fears

As Celia and Ray’s plans for April become clear, Emmerdale teases a sad twist for the teenager and a gunshot drives fans to fear the worst for two of the soap’s most beloved characters

A horrifying twist leaves April Windsor’s future uncertain on Emmerdale in the Christmas Eve episode, as fans are left fearing the worst for two more beloved characters.

For months, fans have watched as crime duo Celia (Jaye Griffiths) and Ray (Ray Absolom) have manipulated troubled teen April (Amelia Flanagan) into working for their drug ring and prostitution network.

Though April seemed to have gained some distance from the pair in recent weeks, tonight’s episode saw Celia issue a terrifying ultimatum.

The criminal mastermind met April in a cafe, where the youngster said she would start working for Celia again if she stopped blackmailing her father, Marlon Dingle (Mark Charnok) ,alone.

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But Celia had other ideas. She told April that she and Ray would be leaving the Dales soon to start up their business somewhere new – and that April would have to come with them, or else.

Celia told April she would need her answer by the end of the following day. When April pointed out this was Christmas, Celia, the village’s resident Scrooge, said: “What difference does that make?”

April is not the only character fans fear will be leaving the soap. Elsewhere in tonight’s episode, Aaron Dingle (Danny Miller) and Robert Sugden (Ryan Hawley) were left fearing for their lives after Kev Townsend (Chris Coghill) took a shot at them… literally.

Evil Kev, who fans have deemed as “psychotic”, has been stalking the couple and is clearly not over Rob choosing to be with Aaron instead of him. While Rob and Aaron were busy affirming their love for each other, Kev ruined the happy moment by aiming a rifle at them from the shadows. Thankfully, he hit a post behind Rob rather than either of the love birds.

Though the police said it must have been poachers, Rob and Aaron knew the truth, especially after they received an envelope with Kev’s wedding ring and a bullet inside it.

Fans were horrified by the danger Rob and Aaron are in and quickly argued the villainous character had lost his mind. One wrote online in all capitals: “Kev U f***ing nutter.” Another added: “Kev is a psycho he needs locking up.”

A third said that they hoped this would show Rob just how “psychotic” Kev was: “Hopefully our boy has realised now there is no reasoning with this crazy psychotic idiot and it’s time to fight back!”

Another felt Kev was now beyond saving. “I can’t see how they can redeem Kev after this…he’s attacked them with a sword, shot at them and that’s just for starters. I really can’t see how ED could keep him after all this.”

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British tourists have been warned by the Foreign Office after deadly fighting erupted between two countries, with rockets fired across the border and travel insurance likely voided in affected areas

British holidaymakers travelling along a well-trodden backpacking trail have been issued a stark warning by the Foreign Office following deadly clashes between two neighbouring nations.

The UK Foreign Office issued an urgent notice to all travellers heading to Thailand and Cambodia this holiday season – as parts of the country grapple with “regular attacks”.

Residents in areas of Thailand and Cambodia sought refuge last week as both countries launched volleys of rockets across their shared frontier. Both nations have blamed each other for violating a Trump-mediated ceasefire that brought an end to intense five-day hostilities earlier this year.

Authorities have urged British holidaymakers to avoid travelling within 50km of Thailand’s entire border with Cambodia. The only exceptions are a few islands, which should only be visited if absolutely necessary. These include Koh Chang, Koh Kood and the other islands in between.

If you’re planning a trip to Thailand, make sure to read all of the Foreign Office advice.

The escalation comes as Cambodia’s senate president Hun Sen vowed to mount a fierce battle against Thailand. Last week’s unrest included brutal airstrikes and saw at least 20 people killed.

An orange alert has been issued, covering Pattani, Yala, and Narathiwat Province, alongside the districts of Chana, Thepa, Na Thawi, and Saba Yoi in southern Songkhla Province.

Approximately one million UK citizens travel to Thailand annually. In recent years, it has become commonplace for some visitors to take brief excursions over the land crossing into Cambodia by catching a coach from Thailand’s capital, Bangkok.

However, the frontier has remained shut for most of this year due to violent outbreaks, with current UK Foreign Office guidance as of this week advising that British citizens should steer clear of “all but essential travel” to areas within 31 miles of Thailand’s border with Cambodia.

The guidance states: “Land borders and crossings between Thailand and Cambodia continue to be suspended. Some tourist destinations in border areas, such as the Khao Phra Wihan/Preah Vihear temple, the Ta Kwai/Ta Krabey temple, and the Ta Muen Thom/Tamone Thom temple, are closed. There are also unexploded landmines in the border area. We advise against all but essential travel to the affected border areas.”

Whilst travelling to a region marked as ‘essential travel only’ by the Foreign Office isn’t against the law, doing so will likely invalidate your travel insurance – even if it remains valid in other parts of the same nation considered safe. This leaves you personally responsible for expenses such as medical emergencies, cancellations, or repatriation, and securing help from the British Embassy becomes considerably more challenging should problems arise.

What’s the reason behind the Thailand and Cambodia conflict and what part did Donald Trump play?

The ongoing strife between Thailand and Cambodia is a flare-up of a border disagreement that has been simmering for several decades, which until this year had only led to occasional skirmishes.

In May, the death of a Cambodian soldier in one such skirmish sparked an intensification of hostilities, culminating in five days of full-scale warfare in July. The fallout saw at least 48 fatalities and displaced 300,000 people.

A peace agreement mediated by Donald Trump was inked by the Thai and Cambodian governments in Malaysia in October, with the US President having threatened to withhold trade deals with either nation if they rejected the pact. However, this week saw a resumption of hostilities after the ceasefire was violated – with each party pointing the finger at the other for firing the first shot.

Thailand’s military alleges that Cambodia launched an assault on Thai positions with artillery, rockets and drone strikes earlier in December, following accusations of previous attacks in the days before. Conversely, Cambodia asserts that Thai forces initiated the conflict, in the Preah Vihear province.

Noble laureate’s son says military must ‘prove’ Suu Kyi is healthy after her years in detention and unseen following military coup.

Military-ruled Myanmar has said the country’s jailed Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi is “in good health” amid concerns about the health of the pro-democracy leader who was removed from power by a coup in 2021.

“Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is in good health,” a statement posted on the military-run Myanmar Digital News said on Tuesday, using an honorific for the country’s leader.

The military, which offered no evidence or details about Aung San Suu Kyi’s condition, issued the statement one day after her son, Kim Aris, told the Reuters news agency that he had received little information about the 80-year-old’s condition and fears she could die without him knowing.

“The military claims she is in good health, yet they refuse to provide any independent proof, no recent photograph, no medical verification, and no access by family, doctors, or international observers,” Aris told Reuters on Wednesday in response to the military’s statement.

“If she is truly well, they can prove it,” he said.

A Myanmar regime spokesman did not respond to calls seeking comment.

Interviewed in October, Aris told the Asia Times news organisation that he believed his mother, who has not been seen for at least two years, was being held in solitary confinement in a prison in the capital Naypyidaw and “not even the other prisoners have seen her”.

Aung San Suu Kyi was detained after the 2021 military coup that toppled her elected civilian government from power, and she is now serving a 27-year prison sentence on charges that are widely believed to be trumped-up, including incitement, corruption and election fraud – all of which she denies.

Aris also said the military was “fond of spreading rumours” about his mother’s health in detention.

“They have said she is being held under house arrest, but there is no evidence of that at all. At other times, they said she has had a stroke and even that she has died,” he told Asia Times.

“It’s obviously hard to deal with all this false information,” he said.

A civil war has gripped Myanmar since the 2021 coup, but the military plans to hold elections at the end of this month that analysts and several foreign governments have dismissed as a sham designed to legitimise military rule.

While fighting rages across the country, Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD), Myanmar’s largest political party, remains dissolved, and several anti-military political groups are boycotting the polls.

On Wednesday, the military said it was pursuing prosecutions of more than 200 people under a law forbidding “disruption” of the election, legislation that rights monitors have said aims to crush dissent.

“A total of 229 people” are being pursued for prosecution “for attempting to sabotage election processes”, the military regime’s Home Affairs Minister Tun Tun Naung said, according to state media.

Convictions under election laws in Myanmar’s courts can result in up to a decade in prison, and authorities have made arrests for as little as posting a “heart” emoji on Facebook posts criticising the polls.

The legislation also outlaws damaging ballot papers and polling stations – as well as intimidating or harming voters, candidates and election workers, with a maximum punishment of 20 years in prison.