and coming up on bbc news: qualification at stake for britain at the olympics. we'll tell you why it matters for england and scotland later at hampden. good afternoon. the home secretary james cleverly is in rwanda signing a treaty this lunchtime on the controversial plan to send some asylum seekers there. downing street hopes it will remove legal obstacles to the scheme after the supreme court ruled last month that it's unlawful. the rwanda plan is aimed at deterring migrants coming to the uk on small boats. mr cleverly is the third home secretary to visit the country, but so far not a single migrant has actually been sent there. in a moment, we'll hear from our political editor chris mason, who's in rwanda with the home secretary, but first, this report from helen catt. the home secretary, touching down in rwanda this morning. it's where the government still hopes to send some people who arrive in the uk illegally to seek asylum. despite the supreme court ruling last month that the policy was unlawful. mr cleverly�*s trip to kigali is part of ministers�* plans to try to change that by getting fresh guarantees. we want to get the rwanda scheme up and running as soon as possible. unfortunately, it's been blocked in the courts up till now, but the treaty that we are about to sign will create a fundamentally stronger relationship with rwanda which answers the concerns of the supreme court about that scheme. the supreme courtjudged that asylum seekers sent to rwanda were at risk of being returned to a place where they were not safe. an agreement signed in rwanda by the then home secretary priti patel in april 2022 was not deemed to have sufficient assurances. mr cleverly is in kigali to upgrade the agreement to a full treaty which will be binding in international law. the bbc has been told the new deal could see british lawyers stationed in rwandan courts. rwanda has had a difficult past. the home secretary this morning visited a memorial centre for the 1994 genocide in which around 800,000 people were killed. the rwandan government is keen to say the country has changed and insists it's safe. the uk government hopes the new treaty will help persuade the uk justice system that that's the case. but opponents say the whole scheme is a distraction. they've now sent more home secretaries than they have asylum seekers to rwanda. he's got another cheque—book to try and continue to pursue a failing policy which is still unlikely to ever affect a few hundred people whilst over 1,000 people arrived on small boats over the last week because they're failing to tackle the criminal gangs. the government has already paid rwanda £140 million and says it intends to press on with the policy. it argues that the rwanda scheme is a key part of stopping the flow of small boats smuggling people across the channel. it also plans to introduce what it calls emergency legislation to parliament shortly, although there's still some debate about what exactly will be in it. helen catt, bbc news, westminster. 0ur political editor, chris mason, is in rwanda with the home secretary and a short time ago, he sent us this update. this is the rwandan foreign affairs ministry, and james cleverly, the home secretary, is in there. he's meeting rwanda's foreign minister to sign this treaty between the uk and rwanda to try and revive this idea of sending migrants here. the supreme court rejected it in london last month, saying the initial plan was unlawful. what this treaty is going to attempt to do is ensure that any migrants who are sent here cannot be sent either back to their home country or to another country. that was one of the principal concerns of the supreme court. we're yet to see the detail about precisely how it will ensure that that can happen. the government's not telling us how much this new plan is costing and crucially, we still don't know — will it actually work? will it mean the government can put migrants on planes here to rwanda pretty soon? there are plenty who are pretty sceptical. chris mason, our political editor. in the last hour, we've been getting reports of armed police being sent into the south wales town of aberfan. police say there has been a serious assault there and that schools have been locked down. well, we can get the latest on this. mairead smyth is following developments for us. 0ur correspondent hywel griffith has just arrived in aberfan and has the latest. , ,., . just arrived in aberfan and has the latest. , . , latest. yes, the police say they were called _ latest. yes, the police say they were called to _ latest. yes, the police say they were called to the _ latest. yes, the police say they were called to the street - latest. yes, the police say they were called to the street in - latest. yes, the police say they - were called to the street in aberfan just before 9.10 this morning after reports that a 29—year—old woman had been stabbed in one of the houses. police have cordoned off the area here, a very small area within the village. but they have also asked people not to come to this area. the local schools, people not to come to this area. the localschools, have people not to come to this area. the local schools, have you mentioned, have closed their doors unlocked down for now. they say a suspect left the area immediately afterwards and they are still searching. that's why armed police officers have been seenin why armed police officers have been seen in this area. there were also reports earlier today of a police helicopter. we understand the woman was taken to the university of wales hospital in cardiff. we are told that her injuries are not life—threatening, but the search for that suspect continues and therefore, the feeling here is rather tense, of course. the armed police are present, but it is only this small area of the village that has been cordoned off.— has been cordoned off. hywel griffith, has been cordoned off. hywel griffith. in — has been cordoned off. hywel griffith, in aberfan. _ in some more news breaking in the last few minutes. we are hearing that the british medical association has just announced a further set of junior doctor strikes in england this month and next month. 0ur health editor hugh pym is here with me now. ~ . u, health editor hugh pym is here with me now. ~ . ,, health editor hugh pym is here with me now. ~ . y., health editor hugh pym is here with me now. ~ . . me now. what can you tell us? well, ben, it me now. what can you tell us? well, ben. it seems _ me now. what can you tell us? well, ben, it seems that _ me now. what can you tell us? well, ben, it seems that talks _ me now. what can you tell us? well, ben, it seems that talks between - me now. what can you tell us? well, j ben, it seems that talks between the british medical association's junior doctors committee and the government failed to reach a resolution in the eyes of the bma. they started talking in october, having staged a series of strikes going back to march in england. the bma say they are planning further strikes now in december and january, the toughest time of the year for the nhs, with all the normal pressures on hospitals and across the system. there was an offer made of 3% over and above the average 9% that has already been awarded to junior doctors in england. the bma say that that wasn't to be credible offer they wanted to try to make up for lost pay going back many years because of inflation. they say it was unevenly spread and therefore wasn't acceptable. we will have to wait and see what the government has to say. this of course comes soon after the consultants, the more senior doctors, announced that they would put a potential agreement to their members. they have called off their members. they have called off the passivity of strikes for the next couple of months. but this is a major new development for the nhs and doctors and patients this winter in england. and doctors and patients this winter in encland. , ., ., in england. hugh pym, our health ednon the number of pupils regularly skipping meals due to poverty in the uk is one of the highest in western europe, according to a new report. the study looks at the education and welfare of 15—year—olds around the world and shows that in this country, nearly 11% are missing meals at least once a week. 0ur education correspondent elaine dunkley has been visiting a school in birmingham. every morning starts with a free breakfast for all children at cockshut hill secondary school in birmingham. do you want something? for the head teacher, this is the first priority of the day. for some pupils, school is the only place where they're guaranteed a hot meal. our main priority is obviously the education of the children, but if they're hungry, they're tired, they're cold, they're not going to learn. more than 60% of the pupils here are on free school meals. according to the pisa report, which compares 15—year—olds around the world, 11% in the uk miss meals regularly because of poverty, one of the highest figures in europe. how do you feel that some 15—year—olds are having to miss meals? as a 15—year—old, you shouldn't have to worry about eating and putting food on the table. there is that percentage that are struggling with food. you may not see what's going on, but it definitely is happening. people have to, like, budget here and there, so they can't get new clothes for school, new shoes, for example, and it reallyjust makes people sad. have you had anything? as well as children arriving hungry, schools are now dealing with many more issues. we've even provided, through the hardshipl fund, bedding, clothes. we have uniform that we provide. schools are having to be a lot more responsible l for lots of other things. there has been a massive rise in mental health issues. - we have an increase in homelessness, and other safeguarding issues - are massively on the rise. the pisa report has historically compared the skills and knowledge of 15—year—olds in 81 countries and economies around the world to evaluate education systems. but now it also looks at other indicators to reflect the changing lives of schoolchildren. food is not the only issue here. we've seen a marked drop in parental support and engagement in the uk, where families discuss their child's progress. these are signs that overall social support may not be sufficient for students to actually engage them in learning. if gaining qualifications is something that's important... the department for education says that academically, england is ranked high in maths, reading and science. but the statistics also show that many teenagers are having a tough time. but the good thing is that you know what options you've got available to you. at this school, despite high levels of deprivation, there's no shortage of aspiration. elaine dunkley, bbc news, in birmingham. a doctor who was awarded more than £3 million worth of compensation says her boss tried to break her when she raised concerns about how covid was being handled. an employment tribunal found rosalind ranson had been subjected to months of humiliation while working in the isle of man during the pandemic. 0ur social affairs correspondent, michael buchanan, has the details. rosalind ranson took up cold water swimming when she moved to the isle of man in 2020, the irish sea providing an essential diversion from the professional hostility she was facing. there were avoidable deaths on the isle of man because of the treatment that i was subjected to. rosalind ranson was the isle of man's medical director at the start of the pandemic. she quickly concluded that the island's main hospital couldn't cope with coronavirus. what we needed to do was to close the borders. we were going to have insufficient beds, insufficient ventilators, so we were going to rapidly overwhelm our health system. dr ranson�*s clinical advice was suppressed, however, according to a later employment tribunal, and covid hit the isle of man. 20 residents died in this care home. the island did later close its borders, and by the summer of 2020, residents were living a covid—free life. but for dr ranson, things were farfrom normal. professionally, her clinical advice and concerns weren't being passed to government ministers. she says she also ensured personal slights such as her boss denying her a toilet break. she was trying to break me, maybe trying to get me to lose my temper, maybe trying to just make me not to be able to cope. this is kathryn magson, the woman the employment tribunal said had demeaned rosalind ranson. a panel ofjudges found that she'd been spiteful, vindictive, churlish, self—serving and displayed a callous lack of care for dr ranson. kathryn magson says she strongly refutes the tribunal�*s findings. we've discovered that miss magson is now working at the south london and maudsley nhs trust as an adviser to the chief executive. despite winning £3.2 million in compensation, rosalind ranson regrets all that she's been through. at no point has it felt that it is success. i was out of a job, it was the end of my career. to have that... ..taken away... sacking its medical director cost the isle of man government over £4 million in damages and legalfees. it has now apologised to dr ranson. michael buchanan, bbc news, on the isle of man. a lawyer for prince harry has told the high court that he's been treated unlawfully and unfairly by the british government after it took away his police protection when he's in this country. the duke of sussex is taking legal action against the home office over a decision in 2020 that meant he would no longer get the same personal security on visits to the uk. 0ur royal correspondent, sean coughlan, is outside the court. sean. what has been happening? 0'dell prince _ what has been happening? 0'dell prince harry himself is not here with_ prince harry himself is not here with us— prince harry himself is not here with us but_ prince harry himself is not here with us but his lawyers have been here, _ with us but his lawyers have been here, , . , ., ., here, they are trying to overturn the decision _ here, they are trying to overturn the decision which _ here, they are trying to overturn the decision which saw- here, they are trying to overturn the decision which saw his - here, they are trying to overturn l the decision which saw his security downgraded when he visited the uk. if circumstances change when he went to america, he was no longer a working member of the royal family so the committee which decides the security matters reduce the security. prince harry's lawyer says it is singling him out and as a member of the royal family he still faces risks and should have a level of security relative to that risk. home office lawyers rejected his claims, they say of course he had security but it is done on a case—by—case basis similar to other high—profile visitors to the uk and he can't expect the same security as when he was a full—time member of royal family. this is the first day of a three day case, much of the detail will be about security, so we expect much of the hearing to be held in private. sean coughlan, thank you. the time is 13:16. our top story this afternoon... the home secretary is in rwanda signing a treaty on the government's plan to send some asylum seekers there. still to come, the council planners on santa's naughty list after they refused permission for his grotto. coming up on bbc news, sheffield united's owner confirms that chris wilder will take over at the premier league side to replace the sacked paul heckingbottom. the club are bottom of the table and take on liverpool in the premier league tomorrow night. the world health organization says the situation in gaza is deteriorating by the hour as israeli bombing intensifies in the south of the territory. and the united nations has warned that �*an even more hellish scenario' could be about to unfold for civilians there. israel is trying to destroy hamas, designated a terror organisation by the uk government. unconfirmed reports claim israeli troops may try to destroy the vast network of hamas tunnels underneath the gaza strip by flooding them with sea water. 0ur middle east correspondent, yolande knell, reports from jerusalem. more casualties pouring into this hospital in khan younis this morning, even brought in by donkey cart. medics struggling to find space for the dozens of wounded. palestinians say more than 30 were killed in an israeli strike and shelling close to a un school which was crowded with displaced people. "they launched mortars at us at night. "we were scared and didn't sleep," cries this boy. "all night we were reading the koran." 0n the move once again. israel has issued evacuation orders affecting tens of thousands of palestinians as it advances on khan younis. and today, amid the intense fighting, many people who'd fled here from northern gaza headed even further south. translation: safety can only be provided by god. | there's no safe place in gaza. we were in gaza city in a place we were told would be safe. then they brought us to khan younis, and now from khan younis to rafah. one un official is accusing israel of repeating horrors from past weeks, but israel's military says it's taking time to plan more precise action in southern gaza and stop innocent people being killed. while we've been operating, we are ensuring that there is minimum harm to civilians, with soldiers on the ground going from building to building. we've been making, again, with everything we have at our... in our capabilities, every effort to mitigate civilian casualties. israel says it's still fighting intense battles across the gaza strip as it attempts to topple hamas. but as it heads into khan younis, where it's believed top hamas officials may be hiding underground, it's readying for some of its toughest combat yet. yolande joins us from jerusalem now. tell us more about these reports that the israelis are planning to flood tunnels beneath the gaza strip? flood tunnels beneath the gaza stri - ? , , ~ . flood tunnels beneath the gaza stri? , ,.., ,, strip? there is this wall street journal report _ strip? there is this wall street journal report this _ strip? there is this wall street journal report this morning - strip? there is this wall street i journal report this morning which quotes us officials and says israel has set up a large system of pumps just off the coast to the north of gaza city, and that they could be used to flood this vast network of tunnels used by hamas and other armed groups under the gaza strip with sea water in the coming weeks. it says at the moment no decision has been made on whether to use them. the israeli military has said it cannot comment directly on that report but is trying its best to make the tunnels, in its words, unusable. i remember back in 2015 egypt used a similar technique with sea water to put hundreds of smuggling tunnels which run under its border with gaza permanently out of use. a big publication for israel as there are around 137 israeli hostages said to be held in the gaza strip still and it is thought many could be in the tunnels. there was also the fact that it would have serious environmental implications too. yolande knell, thank you. our middle east correspondent in jerusalem. new guidance from the scottish prison service says transgender women who have hurt or threatened women or girls will not be held in female jails unless there are "exceptional" circumstances. it follows a public outcry after a rapist was sent to a women's prison. isla bryson raped two women while known as adam graham. our scotland correspondent, lorna gordon, is in glasgow. as you said, this follows the public out poor after a man called adam graham who decided to transition to become an islay pricing while awaiting trial for a double become an islay pricing while awaiti