i want to take it to two more nations that are welcoming in 2024 bytes now but in very different ways. let's start in qatar. this is a lieu sale city, the nation's second city and officials are promising the first of its kind celebration with a synchronised drone display and that certainly makes the case and there. can see the city packed with people to watch those fireworks go off. 2024 being projected into one of the big buildings in the capital city. they are using lasers and also fireworks in qatar. like a lot of

the rest of the world are using fireworks as a way of welcoming in 2024. i now want to take you to russia and this is moscow. as you can see, it is a very different scene in moscow. now, in previous years there would have been fireworks in red square in moscow but, as last year, there are no fireworks at all. they have been banned in russia. you can see people are on the streets there but not that many and that, of course, all because of the war with ukraine and the operation there. so the fireworks and pyrotechnics were banned last year and again this year. there are no fireworks displays in russia as moscow welcomes in the new year. two totally different celebrations in qatar and russia. don't forget that you can follow all the celebrations of 2024 on the bbc news website and app where there is a special live

page. she is europe's only reigning queen. she is europe's only reigning queen. she said her son would take over on the 14th of january. the 83—year—old queen said her decision to pass the throne to the next generation had been influenced by her health. she had back surgery earlier in 2023. a danish journalist had back surgery earlier in 2023. a danishjournalist told had back surgery earlier in 2023. a danish journalist told me had back surgery earlier in 2023. a danishjournalist told me more had back surgery earlier in 2023. a danish journalist told me more about the announcement.

she spoke about the war in ukraine, she spoke about the war in gaza and she spoke about the war in gaza and she spoke about the war in gaza and she spoke about the climate crisis and i would say the highlight i mean, the positive thing she spoke about in her in her speech was her grandson, prince christian, in connection with his 18th birthday, where he held a very praised speech. and by mentioning him, she gave a nod to the new generation. and it was actually right after she spoke about prince christian that she mentioned her health, her back issues, and basically said that he was ready to retract from her royal duties. she's also a renowned chain smoker as well, isn't she? well, yes, that's quite true. so this happened this happened a couple of hours ago. i know you've been monitoring the social media. what's been the reaction from the public there? i mean, most people are very, very shocked because she is a very gathering figure.

but people also feel as if it's okay because she's been on the throne for over 50 years and she's really done a very good job. but on the other hand, a lot of people expected her to stay until her death, which i mean, she... she's not going to do that. yeah. and so now it it hands over to crown prince frederick. what sort of monarch do you think he's going to be? that's going to be very interesting. but i would say basically he's very popular because he's very, very down to earth. i mean, usually you will see him at the festivals we have here in denmark during the summertime. and he also has this royal run where he does... does... sorry, where he he goes around different cities in denmark and a lot of people, they sign up because they want to run with the with the new crown prince, the new the former the future king of denmark. so he's very, very down to earth and very, very modern person.

he has four kids. and for most of his kids, they actually went to public school instead of private schools. so people feel very connected to him. a reminder that you can see the new year celebrations being welcomed then in qatar at the moment. let's go to the crisis in the middle east. the israeli military says it's withdrawing some reservist troops from gaza to give them a break , in preparation forfurther fighting into next year. the idf said five brigades had been released, but they'd be needed back in gaza soon, as the campaign to eradicate hamas would go on. here's idf spokesperson, rear admiral daniel hagari making those comments. these days we are also adjusting the plan of forces deployment in gaza and in the ray of the service. some of the reserve soldiers will return

to their families and theirjobs this week. this will allow a significant relief for the economy and will allow them to gather strength ahead of the coming activities in the new year. the fighting will continue and we will need them for that these adjustments are meant to ensure planning and preparation for the rest of the 2024. the idf must plan ahead with the understanding that will be required for and the continuation of the fighting all throughout this year. the fighting all throughout this ear. ., , , ,, that is the idf spokesperson. meanwhile, the us military says its helicopters have destroyed three small boats in an attack on a container ship in the southern red sea. it's the second assault by iran—backed houthi rebels on the ship within 24 hours. the us says the gunmen, who launched the raid from yemen, attacked in four boats, coming within 20 meters of the vessel. the fourth craft fled the area. the houthi rebels say their actions are in protest against the gaza war, where there have been more airstrikes by israel. 0ur correspondent shaimaa khalil is injerusalem, a little earlier she sent us this report on the situation in gaza, and a warning you may find parts

of her report distressing. street by street, the battles on the ground in gaza rage on. israel is concentrating its ground offensive on the centre and the south of the strip, with hamas fighters continuing to resist the idf�*s advances. translation: the war is at its height. - we are fighting on all fronts. we have huge success, but we also have painful cases. central gaza is the latest focus of israel's military operation, with heavy bombardment on the densely populated al—nuseirat refugee camp. further south, in neighbouring deir al—balah, palestinian rescue workers stand around the body of their colleague. he was killed in a strike near the al aqsa hospital, where many of the wounded are being treated.

this is one of what israel says are safe areas, where palestinians were told to go to escape the fighting in the centre. but as the military operation expands, safe areas for gazans keep shrinking. the southernmost city of rafah has now become the last stop for hundreds of thousands of displaced people fleeing the heavy bombardment in khan younis, many using makeshift shelters near the border with egypt. there is nowhere else to go from here. translation: | hope - that the war would end soon. i hope we can return to our homes, go back to school, return to everything that is familiar in the new year. the fallout from the war in gaza continues to be felt in the red sea, with yet another houthi attack. the us central command said that navy helicopters destroyed three of four small boats used by the iranian—backed militants as they attempted to board a container ship. this footage released last month

shows some of the group's armed militias dropping from a helicopter and seizing a cargo ship in the southern red sea. the houthis have claimed that their attacks on this vital shipping route are directed at vessels linked to israel, in response to its conflict with hamas. as this year draws to a close there is no end in sight for the war in gaza or the suffering of its people. stephen 0'brien is a former united nations under—secretary—general for humanitarian affairs. i asked him for his reaction to the news that the idf are to withdraw some of its forces from the gaza strip. good evening. i have course welcome it because anything which is a de—escalation of any nature has to be welcomed. i suspect that it is a tactical and won't have a huge military effect. ensure the israeli defence forces under the command of the israeli government won't have

been wanting to withdraw to the point where they are less effective against the campaign which they are forsworn to prosecute against the high masthead arrests in order to stop them being a continuing threat to the israelis and across the israeli border. they have said it is on the grounds they are fighting and as i understand that there are air strikes as well as the extensive ground fighting and now, effectively, we have gone through the middle of the gaza strip, a lot of the tunnels the, extreme hand—to—hand combat which has been distressing. it looks like the tunnels are slowly being cleared out. i still think that the overriding concern happens to be, of course, the humanitarian and loss of life and value welcome this, i don't think it will make a massive difference as we think about celebrating going into the new year

around the rest of the word i think it is ending but a celebration in that part of sadly. we heard from our correspondence that the people who were there, which, of course, was a safe area to start with at the beginning of this concert are now being forced to go to rafah which is a very small area. how being forced to go to rafah which is a very small area.— being forced to go to rafah which is a very small area. how bad were the humanitarian — a very small area. how bad were the humanitarian situation _ a very small area. how bad were the humanitarian situation in _ a very small area. how bad were the humanitarian situation in rafah - a very small area. how bad were the humanitarian situation in rafah be . humanitarian situation in rafah be at the moment?— humanitarian situation in rafah be at the moment? well, of course, the fiuuhtin at the moment? well, of course, the fighting follows _ at the moment? well, of course, the fighting follows where _ at the moment? well, of course, the fighting follows where the _ at the moment? well, of course, the fighting follows where the israelis . fighting follows where the israelis define their enemy to be which is of course they have mass fighters and capacity to send rockets or to continue fighting against the israeli people. and, of course, the fact that they are still holding hostages which is the primary war crime and that those hostages should be released immediately unharmed. back to israel and to their families. the issue about the war, the fighting has obviously moved certain safe areas southwards as they have gone down and even now,

rafah has had a number of incidents which has caused a loss of life and severe injury, putting enormous pressure on the distribution of the increased humanitarian aid which is coming through. and the humanitarian area up towards the coast in the southern part of gaza is now the only safe area which, at the moment, people are trying to flee to. you're quite right, rafah hundreds of thousands, well over a million people have moved to the rafah region, many of them living under plastic sheeting if they are lucky enough to have that are out in the open, really struggling to get the staples of life and temperatures do fall strongly at night so getting any kind of heat, let alone a fuel for power, for infrastructure such as hospitals which is necessary to gather people but as long as the terrorists are using these innocent people as human shields than they are at risk because of israel's clear determination to pursue the

terrorists for the absolute atrocity in the 7th of october.— in the 7th of october. stephen o'brien, in the 7th of october. stephen o'brien. the — in the 7th of october. stephen o'brien, the former— in the 7th of october. stephen o'brien, the former united - in the 7th of october. stephen - o'brien, the former united nations 0'brien, the former united nations undersecretary general for humanitarian affairs. undersecretary general for humanitarian affairs. russia's president vladimir putin says his country will never back down in its war against ukraine, as he addressed the nation in a new year's eve speech. ukraine came under attack from russian air strikes again overnight, mainly in the eastern kharkiv region. ukraine has disputed russia's claim it was targeting military targets in its latest attack on the, with kyiv claiming "not a single one was hit". here's our correspondent james waterhouse in kyiv. in a week where we saw its biggest ever aerial bombardment, we saw ukraine respond. then russia hit back. and it seems the northeastern city of kharkiv over the past 48 to 48 hours has really bore the brunt, with several dozens of missiles landing in the city, causing extensive damage to medical buildings. we're told residential blocks, including a hotel popular among foreignjournalists.

we, our team were there only a few days ago. so i think this is a deadly tit for tat in the aerial sense. but it it almost takes place in tandem with what goes on on the front line when you have vladimir putin, as you say, saying he will never retreat. i don't think anyone expected him to say otherwise. but certainly it's been. there were fears russia had been stockpiling missiles as we approached the new year celebrations. but i think that moment has already arrived. we sell qatar and russia welcoming 2020 for a few minutes ago. final preparations are being made for new year celebrations in the uk, with a spectacular display involving 12,000 fireworks in london. tens of thousands of hogmanay revellers are expected to gather in edinburgh for the street party. lorna gordon is in edinburgh for us.

yeah, the bands have started. the revellers are starting to appear as well. we are expecting 50,000 people here tonight. historically, hogmanay is a big deal here in scotland, bigger than christmas day and this is a pretty big deal as well. i'm talking to one of the event organisers for tonight. talking to one of the event organisers fortonight. giggs talking to one of the event organisers for tonight. giggs and ceilidhs and discos. it must take a lot of organising. aha, ceilidhs and discos. it must take a lot of organising.— lot of organising. a lot of pressure- _ lot of organising. a lot of pressure. it _ lot of organising. a lot of pressure. it is _ lot of organising. a lot of pressure. it is a - lot of organising. a lot of| pressure. it is a year-long lot of organising. a lot of - pressure. it is a year-long project, pressure. it is a year—long project, when _ pressure. it is a year—long project, when we _ pressure. it is a year—long project, when we finish this one and hopefully everyone has a great time at the _ hopefully everyone has a great time at the same for the night these images — at the same for the night these images will be beamed around the world _ images will be beamed around the world and — images will be beamed around the world and then once the dust settles on those _ world and then once the dust settles on those in _ world and then once the dust settles on those in the fireworks will start to think_ on those in the fireworks will start to think about next year but it is a year-round — to think about next year but it is a year—round process. to think about next year but it is a year-round process.— year-round process. what is the bi . . est year-round process. what is the biggest challenge? _ year-round process. what is the biggest challenge? the - year-round process. what is the| biggest challenge? the weather, year-round process. what is the - biggest challenge? the weather, the weather is one. _ biggest challenge? the weather, the weather is one. here _ biggest challenge? the weather, the weather is one. here we _ biggest challenge? the weather, the weather is one. here we are. - biggest challenge? the weather, the weather is one. here we are. the - weather is one. here we are. the 30th— weather is one. here we are. the 30th year— weather is one. here we are. the 30th year anniversary for hogmanay. this is_ 30th year anniversary for hogmanay. this is one _ 30th year anniversary for hogmanay. this is one of the best nights i can remember— this is one of the best nights i can remember over those three decades would _ remember over those three decades would he _ remember over those three decades would be it— remember over those three decades would be it is called committees quest. _ would be it is called committees quest, the fireworks are going to look amazing and the 50,000 people here are _ look amazing and the 50,000 people

here are going to have a brilliant night _ here are going to have a brilliant night it— here are going to have a brilliant niuht. �* ., ., here are going to have a brilliant niuht.�* ., ., , .,, here are going to have a brilliant niuht. �* ., ., , night. a lot of people. some local, some from — night. a lot of people. some local, some from further— night. a lot of people. some local, some from further afield. - night. a lot of people. some local, some from further afield. it - some from further afield. it attracts visitors from over 80 countries _ attracts visitors from over 80 countries. they want to come and have _ countries. they want to come and have a _ countries. they want to come and have a scottish experience. here we are under— have a scottish experience. here we are under edinburgh castle. in the fireworks — are under edinburgh castle. in the fireworks go off at midnight one of the best— fireworks go off at midnight one of the best experiences in the world. pretty— the best experiences in the world. pretty amazing bands tonight. everyone is getting in the spirit. we have — everyone is getting in the spirit. we have jarvis cocker and pulp are going _ we have jarvis cocker and pulp are going to _ we have jarvis cocker and pulp are going to headline after this a real coup— going to headline after this a real coup for— going to headline after this a real coup for us. they are so to have them _ coup for us. they are so to have them and — coup for us. they are so to have them and that is going to be broadcast to all 50,000 so when they start saying _ broadcast to all 50,000 so when they start saying it is all going to go. you are — start saying it is all going to go. you are saying to me earlier there are actually screens all the way down princes street. the street that runs the centre of edinburgh, about a kilometre worth of screens. for the first time. — a kilometre worth of screens. for the first time. that the whole city centre _ the first time. that the whole city centre we — the first time. that the whole city centre we actually have a big outdoor— centre we actually have a big outdoor ceilidh happening in another area, _ outdoor ceilidh happening in another area, a _ outdoor ceilidh happening in another area, a huge silent disco. a funfair

ride that _ area, a huge silent disco. a funfair ride that takes over the whole city centre _ ride that takes over the whole city centre but— ride that takes over the whole city centre but this concert are going to be broadcast so all of these people, once they— be broadcast so all of these people, once they start singing together, it is going _ once they start singing together, it is going to — once they start singing together, it is going to sound amazing. how would ou is going to sound amazing. how would you describe — is going to sound amazing. how would you describe the _ is going to sound amazing. how would you describe the atmosphere - is going to sound amazing. how would you describe the atmosphere here - you describe the atmosphere here tonight? it you describe the atmosphere here tonitht? . ., you describe the atmosphere here tonitht? , ., . . , tonight? it is great. once the city starts to fill _ tonight? it is great. once the city starts to fill up _ tonight? it is great. once the city starts to fill up people _ tonight? it is great. once the city starts to fill up people coming . tonight? it is great. once the city starts to fill up people coming to| starts to fill up people coming to edinburgh for the first time they may not— edinburgh for the first time they may not have experienced the city but again. — may not have experienced the city but again, all the locals who come here and _ but again, all the locals who come here and have done this for years, possibly— here and have done this for years, possibly decades, then come because they know— possibly decades, then come because they know they're going to have a great _ they know they're going to have a great time, see some great bands it isjust_ great time, see some great bands it isjust a _ great time, see some great bands it isjust a really great time, see some great bands it is just a really great atmosphere. this is— is just a really great atmosphere. this is the — is just a really great atmosphere. this is the 30th anniversary. 1993 was the first _ this is the 30th anniversary. 1993 was the first one _ this is the 30th anniversary. 1993 was the first one and _ this is the 30th anniversary. 1993 was the first one and to still be selling — was the first one and to still be selling out and attracting people from _ selling out and attracting people from all — selling out and attracting people from all over the world after 30 years _ from all over the world after 30 years is— from all over the world after 30 years is an _ from all over the world after 30 years is an amazing achievement i think— years is an amazing achievement i think it _ years is an amazing achievement i think it is — years is an amazing achievement i think it isjust going to keep going and going — think it isjust going to keep going and ttoin. ., ~ think it isjust going to keep going and ttoin. ., ,, i. think it isjust going to keep going and ttoin. ., ~' . think it isjust going to keep going and totin. ., ~' ., think it isjust going to keep going andttoin. ., ., ., , and going. thank you and some really bit bands and going. thank you and some really big bands to — and going. thank you and some really big bands to look _ and going. thank you and some really big bands to look forward _ and going. thank you and some really big bands to look forward to _ and going. thank you and some really big bands to look forward to your - big bands to look forward to your data and lots of street celebrations, too, for the thousands of people we are expecting here in edinburgh tonight.— edinburgh tonight. thank you very much indeed. _ edinburgh tonight. thank you very much indeed. i _ edinburgh tonight. thank you very much indeed. i am _ edinburgh tonight. thank you very much indeed. i am not— edinburgh tonight. thank you very much indeed. i am not sure - edinburgh tonight. thank you very much indeed. i am not sure i - edinburgh tonight. thank you very l much indeed. i am not sure i would stand out in the cold for that many

hours until midnight but do enjoy the festivities in edinburgh. hogmanay in scotland and you can follow all of the festivities around the world on the bbc news website. now it's time for a look at today's sport. hello from the bbc sport centre. let's start with the english premier league and arsenal boss mikel arteta claims his side do not need new signings injanuary, despite losing to fulham. arsenal lost 2—1 at craven cottage, missing their chance to return to the top. they took the lead through bukayo saka, but goals from rauljimenez and bobby decordova—reid either side of half time were enough for fulham to win and move them up to 13th. arsenal remain 4th, two points off liverpool and have played a game more. today was our worst game of the season, i think. the pace, the purpose we have, we were second best in every action, we could not dominate and we had issues because of that. really disappointing.

in saturday's other premier league game, tottenham cruised to a 3—1 win over bournemouth. goals from heung min son and richarlison in the last 20 minutes, added to pape sarr�*s opener, before bournemouth scored a consolation through alex scott, who also had a goal ruled out for off—side. spurs are nowjust a point behind rivals arsenal in the table. we wanted to show a bit of a response today, and credit to the lads, they had two days lest rest than bournemouth, and the brighton game took a lot out of us physically. it was a frenetic game. to put in that sort of effort was outstanding. luton town captain tom lockyer says he'll meet specialists in the new year to decide his footballing future. lockyer suffered a cardiac arrest during luton's match against bournemouth on the 16th of december and has had an internal defib—rillator fitted. in a statement on social media, he praised the doctors and paramedics, as well as the reactions of his team—mates and both sets of fans at the match

earlier this month. in tennis, novak djokovic led serbia to a 2—1win over china in the united cup. djokovic beat china's zhang zhizhen in the first match, before 0lga danilovic lost to make the mixed doubles the decider. well, serbia won that 2 sets to 1. and that means they're second in group e behind china, who've already beaten the czech republic. staying with tennis, rafael nadal�*s first singles match since last january will be against austrian dominic thiem. they've been drawn against each other in the round of 32 at the brisbane 0pen. nadal was beaten in his comeback match, losing in the doubles alongside compatriot marc lopez at the brisbane international. emma raducanu will certainly be hoping for a better upcoming season. the 2021 us open champion says she feels "reborn" as she prepares to return to the court this week

after an eight month injury. raducanu underwent three surgeries, on her right ankle and both wrists, and dropped to number 298 in the world. her last on—court appearance was a defeat tojelena 0stapenko in stuttgart last april, but the 21—year—old said she is fit and ready to return for this week in auckland, with a new perspective on her career. i feel reborn in a way, ifeel fresh. i feel ready, i feel happy, i feel excited. 0verall, i'm feeling very positive and lighter. i think that, for two years after the us open i felt may be a bit more weight on my shoulders, but now i feel completely fresh. in the nfl, the san francisco 49ers have taken the top seed in the nfc with a 27—10 win over the washington commanders. brock purdy threw for 230 yards and two touchdowns,

while christian mccaffrey topped the 2,000 mark in yards from scrimmage this season, becoming the first 49ers player to achieve the feat since frank gore in 2006. more details on the little stories on the bbc sport website. and that's all the sport for now. the australian journalist and documentary filmakerjohn, known for his hard—hitting journalism and tv documentaries, has died at the age of 84. he worked for a number of publications including the daily mirror; world in action and the guardian and was highly critical of western foreign policy. he first became prominent with his 1970s documentary film �*the quiet mutiny�*, made during one of his visits to vietnam. tim dawson is the deputy general secretary of international federation ofjournalist. he earlier told me how would he rememberjohn pilger. an enormously committed and talented

journalist who i think, you know, is a giant ofjournalism only in this country but around the world. he is someone his tenacious pursuit with the change world affairs and while there are many things, many of his opinions that i do not share i think he is a shining example of committed, determined journalism, you take that commitment and determination to entirely new audiences. i had my key was, his critics did accuse him of sensationalism and sometimes siding with autocratic governments, didn't they? he had many critics. yet many, many views and it is unsurprising that he had critics. i said one of your colleagues earlier, he is quite possibly someone i would not have voted for had he stood to be prime minister but once i had voted for somebody to be prime minister would i want pilger to be holding them to account? would i want him to be holding their feet to the fire to make sure that they delivered on their promises? i absolutely would. i read an interview with him where he once said journalism is nothing if it is not about humanity. it has

to be about peoples lives. he certainly made it that, didn't he? he certainly did. i mean, if you read his columns, particularly, he was a very visualjournalism he would very often start with some detail that he had observed that he felt exposed the deeper truth and he would explore that before, you know, moving to a much broader picture and setting something in a context that he thought was important. australian but moved to — he thought was important. australian but moved to the _ he thought was important. australian but moved to the uk _ he thought was important. australian but moved to the uk as _ he thought was important. australian but moved to the uk as a _ he thought was important. australian but moved to the uk as a boy - he thought was important. australian but moved to the uk as a boy and - but moved to the uk as a boy and made it really has home and that is where he did most of the journalism from. where he did most of the “ournalism from. . from. yes, he did, he did. obviously. _ from. yes, he did, he did. obviously, a _ from. yes, he did, he did. obviously, a large - from. yes, he did, he did. obviously, a large part- from. yes, he did, he did. obviously, a large part of| from. yes, he did, he did. i obviously, a large part of his earlier reputation is based on his reporting from across indochina, the vietnam war and it sort of onward impact on countries like cambodia setting for many years it would have seen him as very much a champion of that part of the world and he then did important work about his home country, injustices perpetrated on aboriginals, in particular. and so while he was somebody firmly rooted

in london he was very much a journalist of the world. remembering the journalist — journalist of the world. remembering the journalist john _ journalist of the world. remembering the journalist john pilger _ journalist of the world. remembering the journalist john pilger is _ journalist of the world. remembering the journalist john pilger is tied - the journalistjohn pilger is tied at the age of 84. stay with us here in bbc news. , who has died at the age of 84. hello there, good evening. blustery showers across the uk for much of the day. heavy thundery downpours for many, but also some sunny spells, so some beautiful rainbows spotted by our weather watchers, and very windy conditions across the south coast of england and wales. now, the ground already pretty saturated from all of the recent rain. there are a number of flood warnings in place, particularly across the welsh marches down into south—west england. all of the details on those on the bbc weather website. we've seen low pressure gradually push its way eastwards across the uk. in the centre of the low pressure across northern england and scotland, the winds are light but still very blustery towards the south coast overnight tonight. still plenty more showers around as well. the focus for that wet weather across north—west england stretching

down through into the north midlands and some more showers for parts of argyll and bute as well. some clearer skies for many. it's a cold, frosty start to new year's day after the hogmanay celebrations in scotland, but it is milder further south. let's take a look at new year's day. for most of us, i think it will be a nicer looking day of weather. if you fancy a new year's stroll, there will be quite a lot of dry weather around, some sunshine. that will last longest across east anglia for northern england, the midlands, northern ireland and for much of scotland. but the cloud will start to build towards the south—west of england through the late morning. there'll be outbreaks of heavy rain here by the time we get to the mid afternoon. temperatures starting to slip a little, 5 to 11 celsius. the milder air, of course, where we've got the cloud and the rain and those heavy downpours of rain falling on saturated ground, of course, in many places. starting to drift northwards and eastwards as we head through monday evening, eventually clearing the south coast. but there's more rain just waiting in the wings and we'll be seeing that on tuesday morning. as you can see on the pressure

chart here, again, it's tending to move its way northwards and eastward. so some more heavy rain across much of england and wales as we go through the first part of tuesday. that drifts into northern england by the end of the day. another feed of rain, some wintry showers perhaps over the tops of the hills into parts of aberdeenshire with the brisk southeasterly wind. temperatures turning milder, of course, towards the south, underneath the cloud and the rain, 11 to 13 celsius, but still colder across scotland and northern ireland. but here is the outlook for our capital cities. as we head through the start ofjanuary, things will be turning a lot colder for all of us by next weekend. bye— bye.

this is bbc news. the headlines... the queen of denmark announces she will step down after 52 years on the throne. she is europe's longest—reigning monarch, and will abdicate in two weeks' time. the us navy says it's sunk three houthi rebel boats in the red sea after they attacked and tried to board a container ship off the coast of yemen. the american military says the boats got within metres of the maersk ship, which has come under attack for the second time in 24 hours. president putin says russia won't back down in ukraine as moscow carries out more drone attacks. in kharkiv, officials say at least 28 people were injured after russian missiles hit the north eastern city. and dubai puts on a spectacular lights show as celebrations take place

around the world to welcome in 2024. now on bbc news, lives well lived. the national portrait gallery in london, where there are thousands upon thousands of faces from the past and present. for centuries, we've immortalised them in pencil, paint and through the lens of a camera. and each year, we mark the passing of people we may never have met, but have meant so much to many of us. there was an energy here that brought something out in me, that excited me. in 2023, we lost legendary singers and composers...