kazakhstan yesterday — killing 38 people. the kremlin says it's wrong to speculate. sirens wail ceremonies are taking place to mark the 20th anniversary of the indian ocean earthquake and tsunami. five journalists have been killed after an israeli strike outside a hospital in central gaza, according to local health authorities. authorities in south—eastern australia tell people in dozens of rural communities to leave their homes "immediately" to escape a bushfire. boxing day sales begin today but the doors to some of the uk's largest retailers will remain closed. however — online sales are expected to rise.

hello. russia is being accused of shooting down a plane over kazakhstan yesterday — killing 38 people. though no proof has been provided by the military and aviation experts making the assertion. they suggest the plane was mistaken for a ukrainian drone and attacked by russia's air defences. some witnesses have reported hearing an explosion, while photographs of the wrecked fuselage show what could be bullet holes. the kremlin has said it's wrong to speculate on the cause before the outcome of an investigation. with me is our reporter jonathan josephs what's latest on the investigation. why are experts online saying this could have been a deliberate attack? the first thin to deliberate attack? the first thing to say _ deliberate attack? the first thing to say is _ deliberate attack? the first thing to say is that - deliberate attack? the first thing to say is that we - deliberate attack? the first| thing to say is that we need deliberate attack? the first. thing to say is that we need to be cautious air. we don't have independent experts who have been at the scene and have been able to verify what has actually happened. we have had

people that do know about these things examining the video footage that has been emerging from the scene. it is quite detailed in some parts. in particular, attention is being drawn by military experts to the pockmarks on the fuse alleged that survived the impact, as you will see, the plane seems to have split into two on impact and the rear part of the plane surviving almost intact. what we can see quite clearly if there are lots of marks in there which could be consistent with shrapnel detonating and piercing the fuse allege. but we don't know that for sure, not yet. and that for sure, not yet. and that will be something that investigators look at as they try to piece together what has happened here. they will also be looking at the flight data recorders which have been recovered from the scene to try to ascertain what data they get from that. we know that the plane descended at a fairly sharp rate at times and the

altitude and speed were varying in a way that they shouldn't have been if it was fully in control, the pilot. those will be considered as more what the eyewitnesses have to say. remarkably, we have dozens of survivors from this plane crash which is not always the case and they will have a key role in helping investigators understand what has happened here. and all of this is governed by un protocols from the international civil aviation which determines how countries work together to investigate accidents like this which is what we are calling it at the moment because we don't know for sure what caused the plane to come down. and russia, kazakhstan and azerbaijan, the three countries involved here are all signatories. figs three countries involved here are all signatories.— are all signatories. as you mentioned, _ are all signatories. as you mentioned, survivors - are all signatories. as you - mentioned, survivors emerging from that wreckage. when you see what the pilots were going through, the way that the plane was increasing in speed and altitude and then suddenly decreasing, four minutes on end

before the eventual impact. it did look very clear that they had lost control of some of the ways that they would normally control the plane. and then coming in, as we are looking here. trying to get the pitch of the aircraft correct before landing, which became an impact so tragically. what sort of condition of those survivors in. obviously, those pilots did land in a way that some people at least were a able to escape this alive. at least were a able to escape this alive-— at least were a able to escape this alive. . , , , this alive. remarkably there is foota . e this alive. remarkably there is footage from _ this alive. remarkably there is footage from the _ this alive. remarkably there is footage from the scene - this alive. remarkably there is l footage from the scene showing some survivors walking out of the aircraft on their own feet, others haven't been quite as lucky as that, although still survived some have been evacuated to russia, those are russian citizens that the russian citizens that the russian government have taken them to moscow where they will receive further medical treatment. they are in a variety of conditions. it must have been an absolutely harrowing experience. we have

heard from some of them, one man described how his wife had been sitting next to him and the plane crashed and he is talking from his hospital bed saying, i haven't seen her since. a lot of uncertainty and anxiety for the families of those involved. we have seen footage of another family getting a video call from their loved one who also was in a hospital bed. he was actually a flight attendant on this aircraft run by azerbaijan airlines and he is telling them not to worry and describing how he has had stitches in his arm but saying, thank god i am ok. excuse me. i am she there will be more of these remarkable stories emerging in the days ahead. as i say, those stories will be key to the investigation going forward. i should just add that the russian government is saying we need to wait and see what happens from the investigation and that will give us a more definitive idea of what caused this plane to come down.

jonathan, thank you very much. commemorations have been taking place in countries across the indian ocean to mark the 20th anniversary of the catastrophic tsunami that killed more than 220,000 people. a vigil was held in banda aceh on the island of sumatra, close to the epicentre of the huge underwater earthquake that triggered the tsunami. our south—east asia correspondent jonathan head, who witnessed the devastation in 2004, sent this report. siren wails the chilling wail of the warning sirens this morning in banda aceh, in northern indonesia, marking the moment when the city was almost completely wiped out by the biggest tsunami of modern times. a frightening reminder for survivors is also a reassurance that today they are better prepared. in thailand, they hung photographs of those who died on the tiled memorial, which reaches the height

of the wave which smashed into the beaches on that boxing day morning. most of the 151 british victims died here. translation: i feel dismay. it's been 20 years. i came here every day. time flies, but it passes slowly in our minds. screaming few understood what was happening back then, as they watched the lethal torrent of water roar in. there had been no warnings. thailand, like sri lanka, was a long way from the massive earthquake which sent the wave racing across the indian ocean. over here in this building, well, at the moment... for those of us reporting the tsunami, it was like nothing we had experienced before. arriving on phi phi island in thailand, i watched them pull body after body —

most of them tourists still in their colourful beachwear — from under the rubble. 1,300 had died on this small island in a matter of minutes. the destruction i witnessed in indonesia was on an almost unimaginable scale. scenes of death and grief which remain burnt into my memory. yet the survivors rebuilt and recovered, sometimes from communities of which only fragments remained, leaving, here and there, monuments to that dreadful day. and carrying the hard lessons learned on what to do, should they hear the sirens, part of a now greatly improved warning system, go off. jonathan head, bbc news, bangkok. richard de gottal — a survivor of the indian ocean tsunami, shared his memories of that time. first of all, i just want to say my heartfelt condolences to everyone that lost someone in the tsunami. i was very fortunate and lucky. i was staying in a hotel right on the seafront of patong beach, which was hit

by the tsunami. i mean, destroyed by the tsunami. so i was a little bit, being at christmas day night, and i was sleeping, and then there was a lot of banging on the door like bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang! and i could hear screaming and shouting. i was like, "oh, i can't, i can't get out of bed. i'm just going to go to sleep." and then there was like a massive roar and a bang. and that was the tsunami and that was the tsunami smashing into the seafront smashing into the seafront and the hotel. and the hotel. and i was like, and i was like, "what's that noise?" "what's that noise?" i didn't have no i didn't have no idea what it was. idea what it was. and then i sort of, i thought, and then i sort of, i thought, "well, i've got to get up now "well, i've got to get up now and see what's happening." and see what's happening." and there was no, no and there was no, no light, no electric. light, no electric. and i was like, open the door and i was like, open the door to my room that was looking to my room that was looking over into the reception. over into the reception. and it was like a bomb. and it was like a bomb. it was just everything it was just everything was destroyed. there was cars, tsunami, a tsunami has come. was destroyed. there was cars, there was water. there was water. there was just there there was just there was people dead, like was people dead, like floating in the water. floating in the water. and it was just a scene of... and it was just a scene of... it was just devastating. it was just devastating. like, i thought a bomb like, i thought a bomb had actually gone off had actually gone off when i opened the door. when i opened the door. and i managed to get down and i managed to get down to like the seafront to like the seafront and all the patong seafront, and all the patong seafront, all the restaurants, everything all the restaurants, everything was just all destroyed. was just all destroyed. and then i was walking and then i was walking in the water and it was just... in the water and it was just...

ijust did not happen. ijust did not happen. they were saying, "oh, they were saying, "oh, tsunami, a tsunami has come. you've got to get to safe ground, you've got to get higher, you've got to get away from the area." so i sort of made my way through all the hotel, managed to get my passport and my money, and then made my way to a safer part of the island. so and then i sort of stayed for a few days. we helped with the clear up operation. we went to khao lak, which was really badly hit, like took supplies up there and water. so i helped out for the rest of my holidays helping out with the clear up operation. let's just take you briefly to thailand and as the sun goes down people there in thailand's worst hit village gathering and remember what happened exactly 20 years ago when so many thousands of people were killed in that devastating boxing day tsunami. tearful relatives of the dead have been laying flowers and reefs at a curved

wall, in the shape of a tsunami wave with plaques of bearing victim's names and many, many dead were also foreign tourists

that is right, some that is right, some of the communities around the of the communities around the fire and further out in where fire and further out in where the path of the fire may spread the path of the fire may spread to, particularly in the to, particularly in the evening, we are expecting a evening, we are expecting a strong westerly wind to push on strong westerly wind to push on to the eastern edge of that to the eastern edge of that communities to the east communities to the east of where the fire is burning of where the fire is burning have been warned about that have been warned about that and are taking action and are taking action appropriate to them. appropriate to them. how challenging is this how challenging is this to get under control to get under control given the temperatures given the temperatures you are experiencing? very hot day but it is cooling you are experiencing? very hot day but it is cooling off now, the humidity off now, the humidity is going up and that makes it is going up and that makes it more favourable more favourable for firefighters. for firefighters. it is now dark so it is now dark so aircraft that support aircraft that support firefighters during the day firefighters during the day are now on the ground. are now on the ground. there is a challenge well there is a challenge well this westerly wind come this westerly wind come through but we have had through but we have had a successful day, it a successful day, it could have been a lot could have been a lot worse than it has been. worse than it has been. we are still not out we are still not out of the woods. of the woods. we have been looking we have been looking at the pictures of helicopters at the pictures of helicopters going over the fires going over the fires and dumping water, and dumping water, i assume, and other i assume, and other chemicals on the fires. chemicals on the fires. tell us about the techniques tell us about the techniques you are using to get you are using to get this under control. this under control.

it is a combination of the aircraft that you saw, we had over 70 aircraft available in victoria for firefighting operations, not all on the fire, some were in other parts of the state. strategically placed. those aircraft with hundreds of ground crews and firefighting vehicles in a combination of firefighting effort. what we are doing to suppress the fire on the eastern edge before the wind changes. a lot of hard work today and that continues through the night. the aircraft are on the ground but the firefighters out on the ground continue. does warnings for people in rural communities, do you think there will be heeded? obviously, it is the christmas period. it is the last thing people want to do, leave their homes. that is right. this fire has now been burning for over one week, and the communities in that area have been tuned and there has been a lot of town hall meetings in local community centres where people have been briefed

on the circumstances and to watch for the warnings to come through. we are hoping that all the community in those areas have had plenty of time to plan and know what they are doing and are taking appropriate action. the new authorities in syria say they're carrying out

this is the first time they have been clashing with operatives since the toppling of assad's forces. this is a big challenge for them. ia members have been killed that is why reinforcement has been sent to many cities and towns where they are based and many operatives are there and trying to arrest those who had guns and blood on their hands and contributed or participated in killing syrians over the past decade. many of the communities you took to the streets yesterday, including legislative leaders are calling for a general amnesty for all the community. something that never happen because many had blood on their hands, other syrians are calling forjustice and legal procedures and prosecution for those who are responsible for the disappearance and the torture of tens of thousands of syrians. it is a critical time and the new government has only

been there for a bit over two weeks and they will need time to establish stability and provide a legal procedure for the prosecution. five journalists have been killed after their vehicle was hit by an israeli strike outside a hospital in central gaza, according to the the local health authorities. it s understood one of the men had been expecting the birth of his child. the israeli military said those killed were members of what it called a "terrorist cell". around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news.

now it's time for a look at all the boxing day action in sport. hello to you once again. the traditional round of fixtures in the english league premier league start in just over one hour's time.

manchester city hoping that christmas marks a turning point against everton at the etihad. the champions form makes grim reading. one win in 12 games has seen them slump to seventh in the table. pep guardiola questioning both himself and now their chances of even making the champions league... definitely, yeah, we have to get points and win games otherwise we are not going to qualify for the champions league. if you don't qualify, it is because we don't deserve it. we were not prepared because we had a lot of problems and we did not solve those problems and find a way, you know, to win games. of course, there are a lot of contenders to there, for every club you know, it is so important right now. we are out, and if we are not winning games, we will be out. that's the first game of the day then. later, leaders liverpool play fourth from bottom leicester as they protect a four—point lead to chelsea who take on fulham. newcastle and aston villa are fighting for a european place.

while southampton�*s new manager ivan juric takes charge for the first time. and vitor pereira the second in wolves match against manchester united. the scottish premiership has a full round of fixtures on thursday with celtic leading rangers by nine points. and third placed aberdeen by ten ahead of their matches. there's also a boxing day tradition in cricket with australia hosting a test match at the mcg. their series with india is level at 1—1 with the fourth test of five under way in melbourne. australia's 19 —year—old debutant sam konstas made the biggest impression on day one. the youngest test batting debutant for the men's team since 1953 hitting 60 offjust 65 balls. half centuries from usman khawaja and marnus labuschagne followed. but india hit back in the final session... jasprit bumrah taking two quick wickets as the home side finished the day on 311 for 6. that's one of two boxing day tests... the other is in centurion with south africa winning the toss and putting pakistan into bat in the first of two matches. dane paterson and corbin bosch have taken two wickets each. the taurus have moved on to 120

7aa. -- 127 for the taurus have moved on to 120 7aa. —— 127 for four. as much a story about who was televising it, or rather streaming it... than the games themselves... but the nfl�*s christmas day games provided two lopsided wins... but a historic moment nonetheless for two of the sport's most famous players. in a win over the pittsburgh steelers that secured the kansas city chiefs the number one seed for the afc playoffs. travis kelce became only the third tight end to pass the 1,000 receptions mark while he also notched up a franchise record 77th touchdown. the chiefs are now 15 and 1 and will have home field advantage throughout the postseason. while the baltimore ravens also had a comfortable win over the houston texans with lamarjackson scoring three touchdowns, one with his legs... as he broke the record for most career rushing yards for a quarterback. remember their mainjob is to throw the ball not run. the previous mark took michael vick 13 seasons to reach. jackson has beaten it

in less than seven. the nba also had games on december 25th with lebron james saying that he "loves the nfl but christmas is our day" in the wake of the lakers' dramatic win over the golden state warriors. james was playing in an nba—record 19th christmas day game and the league's all—time points scorer led the lakers with 31 points and 10 rebounds after losing anthony davis to injury. long—time adversary steph curry did everything he could to spoiljames' day with two clutch three pointers as the game drew to a close. tying things up with 6 seconds remaining as part of his 38 points. but la's austin reaves put the lakers and even curry was unable to win three from there. lakers winning 115 to 113. while lebron was playing his 19th game at this time of year, victor wembanyama was playing in his 1st. it clearly suited him as he finished with a2 points — a record for the spurs on christmas day. unfortunately for wembanyama it

wasn't enough to secure the win as mikel bridges scored a1 for the new york knicks as they beat san antonio 117 to 11a for their fifth win in a row. much more on our website. you can follow all of the day's football there, of course. thank you. opposition politicians in south korea have filed a motion to impeach the acting president, as the country's political crisis continues. han duck—soo has been in the job for less than two weeks. he took over after the president was impeached for trying to impose martial law. opposition politicians want to oust mr han in a row about south korea's constitutional court, which has to approve the president's impeachment. let's speak to our reporter from bbc korean rachel lee. hello to you. how surprising is it that the opposition has filed this motion to impeach

the acting president?- the acting president? well, honestly. — the acting president? well, honestly. it _ the acting president? well, honestly, it is _ the acting president? well, honestly, it is surprising . the acting president? well, | honestly, it is surprising but it is also not entirely unexpected. this whole situation has been building up for weeks and it's got to a point where threejudges for weeks and it's got to a point where three judges picked up point where three judges picked up ijy point where three judges picked up by the opposition was a big red flag especially since the constitutional court is handling the president's impeachment case and added to this his decision to veto opposition led bills like the investigation into news shortly of martial law declaration. you can see why the democratic party and other opposition groups felt like they had no choice but to act. they have accused han duck—soo in walking the democratic process instead of acting as a neutral leader while the president is suspended. while the timing is dramatic, given the political climate, this mood feels like another chapter in an already heated battle.— another chapter in an already heated battle. what sense do ou have heated battle. what sense do you have of — heated battle. what sense do you have of the _ heated battle. what sense do you have of the reaction - heated battle. what sense do | you have of the reaction there has been to this move? it

you have of the reaction there has been to this move?- has been to this move? it has been explosive. _ has been to this move? it has been explosive. to _ has been to this move? it has been explosive. to say - has been to this move? it has been explosive. to say the i been explosive. to say the least. the opposition parties are doubling down and calling han duck—soo a puppet saying that he has failed as a caretaker leader. on the other side, han duck—soo's camp are firing back accusing the opposition of overreach and saying they are interfering with the constitutional duties. there has also been backlash. this is political theatre which is adding to the country's instability. and then you have the public too who are already frustrated and divided and they are still protesting and calling for accountability. others feel this is constant in this fighting is hurting the country's ability to function and is fuelling the sense of chaos and uncertainty in south korea right now.— chaos and uncertainty in south korea right now. given what you sa , korea right now. given what you say. rachel. _ korea right now. given what you say, rachel, what _ korea right now. given what you say, rachel, what does - korea right now. given what you say, rachel, what does this - say, rachel, what does this say about the state of south korean politics at the moment? it

about the state of south korean politics at the moment?- politics at the moment? it says a lot. politics at the moment? it says a lot- not _ politics at the moment? it says a lot. not all— politics at the moment? it says a lot. not all of _ politics at the moment? it says a lot. not all of it _ politics at the moment? it says a lot. not all of it is _ politics at the moment? it says a lot. not all of it is good. - a lot. not all of it is good. south korean politics has always been pretty intense but what we are seeing now feels like it is reaching its boiling point and the impeachment of the sitting president and now the sitting president and now the acting president highlights how deeply divided political system is on both sides are locked in this ongoing struggle and neither seems willing to back down. so the opposition sees itself as bending democracy while the ruling side argues that they are being unfairly targeted. it is playing out as a high—stakes game but the downside is that the country is stuck in limbo. big issues are being delayed and people are growing tired of the constant drama.— the constant drama. rachel, thank you — the constant drama. rachel, thank you very _ the constant drama. rachel, thank you very much, - the constant drama. rachel, | thank you very much, rachel the constant drama. rachel, - thank you very much, rachel lee from bbc korean speaking to us from bbc korean speaking to us from seoul. that is it for the moment. see you soon. hello again.

it's been an exceptionally mild christmas period thus far. yesterday, christmas day, it reached 1a.2 celsius in aberdeen. the average december temperature here would be around about seven celsius. but how long is this going to last? well, you can see the days of the week here. the yellows and ambers representing the milder conditions. and it stays with us right the way through to the weekend, except for across northern scotland, where we see something that bit colder coming our way with some wintry showers here by the end of the weekend. beyond that, low pressure pulls away. you can see an array of isobars, it will be windy at times. and then as we head up towards the new year, look at the array of isobars and wet weather, potentially some snow as well, so it's something worth keeping an eye on if you are travelling around new year. today, though, remaining mild and still cloudy, cloudy and murky. there's some drizzle, there's some hill fog, there's some damp conditions. we've also got rain moving across central scotland and northern ireland. best chance of any brightness

today will be across parts of eastern england and also northeast wales. temperatures eight to about 12 degrees. now, heading on through the evening and overnight, our band of rain across central scotland and northern ireland pushes steadily northwards, leaving us again with a lot of cloud, dank conditions, where we see holes break in that cloud, so under clear skies we could also see some fog patches form. but for the time of year it's not going to be cold. our overnight lows — five to nine degrees. into tomorrow, then, our weather front pushes northwards. but it is a waving front so it is going to come back southwards again. so friday — a lot of cloud around. a weather front in the northwest producing some patchy rain. best breaks tomorrow for brightness, north—east scotland, parts of eastern england and also once again north—east wales. temperatures eight to 12 degrees. now beyond that, as we head on into the weekend, our weather front does continue to sink southwards across scotland and northern ireland. we've got another part of it coming in from the west. a lot of cloud around. but through central parts of england and wales we should see some more in the way of brightness with highs up to about 11. it continues mild as we head towards the new year, but don't forget to keep in touch with the forecast

because it's looking unsettled then.

now on bbc news, nobel minds: physics and chemistry. in this programme, this year's nobel laureates in physics and chemistry tell us about the benefits and pitfalls of artificial intelligence. this is nobel minds 202a.

nobel laureates, this is the first time that some of you have been brought together in discussion on television, and we're also joined by some of your family and friends, as well as students from here in stockholm. before we start, let's just give them a really big round of applause. renewed congratulations to all of you. i guess you're all getting very used to the sound of applause now, aren't you? so tell me, how has winning the nobel prize changed your life? er...who shall i start with? gary. well, the level of attention is something that's a thousand x what it ever was for other awards. you know, the nobel is a brand and it's

120—something years of history.