hello, i'm helena humphrey. several hundred people — and possibly even thousands — are now feared to have died in a powerful cyclone that hit the island of mayotte, a french indian ocean territory. winds of more than 140 miles per hour and heavy rain battered the island — causing widespread devastation. authorities there say the final number of victims may never be known. mayotte is a french territory, and a member of the eu. many people there lived in makeshift homes, and the french government says they have all been destroyed. cyclone chido has now moved to mozambique and is also threatening other countries in the region. greg mckenzie reports. the french indian ocean territory of mayotte. cyclone chido made landfall here on saturday. the devastation and

aftermath clear to see. entire communities flattened by gusts of more than 140mph. islanders sheltering any way they can. officials fear the death toll will be in the hundreds, or even higher. located northwest of madagascar, mayotte is an archipelago comprised of one main island and several smaller ones. most of the island's 300,000 or so inhabitants live in shacks with sheet metal roofs. tens of thousands of people have lost their homes. electricity, water and internet connections are all down. no matter how the houses were built, everything has been destroyed. i think that you can see a little bit of that all around me. people are doing their best to try and rebuild their houses,

but the work is going to be extremely long. the government in paris has sent a military transport plane with supplies and emergency workers. as mayotte hasn't seen a storm this intense in more than a decade. strict lockdowns in place for the whole population, including emergency services, have now been lifted as some try to buy what little provisions are available. we've come to get something to eat for the kids, for us adults, for everyone. we've got nothing left. we had stocked up, but the wind has taken it all away. we've had no water for three days now, so it's starting to be a problem. we're trying to get the bare minimum to live on because we don't know when the water will come back. now, those in its path in the mozambique channel brace themselves with more heavy rain and flooding predicted. greg mckenzie, bbc news. cyclone chido has now reached northern mozambique. i've been speaking with save the children's country director there, ilaria manunza, who's

in the capital, maputo. we understand that this cyclone is now bringing torrential rains to mozambique, just paint a picture of the situation on the ground, what people there are facing.— the situation on the ground, what people there are facing. thank you. this cyclone — people there are facing. thank you. this cyclone has _ people there are facing. thank you. this cyclone has been _ people there are facing. thank you. this cyclone has been quite - people there are facing. thank you. this cyclone has been quite strong. this cyclone has been quite strong and it was quite substantial in mozambique due to its strong winds. we had wind gusts more than 200 kph. bringing a lot of destruction among houses, schools and health centres and all other infrastructure. those in another province. my staff has also been impacted, our offices and sub—offices have been damaged. some

areas that have been hit by the cyclone are more dense than others, densely populated than others. such as the capital and nearby province. other areas are less densely populated but also much poorer. communities and civic protection have already started clearing up. we have already started clearing up. we have just finished accounting for all of our staff in the field, just an hour ago. all of our staff in the field, 'ust an hour age-i an hour ago. and is there any indication _ an hour ago. and is there any indication of— an hour ago. and is there any indication of loss _ an hour ago. and is there any indication of loss of _ an hour ago. and is there any indication of loss of life - an hour ago. and is there any indication of loss of life there j an hour ago. and is there any i indication of loss of life there in mozambique? fist indication of loss of life there in mozambique?— indication of loss of life there in mozambique? indication of loss of life there in mozambirue? �* ., ., �* mozambique? at the moment, we don't have accurate — mozambique? at the moment, we don't have accurate numbers. _ mozambique? at the moment, we don't have accurate numbers. we _ mozambique? at the moment, we don't have accurate numbers. we know - mozambique? at the moment, we don't have accurate numbers. we know that l have accurate numbers. we know that many, there were quite a many injured and a few casualties. but this is too early and premature to determine at this point in time. and determine at this point in time. and ou and i determine at this point in time. and you and i of— determine at this point in time. and you and i of course, we are talking ijy you and i of course, we are talking by phone right now as opposed to how we might usually envision with an

internet connection. how effective are things like electricity, water, internet, how does that impact the response? internet, how does that impact the res-onse? , , ., ., response? yes, first of all, electricity- _ response? yes, first of all, electricity. electricity - response? yes, first of all, electricity. electricity is - response? yes, first of all, - electricity. electricity is lacking, the connection and all sort of connections have been suspended for a few hours. the telephone connection is not restored yet. internet in some cases is working particularly star link. other services have been disrupted entirely. water is still, it seems still ok but we don't have, we don't know the extent of the damage as of yet. this cyclone struck early hours in the morning, around four o'clock in the morning, around four o'clock in the morning, and we lost contact with our staff from 5:1i5am until

very late in the early afternoon. tell us more about what is needed, you are also mentioning that some of the premises and offices of save the children were also damaged in this. what is needed in the response? is a getting to people who need it? so getting to people who need it? sr first of all, for save the children, we spent the whole day accounting for staff. wejust we spent the whole day accounting for staff. we just finished accounting for our staff and their families. meaning that also responders, first line responders have been affected by these very strong strike —— cyclone. the humanitarian community is organising a joint assessment in the coming few days, some have assessment has already started, to appreciate the

level of the destruction and based on that in a joint coordinated manner, underthe on that in a joint coordinated manner, under the responsibility of the government, we will define the level of needs of the population. the area that has been struck and hit by this cyclone is very large and very difficult in terms of access, both for logistics but also for security reasons. therefore we have to be determined. nevertheless, the humanitarian community had repositioned some stocks like save the children, we have pre—position survivor kits and just like other humanitarian organisations ahead of this cyclone. so we will have been meeting the immediate needs of the populations but definitely there

won't be enough. you populations but definitely there won't be enough.— populations but definitely there won't be enourh. ., , ., won't be enough. you 'ust mentioned securi of won't be enough. you 'ust mentioned security of the _ won't be enough. you just mentioned security of the impacted _ won't be enough. you just mentioned security of the impacted region, - security of the impacted region, just tell us more about that, some of the challenges that it could pose for humanitarian responders trying to access that area for people who need that help.— need that help. yes, the cyclone has hit a ruite need that help. yes, the cyclone has hit a quite based _ need that help. yes, the cyclone has hit a quite based area, _ need that help. yes, the cyclone has hit a quite based area, ranging - need that help. yes, the cyclone has hit a quite based area, ranging from | hit a quite based area, ranging from the coastal area until the inland and inland districts are also those that are currently experiencing security due to activity of insurgent groups. some organisations like save the children have presence in there, nevertheless, depending on

the extent of the destruction of the infrastructure, housing, etc, we have to assess whether those areas would be fully accessible or not to provide humanitarian aid. therefore in addition to the logistics, insecurity poses a major hindrance humanitarian aid in certain areas. the un envoy for syria says he supports lifting sanctions on the country, a week after its dictator, bashar al—assad, was outsted by islamist rebels. geir pedersen is on his first visit to damascus since mr assad fled, amid international efforts to support a smooth transition of power. he urged justice, not revenge — and he called for increased and immediate aid. a delegation from qatar has also been in the syrian capital, meeting the transitional government. russia — which was a backer of assad — has evacuated some of its diplomatic staff.

the main rebel group — hts — remains a proscribed terrorist organisation in the uk, but the country's foreign secretary, david lammy, says british diplomats have nevertheless established contact with the group, saying officials would deal with the group "where we have to". mr lammy also announced the uk would contribute a further £50 million — that's $63 million — in aid for syrians in the middle east. a week on from the fall of the regime our international editorjeremy bowen looks at the challenge syrians face if they're to overcome the past, and rebuild for the future. driving through the gates of sednaya prison was the journey no syrian wanted to take. many didn't come out alive. now the prison has been broken open, like the country, and on sednaya's forbidding hill outside damascus, there are signs in the prison yard of how far syria has come in just a week. volunteers are here to try to preserve sednaya's records. it looks as if someone tried

to destroy what was done here. when dictators and their henchmen fall, making sure they don't take the truth with them is a big part of a better future. it's slow work. runaway! yeah. a runaway guard. in sednaya's cell corridors, you can see how hard it will be to mend the country assad broke. families come here searching for those they've lost. it is estimated more than 100,000 people disappeared since 2011, after being detained by the old regime. the volunteers found that the truth was even worse than they had feared in cells that still stink of misery. translation: it is terrible, terrible. i there are bags of urine on the floor. they couldn't go to the toilet, so they had to put urine in bags. the smell. there is no sun or light. i can't believe people

were living like this, when we were breathing normally and living our normal lives. the rubble is left from attempts to find hidden cells. sednaya's basements were the dark heart of the assad regime. it used the fear of this place to coerce and repress the people. just punishing the torturers who lurked here and healing their victims is a huge undertaking on its own. this prison is full of horrible little details of the way that people were mistreated. this area is full of blankets, bits of clothing, uniforms. i'd say there's a strong possibility that they kept dozens of men cooped up in here like sardines in absolutely brutal, bestial conditions. every syrian i've met has said

that the future has to be built on justice for the past. these men in the prison yard called sednaya a mass grave and wanted bashar al—assad to be decapitated. ahmed, searching for the brother he said lives on in his dreams, did three years in sednaya. translation: it was so bad. the torture, the food, everything. we were suffering. we are many. people from al qamishli, hasakah, raqqa, all looking for their loved ones. thousands are still in the streets looking for their children. it's notjust me. another huge challenge — reconstruction. who will pay? the economy was destroyed by the war and sucked dry by the corruption of the assads. this isjobar, close to damascus city centre. we drove through the ruins to see hassan abu shwab, back with his family after 11 years

injail, sentenced to death for terrorism — the regime's word for rebellion, which he denies. the neighbours were firing into the air to celebrate the return of sons from the war. what do you think should happen to the sort of guys who tortured prisoners like you? tranlsation: they should be punished. we are human souls after all, not stones. and the killers must be publicly executed. otherwise we won't get through this. some of them tortured human beings to death. i saw a 49—year—old man in my cell die. they tortured him for three days, then wrote in the report that he had a stroke. you've been through a terrible experience. so has the whole country. how do you get over it and build a better place? translation: we need to forget to move on. i this is a happy time for all syrians. we need to get back to work. we turn the page.

all the sadness is behind us. forgetting the assads is not easy when they've left 90% of syrians in poverty. these men came to sednaya from aleppo to find their brothers. now they're camping in the prison, nowhere else to go and no escape from a hard future and a past full of pain. jeremy bowen, bbc news, damascus. the israeli government has approved a plan to expand settlements in the occupied golan heights — a move considered illegal under international law. prime minister benjamin netanyahu defended the decision — because of what he called the �*new front�* that's opened up in syria. israel captured the golan heights from syria in 1967. an armistice was signed between them in 1974 and a buffer zone established. but after the fall of president assad, israeli troops entered the buffer zone — again in violation of the agreement. our correspondent lucy williamson

reports now from the village of hadar where she encountered israeli troops — on syrian territory. an hourfrom damascus on a syrian country road, we met israel's army. an impromptu checkpoint on the only route into hadar village. military vehicles and troops in full combat gear. earlier this week, israel said it was seizing control of syrian territory in a demilitarised zone set up in a ceasefire agreement 50 years ago. hadar overlooks this buffer zone. parts of the village even jut into it. the village chief points out the territory israel occupied in 1967 from the mountains of the golan to the galilee. many residents in this druze community have relatives still living there.

now they see israeli forces moving around their own village. a week after president assad's regime fell, the sense of freedom here comes tinged with fatalism. maybe they leave. maybe they stay. maybe they go away. maybe they make the area safe and then go away to the border. we want to hope. but in the future, we will wait and see. israeli bulldozers are clearly visible above the village. many syrians fear israel simply wants to grab more land. israel says it's motivated by the threat from jihadist groups and that its incursions would be limited and temporary. the iran—backed groups that israel was fighting here have been weakened by the fall of assad. israel is taking advantage of this moment to extend its reach here and deal with new potential threats. the village chief said dozens

of men, including his own son, died defending the village from militia of all kinds during syria's war. israel is a state. we can't stand up to it. we used to stand up to individuals, but israel is a superpower. israel's prime minister has talked about a new front in syria. syria's new islamist leader has warned of unnecessary escalation. its long awaited freedom overshadowed by talk of war. lucy williamson, bbc news, hadar. israel says it's closing its embassy in ireland, months after it withdrew its ambassador from the country. the foreign minister gideon sa'ar accused the irish government of "antisemitic actions" and "demonising" israel. the irish prime minister simon harris called the decision deeply

regrettable; he said ireland was not anti—israel, but pro—human rights and international law. last week, ireland decided to join south africa's genocide case against israel at the international court ofjustice. and earlier this year, it unilaterally recognised a palestinian state. prosecutors in south korea say the impeached president, yoon suk yeol, has failed to respond to a summons for questioning. mr yoon was removed from office on saturday after a failed attempt to impose martial law earlier this month. his impeachment has intensified political turmoil in the country, with growing calls for accountability over his actions. officials have confirmed — that they are now planing to re—issue the order again. the former president has not yet commented on these latest summons. live now to seoul where we can speak with sung—yoon lee, live now to seoul where we can speak with sung—yoon lee, global fellow at the woodrow wilson international center for scholars and author of the sister, north korea's kim yojong, the most dangerous

woman in the world. welcome, thank you very much for being with us. we were just talking about there, prosecutors have summoned the impeach president for questioning. he hasn't turned up. where do you think all of this could be leading? where do you think all of this could be leadinr ? ~ , .,. be leading? well, the impeachment trial will be deliberated, _ be leading? well, the impeachment trial will be deliberated, tried - be leading? well, the impeachment trial will be deliberated, tried by - trial will be deliberated, tried by the nation's constitutional court which has 180 days, six months, to deliver and issue a ruling. you know the old adage, that reality is stranger than fiction, the old adage, that reality is strangerthanfiction, is the old adage, that reality is stranger than fiction, is being reaffirmed in south korea where we had just eight years ago, the impeachment and removalfrom office of a sitting president. back then, the conservatives, the president was conservative, they were in disarray, now they did seem to be more united in fighting the case but there are challenges ahead for president yoon and his supporters. the

constitutional _ and his supporters. the constitutional court - and his supporters. the constitutional court will j and his supporters. the constitutional court will have to decide on this, so there is the possibility that he could be reinstated whilst at the same time he could also face criminal charges here, potentially is there the potential for prison time? there is. the allegation _ potential for prison time? there is. the allegation is _ potential for prison time? there is. the allegation is that _ potential for prison time? there is. the allegation is that president - the allegation is that president yoon illegally and unconstitutionally declared martial law when there was no national emergency, when there was no active war, a state of national emergency, and what the constitutional court will decide is whether his offences, whether his actions warrant removal from office and perhaps even imprisonment. is itjustified? was hejustified in issuing a martial law which has very negative image and south korea, south korean history of tanks rolling in and armed soldiers firing on unarmed civilian protesters and so on. so

it's a steep climb uphill for president yoon.— it's a steep climb uphill for president yoon. it's a steep climb uphill for resident yoon. �* ., president yoon. and in the meantime, south korea — president yoon. and in the meantime, south korea has _ president yoon. and in the meantime, south korea has an _ president yoon. and in the meantime, south korea has an interim _ president yoon. and in the meantime, south korea has an interim leader - south korea has an interim leader but of course, people there are without an elected leader. how long could that last? it without an elected leader. how long could that last?— could that last? it could last another six _ could that last? it could last another six months, - could that last? it could last another six months, but - could that last? it could last l another six months, but there could that last? it could last - another six months, but there are two precedents in recent memory of a sitting president being impeached. it took two months for one case and three months for the other case for the constitutional court to come to a decision. based on those precedents we expect the matter to be resolved for now in the next three or four months and then two months, within two months of the ruling by the court they will have to be a new presidential election and the opposition party's candidate is, he has burdens of his own, legal woes but he has five criminal convictions and three other cases going on so it's a race to the finish line, a race to survive for both mr yoon and mr lee. let's touch

on the interim — both mr yoon and mr lee. let's touch on the interim leader _ both mr yoon and mr lee. let's touch on the interim leader if _ both mr yoon and mr lee. let's touch on the interim leader if you _ on the interim leader if you don't mind, how much do you think you can actually get done when he is not an elected leader, and what does that mean for the country? also geopolitically doesn't leave it more vulnerable? i geopolitically doesn't leave it more vulnerable? , ,., geopolitically doesn't leave it more vulnerable?— vulnerable? i believe so. as the actinr vulnerable? i believe so. as the acting president, _ vulnerable? i believe so. as the acting president, his— vulnerable? i believe so. as the acting president, his powers, i vulnerable? i believe so. as the| acting president, his powers, he vulnerable? i believe so. as the i acting president, his powers, he is the foreign korean —— former karina bester to the united states, he would be restrained at summit meetings and so on, the turn of events only favour the other team which is russia, north korea and china. it's a very rough neighbourhood here where the korean peninsula is it located by all these big powers with nuclear weapons. this is a slight setback, not only for south korean politics and for the people, but also for south korea's alliance with the united states and its relationship with

japan. states and its relationship with jaoan, , ., ., states and its relationship with ja-an. , ., ., states and its relationship with jaoan, , ., ., ., . ., japan. global fellow at the woodrow wilson international— japan. global fellow at the woodrow wilson international centre - japan. global fellow at the woodrow wilson international centre for - wilson international centre for scholars, very good to have your perspective. two russian oil tankers have sunk in bad weather in the kerch strait, that separates russia from occupied crimea. footage shows one tanker split in half, with oil spilling into the water. at least one crew member was reportedly killed. a rescue operation evacuated 13 crew from one vessel, before being suspended due to bad weather. both tankers are believed to have drifted before running aground offshore. the kerch strait is a key route for russian exports — and separates russia from crimea, the ukrainian peninsula illegally annexed by moscow in 2014. before we go — there's just time for some festive fun from mexico city. it's an annual event where hundreds of competitors, their children and even pets dress up as santa claus and run through the capital. they run along three routes — the longest of which is ten kilometers. the one kilometre option is reserved for those with dogs and pushchairs though.

and it might be a hot, sunny day, but you can't take part without wearing the mandatory santa suit. stay with us here on bbc news. i'll have more for you at the top of the hour, joined me that if you can. goodbye for now. hello. sunday brought temperatures as high as 14 degrees in some parts of the uk, and the new working week is getting off to a similarly mild start. now we are going to see some wet and windy weather at times this week. it will then turn colder for a while towards the end of the week, but for the time being, we find ourselves within this area of mild air across the north of the uk. though notice this weather front a very slow moving weather front

which is going to continue to deliver some heavy and persistent rain across the north—west of scotland. some western parts of the highlands through monday and into tuesday could be looking at up to 150mm of rain — that could give rise to some transport disruption and some flooding issues. elsewhere,a largely dry but rather cloudy start to the day. however, we will see that cloud thinning and breaking to give some spells of sunshine, maybe just a bit grey and murky for parts of south—west england and wales. breezy, in fact. windy up towards the north but temperatures widely 11, 12, maybe 13 c. 11, 12, maybe 13 celsius. now during monday night, the rainjust keeps on coming in the north of scotland. further south, a lot of dry weather, some clear spells for a time, but we will see cloud thickening up as our next weather system begins to work its way in towards the west, some rain into northern ireland,

south—west scotland. as we start tuesday morning, that first band of rain pushing its way northwards and eastwards, then a somewhat drier gap, maybe with a little bit of brightness, before our next band of rain swings its way in from the west. the winds will be strengthening, in fact quite gusty around some western coasts. with those winds coming up from the south, it's going to be another mild day. ten, 11, 12, 13 degrees wednesday. exceptionally mild. there will be some spells of sunshine. scattered showers too. looks like an area of heavy rain will start to push its way in towards the south—west and parts of wales later in the day. if you get yourself some brightness, ten to 10— if you get yourself some brightness, 10—15 mild indeed for the time of year. however, that mild air for the middle part of the week is not going to last because the wind direction changes into thursday. we bring down more of a north or northwesterly wind, and it is going to feel a little bit colder for the end of the week. so the week starts on a mild note, we'll see some wind and rain, and then it turns a little bit colder later.

this is bbc news. the headlines follow at the top of the hour, straight after this programme. actor, producer and director, aamir khan is one of india's biggest bollywood stars. it's really lovely to have your work appreciated. with a career spanning for more than three decades, it was his acclaimed movie lagaan,

which, in 2002, pushed him to the world stage with an oscar nomination in the foreign language film category. a film that is well made, it travels, you know, good films like lagaan travel. now, two decades later, he's eyeing the oscars again, with laapataa ladies — meaning "lost ladies" — india's official pick for the oscars, directed by his ex—wife, kiran rao. heavy clash. exclaims in hindi. i sat down with aamir khan to discuss his career, hopes for an oscar and his future plans. aamir khan, thank you for coming here. congratulations on laapata ladies, or known as lost ladies, being india's pick for the oscars. the film is about women empowerment, but there's a strong male character, a main character in the film too. so, as a man, why was it important to back a film looking at the fight against the patriarchy? well, ijust loved the story.

when i read the script, i was a jury in a script competition,