vote against a spending bill backed by donald trump. the labour grandee lord mandelson is expected to be named as the uk's next ambassador to the us.

us diplomats make their first official visit to damascus in more than a decade for talks with syria's new injured in a knife attack at a primary school now all eyes on usyk and fury ahead of their hugely anticipated rematch tomorrow. hello. welcome to bbc news. we start in the us. we're heading into the holidays, but also heading for a government shutdown, because the us house of representatives, has rejected a spending bill — backed by president—elect donald trump. it's high stakes with only a few hours to go. if an agreement isn't reached

by the end of today, hundreds of thousands of government workers won't be paid from this weekend until a new bill can be approved. let's speak to our senior reporter bernd debusmann. it is likely to be a chaotic few hours ahead. it it is likely to be a chaotic few hours ahead.- it is likely to be a chaotic few hours ahead. it is, and lawmakers _ few hours ahead. it is, and lawmakers are _ few hours ahead. it is, and lawmakers are scrambling | few hours ahead. it is, and l lawmakers are scrambling to few hours ahead. it is, and - lawmakers are scrambling to get this last—minute deal through. the last we heard from our reporter on the hill right now is that they are expecting a vote around 10am local time, so around 1500 gmt, so that might be ambitious. the 38 republicans who voted against the deal that they now have to win over to get this thing through, and the clock is rapidly ticking. if it is not done by midnight tonight, then funding runs out at 1201. mit? funding runs out at 1201. why has it got _ funding runs out at 1201. why has it got to _ funding runs out at 1201. why has it got to this _ funding runs out at 1201. why has it got to this point? - funding runs out at 1201. why| has it got to this point? there has it got to this point? there has been _ has it got to this point? there has been a — has it got to this point? there has been a long _ has it got to this point? there has been a long history - has it got to this point? there has been a long history of - has been a long history of shutdowns in the us. 0ne has been a long history of shutdowns in the us. one thing i think was kind of unexpected

this week was the amount of resistance to the trump bastille from members of his own party. —— the trump backed deal. the 38 republicans who voted against some of his closest allies in the past, and i think that was kind of unexpected. but more than that, the involvement of elon musk and donald trump andjd the involvement of elon musk and donald trump and jd vance in the process earlier this week ultimately doomed to the negotiated bipartisan deal. thank you for that assessment. we will talk again throughout the course of today's three hour programme. let's speak to politico's white house reporter daniel lippman. just explain to viewers around the world, what is actually going on here?— the world, what is actually going on here? the world, what is actually auoin on here? ~ ., , ., ., going on here? what is going on here is that _ going on here? what is going on here is that a _ going on here? what is going on here is that a bunch _ going on here? what is going on here is that a bunch of _ going on here? what is going on here is that a bunch of far - here is that a bunch of far right members of congress have

thwarted speicherjohnson in his desire to have a large deal with disaster relief and the farm bill that he wanted to carry the government through, to keep the lights on in the next few months until trump took power, and then last night they defied him again, and so i think trump is caught between these republicans who were traditional conservatives, they want to cut spending, and trump is a former democrat who wants to totally get rid of the debt limit, and that would be great news for people who want to spend lots of money, including both democrats and republicans favouring their pet projects. tell me more about elon musk�*s involvement, because social media has been having a field day, describing him as president musk advice president trump. what has been going on with him? because there is lots of talk of the sort of pressure thatis of talk of the sort of pressure that is being put on lawmakers.

people have joked that is being put on lawmakers. people havejoked he should be the house speaker since mike johnson doesn't seem to be able to run his own conference. so a few days ago, elon musk heard about this deal to today, and are we witnessing a little fore he e of what today, and are we witnessing a

little fore-f what - today, and are we witnessing a little fore-what - today, and are we witnessing a little fore , ., , ., ., interfere. he is a billionaire, of course. — interfere. he is a billionaire, of course, millions - interfere. he is a billionaire, of course, millions and - of course, millions and millions of ordinary americans are likely to be affected if there is a shutdown. i want to put onto the screen the pictures from the last really shutdown, in donald major shutdown, in donald trump's first term, the longest shut down in history, just tell viewers again around the world who may not be familiar, if we get a shutdown, what stops? what is affected?— get a shutdown, what stops? what is affected? many federal government — what is affected? many federal government employees - what is affected? many federal government employees don't l what is affected? many federal l government employees don't get paid. what is ironic as they will get paid out of the government reopens, so it is just like they don't have to just like they don't have to work, it is a free vacation, work, it is a free vacation, but they get paid after the but they get paid after the government starts to turn on government starts to turn on again. people can't really again. people can't really visit national parks. 0ther visit national parks. 0ther visit national parks. other government services are at visit national parks. other government services are at risk, so stuff that is not life risk, so stuff that is not life critical or sensitive, so if critical or sensitive, so if you are processing a tax you are processing a tax refund, you might not get that. refund, you might not get that. what is interesting is that what is interesting is that even though republicans are even though republicans are often causing the shutdown is often causing the shutdown is because they are much more because they are much sceptical of the government,

they get played by the american people, since the average american may want to visit their national park, they want to have the government work properly, and so they get political blame and they don't naturally cut government spending in the long run. so thatis spending in the long run. so that is a risk that they have to keep on the front part of their minds.— to keep on the front part of their minds. and a twin final thought. _ their minds. and a twin final thought, then. _ their minds. and a twin final thought, then. do _ their minds. and a twin final thought, then. do you - their minds. and a twin final thought, then. do you think| their minds. and a twin final. thought, then. do you think we are likely to get something that passes this by the end of today, and are we witnessing a little foretaste of what

for the position. peter mandelson has been a familiar face in the labour party for decades. he was one of the driving forces behind the creation of new labour in the 1990s. a trusted adviser to tony blair with a reputation as a master of spin.

he'd been rumoured as a potential candidate for a while, but had been cagey when asked about being the ambassador. would you be interested if you were asked? i would be very interested indeed in giving advice about trade to whoever is appointed. elected as the mp for hartlepool in 1992, peter mandelson went on to serve in tony blair's cabinet, but was forced to resign twice in the noughties, he went to brussels as the european trade commissioner before returning as business secretary under gordon brown. it's his experience of trade that's one of the reasons behind his appointment as ambassador. donald trump has talked of imposing big tariffs on imports into the us, which the prime minister yesterday told mps the uk needed to avoid. it won't come as any surprise to you that i'm not a fan of tariffs. and therefore we have to make sure that we avoid tariffs. we've got very good trade

with the us as we've got very good trade with other very good trade with other countries around the world. countries around the world. i want to improve on that. i want to improve on that. a government source said that a government source said that lord mandelson was close lord mandelson was close to the prime minister, with to the prime minister, with unrivalled political and policy experience, particularly on the crucial issue of trade. it's also thought his political unrivalled political and policy nous will help him handle what could be a tricky what could be a tricky relationship with an unpredictable president. relationship with an one thing that is a certainty one thing that is a certainty with the trump government with the trump government is in that sam tweet is in that sam tweet storm that comes most storm that comes most mornings of the week, mornings of the week, at some point, trump at some point, trump will say something, will say something, will tweet something, will tweet something, that will be quite that will be quite a story in the uk. a story in the uk. he did so several times he did so several times in his first term. in his first term. so peter mandelson, i'm so peter mandelson, i'm sure, will be prepared sure, will be prepared for that and be prepared for that and be prepared for a bumpy and difficult ride. for a bumpy and difficult ride. but he clearly wanted the job very much, but he clearly wanted the job very much, so i'd say good luck to him. cabinet so i'd say good luck to him. not everyone is going not everyone is going to welcome this appointment. to welcome this appointment. peter mandelson remains peter mandelson remains divisive within labour, particularly for those divisive within labour, particularly for those on the left of the party. but it is how he gets on with donald trump and his administration that will really matter. he and the white house

had already been told about the appointment. helen catt, bbc news. on the left of the party. now, as you might�*ve seen in the last few minutes, sue gray is among labour peers who have been nominated to the house of lords. 0ther been nominated to the house of lords. other names chosen by the prime list include former shadow ministers luciana berger as well as carwynjones. former

and a number of the students. he was using a knife, so the teacher was stabbed and the students were stabbed as well. according to croatia's health minister, one student who was just seven years old died at the scene. a number of other students were taken to hospital, their condition is not believed to be life threatening. the teacher and also the suspected perpetrator are both in hospital, as well. the teacher's life is in danger according to the hospital. she is ago going an operation at the moment after receiving

wounds to the chest. us diplomats are making their first official visit to damascus in more than a decade for talks with syria's new islamist leadership. the diplomats are meeting representives of the group, which is effectively in charge of the country, after overthrowing president assad. washington still designates hts as a terrorist group — but delegations from the un and countries including the uk, france and germany have already been in damascus to meet the new leaders. let's go live to damascus and our middle east correspondent lina sinjab. tell us more about those talks on what you are hearing coming out of them. on what you are hearing coming out of them-— on what you are hearing coming out of them. well, the meetings took place _ out of them. well, the meetings took place this _ out of them. well, the meetings took place this afternoon, - out of them. well, the meetings took place this afternoon, and i took place this afternoon, and the us undersecretary was planning to do a press conference with some journalists, but it was cancelled due to security reasons. however, there will be a virtual briefing at 8:30pm local time here to brief journalists about the outcome of this meeting. but some

sources have already mentioned it was positive. both sides, what do they need from each other? the americans want to ensure that this interim government will not impose one sided rule, and will be an inclusive government, protecting minorities and women's rights, and for the leadership, the de facto leader, magda ahmed al—sharaa, he wants to focus on rebuilding the country, he wants refugees, 6 million refugees to come back, but people want cut to come back to their homes that have been destroyed. the economy has collapsed. 90% of the population under the poverty line. so all of these are on the agenda and in the minds of the agenda and in the minds of the interim leader, the de facto leader, ahmed al—sharaa.

he has called for a national unity dialogue, a conference to take place soon where he invites all spectrum of syrian society for talks to discuss the future of syria, and to discuss how to build a constitution and the political spectrum of the country. lind spectrum of the country. lina sin'ab spectrum of the country. lina sinjab life _ spectrum of the country. lina sinjab life for _ spectrum of the country. lina sinjab life for us _ spectrum of the country. lina sinjab life for us there, - spectrum of the country. lina sinjab life for us there, thank you. around the world and across the uk, you are watching bbc news.

you're watching bbc news. we will be talking ukraine and those heavy russian attacks here in a moment or two, but one story before that. the family of two men who have been charged over an altercation at manchester airport say they have instructed the lawyer who represented the family of murdered teenager stephen lawrence, to represent them. mohammed amaaz, who is 20,

and muhammed amaad, who is 25, have been charged with actual bodily harm over the altercation with police. mobile phone footage had shown one of the officers kicking and stamping on the head of one man while he was lying on the floor as the incident came to an end. the cps says it took the combination of evidence and expert opinion into account before deciding that no charges will be brought against any of the police officers involved. now, let's turn to ukraine. russia has launched a massive air attack on ukraine, with at least three civilians killed and 25 injured in kyiv, kherson and president zelensky�*s home town. russia has used artillery and ballistic missiles, according to ukraine's defence ministry. critical infrastructure has been damaged, leaving thousands without public transport and electricity. ukraine's foreign ministry says six diplomatic missions to kyiv were also damaged. let's speak to michael bociurkiw, seniorfellow

at the atlantic council. michael, great to have you on the programme again. in terms of your reaction, i know you've been speaking to a number of people there in kyiv. this was a huge attack, wasn't it? indeed. in a war where several red lines have already been crossed, this should be regarded as a pretty big one. we spoke to contacts in kyiv today and they said this was different than anything else they have experienced in terms of the power of the vibrations that they felt deep down in bomb shelters. but in terms of where it struck, this is the heart of the international business community in kyiv, and i hope that the business community will see it that way, that a red line has been crossed. maybe for the time being, deemphasise the reinvestment of rebuilding ukraine and focus more on how to push russia back before more damage is done. ramp up the

sanctions a lot more, push ahead with war crimes prosecutions and very importantly not allow ukraine to be pushed into negotiations with russia that it is believed russia will not honour. so a lot of points here to cover, but it is a huge red line that was crossed today. and also the so—called notre dame of kyiv, saint nicholas church, heavily damaged as well. i saint nicholas church, heavily damaged as well.— damaged as well. i will come back to some _ damaged as well. i will come back to some of _ damaged as well. i will come back to some of those - damaged as well. i will come back to some of those pointsj damaged as well. i will come i back to some of those points in a moment, but in terms of what has been hit, again because it is not a new tactic, going after the energy infrastructure, and that of course comes on the coldest day of the year. there are really harsh consequences. absolutely. i have just _ harsh consequences. absolutely. i have just been _ harsh consequences. absolutely. i have just been through - harsh consequences. absolutely. i have just been through the - i have just been through the cold snap where we have very little power in cities like 0desa, and families without means cannot cope for 12 hours a day without power, and the russians seem to be timing this exactly when those quotes happen, so maximising the pain

to civilians. but again, i can't emphasise enough, if this isn't stopped any time soon, where will the economy go? where will the investment environment that people hoped would be alive whenever the war ends, how can business be assured, international business, that it is safe to come into ukraine after what happened today? find come into ukraine after what happened today? and moscow sa in: happened today? and moscow saying that — happened today? and moscow saying that this _ happened today? and moscow saying that this attack - happened today? and moscow saying that this attack is - happened today? and moscow saying that this attack is in - saying that this attack is in response to the us missiles in south—west russia. it is interesting, because in that interview that donald trump game to time magazine only a few days ago, he called allowing the use of us weapons on russian targets crazy, and then the kremlin today saying trump's comments fully align with moscow's position. when you hear that, what do you think? i you hear that, what do you think? ., �* , ., , think? i don't believe anything donald trump _ think? i don't believe anything donald trump says _ think? i don't believe anything donald trump says any - think? i don't believe anything donald trump says any more, | think? i don't believe anything i donald trump says any more, we should have learned our lesson in trump but i think the feeling in ukraine from talking to my contacts there is, the next six months, the way to describe it is black, because

knowing exactly what happened, if you wanted me to take a guess on what would happen, i think i would say mr trump wanting to present himself as the master of the art of the deal will push mr putin towards some kind of settlement. it is very possible that mr putin will say, no way, we want more, and then mrtrump will say, no way, we want more, and then mr trump in a best case scenario will come to kyiv and say, we will give you everything you have been asking for, and not this drip, drip approach that has been followed by the biden administration. that would be a best case scenario for kyiv, anyway. what ou think scenario for kyiv, anyway. what you think of _ scenario for kyiv, anyway. what you think of the _ scenario for kyiv, anyway. what you think of the critical - you think of the critical decisions european capitals need to make? because putin only yesterday was talking about his willingness to compromise, but made the point that zelensky had to compromise as well. we are in really critical moments of this conflict, apparently? indeed. the new eu. _ conflict, apparently? indeed. the new eu, the _ conflict, apparently? indeed. the new eu, the former- conflict, apparently? indeed. l the new eu, the former prime minister of estonia, has said that ukraine should not be

pushed into peace talks, and evenif pushed into peace talks, and even if russia calls for a demilitarised zone of peace keepers, they are not the ones keeping the peace. so i think also what is happening here is that ukraine and the surrounding areas paying the price for a lack of investment in these various european economies. therejust in these various european economies. there just isn't enough muscle to defend themselves and also ukraine under attack, and if this war goes further, and a lot of us suspect it will, go beyond ukrainian borders, the way russia is ramping up their military industrial complex right now, it is going to be a very tough conflict for europe to respond to by itself. michael, always great to have you on the programme. thank you for talking to us here on today's verified live. my pleasure. _ today's verified live. my pleasure, thank - today's verified live. ij�*i pleasure, thank you. let's stay with this, because earlier this week, ukraine said its military had fought against north korean troops sent to bolster russian forces in the kursk region as the war continues.

they're said to be the best troops pyongyang has — which has raised questions about how effective they might be. the bbc has been talking to two former members of the north korean armed forces — who have defected to south korea — to find out more.

this what a fascinating report. before we take a break, ijust want to touch on something that is coming up in a few minutes. we are talking boxing, because do remember seeing this only yesterday? well, here it is. the face—off before that huge boxing clash that comes tomorrow evening. 0leksandr usyk and tyson fury have that rematch in saudi arabia. it is fantastic watching these

pictures. they stayed like this for 11 minutes and 20 seconds. normally you get this in all the build—up to big boxing clashes, but not 11 minutes and 20 seconds. they didn't speak, they didn't look away from each other, and of course all part of the build—up and the rematch. they fought it out backin rematch. they fought it out back in may, and usyk becoming the first undisputed heavyweight champion in 25 years when he defeated fury on points. it is the rematch, it is absolutely mouthwatering, and we will be talking to that debt be a deterrent sporting news, tom gray, who commented on first bout. so all of that coming up on the programme in the next few minutes. hello there. today showers are following a band of rain that's moving across the country and it's breezy too, but, over the weekend, the winds are going to be much stronger. it could well bring with it some travel disruption and the air is turning colder,

so the showers that will be pushing in will be turning wintry by the time we get to sunday. we've got this area of cloud. everything is rattling in from the atlantic. this area of cloud will be arriving overnight. this is the cloud that's been bringing the rain today and keeping temperatures around about nine or ten degrees after what was quite a cold start across some eastern parts of the uk. it's across eastern parts of england that we'll see that rain to end the day. that moves away. skies will clearfor just a short while. then that area of cloud comes in from the atlantic fairly quickly. it'll bring some more rain in from the west and the winds starting to pick up, as well. so probably not quite as cold as it was last night for the eastern side of the uk. temperatures will be down to around six or seven degrees. the windy weather on saturday is going to be more across the northern half of the uk. widely gusts 50 to 60mph, it could be getting close to 80mph in the far north of scotland. very windy conditions, though, across the whole of the uk. this is all that's left of the rain as it moves down into southern parts of england. showers following on behind

and those beginning to turn wintry over the hills in northern scotland, where it's going to be very, very windy. we've got temperatures in scotland and northern ireland falling away to seven or eight degrees. further south just about making double figures. but the air is getting colder through the weekend. we are drawing in polar maritime air, the air coming all the way from greenland and iceland. it's that area of low pressure running to the north of scotland that's bringing the really windy weather. further south it will be windier on sunday. it will be windy across eastern parts of england, but it's elsewhere that we will see those winds gusting widely 50 to 60mph, perhaps a little bit stronger than that. squally showers coming in and those will be heavy, possibly thundery, and there will be some wintriness in there, as well. some hail too. frequent showers coming into northern parts of scotland. another windy day on sunday and it will feel colder, as well. widely those temperatures at sixes and sevens. so getting colder over the weekend, but heading into the christmas week temperatures are

going to be rising. milderair coming infrom the atlantic, less windy, many places will be dry, but pretty cloudy.

this is bbc news, the headlines: a us government shutdown looms after dozens of republicans vote against a spending bill backed by donald trump. the labour grandee lord

mandelson is expected to be named as the uk's next ambassador to the us. a bbc investigation reveals how myanmar�*s military is cracking from within as spies help pro—democracy rebels make crucial gains. 0n verified today, we're sharing the data behind our investigation that reveals myanmar�*s military have lost control of large parts of the country.