hello, i'm christian fraser. ukrainian president volodymyr zelensky has said he is "grateful" to his air force for a missile attack that badly damaged a russian warship in the black sea. the novocherkassk was hit during an attack on the port of feodosiya in russian—occupied crimea. local officials say at least one person was killed. ukraine said the ship was destroyed. president zelensky wrote on telegram, "the occupiers will not have a single peaceful place in ukraine." james waterhouse reports from central ukraine/ for ukraine, this was a high—value target. the russian novocherkassk landing ship struck by guided missile.

the force of the blast suggests it was full. moscow claims the ship was only damaged. kyiv says it was destroyed. it's going to need more than a lick of paint regardless. crimea has been firmly held by russia since 2014, but sights like this have become more common with ukraine striking deeper into the peninsula. the novocherkassk would've almost certainly been loaded with either soldiers, hardware or both. it being taken out will hamper russia's ability to supply troops further north, as well as further weaken its naval dominance in the black sea. translation: a huge job has been done. - a big assault carrier was destroyed, and it did become part of a fleet to which the moskva missile cruiser belongs. kyiv has successfully targeted russian vessels before, including the moskva, once the flagship of moscow's black sea fleet.

what attacks like these have yet to do is apply enough pressure on moscow for it to surrender ukrainian territory it has taken, but for ukraine, for president zelensky, it is a welcome announcement against a backdrop of waning western support. in feodosiya, scatters of the ship were scattered for hundreds of metres. ukraine has only been able to liberate a few kilometres of its territory. the impact of strikes like this isn't always realised immediately, but they have slightly weakened russia's control here. the problem for ukraine is time is not its friend. i asked dr patrick bury, defence and security expert at university of bath and former nato analyst, for his reading of the russian military strategy in ukraine. the russians are attacking, mainly in the east. they're also attacking a ukrainian bridgehead over dnipro further west. but the main effort seems to be

around this town of avdiivka, and it's essentially inassailable, so it sticks out like a thumb, the ukrainian line does. and the russians are trying to attack it to reduce, force the ukrainians back, of course, but also reduce their defensive line. so far, the ukrainians under a lot of pressure are slowly withdrawing in some places, but also inflicting heavy casualties on the russians as they attack. in mar�*inka, both claims, actually, if you look at the geography of mar�*inka, it's a stretch town running along the n5 road east to west, and so it could actually be the case where the russians control most of it, but the ukrainians are still able to control the western part or at least bring it under fire so both sides could claim that they've taken it or it hadn't been taken. certainly, the footage coming from it is absolute devastation. i mean, this is world war i—level, complete obliteration, which shows you the level of combat and the intensity going on there.

israel's military chief has warned there will be no swift finish to the war in gaza. army chief herzi halevi told a televised news conference the war will last "many more months". the hamas—run health ministry says 240 people have been killed in 2a hours. there are again fears that the conflict could spread across the region. the us says it has carried out what it calls "necessary and proportionate" air strikes against pro—iranian militias based in iraq. they were in response to attacks on american bases in the region. our correspondent shaimaa khalil is injerusalem. standing in what used to be her home. "ourthings, mum, they're gone." israel's bombing of rafah in southern gaza has continued, leaving those who fled there at a loss of where to go. translation: israel claims | that there are safe residential areas, or secure zones, but this attack shows that that's a lie. israel's military operation has intensified in khan younis, also in the south. little amal was sleeping with her family.

the bomb hit them and killed her uncle. "they were sleeping," she says, "then i heard a big bang. rocks landed on us." amal�*s baby sister is three days old. baby mariam is bearing the brunt of a conflict she was born into. as the military operation deepens into gaza, tensions have risen on israel's northern border with lebanon. israel's defense minister, yoav gallant, has visited troops in the north after, he said, they'd received cross—border fire from hezbollah, with the idf targeting some of the group's infrastructure. translation: hezbollah looks at what's happening in gaza - and understand very well what we did in gaza can also be done in beirut. hezbollah operatives were also targeted by the us in iraq. the pentagon said us forces carried out air strikes against what it called iran—sponsored militias

in response to an attack on the erbil air base. israel's war in gaza is not close to being over, says the prime minister, and in its wake, otherfronts grow more tense in already volatile areas in the region. shaima khalil, bbc news, jerusalem. let's go to washington with some important meetings taking place there. live now to our news correspondent, sally nabil. we have heard from the israeli war —— army chief that this will go on for a while and how will this play in washington? i for a while and how will this play in washington?— for a while and how will this play in washington? i believe this will create tension _ in washington? i believe this will create tension between - in washington? i believe this will. create tension between washington and israel regarding how long the war will take to end. one member of netanyahu's close the circle is here in dc today. he will meet with jake

sullivan, the national security adviser, the secretary of state, a number of congress members and we understand a majorfocus number of congress members and we understand a major focus of these discussions will be about the scale of the war and the timeframe when the war is supposed to end. israel officials have been quoted as saying the intensity of the war or the fighting is not going to go down except before the end of january, so we still have another few weeks. that is causing tension, as i said, with the american administration because international pressure is growing on the americans and on the israelis to bring the fighting to an end to allow a humanitarian corridor were to deliver more aid into gaza. more than 20,000 people have been killed in the strip so far, and the needs of those trapped inside the strip are getting more and more direct by the hour. there is a lot of pressure going on, but so far it seems that the israelis are not responding positively to all these calls. all the remarks coming from

prime minister benjamin netanyahu sigel that the fighting will not be over soon, so the big question is what will they try to do in this meeting. because we know they will also be discussing who is going to run gaza once the war ends. is it the palestinian authority? will hamas be part of any future government, a suggestion highly resented by western powers and at the israelis is well? it is a big dilemma with a lot of questions that remain to be answered. the dilemma with a lot of questions that remain to be answered.— remain to be answered. the other concern of — remain to be answered. the other concern of course _ remain to be answered. the other concern of course is _ remain to be answered. the other concern of course is the _ remain to be answered. the other concern of course is the flow of i remain to be answered. the other| concern of course is the flow of aid and who distributes that eight in gaza. we have heard this afternoon from the government spokesman of israel who says that un criticism of the israeli air strikes as cover for onerous support of hamas. the relationship between israel and the un is at an all—time low. absolutely. and the refugee agency has been very critical of the

israeli bombardment that spares nobody a safe area. they have been repeating it one time after another list of all the officials we have heard, there is no safe place in gaza because whatever the people try and go to take shelter somewhere, evenin and go to take shelter somewhere, even in the u in shelters, they are being bombarded by the israelis and that has been creating a lot of tension and as the israelis were singing as well that hamas militants are using un aid packages to hide ammunition and weapons and other stuff. but that has been disputed by the refugee agency as well so the humanitarian corridor were again raises a lot of questions about whether it will be able to deliver insufficient needs for the people trapped in gaza. the aide is delivered via the rafah border

crossing into egypt and others in israel but again it is israel who has the upper hand here. thank you, sall . has the upper hand here. thank you, sally- let's — has the upper hand here. thank you, sally. let's focus _ has the upper hand here. thank you, sally. let's focus on _ has the upper hand here. thank you, sally. let's focus on the _ has the upper hand here. thank you, sally. let's focus on the issue - has the upper hand here. thank you, sally. let's focus on the issue with i sally. let's focus on the issue with the hospitals. we can go live now to paris, where i'm nowjoined by marie—aure perreaut revial, the emergency co—ordinator for medecins sans frontieres, who's just returned from gaza. in fact infacti in fact i understand that you were working at the hospital which we have been focusing on this weekend so can you tell us about the situation there and how they would cope with an influx of more patients at al—aqsa? cope with an influx of more patients at al-aqsa?— cope with an influx of more patients at al-aqsa?_ at al-aqsa? they essentially don't co -e with at al-aqsa? they essentially don't cape with it. _ at al-aqsa? they essentially don't cape with it. so — at al-aqsa? they essentially don't cope with it, so the _ at al-aqsa? they essentially don't cope with it, so the hospital - at al-aqsa? they essentially don't| cope with it, so the hospital before the war— cope with it, so the hospital before the war had about 250 bed capacity. it has _ the war had about 250 bed capacity. it has now _ the war had about 250 bed capacity. it has now more than 700 admitted patients _ it has now more than 700 admitted patients. and this was earlier this week_ patients. and this was earlier this week or— patients. and this was earlier this week or last week rather when i left the hospital. now we have seen over the hospital. now we have seen over the weekend more and more evacuation orders _ the weekend more and more evacuation orders being _ the weekend more and more evacuation orders being thrown around. which

means_ orders being thrown around. which means more and more wounded patients have come _ means more and more wounded patients have come through the erjust over the past _ have come through the erjust over the past 24 — have come through the erjust over the past 24 hours. the er of the at-aqsa — the past 24 hours. the er of the al—aqsa hospital received more than 209 patients, and an additional 131 people _ 209 patients, and an additional 131 people arrived already dead in the hospital— people arrived already dead in the hospital or died shortly after arrivat — hospital or died shortly after arrival. so the hospital is in a very. — arrival. so the hospital is in a very. very— arrival. so the hospital is in a very, very dire situation and is really— very, very dire situation and is really struggling to cope with it. yeah, _ really struggling to cope with it. yeah, i read somewhere you are reporting on the wounds and how difficult it is to treat wounds the fact that many of the wounded changes has to be done with antibiotics or if there are indeed antibiotics. can we talk about the age of the people, the patients that are there equipment is the predominately children and women? for the first day that we arrived in the al—aqsa hospital, 14% of the patients— the al—aqsa hospital, 14% of the patients that we provided wound care

for it were _ patients that we provided wound care for it were under the age of 15. so we see _ for it were under the age of 15. so we see a — for it were under the age of 15. so we see a lot — for it were under the age of 15. so we see a lot of children. some of the wounds — we see a lot of children. some of the wounds as you said are so painful— the wounds as you said are so painful that they actually need to be addressed under a general anaesthetic. orc surgeons were dressing — anaesthetic. orc surgeons were dressing wounds on children, on babies— dressing wounds on children, on babies aged one—year—old, two years old, babies aged one—year—old, two years old. who— babies aged one—year—old, two years old, who were amputated of one leg or two. _ old, who were amputated of one leg or two. one — old, who were amputated of one leg or two, one arm or two. so this is, yes, _ or two, one arm or two. so this is, yes, we _ or two, one arm or two. so this is, yes, we see — or two, one arm or two. so this is, yes, we see a _ or two, one arm or two. so this is, yes, we see a lot of children, we see a _ yes, we see a lot of children, we see a very— yes, we see a lot of children, we see a very high number of children in our— see a very high number of children in our programmes in the hospital. suffering _ in our programmes in the hospital. suffering extremely painful wounds and also _ suffering extremely painful wounds and also facing a lot of challenges in getting — and also facing a lot of challenges in getting those wounds, yet, followed _ in getting those wounds, yet, followed up. we see a very high rate of infection. — followed up. we see a very high rate of infection, and infections get so bad sometimes that again resurgence follows, _ bad sometimes that again resurgence follows, worms growing in the wounds

because _ follows, worms growing in the wounds because they were so badly infected. we are _ because they were so badly infected. we are talking wounds from blasts but also _ we are talking wounds from blasts but also wounds from burns, so again surgeons— but also wounds from burns, so again surgeons have to dress wounds for 40% body— surgeons have to dress wounds for 40% body coverage burns of second degree _ 40% body coverage burns of second degree burns. and so extremely, extremely— degree burns. and so extremely, extremely painful.— degree burns. and so extremely, extremely painful. obviously that comes with _ extremely painful. obviously that comes with a _ extremely painful. obviously that comes with a lot _ extremely painful. obviously that comes with a lot of _ extremely painful. obviously that comes with a lot of trauma - comes with a lot of trauma particularly for younger children who are experiencing all this. i understand that you used to do that by getting the children to draw things for you and the time that you had. we are going to put one of the drawings up in the spring and maybe you could talk to us about this and who drew it and what their experience had been. 50. who drew it and what their experience had been. so, yeah, we have and are _ experience had been. so, yeah, we have and are trying _ experience had been. so, yeah, we have and are trying to _ experience had been. so, yeah, we have and are trying to provide - have and are trying to provide some mentat— have and are trying to provide some mental health support but then again it's extremely limited. it is extremely difficult because the situation is mostly those children that we _ situation is mostly those children that we are trying to support, so we are seeing _ that we are trying to support, so we are seeing children who have lost

legs, _ are seeing children who have lost legs, who — are seeing children who have lost legs, who have lost arms, who had been _ legs, who have lost arms, who had been badly— legs, who have lost arms, who had been badly injured again and so they are trying _ been badly injured again and so they are trying to release some of their emotions — are trying to release some of their emotions. ., ., ., , ., . ., emotions. how old was a child who drew this particular _ emotions. how old was a child who drew this particular picture - drew this particular picture equipment 13 years old, and he was the only survivor of his family. bind the only survivor of his family. and this is more _ the only survivor of his family. and this is more and _ the only survivor of his family. and this is more and more common in the hospital— this is more and more common in the hospital now. we are talking about injured _ hospital now. we are talking about injured with no surviving family or a child _ injured with no surviving family or a child with — injured with no surviving family or a child with no surviving family. this— a child with no surviving family. this is— a child with no surviving family. this is getting more and more common. _ this is getting more and more common, and we see, yeah, some of the realty— common, and we see, yeah, some of the really traumatic drawings being drawn by— the really traumatic drawings being drawn by those children. you the really traumatic drawings being drawn by those children.— the really traumatic drawings being drawn by those children. you do want to with a legacy _ drawn by those children. you do want to with a legacy of — drawn by those children. you do want to with a legacy of all— drawn by those children. you do want to with a legacy of all that _ drawn by those children. you do want to with a legacy of all that is - drawn by those children. you do want to with a legacy of all that is in - to with a legacy of all that is in the years to come. thank you very much indeed for your thoughts and your experiences there in gaza. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. let's look at some other stories making news. the former vice—president of hong kong's disbanded opposition has accused the uk of hardening its stance towards those leaving the territory. isaac cheng said immigration

caseworkers appeared "predisposed to discredit" claims after several applications were rejected. a special visa scheme was established in 2021 for pro—democracy hong kongers escaping persecution. about 97% of applications have been successful. thames water has apologised after several homes in surrey were left without water today. areas near guildford and godalming were worst affected. the company said most properties have now had their water supply retored. the chancellor and local mp, jeremy hunt, said he was "beside himself with frustation". europe's larkest parking app operator has been hacked, with about 950 people in the uk having their personal data compromised. easypark group, which owns ring—go and park—mobile, would not give many details, but said most of the customers affected were in europe and that names, contact information and parts of credit card numbers had been stolen. you're live with bbc news.

russian opposition leader alexei navalny has confirmed he's been transferred to an arctic prison. he posted on x that he is in good spirits. considered vladimir putin's most vocal opponent, navalny has been imprisoned since 2021. for some analysis and background of navalny�*s messaging, i spoke to europe regional editor paul moss. he has been communicating through twitter for quite a while, since he was incarcerated. essentially, what he does is he gives his tweet messages to the people who visit him, usually his lawyers, and then they send them out through twitter, now known as x, via his support team. but, christian, there's an important point there. he has now been sent to this very remote penal colony, about 2000 kilometres from moscow in the middle of nowhere. it is going to be very difficult for anyone, including lawyers, to reach him. i think it is a question of how much longer he'll be able to issue messages from twitter.

and bear in mind, the timing of this is no coincidence. he has been sent to this penal colony just three months before russia holds presidential elections. it could be a coincidence, but most people reckon the whole point is to get him out of the picture, to stop alexei navalny from being able to send messages to supporters, particularly at an election time. so i think it's possible we may be at the tail end of seeing alexei navalny twitter messages. and it is quite a thread. i think there's nine messages. what is the gist of it all this, paul? i don't think the event is a just, that is what is so strange. there is a collection of tweets. he has been reassuring, saying, "don't worry about me, i'm fine. i'm totally relieved i made it, i'm in good spirits, thank you for your support." at other times, it really is as if he is writing an article

for a travel magazine. he says that there are no reindeers, but there are beautiful fluffy shepherd dogs. he says he lives near the arctic circle, but there is a beautiful town nearby. he says, "i have a sheepskin hat, i've grown a beard for my 20 days of transportation." he leaves us in no doubt that conditions are tough there as well. he says, "when i look at the window, at night, then at the evening, and then the light again." i think there is a reference that so far north, there really isn't much in the way of daylight. he also makes clear he can't see much at all because there is a perimeterfence outside his window blocking any views. he says, "i can't give you any stories about polar exotics yet." he almost makes a joke at the end, saying, "i am santa claus, but a very strange regime santa claus.

i give presents to people who have been behaving very badly." i suppose that shows he has still got a sense of humour. paul moss speaking about the russian opposition leader move to the arctic circle. let's get a look at the sport with sarah on a busy day. hello from the bbc sport centre. let's begin with some football. luton town moved to within a point of safety after a dramatic 3—2 win at fellow strugglers sheffield united. after luton had taken a 1—0 lead in the first half, but the hosts took control after the break. 0li mcburnie equalised, before captain anel ahmedhodzitch put them ahead. however, two own goals in the space of four minutes from jack robinson and ben slimane allowed luton to seal back—to—back premier league wins. and keep sheffield united bottom of the league on nine points. bournemouth have beaten fulham 3—0. they're up to tenth in the premier league. justin kluivert, dominic solanke from the penalty spot and luis sinisterra scored the goals. the cherries are unbeaten in their last seven matches, picking up 19 points

from a possible 21. fulham, by contrast, have lost their past three. nottingham forest have their first win under new manager nuno espirito santo. they came from behind to beat newcastle united 3—1 at st james' park. chris wood, who joined forest from newcastle in the summer, scored a hat—trick. his first came just before halftime time, cancelling out an alexander isak penalty. he scored twice in the second half as forest caught newcastle on the break. forest are now five points above the relegation zone. the game plan was to defend well, first of all, defend well because i think we have to learn from the last game against bournemouth, we didn't defend well. and today, we defend well. chris had an amazing game. but to allow chris and the attacking players to have the space and the freedom to play, it comes from behind. so, spot on.

two other fixtures remaining today, with aston villa travelling to old trafford in the late kick—off. before then, there could be a change at the top of the table. liverpool will go top if they avoid defeat at struggling burnley, not thatjurgen klopp will underestimate them. i think burnley could have easily had much more points— because they had so many good spells in the games. where they then don't finish - the situation off from the young players in some positions. so i knew before that they are much better than the position _ and the points they have. we all know, if you win once - and have the chance to play three days later again and you will want to win again, and that's exactly i what we expect. the boxing day test in melbourne is underway, australia will be looking to seal the series against pakistan after winning the first test in perth. australia were put into bat and made 187 for 3 on a rain affected first day at the mcg. marnus labuschagne is unbeaten on 44. south africa are on top in the first test against india. they won the toss and made the most of it.

kagiso rabada took five wickets. india reached 208—8 before bad light stopped play. kl rahul is unbeaten on 70. novak djokovic turns 37 on monday, but his desire to keep adding to his record tally of grand slams shows no signs of diminishing. the 24—time major—winner was speaking in saudi arabia ahead of his clash with carlos alcaraz in a repeat of the 2023 wimbledon final. i'm trying to push as long as i can and win grasslands and be a contenderfor a top spot and win grasslands and be a contender for a top spot in the world are trying to make more history in the sport. that's the drive, that's the motivation, and i'm still feeling very good in my

own body. you know, at this age, playing one of the best seasons that i had in my career in 2023, so i'm going to keep going and see how far it gets me. and that's all the sport for now. nearly 7.5 million people in the uk watched the king's speech on christmas day. and for those who want more royal viewing, the bbc will on tuesday evening broadcast a new documentary. cameras followed king charles for more than a year for the programme. it features new video of the king with his grandchildren rehearsing for the coronation, as well as informal moments with the queen. our royal correspondent daniela relph has more. the coronation rehearsals inside westminster abbey. an important practice for all the family. wow. look at that! and a greeting from a grandfather and father, as well as a king about to be crowned. what struck me particularly is how extraordinarily affectionate they are. they're clearly a very close family. you know, of all the generations. and, in a sense, you felt you're part of a family occasion as well as, you know, a royal occasion and a national occasion.

for the first time, the programme will show the intricate preparations and alterations that were made to the crowns used during the coronation. and on the big day, after the service, cameras filmed the welcome back at buckingham palace. the programme is not a critical eye over the royal family's year. there is no mention of the duke and duchess of sussex, harry and meghan, nor prince andrew. it is instead a view of some of those moments we don't normally get to see. ijust love the way the sun comes through the cotinus. _ it's marvellous, isn't it? for those who know them best, amidst the noise of coronation year, a reminder of something very personal. she is his rock, and i can't actually emphasise that enough. she's somebody who is completely loyal, and she isn't somebody who has huge highs and lows. he brings to her everything.

i'm not talking about all of this, but, you know, he has such a knowledge and interest in so many different things, which she wouldn't really have been open to if she hadn't met him. all access to the royal family is carefully managed, but here the curtain is slightly lifted on some of the more private moments of a very public year. i knew that would be... yes. daniela relph, bbc news. stay with us here on bbc news. here is a check on the weather. hello there. boxing day brought a lot of fine, dry, settled weather across the country thanks to a ridge of high pressure, but it is all change into tomorrow. we have storm gerrit expected to bring gales, heavy rains and significant hill snow across scotland, and it remains unsettled into thursday with windy weather, with sunshine and showers. this is storm gerrit, winding

its way up out in the atlantic, we are in between weather systems today, hence the fine and dry weather with widespread sunshine for the rest of today. with just one or two showers around, light winds, breezier for the northern isles, signs of cloud and rain just getting in the far south—west ahead of storm gerrit later in the day, otherwise for most it stays dry, on the cool side, single digits for most. it's a cold start to the night across the far north of england, scotland, with early frost and ice. and then wind, rain, cloud spread northwards, associated with storm gerrit through tonight. so it turns stormier for all and we start to see some snow over the hills in the north. temperatures double figures in the south, single figures further north. storm gerrit then very much in control of our weather on wednesday, a lot of isobars on the charts, so very windy indeed. we have some concerns about the snowfall amounts across the hills of scotland, above 200 metres, in excess of 15 centimetres for many throughout the day. and we can even see accumulations higher than that where we have drifting and blizzards when you add on the strength of the wind. so, very nasty conditions to be had

across northern areas, wet and windy elsewhere, gales certainly around coastal areas, up to 60 mph through the channel. later in the day, chance of severe gales developing for north—east scotland and the northern isles. a little bit of brightness for northern ireland through the afternoon, many places will stay wet with cloudy weather. double figure values for most but cold across scotland. so, pretty severe weather on the way for wednesday, low pressure hangs around as we head into thursday as well, again lots of isobars on the charts through thursday so it will be another blustery, windy day to come. sunshine and showers, most of these in the north and the west, some heavy ones, hail and thunder and snow on the hills again in scotland. probably a better chance of seeing lengthier, sunny spells will be towards eastern england. again, just about double figures for many, cold across scotland. we hold on to the unsettled theme for the rest of the week and the run—up to new year's with rain or showers at times.

2023 was a remarkable year for sport. up here, an historic treble.

down under, a women's world cup. england and australia couldn't be separated in the ashes, whilst cricket, rugby union and netball all had world cups of their own. golf came togetherfor the solheim and ryder cups. but the start of this sporting year was, for some, less a beginning and more a resumption. football had onlyjust returned after its unprecedented winter world cup break. also resuming, returning, the australian open once more welcomed novak djokovic, a year on from his deportation over his covid vaccination status. still no vax for novak but here he was, back and unbeatable. his was a 22nd grand slam title. for irina sabalenka, a first. saudi arabia's bid to become a major player in global sport was laid bare. cristiano ronaldo becoming a figurehead for the fledgling football league. before the end of the year, they had all but been

awarded a world cup.