good afternoon. the prime minister has said the government is willing to talk to the health unions about their pay demands. rishi sunak said the government was happy to discuss pay which was "responsible and affordable for the country". the leader of the royal college of nursing said mr sunak�*s statement offered "a chink of optimism". the unions are to hold talks with the government tomorrow,

iran faces international condemnation after executing two more anti—government protesters. at least two people have been killed as russia bombs ukrainian cities overnight — minutes after its self—imposed ceasefire ended. few expected the ceasefire to hold in any way. it was announced by russia in the first place and russia was never going to engage. but there is still heavy shelling coming down from the russian side. the uk prime minister rishi sunak has given his first tv interview of the year to the bbc�*s laura kuennsberg. mr sunak addressed concerns over nurses strikes and said he will talk to the royal college of nursing union about pay — but does not commit to increasing wages now

to end their strike action. love until now the government has said it will not speak gill mcknight says that the discussion will happen. it we talk to nurses about _ discussion will happen. it we talk to nurses about increasing - discussion will happen. it we talk to nurses about increasing paid l discussion will happen. it we talk. to nurses about increasing paid this year? _ to nurses about increasing paid this year? we _ to nurses about increasing paid this ear? ~ . ~ ., year? we will talk about the financial year. _ a glimmer of something but not

enough for stop strikes.- a glimmer of something but not enough for stop strikes. there was a li . ht of enough for stop strikes. there was a light of optimism _ enough for stop strikes. there was a light of optimism and _ enough for stop strikes. there was a light of optimism and there - enough for stop strikes. there was a light of optimism and there was - enough for stop strikes. there was a light of optimism and there was a i light of optimism and there was a little shift in what the prime minister was saying but what the government want to talk about is pate moving forward and in the broadest terms. that is not going to avert the strike. many are waiting days to see a family doctor. i days to see a family doctor. i registered with a private gp? i grew u . registered with a private gp? i grew u- in an registered with a private gp? i grew up in an nhs _ registered with a private gp? i grew up in an nhs family... _ registered with a private gp? i grew up in an nhs family... that's - registered with a private gp? i grew up in an nhs family... that's not. registered with a private gp? i grew| up in an nhs family... that's not my auestion up in an nhs family... that's not my question where _ up in an nhs family... that's not my question where you _ up in an nhs family... that's not my question where you registered - up in an nhs family... that's not my question where you registered with l question where you registered with the private — question where you registered with the private gp? _ question where you registered with the private gp? [— question where you registered with the private gp?— the private gp? i wouldn't talk about my _ the private gp? i wouldn't talk about my family's _ the private gp? i wouldn't talk about my family's health - the private gp? i wouldn't talk about my family's health care| about my family's health care situation, _ about my family's health care situation, it's not relevant to this — situation, it's not relevant to this what _ situation, it's not relevant to this. what is relevant is a difference i can make the country. his opponents say it is relevant. |

his opponents say it is relevant. i thought the prime minister gave the interview that doesn't understand the scale of the challengers or have a plan to deal with the fundamental problems. he can get people around the table for a photo op, he can use more sticking plasters to get through the winter but need fundamental change in the nhs to deal with the biggest crisis in its history. this deal with the biggest crisis in its histo . �* , ., deal with the biggest crisis in its histo .m ., history. as long as the government don't talk about _ history. as long as the government don't talk about giving _ history. as long as the government don't talk about giving more - history. as long as the government don't talk about giving more pay, i don't talk about giving more pay, public finances doesn't allow it, the need to control inflation is vital. more strikes are coming. ambulance staff this week and may be nurses and doctors after. breaking news. an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.2 has struck a0 kilometers west of vanuatu's port—olry, the united states geological survey has said. the earthquake was at a depth of iokm. no tsunami warning was issued

after the quake, according to the us tsunami warning system. for the first time in nearly three years, china has lifted quarantine rules for people arriving from abroad. it's the final step in the government's dismantling of its zero—covid policies. the abrupt change has driven a rapid rise in coronavirus cases and has prompted other countries to impose restrictions on chinese tourists. speaking a short while ago, china's national health commission spokesperson said that the relaxing of measures doesn't mean that the country is relaxing its approach to the disease. translation: from today, - we categorise and manage covid as a class b infectious disease. our focus has pivoted from preventing infection to protecting health and preventing severe cases. downgrading covid doesn't mean letting it rip. rather, we are more

scientific, targeted and efficient in our response. we can do better in coordinating pandemic response and social economic development. that was a media briefing earlier. tens of thousands of people gathered at border crossings between hong kong and the mainland on sunday to take advantage of the latest relaxation. here's what some of them had to say. translation: i'm so happy, so happy, so excited. - i haven't seen my parents for many years. my parents aren't in good health and i couldn't go back to see them even when they were ill, so i'm really happy to go back and see them now. i can't wait to go back to the mainland. it's been three years. we have no time to delay now the boarder is unimpeded. last time i came to hong kong i had to wait for two weeks. _ in the end, i had no choice but to go back to turkey . because i couldn't enter china.

the bbc�*s martin yip is at the border for us. china has been rapidly de—escalating covid measures. walking away from what used to be called the zero covid policy. if you're wondering how rapid it is. two things that are happening behind me might give you some clue. the only place in china that you can gamble in china is macau, from today they will treat it as an endemic disease, more or less like a cold orflu. it is very unlikely to be quarantined or other measures to be imposed on you. mainland china is also stopping

pressing criminal charges on those who are breaching covid measures. it doesn't mean everything is normal, you still need to wear a facemask all the time. earlier, we werejoined by keith bradsher — beijing bureau chief for the new york times who told us what he's made of the easing of restrictions. the loosening has happened very quickly with regard to domestic restrictions but international travel is not starting back quickly. while china has abandoned the eight day or longer quarantine for international arrivals, originally those were two or three week quarantines. it has not allowed a lot of international flights, the international flights will not start on a large scale possibly until the start of april. for example,

thailand had 400 flights per week with china before the pandemic started and right now it is 15 flights per week. there is a gradual restart, the focus is on restarting domestic travel, getting people moving so they can get home for the new year holiday.— new year holiday. picking up on that, that _ new year holiday. picking up on that, that is _ new year holiday. picking up on that, that is often _ new year holiday. picking up on that, that is often described - new year holiday. picking up on that, that is often described as| new year holiday. picking up on i that, that is often described as the biggest human migration on the planet. it is a vast movement of people. how concerned are the authorities about that? the focus has shifted _ authorities about that? the focus has shifted from _ authorities about that? the focus has shifted from controlling i authorities about that? the focus| has shifted from controlling covid to try to get families together again. there is very little discussion by the authorities on the risks that there might be in terms of people bringing the virus into

villages. many villagers have older people left behind as young people moved to the cities. the focus has not been on so much on the health effects of the travel but there has been a lot of discussion on how they hope that the villagers can try and prepare for cases. many of these places don't have intensive care beds, they don't have hospitals and there is concern about what will happen if there is a lot of travel into these rural villages. what into these rural villages. what about the _ into these rural villages. what about the criticism? _ into these rural villages. what about the criticism? leading l into these rural villages. what about the criticism? leading up to the loosening of restrictions we did see a notable amount of criticism of authorities in china. what about now? ., . . , authorities in china. what about now? ., . ., , , now? now the criticism seems to be in a different direction, _ now? now the criticism seems to be in a different direction, why - now? now the criticism seems to be

in a different direction, why was i there not more preparation of the health system so that... for example why was there not more stockpiling of ibuprofen before the opening up took place. even doctors had trouble getting tablets of ibuprofen when they were sick themselves. also, people were asking why there was so much energy in putting booths on the street corners instead of expanding their clinics or hospital capacity to treat the sick with the policy did change eventually. the united states has called for iran to stop executing anti—government protesters. the state department said two men who were hanged on saturday were convicted in sham trials. britain and the european union have have also condemned iran's use of the death penalty. shelley pehlps reports. nationwide protests have swept iran

since the death of a woman in september. the woman was detained by the morality police now two men have been hanged for killing a member of the security forces during the demonstrations. these two men had appealed against the sentences saying they had been tortured into making false confessions. 0n making false confessions. on saturday iranians state tv broadcast footage of the men testifying in a court hearing that has been condemned as a sham trial by human rights groups. in condemned as a sham trial by human rights groups-— rights groups. in every single execution _ rights groups. in every single execution we _ rights groups. in every single execution we see _ rights groups. in every single execution we see the - rights groups. in every single i execution we see the primary rights groups. in every single i execution we see the primary and most significant evidence is self incriminating confessions obtained under torture. we know one of the people that was hanged today was tortured heavily ahead of his execution. i don't call them a

judicial process but a lynching committee. judicial process but a lynching committee-— judicial process but a lynching committee. ., ., , ., committee. the total number of protesters _ committee. the total number of protesters executed _ committee. the total number of protesters executed is _ committee. the total number of protesters executed is now i committee. the total number of protesters executed is now for l committee. the total number of l protesters executed is now for but death sentences is not a new tactic to oppress opposition. the death sentences is not a new tactic to oppress opposition.— to oppress opposition. the islamic re-ubfic to oppress opposition. the islamic republic has _ to oppress opposition. the islamic republic has been _ to oppress opposition. the islamic republic has been hanging - to oppress opposition. the islamic republic has been hanging out i to oppress opposition. the islamic. republic has been hanging out death sentences— republic has been hanging out death sentences for four decades. thousands of protesters were executed some really in 1990. the amnes executed some really in 1990. tue: amnesty international say executed some really in 1990. tt2 amnesty international say that many more people are at risk of execution in relation with the process. do additions around the world have widely condemned iran actions. i've been speaking to bbc monitoring journalist khosro isfahani, who told us more about the situation. these two men were in their early

20s, they were sentenced to death during court proceedings that took a one week and they were deprived of the right to choose their own lawyers during the proceedings. in addition, when they were sentenced the supreme court held up the sentences and they knew they would face imminent execution. they were deprived of the right to meet with their families before they were executed. one of them, his family was literally outside the prison the day he was executed and they were not allowed in to meet their son for a last meeting. thank you for that. some chilling details. what about the aim of all this? part of the aim for the regime is to act as a deterrent to stop people protesting. will that work? the regime, so far has killed 517

people on the streets. 70 children were among these people. they have already executed for people in relation to process. in every one of these killings, anger and rage have built up in the country. we see this anger and rage boiling in iran and every funeral is being turned into a rallying point. right now thousands of protesters are in jail. the numbers could be around 20,000 people. at least 100 of them can face the death penalty. but people are still not relenting, last night we saw videos with people

holding up two women, removing their hijabs, holding up placards with these two men who were executed yesterday. on friday we saw protests in south—east iran, populated by an ethnic minority with people holding signs saying silence is slavery. iranians are not relenting despite the state's cruelty. to west africa, where 38 people have died in central senegal when two buses crashed into each other on sunday. the serious accident took place near the town of kaffrine, leaving 87 people injured from the collision. the crash is one of the heaviest death tolls from a single incident in recent years. ukrainian officials say two people have been killed as russian bombing of cities continued overnight. minutes after the supposed ceasefire ended, the north—east region of kharkiv came under attack. in a further development, russian media has claimed two

thermal power plants were attacked by ukrainian forces in the russian—controlled donetsk region. 0ur ukraine correspondent hugo bachego has more in kyiv. president zelensky said that the fact that russian forces continued to attack ukrainian positions during this alleged ceasefire was proof that moscow's words are false. and he also said the peace would only be restored when russian forces were expelled from his country. this morning, russian—appointed officials in the east of the country have said that two power stations in donetsk were hit by ukrainian rocket attacks. the ukrainian authorities have not reacted to this claim. they rarely issue statements about possible attacks on russian positions in russian—controlled territory. police in germany have arrested an iranian man, who's suspected of preparing an islamist attack. the man had been plotting to use

cyanide and ricin to commit a serious act of violence, police said in a statement. he was detained in the city of castrop—rauxel, near dortmund. another person — the suspect�*s brother — was also arrested. military helicopters in western australia have airlifted more than 200 people cut off by devastating floods. the crisis in kimberley was caused by heavy rain brought by a former tropical cyclone. the state's emergency services minister described the damage as a once—in—a—century event with flood waters stretching for 50km in some areas. rainfall has eased across the catchment with the movement of ex—tropical cyclone ellie towards the nt border. flooding is adversely affecting a number of roads in the fitzroy river catchment. many roads are impassable and many communities are now isolated. we have rescued, evacuated or relocated 233 people from floodwaters and responded to 54

incidents, requests for assistance. thousands of pilgrims have descended on the historic town of lalibela in ethiopia, to celebrate 0rthodox christmas. it was the first time pilgrims went to the town since the conflict in tigray began in 2020, which disrupted life in the country. a surprise ceasefire was declared on november 2nd. the bbc�*s daniel dadzie reports. peace at last, after two years of war. thousands of worshippers have travelled from far and near to mark the ancient custom of 0rthodox christmas in africa's largest christian site. the medieval rock churches here at lalibela became a world heritage site in 1978. they are important for christians as places of pilgrimage and devotion. but this year's ceremony is special.

it's laced with the relief of a country recovering from war. translation: last year- we were in our home crying. i normally always come here for christmas, but i couldn't come for the last two years. more than the pandemic, the war was scary because it was a massacre that was visible to our naked eyes. i couldn't come and celebrate it because i was afraid. not long ago, lalibela was on the front line of the brutal conflict between government forces and the tigray people's liberation front. the town changed hands four times during the fighting and miraculously the ancient churches appear to have been spared the scars of war. there is obvious relief here that a peace deal was signed last november, though memories of the war are never far away. translation: my prayer and wish is god may grant us freedom i for myself and my country.

many problems remain, with 2.3 million people still thought to be in need after being cut off from humanitarian aid. but today's ceremony rings with the hope that life will return to normal for ethiopians. french beauty industry giant l'0real has unveiled a smart applicator at the consumer electronics show in las vegas to help those with limited mobility apply make—up. ika ba koyi reports. the first hand—held smart make—up applicator created... sassy, shiny and swift. l'0real has just launched a make—up applicator with a difference — to help those with limited mobility. so, my disability is cerebral palsy and past—it quadriplegia, so i have mobility issues. my hands are very limited and my legs as well.

ten years ago, i had a stroke. makes my life different now. the smart applicator was unveiled at the consumer electronics show in las vegas to help those with limited mobility to apply make—up. the technology is for people that have mobile and motor skill challenges today. this is one in ten people in the united states. that's 43 million people in the united states that cannot experience beauty with their own arms because of issues like stroke. another device showcased by the cosmetic giant is brow magic, which uses augmented reality to create and draw the perfect eyebrows. it's apparently easy peasy. to do the brow magic experience, you have to turn on the application. it will scan my face.

and then measure the geometry of my face and find my brow. and once it finds my brow, right here, it will then give me a recommended shape that i can see in augmented reality. so, you will see here. but with a price range between $149 to $199, the applicators don't come at the cost of your average lipstick. it's also not easily tucked into your handbag, but it will be welcomed for sure. treasure hunters in the netherlands are hoping to find valuables worth millions, hidden by nazi soldiers during world war two. an old map believed to mark the spot where the german soldiers hid diamonds, rubies, gold and silver, was made public by the dutch national archive. claudia redmond reports. these treasure hunters are hoping x

really does mark the spot as they follow a map believed to show where german soldiers had a haul of stolen goods during world war ii. the map was made public alongside other papers from the time by the national archive of the netherlands, after a 75—year confidentiality period expired. translation: according to the documents, it i contains bracelets, watches, brooches, necklaces, silver coins, gold coins, precious stones, rubies, diamonds. armed with shovels and metal detectors, groups wandered through the fields surrounding rural 0mmeren in hope of finding the buried loot. like so many, i'm quite tickled by the news of this treasure. i'm a serious searcher, i've been searching in this area for 30 years and i've found nice objects, especially roman ones. but now, suddenly, we're told something we haven't known for all these years, that there is probably nazi treasure buried here. my daughter and i projected the map from 1944 onto the current

map and our conclusion is that the cross is here. a road crossing in the shape of a fork and the little cross indicating the treasure here is here. which is where we are standing at the moment. but these hopeful treasure hunters shouldn't get their hopes up too high, as the released papers show the dutch state tried to find the looted treasure after the war, apparently without much luck. before i go, let me update up on the earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 that has struck 40 kilometres west of the pacific islands of vanuatu. the earthquake was at a depth of 10 kilometres. a tsunami warning has now been issued with waves up to one metre being anticipated in coastal areas within a 300 kilometre radius of the epicentre. remember that vanuatu is a group of around 80 very low lying islands — so any waves have the

potential to cause damage. that's it this is bbc news. it has been a wet and windy start to the new year and there is little respite in the next few days. sunny spells and scattered showers making some beautiful rainbows but within some beautiful rainbows but within some of those showers there is the odd rumble of thunder and lightning. you can see the clouds circulating around that area of low pressure, moving in from the west, that is where the wettest of the weather has been so far, the strongest wind gust in the west of scotland although the winds will ease in the afternoon. heavy rain in the west with some rain moving west to east across england and wales. a little bit cooler as well in comparison to the last couple of days, seven celsius.

0vernight the rain will fade away to a few scattered coastal showers, under those clearer skies across eastern england and scotland it could go to single figures. a chilly start compared to recent days, hopefully a little more sunshine tomorrow and fewer showers. we start tomorrow and fewer showers. we start to see plenty of showers foaming from the north—west and across the pennines, hearsix from the north—west and across the pennines, hear six or eight celsius may be 10 celsius the highest. the wind direction is swinging round so they will be a fresh feel, more wet weather arrives tuesday and wednesday and that will drag within a south—westerly wind a milder air source for a time. a bit of a swing in temperatures tuesday will be a cloudy wet and windy day for many. mild but with cloud and rain around

thatis mild but with cloud and rain around that is pretty academic. strong gusts of wind in the north and west as we go through the evening hours. in terms of the feel of the weather, the wind is south—westerly, slightly milder we are seeing highs of seven and 14 celsius. in tuesday night in the early hours of wednesday morning in the far north of scotland along the southern flank of this load, as it goes into scandinavia it leaves a trail of showers to follow on behind. as you can see as we go through the remainder of the week it stays unsettled with showers and long spells of rain.

this is bbc news. i'm lewis vaughanjones with the headlines. uk prime minister rishi sunak says he's willing to discuss the issue of pay with the nurses�* union to settle strikes but didn't make a firm commitment to increase salaries. china has fully opened its borders for the first time since the start of the covid pandemic with international travellers no longer having to quarantine on arrival. at least two people have been killed as russia bombs ukrainian cities overnight, minutes after its self—imposed ceasefire ended. ukraine reportedly retaliated by attacking two thermal power plants in the russian—controlled donetsk region. an earthquake with a magnitude of 7 has struck 40km west