merry christmas, mel. up you come, please. the bbc pulls its masterchef christmas specials, and more allegations of inappropriate behaviour are made against gregg wallace. the taliban is reported to have banned afghan women from medical training — the only form of education available to them beyond primary school. and love it or hate it? jaguar unveils its new electric concept car. and coming up on bbc news... preparing for the biggest game of their lives, wales attempt to reach a major tournament for the first time with their playoff with the republic of ireland, level at 1—1. good evening. in a shock move, the president of south korea has declared emergency martial law, saying he's doing so because of what he called anti—state forces

attempting to overthrow the system. there've been tense scenes for hours outside parliament. the building was for a while sealed but then mps did go in and voted against the president's edict. but there are now conflicting reports suggesting that the military will maintain martial law. south korea is a democracy, but martial law would allow the suspension of the country's normal political processes, and give the president extraordinary powers. jake kwon sent this report from seoul. extraordinary scenes taking place in asia's foremost democracy. protesters clashing with soldiers on the streets of seoul, before storming the assembly hall of seoul's parliament tonight. the protesters chanting the name of the main opposition leader, and they have been chanting for hours now. it

is almost 2am in seoul and people are not going home. they want to be are not going home. they want to be a national assembly door opened, they want the martial law lifted, and they want to know what is going to happen, because the overwhelming mood here is one of incredulity. i see some people also giggling because they cannot seem to believe that martial law was declared in this democracy. most of the people here is one of incredulity. i see some people also giggling because they cannot seem to believe that martial law was declared in this democracy. most of the people you have never experienced something like this. in a surprise late night address, president yoon suk yeol declared martial law, suspending freedom of press and political gatherings. he said that it was to drive out the anti—state forces and restore order. overwhelmingly unpopular and without majority in the assembly, he has been reduced to a lame duck, and this week the main opposition party slashed yoon�*s proposed budget and moved to impeach his cabinet. martial law is something south korea has not seen since 1979, when the military dictator was assassinated. it was soon followed

by a military coup. butjust hours after, the opposition passed a motion demanding the president lift martial law. and now all eyes are on yoon suk yeol as the public desperately hopes for a return to normal times. we can go to jake now. what is the scene? and is it at all clear what the situation is? it is still very unclear. it is sam here. as you can see, about 100 protesters are still chanting and asking for the door to be opened to the national assembly. to be honest, the national assembly. to be honest, the ball is squarely in yoon suk yeol�*s court. the speaker of the house were saying that legally the president must lift the marshall though immediately. he called the declaration of martial law doll and

—— null and void. politically, this would be a huge gamble that he just cannot afford to lose. would be a huge gamble that he “ust cannot afford to losei cannot afford to lose. thank you very much. _ cannot afford to lose. thank you very much. jake. _ cannot afford to lose. thank you very much, jake, reporting - cannot afford to lose. thank you very much, jake, reporting livel cannot afford to lose. thank you - very much, jake, reporting live from very much, jake, reporting live from the scene in seoul. the bbc says it will not broadcast two masterchef celebrity christmas specials in light of the controversy surrounding one of the presenters, gregg wallace. but the corporation said the current series of masterchef: the professionals would continue to be shown as planned. tonight, more allegations about gregg wallace's inappropriate behaviour and language have emerged. he denies engaging in behaviour of a sexually harrassing nature. here's our culture reporter, noor nanji. a warning that her piece includes graphic detail. gregg wallace will be back on our screens tonight, but from the bbc today, a change of tune. they announced they would no longer broadcast the masterchef christmas specials. it comes as bbc

news put new allegations of inappropriate behaviour to them. anna, not her real name, worked on masterchef in 2015. one day he asked me to come to his dressing room to fix his bow tie for an after—work event. as i started to fast on his bow tie, i noticed his trousers were partially lowered. his pubic hair was on show, and you could see the top part of his penis, and he was wearing no boxes underneath. when i noticed, he stared at me. no apology was offered. it felt like a powerplay. she says she didn't see how the trousers had become lowered. the production company which makes the show says producers spoke at length with anna about what happened and she told them she didn't feel threatened at any point. they say it was also raised with the bbc at the time. lisa, not her real name, worked on a show with wallace in 2015. ~ , , ., ~ 2015. we were in the supermarket filminu. 2015. we were in the supermarket filming- he _ 2015. we were in the supermarket filming. he brushed _ 2015. we were in the supermarket filming. he brushed past- 2015. we were in the supermarket filming. he brushed past me - 2015. we were in the supermarket filming. he brushed past me at i 2015. we were in the supermarket| filming. he brushed past me at the

checkout and _ filming. he brushed past me at the checkout and touched _ filming. he brushed past me at the checkout and touched my - filming. he brushed past me at the checkout and touched my bum - filming. he brushed past me at the checkout and touched my bum with filming. he brushed past me at the - checkout and touched my bum with his waist and penis and laughed and said, oh, you liked that, didn't you? it was the way he reacted. 0ther you? it was the way he reacted. other people would have said, sorry, can i squeeze by, which would have been 0k. it was awful but i was so busy and felt like i just been 0k. it was awful but i was so busy and felt like ijust had to get on. but i wasn't 0k about it. when i finished the shoot, i felt it was slimy. finished the shoot, i felt it was slim . , , , ., ., slimy. disgusting. sarah, not her real name. _ slimy. disgusting. sarah, not her real name, says _ slimy. disgusting. sarah, not her real name, says she _ slimy. disgusting. sarah, not her real name, says she had - slimy. disgusting. sarah, not her real name, says she had an - slimy. disgusting. sarah, not her- real name, says she had an encounter with wallace in 2022. i real name, says she had an encounter with wallace in 2022.— with wallace in 2022. i was working at an event — with wallace in 2022. i was working at an event and _ with wallace in 2022. i was working at an event and gregg _ with wallace in 2022. i was working at an event and gregg wallace - with wallace in 2022. i was working at an event and gregg wallace was| with wallace in 2022. i was working i at an event and gregg wallace was in attendance. at the end, he asked me to take _ attendance. at the end, he asked me to take him _ attendance. at the end, he asked me to take him to the car park. he put his hand _ to take him to the car park. he put his hand on — to take him to the car park. he put his hand on my bottom and groped me. it made _ his hand on my bottom and groped me. it made me _ his hand on my bottom and groped me. it made me feel gross. it was horrible _ it made me feel gross. it was horrible i_ it made me feel gross. it was horrible. i didn't say anything as i was so _ horrible. i didn't say anything as i was so shocked. the horrible. i didn't say anything as i was so shocked.— was so shocked. the presenter ste ed was so shocked. the presenter stepped away _ was so shocked. the presenter stepped away from _ was so shocked. the presenter stepped away from filming - was so shocked. the presenter - stepped away from filming masterchef last week after bbc news previously revealed a string of allegations of inappropriate comments against him. his lawyers have strongly denied he

engages in sexually harassing behaviour. as the bbc has taken the masterchef christmas specials are fair, it will be hoping this eases the pressure on them, but our new revelations highlight that the production company owned by the extension the bbc knew that there were allegations about gregg wallace's behaviour as far back as 2015. we put the latest allegations to the production company. it says it takes this matter incredibly seriously but while a external investigation is ongoing, it won't be commenting on individual allegations. the bbc says it takes anyissues allegations. the bbc says it takes any issues raised with them seriously and has robust processes in place to deal with them. we also put the latest allegations to wallace's representatives and offered him an interview, but he has not responded. let's talk more about this with our media and arts correspondent david sillito. david, is the bbc under more or less pressure tonight? it is certainly increasing and has been over the last few days. if you look from the beginning, it was

decided that gregg wallace would step away after the first allegations were made, and a decision within the bbc was that for the programmes that have already been made, masterchef the professionals, there was a duty to viewers and to the people involved in the programme that they would continue to show it. over the weekend, of course, more people have come forward with allegations, and there have also been gregg wallace was my own comments, talking about these being complaints from a few middle middle—aged women. and i think those comments, even though he apologised afterwards, they are still ringing in people's years. so clearly a decision today was that if anything —— was that anything the bbc don't feel they have to broadcast is dropped. 0ut go the christmas specials and repeats of inside the factory. the bbc is conducting a workplace culture review at the moment. behind all of this are the questions. what did people know, what did they do, and have things been essentially overlooked or tolerated, things that

shouldn't have been?— overlooked or tolerated, things that shouldn't have been? thank you very much, shouldn't have been? thank you very much. david — shouldn't have been? thank you very much, david sillitoe, _ shouldn't have been? thank you very much, david sillitoe, our— shouldn't have been? thank you very much, david sillitoe, our media - shouldn't have been? thank you very much, david sillitoe, our media and l much, david sillitoe, our media and arts correspondent. the taliban are reported to have banned female students in afghanistan from enrolling for medical training, which was the only form of higher education still available for women. they had already been barred from secondary and university education. it's the latest denial of rights to afghan women. caroline hawley is here with more. over the past three years women in afghanistan have faced blow after blow, with ever more of their rights ta ken away. no country in the world has more restrictions on women's rights. when the taliban took power again in 2021, two decades after being ousted by a us—led coalition, there were hopes that their hardline views could be moderated. a month after coming to power, they announced that they would allow women to study and work within what they called "their framework", and that women would be active in society. but have a look at how that promise has been broken. first, girls are barred from secondary school. then they're banned

from travelling without a male relative accompanying them. and they're made to cover themselves from head to toe, showing only their eyes. then in a further blow to education, they're banned from attending universities. and just a few months ago, a new edict came out — banning their voices from being heard in public. now, news that one of the last remaining avenues open to women who want an education is being closed — training to be midwives and nurses. just a few weeks ago, the bbc was allowed to film a midwife training course run by the taliban government, where they're being taught how to deliver babies. but today, the bbc has spoken to medical students in these parts of the country who say their training has been abruptly stopped, with no more classes after today. and this is what it means to them. these medical students had shown up to class as usual today, only to be sent home. several women have spoken to the bbc anonymously of their despair.

translation: deep down - in our hearts, we note there is no hope, there is no hope for us. please let us at least breathe. they don't even let us breathe. let us breathe, let our slave, let us ——let us breathe, let us live, let us study. up until last year, some women risked arrest, going out openly on the streets demanding their freedoms be returned. it has now become too dangerous to do this. but women still want their voices heard. they sing. this was a protest of medical students today, singing aloud in defiance of taliban rules, when they find out their class is cancelled. and another protest. theirfaces are hidden but their message is clear. their hearts, they say, are broken. and of course this is notjust devastating news for the women studying to be medics. the un says afghanistan is already one of the most difficult places in the world to have a baby,

with one woman dying of complications of pregnancy or childbirth every hour. without a new generation of midwives, the lives of even more women will be put at risk. the funeral of harshita brella, whose body was discovered in a car boot in east london, has taken place in india. police believe the 24—year—old was fatally strangled in corby, northamptonshire, last month. they've named her husband, pankaj lamba, as the prime suspect in their murder investigation. senior members of the royal familyjoined the king as he officially welcomed the emir of qatar for a two—day state visit. the queen, who is recovering from a form of pneumonia, was present, as was the princess of wales. the visit by the emir is controversial because of qatar's record on lgbt rights. here's daniela relph. welcoming the emir of qatar to buckingham palace.

the king led the royal party, and it was while chatting to guests here that queen camilla revealed she'd been suffering from pneumonia. she's been unwell for several weeks, limiting her public duties. palace sources stressed she was now recovering but still struggling with post—viral fatigue. also present, the princess of wales, as she continues her careful return to public duty after her cancer treatment. royal salute, present. it was the prince and princess of wales who escorted the emir for the ceremonial arrival with the king on horse guards parade. the first battalion, the welsh guards formed the guard of honour. for the emir, who was educated in the uk and graduated from sandhurst military academy. a state visit is a very public show of friendship and a chance to enhance economic ties. but like all relationships, there are difficulties and qatar's human rights record

is a tricky area. 0utside buckingham palace, a small group of campaigners protested against the state visit happening, accusing qatar of homophobia, sexism and the suppression of human rights, but it did not cause any disruption to the ceremonial events. qatar is a huge investor in the uk economy. latest figures put trade between the two countries to be worth more than £5 billion. this state visit will celebrate economic, defence and strategic ties. daniela relph, bbc news. the time is 6:15pm. our top story this evening: chaotic scenes and confusion in south korea after the president shocks the country by declaring martial law. i'd have to be pretty stupid to write a book about killing

and then kill somebody the way i described it in my book. and sharon stone, who shot to fame in the �*80s with the film basic instinct, reflects on her success and how coming up on bbc news, it's the first full midweek round of premier league fixtures this season. and a first, too, for ruud van nistelrooy, who'll move from the stands to the dugout for leicester's match against west ham. jaguar has unveiled its new luxury electric car — the type zero zero — providing a first look at the firm's next generation of vehicles. but the new vehicle has divided opinion, with some calling it "absolutely stunning" and others on social media saying it was "rubbish". it's all part of the company's rebrand, which has also proved controversial. our business editor simonjack reports. beautiful, bold, radical. risky. rubbish.

the range of adjectives describing jaguar�*s new vision, which the company knows won't wow everyone. jaguar has no desire to be loved by everybody. these are concept cars — you won't be able to drive one. it's a taste of the future. early teaser ads didn't even have a car in them, and some felt jaguar�*s past was being airbrushed out of history. the jaguar boss disagrees. when people say, ok, we're airbrushing history, i absolutely refute that. this is entirely in keeping with the dna of jaguar. if you look back over the history of the jaguar brand, it has always made bold, innovative moves. think about when we introduced the e—type in 1961. the world had never seen anything like that. it looked like it had landed from a different planet. jaguar has built some beautiful cars through the ages, but the cars with the cat logo are nowjust a small part ofjaguar land rover — jlr.

now, there are plenty of people who think that getting rid of this kind of heritage is a massive mistake. but the truth is, this heritage isn't selling modern cars on the forecourt. and maybe it's not that risky after all, because thej ofjlr is now less than 10% of sales. so if they succeed in this rebrand, they build a brand new brand, brand new customers. and if they fail, it's not necessarily the end of the world. some car romantics may weep, butjaguar is in a new race. they've been chasing bmw and audi sales for years and despite some decent cars, have struggled to be profitable. and this is jaguarfor a new era. now they're trying to target the likes of bentley and porsche, looking at high net worth individuals that would be spending far more on a car thanjaguar�*s used to be priced. so what dojaguar traditionalists think? the manufacturers of modern cars, they don't care about the heritage in quite the same way as we do. they've got to go forward. i haven't seen a modern jaguar

recently that looks like a jaguar. it looks like any other car on the road, so maybe the new one, the new concept car, will give us a new face forjaguar going for the next 20 years. it's a fascinating branding and marketing story. and love it or hate it, one thing jaguar has achieved is getting its cars more talked about than they have been for years. simon jack, bbc news. one of the uk's biggest commuter services, south western railway, is set to be the first train operator nationalised under the labour government. ministers are expected to announce the move this week, with it going into public ownership in may. our business correspondent ben king is at waterloo station. labour's stated aim is to nationalise all the train operators eventually — just remind us why? that's right. here at waterloo, south western railway runs its

services through the commuter belt and across southern england as far as devon. it is currently owned by first group and when their contract expires in may, the railway will be run by the public operator of last resort, a government company that will be rolled into a new organisation, great british railways which is designed to act as a guiding line for the whole of the british railway network. this news comes days after the passage through parliament of the passenger railway services public ownership act which gives the government power to take over railway franchises from private companies as and when they expire as the government believes this will be more efficient and cheaper. the aim is for the whole of the uk rail network to be in public ownership by the end of the decade, currently about 40% of it is, including the railway services in wales and

scotland and when this process is complete, it will bring to an end the era of privatised railways in the era of privatised railways in the uk which began back in1991l. the leader of the welsh conservatives in the senedd, andrew rt davies, has resigned. he narrowly survived a confidence vote this morning. but he said the close vote showed a substantial minority of the party did not support him and that his position was untenable. arla foods, the owners of lurpak, have defended their decision to add a supplement to cow feed to help tackle climate change. the trial has provoked a debate on social media, with some shoppers calling for a boycott of arla brands, even though it's been approved and declared safe by the food standards agency. 0ur rural affairs correspondent jenny kumah reports. you see this? milk down the toilet and an online campaign to boycott dairy products?

so what's going on? well, last week arla, one of the uk's biggest dairy businesses, announced that around 30 farmers across the country were trialling bovaer. that's a supplement added to cow feed to reduce methane emissions. it's part of their plan to tackle climate change. it works inside the stomach, in this case the rumen, and it affects the enzyme that the cow produces to digest the feed that a farmer gives the cow. and by affecting the enzyme, it reduces the methane that is produced by up to 30%. the trial will look at how the additives can be rolled out across a larger group of farmers, and how it impacts on farm operations. it's been approved for use here and in europe. yet social media is awash with claims it's dangerous. the industry has moved to reassure customers. it's been used already

by 200,000 cows. at this moment in time for already for quite some years. so it's not new, it's completely safe. and very importantly, it doesn't get into the milk. and the food standards agency backs that view. it says milk from cows given bovaer is safe to drink, and that bovaer has undergone rigorous safety assessments and is approved for use in great britain. 1440 00:22:35,012 --> 00