and reflects on his cancer treatment. i offer special, heartfelt thanks to the selfless doctors and nurses who, this year, have supported me and other members of my family. pope francis has used his traditional christmas message to call for peace in ukraine and gaza — calling the humanitarian situation there "extremely grave". officials in kazakhstan say 38 passengers died in the crash landing of an azerbaijan airlines flight. president zelensky condemns russia's mass missile and drone attack against ukraine on christmas day as inhumane. hello, i'm kasia madera. king charles has given his

annual christmas day speech, where he paid tribute to the doctors and nurses for the care they've provided to him and the princess of wales during their cancer treatment this year. he called for unity after the summer riots in the uk made a plea for peace in the middle east, central europe and africa. this year's christmas broadcast was delivered in the fitzrovia chapel in london, the first time a venue outside a royal residence had been used for over a decade. let's first hear what he said about his treatment. i offer special heartfelt thanks to the selfless doctors and nurses who this year have supported me and other members of my family through the uncertainties and the anxieties of illness and have helped provide the strength, care, and comfort we have needed. i am deeply grateful to all of those who have offered us their own kind words of sympathy and

encouragement. as conflicts rage throughout europe, africa and the middle east, the king acknowledged the work of humanitarian organisations helping those most in need around the world. on this christmas day we cannot help but think of those for whom the devastating effects of conflict in the middle east, in central europe, in africa and elsewhere, pose a daily threat to so many people's lives and livelihoods. we also think of the humanitarian organisations working tirelessly to bring vital relief. and here in the uk, the king praised the efforts of those who had sought to build bridges between communities after the summer riots, following the stabbings southport in which three girls were killed. i felt a deep sense of pride here in the united kingdom when, in response to anger and lawlessness in several towns this summer, communities

came together. not to repeat these behaviours but to repair, to repair notjust buildings but relationships. and, most importantly, to repair trust by listening and, through understanding, deciding how to act for the good of all. our royal correspondent daniela relph explained the significance of the monarch�*s annual christmas message. we have to remember, of course, that these messages, the monarch�*s message at christmas, really do capture a moment in time and where the particular king or queen feels in this moment in time, and how they reflect on the 12 months they've had. so, in this case, it was really hard to imagine that the king wouldn't in some way reference his own health challenges that he's had to cope with this year after his cancer diagnosis and ongoing treatment. it was quite light touch, i thought, in terms of how he dealt with it.

it wasn't very much about him telling us what had been going on with himself or or any indication of quite what had been wrong. it was much more him thanking those who had helped look after him. that's how he referred to his message. he talked about the selfless doctors and nurses who've looked after him and the rest of his family there. of course, most notably the princess of wales. he talked about the uncertainties and the anxieties of illness that he himself must have felt this year, and talked about the strength and comfort that those who had looked after him had provided. so, he mentioned his own health challenges within the prism of thanking all of those who had been looking after him, which was quite a neat, light touch way of doing it, isuppose. the other thing to mention is the location. you said already — fitzrovia chapel. but that in itself tells us something. it's almost 20 years since a christmas message has come from outside buckingham palace, windsor castle or sandringham so the fact that he chose this former hospital chapel from which to deliver the message this year tells us a lot, too. it was an absolutely stunning location, as well.

it did give it that very christmassy and beautiful feel to it. he also spoke about the importance and the power of community, and of course, he was reflecting on that absolute tragedy over the summer at southport. yeah, the power of community is a common theme historically in christmas messages from the monarch, but i think there was something quite particular in terms of how the king framed it this year. in terms of the commonwealth, hhe talked about australia and samoa and his visit there, and how it had reminded him that diversity is a strength, not a weakness — and that's how everybody should view it — that it gives us something to learn and listen to one another. but specifically to the uk, he spoke about the summer and what he called the anger and lawlessness that had hit some towns here in the uk, and how inspired he'd been to see how some of those communities rebuilt afterwards, notjust a practical rebuild, but a rebuilding of trust. and again, i think that reinforced to him the power of diversity and what can happen when communities work together.

and he was, of course, looking at what's happening here in the uk, but also abroad, because part of the many royal duties that his majesty has is to travel. and as you very well know, you've been travelling with the royal couple. yes. i mean, even with his illness this year, he has still managed to pack in quite a lot of travelling. and his message started in normandy on the 80th anniversary of d—day earlier in the year. and it was clear at the time, but even more so now. i think listening to the message and watching the message, just how moved the king and the queen had been by meeting the veterans there, the british veterans in particular, at the british normandy memorial and hearing their stories at that stage of their lives, and how inspired they'd been to hear what those veterans had said to them. but the king also said that it was a reminder, again to him of the fact that there are an enormous number of devastating conflicts still going on in the world — the middle east. he talked about central europe and africa — and that seeing the veterans meeting, the veterans being at those events around d—day just reminded him again ofjust how devastating those

conflicts still are. earlier the royalfamily attended the traditional christmas service at church in sandringham. king charles was accompanied by the prince and princess of wales — and their children — and other senior royals. prince andrew did not attend, after it was confirmed earlier this week that he would not be joining the family at sandringham. pope francis has delivered his traditional christmas day blessing. speaking from the central balcony of st. peter's basilica to thousands of people in the square below, he delivered his traditional christmas day "urbi et orbi" — an address to the city and the world. in his speech, the pope called for talks between ukraine and russia to end the war that followed moscow's full—scale invasion two years ago, and he also renewed his call for a ceasefire in the israel—gaza war and the release of the remaining israeli hostages held by hamas.. translation: in the middle east and contemplating the crib - of bethlehem, i think

of the christian communities in israel and palestine and particularly to the dear community of gaza, where the humanitarian situation is extremely grave. may there be a ceasefire. may the hostages be released and aid be given to the people worn out by hunger and by war. the pope giving his christmas day address. officials in kazakhstan say 38 people have been killed after a crash landing of an azerbaijan airlines flight. the plane went down outside the city of aktau as it was was flying from the capital, baku, to grozny in chechnya. jonathan josephs reports. this dramatic amateur footage captures the moments just before the crash. the azerbaijan airlines plane seems to be descending with some speed, and at a steep angle. experts suggest the pilots were struggling for control as they approached aktau.

they had been diverted because of bad weather at the original destination of grozny, in southern russia. the kazakh authorities say 150 emergency personnel were sent to the scene. the front half, including the wings and fuel tanks, were engulfed in fire. the force of the impact split the aircraft in two. the rear, despite coming to rest upside down, is mostly intact. some passengers remarkably walked away from what must have been a horrifying experience. translation: at 11.30. information was received about a plane crash three kilometres from the airport. additional emergency resources were sent, and at 12:05 the fire had been extinguished. there were 67 people, including five crew, onboard. many have not survived what should have been been a routine flight of less than 90 minutes. most were were azeri citizens, with others from russia, kazakhstan and kyrgyzstan.

the plane was an 11—year—old embraer e190. the brazilian company has a strong safety record, and says it is preparing to send teams to help with the investigation. it has expressed its sympathies for all those involved, and their loved ones. now the focus will be on trying to recover the flight data recorders, which should give investigators more information as they try to work out what caused this plane to come down. they will also be keen to speak to the survivors, who are coming to terms with their miraculous escape. jonathan josephs, bbc news. president zelensky has condemned russia's large—scale missile attacks across ukraine on christmas day as inhmane. he said russia had launched over 70 missiles and 100 drones at ukraine's energy system in what he called a "conscious choice" to launch the attacks at xmas. ukraine's air force says it downed 59 of the missiles and more than half of the drones. the mayor of kharkiv, in

the northeast of the country, said at least three people were injured and that civilian infrastructure had been damaged. in recent months, russia has been intensifying its attacks on ukraine's energy system, and has accelerated its advance across the east of the country. from kyiv, our correspondent will vernon has the latest developments. ukrainians woke on this christmas morning to the sounds of sirens and explosions as russia launched a huge barrage of cruise missiles, ballistic missiles and drones, too, at ukrainian cities. and they were targeting the energy infrastructure. ukrainian energy providers say that there repair crews were out fixing the damage but hourly power outages should be expected across the country. half a million people in the kharkiv region in the east were left without power. now, a little bit earlier president zelensky released a statement, he vowed to restore the grid and thanked those who protect ukraine's skies. he said that russian evil would not break ukraine

and would not spoil christmas. look, this attacks... these kinds of attacks, happen every day. ukrainian cities are attacked by drones and missiles all the time but this was a particularly large scale attack and, of course, it came on christmas morning. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news.

the archbishop of york, stephen cottrell, has focused on the importance of actions over words in his christmas sermon. he will shortly take interim charge of the church of england, which is facing criticism over its handling of abuse scandals. our religion editor, aleem maqbool reports give hope peace and joy as part of his plan. christmas is when the church is at its most prominent in british life, and its most joyous. churches up and down

the country are filled with the story of hope defying darkness, but this year there is a troubled backdrop, and local clergy are hearing the frustration. it is just a magical time for the community. but this month has been really hard to be in the church of england, because of all that is going on. it is an institution that is probably in crisis really, so there is a sense that people feel really confused and disappointed with what has gone on, and just longing for some leadership to get things sorted out. last month, justin welby resigned as head of the church after a report pointed out his failings in dealing with a prolific child abuser. with no sermon from the archbishop of canterbury all eyes run york minster but stephen cottrell is also under scrutiny for the handling of a case of abuse of a child under his charge. in a sermon he said that people needed to do more than just talk and needed to

act. to put the needs of others first. those who are cold, and hungry this christmas. those who are victims of abuse, and exploitation. ijust feel that he's not the right person to give that message at this time. she doesn't want to be identified but one of the abuse victims of the priest that worked for nine years under steven cottrell despite his knowledge of the serious concerns about him says it is now hard to listen to the archbishop preach. ijust feel he hasn't really thought about how victims would feel in this context, and how he is happy to be the voice of the church moving into christmas, when all i see when i see him, is a man that has let me and many victims down.

some bishops chose to directly address the crisis in their messages but not the archbishop of york. after his service he greeted his members of his congregation. given that the criticism of church leaders, there were some that heard the archbishop in their words who preached about the inadequacies who talk a good game but words aren't embodied in actions and will do so with some sense of irony this christmas. in the uk, a 39—year—old man has died after being shot by police in worcestershire. officers were called to an address in redditch after concerns were raised about the safety of a man with a knife. west mercia police said a negotiator spent "several hours" dealing with the incident. the force has referred itself to the independent office for police conduct. desi bouterse — a military strongman who twice ruled the south american nation of suriname, has died aged 79. bouterse led a 1980 coup in the former dutch colony.

after being overthrown he returned to power, by election, three decades later — despite charges of drug smuggling and murder. supporters applauded him for his charisma and populist social programmes. opponents accused him of being a ruthless dictator who was guilty of drug trafficking and extra—judicial killings. while for many, christmas is a time for gathering together and celebrating, it can also be a time for helping those most in need. nicky ford reports from a project that helps the homeless in london. welcome to the crisis hotel at christmas, where things are done a little differently. the staff are volunteers, and the guests are rough sleepers. it will help 600 people, with a volunteer team working day and night. the first guests to check in headed straight to bed for the chance of a peaceful night's sleep somewhere quiet, clean and comfortable. and after a good night's sleep, people have come down to enjoy

what we all look forward to in a hotel — a good hot cooked breakfast. this year, it will be served by some celebrity volunteers. the guests have already had a night to sleep, and now they're coming down for breakfast and that's what me and joe are going to be starting with — making them teas, giving them some breakfast. it'sjust, it's a real... you know, they properly put a lot of work into this and, um, just really proud to be part of it. one lovely guy, i think he recognised my voice from the pe with joe workouts. he said, "are you... are you joe wicks? " i said, "yeah, it's me, nice to meet you." and he was that he'sjust checked in, he's going to be here for two weeks — he's going from on the streets to being in a nice, warm, safe hotel for two weeks. he's got a job lined up with tfl and, you know, just seeing the optimism in his eyes — that he's genuinely really excited about that. as well as three meals a day, people will have access to a medical team, computers to help them reconnect with lost family and friends, and the chance to have a little fun with a board game or two. i was lucky, you know, we were on benefits and i had parents with addiction,

but we had a home. i never... i never had to live on the streets. we had a nice, cosy bed and we had, like, you know, somewhere to be. so, you know, to think that the number of homeless people is increasing and the actual places for them to live and accommodate is decreasing — that's an issue that we need to talk about, like... christmas is an important time to help the homeless, but this is also a reminder that this is all year round that we need this help for. it's open for two weeks — time, it's hoped, to give the guests the best start to 2025 as possible. nikki ford, bbc news. what a good thing to do. our bbc russia editor steve rosenberg has played many stunning musical tributes for us over the years and today is no exception. this year, he's joined forces with channel 4's ciaranjenkins on cello to perform a special christmas collaboration. here's steve to tell us more. to everyone at bbc breakfast, and to everybody watching — a very merry christmas to you. i'm not reporting today. i'm playing — the piano, as you can see. a special musical christmas collaboration. me in moscow and, back in the uk, ciaranjenkins from channel 4 news on the cello.

here is our version of in the bleak midwinter. merry christmas.

in the bleak midwinter plays.

stunning, how do you follow that? today might be christmas day, but it is also the first day of the jewish festival of hanukkah. commonly known as christmukkah , it celebrates two festivals of great miracles in both religions, meaning a day of epic celebrations for mixed jewish—christian families. tamzin kraftman reports. christmukkah, once a joke made byjews in largely christian countries, has become a reality

for many across the world. as for the first time in almost 20 years, christmas and hanukkah are falling on the same day. it's a chance for this multi—faith family, who grew up observing separate religions, to come together and share their cultural traditions. growing up in a country like england, not celebrating christmas, it's actually been quite fun to do some of the things that everyone else was doing growing up that you were sometimes missing out on. so it's been really fun to be able to lean into some of those things. so what does it mean to actually be able to celebrate the holidays together? it's quite...it's quite exciting for us. we've tried to incorporate kind of hanukkah decorations into our kind of christmas decorations. it's been nice, kind of trying to bring elements of hanukkah into christmas for us. you have a young daughter. what does it mean to be able to celebrate the holidays all together? we want to give her the chance to kind of access any aspect

of her identity. so if she, you know, that's completely her choice. i visited saint cyprian's church in central london, where i met with the co—directors of the council of christians and jews, an organisation that works to support interfaith relations. it's been increasingly challenging in interfaith spheres over the past year or so, and it's more and more important that we continue to come together, to celebrate together, to grieve together, to share what we have in common, but also to explore our difference. what's most important really is, you know, creating spaces where we can better understand one another, where we can build stronger relationships and friendships and learn more about and with one another. it's been a tough year for interfaith relations in general. it's been a year we've seen a real surge in anti—semitism and in other forms of racial and religious prejudice. it's been a really hard year in lots of ways. and it's good to have

something to celebrate and good to have something to just get our minds off some of the more difficult news stories that are out there. yes, please. i've come to north london to meet onejewish baker who's commemorated this unique union of the two festivals in the best way she knows how. so what i do is i take the best elements from both kind of traditional foods and i blend them. so what we have over here is our stollen. so stollen is traditionally a german christmas bread, but we make a lighter version. so we use our hollow which we are famous for our hollow. also we have over here mince pie doughnuts, which people like, theyjust love so much. so that's what we do. we're really good at blending traditions. happy christmukkah! it'll be 16 years until the next one. tamzin kraftman, bbc news.

from me and the team here on bbc news, thank you for being with us on christmas day. hello there, and a very merry christmas to you. and indeed it's a mild christmas, pretty much across the board, all thanks to high pressure. we to high pressure. have had this weather front bringing we have had this weather front bringing outbreaks of rain mainly to northern scotland. you can see in the air mass charts the extents of this milder air across the country. normal remains chilly, this weather front bringing further rain bringing cloud across scotland and northern ireland but the rest of the country will stay largely dry with a light winds and a lot of cloud around. , . ,

light winds and a lot of cloud around. , ., , ~ light winds and a lot of cloud around. , . , ~ ~ ., around. temperatures at around 5 degrees- _ around. temperatures at around 5 degrees- on — around. temperatures at around 5 degrees. on boxing _ around. temperatures at around 5 degrees. on boxing day- around. temperatures at around 5 degrees. on boxing day we - 5 degrees. on boxing day we hold onto this weather front and further breaks around the north of the uk.— north of the uk. perhaps in north of the uk. perhaps in north of north _ north of the uk. perhaps in north of north ireland. - north of north ireland. blustery with a few showers and may be some brightness. the vast majority of england and wales weave rc dry with light winds and a lot of grey weather ran with limited brightness. the odd spot of drizzle across. temperatures remaining in double figures for most, on the mild side again. rather chilly for scotland. as you move through boxing day night, it stays dry for majority of the country again. a lot of cloud around and a little bit of rain across northern ireland. chilly across northern ireland. chilly across the far north of scotland but temperatures at about five to 9 degrees as you go further south. area of high pressure still dominating so mostly dry with light winds. this weather front across scotland could give outbreaks of rain mainly to argyll and to the highlands, a little bit of rain across northern parts of northern ireland. the vast

majority, friday looks dry with limited brightness and rather grey and gloomy. temperatures coming down a degree or so to nine degrees. as we head into the weekend, we start with the temperatures coming down somewhat, especially across the north of the country. there's a chance that colder air will move south right across the country next week with an increasing chance of wintry showers on the north and west. the colder air begins to move down from the north as we head into next week and generally it starts to become more unsettled. take care. up hello,

welcome. you are watching bbc news. the headlines... the king, in his christmas message, calls for peace in world conflicts, unity after the summer riots, and reflects on his cancer treatment. pope francis has used his traditional christmas message to call for peace in ukraine and gaza, calling the humanitarian situation there "extremely grave". officials in kazakhstan say 38 passengers died in the crash landing of an azerbaijan airlines flight. president zelensky condemns russia's mass missile and drone attack against ukraine on christmas day as inhumane. that is it from me for today.

wishing