just a sense of the community of southport which has been so rocked by the events of last july and how they are trying to pull together and make as much sense as they can of what happened. just a reminder that you are watching bbc news. we live outside liverpool crown court where the sentencing hearing is under way of actual kanaya who killed three young girls —— axle radical banner. injuly of last years. he also played guilty to the attempted murder of ten other people... eight other young girls. i can tell you there has been a statement in the last few minutes released by number ten, asked about the sentencing, the prime minister's official spokesperson told reporters, the thoughts of the prime minister and the whole country will be with the families and everyone impacted by this

horrific tragedy today, as they relive the trauma of what has happened and the whole country stands with them. and with people of southport who have shown such and courage in the face of unimaginable horror. i have to remind you that there are no cameras allowed in court, they will be allowed for the judging's sentencing remarks as and when they come, which should be in the next hour, couple of hours, there are no cameras in there now but we do have our reporters in there who are telling us what is going on. that live feed is being shown on bbc news, the bbc news website, the live feed from there. i have to tell you some of the details are very distressing. we know that inside the court they have been shown cctv footage of the moment when the attack was under way. there are images of children running away from the

dance studio where they had been enjoying a dance class, king taylor swift themed bracelets, dancing to taylor swift, add axel rudakubana arrived with a knife and indescribably started attacking them. so that healing is continuing inside liverpool crown court. you can keep up—to—date on the bbc news website and hear on bbc news. we will continue to bring you all the news as it happens. for the moment, back to the studio. some news about a storm heading towards uk. a rare red weather warning covering northern ireland and scotland on friday has been issued for storm eowyn by the met ofice. it's warning of gusts of up to ioomph and "flying debris resulting in danger to life". all schools in northern ireland will close on friday because of the storm. and scotland's first minister has told people there not to travel in areas covered by the red weather warning.

our weather presenter matt taylor, talked me through where the red warnings have been issued. the met office if you hours ago but they cover the whole of northern ireland and a good part of southern scotland as well. the big thing about these is just a geographical area but also the population centres covered, including belfast, glasgow, rush—hour period, particularly tomorrow morning covered, population centres covered, including belfast, glasgow, edinburgh, and add onto that edinburgh, and add onto that the whole of the republic of the whole of the republic of ireland under a red warning ireland under a red warning issued by the met office. issued by the met office. similar conditions, including similar conditions, including the isle of man with a red the isle of man with a red warning. wins quite widely in warning. wins quite widely in these areas gusting to around these areas gusting to around 80-90 these areas gusting to around 80—90 mph but we could see some 80-90 these areas gusting to around 80—90 mph but we could see some sports, particularly at the sports, particularly at the north coast of northern ireland north coast of northern ireland and down this zone from argyll and down this zone from argyll and down this zone from argyll and down this zone from argyll and bute and through the and bute and through the ayrshire coast towards dumfries ayrshire coast towards dumfries and galloway, 100 mass per hour and galloway, 100 mass per hour at times. some of this will be at times. some of this will be hitting during the crucial hitting during the crucial rush—hour period, particularly rush—hour period, particularly tomorrow morning. tomorrow morning.

rush-hour period, particularly tomorrow morning.— rush-hour period, particularly tomorrow morning. matt, where is storm eowyn _ tomorrow morning. matt, where is storm eowyn right _ tomorrow morning. matt, where is storm eowyn right now? - tomorrow morning. matt, where is storm eowyn right now? at i is storm eowyn right now? at the is storm eowyn right now? git the moment it isjust in its development phase. looking at the satellite picture, there is new york, glasgow, it is this massive cloud here, being driven by a really strong jet stream. that has been fired by cold air preaching out of the us and canada. it is under this area marked here, were

us and canada. it is under this area marked i into were us and canada. it is under this area marked i into the e us and canada. it is under this area marked i into the start of scotland even into the start of saturday. let me show you the pressure chart, this gives you rough idea, the storm has the latest wins in the centre, strongestjust latest wins in the centre, strongest just south of the centre. we could see winds gusting up to 150 mass per hour over open water, but as i take you to two o'clock friday morning, that will slam into the west of ireland. this could be ireland's worst storm on record exceeding that of hurricane debbie in 1961. we could see wind up about 120 mass power. through the morning it will push its way northwards, you can see it produced to the north of northern ireland, strongest on the south, impacting rush—hour, then strongest winds on the north coast. when pick—up elsewhere after a spell of rain, then as we go into the afternoon with low pressure tracking across northern scotland refocused the winds across the central belt of scotland. that is a dangerous direction, affecting the

population centres of glasgow and edinburgh. before it gradually clears after the north, still producing gales in orkney and shetland as we go into saturday. you can keep up—to—date with the latest on storm eowyn the bbc weather app and we will be covering that weather system as it approaches the uk on bbc news. with winter always a difficult time for many pensioners, there's concern that after two cold snaps, a rise in energy prices, and millions losing their winter fuel payments, many older people are suffering in silence. one charity which gives energy advice says pensioners are having to choose between heating or eating. our cost of living correspondent colletta smith has this report. keeping warm in one of the coldest areas of england isn't easy. we don't go out when it's icy or snowy. marjorie and rosemary are both in their 90s, and have been friends for a very long time. we knew each other at school, actually.

yes. and now they're next door neighbours. i give rosemary a ring each morning to make sure she's up and about. yes, she does. yeah. amazing. and if she doesn't ring, i'm ringing her. what's the matter with marjorie? she just forgot one morning. this winter, they're both £300 down after losing their winter fuel payments. it's a lot of money. yes, yes, it was very useful. yeah, we knew it was there all the time. the recent cold snap may have passed, but energy use is still high and the price of gas and electricity went up for most people at the beginning ofjanuary. good morning. hello. yes, thanks. good, good. take a seat. for those giving energy advice, its older people who are the biggest concern. an elderly person might pay all the bills, pay the gas and electric bill and stay on top of the payments, not be in any debt at all. so from the outside, it doesn't look like there's an issue there. however, they aren't eating.

they're not turning the heating on. it's a little cold out here. you can see there's quite a bit of snow. that's exactly what's happened to sandra in county durham. but i've been more aware this year that i haven't got any real leeway. so, you know, the money's got to come from somewhere. so i've pulled the curtains in the kitchen. she's no savings, but a small workplace pension has pushed herjust over the limit for pension credit. and of course, i've got covers on all the glass of the doors to keep the heat in. so she's not had the winter fuel payment. i took out credit for the first time in probably 12,1111; years. that is a direct result of losing the winter fuel allowance. here in sedburgh, on the other side of the yorkshire dales,

it's been so chilly that cold weather payments were triggered at the start of january for those on benefits. it's very unusual. my washing line's had icicles on. so it's been really cold. but that hasn't helped most pensioners, like marilyn and rosie. can ijoin you? we'll let you. they don't qualify for that either. we've had it icy for days. and minus for days. so last week we had a lot of heating on during the day, which we wouldn't normally have on. and we've got the smart meter and it's showed that we've used nearly £40 in a week. so you know, if you do that every week for a month, you've got quite a bit out of your pension, haven't you? how does it feel, you know, not having that fall back there from the government. it makes a big difference. it does make a big difference. you shouldn't rely on it. but you did rely on it. you thought, "oh, well, i can get a bit extra food.

i can get another bag of coal in." you know, they expect us to just carry on as normal. you've been digging into your savings and everything. the government say they don't want to see anyone suffer this winter and are increasing the state pension in april, but that's cold comfort for those who've already had to fork out and are facing difficult weeks ahead. colletta smith, bbc news, sedbergh in cumbria. us president donald trump is sending 1500 troops to the mexican border to boost security, as he moves to crack down on illegal immigration. the news came after mr trump gave his first television interview since re—entering the white house. our north america correspondent merlyn thomas has the details. mr president. thank you. welcome back. thank you very much. donald trump began his interview with fox news

speaking about his favourite topic — immigration. this was a gross miscarriage of common sense to allow people to come in. this is notjust south america. this isn't, you know... we talk venezuela. that's a big abuser. but these are countries from these are iran, syria, countries that you don't even think of. the congo has emptied their prisons out into the united states. for him, it was an opportunity to repeat many of the unverified claims he's made before. it follows an announcement that the pentagon is deploying more than 1,500 troops to the us—mexico border to beef up resources, as well as providing air support to help deport undocumented migrants from states like california and texas. while he's going full speed ahead with the executive orders cracking down on illegal immigration, the president has also been on the defensive — standing by his decision to pardon nearly 1,600 of the january 6th rioters. why did they get a pardon? a number of reasons.

number one, they were in there for three and a half years, a long time. and, in many, solitary confinement, treated like nobody's ever been treated so badly. they were treated like the worst criminals in history. and you know what they were there for? they were protesting the vote because they knew the election was rigged. despite the attention his own pardons received, he was quick to turn the tables on president biden, who controversially pardoned his family members on his last day in office. the precedent that he set on pardons is amazing. that's a much bigger story, but people don't like talking about it. he pardoned everybody, but he didn't pardon himself. aside from issuing executive orders and pardons, trump is also considering what to do about tiktok. the social media platform's time is running out as it faces a ban in america over alleged national security concerns because of its chinese parent company. but donald trump doesn't seem so worried. we have our telephones made in china for the most part.

we have so many things made in china, so why don't they mention that? you know? let me get to the interesting thing with tiktok, though, is you're dealing with a lot of young people. so they love it. is it that important for china to be spying on young people, on young kids, watching crazy videos, on things? trump's first week has been incredibly busy and he's not done yet. in a few days, he'll visit california, a state deeply affected by wildfires that are still raging. some of the wealthiest, most powerful people lost their homes, and it looked like our country was helpless. this fire was just raging. and then it would catch to another area. another area, another area. there was nothing. it took a week and a half and i've never seen anything like it. we look so weak. trump supporters have been pleased with their president's actions so far, and they're not done hearing from him yet. as fox tv presenter sean hannity revealed, there's a part two of this interview still to come later on thursday.

a new wildfire has flared up north of los angeles, which is itself still counting the cost of the deadly fires earlier this month. the hughes fire has quickly taken hold of a large area near lake castaic, strecthing to an area of more than 9,000 acres. more than 30,000 people have been moved from their homes. our correspondent in los angeles, peters bowes has been giving us the latest. this is a very familiar situation. extremely dry brush, tinder dry hillsides, there's been no rain here for months and strong winds. that perfect storm scenario that meant that this fire that started to the north of castaic lake spread extremely rapidly, like so many of the other fires that we've seen in the los angeles area over the last couple of weeks. thousands of people had to be evacuated from their homes, mostly in communities to the south of castaic lake. many others had to be put on to evacuation warnings, meaning that they had to be prepared to leave their homes

at a moment's notice if they were told to do that. now, the firefighters say they are beginning to get the upper hand. they're not out of the woods yet, and the warnings for the next, at least 2a, 36 hours in terms of the weather and the winds are not positive. the red flag warning meaning "expect extremely strong winds," that has been extended into friday. but then at the weekend, the los angeles area is expecting some rain. it would be the first rain for months. just a sprinkling of rain, it won't be a heavy downpour, but it could significantly assist the firefighters as they tackle this blaze and continue to get the other fires around los angeles completely under control. despite those fires, the wait is finally over for film buffs. in the next hour, we will find out who's in the running for this year's oscars. it's an exciting year for the academy awards, with no real consensus yet on which film is going to take home the prize

for best picture. let's take a look at a few of the frontrunners. which of you would volunteer to share? madame morrible. thank you. that is very good of you. what? miss... elphaba. ..elphaba. you can room with miss glinda. what?! no. have you seen the papers? apparently it's already decided it's me. i happen to agree with them. what if i don't want it? no sane man would want the papacy. some of our colleagues want it. what if i know in my heart that i'm not worthy? you are more worthy than any of us. i'm not. well, then tell your supporters not to vote for you, pass the chalice. and let it go to him? i could never live with myself. vaccination? 0k. not going on a vacation.

by the way, ijust want to say, my wife is a huge fan. - blood type? 0h, hey, it's your birthday. happy... she sobs. as you heard there, the vatican thriller conclave is expected to do well. it has already collected 12 bafta nominations. tom brook has been speaking to the film's cast and director. the pope is dead. the throne...is vacant. conclave is a film chronicling political intrigue at the vatican, as we observe the fictional cardinal lawrence, played by british actor ralph fiennes, presiding over the election of a new pope. he finds himself at the centre of intense politicking. this is a conclave, aldo, it's not a war. it is a war! and you have to commit to a side!

ralph fiennes was drawn to the work, which is based on a robert harris bestseller, because of the nature of the man he plays. the character of lawrence, a bit uncertain about his faith, he makes a speech about doubt and that the great enemy is certainty, and that doubt is the foundation compelled by that speech — that speech was the catalyst that made me want to do it, i think it's quite a healthy provocation. conclave has been a real crowd—pleaser — audiences have appreciated its elegant, well—written screenplay and strong performances from an illustrious cast, which includes renowned actor isabella rossellini who plays a rather formidable nun. good afternoon, sister, i would like to speak to the nun who dropped her trayjust now. she's safe with me, i am dealing with the situation. i'm sure you are, sister agnes, but i must see her myself. i hardly think a dropped tray should concern the dean of the college of cardinals.

even so, i... the welfare of the sister is my responsibity. and this conclave is mine. it may be a thriller, a work of fiction, but isabella rossellini thinks the movie touches on issues of the real world. it talks about whether, should we be liberal, should we be conservative, what is the role of women within the catholic church? but that is also a debate that we have in our society and so you can see many parallels. indeed, credit must go to german director edward berger, who has fashioned a film that is very accessible — it comes across like a murder mystery. you should be careful, thomas. i wanted to make a political thriller that stands like a book that you really love to read, like where you basically, you know, you are on the edge of your seat for the entire time, but also i was really moved by ralph's character's interior journey — ralph fiennes has been nominated for an oscar twice

before, in the 1990s, for roles in schindler's list and the english patient. he's widely expected to get nominated again for this year for his role in conclave. how important is it for you to get awards recognition or oscars recognition? does it mean a lot to you? i think getting awards recognition helps the movie business have traction. the real reward for the actor is getting the job, but i think if you are, if the awards come to any actor or director in any film, of course you celebrate, because i think it injects a kind of enthusiasm into cinema. and particularly what's great about this is, of course there is awards talk, but more importantly was the life of the film in cinemas, it stayed in cinemas for quite some time, which was fantastic. ralph fiennes admits the success of conclave has come as a bit of a surprise. after all, a story of a lot of men in red in the sistine

chapel doesn't immediately conjure up thoughts of big movie hit but conclave shows how a clever screenplay, adept direction, and strong performances can be combined to create a gripping, thrilling cinema. and you can watch a special programme on the oscar nominations here on bbc news — we have a stream bringing you the announcement in full and all of the reaction from 1pm. you can find that on the bbc news website. a survivor of the hamas attacks has been chosen to represent israel at eurovision in switzerland this year. yuval raphael was at the nova music festival on october 7th, and survived by hiding in a bomb shelter. she says she's100% sure she'll be booed when she performs but that it's important to show what israel has gone through.

she won the selection with a cover of abba's dancing queen, but the song she will perform with will be announced in the coming weeks. let's return to liverpool crown court where the hearing for axel raducanu is under way. —— radical banner. thank you, that sentencing hearing has been under way for an hour or so, it was delayed at the beginning and as we have been telling you it was also disrupted because axel rudakubana not long into the hearing started shouting, started complaining that he felt ill, he didn't want to continue, and thejudge continue, and the judge considered continue, and thejudge considered that he was being so disruptive that he was taken out from the dock to continue to watch proceedings in a side

room. thejudge clearly considering that he was not ill enough not to continue. but when you take into account the fact that the court room is full of the families of the three girls who were killed on july 29, and also the eight children who were stabbed and left with serious injuries, you can imagine the upset that they would have felt with axel rudakubana behaving in the way that he has today. so he is now in a dock listening to proceedings. this is a sentencing hearing, the trial didn't go ahead because he pleaded guilty to the offences on monday. but a sentencing hearing is essentially for some of that evidence that would have been released at trial to be made public, then there will be made public, then there will be mitigation from the defence, we don't know what that in terms of reducing the level of the sentence will be, but i can tell you some of the details that have been said in court

this morning are incredibly distressing. you can follow the details on the bbc news website, but a warning that they are distressing details because we are talking about a knife attack on a classroom, a dance studio fool of young girls, aged from six, last july, he took the knife he bought from amazon and took a taxi to the dance studio and started indiscriminately attacking girls, killing three of them, seriously injuring eight others. those details are being read out in court at the moment. as i say, it is very upsetting detail, we're not reporting all of that detail for obvious reasons. one detail that has come out, i tell you this just to give you an idea as to why the prime minister talked about this as being a senseless and barbaric attack, our reporters from inside the court said the court room full of the families has heard that

one of the girls who survived, who had been pulled back into the building by rudakubana, had 32 stab wounds, 23 of them to her back, so that gives you an idea of the brutality of the attack that he carried out on the 29th ofjuly last year. so further details coming out in court. there is going to be a break. the families have had to listen to a lot of detail over the past hour or so, there will be a break, thejudge the past hour or so, there will be a break, the judge will need time to consider his sentencing. i am told by our colleagues inside court that the hearing will resume once again acting pm. i should say that whilst the prosecution statement, the defence mitigation is not on camera, you can follow the details on the bbc news website. the sentencing remarks on the judge, when they start, will be on camera. you will be able to

follow those live on bbc news. we will bring you all the latest from court but for the moment, back to the studio. we will be back with sarah at the top of the hour. weather now — here's carol kirkwood. hello again. the met office has issued two rare red weather warnings, one for northern ireland and one for scotland for wind, we could have gusts of wind 80—90 mph widely tomorrow and as much as 100 miles per hour with exposure. storm eowyn is currently forming in the atlantic, developing rapidly as it pushes across hours, not as it pushes across us, not clearing the far north—east of scotland and till we get through the day on saturday. today we have a weather front bringing rain, moving from the west to east, accompanied by squally winds, hail and possibly thunder and lightning, behind it things quietening down, brightening up with a few showers. for many it will feel

chilly today, highs between five and 10 celsius. this evening and overnight, rain continues to push northwards and eastwards, clearing away, some clear skies and then in comes the storm bringing heavy rain, transient snow in scotland to lower levels, quickly turning back to rain in the morning, but severe gales or gales. the met office has these two red weather warnings, northern ireland and scotland, northern ireland kicks in from seven in the morning until two o'clock, and for scotland it kicks in ten o'clock until five o'clock. it is covering both rush hours, damaging gusts of wind. in addition, he amber weather warnings for tomorrow, again gales, severe gales, and the scottish one, as the storm moves north—eastwards, will last until the following day, into saturday until 6am. picking up on friday, we have the rain rattling through, curling back across scotland and northern ireland, but it is the wind that will be the main feature. really damaging gusts of wind, gales, severe gales,

possibly gusts as much as 100mph for the exposure across parts of northern ireland and western scotland. as we head on into friday night and saturday, the low pressure continues to drift north—eastwards, it will still be windy for northern england, up into scotland, the wind slowly easing from the south through the day, it will take much of the day before the gales ease across the far north. then a quiter spell, but more wet weather coming in from the west through the afternoon.

i'm sarah campbell in liverpool. the teenager who murdered 3 girls in southport last summer will be sentenced in the coming hours. axel rudakubana arrived here at liverpool crown court but the judge has sent him out of the courtroom for yelling during the hearing.