welcome to newsday. i'm katie silver. it's ”pm in washington, dc, where the clock is ticking, as lawmakers scramble to avoid a government shutdown just days before christmas. a first attempt to pass a federal spending bill failed. despite donald trump backing the bill, 38 republicans broke rank and voted against it — it failed to reach the required two thirds majority. now we are waiting to see if a second vote, which would require a simple 50% majority, will happen, and if it does — will it receive enough support to pass? here's speaker of the house mikejohnson speaking after the first vote. the same democrats berated republicans and said it was irresponsible to hold the debt limit, the debt ceiling, hostage. what changed? it is i think really irresponsible for us to risk a shutdown over theseissues us to risk a shutdown over these issues on things that they have already agreed upon. i think you need to be asking them questions about that. we

will regroup and we will come up will regroup and we will come up with another solution, so stay tuned. the stakes are massive. the deal on the table would have kept federal agencies running until mid—march. but if a bill can't be voted through congress by midnight on friday, government departments will start running out of cash. hundreds of thousands of federal employees could be sent home — or have to stay on the job without pay — just ahead of the holidays. that's including transport, postal and border patrol workers. let's get more on this from our north america correspondent, peter bowes. peter, thank you forjoining me. first of all, why haven't they been able to get this vote through? they been able to get this vote throu~h? , ., �* they been able to get this vote throu~h? , . �* , through? they haven't been able to net the through? they haven't been able to get the vote _ through? they haven't been able to get the vote through - to get the vote through because, well, they have been two bills. the first was agreed by both sides. it was a bipartisan agreement. yes, they have probably been some compromise by republicans and democrats, but at least the bill was in the form that would have averted a shutdown, but there was strong opposition, articulated by elon musk

especially, and donald trump as well. rememberthat especially, and donald trump as well. remember that donald trump has been —— elon musk has been brought in by donald trump to reduce spending in washington. he was strongly opposed to that first bell, suggesting that a shutdown would be a better alternative. so a second bill was devised largely the same, but an addition at the request of donald trump of the suspension of the debt ceiling. now, this is the limit on borrowing that a us government can do to fund its services, and it has been suspended, or it would be suspended, or it would be suspended under this bill for two years, and that, say the democrats, and indeed some republicans, would give donald trump a free rein without the constraints of the debt ceiling for that has a couple of years to impose policies like tax cuts, and that has been one of the big sticking points. there has also been quite a lot of animosity in washington towards elon musk, especially from the democrats. elon musk, especially from the democrats-_ democrats. raitt, peter, and tell me, _ democrats. raitt, peter, and tell me. you _

democrats. raitt, peter, and tell me, you have _ democrats. raitt, peter, and tell me, you have lived - democrats. raitt, peter, and i tell me, you have lived through one of these shutdowns before, what is it like both the normal people but as well for the government workers? well, it really hits _ government workers? well, it really hits hard. _ government workers? well, it really hits hard. depending i government workers? well, it really hits hard. depending on how long the shutdown goes on for those government workers, some of whom are required still to go to work. for example, security officers at airports, and airports in america, indeed around the world, are going to be very busy over the next few days, and they could be longer queues than usual, there might be a reduced staffing, but i think the main implications of this shutdown won't really be seenin this shutdown won't really be seen in the next few days. they will be seen if it continues for weeks, and the last one went on for over a month. thank ou ve went on for over a month. thank you very much — went on for over a month. thank you very much for _ went on for over a month. thank you very much forjoining - went on for over a month. thank you very much forjoining me. i a court in france found 51 men guilty at the end of a mass rape trial. all but two of them are now in jail for what they did to one woman — 72—year—old gisele pelicot. her ex—husband got the longest sentence of 20

years for drugging his wife, and allowing dozens of strangers to rape her repeatedly over a ten year period. gisele pelicot said she waived her right to anonymity during the three—month trial so that society could see what was happening. our correspondent andrew harding sent this report from outside the court in avignon. the accused arrived early at court, faces masked as usual. some with their prison bags already packed. some with their prison bags already packed, s few showing open contempt for this trial. a few showing open contempt for this trial. but the crowd here in avignon, and the forest of cameras, were not here for the men. this trial has, in so many ways now, become all about this woman — gisele pelicot. herface at least seemed serene this morning. the rape victim who refused to feel shame. inside the crowded courtroom, thejudge quickly got on with the business of the day.

verdicts first, then sentencing for all 51 men. dominique pelicot sat quietly in his glass cage, as thejudge turned to address him. translation: the defendants will stand up in turn _ to hear the verdicts. mr pelicot first. the court finds him guilty of aggravated rape. inside the courtroom here, the verdicts have been coming at a furious pace — guilty, guilty, guilty. dominique pelicot has just stood up to be told that he will be sentenced to 20 years in prison, the maximum here in france for rape. he showed no emotion, nor did his former wife, gisele, sitting quietly on the other side of the courtroom. cheering. outside the courthouse, some people celebrated the news. crowd chants. but others were angry that many of the men got lighter sentences than anticipated. "shame," they shouted.

back inside, dominique pelicot�*s lawyer told me her client was considering client was considering an appeal. an appeal. i asked what his mood was like. i asked what his mood was like. "fatalistic," she replied. "fatalistic," she replied. "the way he's always been "the way he's always been throughout the trial." throughout the trial." and then, after a pause, and then, after a pause, gisele pelicot emerged gisele pelicot emerged to give her reaction. to give her reaction. translation: it is with deep translation: it is with deep emotion that i speak - emotion that i speak - to you today. to you today. support, and from it i drew this trial was a very this trial was a very difficult ordeal. difficult ordeal. i think, first of all, i think, first of all, of my three children, of my three children, david, caroline and florian. david, caroline and florian. i also think of my i also think of my grandchildren, because they are grandchildren, because they are the future, and it's also the future, and it's also for them that i have for them that i have led this fight. led this fight. i want to express my deepest i want to express my deepest gratitude to all the people gratitude to all the people who have supported me who have supported me throughout this ordeal.

i was overwhelmed by your throughout this ordeal.

translation: mr pelicot desired total control over his wife. - he wanted to reduce her to an object, a possession, to be used for his satisfaction. then he could lend this object to other people, and to do all that, he needed to drug her. and these were not his first crimes. dna evidence soon proved pelicot had begun attacking women years earlier. he's being investigated for the 1991 rape and murder of sophie narme, which he denies. he also took indecent images of his daughter caroline, who was in court today, along with her two brothers. she's convinced her father also raped her. this afternoon, pelicot and most of the other rapists were taken away to begin their sentences. among them — firemen, a journalist, a nurse, all ages, three quarters

of them fathers. there was a moment of tension outside when one of the defence lawyers taunted the crowd... ..calling them hysterical, then swearing at them. here comes gisele pelicot now, leaving the courthouse for the last time. she has achieved something quite extraordinary here. this courageous public stance — the impact of that will surely ripple through society here, perhaps for decades. she could, like most rape victims, have chosen to remain anonymous at the trial. instead, listen to the reaction she now receives. cheering. she wanted to change attitudes, and perhaps she has. singing. "rise up," they sing, and with that, madame pelicot, engulfed by gratitude, walks on.

luigi mangione has been arraigned for first—degree murder in a new york court on thursday, as prosecutors submitted evidence they claim, shows his attack was planned months in advance. the 26—year—old is alleged to have shot and killed the chief executive of the insurance company unitedhealthcare earlier this month. he has now arrived in manhattan from pennsylania, after waiving his right to contest his extradition. mr mangione is now facing four new federal charges, in addition to several other state charges in new york and pennsylvania. nada tawfik has the latest there was such a dramatic parade of luigi mangione in front of the cameras, as he was handed back to new york — it's something that i've quite frankly not seen in the past. of course, he is a special kind of defendant, given the alleged circumstances of the crime,

but he was flown to new york, taken off of the helicopter and flanked by heavily—armed law enforcement, from several agencies, followed by new york's mayor eric adams, the police chief, the chief of detectives, and then brought straight to that federal courthouse, and i can tell you that outside the federal courthouse, there were several people that supported him, holding up signs, one of them that said "health over wealth". so, he remains a folk hero to some, but for prosecutors in new york, they have branded him a terrorist. there were details about the notebook that he had carried, some of the entries that he had made, 1.5 months before he allegedly killed bryan thompson, talking about how he wanted to whack a ceo from one of the big insurance companies, that it would be a perfect target to send a message. what happens now is that he did not enter a plea in this arraignment, where he was formally read the charges against him, so he'll have to come back into court in mid—january. we'll then get further details about how a trial, what a schedule like that would look like, and if he will try

to seek bail. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news.

you're live with bbc news. now to macau, where the city is marking the 25th anniversary of the return of the former portuguese colony to chinese rule. the day began with a flag—raising ceremony at the city's lotus square, attended by macau's new leader, sam hou—fai, macau government ministers, and visiting chinese officials. speaking at the inauguration of macau's new government, president xi urged macau to play a bigger role on the international stage, and to innovate. the city is one of the world's biggest gambling centres, and it is regarded by china as a successful example of its "one country, two systems" model russia's president putin says he is ready for talks at "any "time" with the us president—elect donald trump. mr trump has vowed to bring the war with ukraine to a swift end, but has given few details

on how he would achieve that. president putin was speaking at his lengthy end—of—year press conference — and our russia editor, steve rosenberg was there. it would have been hard not to notice vladimir putin today. his marathon, end—of—year event was live on all the main tv channels in russia. it was half phone—in, half press conference. he used it to make his first public comments on events in syria, with a message for those calling the fall of assad a blow to russia. translation: whoever. would like to portray russia as weakened, i would like to recall the words of a famous person and writer, who once said, "the reports "of my death are greatly exaggerated." a message too for donald trump — putin was ready for talks, any time. after more than four hours, it was my turn

to ask a question. "exactly 25 years ago," i said, "when boris yeltsin resigned "and handed you power, he told you, take care of russia. "but what of the significant losses suffered in your "so—called special military operation in ukraine "and the ukrainian troops now in russia's kursk region, "and sanctions and high inflation? "do you think you've taken care of russia?" translation: yes, i haven't just taken care of it. - i think we've pulled back from the edge of the abyss. with everything that was happening to russia before that, we were heading towards a complete, total loss of our sovereignty, and without sovereignty, russia cannot exist as an independent state.

from the public, there were video messages asking putin to fix their everyday problems. from the president, there was praise for russian soldiers fighting against ukraine. so, what did we learn from four hours of live televised putin? that, in his mind, he can't put a foot wrong. events in syria are not a defeat. the war in ukraine is going russia's way. yes, putin admits there are problems, but the whole point of this event was to convince russians that he has the solutions. and when it was over, well, it wasn't over for me. i was mobbed by russian media, wanting my reaction, and in this case, accusing me of a provocation. this is what happens if you've managed to ask the kremlin leader a question. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. a bbc investigation reveals that the myanmar military now only has full control of less than a quarter of the territory, nearly four years after seizing power

ina coup. a patchwork of resistance groups and ethnic armies now have full control over more than ao%, and the rest is mostly contested. for over a year, bbc eye has been following one of the rebel units, and reveals that spies in the military are helping the resistance. rebecca henschke reports. this pro—democracy rebel unit is preparing to attack. their leader has received intelligence from a spy inside the military, the enemy camp. translation: we have been told about their capabilities, _ where their reinforcements will come from, and which routes they will use to withdraw. our strategy is to mentally pressure the enemy day and night.

they keep up the pressure for nine days. the final strike is made the final strike is made at night using a drone. at night using a drone. the next day they the next day they survey the damage. survey the damage. we started with nothing and now we started with nothing and now look at our success. look at our success. a bbc data investigation a bbc data investigation reveals that while the military reveals that while the military still control the major cities, still control the major cities, they now only have full control they now only have full control of less than a quarter of less than a quarter of myanmar territory. of myanmar territory. a patchwork of resisting groups operations using that. a patchwork of resisting groups and ethnic armies now fully and ethnic armies now fully control over ao%. control over ao%. chanting. chanting. spies within the military ranks spies within the military ranks are helping the pro—democracy are helping the pro—democracy uprising achieve what uprising achieve what was once unthinkable. was once unthinkable. translation: through them, translation: through them, we know the enemy positions, j we know the enemy positions, j movements and plans. movements and plans.

we prepare our military

iam angry. my anger is bigger than my fear. the military is aggressively trying to reclaim lost ground, carrying out a wave of deadly air strikes. they did not respond to our request for an interview. the us has announced fresh sanctions targeting several shipping companies for their involvement in iran's petrol trade. the state department said the companies help iran boost its finances to invest in weaponry and nuclear weapons programmes. the sanctions come after israel carried out strikes on iran—backed houthi rebels in yemen. at least nine people were killed in the strikes, which israel's military said it hit seaports and energy infastructure — in an effort to deter iran from smuggling weapons into the region and shore up western shipping routes. just hours earlier, israel said that it intercepted a missile launched into its territory by the houthis. french president emmanuel

macron arrived in mayotte on thursday to assess the damage from cyclone chido. the nation which lies just off the southeastern coast of africa has been battered by the storm since the weekend. mayotte is france's poorest territory and one of the poorest places on the planet with nearly 80% of its population living in poverty. officials are scrambling for resources as aid agencies struggle to begin searching for bodies and other recovery efforts. after taking an aerial and ground tour with emergency officials, president macron promised to set up a field hospital by friday and vowed to help rebuild mayotte. our correspondent mayeni jones is on the ground in mayotta and sent us this update. being here in mayotte, it's apparentjust how devastating cyclone chido was to this tiny island, and that's because lots of people live here in informal housing — simple structures just made out of wood and corrugated iron, and they couldn't withstand

the 220km/hr wind speeds that we saw last weekend. now lots of people find themselves without shelter, sleeping out in the open or even in some makeshift accommodation. you we did manage to speak to people who have found shelters in schools and gyms but they say that their needs are bigger, that their children are terrified and that food and security are an issue. translation: i'd like to go back home or have a house| to take my children to, because it's not normal to sleep like this. the doors don't lock and sometimes strangers walk in. i worry for my children's safety and that they will try and steal from us. now, french president emmanuel macron is in mayotte today. he's decided to overnight, because he really wants to send the message that he's here to support the people of mayotte, that he's notjust going to fly in and fly out, and i think that that gesture is being appreciated, but people say they need more, that for a long time mayotte has suffered from underinvestment, that if houses are going to be

rebuilt, they need to be rebuilt stronger and better, so that they can withstand future cyclones. now, that makes life very difficult for mr macron because at home he's stealing with an unstable government but there's also a raging debate about immigration. an estimated 100,000 people living here are thought to be migrants coming from comoros and elsewhere. and some on the right in france are saying that france shouldn't be sending as much aid to mayotte because it might encourage more people to come here trying to apply for asylum. in the meantime, the residents here say this isn't a time to talk about immigration, that they desperately need aid, and that they can't wait for it. let's take a look at some other stories in the headlines. veteran labour politician lord mandelson has been named as the new uk ambassador to the united states. he will replace the outgoing ambassador dame karen pierce. peter mandelson was a prominent figure during the new labour years, but he has not served in government since 2010. authorities in southwestern nigeria

authorities in southwestern nigeria say 35 children have died in a crush at an end—of—year fair at a school. more people than expected are thought to have turned up for the event, after organisers promised free food and money. the organisers of the event have been arrested. us authorities have banned drones in 22 newjersey cities until 17 january, allowing authorities to use deadly force against aircraft deemed a security threat. the move follows mysterious drone sightings across the state, and other parts of the us, which sparked public concern. the ban restricts drones from flying below 400 feet — or about 120 metres — the faa's limit for recreational flights. and there's a new record—holder in town this christmas. # here we are with a song to sing, a story to be told... a group of care home residents in the uk — many with dementia — have set a new guinness world

record for being the world's oldest choir. the average age of the group of senior songbirds is 94 — and they were crowned, after performing at a christmas carol concert in stratford—upon—avon. that's all for now — stay with bbc news. hello, there. some very blustery weather over the next few days, and it is looking particularly windy, wherever you are, through the weekend, and a whole range of temperatures, too. milder again on friday and saturday, briefly colder on sunday, then temperatures are set to rise as we head into christmas itself, which is not looking white at all. but until then, a lot of weather to get through, including tonight. there is an approaching couple of weather fronts, bringing some outbreaks of rain and plenty of cloud. also, milder—feeling air, as well, marked in yellow. so, rising temperatures for many for the rest of the night, but still a chilly start across eastern areas of england. here, some early brightness,

but it's not set to last. it will cloud over, as our fronts continue to push their way further southwards and eastwards into england and wales by the afternoon. blustery showers, brighter conditions following on behind, but brisk, westerly winds, particularly for western coasts, but because the winds are westerly, the air is going to feel a little milder. again, 8—ii degrees celsius — higher temperatures than on thursday. that front clears away, as we head through friday night, to be followed in quick succession by more. the winds will really pick up, particularly for the north and the west. this is how we'll start off the day on saturday, but what you'll really notice about saturday is just how blustery it is, wherever you are across the uk. a tight squeeze on the isobars here, especially out towards the northern isles, the western isles, parts of caithness and sutherland. here, we could be looking at gusts of wind of up to 80mph. it's enough to cause some disruption and some damage. gusts widely of 50—60mph across northern ireland, north—west england and into north—west scotland. there will be blustery showers, some sunshine in the north, more sunshine across northern

england but staying cloudy with outbreaks of rain further south, but here, it's mild — 12 or 13 degrees. however, this is sunday. notice that the winds are now coming down from the northwest — cold, arctic air — and there will be some wintriness in those showers, especially over the higher ground. and this time, it's windy, too, in the south, with gusts of wind of 60mph, perhaps across western wales and down through south—west england, too. there are met office weather warnings in place. also here, the air is cold. there will be some sunshine, however, butjust 6—8 degrees celsius temperature—wise, and it's still rather chilly on monday, but a pretty nice day of weather, with lighter winds and some sunshine, and then, it all turns milder again on christmas eve and christmas day. bye— bye.

thousands of amazon workers walk outjust days before the christmas rush. and what did you google this year? we'll look at asia's top search trends. hello and welcome to business today. i'm katie silver. in the us, thousands of amazon's warehouse workers have walked out — starting a strike during the busiest time of the year for the online retailer. the industrial action is happening in key cities like new york, atlanta and san francisco — in what the teamsters union is calling the largest ever strike against amazon.

for more on how this could impact holiday shopping let's hear from the bbc�*s ritika gupta. thousands of amazon workers walked off the job at seven facilities on thursday morning to protest against what they say is unfair treatment over pay and working conditions. this comes after the company refused to negotiate with the union over a labour contract. workers in cities including new york, atlanta and san francisco took part in what the teamsters union called the largest ever strike against the firm, with demonstrations at hundreds of warehouses across the country. yet amazon, one of the largest us employers, said its services would not be disrupted during the crucial holiday shopping period. it also said that they don't directly employ the teamsters' members on strike. the retail giant — which denies the employees' claims of unfair practices — has long faced criticism of its working conditions and been the target of activists. the teamsters union, with more thani million members overall, is well—known for winning contracts for members at firms such as ups. the union says other sites mayjoin the effort.