this is bbc news. welcome to viewers in the uk and around the world. our main headlines. china is accused of a lack of transparency about the true scale of their covid problem. italy becomes the first european country to impose restrictions on people travelling from china. the us is considering a similar move. it sparks an angry response from beijing. translation: the argument. you mentioned is a biased smear campaign and political manipulation with a hidden agenda, which does not stand up to scrutiny or facts and runs counter to the truth. as people flee kherson, ukraine says russia has carried out more than 30 rocket attacks in the past 2a hours alone. pope francis asks people to pray for his predecessor, benedict the 16th, who he says is very ill. the vatican says benedict's

condition has worsened in recent hours. and britain is on course to record its warmest year ever, after a summer of heatwaves, wildfires and drought. we'll look at the impact it's had. welcome to bbc news. the announcement that china's borders are to be reopened next month is prompting a tough response by an increasing number of countries. italy is the latest to announce plans to enforce mandatory covid testing of passengers on flights from china after tighter measures were outlined by japan, malaysia, taiwan and india. the us and the philippines are also considering new coronavirus restrictions. american officials accuse the chinese authorities of a lack of transparency as cases of covid have

been surging there. our diplomatic correspondent, paul adams, reports. from the world's most populous nation, alarming scenes — china's hospitals overwhelmed, covid infections soaring. the country's abrupt decision to dismantle much of its strict covid regime apparently yielding worrying results. wards full of desperately ill people. outside this hospital in chengdu, a queue for emergency services. government officials say the situation is under control. that's not what these pictures suggest. at this funeral home, one of the city's biggest, more evidence of the scale of the problem. one funeral procession after another — workers here say they're so busy they have no time to eat. and yet china is opening up — about to relax rules for inbound travellers and making it easierfor chinese citizens to travel abroad.

welcome news for travel companies after three bleak years. translation: since this | morning, we have had lots of inquiries from our customers, they're asking whether they can travel abroad normally again, whether they will need to quarantine on their return and when international tourism will return. it's hard to know just how bad china's coronavirus situation really is. china says it recorded 5,231 new covid cases yesterday and just three deaths nationwide. but people are no longer required to declare infections to the authorities, so the official figures are unlikely to tell the full story. and so neighbouring countries — japan, malaysia, taiwan and india, all worried about the possibility of importing covid cases — have already announced tighter measures for chinese travellers, including the requirement for negative tests. much further afield, american officials, citing a lack of transparency surrounding the virus in china, say they are also

considering new restrictions. and, in europe, italy has become the first country to say that it's making coronavirus tests mandatory. back in beijing, officials reject any suggestion china has lost control. translation: the argument. you mentioned is a biased smear campaign and political manipulation with a hidden agenda, which doesn't stand up to scrutiny and runs counter to the truth. after last month's nationwide protest, this is the image china wants to project — a country finally turning its back on the virus and on its own draconian response. but china's long, hard battle with covid is far from over. paul adams, bbc news. professor anne rimoin from ucla fielding school of public health told me why she was concerned about china's recent surge in covid cases. i think the issue here is that we don't have a lot of data coming out of china right now. we don't have case counts,

we don't have good mortality data, and we certainly don't have good sequencing data that could tell us a lot about what variants are circulating and what we could expect. i think the idea of requiring testing, which will allow us to have an idea of what is happening and be able to follow the sequencing and the data, will be a smart move. what is the major concern? is it that there are really high numbers, case numbers, in china? is it new variants? what exactly is the real area of concern here? every time you have a surge, you're seeing a lot of infections circulating in the population. every time the virus has a chance to spread, it has a chance to mutate. these mutations can eventually result in a new variant. that's what we saw with india and the delta variant. we saw this with omicron, too, when we saw big surges. if there is checked spread of the virus and it's spreading so quickly in a large and vulnerable population, you could see the opportunity for a new variant to

arise that could threaten the rest of the world. infection anywhere is potentially infection everywhere. what about vaccination rates within china and the types of vaccines they have been using? is that a worry? the chinese have been using the vaccines that have been available there in china. they're an older technology. while most of the population has received the initial doses, they have not been well boosted. so you don't have a population that's had natural immunity from infection, or excellent protection from a boosted population that has relatively recent boosters. so, we have a very susceptible population, a very large population, and very contagious variants circulating. so many countries are looking at this and monitoring what will happen as china relaxes the policy, allows

people to travel abroad. in terms of that monitoring, what are people like you, what should we be looking out for in the coming weeks? we should be getting a sense of if people are coming in with covid, what variant may be circulating and being able to ensure that we understand what is happening globally. global surveillance is a great idea. whether or not we have a new variant surging, a large outbreak occurring, to be able to have information to get ahead of this virus is always going to be important. in this scenario, where we have a very large outbreak, getting that data and being able to get ahead of it before it's too late is going to be critically important. let turned to the war. ukraine says russia has stepped up mortar and artillery attacks on the recently liberated city of kherson in the south of the country. kyiv�*s armed forces said,

in the last 2a hours — in the last 2a hours, 33 rockets had targeted the city. russian forces abandoned kherson last month in one of ukraine's most significant gains of the war. but it's come under renewed attack. on saturday, a russian strike on kherson killed at least 10 people and wounded nearly 60. our correspondent, hugo bachega, sent this report from kyiv. tears in kherson. a final goodbye for another life lost to the war. this city was liberated by ukraine just last month. but liberation hasn't brought relief. russia's bombing has been relentless. it doesn't stop — even for the dead. natalia was in her flat when a shell hit. she was a7. when a shell hit. ukraine's advance pushed russian forces out of kherson. they're now on the other side of the dnipro river, from where they've been pounding

the city, day and night. in the last 2a hours, more than 30 missiles were fired at civilian targets. this was one of the places hit — the maternity ward of a hospital. luckily, no—one was killed. the road leading out of the city used to be clearjust days ago. now, it's full of families fleeing. "we stayed all this time, but when the home next "to ours was hit, we became scared", this woman says. the danger is not only kherson. here, in kyiv, the air raid alert sounded again this morning. on the battlefield, neither russia nor ukraine have made significant gains in recent weeks, but away from the front lines, people are being warned of the russian threat coming from the sky. hugo bachega, bbc news, kyiv.

well, if the latest on the battlefield, ukraine's president zelensky has been making his annual address to parliament. here's a little of what he said. translation: ukraine has united the eumpean union- _ now, europe is defending itself. europe is overcoming the crises despite the enormous amount of resources that russia is deploying to break our continent. everything russia has tried to do against europe has not worked. the deadly winter storm that hit north america over the christmas weekend is continuing to inflict chaos on air travellers across the country, as thousands remain stranded. most airlines have resumed regular services, with one excpetion — services, with one exception — southwest airlines continues to be the worst affected, calling off more than two and a half thousand flights today. joining me now is senior reporter at the travel website and blog,

the points guy, zach griff. welcome to the programme. in terms of a total on cancellation today, what is the number and why are southwest doing so badly? first of all, thanks southwest doing so badly? first of all. thanks so _ southwest doing so badly? first of all, thanks so much _ southwest doing so badly? first of all, thanks so much for— southwest doing so badly? first of all, thanks so much for having - southwest doing so badly? first of| all, thanks so much for having me. southwest is cancelling about two thirds of its schedule today. it's doing that through the end of the week, which is such a popular time with the new year coming up. what happened to southwest is not necessarily an isolated situation. every airline experienced the major disruptions from the winter weather that came through much of the country during the christmas week. but southwest has failed so miserably at recovering from that winter storm. miserably at recovering from that winterstorm. it's miserably at recovering from that winter storm. it's really about two things. the first is that the airline has a very unique route network within the us. it doesn't typically operate hub to hub service. you typically point to zigzag across the country all day,

and when one flight cancelled, it puts the crew really out of position. when the airline went to go and reschedule many of those crew members, their schedule e system also got back up, leading to our long waits and this major meltdown that we're seeing. that long waits and this ma'or meltdown that we're seeing.— that we're seeing. that phrase meltdown _ that we're seeing. that phrase meltdown is _ that we're seeing. that phrase meltdown is the _ that we're seeing. that phrase meltdown is the exact - that we're seeing. that phrase meltdown is the exact phrase | that we're seeing. that phrase - meltdown is the exact phrase used by the us secretary of transport. in terms of those people, who had the flights cancelled, with most airlines getting back to some sort of normality, is it automatically assumed that those people will now get flights or not that case? weill. get flights or not that case? well, southwest cancelling _ get flights or not that case? -ii southwest cancelling everything, most of their schedule through friday, they're also not allowing passengers to be rebooked on flights during this window. what we're seeing is the airline has promised to reimburse customers who go out of pocket and make purchases with other

airlines or transportation providers. some of these last minute walks are sky high, $800 for short domestic flights. the other issue is there are so few available seats with other airlines right now because we're the biggest travel period. —— in possibly the biggest. it is a tough situation. it’s period. -- in possibly the biggest. it is a tough situation.— it is a tough situation. it's not automatic — it is a tough situation. it's not automatic. that _ it is a tough situation. it's not automatic. that they'll - it is a tough situation. it's not automatic. that they'll get. it is a tough situation. it's not automatic. that they'll get a i it is a tough situation. it's not - automatic. that they'll get a plane ticket, just tell me just some of the root —— some of the worst stories you've heard from passengers stranded, stuck, sleeping at airports. it stranded, stuck, sleeping at airorts. ., , ., , airports. it goes in so many ways. i've seen peeple _ airports. it goes in so many ways. i've seen people who _ airports. it goes in so many ways. i've seen people who have - airports. it goes in so many ways. | i've seen people who have needed airports. it goes in so many ways. i i've seen people who have needed to drive thousands of miles not to their destination, butjust to the airport where their checked bags were sent to because they wanted to be reunited with their belongings after having them out of their

control and southwest hands for many, many days. i've seen folks who have gone together to rent cars, people who never knew each other but were stranded together to go from places to front —— from los angeles to pittsburgh. there's a lot of horror stories right there right now this season. we horror stories right there right now this season-— this season. we have to leave it there. this season. we have to leave it there- zach. _ this season. we have to leave it there. zach, thanks _ this season. we have to leave it there. zach, thanks so - this season. we have to leave it there. zach, thanks so much . this season. we have to leave itj there. zach, thanks so much for bringing us some of the latest. the united states and european union have appealed to kosovo and serbia to exercise maximum restraint, as tensions are rising in northern kosovo. kosovan police have closed the main border crossing into serbia after roadblocks were set up on the serbian side. ethnic serbs have been blocking roads in northern kosovo for weeks, in protests sparked initially by a dispute over car number plates. kosovo's prime minister is urging the nato—led peacekeeping force in kosovo to remove the blockades. let's get some context. kosovo was part of the former

yugoslav republic serbia until war broke out between them in 1998. this ended the following year after nato troops forced serb troops out of kosovo. in 2008, kosovo declared its independence from serbia. lars—gunnar wigermark is head of the eu rule of law mission to kosovo — he just told me of his increasing concern — at what's happening. i think we've all been very concerned by the increasing tensions and escalations that we've seen, especially over the last couple of weeks and since these illegal barricades went up in response to the arrest of a former kosovo police officer. this is really unprecedented. we have to come back at least ten years to see anything like this. of course, it comes at a time where all eyes are on ukraine and the war.

the last thing that europe needs is another conflict. i read out there are calls for maximum restraint. what do you think are the dangers here? well. maximum restraint. what do you think are the dangers here?— are the dangers here? well, the dancers are the dangers here? well, the dangers is _ are the dangers here? well, the dangers is that _ are the dangers here? well, the dangers is that you _ are the dangers here? well, the dangers is that you have - are the dangers here? well, the dangers is that you have an - dangers is that you have an escalation of violence. what started as peaceful protests and turned into barricades, shootings both against kosovo police and an attack at one of our patrols, and shooting on last sunday for the nato peacekeeping force here. we've seen violence, tensions, alleged kidnappings of several people in a northern kosovo. this is what happens when you have a general breakdown in the rule of law, and that is the preparation at the advanced stage of a possible parent conflict. we do hope that will be avoided. we have tried to fill the security vacuum that appeared over a month ago when

kosovo police officers resigned, as well as the entire judiciary in northern kosovo. but we have limited deeds at our disposal here. nato has troops here, but this is been a relatively calm area for the last ten years or so. i relatively calm area for the last ten years or so.— ten years or so. i read out the prime minister _ ten years or so. i read out the prime minister saying - ten years or so. i read out the prime minister saying that. ten years or so. i read out the i prime minister saying that time ten years or so. i read out the - prime minister saying that time is running out for those nato peacekeepers to remove the roadblocks. how practical is that, that call for the nato peacekeepers to intervene and actually do that? well, this is really for nato to reply to, but i did attend a meeting together with the k for commander here. and the prime ministerjust two days ago. we have every intention to remove these barricades. we've heard from the

prime minister and others in kosovo that they would like to see kosovo police remove these barricades. in either case, this of course will lead to further violence, and this is something we want to avoid. so that's why we're advocating for a de—escalation and a negotiated solution. whereas illegal barricades are removed, that theirfreedom of movement is restored and rule of law prevails. this officer has certain rights to due process. he is under arrest. it's been reported today by the judge to put arrest. it's been reported today by thejudge to put him into house arrest. pope francis has asked roman catholics to pray for his predecessor pope benedict, who he said was very ill. francis made the surprise appeal at the end of his general audience at the vatican. born in germany, he became pope in 2005, before stepping down in 2013 after nearly eight years, citing a "lack of strength of mind and body" due to his age.

benedict xvi is now 95, and his health has been deteriorating. michael kelly is managing editor of the irish catholic newspaper — he spoke to me about today's development. pope francis was with his regular wednesday audience with the pilgrims who come to rome every wednesday to receive his blessing, and he just mentioned it at the end and this really started a lot of activity among the journalists who tried to find out what exactly is going on. so, we did find out a little bit later directly from the vatican press office that they are concerned that pope benedict's condition did decline in the early hours of the morning. they say it's steady and it's been monitored by doctors, but undoubtedly, there is concern about this — his health has been in decline. we have seen him greeting people in december. he had recipients of a prize visit him in december. but they did say he was very weak, that his voice was almost inaudible, so there would be serious concern

around that, given his age and frailty. we are in unusual territory, because benedict, the first to stand down in about 600 years. we've got accustomed to the various procedures around a pope passing whilst in office, but not a situation like this. no, this really is unprecedented. and i knowjournalists use that word a lot, but i think we can use it with confidence here because, normally when the pope dies, the first thing that concerns catholics is that we need to elect a new pope. but obviously, that's not the case here. we have pope francis, hale and hearty. the vatican have consistently over the last ten years refused to say what the procedures or the protocol would be around benedict xvi's death when that does in fact happen. we know that he himself is a very meticulous man, so this is something that will be planned very, very closely. but it won't be like previous papal funerals, for example, quite apart from the religious significance of the pope

in the civil sphere. benedict xvi is just like a retired head of state, like any other monarch, in any other part of the world. he no longer has an international role. michael kelly. here in the uk, merseyside police have made a new appeal for people to come forward with any information following the fatal shooting of a woman on christmas eve. ellie edwards, who was 26, was shot outside the lighthouse pub in wallasey just before midnight on saturday. police have suggested she was not the intended target. our correspondent danny savage gave us the latest. we understand she was sitting under a covered area when those shots were fired. since then, two arrest have been made. a 30—year—old man has been detained in a 19—year—old woman. today, a senior

officerfrom merseyside a 19—year—old woman. today, a senior officer from merseyside police a 19—year—old woman. today, a senior officerfrom merseyside police did come to the scene to give us an update, and the point they are making today is they are notjust after the person who fired the shots here on christmas eve, they are after all the people involved in this crime. anybody who was responsible for arranging, facilitating or harbouring this individual, and anybody who continues to withhold information on who has done this or, indeed, where the weapon is that has led to this tragic fatality. we will not rest of that will be tireless in our approach to find justice for ellie and her family. a community who are scared. we talked to some of the people putting down flowers here. they didn't want

to talk on camera because they are fearful of the people who carried out this crime. ellie edwards because my family, at the centre of this investigation. —— ellie edwards's family. 2022 will be categorised as the warmest year on record for the uk, according to the met office. this summer saw temperatures reach a0 degrees celsius for the first time. the national trust, which manages vast areas of land in england, wales and northern ireland, says the prolonged droughts and the repeated storms have affected many species. our climate editor justin rowlatt explains. 2022 began as the year was to continue — with extreme weather. storm malik in january. .. ..was followed in early february by storm eunice. a day of record—breaking temperatures... - but extreme heat was the defining feature of the year, with record high temperatures recorded across the country. wildfires followed, devastating some habitats on national trust land in the southwest, including rare heathland in dorset.

the fire left a large swathe of it completely barren. but there is some good news. the national trust has a well—established fire management strategy here, and the fire service got in here early and limited the scale of the fire, stopping it spreading. and there's something else as well, and you can see that best from the air. the area of natural ecosystem in this part of south dorset has been expanded. we have a much larger reserve, which means we've got better connectivity between those areas of land, and that means that wildlife can thrive. it's a more resilient landscape, wildlife can move around freely in that landscape. it wasn't just wild ecosystems that were affected by the hot, dry weather. lawns and water features at some of the national trust's most cherished gardens were hit, too. it is a warning of what is to come, says the trust. we're going to have more frequent heat waves,

we're going to have droughts, we're going to have torrential downpours, and the way the national trust manages its land is part of the solution to making us all more resilient. that means planting woodlands, re—flooding bogs and, where possible, expanding other ecosystems. species that have suffered this year include the uk's seabird colonies, very badly affected by the bird flu epidemic. many bat species struggled in the intense heat of summer and some species of fungi suffered, too. but some species had thrived. large blue butterflies in gloucestershire, choughs in cornwall also did well. they are a rare relative of the crow. it was a good year for autumn colour, as well as apples and nuts. and a pair of beavers in somerset had kits in the spring. they're named after two of the england team that did so well in the euros. justin rowlatt, bbc news.

that's it from me. i'm back in half an hour. i'll see you then. hello there. we've seen clouds and outbreaks of rain sweeping northeastwards across the uk today. just about everyone has had some soggy weather and there is a bit more rain to come through the next few days. as we close out 2022, it will often be windy. some snow is possible, but only really over hills in the north of the uk. in fact, as this weather system continues to pivot through, we will see some snow continuing to fall over high ground in the north of scotland. some further rain showers further south, but some of those could be on the heavy side, maybe even with the odd rumble of thunder. overnight temperatures between 4—7 degrees. and it is going to stay windy, particularly around some of these western and southern coasts. and tomorrow is going to be a blustery day. there will be some spells of sunshine, but there'll also be some showers, in fact, some quite frequent showers

pushing across scotland through the afternoon. again, some of these will be wintry over high ground. those are the wind gusts we can expect. it is going to be a windy day pretty much across the uk. and temperatures, well, just a little down on where they have been today, but still, 5—10 degrees is not bad going for this time of year. now, as we move into friday, we see another weather system hurtling in from the atlantic. that will bring some heavy rain and, again, some strong winds. but for many places, that rain will sweep northwards and eastwards quite quickly. we will see some snow mixing in for a time over northern scotland, particularly over high ground. something a little brighter following on behind and turning milder again, 6—13 degrees. now, as we get into the new year period, we develop something of a split in our weather fortunes, because whilst southern areas will stay mild, northern parts will see some colder air trying to dig in with the chance for some wintry showers. but for southern areas, in the mild air, these weather fronts bring the chance for some outbreaks of rain.

so quite a messy weather picture, actually, for new year's eve. we will see rain threatening southern parts of the uk, maybe another band of rain across central areas, northern ireland into northern england. cold enough for some wintry showers across northern parts of scotland. as we head towards midnight, southern areas may see rain, northern areas are likely to be cold. and through new year's day, if this wet weather does drift northwards into the cold air, it does give the chance for some snow over high ground in scotland. it'll be rain further south. temperatures north to south, 5—12 degrees.

this is bbc world news. our main headlines here: italy is the latest country to tighten entry restrictions for travellers from china. new evidence shows hospitals are struggling to cope with soaring covid infection rates after beijing relaxed containment measures this month. as people flee kherson, kyiv says russia has carried out more than 30 rocket attacks in the past 2a hours. air raid sirens have sounded across ukraine. people have been asked to stay in shelters. pope francis has asked people to pray for his predecessor, benedict xvi, who he says is very ill. the vatican says benedict's condition has worsened in recent hours. officials say the former pope is receiving constant medical attention.

and britain is on course to record its warmest year ever, after a summer of blistering heatwaves and a mild