the number of people killed in the los angeles wildfires doubles to ten. the authorities say there's no "conclusive evidence" the fires were started deliberately. thousands of firefighters are still trying to control the flames. around 180,000 people have been ordered to leave their homes — it's estimated the cost so far could be up to $150 billion. we hearfrom residents who watched the flames sweep through their neighbourhood. it has eaten everything in its path, all the way to the water. every direction it went in, itjust kept going and there... you know, there's nothing left. we'll bring you the very latest from our team of correspondents in la. also coming up... with many scientists saying climate change created the conditions that fuelled the fires, new figures show that last year was the hottest

since records began. the kremlin says there may be progress on a meeting between donald trump and the russian leader vladimir putin. mr trump has said he will end the war in ukraine once he takes office this month. we will look at what donald trump's return to the white house will mean for more than half a million israeli settlers in the occupied west bank. and jeff bezos�*s blue 0rigin plans to launch its first orbital rocket on sunday — its long—awaited entry into the lucrative orbital launch market. thousands of firefighters are still trying to control five blazes that have devastated los angeles — burning down swathes of the city and reducing some of the world's most expensive and sought after properties to ashes.

ten people are now confirmed to have died — that's double the number reported earlier — and nearly 10,000 structures destroyed. these are some of the latest pictures from la. the los angeles county sheriff says it hasn't been safe to reach many of the hardest—hit areas and the number people reach many of the hardest—hit areas and the number of people who have lost their lives will definitely change. five fires continue to burn. earlier, police said they believed the latest blaze was started deliberately and that they'd detained a man on suspicion of arson. but a fire chief has now told the bbc that although investigations are continuing, there is, as yet, no evidience that the wildfires have been started deliberately. the biggest of the fires is clearly visiable from space. the biggest of the fires is clearly visible from space. here we can see how they contine to burn and the thick plumes of smoke are visible here. this time—lapse video shows

smoke from the fires being blown over the coastline and out over the pacific ocean. around 180,000 people have been ordered to leave their homes. many neighbourhoods have been left unrecognisable. the destruction is expected to cost up to $150 billion and the national guard has been deployed amid reports of looting. our first report this hour is from helena humphrey. i watched this house burn down live on the news. yeah, this was a beautiful home. had a lot of good times here. it's hard to put into words the level of devastation here, but the la county sheriff put it bluntly. in some areas, he said, it looks like a bomb had been dropped. so far, land more than twice the size of manhattan lies in ruins. and, still, these fires rage out of control. there is a new fire, unfortunately, in west hills

pushing into ventura county. and we are expecting this fire to rapidly spread due to high winds. this is a reminder that this is a very dynamic situation that can change quickly. on thursday, a brief lull in those fierce santa ana winds allowed aircraft to streak across the skies, dropping water and fire retardant onto the flames. but there's no guarantee that that calm will last, with forecasters warning more winds could fan these infernos even further. the wind definitely played the biggest part, especially with the flying embers. i mean, i rememberseeing embersjust shooting over my head, like, oh, my gosh, that's somebody�*s house. that's someone�*s property. just balls of fire. some residents have ventured back, bracing themselves for what they'd find, only to discover their homes reduced

to little more than ash. many told us they're simply too devastated to speak on camera. these fires don't discriminate — tearing through every kind of neighbourhood, from lavish mansions to humble bungalows, all of them once a place of safety for someone. this looks like the apocalypse. it just doesn't feel like the normal, er, things that happen in your life. this is something very unusual. and for others, the scope of this catastrophe confirms their growing fears about the changing climate. this is obvious that stuff like this is happening because of global warming, and people just want to deny it, just don't know science and don't know how to research those things. so i think that humans are funny because they think anywhere they move in this world, they'll be safe. but the entire world has global warming. i guess, pick your disaster and live there. what disaster makes you feel most comfortable? because that's the world we're living in at this point. here in altadena, fire crews are out battling these hot spots. you can see that many

homes, like this one, are still smouldering. and you can see here that this entire neighbourhood, this entire community, has essentially been wiped out. we've been speaking to families here who have lived in these homes for generations and, in just a matter of hours, they've lost everything. and in some of the hardest—hit areas, a night—time curfew is in place as some try to profit from the chaos. looting has already led to multiple arrests. meanwhile, president biden has pledged his support for all those affected. to the families who have been impacted by this disaster, you're living through a nightmare — i know. i promise you, we're going to help you get through this and, eventually, recover and rebuild. but rebuilding is hard to imagine right now, when all these residents can do is wait, hoping and praying that the next gust of wind won't stoke the embers back into an inferno. helena humphrey, bbc news, los angeles.

these are live pictures now from los angeles. you can still see the fires burning there, pretty ferociously. let's speak to dr douglas kelley, a wildfires expert from the uk centre for ecology & hydrology. thank you very much indeed for being with us. just talk us through how you see the underlying causes of these fires in la.— underlying causes of these fires in la. , ., fires in la. these devastating fires in la. these devastating fires are basically _ fires in la. these devastating fires are basically because - fires in la. these devastating fires are basically because of| fires are basically because of a perfect combination of conditions that have happened this year. so el nino conditions last year but a lot of rain and that rain caused a lot of vegetation to grow and now we have a lot of feel. and since the winter rains this year failed to since the winter rains this yearfailed to come, it means that the feel is very dry and the santa ana winds have just blown his fires really fast. and this is not the sort of

time you would normally associate wildfires in california with? associate wildfires in californiawith? ., ., , ., , california with? normally rains in the winter _ california with? normally rains in the winter would _ california with? normally rains in the winter would come - in the winter would come through and actually make the conditions too wet for big fires like this to burn. the winds themselves have been stronger this year. the unknown wins, stronger this year. the unknown wins. they _ stronger this year. the unknown wins, they have _ stronger this year. the unknown wins, they have been _ stronger this year. the unknown wins, they have been up - stronger this year. the unknown wins, they have been up 100 - wins, they have been up 100 miles an hour, haven't they —— santa ana winds? miles an hour, haven't they -- santa ana winds?— miles an hour, haven't they -- santa ana winds? yes, hurricane force winds _ santa ana winds? yes, hurricane force winds and _ santa ana winds? yes, hurricane force winds and some _ santa ana winds? yes, hurricane force winds and some places. - force winds and some places. how much of this uc is down to climate change because? although it is a bit early selling climate change directly to this event, it has increased the amount of fire we see throughout western us. the kind of conditions we have seen where we have had a very wet winter last year and going to very dry conditions this year, is a sort of thing we see with

climate change. globally we are seeing more and more these fires and an increase, it has been linked quite strongly to climate change. 50 been linked quite strongly to climate change.— climate change. so is your prognosis _ climate change. so is your prognosis that _ climate change. so is your prognosis that we - climate change. so is your prognosis that we will - climate change. so is your prognosis that we will see | climate change. so is your - prognosis that we will see more and more of this kind of thing and more of this kind of thing and does that mean that places like california, la, will be harder and harder to living in future decades, future centuries?— future decades, future centuries? ~ , ., centuries? we will see an increase _ centuries? we will see an increase in _ centuries? we will see an increase in extreme - centuries? we will see an increase in extreme fires | centuries? we will see an . increase in extreme fires like this in the future and we have some projections that show that by the end of the century, if we don't cut our emissions, we will see three times as many files as this. even if we do cut our emissions, that will go down, you won't see as many that we will still see an increase. so we will see an increase. so we will see an increase in fires like this throughout western us in the future. �* , , , . future. are very grim prospect. dr douglas _ future. are very grim prospect. dr douglas kelley, _ future. are very grim prospect. dr douglas kelley, thank- future. are very grim prospect. dr douglas kelley, thank you . dr douglas kelley, thank you very much indeed. with evidence that climate change has played a significant role in the los angeles fires,

new figures show that last year was the hottest year since records began. scientists from the european union climate monitoring body say temperatures were 1.6 degrees celsius higher than the pre—industrial average. they say it shows that a key warming threshold of 1.5 degrees — agreed in paris ten years ago — is now in danger of being permanently breached. here's our climate editor, justin rowlatt. remember the series of huge storms that battered the uk at the beginning of last year and left large areas flooded? scientists judge climate change has made rain and snow on stormy days here in the uk 30% more intense. and we've had it relatively easy. remember those devastating floods in spain in october? or the historic drought in the amazon basin, which reduced river levels to a 120—year low. or how about the six typhoons that hit the philippines injust 30 days in november?

these are just a few examples of the extreme weather, which affected the world last year, and which scientists say was linked to climate change. this map shows how the world has warmed since 1940. the blue shading is when temperatures are lower than average. red shows where it is getting hotter. as you can see, virtually the whole planet has got warmer over the last eight decades, with last year, 2024, the hottest ever recorded. today's figures show the last decade has included all ten of the hottest years on record. "it represents a new climate era for our species," say experts. we're living in a climate that humanity hasn't experienced before. we can say with confidence when we look at ice core records, when we look at other data sets, that this is the warmest period

for at least the last 100,000 years 01’ so. and when we look back at the ice core records, it's the highest concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere for the last 800,000 years or so. unless greenhouse gas emissions start to reduce, global temperatures will continue to rise, increasing the likelihood of extreme weather. "that presents a huge challenge for the uk," says the new head of the country's independent watchdog on climate. the climate change committee has been clear with government that we are in no way ready for the changing weather events, that this economy will face — increased flooding, increased drought, extreme heat, orjust the kind of changing seasons and what that means for our existing infrastructure. she says 7% of the new housing planned for the uk will be built on flood plains, for example. the government told the bbc, strengthening the uk's resilience to a changing climate is one of its top priorities.

it said it is investing billions in flood defences, and has launched a new climate service to help local authorities prepare for changing weather patterns. the fires in la are exactly the kind of event climate scientists have been warning about for years, and are yet more evidence of why we should all be worried about the way our climate is changing. for more on this let's speak to climate scientist richard betts. he's head of climate impact research at the met office , and also a professor at the university of exeter. thank you very much for being with us. we were told ten years ago when all of this has been discussed in paris that this figure of 1.5 celsius above preindustrial levels, we could not breach it and now we have breached it. so how alarming is

this for the world, for the planet? it this for the world, for the lanet? , ., _, , planet? it is of course alarming. _ planet? it is of course alarming, although i planet? it is of course alarming, although toj planet? it is of course i alarming, although to be planet? it is of course - alarming, although to be clear, we have not gone past 1.5 degrees warming in the long term average. we have had one year at 1.5 degrees above preindustrial levels and that is because of burning fossil fuels and greenhouse gases. 0f fuels and greenhouse gases. of course, we have also had a kick in global temperatures because natural cycles in the climate, especially el nino that is a phenomenon that comes and goes. so that extra cake on top of the long—term trend. —— extra kick. we are almost at 1.5 in the long term but not quite. but it is still externally concerning, of course. thank ou concerning, of course. thank you very _ concerning, of course. thank you very much _ concerning, of course. thank you very much for _ concerning, of course. thank you very much for clarifying i you very much for clarifying that. do you think, given that you talk about that long term average, are we likely to

breach that, do you think, in the future?— breach that, do you think, in the future? we are starting to no over the future? we are starting to go over the — the future? we are starting to go over the trajectory - the future? we are starting to go over the trajectory of - go over the trajectory of greenhouse gases which we would need to be taming off to stay at 1.5 so that... it would be astonishing, personally, if we limited global warming to 1.5, thatis limited global warming to 1.5, that is my personal view. we are so close, globally emissions are going up. they need to be going down massively. that is not happening, so it is looking like we will go for it, unfortunately. in like we will go for it, unfortunately. like we will go for it, unfortunatel . ., unfortunately. in your opinion, when we look _ unfortunately. in your opinion, when we look at _ unfortunately. in your opinion, when we look at events - unfortunately. in your opinion, when we look at events like i when we look at events like floods in spain and is wildfires in la, both devastating events, are they all caused by climate change, ijy all caused by climate change, by global warming and man—made effects on the planet? so by global warming and man-made effects on the planet?— effects on the planet? so we are seeing — effects on the planet? so we are seeing an _ effects on the planet? so we are seeing an increase i effects on the planet? so we are seeing an increase in i are seeing an increase in extreme weather of many kinds.

fire weather, so hot, dry, windy conditions is increasing across almost all parts of the land, including across southern usa. but there have been extreme fires in south america, there was an increase in extremely severe fires which were made more severe by human caused climate change. flooding in southern spain, valencia, in october. that was caused by 0ctober. that was caused by very heavy rainfall which was confidently linked to climate change by the scientists studying that. we are seeing global trends now of more heavy rainfall, more drought in some places but extra strong heatwaves everywhere. i5 places but extra strong heatwaves everywhere. is it that certain _ heatwaves everywhere. is it that certain places - heatwaves everywhere. is it that certain places in i heatwaves everywhere. is it that certain places in the world where millions of people live are going to be more and more uninhabitable?- live are going to be more and more uninhabitable? there are certainly going _ more uninhabitable? there are certainly going to _ more uninhabitable? there are certainly going to be _ more uninhabitable? there are certainly going to be more i certainly going to be more difficult to live in. places that are already hot and humid,

like the indian subcontinent, which is obviously highly populated. they have seen extremely hot heatwaves, and the humidity is a big concern. that is a killer when he can't call your body by sweating. it is getting to a point where some of his places will be very difficult to be outside in any conditions. so the very least, people have to be indoors, which is difficult when you work outside. so it will be very difficult to live hot and humid places.— very difficult to live hot and humid places. good to talk to ou, humid places. good to talk to you. although _ humid places. good to talk to you, although it _ humid places. good to talk to you, although it is _ humid places. good to talk to you, although it is a - humid places. good to talk to you, although it is a very i you, although it is a very sobering indeed. thank you very much, richard betts. in the last few minutes, the operator of the uk's largest gas storage site, centrica, has said britain's gas storage levels are "concerningly low", with less than a week of gas demand in store following a cold snap. britain is heavily reliant on gas for its home heating and also uses a significant

amount for electricity generation. it comes as the uk has recorded its coldest night of this winter, along with widespread frost, with more bitterly cold weather expected over the weekend. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news.

the kremlin says there may be progress on setting up a meeting between us president—elect donald trump and russian president vladimir putin after trump is sworn in on january 20th. the kremlin said it welcomed the fact that trump was demonstrating a desire to solve problems through dialogue. mr trump has said this week that a meeting is being set up between him and mr putin, but he offered no timeline. mr trump has reiterated his desire to negotiate with russia an end to the war in ukraine

let's speak to niall stanage, white house columnist for the hill. thank you so much for being with us. mr trump has talked a lot about sorting out the war in ukraine very quickly after he comes to power. and would this be welcomed, do you think, by americans? this idea of a meeting between him and mr putin? i meeting between him and mr putin? ., �* ., , , ,, putin? i don't honestly think so. i putin? i don't honestly think so- i think — putin? i don't honestly think so. i think there _ putin? i don't honestly think so. i think there are - putin? i don't honestly think so. i think there are two i so. i think there are two separate issues there. the boy in ukraine and american support for ukraine has become racially divisive hit in the us —— the war. —— has become divisive. there is also widespread suspicion about his perceived closeness, his perceived sympathy, to some of the mr

putin's conditions. let sympathy, to some of the mr putin's conditions.— sympathy, to some of the mr putin's conditions. let me also ask ou putin's conditions. let me also ask you about _ putin's conditions. let me also ask you about tiktok _ putin's conditions. let me also ask you about tiktok because l ask you about tiktok because the us supreme court is today going to to hear an appeal by tiktok against a law banning it in the us unless it is sold by its chinese owners. this is very important, isn't it? some see it as a matter of national security, the chinese interference in america, some see it as a matter of freedom of speech?— see it as a matter of freedom of speech? yes, that is exactly ri . ht was of speech? yes, that is exactly right was at — of speech? yes, that is exactly right was at the _ of speech? yes, that is exactly right was at the biden - right was at the biden administration, which backed the ban, argues that there are too grave national security implications to allowing this app, implications to allowing this app, which is owned by chinese company, to have such wide access to a massive american user base. they are worried about data being harvested or propaganda messages being disseminated to the american population. defenders of tiktok argue the opposite was at this

rate is very popular, it is used by more than 160 million americans and they can turn that because of that, suppression of it but ended amount and suppression of free speech. amount and suppression of free seech. ., , speech. donald trump has changed — speech. donald trump has changed his _ speech. donald trump has changed his mind - speech. donald trump has changed his mind on i speech. donald trump has changed his mind on this | speech. donald trump has i changed his mind on this quite dramatically. he was against tiktok, now he says, thinking about it, i am for tiktok because you need competition, he says. because you need competition, he sa s. , , because you need competition, hesas. , he says. yes, it is also notable _ he says. yes, it is also notable that _ he says. yes, it is also notable that mr i he says. yes, it is also notable that mr trump he says. yes, it is also - notable that mr trump himself is on tiktok and has quite a large following there, which may or may not have influences use. yes, you are actually right. he had favoured a ban now he appears to be against one and is actually petition the court to kick this decision down the road slightly until he is in power. january the 19, of course, the day before his inauguration. so the timing here is very closely arranged. fascinating stuff. niall stanage, thank you very much indeed, white house climates for the hell, thank you for

being with us here on bbc news. —— for the hill. in israel, the inauguration of donald trump as the next us president is seen by many israeli settlers as an opportunity to press ahead with annexation of the occupied west bank. israeli settlements there have almost doubled in the past five years, and are now home to more than half a million settlers. most countries, and the world court in the hague, see the settlements as illegal under international law, but israel disputes this — and the country's far—right finance minister marked donald trump's election by saying 2025 "must be the year of sovereignty" in the territory, which many israelis refer to by its biblical name of "judea and samaria". 0ur middle east correspondent lucy williamson has this report. for half a century, annexation of the west bank has remained a dream for israeli settlers, even as settlement after settlement has become a reality on the ground. the world court says this is an illegal occupation.

we first came here in 1982. but settlers like sondra baras stake their claim on an ancient jewish presence here, and they think america's next president may support them. i was thrilled that trump won. the evangelical christian community in the united states is 100% in favour of israeli sovereignty injudea and samaria. so what happens to palestinians who say, "i don't want to live under israeli sovereignty?" they can go wherever they want. but this is where they live. so? i'm not kicking them out. but things change. you know what? how many wars did they start? and they lost. the last time donald trump was president, he caused controversy by recognising jerusalem as israel's capital and israeli sovereignty over the occupied golan heights. his new pick for ambassador to israel has said he supports settler claims to

the west bank. when people use the term "occupy", isay, "yeah, israel is occupying the land," but it's the occupation of a land that god gave them 3,500 years ago. it is theirland. but supporting annexation here could alienate washington's other key ally, saudi arabia, and complicate mr trump's bid for a wider regional deal. mohaib's hopes for a palestinian state here are already shattered. his family home, built on private palestinian land, was ruled illegal by an israeli court last year and demolished. israel controls planning laws in 60% of the west bank, and while settlements are expanding, permits for palestinian homes are almost never granted. translation: this is all part of policies i to force us to leave. it's a policy of forced migration. what difference does it make to the israelis if i build here or not? we pose no threat to them. palestinians are also

being forced off their land by violent israeli settlers — many of them sanctioned by the us and the uk, but left unchallenged by israeli police and courts at home. house demolitions, planning laws, expansion of settlements, restricted access to grazing land and few consequences for settler violence — all the ways palestinians here say israel is annexing the west bank in practice, even without a formal declaration. israel's government has long denied that its settlements are illegal and it sees donald trump as a friend. but america's next president is also a man who likes closing deals and avoiding conflicts. lucy williamson, bbc news, the occupied west bank. and you are watching bbc news. do stay tuned. we will see very

soon. hello, there. coldest morning of the winter so far this morning. temperatures down to 44.4 celsius in altnaharra. if it's all getting too cold for you, there are changes on the way. it's going to be a slow change, though. gradual thaw into the weekend after a frosty start and the risk of some freezing fog. just how cold it's been compared to normal, you can see by the blue colours here on the chart with the coldest is relative to normal across europe. 0ur anomaly chart though shows we switch them for reds, especially across scotland and ireland and some in northern scotland. you might be around 25 degrees warmerfor the start of the mornings next week, compared with what we've seen today. “14, as i said in altnaharra, but widely a very, very cold start to the day and some struggling to lift above freezing even this afternoon. we have more cloud though, towards the south west, south wales as well.

that's producing some outbreaks of light rain or drizzle. some snow over the moors, a few rain, sleet and snow showers close to eastern coast of scotland and england. most, though, staying sunny through the afternoon. and, as i said, temperatures struggling to get above freezing for some of you. and they will drop straightaway as we go into tonight. lighter winds tonight. that means fog could become a bigger issue across wales, central and southern england. cloud, outbreaks of rain and sleet into northern ireland, but with the winds lighter across scotland a bit further east, it's the grampians where we could see some of the lowest temperatures, maybe down to a —15 or —16. so, this is the chart for saturday. high pressure, not much wind around, not many isobars. but this weather front out towards ireland is going to produce cloud, outbreaks of rain in the morning. it will slide into southwest scotland. increased cloud across many western areas. but notice here, across parts of southern england, east wales and the midlands, some could sit in fog all day long. away from the fog, lots of sunshine around but still temperatures struggling for most. but notice changes. belfast seven, plymouth eight degrees. milder air is trying to push its way in. it's going to be a slow process. it's going to come around this area of high pressure that's with us into the start of the weekend and through much of the weekend.

but eventually the mild air will topple down. notice it arrives in the south and east last of all, through monday and tuesday next week. so, a quick look at sunday for you. lingering fog patches potentially again across some parts of england and wales. more cloud through scotland, northern ireland and parts of western england and wales. temperatures well above freezing by this stage, but still a chilly one towards the south and the east. but even here, temperatures will rise as we go through much of next week. that's how it's looking. see you soon.