BBC news with Jonathan Izard.

Republicans in the US congress have withdrawn a controversial initiative to strip an independent congressional ethics watchdog of its powers. The plan, which outraged Democrats, also drew criticism from the president elect Donald Trump who said it was not a priority. He suggested the tax reform and healthcare were more pressing concerns.

The car giant Ford has announced it will cancel building a $1.6 billion plant in Mexico in favor of further investment in the United States. Ford's chief executive Mark Fields said the decision was a vote of confidence in the pro-business environment Donald Trump was creating.

The White House says it's likely more inmates will be released from the Guantanamo bay detention center before president Obama steps down on Jan. 20.Closing the camp was a priority when Mr. Obama took office eight years ago, but his plans have been thwarted by congress. Mr. Trump has stated his opposition to the release of any further inmates.

Syrian activists say airstrikes have hit a building used by a jihadist rebel group in the Northern Province of Idlib killing at least 25 people. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the identity of the aircraft was not clear. The strikes targeted Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, formerly known as the NusraFront and linked to al-Qaeda.

The UN says it will take appropriate action against two of its observers who were filmed dancing with members of the Colombian rebel group the Farc at a New Year’s Eve party. The men, wearing blue UN vests, were shown dancing hip to hip with female fighters. They were deployed to oversee the disarmament of guerrillas as part of a peace deal.

And one of the last remaining members of the American religious society, known as the Shakers, has died at the community's Sabbath day Lake estate in Maine. The death of Sister Frances Carr at the age of 89 leaves just two members of the faith. The Shakers settled there in 1783 after fleeing persecution in England. They practice equality of the sexes, pacifism, communal ownership of property and celibacy. BBC news.