21/11/2015 BBC Weekend News

The Belgian capital, Brussels, is on maximum alert,

after authorities received specific information that an attack with guns

The Brussels metro has been closed until tomorrow afternoon, and people

A number of football matches in the city have also been postponed.

Our Europe Correspondent, James Reynolds, reports.

This morning in Brussels soldiers took the place of commuters. Taking

care to use the dear -- the zebra crossing during their patrol.

care to use the dear -- the zebra government has closed all Metro

stations in the capital. It has deployed forces to counter the

immediate threat of an attack. TRANSLATION: We have received

precise information about the risk of an attack

like the one in Paris. We are talking about a scenario

in which several individuals with arms and explosives could launch an

attack perhaps in several places. It may be that this man, Salah

Abdeslam, is involved. He is one of the Paris attackers and he is still

on the run. Police believe he came back to Belgium after the attacks.

His Brussels neighbourhood, Molenbeek, was also home to another

of the gunmen. The area is under close watch. Brussels is normally

among the quietest of European capitals. But this city feels very

different right now. The government has instructed its citizens to

follow all official instructions and not to spread any rumours. The Metro

station is shuttered. To one woman's apparent disappointment. I

am not afraid, Miriam tells me. There is so much security, so we

feel protected. I'm not scared, he says. Brussels continues to receive

visitors. The Eurostar from London arrives on time.

We just want to go to be safe at home. Even the police is there, we

feel unsafe. Christopher Marlowe and macro is taking his wife and

four-year-old daughter for a birthday weekend in the city.

You have to do what you have to do. Brussels

You have to do what you have to do. place to be if there is a terror

alert going on. We can have people out there hopefully being sensible.

The Belgian government out there hopefully being sensible.

reassess its security level on Monday. Until then, some have

decided it is best to stay at home and hope for the best.

David Cameron has welcomed a UN call for all countries to join

The Security Council resolution urges that all necessary measures

Mr Cameron said the vote in favour of it was "an important moment".

The resolution was drafted by France in the wake of the Paris attacks.

The Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond says he hopes the House of Commons

will now back British air strikes against IS in Syria.

As the Prime Minister has said, we will go on making the case for a

broad response to the Isil challenge, political, military and

humanitarian. When we think we have got a consensus across Parliament,

we will put it to the vote. Our Political Correspondent,

Iain Watson, Iain, are we a step closer to

a Commons vote? Yes, I think we are. The Prime

Minister has always been very clear. He is more concerned about a vote in

this place than at the United Nations. He wants to make sure he

has a decisive victory in favour of air strikes to send out a strong

message to Islamic State. He does think the UN resolution is

significant for two reasons. It may help him win over some wavering MPs

on his own side who did not back military action two years ago.

Secondly, and more significantly, it might give cover to a number of

Labour MPs to vote with the Government as well. I have been

speaking to shadow ministers. At the moment there is a veneer of unity in

the Labour Party because David Cameron has not come forward with a

convincing enough case. But they say they are willing to be convinced and

could end up voting with him rather than their leader, does they believe

no matter what the UN doors and David Cameron says, Jeremy Corbyn

will ultimately never back military action in Syria.

In Mali, security forces are hunting three suspects connected to

yesterday's attack on a hotel in the capital, Bamako,

Two militants were killed when special forces stormed the building.

The president has declared a national state of emergency.

Our Correspondent, Thomas Fessy, reports now from Bamako.

Mali woke up to a state of emergency this morning. But the streets of the

capital are bustling, people are going about their activities.

Driving through the city we cannot tell that the presence of security

forces has been stepped up. Having said that, there is much anxiety at

the entrance to some of the main hotels hosting foreign guests. The

search and checks of the clients is more of the row. And in some cases

cars are not even allowed inside the hotel compounds. At the Radisson Blu

Hotel, where the attack happened, investigators from Mali and France

are busy trying to figure what exactly happened. We know that there

were at least two attackers but we're getting reports that the

security forces now believe that three others were potentially

involved in the attack. Foreign embassies are busy trying to

identify some of the dead. Trying to make sure they have the right count

of nationals. What about the people of this country? Is the state of

emergency going to make any kind of difference? Probably not a lot.

Remember, for them it has been three years of a real jihadi threat coming

from the north. And so, three years that people have learnt to carry on

despite the circumstances. Four British tourists are

among seven people who've died after a helicopter crashed

on a glacier in New Zealand. Police said rescue teams had reached

the crash site, The area, which lies next to

the town of Fox Glacier on the remote west coast of South Island,

attracts thousands of tourists each Wedged between walls of ice,

wreckage of the sightseeing helicopter in which seven people

died. Rescuers winced down to the crash site found no sign of life. --

winched. When the emergency services were alerted, four helicopters were

sent to the scene. But difficult terrain and poor visibility are

hampering the rescue effort. It is at the top of the glacier and it is

heavily crevasse. Ruff country. It will take a lot of care to get the

people out there. Among the dead is the pilot, a 28-year-old New

Zealander said to be an experienced flier. We do not know the identity

of his passengers. But the Foreign Office says the families have been

told. The Fox Glacier is on the west side of New Zealand's South Island.

13 kilometres long, it is one of the top tourist attractions in the

country. Thousands visited every year, with many reaching by

helicopter. The crash year, with many reaching by

feet up the glacier at the start of the tourist season in rainy, cloudy

weather. The cause of the crash is now being investigated, but it has

left the small community from where the flight took off in shock.

Obviously we are absolutely devastated. We are here to support

the families, the people involved. The recovery operation is expected

to resume shortly. Police say it will take time before the dead can

be formally identified. Caroline Hawley, BBC News.

A 15-year-old boy has appeared in court accused

of stabbing two teenagers at a school in south London.

The boy - who can't be named - is charged with attempted murder

and causing grievous bodily harm in the attacks at Kingsdale Foundation

He was remanded in youth custody until next month.

The government is preparing to allow local authorities in England to

increase council tax by 2% to cover the costs of adult social care.

The announcement is expected to be part of the Autumn Statement,

which the Chancellor, George Osborne, will deliver on Wednesday.

The French national anthem was played before every Premier League

La Marseillaise was played as a gesture of solidarity

and remembrance for those affected by the attacks on Paris.

More than 70 Frenchmen play in the Premier League,

making France the second-most represented nation after England.

There'll be more on that in the late news at 10.

But now it's time for the news where you are.