catherine karelli, bbc news. the philippine red cross, spoke to the bbc, about how the country is coping. first of all, it's very difficult because it's christmas, people who are stranded, you have to support them and then you have to bring the goods over into several province. these are several, big islands that have been affected. coastal areas that are hard to come by and a lot of people have lost their homes and they need food. we are serving hot meals but it's not enough. things have been affected like power, there has been a complete blackout in certain areas that will be sorted within the next two or three weeks. water has been interrupted intermittently in certain areas. so there is an awful lot of things to be done while the rescue phase is over, hopefully. we now have to contend with our support in terms of relief, in terms of food, water. we have a lot of first aid interventions and doctors will be supporting those who have lost their buildings and they will be providing beds, so people out there can b

catherine karelli, bbc news.of the philippine red cross, richard gordon, spoke to the bbc about how the country is coping. while, the search is difficult because people are standing, you have to bring the goods you have to deliver, several islands have been affected. a lot of people have lost their homes, and they need food, hot meals. we are serving hot meals, we are trying our best to do that. power has been affected, there is a com plete power has been affected, there is a complete blackout in certain areas which will be sold in two or three weeks. water has been interrupted in certain areas. so, there is an awful lot of things to be done. we are giving us but in terms of relief, water, food, first aid interventions. providing beds for hospitals that have lost their roof. after the earthquake and recent typing, we are not finished there. definitely there is a lot to be done, with polio, measles and the like vaccinations. thousands of people in australia have been forced from their homes for the holidays as the

catherine karelli, bbc news. africa, more details are emerging about a deadly attack by islamist militants in burkina faso on tuesday that left 35 civilians dead, most of them women. rich preston has this report. the militants launched their attack on the military outpost first, officials say there were around 200 officials say there were around 200 of them, many of them on motorbikes. after shooting up soldiers they turned their guns on civilians, 35 people almost all of them women were killed. security forces were eventually able to fight back, killing 80 of the attackers. it happened in a bender, close to the country's borders with mali and new chair. burkina faso was once a relatively calm country in the region but has french forces have suppressed militant groups in nearby mali, they have spilt over the border, and attacks by islamist groups have killed hundreds of people in burkina faso and displaced thousands. rich preston, bbc news. let's get some of the day's other news. a peace group in afghanistan is s

catherine karelli, bbc news.le in australia have been forced from their homes for the holidays as the country battles some of its worst bushfires in years. our correspondent phil mercer joins us now from bilpin, which is two hours north—west of sydney. every time i see these images behind you, the pictures like this of devastation, it neverfails you, the pictures like this of devastation, it never fails to shock me. morning. there is a financial cost to all of this, there is certainly an emotional cost as well. what you can see behind me used to bea what you can see behind me used to be a packing shed. bilpin is a very famous apple growing town here in the blue mountains to the north—west of sydney. the main road up here is called the bells line of road and it was closed for quite a long time because when you come up the main highway from sydney and during the road, it is not so long before you see these charge trees, child bushland on both sides of the road and we were speaking to a woman who helped to establish

catherine karelli, bbc news.f people in australia have been forced from their homes for the holidays, as the country battles some of its worst bushfires in years. 0ur correspondent phil mercer joins us now from bilpin, which is two hours north west of sydney. i was saying earlier, whenever i see scenes like that behind you it is a lwa ys scenes like that behind you it is always shocking, you are talking to someone always shocking, you are talking to someone early who was explaining it has been so scary for many people in these areas? i think the more you speak to people who have literally been on the front line of this crisis, the more the enormity of the disaster sinks in. simon was telling me some of the flames he was confronting were a0 metres high. he obviously felt scared for his life, as he was trying to help douse the flames, but he lost a0% of his farm. around here you have other businesses literally crushed by the weight of these fires. this is bilpin in the blue mountains of new south wales. it is a hig

catherine karelli reports. it's it's the only facility of its kind in the area.s not only refugees but also their bangladeshi hosts. this is a woman that suffers from chronic pain and is a regular visitor to the clinic. translation: when i recover in the name of allah, i will go to the mosque and i will cook beef and provide food for the children. the clinic was set up by the un's refugee agency last year, hundreds of thousands of people have visited since it opened. it employs two physiotherapists, and all treatments provided free. but it's about more thanjust medical care. the doctors here see themselves as a bridge between two communities. translation: most of the patients here have lower back pain or paralysis or knee pain, that is the case for most of our patients, from both the rohingya and host communities. providing services to both groups makes us feel good. in 2017, bangladesh took on 750,000 rohingya, who were expelled from myanmar in a military—led crackdown. bangladesh is one of the most densely populated countries in the world. the strain on resourc

bbc journalists courtney bembridge and catherine karelli grew up with different sides of this story andfind out how well it's working. it was supposed to end a dispute that lasted nearly three decades. the prespa agreement was praised by the international community is a rare moment of unity in an increasingly divided europe. but a yearon, increasingly divided europe. but a year on, the fear increasingly divided europe. but a yearon, the fearand increasingly divided europe. but a year on, the fear and resentment in the region itself hasn't faded. this is democracy in greece! for me, as a greek, this dispute is an important pa rt greek, this dispute is an important part of modern greek identity. and for me as an australian with macedonian roots, this dispute sheds light on my complicated family history. in thessaloniki, the capital of the greek province of macedonia, many proud greeks say the name belongs to them. macedonia is greece only. they accuse the north macedonians of appropriating greek history. the issue was seen by many as the final straw for alexis tsipras. he made history by

catherine karelli reports.a farfrom a far from peaceful christmas and the central philippines. typhoon phanfone has brought sustained winds of almost 200 kilometres an hour. terrifying local people, and leaving a trail of destruction. heavy rain has left many homes flooded. more than 16,000 people had to spend the night in improvised shelters and at least 100 families have been left homeless. in this majority catholic country, the typhoon, which has damaged infrastructure, stopped many people visiting their families for christmas. filipinos are well used to tropical storms and typhoons with around 20 hitting the island nation each year. the most deadly in recent times was typhoon haiyan in 2013, where a massive storm surge left more than 7000 people dead. and many of the areas worst hit back then have borne the brunt of this latest storm. religious leaders have used their christmas messages, to call for an end of some of the world's injustices. pope francis drew attention to the suffering of migrants, whom he s

catherine karelli reports. it's it's the only facility of its kind in the area.desh welcomes not only refugees but also their bangladesh hosts. this is a woman that suffers from chronic pain and isa woman that suffers from chronic pain and is a regular visitor to the clinic. when i recover in the name of allah, i will go to the mosque andi of allah, i will go to the mosque and i will cook beef and provide food for the children. the clinic was set up by the un's refugee agency last year, hundreds of thousands of people have visited since the last open. it employs to physiotherapist and all treatment provided free. but it's about more than just provided free. but it's about more thanjust medical care. provided free. but it's about more than just medical care. the doctors here see themselves as a bridge between two communities. most of the patients here have lower back pain 01’ patients here have lower back pain or paralysis or knee pain, that is a case for most of our patients from both the brain and host communities. providing services to both groups makes us feel