the russian ministry of defence ministry _ think? defence ministry has - think? the russian ministry of defence ministry has put - think? the russian ministry of defence ministry has put the l defence ministry has put the death toll at 89 although ukraine does say it is much higher. eitherway ukraine does say it is much higher. either way it is the biggest loss of life on a single day that moscow has admitted to since the war began in february. and so someone like the us presidentjoe biden has said that perhaps writer is trying to look for some oxygen here with a cease fire. some analysts have told the bbc that it is very much all connected because that attack happened on new year's eve which is a very important day on the russian calendar and that perhaps president putin is trying to avoid a similar loss of life on another important religious holiday to in terms of, you know, the opportunity when it comes to a ceasefire, the turkish president thought that perhaps there was a chance to ask for a unilateral ceasefire so that the two si

, and later that night, the defence ministry issued a statement, saying that one of the defence workshops spy drones. the defence ministry said they had downed one of the mini drones and they trapped and exploded two more. they did not point any fingers at any countries or any parties, but we know that israeli media and also the wall streetjournal said that israel was behind this. also, iranian state media and authorities said that no major damage was done, they said that there were no casualties and there was only a minor damage on the roof of the facilities, but the israeli media said that this was a phenomenal success and they said that it was a successful attack. some experts also said that to attack a major facility — a major defence facility — in the middle of iran, that is a success. we are yet to hear any comments from the authorities about who they are accusing, but the ministry of foreign affairs has said that this was a cowardly attack and has not impacted iran's operations very much. and let's just look at the wider context to this as well. could this be related to iran's nucl

earlier today the russian defence ministry claimed that - defence ministry claimed that without providing facilities in the eastern city of kramatorsk. they were housing hundreds of ukrainian soldiers. statement the russian authority said that more than 600 ukrainian forces had been killed. again, they provide no evidence to support this claim. they said this attack was in retaliation for that massive attack last weekend that killed dozens of russian forces. a ukrainian attack targeting a building in the occupied town of makiivka in the eastern donetsk region. and the russian authorities have confirmed that 89 were killed. the ukrainians has said that up to 400 russian soldiers had been killed as a result of that attack. this was an attack that sparked lots of criticism in russia, and now into day a week after that attack the russians are claiming that a similar attack targeting on a building in the east of the country killed 600 ukrainian soldiers. the ukrainians are rejecting it, a spokesperson for the ukrainian army told us this information was false, and it was another piece of russia

that is not what this said by the state media or the defence ministry.but they did not mention much about nuclear facilities. ., ~' , ., a 16—year—old boy has been charged with the murder of a teenage girl after she was stabbed to death in northumberland — in north east england. holly newton, who was 15, was found injured in hexham on friday evening. the boy will appear before magistrates in newcastle—upon—tyne tomorrow. i spoke to peter harris who gave us this latest update from the scene. tributes to holly have been led today by her school and let me read out what the school said about her. they said she was a truly lovely student who was quiet, conscientious and kind. they say their priority now is to bring the school community together to grieve and in the morning those children will return to school and clearly an extremely distressing situation for children so young. we've also had words today from a northumbria police about holly who said she was a girl with so much to look forward to in life. she was from a place about 20 minutes drive from here.

thank ou ve in the ministry of defence. thank you very much — in the ministry of defence. uch for _ in the ministry of defence. thank you very much for that, - in the ministry of defence. thank you very much for that, olga - you very much for that, olga ivshana, from the bbc russian service. a 30—hour wait for an ambulance and 12 hours sitting outside a&e — more distressing stories are emerging this morning of the nhs under pressure this winter. the uk's health secretary, stephen barclay, has blamed high numbers of flu and covid cases, and fears of strep a infections. many hospitals are struggling to keep up with demand, with ambulance services declaring critical incidents. graham satchell reports. these are all the ambulances outside king's lynn hospital, waiting to take patients in. this phone footage was taken by sarahjones at the queen elizabeth hospital in norfolk. she was with her 84—year—old dad, mervyn. so it's 8:50 and we just got out of the ambulance. 8:50pm. and paramedics came to the house at 8:30am this morning. so we've been almost 12 hours in an ambulance, an

this is what a russian ministry of defence spokesman had to say earlier.lation: the kyiv regime | targeted a temporary deployment point used by one of the units of the russian armed forces unit in makiivka in the donetsk republic with six us—made himars rockets. russian air defences shot down two of the rockets. as a result of the impact of four rockets with high explosive warheads, 63 russian servicemen were killed. i spoke to our correspondent hugo bachega in kyiv, who says both russia and ukraine have given statements about what happened. we have a statement from the ukrainian army. they have confirmed they are behind this attack. they say, "we are still working to determine the number of victims." this is after an earlier statement in which the armed forces said hundreds, 400 russian troops had been killed. this latest statement came after the admission by moscow that 63 soldiers had died as a result of this attack. so, the ukrainians have confirmed that they were behind this strike. this location hit was a school, apparently it had been turned into a

quite unusual for the russian defence ministry to give details about casualties like this. 63 of their troops died. they may or may not be an accurate total it. but unusual that they give any sort of figure at all. absolutely. they have given a low overall casualty figure for the war so far. thousands, i think, which is far less than i think anyone thinks russian casualties are. i think they saying 63 have been killed in this one episode, one can assume it is larger than that. it would be impossible to tell right now because of the destruction of the building at least to go from the pictures. what does this attack tell us about the state of the war at the moment? a lot of people have said now that we are deep in winter it is an attritional phase. there isn't much progress by either side. it does seem to be that the ukrainians are now targeting russian troop concentrations. they have spent some time before this, earlier in the war, going with the himars against logistics tempos, trucks, vehicles. they don't seem to be a lot of vehicles around the front lines these days. now

we had a statement from the russian defence ministry this | the russian defence ministry this evenings previously the overall commander, but also the man who gave that retreat order from the city of kherson, the only major city russia managed to take. there's already rife speculation here about why he was apparently demoted. maybe it was because the kremlin wasn't happy about setbacks on the battlefield. we don't really know, but still it is stressing resell. white very interesting. will, we're coming up on the first anniversary of the war. how would you assess support or lack of support across russia? i know it's difficult to tell, but what is the level of support for this war for this continuing conflict, which is now entering this winter phase of a war of attrition?— a war of attrition? yes, it is difficult to _ a war of attrition? yes, it is difficult to say, _ a war of attrition? yes, it is difficult to say, you - a war of attrition? yes, it is difficult to say, you can't i a war of attrition? yes, it is i difficult to say, you can't really trust the polling. i think there's a ki

russia's defence ministry has given a rare statement on a ukrainian rocket strike that destroyed a temporaryarracks blaming its own soldiers for the unauthorised use of mobile phones that allowed ukraine to target its troops. russia now says 89 soldiers were killed in the attack on a school in the occupied city of makiivka on new year's day and that officials will be held accountable. ukraine says the death toll is much higher. here's some more of the russian military�*s official statement. the prime minister addresses the pressures facing the health system this year. good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. the prime minister is likely to address the growing pressures on the nhs, in a major speech this afternoon. it follows warnings from some doctors that pressure on the health service this winter is unsustainable, with delays and backlogs costing lives. rishi sunak is also expected to talk about the economy — and education, saying he wants all pupils in england to study maths until they're 18. our political correspondent damian grammaticus reports. hi, everyone. i hope you had a

some of what we have seen coming out of the russian ministry of defence is that there are tensions there of defence and the wagner group and who is claiming victories and who is in the lead. so i think that is something to watch to see where that relationship goes. who is taking the lead and who has putin's ear, and it ny no means it has been no small part the effort of wagner to recruit out of prisons and that has been a part of raising numbers that russian�*s have to throw at this battle and that is certainly one of the biggest assets. more than 30 tornados have struck the southern united states killing at least seven people in alabama and georgia. officials are searching for bodies in ruined buildings and the full extent of the damage is being assessed. states of emergency have been declared in alabama and georgia. james clayton reports. america's extreme weather shows no sign of abating. here in alabama, a scene of devastation as a tornado ripped through communities. the deadly tornado focused on the area of selma, famous for its civil rights march. the billowing winds blew off roofs

let's first hear from the russian defence ministry.s. assault crews are engaged in battle in the town. we've also heard from president zelensky. translation: now that terrorist i state and its propaganda are trying to pretend that some part of our city of soledar, a city that was almost completely destroyed by the occupiers, is allegedly some kind of russia's achievement. they will present and are already presenting this to their society in such a way as to support mobilisation and to give hope to those who support aggression. but the fighting continues. ukraine's deputy defence minister has said russia failed to capture soledar. and here's president zelensky�*s advisor. translation: everything that is happening today i in the direction of bakhmut or- soledar is the bloodiest scenario of this war that is, we see, absolutely such an irresponsible attitude of. the russian elite towards their military personnel. i they die there by their thousands. there's a lot of blood, i a lot of artilleryjewels, a lot of contact combat, - especially i

the ministry of defence in moscow| the ministry of defence in moscow does not usually acknowledge lossesre both acknowledging a loss and giving a pretty high number. usually we would double or treble that number, so if this is something in the order of 200 dead, even 150, that is an enormous loss for russia, a one—time loss, one of the biggest in the war so far. we are hearing about bloggers in russia pointing the finger at the authorities for having such a concentration of troops there. but how would the ukrainian forces no, obviously the himars rocket launchers are doing impressive things for them, how would they know exactly what to hit?— exactly what to hit? there are a number of _ exactly what to hit? there are a number of ways _ exactly what to hit? there are a number of ways they _ exactly what to hit? there are a number of ways they might - exactly what to hit? there are a l number of ways they might know. shared intelligence on the united states, satellite intelligence. they might know from drone reconnaissance. human intelligence, spies out there. but we have seen reports that

some of what we have seen coming out of the russian ministry of defence is that there are intentions inistry of defence and the wagner group and who is claiming victories and who is in the lead. so i think that is something to watch to see where that relationship goes. who is taking the lead and who bully and by no means it has been no small part the effort of wagner to recruit out of prisons and that has been a part of raising numbers that russian�*s have to throw at this battle and that is certainly one of the biggest aspects. —— assets. there's been an explosion on a gas pipeline connecting lithuania and latvia. the transmission company, amber grid, says the blast was in the north of lithuania, and was still being looked at. footage shown on the lithuanian state broadcaster appears to show a fire breaking out in the area — residents of a nearby village are preparing to leave. the blast follows multiple explosions last september, which damaged two pipelines carrying gas from russia. the manchester city footballer — benjamin mendy — has been found not guilty of six counts of rape and

quite unusual for the russian defence ministry to give details about casualties like this.3 of their troops died. they may or may not be an accurate total it. but unusual that they give any sort of figure at all.— sort of figure at all. absolutely. they have _ sort of figure at all. absolutely. they have given _ sort of figure at all. absolutely. they have given a _ sort of figure at all. absolutely. they have given a low— sort of figure at all. absolutely. they have given a low overall i they have given a low overall casualty figure for the war so far. thousands, i think, casualty figure for the war so far. thousands, ithink, which casualty figure for the war so far. thousands, i think, which is far less than i think anyone thinks russian casualties are. i think they state 63 have been killed in this one episode, one can assume it is larger than that. it would be impossible to tell right now because of the destruction of the building at least to go from the pictures. what does this attack tell us about the state of the war at the moment? a lot of people have said now that

russia's defence ministry says the battle for soledar in eastern ukraine is continuing, despite a claimer mercenaries that they were in control of the town. mp andrew bridgen is susupended from the conservative party after appearing to compare covid—19 vaccines with the holocaust. good afternoon. ambulance workers in england and wales are striking over pay for a second time. managers are warning the impact is likely to be worse than last month's stoppage, because now call handlers are also on strike. the prime minister says it's terrifying people don't know what will happen if they call 999. but ambulance staff say they will leave picket lines to respond to all category one emergency calls, where there's a threat to life. 0ur health correspondent dominic hughes reports from manchester. ambulances are still responding to life—threatening emergencies. but the picket lines outside ambulance stations across wales and almost all of england tell their own story. i always wanted to be a paramedic from being a child and i wanted to help people. for those like sam, a paramedic in manchester with

russia's ministry of defence has acknowledged that 63 of its soldiers were killed.st pictures we've received of the aftermath of the attack, which destroyed a former vocational school in the donetsk region. russian officials say the soldiers had been temporarily deployed there. this is what a russian ministry of defence spokesman had to say a short while ago: translation: the kyiv regime tar: eted translation: the kyiv regime tarueted a translation: the kyiv regime targeted a temporary _ translation: the kyiv regime | targeted a temporary deployment point used by one of the units of the russian armed forces unit in makiivka in the donetsk republic with six himars rockets. russian edifice done shot down two of the rockets. as a result of the impact of four rockets with high explosive warheads, 63 russian servicemen were killed. ., warheads, 63 russian servicemen were killed. . , ., warheads, 63 russian servicemen were killed. . , . ,, ., , killed. that is what the russians are sa in: killed. that is what the russians are saying officially _ killed. that is what the r

we start with the conflict in ukraine and russia�*s defence ministry say fighting continues in soledartown is seen as strategically significant as it could be used by russian forces as a place from which to launch a fresh assault on the city of bakhmut which has been the scene of fierce fighting for weeks. james waterhouse has this report.

he has very vehemently criticised the russian ministry of defence and the generals, saying that theyhe war. the wagner group had been operationalfor some the wagner group had been operational for some years in syria, libya, in the central african republic. they have been kind of semi—covert arm of russian foreign policy, but now they are much more out in the open. this gain for them in donbas is very important. 0ne in donbas is very important. one thing that has happened and has also been announced today is that the general who used to be in charge of russian forces in syria is still there, but another general has been put on top of him. he was one of the people behind the initial invasion which, as you will recall, did not go very well. so it could well be that the different messages you are hearing from the wagner group and the russian mod about soledar and these movements of personnel show that there is some politicking going on inside moscow about who should be setting the agenda, and by putting this new general, new old general in, putin was saying, i am in charge, don't anybody

capture of soledar became possible due to the constant "destruction of the enemy," says russia's defence ministryy ground attack, aircraft, missiles, and artillery." but ukraine is saying... "fighting continues in soledar. "our troops are holding defence against the enemy." ukraine has resisted russia's attack here for months. the price is getting heavier. translation: we will never give up. - this is our soledar, our city, and we will not give it to anyone. ukraine is ours. as soon as we see the russian soldiers, we will hit them. the kremlin has not had anything to cheer about for the last six months since it last captured a major location. soledar would change that, but it's also why kyiv is hinting at a possible retreat, and that is because the last time a city fell, russia made minimal gains and ukraine retook swathes of territory elsewhere. it's also why soledar is unlikely to alter the course of this war. we were in the nearby city of bakhmut last weekend, an urban battlefield that could not have felt further from the politics of control. ukraine is trying to portray its own momentum. tran

capture of soledar became possible due to the constant destruction of the enemy," says russia's defence ministryy ground attack, aircraft, missiles, and artillery." but ukraine is saying... "fighting continues in soledar, our troops are holding defence against the enemy." ukraine has resisted russia's attack here for months. the price is getting heavier. translation: we will never give up. this is our soledar, our city, and we will not give it to anyone. ukraine is ours. as soon as we see the russian soldiers we will hit them. the kremlin has not had anything to cheer about for the last six months since it last captured a major location. soledar would change that but it's also why kyiv is hinting at a possible retreat, and that is because the last time a city fell russia made minimal gains and ukraine retook swathes of territory elsewhere. it's also why soledar is unlikely to alter the course of this war. we were in the nearby city of bakhmut last weekend, an urban battlefield that could not have felt further from the politics of control. ukraine is trying to portray its own momentum. translatio

the iranian defence ministry says it has foiled an unsuccessful drone attack on a military facility ined and posted online by a local journalist appears to show the explosion at the facility. according to local media, three drones were involved and only minor damage was caused to the roof of the building. our news reporter azadeh moshiri told me more about what's being said within iran. iranian state media did release footage of the explosion, but they also had a broadcast correspondent tour the facility, and show that everything was going on, workers were still working, and that there was essentially nothing to see here. they said that while the drones did try to attack and really damage this facility, thanks to their defence capabilities, they were able to ensure there was only minimal damage. of course, the bbc has not been able to verify that, and when you look at the footage it is clear something really serious happened there, but what the foreign minister has said was that this was a cowardly attack, and that iran was going to continue with its peaceful nuclear programme. now, th

to the conflict in ukraine now, and russia's defence ministry says fighting is continuing in soledar claims by the head of the russian mercenary group, wagner, that his forces had taken the town. ukraine's president zelensky said in a video address in the past hour that the battle was ongoing. distant artillery fire. the situation in soledar depends on who you ask. it's under control as of this morning, according to this ukrainian commander. "they will never break us", says his injured comrade. "we are winning". but if you ask these two, "wagner are clearing the city," they say. russian, yes, but not from the regular army. they're from a private military group called wagner, a network of mercenaries who do a lot of russia's fighting. its boss, yevgeny prigozhin, has recently recruited convicts from russian jails, and they've been spearheading the attack on soledar, claiming to now be in full control. we chat to one ukrainian soldier on the front to see if that's the case. don't believe russian propaganda. it's not true. bakhmut and soledar have ukrainian control. kyiv has described t

to the conflict in ukraine now, and russia's defence ministry says fighting is continuing in soledarte earlier claims by the head of the russian mercenary group, wagner, that his forces had taken the town. ukraine's president zelensky said in a video address in the past hour that the battle was ongoing. the town is seen as strategically significant as it could be used by russian forces as a place from which to launch a fresh assault on the city of bakhmut, which has been the scene of fierce fighting for weeks. the spokesperson for ukraine's eastern military command says the intensity of battles there can be compared to bloody trench warfare in world war ii. our ukraine correspondentjames waterhouse has this report. distant artillery fire the ukrainian view of the russian charge on soledar. —— the situation depends on who you ask. it's under control as of this morning, according to this ukrainian commander. they will never break us, says he injured comrade, we are winning. but if you ask these two, wagner clearing the city, they say, russian, yes, but not from the regular army. they a

russia's defence ministry say fighting continues in soledar in eastern ukraine, despite earlier claimse head of the russian mersenary group, wagner, that his forces had taken the town. the town is seen as strategically significant, as it could be used by russian forces as a place from which to launch a fresh assault on the city of bakhmut, which has been the scene of fierce fighting for weeks. james waterhouse has this report. distant artillery fire the situation in soledar depends on who you ask. it's under control as of this morning according to this ukrainian commander. "they will never break us," says his injured comrade. "we are winning." but if you ask these two, "wagner are clearing the city," they say. russian, yes, but not from the regular army. they're from a private military group called wagner, a network of mercenaries who do a lot of russia's fighting. its boss, yevgeny prigozhin, has recently recruited convicts from russianjails, and they've been spearheading the attack on soledar, claiming to now be in full control. we chat to one ukrainian soldier on the front to see if

we start with the conflict in ukraine and russia's defence ministry say fighting continues in soledar in eastern ukraine, despite earlier claims by the head of the russian mercenary group, wagner, that his forces had taken the town. the town is seen as strategically significant as it could be used by russian forces as a place from which to launch a fresh assault on the city of bakhmut which has been the scene of fierce fighting for weeks. james waterhouse has this report. distant artillery fire the situation in soledar depends on who you ask. it's under control as of this morning according to this ukrainian commander. "they will never break us," says his injured comrade. "we are winning." but if you ask these two, "wagner are clearing the city," they say. russian, yes, but not from the regular army. they're from a private military group called wagner, a network of mercenaries who do a lot of russia's fighting. its boss, yevgeny prigozhin, has recently recruited convicts from russianjails, and they've been spearheading the attack on soledar, claiming to now be in full control. we chat

i think you mentioned this attack in donetsk and the russian defence ministry has confirmed that 63 russianre killed after this ukrainian attack targeting this facility in the occupied town of makiivka in the eastern donetsk region. the russians are saying that this facility, a school being used by russian forces as a base was hit by himars missiles, those missiles that have been provided by the americans to ukraine. this attack happened on new year's eve. this number, 63, is a very different number from the one that has been released, given by the ukrainian authorities. the army here say that hundreds, 400 russian soldiers were killed, 300 wounded after this attack. obviously we cannot independently verify these numbers. but again, now the russians confirming that a facility that was being used as a russian base in donetsk has been attacked by ukraine and they have confirmed that 63 russian soldiers have been killed. is there a claim of responsibility for this from the ukrainian authorities? are they saying anything about this incident? the ukrainians have said, it is very interesting, tha

the iranian defence ministry says it has foiled an "unsuccessful" drone attack on a military facilityis footage filmed and posted online by a localjournalist appears to show the explosion at the facility. according to local media, three drones were involved and only minor damage was caused to the roof of the building. police in the north east of england have named a 15—year—old girl who was stabbed in the town of hexham as holly newton. a 16—year—old boy was also injured in the attack and is still in hospital in a stable condition. another boy, aged 16, has been charged with murder, attempted murder and possession of an offensive weapon. police say the three teenagers knew each other. the former nato general who'll be the next czech president has described the election outcome as a victory for the values of truth, dignity, respect and humility. in a speech to cheering supporters, petr pavel said it was time to return those values to politics. azadeh moshiri reports. thunderous applause and chants of "pavel to the castle!" they echo the chants for the czech republic's very first presid

the defence ministry in moscow said the capture of soledar would allow russian troops to cut off ukrainianakhmut, which they have been attacking for months. russia could also launch an assault on the key city of kramatorsk. here's our correspondent in kyiv — james waterhouse — on the significance of capturing soledar to russia. after three days of contradictions, frankly, it seems russia has finally settled on the claim of having taken the region soldear, finally. it is described as an important step in it's, until now, faltering campaign. the step we are talking about has almost been reduced to rubble. this is a small salt—mining town, with barely any buildings left standing. there is more at play here. the military gains for russia are still up for question. but the kremlin has had very little to cheer about for the last six months. the last time it took any key locations was injuly, around the cities of lysychansk in sievierodonetsk. i remember, but what is interesting is what followed. ultimately, russia would take those cities, but ukraine would launch sizeable counter offensives in t

the iranian defence ministry says it has foiled an unsuccessful drone attack on a military facility in posted online by a localjournalist appears to show the explosion at the facility. according to local media, three drones were involved, and only minor damage was caused to the roof of the building. our news reporter azadeh moshiri joins us now. what can you tell us about this? ~ , ., ., this? well, you said the word minor damage _ this? well, you said the word minor damage and _ this? well, you said the word minor damage and that - this? well, you said the word minor damage and that is - minor damage and that is certainly what the iranians are trying to project here. iranian state media did produce footage of the explosion but they also had a correspondence to the facility and show that everything was going on, workers were still working, and there was essentially nothing to see here. they said that while the drones did it try to attack and really damage this facility, thanks to their defence capabilities they were able to ensure there was only minimal damage. the bbc has not been abl

initially they referred to the official language used by the defence ministry, by the russian militarytalking points and really expanding on them and making sure that the russian domestic audience is thinking what the kremlin wants it to think. . . , thinking what the kremlin wants it to think. ., . , ., ~ , to think. francis, thank you very much, francis _ to think. francis, thank you very much, francis scarr, _ to think. francis, thank you very much, francis scarr, from - to think. francis, thank you very much, francis scarr, from bbc l much, francis scarr, from bbc monitoring. we can now go to the ukrainian capital, our correspondentjames capital, our correspondent james waterhouse is capital, our correspondentjames waterhouse is there. before we talk about tanks and the other equipment president zelensky is calling for, tell us about the missiles aimed at various locations around ukraine this morning, including in kyiv. yes, usually tend to measure the seriousness of these widespread missile strikes by the length of time we spend underground. we have been here for a few hours. it i

the defence ministry in moscow said this would allow russian troops to cut off ukrainian forces in bakhmuttest from our correspondent in kyiv, james waterhouse. what do we think is actually happening? it what do we think is actually happening?— what do we think is actually haueninu? , ., happening? it could well be that russia ultimately _ happening? it could well be that russia ultimately takes - happening? it could well be that russia ultimately takes control i happening? it could well be that | russia ultimately takes control of the town of soledar, but the benefits for it in doing so are questionable. the human cost of its questionable. the human cost of its quest is not. this is somewhere where we had seen some of the bloodiest fighting, but on wednesday we had a claim from a mercenary group which has been spearheading russia�*s attack on the town, they claim wednesday that it controlled soledar. today we have a claim from the kremlin that it that now controls it to its regular army, highlighting a growing division in moscow. we have spoken to ukraine�*s military in the east and it ha

the iranian defence ministry says it has foiled an "unsuccessful" drone attack on a military facility online by a localjournalist appears to show the explosion at the facility. according to local media, three drones were involved and only minor damage was caused to the roof of the building. staff who have lost theirjobs due to the collapse of british regional airline flybe should apply for roles with easyjet and ryanair, the two budget operators said. flybe went into administration on saturday, putting 277 people out of work. the airline has cancelled all planned flights to and from the uk, affecting around 75,000 passengers in total. our business correspondent noor nanji is with me now. it all happened in a bit of a rush, it seems. it it all happened in a bit of a rush, it seems. ., , ., , it seems. it did, and it is a very tou:h it seems. it did, and it is a very tough time _ it seems. it did, and it is a very tough time for _ it seems. it did, and it is a very tough time for flybe _ it seems. it did, and it is a very tough time for flybe staff, - it seems. it did, and it is a very

the uk ministry of defence says both countries "are likely concerned" that the tunnels in the mines "be used for infiltration behind their lines." we've been hearing from a photojournalist who's been documenting the fighting in the area. it's nonstop, the shelling is relentless. even when you're standing on an overlook watching it, it's plumes of smoke and sparks of incoming shells landing — it really is a very hellish scene, just looking at it from a distance. i can't even imagine what it's like being on the ground in there, and the actual city itself. this all comes as the european union and the nato defensive alliance sign an agreement to strengthen their strategic partnership — a move largely fuelled by the war in ukraine. here's the nato secretary general. you should not underestimate russia. they are mobilising more troops, they are working hard to acquire more equipment, more ammunition, and they have shown willingness to actually suffer but continue the war, and there is no indication that president putin has changed the overall aim of his brutal war against ukraine, so we nee

this morning the british defence ministry said russian troops and mercenaries had probably taken controlrussian forces in the region and many areas like bakhmut have been destroyed. and the president of the european commission said the eu will continue to support ukraine and extend sanctions against russia and its allies.— russia and its allies. thank you for that. the time _ russia and its allies. thank you for that. the time is _ russia and its allies. thank you for that. the time is 17 _ russia and its allies. thank you for that. the time is 17 minutes i russia and its allies. thank you for that. the time is 17 minutes past i that. the time is 17 minutes past one. our top story this lunchtime... the government is to spell out plans to force some unions to provide a minimum level of cover, during strikes — just as teachers are now striking in scotland. and coming up: europe is among the regions in the world hardest hit by severe temperature changes, caused by climate change last year. coming up on the bbc news channel, the first women's finalissima at wembley stadium has sold out. the