内容摘要：Achebe forwarded the manuscript to his publisher in the UK and the book, named Weep Not, Child, was released to critical acclaim in 1964. It was the first major English-language novel to be written by an East African.

Achebe forwarded the manuscript to his publisher in the UK and the book, named Weep Not, Child, was released to critical acclaim in 1964. It was the first major English-language novel to be written by an East African.

People who have been on an NHS waiting list for more than two years will now be able to pay for procedures in the Republic of Ireland and claim money back.The £10m cross-border plan, designed to tackle waiting lists, came into effect on Monday morning.

The Department of Health (DoH) said that, in future, patients would be able to claim back money for operations in the rest of the EU.But a date has yet to be set for when that extension will happen, and the number of patients able to avail of it will depend on how much money is left from the cross-border scheme."The second phase of the scheme – extension to the rest of the EU – will go ahead," a DoH spokesperson said.

"The scale of available funding will clearly be connected to take-up levels for the first phase."The department is already facing a £600m deficit in its budget as it struggles to reduce waiting lists and fund pay increases for healthcare workers.

The reimbursement scheme was one of several initiatives Health Minister Mike Nesbitt announced to tackle waiting lists for planned operations, which are the highest in the UK.

The cross-border element of the scheme means patients will get back the amount of money the operation would have cost in Northern Ireland, subject to approval.But there had been a "significant and increasingly alarming escalation" recently, the BBC said on Monday.

"In addition to enduring personal security threats from Iranian state actors operating beyond Iran's borders, BBC News Persian journalists are now witnessing a disturbing rise in the persecution of their family members inside Iran," said BBC Director-General Tim Davie."This persecution is a direct assault on press freedom and human rights. It must end now."

The broadcaster said it was preparing a fresh complaint to the UN.The UN's secretary general and its special rapporteurs have previously raised concerns about Iran's treatment of BBC staff and warned that harassment, surveillance and death threats violated international human rights law.