ethos" to the military, as senate democrats challenge his views on women in combat. winds of up to 70 miles an hour are forecast in the los angeles area, raising concern that wildfires could again spread. hello, i'm caitriona perry. negotiators in qatar have raised hopes that israel and hamas are on the verge of a ceasefire and hostage release deal. qatar's foreign ministry said key issues have now been addressed, but israel has cautioned that the deal is not there yet. us presidentjoe biden and egyptian president abdel fattah el—sisi are calling on both sides to show flexibility to achieve a truce. a palestinian official told the bbc that the first stage of the deal will likely include the release of 3a israeli hostages, including women, children, the wounded, and the sick. in return, it's expected that

israel will release i—thousand palestinian prisoners, including about 100 and 90 in return, it's expected that israel will release 1,000 palestinian prisoners, including about 190 prisoners who have been serving sentences of 15 years or more. the final stage involves an agreement about the reconstruction of gaza — a process that could take years. for more on the situation, here's an update from our state department correspondent, tom bateman. the sense remains that these two sides are extremely close to a deal and that an announcement could come either within hours or within days. it is hoped for at some point this week and certainly before the inauguration of president trump next monday. we also had in washington a pretty significant intervention by the secretary of state antony blinken. both reiterating that the administration believes they are on the brink of a deal here,

but he also went into some details about the postwar plan that the administration wants to hand over to the trump team for what would happen in gaza in terms of both reconstruction, but also future governance. and this is where things get important because it gives you a sense of what the biden administration thinks it has achieved and its diplomacy and the wider region that it can try and get backing for this. what they are talking about is an interim governance proposal that would not involve the full control of the palestinian authority. that is the entity that was set up after the oslo accords that now has some form of self—governance in the occupied west bank. but instead there would be a mix of local politicians, some palestinian authority, but also international partners as mr blinken put it, the united nations. critically on the issue

of security, that it felt this would largely be an internationally—led operation probably involving arab countries although he did not name them. but what you have a sense of fear is the way in which the administration is trying to placate both the israelis who don't want full palestinian control, but also air countries who want to see some sort of progress towards palestinian self—governance for gaza. the administration trying to work a compromise, something that if they could get to, they would have been the guarantors for. that now all gets handed over to the trump administration. for more on this now lets speak to ambassadorjim jeffrey, chair of the middle east programme at the wilson center. he also served as us deputy national security advisor. you he also served as us deputy national security advisor. you he also served as us deputy national security advisor. are you he also served as us deputy national security advisor. are well you he also served as us deputy national security advisor. are well versed you he also served as us deputy national security advisor. are well versed in you are well versed in negotiations in this region. with all of these positive soundings is in a place where we had been before or this and

seem a deal is truly coming now? ., , ., ,, ., seem a deal is truly coming now? ., , ., , , ., ., seem a deal is truly coming now? ., _,, ., .,, seem a deal is truly coming now? ., , . .,, , now? no. they appear to be very close. everyone _ now? no. they appear to be very close. everyone wants _ now? no. they appear to be very close. everyone wants to - now? no. they appear to be very close. everyone wants to get - close. everyone wants to get this in place before the trump administration comes in and god knows what that will bring. secondly the israelis have achieved essentially all that they can do militarily. now it is time for the people of gaza to seek peace and for the hostages to come home, that is what this deal, if it is executed as you said, very close as you said, will do. at least in the first phase, there are two phases. antony blinken and president biden and the israelis and the arab states are all optimistic so let's keep our fingers crossed. you served under _ keep our fingers crossed. you served under republican and democratic presidents in your career and we are told that the trump and biden teams are working closely on this a final push, has that made the difference, that kind of diplomacy? it difference, that kind of diplomacy?— difference, that kind of diplomacy? it is the most amazing _ diplomacy? it is the most amazing thing _ diplomacy? it is the most amazing thing because i diplomacy? it is the most| amazing thing because we diplomacy? it is the most - amazing thing because we have had rough times going back to

vietnam in my youth in changes of administration, but this one on the lebanon cease—fire and now on the cease—fire, has been extremely close cooperation and coordination between the incoming team and the outgoing team. i cannot stress your viewers how important this is for american policy and how important it is for frankly peace and security throughout the world if this continues, it is very promising.— the world if this continues, it is very promising. from what we have heard _ is very promising. from what we have heard about _ is very promising. from what we have heard about what _ is very promising. from what we have heard about what might - have heard about what might come after an initial deal, the future of gaza, the future of palestinian people, from what we heard, is unachievable? absolutely. i worked closely on on a team publishing a plan from the wilson centre on a day after plan that is similar to what antony blinken breached. the key is american leadership and an international presence and an international presence and an international presence and a limited but real role for the palestinians and security plus the idea in this we picked

up plus the idea in this we picked up from the dayton accords that don't get all of the goodies, reconstruction and all of that unless you adhere to the security provisions of this agreement. that is critical and i think that we have a good basis to go forward if in fact we can finalise the deal. 15 we can finalise the deal. is that why the trunk biden team's coordination is all the more important because this will fall to those in the trump administration to oversee? that's true and our plan from what we can see and what tony blinken has proposed as an american not so much on the ground but an american leadership role i think on the ground would be better but that is tough politically. the people that president trump has selected to work on the middle east, we know them all. they are experienced, good people and working well with the current team. on this particular area, current team. on this particulararea, i current team. on this particular area, i think the world should breathe a sigh of relief. 0n greenland, panama, ukraine, we will see but in the

middle east we are cooking with gas right here. haifa middle east we are cooking with gas right here-— gas right here. how will this be received _ gas right here. how will this be received in _ gas right here. how will this be received in the _ gas right here. how will this be received in the middle i gas right here. how will this i be received in the middle east, the region itself?— the region itself? first of all. as your _ the region itself? first of all. as your viewers i the region itself? first of all. as your viewers are l the region itself? first of. all. as your viewers are well aware, we have seen a revolution in last 60 months. the destruction of the iranian proxy movement through the region, a much greater chance for long—term security, look at syria, gaza, lebanon, even look at iraq and iran and if the european initiation, turks and israelis and arab states we could see for the first time in many decades a middle east that is not an exporter of insecurity and terror and crisis. i insecurity and terror and crisis. ~ , , crisis. i think this is the most hopeful _ crisis. i think this is the most hopeful i - crisis. i think this is the most hopeful i have i crisis. i think this is the i most hopeful i have heard crisis. i think this is the - most hopeful i have heard you. we often have you on the programme, but you feel that outlook is bright?— outlook is bright? correct. i am hepeful_ outlook is bright? correct. i am hopeful simply - outlook is bright? correct. i am hopeful simply because | outlook is bright? correct. i. am hopeful simply because not everyone will like this

message, is because military force was used, hamas could have accepted this agreement a year ago, have accepted this agreement a yearago, he have accepted this agreement a year ago, he could've accepted the agreement when president biden unveiled on the 31st of may and set it fall on in thousands of people died and likewise iran, has the lead and others, they challenged israel and challenge the united states and challenge the united states and challenged the international community and we have seen the result —— hezbollah. firefighters in los angeles are bracing for the return of strong winds of up to 70 miles an hour today as they continue to battle fires that are still out of control. exactly a week after the first fire, at least 12,000 homes and buildings have been destroyed, 2a people have died and more than 60 square miles have gone up in flames. you can see here the two largest fires — the palisades and eaton fires, which continue to burn. firefighters in los angeles are warning that the strengthening winds may spread the flames further. 0ur los angeles correspondent

emma vardy has this report. this is the moment looters enter an evacuated home in the palisades. they were later arrested and charged with stealing $200,000 worth of property. the promise that we made when we started this, that these criminals would be arrested, they would be prosecuted and they will be maximally punished is a promise we are keeping. it's just one example of the crime wave authorities are now tackling in the wake of the fires. joe biden has promised that la will get government money to help the massive recovery effort. it's going to cost tens of billions of dollars to get los angeles back to where it was. so we're going to need congress to step up to provide funding to get this done. despite talk of recovery, the flames are still spreading. this is ventura county,

north of la, where a new fire broke out yesterday. crews battled through the night, but it's still uncontained. definitely on our territory. as well as the thousands of homes destroyed, in altadena alone, aix schools have also burned. this one, 0dyssey charter school, you see the playground. this was the younger children's classrooms, all destroyed. and here, 800 pupils aged between 4 and 13 now have little idea of where they'll go. with power and internet still down in large parts of los angeles, an idea by tesla owner elon musk has led to owners of his futuristic cybertrucks travelling to affected areas to provide wifi using the portable satellite system starlink. you can't even make a phone call out here. so there's certainly no internet out here, so just being able to provide that is, i think, a critical need out here. and help continues to reach la in many forms. more than 800 prison inmates

being trained in firefighting skills have been working on the ground for days, and crews from mexico have also joined the unprecedented effort to deal with this historic disaster. emma vardy, bbc news, los angeles. the former fox news presenter, pete hegseth, who donald trump wants to be his defence secretary, has been questioned over claims of sexual misconduct and his views on women by senators in washington who are deciding whether he's suitable for the job. the 44—year—old said he wants to bring back a �*warrior culture' to the pentagon. the start of the hearing was repeatedly interrupted by protestors. here's our north america editor sarah smith. cheering the handshakes and the back slaps are all part of pete hegseth's battle to persuade senators he is fit to serve as the secretary of defence. he has some vocal supporters, but he's also facing a long list of accusations and controversies. mr hegseth was a fox news tv presenter when donald trump

picked him to lead the pentagon. he did serve in the army in afghanistan, but he has no experience of running an enormous organisation like the american military, which has a budget of $850 billion. he faced some tough questions about financial impropriety, sexual misconduct and turning up to work drunk. a variety of sources, including your own writings, implicate you with disregarding the laws of war, financial mismanagement, racist and sexist remarks about men and women in uniform, alcohol abuse, sexual assault, sexual harassments and other troubling issues. mr hegseth blamed the left—wing media for stories he said were not true. he's concentrating on the job he hopes is ahead of him. when president trump chose me for this position, the primary charge he gave me was to bring the warrior culture back to the

department of defense. he, like me, wants a pentagon laser focussed, on lethality, meritocracy, warfighting, accountability and readiness. shouting ..send money— to bomb children in gaza! protestors angry about the war in gaza interrupted the hearing several times. pete hegseth has vowed to get what he calls the "woke" out of the military, saying women should not serve in combat, claiming mums have no place in the military. you don't want politics in the dod. everything you have said in public statements is politics. "i don't want women, i don't want moms." what is wrong with a mom, by the way? many republicans do want him to rid the military of any political correctness. if confirmed, and you issued an order saying, "we are going to rip the biden woke yoke off the neck of our military and focus on lethality more fighting," how do you think the troops will react? senator, i know the troops will rejoice. washington's preparing to make donald trump president next week.

after the ceremonies, once he's sworn into office, he cannot be prosecuted for any criminal offences. today, a major report has said if he had gone to trial, mr trump would have been convicted of encouraging violence, leading to the january 6th riot, as well as trying to overturn the 2020 election results. while the president—elect has said he will pardon many, if not all, of the people who have been convicted for their roles in the attack on the capitol. sarah smith, bbc news, washington. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news. let's look at some other stories making news. treasury minister tulip siddiq, has resigned from the government, after growing pressure over an anti corruption investigation in bangladesh. her aunt, sheikh hasina, is the former bangladeshi prime minister, and is being investigated over claims of a lucrative land grab. in a letter ms siddiq said she had done nothing wrong but the issue risked becoming a distraction for the government.

the government has banned the import of cattle, pigs and sheep from germany, after a case of foot and mouth disease was detected in berlin. there are no cases of the disease in the uk, but the chief vet said "robust contingency plans" were being put in place to protect farmers and food security. the princess of wales has revealed she is in remission from cancer after making an emotional return to the london hospital where she received treatment. after visiting the royal marsden hospital, kate whose husband prince william is first in line to the throne spoke of her "relief" and said she remained i. "focused on recovery . you're live with bbc news. breaking news from south korea. investigators have arrested the acting chief of the presidential security service for blocking their attempts to

arrest the impeached president. these are the live pictures from outside the presidential residence where there have been angry scenes and clashes as police try to enter the official compound where the president is holed up. a previous attempt to arrest him was blocked by his security guards. they say they are still trying to execute the arrest warrant against the president. 0ur correspondent is outside the presidential residence and she spoke to us in the last hour. it is daybreak now and as the sun rises the police and investigators are continuing to make their way outside the presidential compound. we now know that they have gone through two barricades that were set up by the security and have now reached the third one. that third one is essentially just outside the gate. we understand that there were talks between the police and the investigators in the presidential security staff as well to try and convince them to allow them in the presidential compound, but no success.

up until now and we are looking at it on a big screen with pictures of the entrance of the presidential compound and so far at the presidential security staff have been resisting. we also understand is that the police is trying to enter the compound route two main ways. the main gate which they have been unsuccessful in doing so far, but also through the hill that surrounds that compound. there are also reports as we speak and i am looking at my colleague now that the acting head of the presidential security has been arrested. we are waiting to hear confirmation on that. i think i am getting the nod. what that tells you is further complications to the picture. you essentially have two branches of power. the law enforcement officers who say they have a legal arrest warrant that they are trying to execute, so far unable to do so. and you have the security,

the presidential security staff who are standing their ground saying that they also are executing the duties in protecting the president and now we know that the head of the presidential security staff has been arrested. where that leaves the actual team, we don't know but we do know that standoff still continues and the division still continues. live now to seoul where we can speak with dr yookyeong im, lecturer in korean studies at university of sheffield. we are looking at these very dramatic scenes coming to us from outside the presidential palace, a very heavy police presence there. how do you see this playing out? i presence there. how do you see this playing out?— this playing out? i think the presidential _ this playing out? i think the presidential security - this playing out? i think the i presidential security service's leadership is now at risk and it has been reported continuously that the ordinary

in police and officers and guards working for the presidential security service have had disagreements and strong reservations regarding their leader's commitment to stop the force from enforcing the arrest warrant because that would constitute those officers in my opinion i think that the past and just arrested acting leaders also presidents securities service may be willfully hide confusions about the jurisdiction of thejurisdiction of requirements against the suspended president. it's a crime of treason is under the south korean laws that exception but does not recognised political leader's proceeds of the security service and news party argued that the word must be issued by the south—central district

court only, but the legal text clearly indicates i can also be issued by other eligible courts under a new proper conditions so in my opinion, what i'm worried more about is especially in terms of what lies ahead in the next weeks and months is that i think the south koreans democracy will recover from this political crisis, but the question will be how. while the suspended president and his lawyers and his party have been willfully delaying the treason investigation as well as the impeachment trial, right—wing supporters have been closer and closer to far right politics so it is now more populated with the conspiracy and false accusations of other democratic institutions such as national assembly and the central election committee but if you look at the general south korean public, i think there is very strong and well grounded commitment to formal democracy. the memory of dictatorship is

not too far in the south korean modern history. at the moment the biggest worry is the growing influence of the far right end formal politics including national assembly and now as you can see in the presidents office. i think the rise of part of rate is connected globally. many people are keen on how it will answer racked with their regents rise of far right. racked with their regents rise of far right-— of far right. taking it back to events happening _ of far right. taking it back to events happening this i of far right. taking it back to i events happening this moment, we are seeing the standoff between the police and the presidential security service, we have not heard anything from the impeached president himself. how will he be and what will he be doing in this moment looking out the window and he can see all of this happening. and he can see all of this happening-— and he can see all of this haueninu. . ,., , ., happening. that is a question for everyone _ happening. that is a question for everyone at _ happening. that is a question for everyone at the _ happening. that is a question

for everyone at the moment. | happening. that is a question i for everyone at the moment. the team of his lawyers is speaking on behalf of him, i think but there are a given his lead leave the legality and we don't recognise the legality of the current warrant and if you look at the appearance of the sound bites coming from at