political chaos in south korea, as the president declares he's lifting martial law, after declaring itjust hours earlier. he is now facing growing calls to resign. a sixth straight night of protests in georgia. in afghanistan, the taliban reportedly banned female students from medical training — the only form of higher

education still available

the crisis has alarmed many around the world. both the us and the uk say they are relieved that the president reversed his decision, but are deeply concerned about what's happening in south korea, our correspondence laura bicker is in the capital and sent this report on how it all unfolded. soldiers and police block the entrance to the south korean parliament, following the orders of a desperate president. locked in a bitterfight with his political rivals, and deeply unpopular, yoon suk yeol took drastic action. translation: through this martial law, i will rebuild i and protect the free republic of korea, which is falling into the depths of national ruin. within hours, thousands of protesters made it clear they would not comply with what they viewed as an attempted coup. "withdraw the martial law, arrest yoon," they chanted. translation: i believe i should step forward and take action. - things like this

should never happen. translation: after watching the news, i felt anxious, - and i also thought that this is such a national shame. clashes broke out, as police tried to hold them back, while helicopters thumped overhead. meanwhile, members of the country's national assembly battled their own military to take back their elected seats, getting there in whatever way they could. the vote was unanimous — martial law was overruled, while the country's parliament bore the scars of the evening's chaos. many protesters stayed in place, and had to wait hours to hear that, finally, president yoon accepted his brief attempt at military rule was over. translation: the declaration of martial law lacks _ the necessary procedural requirements and was void

from the outset. south korea is a stable democracy, but it's also a noisy one, and today its parliament and its people roared at the most serious challenge to the country's democracy since the 1980s. laura bicker, bbc news, seoul. we can get this with the director of the korean studies programme. many thanks for coming onto the programme. the events in south korea overnight must be very emotional, what is your reaction? i must be very emotional, what is your reaction?— your reaction? i woke up about 6am this morning _ your reaction? i woke up about 6am this morning in _ your reaction? i woke up about 6am this morning in californial 6am this morning in california time. when i saw this news, i thought this was fake news. i was in college when the last martial law was declared in 1980. i could not believe this

is happening in korea in 202a. very shocking for me. absolutely. extraordinary things overnight. we are able to just see what happened at the national assembly overnight on the screen next to you. the military position is very interesting. it followed what the president did in the first place. you are expected to follow another he has lifted martial rule?— martial rule? when this happened. _ martial rule? when this happened, but - martial rule? when this happened, but this - martial rule? when this happened, but this was | martial rule? when this - happened, but this was not going to last for long. in the past when martial law was declared, the military leaders, the current president has no military career, he was a career prosecutor. i was not

sure whether the military leaders would follow his order fully. and we know within six hours, martial law was overruled. in this sense we have both good and bad news today. have both good and bad news toda . ~ ., ., have both good and bad news toda .~ ., ., have both good and bad news toda . ~ ., ., ~' have both good and bad news toda . ~ ., ., ~ , today. what do you think needs today. what do you think needs to happen _ today. what do you think needs to happen in — today. what do you think needs to happen in the _ today. what do you think needs to happen in the days _ today. what do you think needs to happen in the days and - today. what do you think needs| to happen in the days and weeks ahead? it is obviously a very uncertain time for south korea. for sure. uncertain time for south korea. forsure. i uncertain time for south korea. for sure. i think he has two options. 0ne for sure. i think he has two options. one is he may have to resign from presidency because i don't know how he is able to continue to govern the country. now that he lost trust. if he does not resign, then he will have to face impeachment in the

assembly. i think, for me, given the situation, it is a better option for him and the country that he resign. i doubt that will happen. there will be some political fighting over impeachment in the coming days and weeks and it may create more political instability and chaos. �* , ,, ., chaos. briefly, the us and south korea _ chaos. briefly, the us and south korea are _ chaos. briefly, the us and south korea are very - chaos. briefly, the us and| south korea are very close partners and us a military base in south korea. what do you think the us government is thinking at the moment? i don't thinking at the moment? i don't think this thinking at the moment? i don't thinkthis will— thinking at the moment? i don't think this will affect _ thinking at the moment? i don't think this will affect the - think this will affect the alliance much. even though this was shocking to me and a lot of people around the world, korea

still has very strong democracy and ifeel the korean people will defend their democracy. i think korea will recover from the current situation. i don't think it will affect foreign relations especially the alliance with the united states. ~ ., ., ., states. we will have to leave it there. many _ states. we will have to leave it there. many thanks - states. we will have to leave it there. many thanks for - states. we will have to leave | it there. many thanks for your time. and we can get more on this with dorothy. many thanks for joining us. mark d'arcy. this move could potentially embolden north korea, couldn't it? right now north _ north korea, couldn't it? right now north korea _ north korea, couldn't it? right now north korea has _ north korea, couldn't it? right now north korea has its - north korea, couldn't it? i? grit now north korea has its hands full. certainly political unrest in south korea is a time when north korea can have

provocative action. certainly right now in washington we went for north korea to take provocative actions given the recent election results in our country. just as the professor mentioned, the rentals were relatively quickly because it just as surprising as it was that the president declared martial law, it seems to have resolved. right now we are waiting to see how the south korean military will be figuring in tb settlement as it pertains to the future president.— pertains to the future president. , ., ., president. events overnight are very unusual — president. events overnight are very unusual for _ president. events overnight are very unusual for some - president. events overnight are very unusual for some give - president. events overnight are very unusual for some give us l president. events overnight are very unusual for some give us a sense on how strong democracy south korea is especially in the region and how significant this is. ., , the region and how significant this is. . , , , this is. certainly this is unprecedented - this is. certainly this is unprecedented in - this is. certainly this is| unprecedented in south this is. certainly this is - unprecedented in south korea contemporary it has been about 40 contemporary it has been about a0 years since martial law has been declared and that was

during a decades long military dictatorship. that ruled the country. south korea has made consolidated democracy since 1990 and right now we can look by so many metrics, procedural democracies, south korea takes all the boxes. able to have institutions to hold officials accountable. we see this most recently in 2017 with the impeachment of the former president also faced with political scandal and ultimately was impeached and later imprisoned. right now thatis later imprisoned. right now that is the as aqua president we are looking.— that is the as aqua president we are looking. south koreans are so shocked _ we are looking. south koreans are so shocked about - we are looking. south koreans are so shocked about the - we are looking. south koreans l are so shocked about the events overnight as our international observers. what does this say about the state of the region and the world? there are so many conflicts going on around the world at the moment. certainly a bleak time. as the

events play in south korea there is a glimmer of hope for what the future of democracy holds particularly when institutions are strong and when the political culture is such that it does mobilise to hold politicians accountable. i have been talking to my friends and colleagues and we are all shocked, this is something that came out of the blue, there was not a lot of notice of this, the united states government did not get any wind of this earlier either. that being said, the fact that there was mobilisation on the part of the politicians to defeat, overturn the martial law in the legislature despite the military surrounding the building, protests were happening despite this happening despite this happening at 11pm and 12pm at night until it was defeated in the national assembly at one a.m.. the fact that we are

seeing this laid out shows how vibrant a democracy south korea is and gives us a glimmer of hope as to what the practices that really do uphold democracy as a continual practice for us to all work toward.— as a continual practice for us to all work toward. many thanks for our to all work toward. many thanks for your time. _ to all work toward. many thanks for your time. thanks _ to all work toward. many thanks for your time. thanks for - for your time. thanks for havin: for your time. thanks for having me- _ let's look at some other stories making news in the uk. masterchef presenter gregg wallace is facing fresh allegations. 0ne allegation says he was touching a woman. the bbc says it won't broadcast two masterchef celebrity christmas specials, in light of the controversy surrounding one of the presenters, gregg wallace.

south western railway will be the first train operating company to come under public control, out of the government passed a major piece of legislation last week. rail nationalisation was a key part of labour's election ma nifesto. the conservative leader in the welsh parliament, andrew rt davies, has resigned, despite narrowly surviving a vote of confidence of his party colleagues. you're live with bbc news. meanwhile, israel's military campaign in gaza continues, with medics reporting that idf

strikes killed at least 23 palestinians across the strip on tuesday. most of the strikes hit gaza's north, in the town of beit lahiya and gaza city, where at least six were killed when a school, being used as a shelter, was struck. israeli forces also on tuesday issued fresh evacuation orders to residents in the southern city of khan younis. the un says nearly all of gaza's 2.3 million people are now displaced. the mother of the only british and israeli hostages being held by hamas has described the increasing fears for her daughter's life after more than a00 days in captivity. 28—year—old emily demare was shot and taken by masked gunmen from her home in southern israel on october seven. her mother mandy told the bbc in her first television interview that she feared her daughter could be murdered at any time and she called on the british government to do more to ensure that humanitarian aid went to the hostages while negotiations continue. lucy manning has been speaking to her. mandy demare can't hold her daughter emily so instead must

make do with just a photo. after more than a00 days as a hostage, she fears for her daughter's life. ifear that she's dead. that's the main fear, and if she's not dead, she's not getting enough food to eat. she is not being able to wash herself. there is no water. she could be ill, she is suffering from gunshot wounds. emily, a british israeli, was taken by hamas gunmen on october seven. they shot her and killed her dog. she is a spurs fan, often visiting family here in the uk. emily is my youngest child. i waited for her for a long time. i love her to the moon and back. she is a special person. you been having meetings with the british government.

what is your view, are the british government doing enough to help release emily? if the british government were doing enough, she would be released already, so obviously there is more that they could be doing. i have met the prime minister that met the foreign secretary, but apart from not getting her released, there is no humanitarian aid getting to the hostages. and she hopes donald trump's recent call that there will be all hell to pay if the hostages aren't released will help emily and others. it made me a bit more optimistic, it gave me a bit of hope that maybe someone does really care about what's going on there. someone has to do something and take strong action to get them released. she is a mother counting the days until her daughter is free. lucy manning, bbc news.

thousands of people are back on the streets of the georgian capitalfor a sixth night of protests. demonstrators save the government is making georgia more authoritarian and returning it to russia's orbit. they also angered by the prime minister saying he would delay talks onjoining the eu until 2028. police again used water cannon to clear the streets outside parliament. earlier, georgia's constitutional court rejected an opposition lawsuit, seeking to overturn the result of parliamentary elections in october, which saw the georgian dream party returned to office. on this side, there are riot police, who are hiding. you can just see their helmets. these protesters are saying, "come out, come out!" day six of mass protests in georgia, in the capital tbilisi, but a completely different feel to it today,

because the lights are switched off at the parliament building, the lights in the street are dimmed, and there are no fireworks. fireworks have really become one of the features of this protest movement, but today, the authorities have restricted — severely restricted — the sale of any fireworks or pyrotechnics across the city. some of the protesters are trying to confront the police, and asking them, "why have they used so much "violence over the past few days?" there are more than 250 people that have been detained throughout these protests here in tbilisi, and there's a lot of evidence of police brutality, of beatings and humiliation of those who have been detained. how long can it last for?

how much energy do you have to...? until we get our country back, because every single one of the citizens of georgia here standing don't want to be russian, don't want a pro—russian government, and we're going to fight till the end. 0ligarch, who is governing this party, russian dream... i cannot call them georgian dream. it's not georgian dream. it's a russian dream. this is it. their days are counted. georgian dream'sj days are counted. this has to end. these protests were sparked by the government's decision to turn its back on europe, and for many of the people who are here, this is unacceptable. they believe that they're standing here now for their country's democracy, and they're demanding new elections, and they want to see this country return onto its european path. cheering and whistling

the taliban have reportedly 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 has more. tears of disappointment as women turn up to their medical studies as usual, only to be turned away. there's not much consolation when you have been told your last chance of any formal education has been snatched from you. empty chairs where once a new generation of nurses and midwives were learning. only two months ago, the bbc was allowed to film a training course run by the taliban government where women were taught how to deliver babies. as of now, this is no longer allowed. some women, whose classes were cancelled, spoke to the bbc anonymously of their anger and despair. translation: deep down in our hearts, we know

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 us live, let us study. until last year, some women risked arrest, going out openly onto the streets, demanding their freedoms be returned. it's now become too dangerous to do this. but women still want their voices heard. this was a protest of medical students today, singing aloud in defiance of taliban rules, when they found out their class is cancelled. and another protest. theirfaces are hidden but their message is clear. their hearts, they say, are broken. since the taliban took power again two years ago, there has been blow after blow for women's rights. first, girls are barred from secondary school, then they are banned from travelling without a male relative. and made to cover themselves from head to toe, showing

only their eyes. in a further blow to education, they are banned from attending attendinguniversities, and just a few months ago, a new edict 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. and that could have devastating consequences in a country where the un says one afghan woman dies every hour of complications from pregnancy and childbirth. without new midwives, more lives will be in danger. the uk says it's entirely up to the british museum to make decisions on the parthenon sculptures, which are also known as the elgin marbles. the british prime minister, sir keir starmer, met his greek counterpart, kyriakos mitsotakis, in london today. greece says the marbles were stolen, but the british museum, where the sculptures have been displayed since the early

1800s, rejects that and says they were legally obtained. mr mitsotakis has made securing their return king charles hosted a state banquet at buckingham palace, as part of a two—day visit by the emir of qatar. having recovered from pneumonia, the queen attended, too. the visit is controversial, because of qatar's record on human rights. here's daniela relph. the spectacle of a state banquet — the centrepiece of any official visit. amongst the guests, politicians and celebrities, including david and victoria beckham, whojoined the royal party for what the king said would be the renewal of an enduring friendship. in the grandeur of the buckingham palace ballroom, the emir of qatar was welcomed back to the uk, where he had lived and studied for many years. your highnesses, assalamu alaikum. and in his banquet speech, the king praised qatar for its role in negotiations

in the gaza conflict. if i may, i would particularly like to express the united kingdom's deepest gratitude for your tireless mediation efforts over the past year, in pursuit of peace, in the face of unbearable heartache and suffering. politics, diplomacy and trade mark any state visit, but this came with some personal news, too. earlier, the queen revealed she had been suffering from pneumonia. palace sources stressed she was now recovering, but still struggling with post—viral fatigue. royal salute! the prince and princess of wales, alongside the king, led the ceremonial welcome for the fmir. the presence of the princess, a sign of her careful return to public duty, after cancer treatment. 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. chanting. there was a small anti-qatari protest, but it didn't disrupt events, during a visit that is about strengthening ties to qatar, a huge investor in the uk economy. daniela relph, bbc news. before we go we take you back to the — before we go we take you back to the capital of south korea. it has — to the capital of south korea. it has been a dramatic night for the political turmoil after south korea's president declared martial law a few hours later he then lifted martial law. 0pposition parties are demanding his resignation following that sudden decision. we will keep you up—to—date on that story. we have teams on the ground. log onto our

website and stay with bbc news. many thanks for watching. hello, there. wednesday promises to be another fairly settled day, with some sunshine around, albeit on the cool side, but we'll start to see some changes later on wednesday, and as we push towards the end of the week, it'll turn milder, but that's because we'll start to see wet and windy weather spreading off the atlantic from the south west. colder weather, though, will return by the end of the weekend, and that colder theme will last into the new week. now, we've had this weather front spreading across northern areas, clearer skies behind it. that will allow temperatures to dip, so there is an ice risk across some central and northern parts of the uk to start wednesday. plenty of sunshine around, a bit of cloud and fog for the midlands, into wales, that should tend to break up. later in the day, though, it'll start to turn milder, wetter and windier out west, with gales developing

for the hebrides, so the best of the sunshine will tend to be through central and eastern areas through the afternoon. it's here where we'll see the lowest temperatures. it will be turning milder, with the wet and windy weather, out west, you can see there, into double figures. that wet and windy weather spreads across all areas, as we move through wednesday night, with gales, even severe gales, developing in northwest scotland, up to 70 mph winds here, but it will be ushering in some milder air, certainly for england and wales, into double figures by the end of the night. further north, though, something a little bit cooler. so that cluster of weather fronts, strong winds, pushes through. we see a window of fine weather to start thursday, before the next weather system moves in during the day. so we will start with some sunshine across the country, but it won't last. as we head into the afternoon, we'll start to see the next batch of wet and windy weather pushing into northern and western areas. some heavy bursts of rain, as you can see there, across scotland, northern ireland, maybe northern england, and again, it'll be windy. but a mild day to come, with temperatures in double

figures, for most, for thursday afternoon. so that moves through during thursday night, wet and windy weather. then we're in a run of north—westerly winds. it'll be quite cool, i think, feeding in some showers, mainly into northern and western parts of scotland. there will be a wintry element to them over the higher ground. it will turn cloudier, further south and east, and we look to the south west, this deepening area of low pressure, which is likely to bring a spell of very windy on sunday and beyond, with strong, northerly winds. take care.

south korea's financial authority to step in after a dramatic night of political turmoil. it is asia's fourth—largest economy. south korean stocks trading lower this morning. we will bring you all the news on the region's financial markets and reactions from around the world. hello and welcome to business today. i'm suranjana tewari. a dramatic night in south korea. the finance ministry says it is ready to deploy unlimited cash to shore up financial markets.

and the central bank as well will meet soon. it comes hours after turmoil with the president yoon suk yeol declaring martial law before announcing he would lift the order. chaotic scenes while protesters gathered outside the national embassy in seoul. a vote was held overnight in parliament with the majority deciding to block his decision to declare martial law. financial meetings held a bed in a attempt to stabilise the economy. south korea's main labour union has called for an indefinite general strike until the president resigns. calls are growing to impeach yoon. markets opened this morning with the benchmark kospi index down 2%. the korean currency, the won, stabilising after a choppy night of trading. across