only the taliban but the lack of opportunity, and this will only cripple the economy further, having 50% of the population not being able to work... women are heads of households, videos, it is that is democratic, their right under law that afghanistan has signed treaties to be able to work but i also want to add

that afghan men on not supporting this policy. the taliban do not represent the will of the afghan people with these policies. just this past weekend about 60 university professors resigned from a position stating they will not agree to teach classes if they cannot teach women. this is just going to further not only destabilise the economy but destabilise afghan society. thank you for your time. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: meet the mystery man of congress. the ambitious us politician, who wasn't exactly straight with the voters. the most ambitious financial and political change ever attempted has got under way with the introduction of the euro. tomorrow in holland, we're gonna use money we picked up in belgium today and then, we'll be in france and again. _ it'll be the same money. it's just got to be the way to go. crowd yelling

george harrison, i the former beatle, is recovering in hospital after being stabbed - at his oxfordshire home. a 33—year—old man from - liverpool is being interviewed by police on suspicion of attempted murder. - i think it was good. just good? no, fantastic. big ben bongs this is bbc news. the latest headlines: hundreds of people are fleeing the ukrainian city of kherson because of intense russian shelling attacks.

more than 60 people have been killed in winter storms across the united states and canada. president biden has approved emergency federal help. there have been calls in the us for a newly—elected republican congressman to resign, after he admitted embellishing his resume. throughout his campaign, george santos — who is set to represent a district on long island — said he'd worked for major banks, and graduated from a university. but an investigation by the new york times found that many of his claims were false. on monday, george santos spoke to the podcast political personalities with skye about being caught out. did i embellish my resume? yes, i did. and i'm sorry. and it shouldn't be done and words can't express 100% how i feel. but i am still the same guy.

i'm nota fraud, i'm not a cartoon character, i'm not some mythical creature that was invented. i apologise if anybody feels hurt or betrayed. i will gain everybody�*s trust back by delivering results for them and making sure they do not forget why they voted for me in the first place, which was to get stuff done. richard painter is law professor at the university of minnesota and former white house ethics lawyer in the george w bush administration. he's in st paul, minnesota. hejoins us now. welcome to bbc news. we have seen some scandals in american politics over the years, but it is fair to say, i think, that this is quite unlike any other? well, this is in some ways. this man lied, he lied about his college degree, he lied about his work experience, he lied about his family heritage.

he is a liar. now, we of course refuse to seed in united states congress implement any politician who was a liar then we may not see a good portion of them, but, that being said it is really quite shocking that republicans have not condemned this liar and have not asked him to resign. he should resign, he should not take his seat in the united states accounts. but take his seat in the united states accounts.— states accounts. but it is - re states accounts. but it is pretty obvious _ states accounts. but it is pretty obvious why - states accounts. but it is pretty obvious why they l states accounts. but it is - pretty obvious why they haven't condemned his line because they need him after all? of course, it is all about of course, it is all about power and people will tell lies in order to obtain power and political parties will tolerate lies and liars in order to retain power, and look what happened to donald trump, president of the united states of four years. he told lies about president 0bama's birth certificate, and that was years before he even ran for president. he told lies throughout his administration, he told lies about the election 2020, very, very dangerous lies, i must say, far more

dangerous than the lies here. this is a serious problem. when politicians and their followers are willing to adhere to alternative facts, as kelly and conway sat on the white house lawn in 2017, president yoon's advisor, she talked about alternative facts as if there is one set of facts for of facts for you, that we don't have objective truth anymore, and that is a very dangerous trend in politics, that is what led up to the insurrection of the 2020 election, two alternative sets facts. biden won the election and biden did not? we all know on objective truth that president biden won the election, but there are too many people who don't understand that i want to believe alternative facts. this is just an illustration of a much, much broader problem in american politics and we are seeing this in some other countries as well where people

want to believe lies simply because the lies are told by people who they sympathise with, who believe further their own political views and objectives. = own political views and objectives.— own political views and ob'ectives. . , ., objectives. - imagine, george sentences _ objectives. - imagine, george sentences in _ objectives. - imagine, george sentences in election - objectives. - imagine, george sentences in election denier, l sentences in election denier, he is a of donald trump. does the fact that he has been caught up in this way perhaps represent a watershed in lying in american politics perhaps? certainly 6 january in american politics perhaps? certainly 6january and in american politics perhaps? certainly 6 january and the insurrection represented lying insurrection represented lying in america, it is one thing to support donald vote for him on the 2020 election but to pretend there was fraud in the election when i was absolutely no forward, to make up alternative facts, to deny objective truth, to enter a post—modern world where somehow we don't have objective truth, when my true is as good as your truth and it all depends on who has the power to impose their truth on someone else, well, that is not a

representative moccasin anymore, that is not a civilised society. the united states needs to make up its mind, we, the american people, need to make up our mind. are we willing to put up with lies and falsehood, alternative facts, simply to get the political power that we want, the party and the power in washington? 0r the party and the power in washington? or do we want to live in a democracy where objective truth, where voting, the democratic process, well, thatis the democratic process, well, that is how these matters are resolved. ., ~ , ., that is how these matters are resdlved-_ that is how these matters are resolved. ., ~ , ., , . resolved. thank you very much, we must live — resolved. thank you very much, we must live a _ resolved. thank you very much, we must live a babet _ resolved. thank you very much, we must live a babet thank - resolved. thank you very much, we must live a babet thank you| we must live a babet thank you your time. we must live a babet thank you your time-— we must live a babet thank you our time. ., ,, ,, , . pop—star mel c has announced she's pulling out of a new year's eve concert in poland. she didn't specify why, but her decision has been praised by members of the lgbt community. the polish authorities and the television company that was going to broadcast the concert have been widely criticised for their attitudes to gay rights. the bbc�*s tim allman reports.

# i thought that we would just be friends # things will never be the same again. for more than 25 years, both as a solo artist and as part of the spice girls, mel c has been performing all around the world. but now she has decided there is at least one place where she does not want to perform. in a statement on twitter she said: mel c is a high—profile supporter of lgbt rights. even being named as honorary gay by attitude magazine earlier this year. gay rights have become something of a flashpoint in poland, with demonstrators on both sides taking to the streets. same—sex marriages and civil unions are not recognised in the country and same—sex couples have no legal right

to adopt children. earlier this year amnesty international said the atmosphere of hostility towards the community is growing dangerously worse. the issue of pop stars performing in countries with a conservative attitude to lgbt rights was recently highlighted by the world cup in qatar. big names like robbie williams and the black eyed peas held concerts during the event, even though homosexuality is illegal in the country. as for mel c, her decision was welcomed by some in poland. 0ne opposition politican saying, "equality is equality. no discussion or compromise." tim allman, bbc news. you can get more on that story and the others featured in this bulletin on the website. 0r download the app. thank you for watching.

hello. on tuesday, it was cold enough for snow in parts of scotland. through the rest of this week, and indeed the rest of the year, there will be some snow, but only really over hills in the north, because elsewhere it'll be too mild for that — some spells of heavy rain instead and some strong winds. a lot of rain to come, actually, particularly over the hills in wales and the western side of england. some places here could see over 100 millimetres of rain over the next five days, so that could cause some flooding and some disruption. and this bout of wet weather will move its way northwards and eastwards during wednesday, a frontal system pushing in quite quickly from the south—west. rain moving quickly northwards across england, wales, into northern ireland, southern and central parts of scotland. we may see some snow mixing in over the highest ground of the grampians. it's going to be windy, particularly across england and wales. those are the gusts we can expect through the afternoon. but it will be mild for most,

11 or 12 degrees for much of england and wales, ten there for northern ireland. for scotland, highs of six or seven degrees. now, as we go through wednesday night, this band of rain — with some snow over the mountains in scotland — will continue to drift northwards. plenty of showers following on with some blustery winds. 0vernight, temperatures generally between 4—8 degrees. but as we go into thursday, a subtle change because as this area of low pressure drifts through and we end up on the back edge of it, well, the winds will shift direction to a north—westerly, so it's going to feel a little bit chillier on thursday. nothing exceptional for the time of year. it's certainly not going to be a cold day butjust a slightly chillier one, 6—10 degrees, sunny spells, some showers, which will be wintry over high ground in the north. and then for friday, another weather system. an area of low pressure hurtles in from the atlantic. that will bring some very heavy rain, again, moving its way quite quickly northwards and eastwards, with some snow over the mountains in scotland, clearing to sunshine and showers. the risk of gales in places on friday.

but with the winds broadly coming from the southwest, it is going to be a mild day. now, for the end of 2022 and into the start of the new year, northern parts of the uk will see something a little colder and there could be some snow over the hills. further south, it'll be milder with some rain at times.

this is bbc news. the headlines: hundreds of people are fleeing the ukrainian city of kherson because of intense russian shelling. bombardment of the city has increased sharply over the past few days. on tuesday, a shell hit the maternity ward of a hospital. president zelensky said russian air strikes would not harm the spirit of ukrainians. at least 62 people have been killed in winter storms sweeping across north america. us officials are calling it the "blizzard of the century".

the storm has affected a vast area from canada in the north