Ukraine's biggest energy provider is living in permanent crisis mode because of Russian attacks on the grid, its chief executive has told the BBC.

Most of Ukraine is suffering from lengthy power cuts as temperatures drop and Maxim Timchenko, whose company DTEK provides power for 5.6 million Ukrainians, says the intensity of strikes has been so frequent "we just don't have time to recover".

President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday that Russia knew the winter cold could become one of its most dangerous weapons.

"Every night Ukrainian parents hold their children in basements and shelters hoping our air defence will hold," he told the Dutch parliament.

As the fourth anniversary of Russia's full scale invasion approaches, Maxim Timchenko says Russia has repeatedly targeted DTEK's energy grid with "waves of drones, cruise and ballistic missiles" and his company has found it difficult to cope.

Tens of thousands of people in the southern city of Odesa have been without electricity for three days this week, following a co-ordinated Russian attack.

"Life has been difficult, but people are very supportive of each other," says Yana, who is among those lucky enough still to have power. She has invited friends to her home to charge their phones.

Power outages also cut off heat and water supplies and Yana says those still connected to the grid have offered strangers the chance to wash or take a shower.

Across Ukraine electricity is being rationed – with supplies turned on for a few hours each day.

Many Ukrainians rely on power banks and generators as a back-up, and the sound of generators in the capital is now more constant than the air raid warnings.

Kyiv resident Tetiana says the first thing she does in the morning is to check her phone to find out the daily schedule for when her power will be switched on. Like many she has invested in power banks to make life more bearable:

"You need to remember when you leave home to leave the powerbanks on so that you have them charged when you get back home."

About 50% of Ukraine's energy is currently supplied by three large nuclear power plants in central and western Ukraine. But the network that transfers that power has been severely damaged.

DTEK runs about 10 power stations, most of them fuelled by coal.

One was recently targeted by five 5 ballistic missiles and Mr Timchenko said some of their power plants and sub stations had been attacked "every three or four days".

"I don't remember a single day when I had no reports about some damage to our grid."

Finding spare parts to repair damaged equipment has become a significant challenge.

The energy provider used to be able to source equipment from within Ukraine, but now it has to scour the ret of Europe for replacement parts.

This year DTEK has had to spend $166m (£123m) on repairing its damaged thermal power plants and coal facilities.

"We will not give up," Maxim Timchenko insists: "We have a responsibility to millions of mothers to have power and heat".

DTEK's origins are in the Donbas in Eastern Ukraine where the fighting is fiercest and where power supplies have been disrupted the most.

Eight of its engineers have been killed doing their job.

"Every day they risk their lives to keep power in this area," Mr Timchenko said.

Additional reporting by Anastasia Levchenko and Kyla Herrmannsen.

A couple killed in the Bondi Beach shooting tried to stop one of the alleged attackers by grabbing his gun, dramatic dashcam footage shows.

Boris Gurman, 69, and his wife Sofia, 61, courageously stepped in to try and protect others before being shot themselves, their family said in a statement.

Video of the incident shows Mr Gurman, who was retired, wrestling with one of the alleged gunmen and taking the weapon off him, before they both fall onto the road.

Mr Gurman then gets up and appears to hit the suspected attacker with the gun. The attacker is then thought to have got another gun which he used to kill them.

"While nothing can lessen the pain of losing Boris and Sofia, we feel an overwhelming sense of pride in their bravery and selflessness," the family said.

"This encapsulates who Boris and Sofia were - people who instinctively and selflessly tried to help others."

The Gurman couple, who were Jewish, were the first two people killed in Sunday's attack, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.

At least 15 people have been confirmed dead in the shooting, which happened during an event to mark the first day of Hanukkah.

In their statement, the family said the couple had been married for 34 years.

"We are heartbroken by the sudden and senseless loss of our beloved Boris and Sofia Gurman.

"Boris was a retired mechanic, known for his generosity, quiet strength and willingness to lend a hand to anyone in need.

"Sofia worked at Australia Post and was deeply loved by her colleagues and community.

"Bondi locals, together they lived honest, hardworking lives and treated everyone they met with kindness, warmth and respect. Boris and Sofia were devoted to their family and to each other. They were the heart of our family, and their absence has left an immeasurable void."

Witnesses have described Mr Gurman as a "hero".

The woman who owns the dashcam footage told Reuters that Mr Gurman "did not run away - instead, he charged straight toward the danger, using all his strength trying to wrestle away the gun and fighting to the death".

"I can see from my camera that the elderly man was ultimately shot and collapsed. That moment broke my heart," she said.

Another person who said they witnessed the incident told 9News: "He was a hero. He tried, he tried. We need to let his family know.

"Everyone needs to know what he tried, because it was right in the beginning. And he put himself in that face of danger. There were bullets flying already, and he put his self in the face of danger."

Police have described the attack as a terrorist incident targeting the Jewish community.

The other victims killed include a 10-year-old girl, a British-born rabbi, a retired police officer, and a Holocaust survivor.

The ages of the victims range from 10 to 87.

A further 22 people remain in hospital, nine of whom are in a critical condition.

Another bystander named Ahmed al Ahmed, 43, was also hailed a "hero" after he wrestled a gun from one of the attackers. He was shot multiple times and has since undergone surgery for his wounds.

Earlier this week, his father told BBC Arabic his son "saw the victims, the blood, women and children lying on the street, and then acted".

"Ahmed was driven by his sentiment, conscience and humanity," he said.

One of the two men suspected of carrying out a mass shooting at Bondi Beach was originally from southern India but had "limited contact" with his family there, police sources have said.

Sajid Akram, who died at the scene in Sydney on Sunday, was originally from the city of Hyderabad, a police official from the Indian state of Telangana said.

He had travelled to India just six times since moving to Australia in 1998 and his family "expressed no knowledge of his radical mindset or activities," the official added.

Sajid, 50, and his 24-year-old son Naveed are suspected of killing 15 people and injuring dozens more at an event celebrating the Jewish festival of Hanukkah on Sunday.

Hyderabad, where Sajid Akram's family is based, is the capital of Telangana state in southern India.

The Telangana police official told BBC Telugu Sajid had "visited India on six occasions after migrating to Australia, primarily for family-related reasons such as property matters and visits to his elderly parents".

"It is understood that he did not travel to India even at the time of his father's demise," the official said.

"The factors that led to the radicalisation of Sajid Akram and his son, Naveed appear to have no connection with India or any local influence in Telangana."

The official also said Sajid Akram had no criminal record in India, he had completed a degree and had moved to Australia in search of employment before marrying a woman "of European origin".

Sajid Akram was an Indian passport holder, but his children were born in Australia and are Australian citizens, the official added.

Police are currently investigating why the father and son travelled to the Philippines in the weeks leading up to the attack. They arrived on 1 November and left on 28 November, the country's immigration bureau confirmed to the BBC.

Sajid travelled using an Indian passport, while his son used Australian identification, the authorities said.

Citing security sources, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) said that the pair travelled to the island nation to receive "military-style training", but officials have not been able to confirm those reports.

Philippines foreign affairs minister Maria Theresa Lazaro and her Australian counterpart, Penny Wong, have agreed to "keep each other closely informed" of any developments related to the investigation into the Bondi Beach shooting, according to a text message Lazaro sent to the media.

It is understood that Naveed Akram was previously investigated over ties to a Sydney-based IS terrorism cell, ABC reported.

IS is an extremist Islamist militant group that has claimed responsibility for a number of terrorist attacks across Europe and America, including the 2015 Paris attacks.

The Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Naveed Akram first came to the attention of the authorities in 2019 "on the basis of being associated with others".

However, at the time, an "assessment was made that there was no indication of any ongoing threat or threat of him engaging in violence".

The European Union has watered down its plans to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles by 2035.

Current rules state that new vehicles sold from that date should be "zero emission", but carmakers, particularly in Germany, have lobbied heavily for concessions.

Under the European Commission's new plan, 90% of new cars sold from 2035 would have to be zero-emission, rather than 100%.

According to the European carmakers association, ACEA, market demand for electric cars is currently too low, and without a change to the rules, manufacturers would risk "multi-billion euro" penalties.

The remaining 10% could be made up of conventional petrol or diesel cars, along with hybrids.

Carmakers will be expected to compensate for the extra emissions created by these vehicles by using biofuels and so-called e-fuels, which are synthesised from captured carbon dioxide.

They will also be expected to use low-carbon steel made in the European Union in the vehicles they produce.

Opponents of the move have warned that it risks undermining the transition towards electric vehicles and leaving Europe exposed in the face of foreign competition.

The green transport group T&E has warned that the UK should not follow the EU's lead by weakening its own plans to phase out the sale of conventional cars under the Zero Emission Vehicles Mandate.

"The UK must stand firm. Our ZEV mandate is already driving jobs, investment and innovation into the UK. As major exporters we cannot compete unless we innovate, and global markets are going electric fast", said T&E UK's director Anna Krajinska.

US President Donald Trump has repeated his criticism of Rob Reiner - after his earlier remarks about the killed Hollywood director, a longtime Trump critic, sparked widespread condemnation.

The US president told reporters the director was "very bad for our country", having earlier written on Truth Social that Reiner's death was linked to "Trump derangement syndrome" - a term he often uses to describe his critics.

Reiner and his wife Michele Singer Reiner were found dead at their Los Angeles home on Sunday, and police have arrested their son Nick on suspicion of murder.

They have not suggested any motive in the case, or any evidence that Reiner's politics and criticism of Trump played any role.

In his social media post, which called the couple's deaths "very sad", Trump criticised Reiner, saying: "He was known to have driven people CRAZY by his raging obsession of President Donald J. Trump."

Those comments were widely criticised, including by prominent Republicans.

Kentucky representative Thomas Massie, a Republican who has clashed with Trump since the president returned to the White House in January, wrote on X: "Regardless of how you felt about Rob Reiner, this is inappropriate and disrespectful discourse about a man who was just brutally murdered."

He added: "I guess my elected GOP colleagues, the VP, and White House staff will just ignore it because they're afraid? I challenge anyone to defend it."

Georgia Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene, who was once a staunch supporter of Trump before recently becoming a frequent critic, said that "this is a family tragedy, not about politics or political enemies" and that the murders should be "met with empathy".

Multiple other senior members of Trump's party appeared to distance themselves from the remarks. Senator John Kennedy, a Republican representing Louisiana, said he thought Trump should not have made the comments.

"I think a wise man once said nothing. Why? Because he was a wise man," Kennedy said. "I think President Trump should have said nothing. I think when the president says these sorts of things, it detracts from his policy achievements."

Reiner was a lifelong Democrat and prominent liberal activist, and frequently spoke out against Trump.

In 2017, for example, he called Trump "mentally unfit" for office. And as recently as October, Reiner said he believed Trump was ushering in an age of "full-on autocracy" in the US.

Hours after his social media post, Trump repeated his thoughts on Reiner in comments given in the Oval Office to reporters, describing the director as a "deranged person" who was partly "behind" previous claims of collusion between Russia and Trump's team.

"I was not a fan of Rob Reiner at all, in any way, shape or form," he said.

Trump has in the past criticised political foes after their death.

Following the death of Arizona Senator John McCain - with whom he clashed regularly - in 2019, for example, Trump said he "was never a fan" and "never will be".

In another incident the same year, Trump quipped that the late Democratic lawmaker John Dingell could be "looking up" at him from the grave, a comment which was widely interpreted as a suggestion that Dingell was in hell.

In a statement following the remarks about Dingell, the White House said that the president was "just riffing".

Reiner, who was 78, was known for directing several iconic films in a variety of genres, including This is Spinal Tap, Stand By Me, Misery and A Few Good Men.

He married Michele, an actress, photographer and producer, in 1989, later recalling that they met during the making of one of his best-known films, When Harry Met Sally. The couple had three children together - including Nick, 32.

Michele, 68, owned the Reiner Light photography agency and production house.

Thousands of dinosaur footprints dating back 210 million years have been found in a national park in northern Italy.

The footprints - some of which are up to 40cm (15in) in diameter - are aligned in parallel rows, and many show clear traces of toes and claws.

It is thought the dinosaurs were prosauropods - herbivores with long necks, small heads and sharp claws.

"I never would have imagined I'd come across such a spectacular discovery in the region where I live," said Milan-based paleontologist Cristiano Dal Sasso.

Last September a photographer spotted the footprints stretching hundreds of metres on a vertical mountain wall in the Stelvio national park, north-east of Milan.

In the Triassic period - between about 250 and 201 million years ago - the wall was a tidal flat, which later became part of the Alpine chain.

"This place was full of dinosaurs; it's an immense scientific treasure," Mr Dal Sasso said.

The herds moved in harmony, he added, "and there are also traces of more complex behaviours, like groups of animals gathering in a circle, perhaps for the purposes of defence."

The prosauropods, which could be up to 10m (33ft) long, walked on two legs but in some cases handprints were found in front of footprints, indicating that they probably stopped and rested their forelimbs on the ground.

Elio Della Ferrera, the photographer who discovered the site, said he hoped the discovery would "spark reflection in all of us, highlighting how little we know about the places we live in: our home, our planet."

According to a press release from the Italian culture ministry, the area is remote and not accessible by paths, so drones and remote sensing technology will be employed instead.

The Stelvio national park is located in the Fraele valley by Italy's border with Switzerland, near where the Winter Olympics will take place next year.

"It's as if history itself wanted to pay homage to the greatest global sporting event, combining past and present in a symbolic passing of the baton between nature and sport," said the Italian Ministry of Culture.

Australia's Prime Minister has visited Bondi hero Ahmed al Ahmed in hospital, after the bystander tried to disarm one of the gunmen in the nation's deadliest gun attack since 1996.

"Your heart is strong", PM Anthony Albanese told the father-of-two, later calling him "the best of our country".

The fruit shop owner, who was born and raised in Syria, was shot several times in the shoulder after tackling one of the alleged gunmen. Albanese said Mr Ahmed would "undergo further surgery" on Wednesday.

At least 15 people have been confirmed dead after Sunday's attack in Sydney during an event to mark the first night of Hanukkah.

Police have declared the attack as a terrorist incident targeting the Jewish community.

"He was trying to get a cup of coffee and found himself at a moment where people were being shot in front of him," Albanese said after the bedside visit.

"He decided to take action, and his bravery is an inspiration for all Australians. He is a very humble man."

"At a moment where we have seen evil perpetrated, he shines out as an example of the strength of humanity," the prime minister added.

"We are a brave country. Ahmed al Ahmed represents the best of our country."

He later added: "Ahmed, you are an Australian hero."

There has been nationwide support for the 43-year-old including from US President Donald Trump who commended his courage, and a US billionaire who donated $99,999 (US$ 65,000; £49,000) to Mr Ahmed, calling him a "brave hero".

In the footage, Mr Ahmed is seen hiding behind a parked car before he leaps out.

He runs at the alleged gunman and seizes his weapon, before turning the gun round on him. The suspected attacker then begins to retreat.

Mr Ahmed then lowers the weapon and raises one hand in the air, appearing to show police he was not one of the attackers.

Mr Ahmed's father previously told the BBC that his son was driven to act by his "sentiment, conscience and humanity".

He "saw the victims, the blood, women and children lying on the street, and then acted".

Pop star Lizzo is celebrating a legal victory after a judge dismissed allegations of fat-shaming from a 2023 lawsuit filed by three of her former dancers.

The singer, whose hits include body positive anthems such as Good As Hell and Juice, marked the development with a video statement posted to her Instagram and TikTok feeds.

"There was no evidence that I fired them because they gained weight," Lizzo said. "They were fired for taking a private recording of me without my consent and sending it off to ex-employees."

While those specific allegations have been dropped, the case against Lizzo and her production company will continue, over claims that three dancers were subject to sexual harassment.

Lizzo's team has called the lawsuit a "fabricated sob story," but a Los Angeles judge ruled that the case could move forward last year.

Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams and Noelle Rodriguez say they were pressured into attending sex shows and interacting with nude performers between 2021 and 2023.

The claims against Lizzo - whose real name is Melissa Viviane Jefferson - include that she "pressured Ms Davis to touch the breasts" of a dancer in a nightclub in Amsterdam.

Although she initially resisted, Ms Davis eventually acquiesced, "fearing it may harm her future on the team" if she didn't do so, according to court documents.

Other incidents cited in the case include the claim that dancers were asked to eat fruit from the naked bodies of sex club workers.

Over the summer, Lizzo's lawyers appealed the decision to let those claims got to trial, arguing that group outings were part of the singer's creative process and thus should be shielded by First Amendment free speech protections.

In response, a lawyer for the dancers rejected that claim, saying it was not enough to say the sex shows had inspired Lizzo's own performances.

"Under that standard," wrote Ari Stiller, "Johnny Cash could shoot 'a man in Reno just to watch him die' and claim protection if he hoped it would inspire his performance".

Stiller urged the court to allow the claims to proceed to trial.

Lizzo's attorney, Melissa Glass, claimed that Stiller's brief "regurgitates the false accusations from their [original] complaint".

"As was true two years ago, the dancers cannot find a single person to corroborate their meritless claims," she Glass said in a statement to Billboard magazine.

"In contrast, 18 witnesses who worked with Lizzo on the Special tour submitted sworn statements refuting the claims made by Davis, Williams and Rodriguez. We look forward to the Court of Appeals ruling on this matter."

Lizzo has adamantly denied the allegations against her.

"I am very open with my sexuality and expressing myself but I cannot accept or allow people to use that openness to make me out to be something I am not," she said when the claims first emerged in 2023.

In her latest statement, the singer added that the fat-shaming allegations had "haunted" her for the last two years, adding that it had been "devastating to suffer through this in silence".

She also stressed that she has "only encouraged and supported people with bigger bodies and shared my platform with them."

Thanking her lawyers, Lizzo said she intended to keep fighting the lawsuit.

"I am not settling," she said. "I will be fighting every single claim until the truth is out.

The US military says it has carried out strikes on three boats it has accused of trafficking drugs in the Pacific Ocean, killing eight people.

The US Southern Command posted footage of the strikes on social media and said the vessels were "transiting along known narco-trafficking routes... and were engaged in narco-trafficking".

More than 20 vessels in the Pacific and the Caribbean have been targeted in recent months, killing at least 90 people, as part of President Donald Trump's escalating campaign against gangs he accuses of transporting drugs in the region.

Some experts say the strikes could violate laws governing armed conflict.

The first attack by the US - on 2 September - has drawn particular scrutiny as there was not one but two strikes, with survivors of the first killed in the second.

Several legal experts have told BBC Verify that the second strike on the alleged Venezuelan drug boat by the US military was probably illegal, and would likely be considered an extrajudicial killing under international law.

A former chief prosecutor at the International Criminal Court told the BBC that the US military campaign more generally fell into the category of a planned, systematic attack against civilians during peacetime.

In response, the White House said it had acted in line with the laws of armed conflict to protect the US from cartels "trying to bring poison to our shores... destroying American lives".

The Trump administration has accused Venezuela of funnelling narcotics into the US and has intensified its efforts to isolate President Nicolas Maduro in recent months.

Thousands of troops and the USS Gerald Ford have been positioned within striking distance of Venezuela.

On 10 December, US forces seized an oil tanker off the Venezuelan coast, which it claimed was being used to transport sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran in an "illicit oil shipping network supporting foreign terrorist organisations".

Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil called the seizure "international piracy" and has claimed Trump wants Venezuela's energy resources.

The South American nation - home to some of the world's largest proven oil reserves - also accuses Washington of seeking to steal its resources.

The New South Wales (NSW) premier has strongly rejected criticism of the police response to the attack on a Jewish festival at Bondi Beach, saying officers acted with "bravery and integrity".

Some witnesses have suggested police were too slow to disarm the two gunmen, who killed 15 people and injured dozens at an event celebrating Hanukkah at Australia's best known beach.

"There are two officers in critical care... at the moment," Chris Minns said after sustained questioning from reporters. "They weren't shot in the back as they were running away. They were shot in the front."

There have also been questions about whether adequate security was provided before the shooting took place.

"They shoot, shoot, change magazine and just shoot," one witness, Shmulik Scuri, told reporters the day of the assault, adding he thought officers "froze".

Asked about these criticisms, Minns said the "rush to conclusions" about the police operation was "disrespectful".

"They didn't take a backward step. They engaged the gunmen on the footbridge with handguns. The offenders had long range rifles," Minns said.

"If there's any suggestion that NSW Police didn't live up to their responsibilities to the people of this state, it should be rejected because it's not consistent with the facts."

NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon avoided questions about how many officers had been deployed to police the event in advance. He told reporters police "regularly patrol that area as we did on that day" and that police presence was based "on the threat that exists at the time".

Australia's security agency has said the younger alleged gunman in the father-son duo, Naveed Akram, had come to their attention in 2019 due to his associations, but that there was nothing to suggest he was a risk of violence.

"Had there been intelligence that there was a particular threat at that location, or to that event, we may have had a different policing response," Commissioner Lanyon said.

NSW Police established Operation Shelter after the 7 October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel to investigate antisemitic hate crimes. As part of the operation, regular patrols are conducted of high-risk locations. The eastern suburbs of Sydney, including Bondi, which has a significant Jewish population, is a key focus.

Another taskforce, Strike Force Pearl, was set up later to investigate hate crimes in Sydney.

Police received reports of gunfire at a park in Bondi Beach at 18:47 (07:47 GMT) on Sunday. The gunmen carried out a shooting spree that lasted around ten minutes before police shot both men, killing one and critically injuring the other.

Dr Vincent Hurley, a former police officer who lectures on policing at Macquarie University, told the BBC it was "unrealistic" to expect police to be able to know how to react to every possible scenario.

"To respond to a mass shooting and mass killing event like that, there's no training that can be done."

He pointed out that police officers would have initially been reliant on calls to emergency operators "and everyone would have given them a different story".

"Then they have to fight through traffic at Bondi Beach which is a nightmare at the best of times."

At the scene, police would have been confronted with "absolute chaos" as thousands of people attempted to flee.

Individual officers would also have been faced with difficult choices such as whether to stop and render assistance to injured individuals or to go and look for the gunmen, decisions for which there is no protocol.

And even once the offenders had been identified, he says the risk of hurting bystanders in the crossfire would have complicated responses.

"There would be no way as a police officer, I would have drawn my firearm because all of the innocent individuals", he added. "It's not what you see on Netflix."

A rebel leader in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo says his fighters will withdraw from a key city at the request of the US.

Corneille Nangaa's statement came days after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the capture of Uvira by rebel forces violated a peace deal, and the US would "take action to ensure promises made to the President [Donald Trump] are kept".

Nangaa said that rebel forces would pull out of the city as a "trust-building measure".

The US accuses Rwanda of backing the rebels. Rwanda denies the allegation, but its President, Paul Kagame, signed a peace accord on 4 December with his DR Congo counterpart, Felix Tshisekedi, at a ceremony in Washington hosted by Trump.

The US president hailed the deal as "historic" and "a great day for Africa".

The rebels were not signatories to it - and have been taking part in a parallel peace process led by Qatar, a US ally that has strong ties with Rwanda.

Nangaa is the coordinator of the Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC), a coalition of rebel groups. It includes the M23, the most powerful force that European countries, along with the US, say is backed by Rwanda.

DR Congo's army is supported by troops from neighbouring Burundi.

The M23's capture of Uvira was a major blow to them, as the city is only 27km (17 miles) from Burundi's economic capital, Bujumbura, on the northern tip of Lake Tanganyika.

"AFC/M23 will unilaterally withdraw its forces from the city of Uvira as requested by the United States mediation," Nangaa said in a statement, adding that this was being done to give the Qatar-brokered peace process the "maximum chance to succeed".

He did not indicate when the withdrawal would take place, but called for the deployment of a "neutral force" to monitor a ceasefire and to prevent DR Congo's army from regaining control of territory it had lost.

About 200,000 people have fled their homes in eastern DR Congo since the latest round of fighting started early this month, the UN says.

At least 74 people, mostly civilians, had been killed, and 83 others had been admitted to hospital with wounds, it added.

Eastern DR Congo has been wracked by conflict for more than 30 years, with numerous peace initiatives aimed at ending the fighting having failed.

The Trump administration hopes that its peace initiative will work and pave the way for US companies to boost their investments in the resource-rich region.

The US State Department said in 2023 that DR Congo had an estimated $25tn (£21.2tn) in mineral reserves.

This included cobalt, copper, lithium, manganese and tantalum - needed to make the electronic components used in computers, electric vehicles, mobile phones, wind turbines and military hardware.

The rebels began a major advance earlier this year when they captured Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, on the border with Rwanda.

At the time, South African troops were deployed to help DR Congo's army, but they were forced to withdraw after the M23 seized the city in January.

Shortly afterwards the rebels captured the next big city in eastern DR Congo, Bukavu, capital of South Kivu province.

The move on Uvira - the government's last major foothold in South Kivu - came after the rebels broke the defence lines of the DR Congo army, militias allied with it and Burundian troops.

The offensive started a few days before Kagame and Tshisekedi flew to Washington to ratify the agreement first hammered out in June.

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Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has been trying to cover up mass killings in the city of el-Fasher by burying and burning bodies, a research team from Yale University says.

The RSF had drawn international condemnation amid reports of executions and crimes against humanity when its fighters captured the city in October.

Now, analysis of satellite images by Yale's Humanitarian Research Lab (HRL) shows the RSF likely disposed of tens of thousands of bodies after seizing el-Fasher.

The RSF has not responded to the report, but its leader previously admitted his fighters had committed some violations in the city.

The HRL's report said the RSF "engaged in a systematic multi-week campaign to destroy evidence of its widespread mass killings" and "this pattern of body disposal and destruction is ongoing".

The paramilitary group has been fighting Sudan's regular army since April 2023, when a power struggle between the two parties erupted into a brutal civil war.

The United Nations (UN) has described the conflict as the world's worst humanitarian disaster.

After 18 months of besieging el-Fasher, the RSF captured the city - a major victory pushing the army out of its last foothold in the vast Darfur region.

The UN was among the many global voices accusing the RSF of massacring civilians as el-Fasher fell.

The HRL has been monitoring the situation in the city for months, and its latest report is part of efforts to understand the extent of the violence suffered by the city's residents.

Fresh analysis of satellite imagery found clusters in multiple locations changing in size in the weeks after el-Fasher fell, the HRL says, adding that this demonstrates continued efforts by the RSF to clean up evidence of massacres.

The images also show more than 80 clusters located outside of the city, which, the HRL says, shows that the RSF was killing people as they tried to flee.

Satellite evidence from November suggests limited civilian activity in the city since it was seized, the researchers say.

Following an international backlash, RSF leader Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo declared an investigation into what he called violations committed by his soldiers during the capture of el-Fasher.

However, the group continued to deny widespread allegations that killings in the city are ethnically motivated and follow a pattern of the Arab paramilitaries targeting non-Arab populations.

The latest HRL report follows warnings from aid agencies about the low number of civilians who managed to succesfully flee el-Fasher after the RSF seizure.

The UN estimates roughly 250,000 people were still trapped in the city, with less than half of that number thought to have arrived in external camps for displaced people.

The RSF has used the seizure of el-Fasher to consolidate its power in western Sudan, and has established a parallel government in Darfur's city of Nyala.

Sudan's army still controls most of the country, with fighting between the two groups rumbling on.

More than 13m people are believed to have been displaced since the war began in April 2023.

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A suspected New Year's Eve terror plot by an extremist group has been foiled by federal authorities in Los Angeles, officials say.

Four alleged members of the Turtle Island Liberation Front - an offshoot of a pro-Palestinian anti-government group - have been arrested on suspicion of planning a coordinated bombing attack in at least five locations across southern California, the FBI and LA law enforcement said on Monday.

The suspects were apprehended last week while traveling to the desert east of Los Angeles to test improvised explosive devices, officials said.

The FBI believes it has "disrupted the plot", but an investigation to identify other potential suspects is ongoing.

US Attorney General Pam Bondi said on X on Sunday that the agencies prevented "far-left" extremists from executing "a massive and horrific terror plot".

Audrey Illeene Carroll, 30; Zachary Aaron Page, 32; Dante Gaffield, 24; and Tina Lai, 41, face charges including conspiracy and possession of an unregistered destructive device, according to the complaint filed in the US District Court for the Central District of California.

On 12 December, the group travelled to the desert with "precursor chemicals" and were allegedly going to create bombs with their wares, officials said during a media conference on Monday.

A surveillance plane captured footage of their movements and the Los Angeles FBI SWAT team, along with the FBI, moved in and arrested the quartet without incident.

The bombing plot involved explosive devices being planted at locations that targeted two US companies described as logistic centres at midnight on New Year's Eve in the Los Angeles area.

The group also allegedly discussed attacking Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and vehicles with pipe bombs in January or February, according to the complaint said.

Carroll allegedly said: "That would take some of them out and scare the rest of them."

"The successful disruption of this plot is a powerful testament to the strength of our unified response," said LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell, adding that work through allied agencies "prevented a potential tragedy and reaffirmed our shared commitment to safeguarding our communities".

A son of film director Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner has been arrested and booked on suspicion of murder after the couple were found dead in their Los Angeles home.

The Los Angeles Police Department said on Monday that Nick Reiner, 32, had been arrested and that he was in custody with no bail.

The deceased couple's 28-year-old daughter, Romy, found her parents in their home with multiple stab wounds on Sunday, sources told the BBC's US partner CBS News.

Rob Reiner is known for directing several iconic films in a variety of genres, including When Harry Met Sally, This is Spinal Tap, Stand By Me, Misery and A Few Good Men.

Emergency services were called to provide medical aid at the Reiners' Brentwood, California, home at around 15:38 local time (23:38 GMT) on Sunday.

The Los Angeles Fire Department said two people - later identified as Rob Reiner, 78, and his wife Michele, 68 - were pronounced dead at the scene.

Police said Nick Reiner was arrested several hours later, at about 21:15 local time on Sunday. Investigators have not publicly outlined a motive and said the investigation remains ongoing.

Nick Reiner has spoken publicly about his struggles with addiction and homelessness. His experiences formed the basis of the semi-autobiographical film Being Charlie, which he made with his father in 2015.

The family's home is in Brentwood, a wealthy celebrity enclave full of large mansions, boutique shops and restaurants. On Monday morning, a security guard stood outside the home as media gathered outside the front gate.

Rob Reiner, the son of comedy great Carl Reiner, began his career in the 1960s and rose to fame playing Meathead in the TV sitcom All in The Family.

He cemented his success with the cult mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap in 1984, which he directed and starred in.

Reiner was married to Laverne & Shirley actress Penny Marshall from 1971 to 1981 and is the adoptive father to Marshall's daughter, actress Tracy Reiner.

He married Michele Reiner in 1989, who he said he met during the making of the romantic comedy-drama film When Harry Met Sally. The couple have three children together.

Michele Reiner was an actress, photographer and producer, and the founder of Reiner Light, a photography agency and production company.

Rob Reiner was also known for his outspoken political activism and support for Democratic candidates.

In a post calling their deaths "very sad", President Donald Trump criticised Reiner, saying that they "reportedly" died "due to the anger he caused others through his massive, unyielding, and incurable affliction" with "Trump Derangement Syndrome".

"He was known to have driven people CRAZY by his raging obsession of President Donald J. Trump," the president wrote.

It is not clear what reports the president was referring to, and while the investigation is being treated as a homicide, police have yet to comment on any possible motive.

The president and his allies often used the term Trump Derangement Syndrome in reference to those who are critical of him. Reiner was a vocal critic of Trump's.

Several Republicans criticised Trump over the post, including former ally Marjorie Taylor Greene, who said the deaths were a "family tragedy, not about politics or political enemies".

"Many families deal with a family member with drug addiction and mental health issues. It's incredibly difficult and should be met with empathy especially when it ends in murder," she said.

Trump's post was also met with anger by some of the Reiners' friends.

In a post on X, Maria Shriver, the former first lady of California and longtime friend of the Reiners, said the couple were "devoted parents".

"They deeply loved all their children and they never gave up trying to care for them," she said.

Sir Elton John, who made an appearance in this year's Spinal Tap sequel, said: "I am in disbelief at today's news of Rob and Michele.

"They were two of the most beautiful people I'd ever met and they deserved better."

Fellow actor John Cusack, who appeared in Reiner's 1985 film The Sure Thing, called him "a great man", while Elijah Wood, who starred in 1994's North, said he was "horrified" by the couple's deaths.