smithfield farms one in, one out. barack obama returns to the u.s. after failing to get g20 support for a strike on syria. his secretary of state is on a new mission, john kerry in lithuania to sell the military strike idea to europe.

>> hello from doha. i'm here with the world news from al jazeera. kevin rudd goes up against opposition leader tony abbott in the general election in australia. >> tough competition for the top prize at the venice film festival. we look at the favourites. >> so as far as securing international support for a strike on syria the g20 was pretty much a failure for the united states. the focus has shifted. secretary of state john kerry is lobbying europe. he's in lithuania to convince eu foreign ministers. where to the nations stand. u.s. leads the charge for punitive action. france is on side and the uk

prime minister supports the idea. britain will not take part in a military strike after a parliamentary vote. there were g20 meetings, eight other members signed up to a statement calling for a strong response. we are looking at north korea, turkey, australia, spain, saudi arabia and italy on board. the job is to convince europe. >> the moment senior u.s. doiment forges on with a campaign to attack syria. >> john kerry to europe courting support. he has a big task ahead. >> european powers appear to be stepping back from top of the military strike. beneath the smiles, those in st petersburg, leaders of the g20, lie deep divisions. the russian president is

insistent that no action can take place without the green light of the security council. he maintains that the justification of syrian government using chemical weapons on august 21st is wrong. >> translation: the so-called use of chemical weapons is a pro proposition. using military force is an illegal act. >> the french government, a strong u.s. ally for intervention struck a more cautious tone. >> you >> translation: france should not accept that this chemical massacre should remain unpunished. we await the decision of congress, u.s. senate, house of representative's and the report from the un supports. taking these into consideration i'll make disirtion --

decisions. >> the obama administration position is it's one of responsibility. >> over 1400 people were gassed. over 400 much them were children. this is not something we have fabricated. >> his message was echoed by an editorial published by his secretary of state. he wrote: >> obama's change is not just national. he has to sell his case for war to fellow politicians and the american public. the question now is whether they'll buy. >> inside syria government forces are trying to fight in

damascus. hoping for u.s. strikes to weaken the army's defences in the city. a limited intervention is unlikely to end a war. >> this is where the fight for the syrian capital has been happening for a month. the rebel-held suburbs. the subjective of the military campaign - government forces want to prevent rebels entering damascus. armed opposition fighters were hoping u.s.-led strikes would weaken the regime's defences, allowing them to enter the capital. >>. >> >> translation: international community knows the regime is week, allowing them to come in and take over strategic locations, that is why they delayed the strikes, to prepare the army to absorb the hits. >> the opposition is not a unified force. many are

suspicious of washington's intentions. the u.s. said it doesn't want group linked to al qaeda to prevail. >> the u.s. administration does not want to bring down the assad regime now. the opposition is in such a situation of disarray and the islamist radiccals so dominant that they'll end up in power in damascus. >> the delay in deciding on military action has brought the syrian government time. some syrians joined what they call a human shield campaign to protect important facilities in the capital. the opposition says the government is using civilians as shields. they say military assets and loyalist forces have been moved to residential areas. this led some to question the effectiveness of taking out military targets, especially since the army has been changing its tactics. >> for a long time they have been adapting to the resistance

doctrine. the united states - if they bomb a fixed facility, they can bomb it. it will not be a major impact on them. >> the syrian army is not fighting a conventional war. commanders are increasingly relying on paramilitary groups known as the national defence forces, and they could play a greater role if army positions are targeted. the syrian opposition is not just demanding limited strikes against the regime. they want military action to topple it. the obama administration has been seeking congressional approval for what it says will be limited action, limited or not, for now what is clear is washington will not use combat troops on the ground. the u.s. doesn't want to get involved in syria's civil war. taking out military targets may rebalance the military situation in the opposition's favour, in turn leading to a political

solution. >> now we go live to our reporter to talk about this. from the people you talked to on the ground in syria, tell us how syrian citizens are feeling about a strike in the first place? >> well, it depends who you talk to, those in regime controlled territories. they are afraid because a lot of military targets are in residential neighbourhoods. the people don't necessarily support the regime, some fear the alternative on the ground - a fractured opposition. those on the ground - many welcome the possibility of u.s. strikes, hoping that it would end the war and topple topple the regime, others fear it won't end the war and the government will step up the campaign against them. we are talking about the armed fighters on the ground, not a unified force.

the supreme council welcome the fight. they have plans in face, if the regime's defences are weak, they'll take advantage of the situation. other groups, like the syrian islamic front. it's an um brela group for a number of forces. many question the wests' intentions and others say that they believe this will be an aggression and are calling on fighters to confront the usa saying it's a play for the united states to seek dominance over syria, and the al qaeda-linked groups who fear they are the real targets. >> can you tell us about movements on the rebel and government side in anticipation of these attacks, these strikes? >> well, yes, we know the government has taken precautionary measures, they are moving their assets to residential neighbourhoods, making sure - the artillery is being hidden in residential

neighbourhoods. the regime is playing a card, telling the world, "if us or al qaeda", and clearly this was debated in the u.s. congress, the u.s. secretary of state talked about the good guys and the bad guys. the regime banking on this, on the fact that the armed opposition is not a unit force on the ground, and maybe this is why the west is scared to topple the regime altogether. the rebels, for their part. those are doing their best to exploit the situation if the regime is weakened, and, of course, al-qaeda-linked groups, we understand from people on the ground they have moved out of their barracks, and basically going almost underground, a low profile to avoid being targeted, because there is a lot of talk and fear in northern syria, particularly that they will be targeted as well. >> thank you zana. to other news, pakistan - the

government says it will release seven taliban prisoners in order to facilitate peace talks with afghanistan. 26 prisoners were freed last year. we will talk about this. our correspondent in karachi. >> according to the foreign officer seven prisoners, and key amongst them is the brother of a taliban commander, killed seven years ago and was one of the important leaders of the taliban. now, the foreign ministery is not making it clear whether the process is still on the way. it would bring the total number of taliban prisoners released - and this is all happening two weeks after president hamid

karzai along with the peace council members, in islamabad - there was a break through in talks after pakistan agreed to release key taliban leaders in its custody and facilitate peace talks. >> that update on the release of taliban prisoners in pakistan. >> voting under way in australia's general election, opposition leader tony abbott is widely expected to become the next prime minister. according to the opinion polls it looks like he'll beat kevin rudd and the labor party. we start with andrew thomas, with more on tony abbott's constituency. >> in australia many voting stations like this in a surf life saving club back from the beach. i'm in northern sydney, tony abbott's constituency. this building is a surf life saving club but has been turned into a voting station.

there has been a steady line of people lining up. tony abbott among the first, voting as soon as polls opened local time in australia. all the predictions are that tony abbott is on track for a win and a big win at that. that, of course, would mean defeat for the existing prime minister, labor's kevin rudd. his party is feeling disarray. they've had two changes of leadership. he was originally prime minister and was overthrown by julia gillard, who became the first ever female prime minister in australia. but the labor party in turn got rid of her when it looked like she would lose, and lose badly in the upcoming election and they returned to kevin rudd. it doesn't seem to have been enough. on policy issues, kevin rudd's party seems not to have performed. there's concerns about autonomy, but it's strong by international standards. there's concerns that a boom in the mining industry may be over, and there's concerns about the

number of people coming to beat by refugee. tony abbott has a tough policy towards asylum seeker, helping him get over the line. he looks on track for a big victory later on saturday. >> and from sydney we go to brisbane, peter gr ester is at kevin rudd's campaign headquarters, the gabba. >> i'm looking at reports saying kevin rudd may lose his open seat. this was always going to be an uphill battle with little time in the election lead-up. >> yes, that's right. i think andrew explained it quite well, that the fact of the leadership change, the challenge that kevin rudd gave back in june this year to win back the control of the labor party , and lead his party to the elections always discredited him. a lot felt it was a cynical

move, badly time. he didn't have a lot of time to prepare for the election. he felt he had the momentum, which is why he called the election earlier than he needed. this is still an election that he looks like not only he might lose control of the government, but his own seat. we are in the electorate a little earlier, and speaking to a number of people. i was struck by how many people said that they had changed their attitude. they felt that kevin rudd had been in control of the labor party , the labor party had been in control for six years and it was a time for change. we'll need to watch closely how the senate elections turn out, the upper house. that will tell us a lot about the reasons people caping change. if there is a clear swing in the lower and upper house it suggests that the liberals have the confidence the people. if, however, we see the upper house dominated by smaller

parties, it suggests people are voting for the liberal party reluctantly and we could see a host

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jazeera. u.s. secretary of state john kerry in lithuania where foreign ministers are meeting from eu. trying to gather support after the g20 summit in russia. >> the pakistani people will release taliban prisoners. 26 were released last year. it's two weeks after president karzai visited to discuss the situation. >> tony abbott widely expected to become the next prime minister in australia. according to opinion polls he's beat the current prime minister kevin rudd and his labor party. >> in egypt three have been killed in violent protests. rallies were held on friday, some defying a night-time curfew. more on that story from our correspondent in egypt, who we are not naming for security reasons. >> thousands took to the streets

protesting against a military coup against morsi. >> translation: i hate the killing and injustice we are suffering from. >> translation: it's a military coup. i'm against the military, it's been 66 years, we are going to get rid of them. >> translation: i'm participating because our brothers were killed and they toppled a legitimate president after he was sworn in. . >> i'm coming here to demand our electoral rights, restore our president. >> many of the marchers want mohammed morsi back. the biggest demonstrations are usually on friday. the numbers are thinning out. the muslim brotherhood is under pressure, with top leaders in gaol or on the run.

still, around 1,000 people gathered in giza and on the other side of the cairo a few other rallied in a district where security forces cleared out a sit-in by the anti-coup alliance last month. in alexandria self-styled coup protesters fought with people who lived in the area. both sides threw rocks at each other. there was similar violence in the niger delta. investigations condition into the assassination attempt on the interior minister. the vehicle was stolen six months ago. >> some of the protests carried on beyond the curfew. dozens were arrested. people keep marching. not even the crack down by

muslim brotherhood and other groups can keep their supporters off the street. >> in pakistan, thousands taped anti-u.s. ralies in islamabad. it was organised to mark the defence day on pakistan in which it claims its forces repelled a 1966 attack by india. >> an planned visit of an issuinge issuinge issuinge issuingest -- issuingest ra is to go ahead. holding the concert legitimises new delhi's rule. it is against a backdrop in an upsurge in violence in the region. >> there have been protests in indonesia against the miss world contest. the beauty pageant is occurring

in bali. some are calling for it to be cancelled. >> public anger at the local organiser of the miss world. hundreds of people gathered outside the jakarta offices of a television company due to broadcast the contest exclusively. sending a clear message to the company's owner. >> translation: our main purpose is to protest against the local organise are of miss world to ask him to stop the event as it vialates the constitution, religion and law. >> more than 85% of people in indonesia are muslim. the contest in bali is on a hindu-buddhist island reliant on tourism. >> hello, i'm from chinese typi, taiwan. >> tourism will get a boost from a high-profile international event. >> organisers made recessions,

replacing one of the best-known category, a bikini round with a sarong. there are 130 women competing for the miss world title, including one from indonesia. the opening ceremony is on sunday and despite the opposition organisers say the show will go on. >> later on saturday, the international olympic committee will announce which city will host the summers games in the year 2020. we have our correspondents in all candidate cities. we have lee in madrid. we go to turkey, and istanbul. but we start with tokyo. >> if tokyo wins, this is where the 2020 summer olympics will be centred, the national stadium. the arena for the 1964 gamesment the olympics will mark japan's

recovery from a defeet in world war ii. now it's an advanced nation. that and tokyo's experience and reputation for safety makes it the favourite. it is said it's overshadowed by what is happening 200km away. the nuclear crisis at the fukushima daiichi plant. damaged by an earthquake and tsunami in 2007. the plant is unstable. the prime minister gave ashurps that the situation will be under control by 2020. the japanese government says holding the olympics in tokyo will help to inspire the world. >> if turkey wins, it will be the first country with a muslim majority to host the olympics. it has been investing in it. this stadium was built 11 years ago and could be the centre.

turkish government is proposing to invest more than $19 billion for the olympics and it is higher than what tokyo and others proposed. there are many challenges and issues to overcome for istanbul, is the traffic. another concern is the doping scandal which erupted this year, and, of course, the war in neighbouring syria. turkish government is trying to convince boaters that it's not a security threat since the boarder is more than 1,000km away frommist yist am bull. there is a lot to offer, but many changes to overcome. >> this is the first time that madrid bid for a game.

they feel that 2020 is their time. despite being outsiders. the reason they've been outsiders is an obviously one. the financial problems that had an affect in madrid and spain. people are wondering how they can afford to bid, let alone see through and stage a game. they took existing venues and take the most. 27 out of 36 venues exist. whether it's the stadium tore the tennis or the basketball arena, it's there. that impressed people at the ioc. madrid came in and made up ground on the other two potential hosts. the thing they want no madrid is the barcelona effect from 1992. the only spanish city to have hosted the games. it transforms the reputation of barcelona. can it do the same for madrid. >> opposition politicians in italy occupied the roof of the lower chamber. a group from the

anti-establishment 5-star movement is protesting fast-tracking the constitution. it calls for the appointment of a special commission to consider legislation. under present law reforms have to be voted through in the senate and the lower chambers. >> we'll find out from venice who will win the foreign lion. two french movies. there is three tales of adoption. we have more. >> lights, camera, as for the action give it a few hours. venice's red carr bet is about -- carpet is about to be well worn. who will take the golden lion. how about 'philomena' a woman forced to give up. it's a british movie as is

'under the skin' the tale of an alien on a roadtrip through scotland, kidnapping people and sending them home to turn into food. >> it may bet the british battling the french. there's a french movie, a monochrome. it is in with a serious chance of winning the golden lion. the competition described as the toughest in many years, not necessarily the best. that from a man who covered the festival every year for half his life. >> it's not how it was in the '80s, and '70s. there is less international appeal for - especially for the most important productions. >> this could come first. a tale of of an unemployed man who craftily takes on other

people's jobs to take the top prize. when in rome, do as the romans do. when in venice, hope for the best. that's what italians are doing. this host nation has 22 movies considered among the four main categories. >> so the movies have been screened, juries have retired to consider their verdict. in all probability, it's been reached already. as for the crew and the stars, and directors, they'll have to wait a little longer to find out how this one ends. >> thousands of germans gathered in berlin's stadium to witness the opening display of the annual fireworks festival. three international attempts unleashed hundreds of fireworks into the night sky. some to the tune of famous pieces of classical music.

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