:00:00. > :00:10.A huge explosion rips through a train station in southern Russia. At
:00:11. > :00:13.least 14 people are dead. The authorities say a woman suicide
:00:14. > :00:17.bomber carried out the attack, which raises new security fears ahead of
:00:18. > :00:21.the Winter Olympics. A fire on board a North Sea ferry
:00:22. > :00:31.forces its return to Tyneside. Two men are arrested.
:00:32. > :00:51.And Australia celebrates victory in the fourth Test - England could face
:00:52. > :00:55.an Ashes whitewash. Good afternoon. At least 14 people
:00:56. > :00:59.have been killed in a huge explosion at a train station in southern
:01:00. > :01:04.Russia. Anti-terrorism officials say a female suicide bomber carried out
:01:05. > :01:07.the attack in the city of Volgograd. It's the latest in a series of
:01:08. > :01:10.bombings by separatist Islamist groups in the North Caucasus ahead
:01:11. > :01:17.of the Winter Olympic Games in the Russian city of Sochi, which begin
:01:18. > :01:24.in six weeks' time. From Moscow, Daniel Sandford reports. Volgograd
:01:25. > :01:27.central railway station and the moment a bomb went off in the
:01:28. > :01:31.entrance hall at lunchtime, instantly killing many of the
:01:32. > :01:35.passengers. Investigators quickly said it was the work of a female
:01:36. > :01:40.suicide bomber who had blown herself up at the metal detectors just
:01:41. > :01:43.inside the building. It was clear almost immediately that some people
:01:44. > :01:48.had been killed by the explosion. One body could be seen lying on the
:01:49. > :01:51.pavement outside. With the winter Olympics looming, the Russian
:01:52. > :01:57.Government immediately ordered security to be stepped up at
:01:58. > :02:01.stations and airports across Russia. President Putin ordered that all
:02:02. > :02:04.necessary measures should be taken to help those affected and, if
:02:05. > :02:08.necessary, the wounded should be taken to hospitals in Moscow. This
:02:09. > :02:11.is a time when millions are on the move in Russia because of the new
:02:12. > :02:15.year celebrations. But perhaps most importantly the Sochi winter
:02:16. > :02:20.Olympics are only six weeks away. One of the leaders of the Islamist
:02:21. > :02:27.insurgency in the Caucasus republics in southern Russia has called on his
:02:28. > :02:35.supporters to use maximum force to disrupt what he calls the sat an
:02:36. > :02:40.games. We know that on the bones of our ancestors, of the many Muslims
:02:41. > :02:43.who died and are buried on our territory on the Black Sea, they
:02:44. > :02:49.plan to stage the winter Olympic games. We as the mujahideen must not
:02:50. > :02:53.allow this to happen by any means possible. It is not clear whether
:02:54. > :02:56.the bombing was linked to that statement but there does seem to
:02:57. > :03:02.have been an increase in attacks in Russia as the winter Olympics draw
:03:03. > :03:10.nearer. Two
:03:11. > :03:15.Six people were flown to hospital by RAF helicopter, and the ferry was
:03:16. > :03:21.forced to return to Tyneside. Richard Lister reports. There's a
:03:22. > :03:26.fire on board, everybody is coming to the lifeboats... Cold and scared,
:03:27. > :03:30.a thousand people on the MS King Seaways were moved to the safety of
:03:31. > :03:34.the up thor decks after a fire in a cabin. One of them shot this footage
:03:35. > :03:38.as the drama played out in the middle of the night. Two passengers
:03:39. > :03:41.and four crew members were airlifted to hospital suffering from the
:03:42. > :03:45.effects of smoke. 17 others were treated on board, as the ship headed
:03:46. > :03:51.back to Tyneside, where it arrived this morning. It has left North
:03:52. > :03:55.Shields bound for Amsterdam yesterday afternoon but had only got
:03:56. > :03:58.as far as Flamborough Head when the fire was discovered and the ship
:03:59. > :04:02.declared an emergency. At that point the Captain turned the vessel around
:04:03. > :04:06.and it headed back to North Shields. The police were waiting for them and
:04:07. > :04:10.held everyone on board while they began their inquiries. It was more
:04:11. > :04:14.than four hours before the first passengers were allowed off. Some
:04:15. > :04:23.were emotional, some angry, all exhausted. Very tired. We slept on
:04:24. > :04:27.the floor all night. Our cabin was close to the fire. Really thick
:04:28. > :04:30.smoke, you could smell it. There was a lot of panic from some people.
:04:31. > :04:35.Women kids, obviously, were panicked. We got out to the
:04:36. > :04:40.starboard side where the lifeboats were. It was well done, the staff
:04:41. > :04:44.got everyone out quick. We were going away for a weekend, just a
:04:45. > :04:49.couple of friends, to Amsterdam and come home tonight. Never mind, back
:04:50. > :04:53.to Carlisle. The ferry company says everyone will get their money back
:04:54. > :04:56.and it is relieved that the fire didn't spread. We have training
:04:57. > :05:00.every week so the crew know what they were doing and they were able
:05:01. > :05:04.to put it out very quickly. But of course, potentially a fire on a ship
:05:05. > :05:07.is always dangerous. The investigation is continuing, and
:05:08. > :05:15.Northumbria police say two men in their 20s have been arrested, one of
:05:16. > :05:18.them on suspicion of arson. Five men have been arrested by
:05:19. > :05:21.police investigating the death of a man at a house in
:05:22. > :05:29.Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire. The five were
:05:30. > :05:32.detained at the house. The leader of the UK Independence
:05:33. > :05:36.Party, Nigel Farage, has said some refugees from the civil war in Syria
:05:37. > :05:40.should be allowed to come to Britain. He said western countries
:05:41. > :05:43.had a duty to offer a number of them sanctuary. The Government has
:05:44. > :05:45.refused to let any Syrian refugees into the UK, saying it's better to
:05:46. > :05:48.offer financial support. Our political correspondent Arif Ansari
:05:49. > :05:51.reports. It is a conflict that's created hardship and displaced
:05:52. > :05:55.millions. The United Nations has launched its largest ever
:05:56. > :06:01.fund-raising effort and wants rich countries to allow refugees in.
:06:02. > :06:05.Here, the Government has refused. The UKIP leader, Nigel Farage, says
:06:06. > :06:09.Britain should be more generous. I think refugees are a very different
:06:10. > :06:16.thing to economic migration and I think this country should honour the
:06:17. > :06:19.spirit of the 1951 Declaration on? Refugees Status that was agreed. And
:06:20. > :06:23.there is a responsibility on all of us in the free West to try and help
:06:24. > :06:28.some of those people fleeing Syria, literally in fear of their lives.
:06:29. > :06:32.Some Syrian refugees spent Christmas in Jordan. This man didn't want to
:06:33. > :06:39.be identified, but he complains the West has done nothing to help.
:06:40. > :06:43.TRANSLATION: They were supposed to facilitate our immigration process
:06:44. > :06:48.as Christians and I'm very sad they haven't. But the Prime Minister has
:06:49. > :06:53.visited refugees in Jordan and pledged ?500 million in aid, making
:06:54. > :06:59.Britain one of the world's most generous donors. In Calais some
:07:00. > :07:04.Syrians are desperate to come over. Labour said it would allow some 500
:07:05. > :07:09.people in. Some Conservative MPs are urging Ministers to unlock the
:07:10. > :07:16.borders. Nigel Farage remains strong opposed to lifting immigration
:07:17. > :07:20.controls on Romania and Bulgaria in the new year.
:07:21. > :07:24.A voluntary register of all breast implant operations to be set up in
:07:25. > :07:30.England. It follows the scandal involving dangerous im plants
:07:31. > :07:33.supplied by French company PIP. New qualifications will be introduced
:07:34. > :07:38.along with rules on the marketing of procedures.
:07:39. > :07:43.Seven-times Formula One world champion Michael Schumacher has been
:07:44. > :07:47.injured in a ski accident in France. The German who retired from Formula
:07:48. > :07:52.One at the end of the 2012 season has been taken by helicopter to a
:07:53. > :07:58.hospital. The local official has said his injuries are not serious.
:07:59. > :08:01.Cricket - and England are facing the prospect of a humiliating 5-0 Ashes
:08:02. > :08:05.series defeat after losing the fourth test in Melbourne. Set 231 to
:08:06. > :08:08.win, the Australians won comfortably by eight wickets, helped by a string
:08:09. > :08:16.of dropped catches by the England fielders. From Melbourne, Dan Roan
:08:17. > :08:18.reports. Melbourne the morning and the Fourth Test had reached a
:08:19. > :08:23.crucial junction. Time and time again on this tour England had
:08:24. > :08:27.failed, now finally it seemed like things could go either way. With
:08:28. > :08:32.Australia resuming on 30 without loss but still needing a tricky 201
:08:33. > :08:38.runs to win, England had genuine hope, but knew they had to take
:08:39. > :08:40.every chance. Sadly for them Captain Alastair Cook squandered two
:08:41. > :08:44.immediately. The first unfortunate, the second unforgivable. England's
:08:45. > :08:51.lamentable fielding would now cost them. Having been handed a reprieve
:08:52. > :08:55.David Warner was snared by Ben Stokes. After two English batting
:08:56. > :08:58.collapses yesterday, Chris Rogers was proving that the pitch was no
:08:59. > :09:03.excuse. The opener calmly steering his side to victory with a brilliant
:09:04. > :09:08.century as England rand out of ideas. With Shane Watson in one-day
:09:09. > :09:12.mode the end was quick. Having trailed by 51 after the first
:09:13. > :09:17.innings Australia romped home by 8 wickets. On a tour that's brought
:09:18. > :09:21.daily disappointment this is arguably the most painful defeat of
:09:22. > :09:24.all, with England throwing away a winning position. With the Ashes
:09:25. > :09:28.already gone, this could have been a fresh start. Instead, the
:09:29. > :09:34.humiliation of a 5-0 whitewash in Sydney next week now feels
:09:35. > :09:39.inevitable. There's been a huge explosion at a
:09:40. > :09:42.railway station in Volgograd in southern Russia. The authorities say
:09:43. > :09:45.that a woman suicide bomber was behind the attack.
:09:46. > :09:50.You can see more on all of today's stories on the BBC News Channel. The
:09:51. > :10:00.next news on BBC One is at 5.35pm. Bye for now.
:10:01. > :10:06.Good afternoon. Let's start with the good news for the weather for the
:10:07. > :10:10.week ahead. It is not going to be quite as stormy as last week.
:10:11. > :10:15.However, low pressure system is set to spin our way, so expect further
:10:16. > :10:18.heavy rain at times, gales, if not severe gale-force winds, and the
:10:19. > :10:19.potential for further travel