father fidelis mukonori, a close friend of mr mugabe attended the meeting with the army generals laster wasn't offered a deal to resign, but decided to step down for the good of the country. he spoke to the bbc‘s richard galpin. outside the capital, harare, a celebration of the first mass in what is a new era for zimbabwe. the end of the rule of robert mugabe, unleashing a sense of freedom not felt for decades here. and thejesuit priest conducting the service, father fidelis mukonori, is the man who brought it all about, he is close to robert mugabe and acted as a mediator. having played such a crucial role in the transfer of power, what then can father fidelis reveal about the deals done to persuade robert mugabe to stand down and how the former president is reacting to losing control of the country? in his office, father fidelis said that mr mugabe's decision to resign was the best thing he had ever done. he also said mugabe will still play an active role. i don't know how you do it in the rest of the world but in the african world, senior citizens are there for advice. in his offic

father fidelis mukonori spoke to the bbc‘s richard galpin. first mass in what is a new era for zimbabwe. the end of robert mugabe's long rule already unleashing a sense of freedom not felt for decades here. and thejesuit priest conducting the service, father fidelis mukonori, is the man who helped bring it all about. he is close to robert mugabe, and acted as the mediator for the army. he played a crucial role in the transfer of power. what can he now reveal about the deals done to persuade robert mugabe to finally stand down? and how is the former president reacting to losing control of the country? in his office, father fidelis mukonori told me robert mugabe's decision to resign was the best thing he had ever done. despite leaving office, he said the former president would still play an active role in politics here. i don't know how you do it in the western world. in africa, senior citizens are important. will people go to him for advice, for example, like the new president? the new president said he is his mentor and father and leader. whe

and the jesuit priest conducting the service, father fidelis mukonori, is the man who brought it all robert mugabe and acted as a mediator. having played such a crucial role in the transfer of power, what is the father going to reveal about the deals done to persuade robert mugabe to stand down and how the former president is reacting to losing control of the country? in his office, -- in his —— in his office, father fidelis said that he was still play an active role. i don't know how you do it in the rest of the world but in the african world, senior citizens are there for advice. but will people go to him for advice, for example, the new president? the new president said, he is my mentor, he is my father, my leader. when he is my father, my leader, my mentor, as he said, i don't think so. you played a key role as the main mediator to persuade robert mugabe to stand down, what was the deal which did persuade him to go, what was he given, what has he been offered? we did not offer him anything. you are asking a direct question for him to resign, he was not offered anything, he resign

father fidelis was there when he was presented with his resignation papers. pen and signed. and when he finished signing, he has faced just... calmed. it glow. as if to say, it is over. ebbrell gatehouse reporting there. the shipping forecast, a notable feature of bbc radio a, is celebrating its 150th anniversary. it is believed to be longest—running weather forecast of its kind in the world. it provides weather reports and forecasts for the seas around the united kingdom. this year marks 80 years since the bbc began broadcasting the shipping forecast. the bbc weather presenter has more. there's a chance that leaving those seasickness pills at home was a mistake. the weather impacts the power of the ocean. the shipping forecast for the next 12 hours. a disturbance near the hebrides... and after a major storm back in the mid 19th century that led to hundreds of deaths and the loss of dozens of ships, the shipping forecast was introduced. like then, today the forecast is a vital tool that saves lives at sea, and the rnli say that forward planning is the key to

and the jazz with priest conducting the service, father fidelis mukonori, is the man who helped bringrmy. having played such a crucial role in the tra nsfer of played such a crucial role in the transfer of power, what then can father fidelis mukonori wrap —— now reveal about the deal is done to persuade mr mugabe to stand down and how the former president is reacting to losing control of the country. in his office, father fidelis mukonori told me mr mugabe's decision to resign was the best thing he'd ever done. despite leaving office he got —— he said the former president would still play an active role in politics. i don't know how you do it in the western world. in the african world, senior citizens are there for advice. what are people going to go to him for advice? for example, the new president? the new president said he is my mental. he also said he is my father, and my leader. so when he said that, you tell me he's going to stay off from his father? from his mentor? his leader? i don't think so. you played a key role as a mediator to persuade mr mugabe to stand down. what was t

father fidelis was there when he was presented with his resignation papers. signing, he has faced just... calm. it glowed. as if to say, it is over. american airlines is facing a shortage of pilots over christmas after a computer glitch gave too many of them time off. an estimated 15,000 flights don't have an assigned pilot due to the software error. pilots are now being offered more money to cancel their holiday plans and work the shifts — american says it expects to avoid cancellations. what's believed to be the longest—running weather forecast of its kind in the world, celebrates its 150th anniversary on thursday. the shipping broadcast goes out a times a day on bbc radio and it provides weather reports and forecasts for the seas around the coasts of the united kingdom. this year marks 80 years since the bbc began broadcasting the shipping forecast. bbc weather presenter sarah keith—lucas reports. archive: there's a chance that leaving those seasickness pills at home was a mistake. the weather impacts the power of the ocean... the shipping forecast for the

father fidelis mukonori is sometimes called mugabe's confessor. the events went very fast. d, father, you know, something's happened in the early hours of this morning. ajesuit priest and close personal friend of many years, when the generals made their move, they asked fr fidelis to mediate. the tanks were in the street, the boys were on the street. and his generals were sombre, sombre as anything. there was no sign ofjitteriness or overexcitement or anger. no. did it strike you as well planned? yes, well planned. the generals had drawn up a list of demands which centred around the reinstatement of the exiled vice president, emmerson mnangagwa. the main one was, we will not accept the legacy of zimbabwe, the legacy of robert mugabe, to be drained out or to be fizzled out by opportunists. after finishing the meeting with the commanders, i drove to president mugabe's residence. the blue roof. and we read the points, one by one. what was his reaction? robert mugabe is a guerilla, a fighter and a leader. he never loses his calmness. not everyone who was at that first meeting re