Dany Mitzman News Today

This week's show is all about the power of books. We visit a bookstore in Istanbul where a Russian and Ukrainian have teamed up to bring people together. Book bans have rattled schools in the US. We hear from a Moroccan bookseller who knows his books inside out and we dive into a poetry competition in the UK.

Ukrainian refugees tell their stories, Russian protesters know that it’s all or nothing, Poland's surprise fighter jet offer, and an Italian primary school where Ukrainian children have already started lessons. Also, a closer look at how Russia's war is impacting food security, climate pledges, bilateral alliances and the world of sport.

Freak weather conditions have made even worse the plight of Syrian refugees in Lebanon.

The ASGI association has sounded an alarm in Italy over new rules, which require those accessing all public offices to have a Green pass. This, they fear, could potentially compromise some migrants' potential to seek asylum.

On today’s programme: we throw caution - and the Inside Europe programme format - to the wind, as we catch up with some of our far-flung correspondents for a Christmas ring -round. Expect delicious food, spontaneous bursts of song and all round festive chaos! Plus Italian porticos and Berlin musicians... lots of them!

On today’s programme: we throw caution - and the Inside Europe programme format - to the wind, as we catch up with some of our far-flung correspondents for a Christmas ring -round. Expect delicious food, spontaneous bursts of song and all round festive chaos! Plus Italian porticos and Berlin musicians... lots of them!

Increasing numbers of migrants attempt to cross into France over the mountains, but this route can be dangerous. Refuges have been opened, and closed, as authorities and volunteers differ over how best to accommodate those who have arrived.

High up in the Italian Alps, more and more migrants attempt to take remote and dangerous snowy paths through the mountains to evade police detection and make it into France. Many stop for a day at the volunteer refuges in towns like Oulx before taking a bus up to the border at Claviere to begin the trek on foot in the dead of night.

If Valentina Petrillo is selected for Italy's squad in Tokyo this year, she will be the first trans woman Paralympian.

BBC News By Dany Mitzman image copyrightGetty Images image captionMilan is renowned for its place at the heart of the fashion industry but now the city wants to target pollution too Its all change for the trendy crowds along the canals of Milan, used to holding a glass of aperitivo in one hand and a cigarette in the other. Because a ban on smoking outdoors has just come into force in a range of public places. Smoking within a 10m (30ft) distance of other people is no longer permitted from Tuesd...