A series of police raids have been carried out in the Bordesley Green and Alum Rock areas of Birmingham since Monday, targeting suspected drug dealers.

West Midlands Police said it had executed 10 warrants, with more raids planned over the coming days.

Image source, West Midlands Police

The force said officers have seized tens of thousands of pounds, along with mobile phones and drugs.

Five suspects are now being investigated.

A woman has been cut free from a car which ended up on its side in a crash on the A53 at Whitmore.

Firefighters were called just before 16:00 and the woman has been taken to Royal Stoke University Hospital.

Image source, Staffordshire Fire & Rescue Service

A man who managed to get out of the car was checked over at the scene and discharged.

Plans to build a £105m relief road in Shrewsbury have been branded "hugely expensive and highly damaging" by campaigners.

Shropshire Council was given nearly £1m by the Department for Transport to draw up an outline business case for the new road. That has been completed and is now ready to hand over to ministers.

With Shrewsbury town centre nestling in the loop of the Severn Shropshire Council says a relief road will alleviate traffic and cut pollution.

The Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) said examples from across the country suggest traffic relief is "temporary" and in most cases the "original problem has returned".

However, Shropshire CPRE says its main objection is the loss of open countryside , externaland "the potential damage to the area around".

Coventry Observer

Some of the main stories in today's Coventry Observer are:

• Coventry council ex-deputy Phil Townshend 'fraud' claims end in OAP winning her home back for Christmas, external
• Anthony Joshua visits Coventry for heavyweight Christmas fundraising campaign, external
• Santa uses quantum physics to deliver presents says Warwick researcher, external

Image source, Coventry Observer

The Darwin, Pride Hill and Riverside centres are to be bought for up by Shropshire Council.

Shefali Oza
BBC Midlands Today

Tomorrow is forecast to be clear and cold, with temperatures only just above freezing.

The Met Office is warning there could be ice again.

A man, returned to England from Romania has been charged with the murder of a father-of-two in West Bromwich more than two years ago.

Image source, West Midlands Police

The body of Masoud Esmailian, 46, was found at an address in Montgomery Walk, in September 2015.

A post-mortem revealed that he had died of a stab injury.

Officers from West Midlands Police travelled to Romania yesterday to extradite a 22-year-old.

He appeared before magistrates today and was remanded to appear at Birmingham Crown Court on 18 December.

Allen Cook
BBC News

A horse had to be rescued from a swimming pool in Walsall today after falling in.

Fire crews came to its aid earlier today and used winching equipment to lift it out.

They say a vet later confirmed the horse was in a "stable condition".

Ben Godfrey
BBC Midlands Today

A £10,000 reward's being offered for information , externalabout the murder of an elderly man who was "viciously" beaten and robbed in his own home.

Arthur "Bob" Gumbley, aged 87, was found lying on the floor at his home in Endwood Drive, Sutton Coldfield, on the evening of 21 November.

He died in hospital on Monday after his condition worsened. He was being treated for injuries to his chest, neck, arms and face.

The reward is being offered by Crimestoppers for information which leads to a conviction.

Four people have been arrested over the murder and remain in custody.

West Midlands Trains suggests outsourcing and moving some jobs in a letter to staff seen by the BBC.

BBC Sport

Hereford FC officials are expecting another 4,000-plus crowd for tonight's FA Cup second-round replay against Fleetwood Town.

It's only three years since the club was founded and club secretary said the support from the home fans has been incredible.

While the visitors haven't sold their full allowance of tickets, all the home tickets have gone.

Daniel Baird's family are launching a campaign to raise money for blood kits in public places.

Organisers of Nantwich Jazz, Blues and Music Festival say it will continue next year, despite the death of its founder.

Phillip Martin, who owned the town's Crown Hotel, passed away suddenly last month at the age of 65.

Acts already booked for the Easter bank holiday weekend include Glenn Tilbrook from Squeeze, and the team say they want the festival to be the biggest yet in Mr Martin's memory.

Calum McKenzie
BBC News

A driver, who was watching pornographic material on his mobile phone, has been jailed for causing death by dangerous driving.

Image source, Leicestershire Police

Felix Gillon, 56, of Johnson Road, Bedworth, was driving along the M69 in Leicestershire when his HGV crashed into another driver's truck.

The victim, Kerry Pemberton, had broken down and was waiting for a recovery vehicle on the hard shoulder between junctions one and two.

After the crash Gillon threw his mobile phone into the fields near the road, police said.

He was sentenced to eight years in jail for causing death by dangerous driving and for perverting the course of justice.

Gillon has also been banned from driving for eight years.

A planning application to turn the A500 into a dual carriageway, between Crewe and junction 16 of the M6, could be submitted in the new year.

Cheshire East Council leader Rachel Bailey told a council meeting this morning that the proposals are moving ahead.

Image source, Google

There were previously concerns that the Queen's landowner the Duchy of Lancaster wouldn't sell the council the land needed to widen the road.

An investigation into the deaths of five scrap metal plant workers killed at a plant in Birmingham has been passed to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

The five died when a retaining wall holding scrap metal collapsed at Hawkeswood Metal on Aston Church Road in Nechells in July 2016.

Image source, PA

The victims, four of whom were from Gambia and one of whom was Senegalese were all aged between 40 and 56.

The HSE said it was now "assuming primacy" from West Midlands police in carrying out enquiries, adding that it "remains a criminal investigation".

A West Midlands Police spokesman said following their investigation and consultation with the CPS, it will be passed to the HSE "who will assess if any health and safety laws were breached at the time."

Joanne Gallacher
Political reporter, BBC Shropshire

Shropshire councillors have agreed to buy three shopping centres in Shrewsbury for a cost believed to be about £60m.

In a meeting behind closed doors, councillors agreed with a recommendation from the cabinet to buy the Darwin and Pride Hill centres and take over the leases on the council-owned Riverside centres.

The council wants to see them run as a mixture of shops, restaurants, homes and leisure facilities.

And it says any profits made will be spent on vulnerable adults and children's services.

Peter Plisner
BBC Midlands Today

Unions are warning there could be jobs cut at the region's newest rail operator, West Midlands Trains.

A letter from the rail operator, which has been sent to staff, talks about outsourcing cleaning services and train maintenance.

Some administration work could also be transferred to a centre in Scotland, already used by West Midlands Trains's parent company Abellio.

The RMT union said its biggest concern relates to changes to how trains are operated with the driver opening and closing doors instead of a guard.

It's an approach already used by several other train operators, although it's also led to strikes on routes operated by Southern and Greater Anglia, among others.

West Midlands Trains, launched earlier this week, maintains that whatever happens safety won't be compromised.

A reward of up to £10,000 is being offered to help catch the person or people responsible for what police have called a "sickening" attack on an 87-year-old man at his home in Sutton Coldfield.

Arthur Gumbley was robbed, punched and kicked and later died in hospital, three weeks after the attack on 21 November.

Image source, West Midlands Police

The charity Crimestoppers is putting up the reward money.

Two men aged 42 and 34, and two women aged 33 and 29, all from Birmingham, were arrested on 12 December and remain in custody.

The proposed north west relief road around Shrewsbury would encourage development and bring business into the town, Shropshire Council has said.

Its outline business case for the route is complete and will be delivered to the government next week. The local authority says it will cut congestion and pollution in the town centre.

If the government approves the plans in the spring, there will have to be another public consultation before the scheme can get the green light.