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       Hundreds of thousands of Spaniards flooded the streets of Madrid on Sunday for the largest protest yet against the regional government’s management of the capital city's health care services.

       Over 250,000 people rallied in the city centre, according to the central Spanish government. Organisers claimed the crowd was bigger by several hundred thousand. Many protest participants carried homemade signs with messages in Spanish like “The right to health is a human right. Defend the health service.”

       Health worker associations led the demonstration, which was backed by left-wing parties, unions and normal citizens concerned with what they see as the dismantling of the public health care system by the Madrid region's conservative-led government.

       These groups have taken to the streets on a regular basis in recent months, and their movement is gathering strength.

       Madrid’s regional chief, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, alleges the protests are motivated by the political interests of left-wing rivals ahead of May regional elections across most of Spain.

       Health care workers claim that Díaz Ayuso's administration spends the least amount per capita on primary health care of any Spanish region even though it has the highest per capita income. They say that for every 2 euros spent on healthcare in Madrid, one ends up in the private sector.

       Critics of her administration say that it produces long waits for patients and overworked doctors and nurses.

       Spain has a hybrid health care system, but the public sector is larger than the private one and is considered a basic pillar of the state. It is run by Spain's regions.

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       Almost a week after the devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake shattered the lives of millions of people in a 100 square kilometre area of Turkey and Syria, the desperate hunt for survivors continues.

       The earthquake struck before dawn last Monday as most people were at home in bed.

       This Sunday the official death tally stands at 33,000, a figure that is sure to rise with so many homes in both countries reduced to rubble.

       The earthquake struck areas of Syria under government control as well as rebel-held parts of the northwest of the country. One of the biggest challenges for relief agencies has been to negotiate the political landscape and in many areas the first aid from outside is only just trickling through.

       However, Turkey has borne the brunt of known casualties. Antakya, a city once home to 400,000 inhabitants, has been almost completely destroyed.

       Amidst the destruction and despair, rescue teams are still looking for survivors, and in some cases their efforts are still being rewarded.

       When I ask if they have the energy to continue, they reply they must keep going because of their faith and their love for their country.

       Some 13 million people have been directly affected by the disaster spread across an area that is larger than many European countries.

       The situation in Antakya remains very, very chaotic with many roads, many streets completely blocked. And there are thousands, if not tens of thousands of people still under the rubble.

       Watch my report above.

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       The head of Russia's paramilitary Wagner group said on Sunday that his troops had taken the Ukrainian town of Krasna Hora, a few kilometres north of Bakhmut, a key city that Moscow has been trying to conquer for several months.

       "Today, Wagner's assault units took the locality of Krasna Hora", Yevgeny Prigozhin was quoted as saying by his press service.

       For more than six months, Wagner and the Russian army have been trying to capture Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, a town of limited strategic importance but which has gained great symbolic significance because of the long duration of the fighting.

       Russian forces have been trying to encircle the city for the past few weeks. They have managed to cut off several roads that are vital for the supply of Ukrainian troops.

       However, there appears to be increasing tensions between the paramilitary group and Moscow’s regular forces.

       The Wagner group announced on 11 January that it had taken Soledar, a larger town not far from Krasna Hora.

       But the Russian defence ministry took two days to announce the capture of Soledar, suggesting a level of discord between Wagner and the regular Russian army.

       Click on the video above to see more.