>> good afternoon britain. it's 12:00 on monday the 9th of december. i'm emily carver and i'm charlie peters. syrian refugees in britain celebrate the toppling of bashar al assad's regime. will they be able to safely return to their country, or is there more danger to come .7 to come.7 >> rapper jay—z to come.7 >> rapperjay—z has been accused of raping a 13 year old girl in 2000 alongside sean diddy combs. but the 55 year old denies the allegations and has described the lawsuit as blackmail attempts . we'll have the latest attempts. we'll have the latest reaction and the housing minister and deputy prime minister angela rayner , minister angela rayner, struggles to explain how she'll house the 2.5 million migrants expected to arrive in britain under labour. >> she says there's plenty of housing, but is there .7 housing, but is there? >> and suella bravermans husband has defected to reform, as we have exclusive pictures of him out and about. campaigning over the weekend. could the former home secretary follow suit ?

home secretary follow suit? >> yeah, charlie, i think there are a number of ways that this story in syria affects brits. the average brit, we're hearing from experts that potentially there could be a heightened terrorist as a result because rebels so far are prescribed in this country as terrorists, are they not? now there's a debate over whether to prescribe them. sure . also, the question of sure. also, the question of syrian refugees, tens of thousands of refugees here in britain and of course, a massive numbers in germany and other european countries. is it now time for them to leave? would they be safe to leave? will they leave? will they want to leave? some say they do, yes. >> i mean, we've already seen some footage over the weekend of syrian refugees in britain. and indeed, as you said, across europe , celebrating this moment europe, celebrating this moment as an opportunity to go home. i saw one man saying, nobody wants to be a refugee. we want to live

in a free and democratic syria. but at the same time, as you've said , just there there are said, just there there are security concerns about what might happen now to syria. we saw great celebration when the libyan regime fell, but that quickly became a disaster with a security vacuum that could the same could happen now to syria as well. >> yeah. all the celebrations, perhaps a little too soon. yes. i don't know, i don't know. we're going to get some expert opinion on all of this. please do get in touch on everything we're going to be talking about. what do you make of suella braverman's husband defecting to reform? could suella follow suit? could she follow her husband, or will she stick to the conservatives? lots to talk about today. >> yes, make sure you send your views, post your comments gbnews.com/yoursay. but first, let's have your headlines with sam francis . sam francis. >> charlie. emily, thank you very much indeed. it's just gone 12:00 here and at 3:00 in syria, where thousands are celebrating the rapid collapse of the assad

regime after a coalition of rebel groups seized the capital, damascus, on sunday, their swift offensive toppled two major cities in just 12 days, leaving the united nations now scrambling for an emergency meeting later today, israel's prime minister benjamin netanyahu says the collapse is the result of his country's actions against iran and hezbollah, and has now ordered his troops to take over abandoned syrian posts on the border. meanwhile, the white house says president biden is in close contact with regional allies as the situation continues to unfold. and here, meanwhile, sir keir starmer is among those world leaders to be welcoming assad's departure . he welcoming assad's departure. he says it's a good thing for the syrian people, but adds that there still needs to be a political solution to secure peace. >> i welcome the fact that assad has gone the civilians, the syrian people had to put up with his brutal regime for far, far too long. we're talking to regional allies. it's very important now that there's a political settlement, a political settlement, a political way forward, and it's

very , very important that we very, very important that we emphasise that civilians and minorities must be protected in this process. but very , very this process. but very, very pleased that assad has fallen . pleased that assad has fallen. >> well, the uk says it is quickly reviewing its stance on hayat tahrir al—sham, one of the rebel groups that helped topple the assad regime, though it does still remain a banned as a terrorist organisation. cabinet minister pat mcfadden said this morning the government hasn't decided on its position, with syria's future described as very uncertain at this stage. the group once linked to al—qaeda played a key role alongside other factions in ousting assad . other factions in ousting assad. next, let's just bring you a breaking line. we're hearing from italy that at least two people are dead, multiple feared missing after a huge fireball erupted from a building in florence. pictures showing thick black smoke and flames rising from the scene, prompting an urgent emergency service response, including a helicopter rushing to the area. the explosion believed to have come

from an oil depot, sent audible shockwaves, residents say, through the area, with reports of serious injuries. local authorities are now urging residents to find indoor shelter. in a statement released not long ago, adding not to go near the facility while the tuscany, tuscany regional president has confirmed that hospitals and emergency services are still on high alert as the number of casualties and injuries appears to continue rising in the us, jay—z has dismissed allegations that he raped a 13 year old girl alongside sean combs in 2000, calling it a blackmail attempt. the lawsuit, filed in new york, claims the pair drugged and assaulted the accuser after the mtv video awards, while a female celebrity watched. in a statement, jay—z called those allegations heinous and accused the claimant's lawyer of exploiting the case for financial gain. the accuser is seeking damages, while sean combs faces separate charges and remains in custody. jay—z says his only heartbreak is for his

family and wife, beyonce, as they face public scrutiny over they face public scrutiny over the claims . they face public scrutiny over the claims. sir keir starmer is in the gulf today on his first trip there as prime minister, aiming to secure billions in trade and investment after meeting the uae's president. he's also held talks with saudi crown prince mohammed bin salman to push for a free trade deal with six gulf nations. labour says the deal could bring in over £8 billion for the uk each yean over £8 billion for the uk each year, with investments in energy , year, with investments in energy, infrastructure and artificial intelligence. well, that trip, ending tomorrow in cyprus, also focuses on regional conflicts like the israel—hamas war and the unrest now in syria. critics, though , question the critics, though, question the time spent abroad so early in starmer's premiership . health starmer's premiership. health leaders here are warning it's now or never to get a flu jab, as cases are skyrocketing earlier in the season than ever before. hospitals say they're grappling with a quad demic of flu , covid, norovirus and rsv flu, covid, norovirus and rsv with flu hospitalisations quadrupling since last year.

children aged between 5 and 14 are the worst affected group, with fears there could be a fresh wave of adult cases. officials have also said the flu vaccine is the best defence against the virus, urging anyone eligible to get protected before the festive period. it comes as the festive period. it comes as the latest nhs figures show hospital beds are already 95% full, with a challenging winter coming . travel chaos is coming. travel chaos is continuing after storm dara battered the uk this weekend, leaving thousands without power and disrupting major train routes. passengers on the west coast main line and across wales face cancellations , with face cancellations, with warnings to avoid travel until some areas clear at midday today. the storm brought gusts of up to 96 miles an hour, killing sadly two men and causing widespread damage with engineers still battling to clear debris and restore power. well, the met office says calmer weather is on the way, but

temperatures will remain cold, staying in single figures . and staying in single figures. and let's turn to some royal news for you. the king has revealed a quirky childhood memory queen elizabeth apparently practised for her coronation by wearing her crown during his bath time. his majesty shared the story in coronation girls, a documentary about canadian women who attended the 1953 event. he also admitted feeling slightly anxious himself, wearing the heavy saint edward's crown on his own coronation. well, the documentary , airing on boxing documentary, airing on boxing day follows 12 women revisiting london, where they were surprised by a royal visit from the king himself. surprised by a royal visit from the king himself . that's it from the king himself. that's it from me for now. i'll be back with you in around half an hour with all the latest top stories. now, though, it's back to charlie and emily.

>> welcome back to good afternoon britain. it's now 1208, and it is charlie peters with me today. >> yes . what an exciting >> yes. what an exciting experience for all involved , experience for all involved, especially you at home, because we've got plenty to go through. and this is my sort of dream day from a news agenda, and this is my sort of dream day