wand stepmother ' and stepmother of and stepmother of ten- ear-old sara _ and stepmother of ten-year-old sara sharif- _ and stepmother of| ten-year-old sara sharif have _ and stepmother of - ten-year-old sara sharif have been ten—year—old sara sharif have been found guilty of murder. saudi arabia will host the men's world cup in 2034 despite strong criticism from human rights groups. as ousted syria's president's to set on fire... calling all code—breaker �*s — the fire... calling all code—breaker �*s - the uk fire... calling all code—breaker �*s — the uk spy agency releases its annual festive puzzle to challenge the nation's schoolchildren. lots more on all of her stories coming up, but let's bring you up—to—date with all of the sports news. we had a busy day the fifa world cup. let's cross over to chetan pathak.

thank you. away from the men's football world cup announcement — it's a big night in the uefa champions league with nine matches to come, including pep guardiola's manchester city who will be hoping to strenghthen their position — they've won just once in their last nine games in all competitions and travel tojuventus who've also struggled this season. the city manager says his faith in his players is unwavering ahead of a testing month both in europe and domestically. your low back i love them and we can do better and we have to find something do better and we have to find somethin— do better and we have to find somethin: , , , something with the results, but i will not be _ something with the results, but i will not be the _ something with the results, but i will not be the right _ something with the results, but i will not be the right person - something with the results, but i will not be the right person to . something with the results, but i | will not be the right person to say any wrong words about the team for what they have two experience for many years, but of course, we have to perform and do it well. arsenal will be looking to move into the top eight in the champions league — if they beat monaco

at the emirates stadiumarsenal boss mikel arteta is dealing with a growing injury list, in particular in defence, with his side dropping points in the premier league at the weekend but he says it's not a time to be making excuses but for finding answers. we have to accept the challenge and the opportunity for other people to do that _ the opportunity for other people to do that in— the opportunity for other people to do that. in an ideal scenario we have _ do that. in an ideal scenario we have to — do that. in an ideal scenario we have to be _ do that. in an ideal scenario we have to be in charge of making those decisions _ have to be in charge of making those decisions because it's forcing us to make _ decisions because it's forcing us to make up— decisions because it's forcing us to make up for— decisions because it's forcing us to make up for the wrong reasons. but as well, _ make up for the wrong reasons. but as well, we — make up for the wrong reasons. but as well, we need to accept the reality— as well, we need to accept the reality and move forward. where players _ reality and move forward. where players are making the effort, hopefully the ideal situation will come _ hopefully the ideal situation will come up — hopefully the ideal situation will come up soon and we can do what we want _ it's an intriguing night ahead — not long until kick—off in madrid and lille — one of the most eye—catching games is in germany, dortmund against barcelona.

if either side wins they'll be second in the table come the end of the night. england women have been set a target of 234 to win their 0di series against south africa in potch—ef—stroom, but the weather is stopping their progress. england won the toss and chose to bowl, but were dealt a blow in the first over of the third and final one—dayer when kate cross suffered a back spasm and was unable to continue. laura wolvaardt top scored for the hosts with 61 off 68, before being trapped lbw by sophie ecclestone, the left—arm spinner taking 2—26 from her 10 overs. south africa ended their innings on 233—8 with the tourist�*s chase currently being delayed by lightning. harry brook is the new number one test batter in the world rankings, replacing his england and yorkshire teammate joe root at the top of the list. after his first century on home soil in the summer, brook's form on his travels this winter has been stunning. a triple century in pakistan

and then 1000 in each of the two tests in the series against new zealand. and that's all the sport for now. that is all for me for now. fantastic fa ntastic stuff. fantastic stuff. thanks so much. wes streeting — the health and social care secretary — has announced an indefinite ban puberty blockers in uk for young trans people in the uk. speaking in the commons earlier, mr streeting said a review by medical experts had found the drugs presented an unacceptable safety risk. puberty—blocking drugs are used to halt the onset of puberty by suppressing the release of the sex hormones testosterone and oestrogen. we're joined now by our social affairs editor, alison holt. what has wes streeting said? it's a significant move in making this into an indefinite ban. the nhs stopped the routine prescription for young people questioning their gender back in march this year. in may, the last government brought in

an emergency temporary ban which prevented walkers being prescribed by —— blockers being prescribed by private doctors or overseas doctors. now wes �*s treating has made that a permanent or indefinite ban. it will be reviewed in 2027. it followed the concerns raised into reports and to gender identities services, saying there was insufficient evidence to say the medicines were safe. when wes street became secretary, he commissioned a report asking to look at the situation with puberty blockers. that report he's got now and concluded the risks were unacceptable and question whether young people and their families were being given enough information in time to make informed decisions

about the use.— about the use. how does this fit into the broader— about the use. how does this fit into the broader health - about the use. how does this fit into the broader health care - about the use. how does this fit i into the broader health care picture for young trans people in the uk? i guess it follows the travel direction we've had for a while, but health services for young trans people have been, i think it's fair to say, in turmoil for some time. increasing demand and questions about them, the closure of what was the only gender i identity centre. what mr streeti was keen to say was that he wanted to improve services for young people. the new clinics have been set up in london, bristol,

and the northwest. he also said clinical trial would start in april that would look at the effectiveness and the safety of puberty blockers. the first patient will be recruited onto that trial. it will take time, it's very complicated, but the aim is to get solid evidence based answers for how effective puberty blockers are and to feed that information into the services which are offered. it's also worth saying one of the changes that has been made in this shake—up of gender services is that they know how much more multidisciplinary teams based within those services. so, paediatricians, health specialist and endocrinologists. these are

experts on hormones. they are all based together and the aim from the health secretary is that it will... so they and their families can make the right decisions.— the right decisions. alison holt, thank ou the right decisions. alison holt, thank you for— the right decisions. alison holt, thank you for that _ the right decisions. alison holt, l thank you for that announcement. the justice secretary says the government will run out of room in jails within three years. that's despite plans to create 14 thousand more prison places in england and wales by 2031. shabana mahmood told the bbc that "building alone is not enough" to deal with the critical lack of space, and demand was "rising faster than any supply could possibly keep up with". 0ur senior uk correspondent sima kotecha reports. 0vercrowded prisons — something we've heard lots about in recent months. staff unable to cope,

inmates locked up for longer. in september, we witnessed the problems first—hand during an exclusive visit to hmp pentonville. staff were overstretched as they dealt with a prison at full capacity. day in, day out, you kind of are dealing with incidents from self—harm, to violence, to kind of... ..people with severe mental—health issues. ..people with severe mental—health issues. in the autumn, thousands of offenders were released early from prisons in england and wales in a controversial plan by the government to deal with the population crisis. they say this has freed up more than 5,000 spaces. now ministers have come up with a ten—year plan to create even more room — including building four new prisons over seven years, making more than 6,000 new places. it will also extend some prisons, build more temporary cells, and renovate those that are currently unusable. it said £2.3 billion will be spent on this over the next two years. the prison governors' association says the plan won't fix the problem.

the current plans to build capacity produce the capacity too late. so between now and then, it looks like we will run out of prison space. we got to the same position earlier this year, where we came to within 100 spaces of reaching capacity. once you reach that point, prisons cannot accept anybody else. the knock—on effect is that police cells fill up with people who should be in prison — and if they fill up completely, that means that the police have nowhere to take anyone that they arrest and keep them off the streets to keep the public safe. so there is a real impact on public safety. as part of the strategy, the government says prisons will be deemed sites of national importance, placing the power to green—light planning applications solely in ministers' hands. but the justice secretary says building jails alone is not enough. we do have to be honest about the fact that -

prison—building is required. we'll deliver these 14,000. if we need more, we will of course aim to buy new land and put it- through this new planning process. but we are also being honest about the fact that, - even with all of this additional building, that isn't _ going to be enough — _ this is not a problem that we can simply build our way out of. prisons are packed, and this plan is about creating more room. but ministers admit that the prison population is going up quicker than it can create space. prisons are a punishment, and this signals a new way of thinking — likely to be popular among some, and very unpopular among others. sima kotecha, bbc news. gchq, the uk's intelligence and security agency, has released its annual festive brainteaser. it's a christmas card with a challenge to decode

the names of uk landmarks, which future spies should be able to solve. 0ur reporter graham satchell has been given special access to one of the uk's most secret buildings. we weren't allowed to film. you have to hand the phone in, which we were. to think of yourself as a spy? weill. to think of yourself as a spy? well, --eole to think of yourself as a spy? well, peeple describe _ to think of yourself as a spy? well, people describe what _ to think of yourself as a spy? well, people describe what they - to think of yourself as a spy? well, people describe what they do - to think of yourself as a spy? -ii people describe what they do in a whole host of ways, and some people do use that term. he’s whole host of ways, and some people do use that term.— do use that term. he's one of the ve few do use that term. he's one of the very few peeple _ do use that term. he's one of the very few people here _ do use that term. he's one of the very few people here whose - do use that term. he's one of the i very few people here whose face we can show. what is gchq and what does it do? it can show. what is gchq and what does it do? , .

it do? it is the uk intelligence auen it do? it is the uk intelligence agency and — it do? it is the uk intelligence agency and cybersecurity, - it do? it is the uk intelligencej agency and cybersecurity, one it do? it is the uk intelligence i agency and cybersecurity, one of three set along in my five and m16. james bond-style music plays. the it's one of the most secret buildings in the world. alongside m15 and m16. and so we intercept communication signals, analyse those and keep the uk safe from threats, whether they emanate from terrorists, individuals, or hostile states. there are more than 6,000 people here. analysts, linguists, technicians, intercepting and interpreting communications. at the heart of the building is the emc, the event management centre. so, when we watch spooks and slow horses and they always have that room with screens and people at laptops and frantic conversations — you're in charge of that room? yes. this is that room, yes. sarah — not her real name — is a senior operations officer. we can't show her face and her words are spoken by our producer. i lead a team of amazing, but ultimately ordinary people doing

some fairly extraordinary things. so, say there's a terror attack. are you immediately involved, and if you are, what do you do? yes, we are involved from the beginning, and we will be tracking that very closely, both through what we call open source, which is sort of media sources, and we're also kind of taking a look at our data sources that we have available in the building, which, some of them which, some of them are covert, and some of them are shared by partners. and through that, we can try and do as much as we possibly can in those first few hours to mitigate the threat to life. so, just to break that down a tiny bit, you say data sources, some of which may be covert. what does that mean? i don't think i can go into detail on that. but in 2013, former american intelligence contractor edward snowden did go into detail. he leaked some of gchq's methods, including the harvesting of communication data from millions and millions of people. it's called bulk data access. can you hack my phone, my emails and my internet user history?

so, bulk data access is something that gchq does and is very open about it. it's governed by our legal frameworks. it's been considered by the european court of human rights, as well as our own domestic courts, as being lawful. what that means is we cannot, even when acquiring bulk data, inspect it for any purpose other than national security and keeping the uk safe. amid all the high pressure, saving the world stuff, staff here are also allowed a bit of fun. # i can't be the onlyl one who hears you... this video of spies being ghosts was posted on social media at halloween. gchq prides itself on attracting

neurodiverse staff, and it is this mingling of brilliant minds that can bring the best results. the mingling often happens on the main walkway that runs around the building. gchq is a massive circle. here, they call it the doughnut, and you can walk all the way around it, on this — they call it the street. but for a secret agency, there are some surprising things here, like costa coffee. there's even a greggs! where i decided to buy some "min—spies". see what i did there? for all the attempts at normality, this is not a normal place. and the people here are not doing normaljobs. do you think you're winning? if i knew what you knew about the world, would i be more or less worried? i think we're living in an extraordinary, complex and scary time, and i think things are changing. but i couldn't tell

you whether we are winning as such. i think it's a very interesting time, and it will be very interesting over the next few years as we go forward. graham satchel there with his immense spies. do you see what he did here? iwas immense spies. do you see what he did here? i was so chuffed when i realised it was for kids and i worked it out and i couldn't do it. left at about that the better. concerned no charting decisions will be made until after a public inquiry has published its final report. 100 police officers from across the uk are now working on the investigation, focusing on the potential crimes of perjury and perverting the course ofjustice linked to the wrongful prosecutions of sub—postmasters and the wider presentation of the horizon it

system. the police described it as unprecedented with potentially more than 3,000 victims and evidence including more than one and a half million documents which have to be reviewed. stephen clayman, head of the central set nationalist crime team at the metropolitan police, i allowing the scale of the operation. the investigation in terms of documentary evidence is significant, if you consider what's happened in the public inquiry. we've only got one and a half million at the moment that we're reviewing. as it's a huge undertaking. hence we need a larger team to continue. this is already been running for some time. but now this allows us to take a significant move forward in terms of pace. we are always tied to the public

inquiry, but the scanner is the name number of victims involved. eton number of victims involved. van king has been following _ number of victims involved. van king has been following the _ number of victims involved. van king has been following the case - number of victims involved. van king has been following the case closely l has been following the case closely —— ben king. it has been following the case closely -- iaen king-— -- ben king. it was 1999 at this s stem. -- ben king. it was 1999 at this system- it _ -- ben king. it was 1999 at this system. it was _ -- ben king. it was 1999 at this system. it was 2009 _ -- ben king. it was 1999 at this system. it was 2009 that - -- ben king. it was 1999 at this system. it was 2009 that the l -- ben king. it was 1999 at this. system. it was 2009 that the first media _ system. it was 2009 that the first media reports about widespread problems began to appear and alan bates— problems began to appear and alan bates founded his justice alliance. when _ bates founded his justice alliance. when i _ bates founded his justice alliance. when i learned that it won't be uniii— when i learned that it won't be until 2027 _ when i learned that it won't be until 2027 that the first criminal charges — until 2027 that the first criminal charges will be brought. now, the police _ charges will be brought. now, the police are — charges will be brought. now, the police are certainly throwing a lot of resource at it. 100 officers from around _ of resource at it. 100 officers from around the — of resource at it. 100 officers from around the country, including metropolitan police, police scotland, police service of northern iretand _ scotland, police service of northern ireland and the national crime agency— ireland and the national crime agency will be working on this operation and reviewing half in1

million — operation and reviewing half in1 million documents. but they can't bring _ million documents. but they can't bring any— million documents. but they can't bring any decisions until sir williams _ bring any decisions until sir williams has published the final report— williams has published the final report from the inquiry. they say the police — report from the inquiry. they say the police are already in dialogue with the — the police are already in dialogue with the crown prosecution service, so they— with the crown prosecution service, so they should be able to move quite quickly once the report, but they have _ quickly once the report, but they have to — quickly once the report, but they have to wait for that and then there's— have to wait for that and then there's the usual delay before you get _ there's the usual delay before you get... that's put us in 2027. the first phase — get... that's put us in 2027. the first phase look at people who are close _ first phase look at people who are close to _ first phase look at people who are close to the prosecutions and made the key— close to the prosecutions and made the key decisions about charging and the key decisions about charging and the second _ the key decisions about charging and the second phase will cast the net wider. _ the second phase will cast the net wider. and — the second phase will cast the net wider, and that could include some senior— wider, and that could include some senior investigative executives. just briefly, any reaction from sub—postmasters? tote just briefly, any reaction from sub-postmasters?_ just briefly, any reaction from sub-postmasters? just briefly, any reaction from sub-ostmasters? . ., , ., ., sub-postmasters? we have spoken to a few and their — sub-postmasters? we have spoken to a few and their reaction _ sub-postmasters? we have spoken to a few and their reaction has _ sub-postmasters? we have spoken to a few and their reaction has been - sub-postmasters? we have spoken to a few and their reaction has been kind - few and their reaction has been kind of cautious— few and their reaction has been kind of cautious welcoming. these are people _ of cautious welcoming. these are people who have personal experience of how _ people who have personal experience of how slow the wheels ofjustice can turn — of how slow the wheels ofjustice can turn. while there's a certain

amount— can turn. while there's a certain amount of— can turn. while there's a certain amount of disappointment that has taken _ amount of disappointment that has taken so _ amount of disappointment that has taken so long for criminal charges potentially be brought, nonetheless, there's— potentially be brought, nonetheless, there's a _ potentially be brought, nonetheless, there's a recommendation that people —— recognition this has to be done properly — turning to south korea now. a stand—off in south korea outside the presidential office between security guards and the police appears to be over. the police wanted to enter the building as part of their investigation into the brief imposition of martial law by the president, yoon suk yeol. local media are reporting that a limited number of documents were handed over to the police. 0ur seoul correspondent jean mackenzie has been monitoring events and she told us more about what the police are looking for. this is as close as we can get right now with our camera to the presidential compound which isjust down this road behind us. 18 police officers have raided this compound and they are searching for the minutes of the meeting that president yoon suk yeol had just

before he declared martial law on tuesday night at the meetings he had during this very short time period that martial law was in force. we don't know whether the president is inside this compound because the only time we have seen him since last tuesday is during a very brief speech that he gave on television on saturday where he apologised. we also haven't heard anything from the presidential office themselves. their communication channels have gone dark. the president is now being investigated from many angles, by police, prosecutors and by corruption officials and yesterday the opposition even managed to secure an independent investigation into what has happened. he is being accused of treason, which is one crime he doesn't get presidential immunity from, which means he can be arrested and investigators have come out this morning and said they will not shy away from arresting him if they get the sufficient evidence. meanwhile, the country is in turmoil. there is this strange power vacuum

now at the very top of government because it is not clear how much authority the president still has and who is making decisions. people around here on the streets every single night still calling for the president to stand down. at the moment still being shielded by his party. they are the ones that boycotted this impeachment vote last weekend. there is going to be another impeachment vote we think this coming weekend and it isn't clear whether their loyalty will last for a second week. already, some mps have come out of the ruling party and said they are going to vote for his impeachment, but not enough to get this vote over the line. at the moment it seems the ruling party is divided and in disarray and just does not know what its next step should be. but the more these investigations close in on the president, it is perhaps sending a message to those still standing by him that they should step away. thanks to jean mackenzie

thanks tojean mackenzie there in seoul. scientists say a humpback whale has made one of the longest and most unusual migrations ever recorded. photographs taken by whale—watchers have revealed an astonishing journey from colombia to zanzibar — a distance of more than 8,000 miles. 0ur environment correspondent helen briggs has the story. the wandering whale was first seen in the pacific ocean off colombia, popping up several years later in the indian ocean near zanzibar, an astonishing journey that has left scientists baffled. what normally happens is humpbacks learn their migration route from their mother by following her in the early years of their life, and then stick to that migration route for their whole life. and so we don't know whether this is an animal that's somehow or has simply made a mistake

orfailed to learn the migration route adequately to be able to do it itself. humpback whales are known for their long migrations, feeding near the poles and breeding in warmer waters, but this male's journey was even more spectacular — involving two distant breeding grounds. one theory is that climate change is altering the abundance of the tiny shrimp—like krill humpback whales feed on, forcing him to go further in search of food. or he could have been crossing oceans in search of a mate. helen briggs, bbc news. really hope it's the latter. let's hope the whale did eventually find love. more as always on her website, but for me and the team here on verified alive, that you very much for watching. verified alive, that you very much forwatching. bye—bye. hello there. it's across scotland where there's been the best of the sunshine over the last few days. a beautiful scene here in perth and kinross, although it a beautiful scene here in perth

and kinross, although it has been cold. and kinross, temperatures overnight well below freezing, a rather frosty day for many. well below freezing, elsewhere, it's been the cloud which has been stubborn. a few breaks in that cloud in staffordshire to bring a bit of brightness for a time, but as we go through tonight, really not a great deal of change. there'll be a lot more cloud across england, wales and northern ireland. scotland still seeing some mist and fog patches in central areas, but largely clear skies again and temperatures will drop away quite quickly through tonight, so there'll be a widespread frost. we could see those temperatures as low as about —8, —9 degrees celsius again in more rural areas. elsewhere, though, those temperatures will stay up at about 5—7 degrees. now, during thursday, this area of high pressure that's been with us over the last week will gradually move its way a bit further eastward. it's not going to change things too

much for most of us, though. on thursday they'll once again be a lot of cloud around across england, wales and northern ireland, only breaking up a touch here and there to bring some brighter spells. best of sunshine will be again across some central and northern areas of scotland. more cloud though for the western isles compared to the last few days. temperatures, where you've got some sunshine, but the cold start means that they won't get much more above freezing elsewhere, about 5—9 degrees — very similar to where it's been over the last few days. now, by friday, the area of high pressure moves further eastward and that will allowjust one weather front moving close to the far northwest of the uk. that's going to bring some rain to the north and the west of scotland during friday. and elsewhere, the cloud may be thick enough to produce some rain and some drizzle towards the north and the east, later on towards southwestern areas as well. otherwise, though, again fairly cloudy, just a few breaks in the cloud, developing. temperatures again about 7—9 celsius. but as we go into the weekend, that's when we'll see more significant changes, i think with the weather. the cold air starts to be shunted away. milder air moves in

from the atlantic — look at those oranges there — a south—westerly wind. so, temperatures will rise, particularly during sunday. double figures in scotland and northern ireland. a bit more in the way of sunshine, i think over the weekend to come as well. that's all for me. bye bye. that's all for me. bye—bye.

at six, ten—year—old sara sharif, murdered by herfather and stepmother, in a case police say is one of the most distressing they've ever dealt with.

urfan sharif and beinash batool were found guilty of her killing. sara's uncle, faisal malik, was found to have caused or allowed the death of a child. her teacher remembers sara as a happy girl who loved to sing. she was such a cheerful little soul, and i think that's what's really heartbreaking because she was such a special little girl. also tonight... in syria, after the fall of a dictator, many want revenge for the atrocities of the assad regime. there's a real strong sense of excitement, expectation, anger as well. they want to see this man dead. the host of the fifa world cup will

be... saudi arabia!