this is al jazeera ♪ welcome to the news hour, i'm live in doha and the top stories on al jazeera, as tens of thousands escape the violence in south sudan signs of a cease fire agreement could be close. and india diplomate with washington is allowed to leave the u.s. also this hour tunisia's prime minister makes way for a figure or will it go or will it

deadlock. ♪ and we meet the winner of one of classical musics best. ♪ mediators are optimistic that a cease fire will happen soon and inside south sudan 200,000 people are forced from their homes because of the fights and in a moment we will hear from malcolm webb who is in, uganda where thousands of people have left and we are at a camp for displaced people and tell us about the security situation in the state where you are and who is in control.

>> well, the government says it's out of control and the big bone of contention is the capitol of the state which is bent ooshgs -- bentoo from the rebels who hold the town and effected by a lot of violence and we drove around on thursday and saw homes and a couple dead bodies on the road and dogs eating decomposing bodies and an oil field that is destroyed and people are concerned about the structure and humanitarian crisis here. >> reporter: tell us more about the humanitarian crisis there and what is the condition of the people who have been internally displace displaced? >> it's becoming more and more complicated and maybe even spreads and more people will be

displaced and we have those at the u.n. bases for safety and the bases are packed and full and the u.n. is going after people who need food, water and security and people who could not get there have make-shift camps in the bush and it's dangerous to use some of the roads and some are injured and some need food and some need water and they go back to the villages but when they get there there is no accommodation or food and crops have been destroyed during the fighting and they are desperate and then we have folks who cannot stay in the country and try to get out of the country and, malcolm webb has this from uganda. >> the children run for their lives, they are already traumatized and now they lost their parents. they are among tens of thousands of refugees who fled flighting

in south sudan and have reached this holding center at the border with uganda and now are waiting for help. she has to hide in the bush for three days. she says she stepped over more dead bodies than she could count. >> translator: when we crossed the river, m so people drown and i got separated from any son and i don't know where he is or if he is alive. >> reporter: trucks come to take them to a camp. and the other children are hoping to find food and shelter. they are all taken to the reception center of a long-term refugee center and people brought whatever possessions they could carry when they fled and mostly mattresses and pans but couldn't bring much because they traveled for hundreds of kilometers on the backs of trucks and used bed sheets and blankets to keep the sun off because it's hot and dry and dusty here and people are cooking what food they have left

but waiting for aid agencies to bring more supplies and the number of people here is just going up everyday. aid workers struggle to register all the arrivals and over 20,000 people have come here in resent weeks and it's over run. >> the numbers are great and the need is huge as you look around and so many children coming without parents and so many elderly and basically we need all the support and assistance we can get. >> reporter: at the nearby health center he needs assistance more than most and shot by soldiers and robbed. >> i don't know why they shot me and shoot me and take my papers and took my money in my pocket and go. >> reporter: he is waiting to be taken to a hospital for surgery. and like many here he blames the leaders for making civilians suffer as they struggle for power and meanwhile they look

for a space to wait for registration and sit in the shade of a tree. they will probably sleep here for days before it's their turn and after that they will be given food and plots of land to start farming and it's tough but it's what the people want for now. they don't seem to expect peace at home any time soon. malcolm webb al jazeera in northern, uganda. >> reporter: both sides are together in ethiopia and working on a cease fire agreement and we are told the sides could be close to a deal and let's go to al jazeera who is covering the talks and mohamed it took time for the to sides to sit down and talk and they are now talking and signs of some progress. >> yes, indeed, it's been very slow progress here and mediators are telling us now they have a draft agreement or a cease fire

related to both sides and now negotiators from both end are locked up in different rooms in this hotel, the sheridan behind me and this is where that is to see if they have any objections to any of the clauses that are included on this agreement. that is so far only about how to get a cease fire and also the rules of procedure in the way the two sides agree to conduct themselves on other talks. once they are done with those officials on their own they are going to come into a session later today where they are going to have face-to-face talks and where they are going to raise any objections or concerns. if there are not any there will be an agreement. if there are then we should brace ourselves for even more process here. >> reporter: mohamed is there really a reason for optimism, will the talks solve the under lying problems in south sudan,

the ethnic tensions in south sudan? >> well, everybody fully understands that there is no quick fix to the conflict in south sudan and also there is no military solution and that is why most people are hinging their hopes on the talks that are going on. however after that is said an agreement on a cease fire alone might not be enough to resolve the problems that are there. even after the cease fire agreement is signed there will be the challenging part where the political issues will be discussed, what really caused this conflict. and that is where the real challenge lies for the mediators. but as diplomas who live here tell us the conflict in south sudan has done a lot of damage and it has brought ethnic fault

lines in south sudan and a long time and not only from the leadership of south sudan but also south sudan's laborers and international community painting a rosy picture of the country and development for a long time and it will be a long time before things go back normal. >> thank you very much mohamed and that is mohamed reporting live. meanwhile in neighboring central african republic the country is facing violence and displaced hundreds of thousands of people and a regional summit being held to discuss the crisis and he is under pressure to resign. and blamed for failing to stop fighting between muslim and christian malitia and we will go live to barnabie phillips and i understand you are at the site of a hospital where there was an alleged massacre a month or so

ago and it was closed and reopen and what is it like there, what is the situation? >> well, in some ways the situation in this particular hospital is better. it really was horrific what happened in december and they went in the building behind me, pulled out the injured, the sick and massacred them in the car park where i'm standing. after that the hospital naturally closed down completely. everyone was too afraid to come here and work. we now have african union peace keepers and soldiers guarding the perimeter and the hospital is beginning to get up and running with some 50, 60 or maybe 70 sick and wounded people who have come in here today, so that is a good sign. we have also met the director, this is quite an interesting story, he is a muslim and he has to come into this predominately christian neighborhood every

single day and given an ambulance in order to make that journey safe but that can be a life and death decision and that is the scale of the tragedy in bongi, the sectarian tension is meaning that neighborhoods are more and more isolated from each other along religious lines and that simple decision of whether to go to work or not and whether to go and get food or not, the daily necessities are very dangerous and important decisions that individuals have to assess on each morning. >> reporter: what about the general mood on the streets there and are people optimistic at all that they could be a breakthrough in the capitol on how to end this crisis? >> well, they are certainly following the talks in chad extremely closely. i'm not sure i would use the word optimism, there is quite a lot of tension. this particular neighborhood is called foo and on our way in here it's a mainly christian neighborhood and antibalica

malitia men who blocked some of the roads and checking traffic going in and out and crowds holding up banners demanding the resignation of the president saying that he must step down today. they expected the conclusion, the outcome of the talks to be one of a replacement of their head of state. they may well be right. they may well get their wish, but that is only one faction or one part of car society and also raises the question of how people in this neighborhood would respond if the talks do not conclude in the way in which they had been hoping so it's very much like that here. >> reporter: thank you very much for the update and that is al jazeera barnabie phillips live in bongi. an indian diplomate at the center of a dispute with the united states is granted diplomatic unity and on her way

back to india and devyani khobragade was searched and had criminal charges after obtaining a work visa for a housekeeper and making false statements and she denies the allegations and we have more from new deli. >> this represents some of the greatest diplomatic tension between india and the united states in recent years. the indian government responded strongly to arrest and detention of the official in new york city and has done everything from remove security barriers outside the american embassy to call on the embassy to cease commercial activities there. these groups have been welcome by people across india who want the government to show a strong stance, a commitment to helping and supporting the official at the center of this diplomatic world. however, even as these measures have been rolled out and restrictions pupt in place, senior ministers in the government hope this incident

will not permanently damage or impact new deli's relationship with washington which traditionally has been very warm and cordial. >> reporter: political islam in bangladesh and we visit where they reject secular education. why are dolls hanging from the trees in mexico, a tale of morbid fascination is coming up, and the pairs are fine tuning their games on the first opening grand slam of the season and details later. ♪ dozens of opposition fighters in syria are ambushed and killed by government forces near homes and they were trying to go to the siege areas and the valuability

of food is scarce in many places and at least 37 people were killed. there has been more violence in cities across iraq, in samara two members of the awakening council have been killed in a bomb and a car bomb killed at least one person and northern baghdad bomb man attacked a military vehicle killing everyone inside and they sent more soldiers to the province after the special headquarters there were attacked. the industry minister is expected to be sworn in as the head of a caretaker government and he resigned on thursday. the change is part of a deal between the ruling coalition and the opposition. and the first democratically elected government came to pour after the revolution three years ago and we are have the international spokeswoman for the party and is live from

london and thank you for being on al jazeera. and they say tunisia has broken ground with the deal with the secular old guardian it has been difficult and many divisions persist. do you think this agreement will end the crisis in your country? >> indeed, they expect the deep revolution theory not to be easy but the transition has been conducted with the spirit of trying to reach consensus as you had mentioned there was a coalition government bringing together islam and secularist who work together and manage the transition and draft a new constitution. i agree, i believe that the political parties and the coalition government and opposition and civil society have worked together to reach this agreement to -- for us to

see this peaceful part of power for the first time in our region. >> reporter: yes, this will set a good example i imagine is what you are trying to say for the rest of the reason. why did your party opt for compromise in the end? after all never came to power democratically and did you fear you would suffer the same as the muslim brotherhood at the fall of mohamed morsi and the crack down of that, is that why you opted to compromise in the end? >> and it was compromised many times within the last two years and by resigning willingly, making this choice even though enough of us has 41.5% of seats in the assembly and it's the block in the assembly that has not lost all the members and all other blocks have reduced them behalf of them and controls a majority in parliament and made

this choice to safeguard the transition to democracy and an independent government that does not represent any party and represents national consensus to take over and manage the remaining monks and free elections that will establish permanent and stable institutions and that objective is so important that the sacrifice is worth paying. >> reporter: elections are due sometime this year but it's not just about the political grievances, there are also economic grievances and people complained about unemployment, increased taxes and economic progress has not been achieved in your country. do you believe the new administration will be able to address these issues and how do you address these issues? >> i'd like to make the point that although obviously there are still problems in tunisia

because of decades of corruption and miss management it's important to note when the government, the coalition government took over two years ago the currency was dangerously down and the economy shrunk by 2.2% and it was out of control and tourism had been very effected and two years later we have seen foreign investment has increased and foreign reserves has increased and economy has grown by 3% and unemployment is reduced by 4% and we are on our way to tackling the problem and long-term problem and there for the new government which we hope that the government will continue on making progress on this very important front. >> reporter: indeed because there is a lot of discontinue tents from tunisia and thank you for speaking to us and she is from the united party live from london. the lead u.s. negotiator for

proposed security agreement with afghanistan will not go through before a deadline and james cumming ham did not think that kabul will agree to anything before a presidential election and karzai refused to sign the agreement because he says it under mines the afghan's position and without a deal the u.s. will be forced to with draw troops later this year. in a separate blow to u.s./afghan relations afghan is releasing taliban fighters and the united states say they have been involved on attacks on international troops and afghanistan says there is no proof of this and jordan has more from washington. >> the obama administration has been asking the karzai government for a month not to release any of the detainees who are thought to be members of the taliban. the obama administration's view is very simple, these men are dangerous and better off behind bars. this is the state department

spokesperson jen. >> it will come out from dod, a statement but i will reiterate some views from here, we expressed concerns over the possible release of detainees without their cases being refers to the afghan criminal justice system and seen reports as you noted that president karzai has release of the detainees under view and 72 are dangerous criminals against whom there is strong evidence linking them to crimes and the largest killer of civilians. these insurgents are being released without an investigation and without the use of criminal justice system in accordance with afghan law. >> reporter: the pentagon is also expected to comment on this apparent decision from the karzai government to release 72 of 88 men suspected taliban members from the prison. however they also have a main

concern that releasing these men without having them go through the court system is under mining, afghanistan's attempt to impose rule of law in their country. >> time for a look at the world weather with evenerton and we start with south asai. >> we have unsettled weather in south asia at the moment and pieces of cloud and rain in the northeast of india pushing to bangladesh and further south there are showers making their way across that and columbus saw heavy rain and 58 millimeters of rain in 24 hours and more rain where that came from and through the weekend it will be disturbed and not bad across much of india and we have showers along here. just notice a little cloud there and some snow coming through here. and no surprises here. and showers will make their way in shrelanka through sunday and dry skies to the northeast and

cool across northern parts of india and ul 18 celsius with mist and fog. and you will notice at the moment going through the next couple days the clouds and rain will sink further south and we may see heavy rains making our way through saturday. the heaviest rain is north and goes ayos southern parts of saudi arabia and we see big downpours over the next couple days and as much as 60 or 70 millimeters of rain early. >> thank you very much indeed. now with a controversial war crimes tribunal and the rise of the hard line group in islam in the past year they have seen political islam become a heated topic in bangladesh and we take a look at the religious course that form the backbone of this movement. >> it's a holiday for these boys and are still in school. they don't have anywhere to go

and are orphans and the school has the backbone of a movement in islam which staged massive protests this year and they want separate education for men and women and the death penalty for blasphamy and it spread rapidly and estimated there are 15,000 of them teaching 4 million students across bangladesh and are orphans or have parents who cannot afford to support them. >> translator: there is a real shortage of care for the children from government institutions and others. when it comes to taking care of the poorest children they do more than anyone else. >> don't charge tuition feeds and feed and house their students for free and costs thousands of dollars a month and where is the money coming from to fund extremism, all the money comes from public donations. >> reporter: loudspeakers are

chanting we want atheists to be hanged. and students collect the skins of slaughtered animals to sell for money. students from government-related do the same, the two groups don't get along. >> they have the same value of getting a degree from a state or private university and students can't get jobs anywhere except in the quami itself. >> reporter: they want to regulate and don't teach math beyond primary level and say it's not necessary. >> it's not our aim that we achieve everything in this world. we will do what we have to in order to get buy in this world but our main target is to have a blessed after life. >> reporter: the principal says it's all part of a smear campaign by the government so it can gain control. >> we want the government to leave us alone to do our work our way and if they want to force us under their control, i think we are strong enough now to resist.

>> reporter: the government has cracked down on previous protests killing many students and teachers and it's expected there will be an impact on the medrass and the impact of students and i'm with al jazeera. >> reporter: now, i imagine winning a $300,000 prize when you didn't even know you were in a competition, that just happened to a pianist and she has been to meet the latest went ner of the gilmore artist award. ♪ and he burst on the international music scene after winning the piano competition and the 28-year-old never saw his most resent honor coming. >> i was very lucky. i was sitting. because i did not expect this

ever, you know. it's such a big surprise for me and great day. >> would you kindly welcome to 2014 gilmore artist award. >> reporter: it's only presented every four years. ♪ the $300,000 prize goes to an artist the judges believe can sustain a care rear as a major concert pianist, a panel of judges travel the world secretly attending concerts and scouting the next winner. >> it's not just a snapshot. it's a real sense of who they are and what they are and how they react to different kinds of music and different audiences and with a pianist with different instruments. >> buying a new piano and taking time to practice they can use the cash prize however he sees fit to advance his career.

♪ he has not decided how he will spend his prize money just yet but the man who as a boy was inspired to perform after hearing a church organ now knows he earns the stage. i'm in new york. >> reporter: indonesia has a healthcare scheme and coping with a number of patients, that story is coming up, on the news hour. plus. [chanting] anger from fans in france as a controversial comedian is ban from stage and they give the champions the miami heat a run for their money. do stay with us. ♪

and in those cases where formal education isn't feasible because of the s

♪ welcome back, you are watching the news hour on al jazeera and reminder of the top stories now, mediators from south sudan war side are optimistic a cease fire agreement will be signed soon and they have been holding talks with the government in ethiopia and more than 200,000 people have been forced from their homes because of fighting. the lead u.s. negotiator for security agreement with afghanistan says it's unlikely to go through and karzai says it under mines the position and without a deal the u.s. will be forced to withdraw troops later this year. the diplomate at the center of a dispute with the united states is granted immunity and on her

way back to india and devyani khobragade was arrested last month sparking an out cry in india. the top story of the crisis in south sudan, hundreds of thousands of people have been escaping to neighboring country after fleeing the violence and at least 5,000 of them are in kenya and al jazeera is joining us from the camp in kenya and tell us about the situation of the people there at the camp and what sort of help they are getting. >> well, i'm here at the refugee camp, one of the largest refugee camps in kenya and there are more than 120,000 people here from south sudan and somalia and ethiopia but this was set newspaper the 1990s to take in the influx of south sudan people fleeing the war, the civil war between the south and the north. this is one of the saddest

aspects of being here today because many of those south sudaneese who are here after the 2005 peace agreement between the north and south were supposed to go back and also that 2011 independence referendum but what we are seeing is we are seeing them return here once again. many people telling me they had to walk two to three days to get here. many tells us this was a fight between poll tig -- politicians they are paying the price for and when it began we saw 100 cross ing from south sudan and kenya and there are 6,000 new arrivals from south sudan and kenya in the camp since the conflict began. >> reporter: what sort of challenges are they facing the refugees once they arrive at the camp? >> there are many challenges. to begin with the majority of the people here are women and children. they are facing huge challenges,

unlike for example the influx of refugees going into uganda and the settlement there. this area is dusty as you can probably see around me and they are unable to plant their own food here for example like uganda and entirely dependent on handouts and food given to them by the wfp and it's of mixed stripe and you have people from dinka and the same competing tribes and the rival, the former deputy, huge concerns about potential tension and confrontations between them here in the camp. we have not seen that until now but kenya authorities are telling me it's a primary concern and keeping a close eye on because they could be dealing with a very challenging security situation. the more the numbers come here occur the more pressure it will be on unhgr to provide shelter and sanitation. >> reporter: thank you very

much and this is a view at the refugee camp in kenya. french troops are expected to fly home next month and french intervened after lous year to help fight rebels threatening the capitol and french president says the situation is now well in hand and many in mali are still struggling to cope. >> it's almost been a year since french troops arrived in mali with strongholds and restore order and it began when people began pouring into central mali and leading to the once stable that nation's crisis in decades and the president now says he will greatly reduce the number of troops on the ground. >> translator: we are in the process of completing our mission in mali, the numbers will diminish from 2500 to 1600 in the middle of february and decline to a thousand which is

the necessary number to make sure there is no resurgance. >> reporter: and despite saying the mission is coming to an end mali faces serious problems and reports that fighters are regrouping and they long fought for autonomy saying france is not welcome. >> translator: what i see is negative is the return of mali under the french influence no matter what the excuse is and it's talking about practices that are not part of al-qaeda and i don't think reports of al-qaeda leaving the area is not tree and he has not left, he is just keeping out of site. >> reporter: the french and malians means stabilizing the country may be under minded and he says no amount of troops will quell the fight for independence. >> no foreign forces have success and even if they manage to stay for 1, 2, 5 or 6 years,

i do not expect any success to any force coming here, trying to control the area without coordination with the local people. >> reporter: before the troubles began mali was one of africa's fastest growing economy and the recovery remains fragile. >> they are talking about refusals about asylum seekers and said the nav's boat was intercepted at an island to darwin to indonesia. >> they want it stopped and that is my determination to stop the boats and if stopping the boats means being criticized because i'm not giving information that is of use to smugglers so be it. in the end we are in a fierce

contest with these people, smugglers and if we were at war we wouldn't be giving out information that is of use to the enemy. >> reporter: the government says that in 2013 there were 300 suspected illegal entry vessels carrying over 20,000 maritime arrivals. indonesia is signing up for the first country's universal healthcare and it's available to 120 million people and will eventually provide coverage for more than 230 million in the next five years. the huge numbers are putting unprecedented pressure on hospitals and we report from dacata. >> if he was born one week earlier his parents would have faced serious financial problems, the baby started suffering from jaundice and needs expensive photo therapy but since he was born after january 1st his healthcare costs are covered by the government,

much to the relief of his father who doesn't earn much as a porridge seller. >> translator: i got a card and money refunded and extremely happy that poor people like me are assisted in this way. >> reporter: since the launch on january 1st across indonesia thousands are signing up for the national healthcare plan everyday. for many it's a chance to findly get a long-awaited treatment but many others are still confused and blame the government for not informing them properly about the national healthcare scheme. hospitals are overloaded with patients and many asking questions about the new health guardian he has declared with the new scheme not a single patient will be refused medical care anymore, a common practice in indonesia but mohamed still was sent home. >> my father had breathing

problems and he was diagnosed with liquid in his lungs and he was sent home because there was no more space for him. since then he has got worse. >> reporter: lack of doctors and hospital capacity are one of the main concerns of the new scheme but also the low premiums the government is paying per patient are a major worry. >> translator: there is a huge risk because the hospitals are not allowed to refuse patients and limited funds to treat them so the quality of the service to the patients will suffer. >> reporter: doctors say the government should pay at least $5 per person per month, three times the amount that it's paying now. the president has announced that the government is willing to revise the policy. and despite the euphoria of the healthcare scheme it's clear it will take months, maybe years to run smoothly, i'm with al jazeera. >> reporter: there is a new warning that france's national debt is in the quote danger zone

are the words of the head of a public audit office and the debt is an estimated 93% of economic out put and up from 90% a year ago. and france's top court band a nationwide tour of a person accused of anti-semitism and this is where a comedian was set to appear on stage. this was the moment when fans discovered the show would not go on. there was disappointment and frustration. some people had traveled hundreds of kilometers to see the comedian who was strong and conflicting emotions. >> translator: i've come here to watch someone that makes me laf and i'm not racist or anti-semantic no matter what the media wants to believe. >> translator: we are all well behaved and there will be no trouble tonight as they are expecting. in fact, it is them who are

causing the trouble. >> reporter: and it ranged for days over whether the performance should be allowed to take place. first the local council banded and a court ruled it could go ahead but that decision was overturned at the last-minute. and there is talk by a french comedian and attracted so much attention but with the latest ruling by the state council it looks like for now at least the curtain has come down. and he has been convicted several times of anti-semitism and insighting racial hatred but he is an antiestablishment figure exercising right to free speech and making people laugh at the same time. the case has received international attention through the french football and here he is making the so-called canal

salute, the trademark sign here. it's been linked to the nazi salute. they are surprised at the decision to cancel the show is understandable. for courts to order this kind of gagging order and so swiftly is unusual. the case raises important questions about the limits of free speech in france and jackie roland al jazeera. >> reporter: castro has a surprise public appearance and state television showed him at the opening of an art center in havana, the 87-year-old was seen in public 9 months ago and rarely leaves his private villa and he handed power to his brother raul six years ago. still ahead on the news hour, the brazil breathtaking view but for the wrong reasons, polluted water is causing a stench ahead of the olympics and in sports

there is a goal stopper rather than goal scorer for madrid and that is coming up, your way in just a few minutes. do stay with us. ♪ >> every sunday night al jazeera america prese

♪ welcome back. fears of recreation marijuana exceeded $5 million in the state of colorado in just one week. the shops opened legally for the first time on new year's day and many stores say they are sold out of a drug which is available to anyone age 21 or older. now to brazil which is faces unwelcome attention because of water pollution in rio, the bay is too dirty for sports and we report. >> rio is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. and yet if jesus christ could from ice iconic vantage point would hold his nose overlooking the bay, it's an unbearable stench and debris and takes your

breast away the wrong way. what you see here is one of hundreds of rio's open storage canals. in this dark, putrid water you can literally see the waste from people's toilets floating by and goes straight in the city's only bay. a bay some brazilian biologists described as an latreene where sailing events are due to be held in just two years. under fire for dragging their feet on commitments to cleanup before the games they took us for a spin around the bay on one of their ten new floating rubbish collectors. >> what is it designed to stop? >> all kinds of garbage that floats. and this is parts of the

furniture et cetera. >> reporter: authorities are also installing 18 barriers to stop rubbish from reaching the bay but in the city of more than 6 million where 30% of storage is treated it seems like little more than a band-aid. nearby where olympic rowing events are scheduled the water is too polluted for swimming. >> our main concern is always to help the athletes. >> reporter: i asked the olympic organizing committee spokesman what is plan b if they cannot guaranty sanitary condition for athletes at the current venues. >> plan b and c and d is to do a sailing competition at the bay. in an event like in the only option you have is always the best option, we need to clean the water. >> reporter: it has been real for decades and yet the eyes of the world soon to be glued on

the city optimists believe authorities will finally be pushed or shamed into taking action before the olympic torch arrives. and i'm with al jazeera rio. >> reporter: mexico is known for its architectural wonders built by ancient civilizations and recently a sort of attraction is drawing in tourists and we have the story. >> the canals are one of the biggest tourist attractions in mexico city. a welcome escape from the concrete and high rises where people can enjoy beautiful canals once used by the aztecs and the water holds stories and that is true on the island of the dolls and looks like a scene from a horror movie and hundreds of dolls strung up and hanging from trees. and his uncle started collecting

these dolls 50 years ago after he found the body of a young girl who drowned on these shores. >> translator: he found the dolls in the canals and in the trash. he started hanging them up to protect him and to try to scare away the spirit of the girl. >> reporter: now, every year more and more tourists with a morbid curiosity visit the island and people like linda. >> translator: in mexican culture there are a lot of leg ends about dolls and people believe they can trap people's spirits and stop them from harming anyone. >> reporter: some of these dolls come from columbia, australia and russia and brought by visitors all over the world. this is not the only frightening folktale that is here. the most famous legend about the

weeping woman about a story of a woman who drowns her children instead of going to the concurers. it has a long history dating back to the 10st century and 17 communities and all of them have legends and one legend about men turning into animals. >> reporter: the island of the dolls is definitely not an ancient attraction but it's probably one of the most bizarre. and it's proof the mystery which has surrounded the canals is very much alive today. and i'm with al jazeera mexico city. >> reporter: creepy looking dolls and we have sport. >> thank you very much. the drop of the australia open was held earlier on friday at the year's first tennis grand slam and they welcome back madal and the event after his seven-month injury lay off and the first round match will be tough and half of the draw and

three-time defending champion is for the fourth title here and will face in the first round. the bottom half of the draw is three seed who takes on gonzales of columbia. and the women's side, top seed and five-time champion williams opens up against teenager ashley and two-time defending champion sharipova are on the opposite half and could only meet williams in the final as they face larson of sweden in the first around and take on american. the six-time grand slam champion attended the draw and says the opening matches will be tough. >> first round of events and the best on a given day and anybody can beat anybody and there is a reason she is ranked one and the

other around 50 but on a good day surprises happen in tennis, nobody wins guaranty, nobody wins for sure. but this match is going to be hyped up for all of you guys, i understand that. i would be the first one to watch it as well. >> reporter: number five is into the final of the city international to lead the event to the australian open and the four seed in straight sets in 64 minutes and he will face defending champion. in the women's draw, ranked 108 in the world and second seed in the semi finals and won 6-4-6-3 and the one to reach the tournament and he opponent will be german. and the world's most expensive

returned to madrid's starting line up and won the first leg of this 16-2-0. >> apart from playing in the champion's league he was making a first appearance for the year and keeping out the efforts. and supporters have seen plenty this season and they gave the host the lead of the 12th goal of the campaign and he was in the starting line up after a calf injury and found out at three and the portuguese went to the keeper and they laid out the young spanish there. and they had a chance to get to

third but rinalda got in the way and madrid settled for a 2-0 first leg victory, al jazeera. >> reporter: and this is the african footballer of the year and again and comes a day after he helped to the 6-0 win in the english lead cup. and he has claimed the consideration of african football's top prize for the second straight year. >> i wasn't thinking of maybe i would lose and maybe i'm lucky today. >> reporter: just days after criticizing preparations for this year's world cup, he is now agreeing with the president that

it will be the best tournament ever. >> before the older and all the let's say people say we will not go to whatever, it will be the best ever world cup because we are in the continent which is called brazil and they are all footballers and like football. >> reporter: he has stage five of the longest stretch of the world's most dangerous and grueling race, the rally and finished four minutes ahead in his toyota and carol sands here and he slipped down over all and not the only one with car troubles and he managed to get loose and he is second overall. and he has taken the lead at the

first pga tournament of the year at the open in hawaii and south korean was 18th in the first round in ohio and despite missing it he finished with a bogie 63 and one shot and chris kirk and the american eagled the final hole and 6 under par. two time defending champion miami heat were beaten by the new york knicks and they were the fourth winner in the last regular meetings and with the league's mvp lebron james and 32 points for miami it's 102-92 and we had a star of the night with 29 points and 8 rebounds from new york. they have over taking the stanley cup champion the chicago

blackhawks at the top after winning the 7th straight game and they were faced there and he earned him his third shut out of the season and goals from five different plays gave them 5-0 win and this is the longest winning streak for over ten years. and there is more on our website and check out al jazeera forward/sport and that is it for me. >> thank you very much, thank you. now the deep freeze across north america is having a dramatic effect on niagara falls, blasts of air from the arctic caused an ice bridge to form at the tourist attraction and flash flood warnings issued because of large amounts of ice up river on the border between the united states and canada. looks pretty though and we have you next on al jazeera and i hope you stay with us and thanks

for watching. ♪ this is the 900 page document we call obama care. it could change costs coverage and pretty much all of health care in america. well, my show sorts this all out. in fact, my staff has read the entire thing. which is probably more then most members of congress can claim. we'll separate politics from policy and just prescribe the facts.

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>> and join the conversation online @ajamstream. i come out here today to apologize to the people of new jersey. >> reporter: new jersey's popular governor and presidential hopeful chris christie denies wrongdoing in a bizarre traffic scandal in his state, now a federal investigation has been launched into the alleged misconduct. a dangerous chemical spill prompts an emergency in west virginia and advising people not to drink, bathe or cook with the water. [crying] the civilians suffering in south sudan and thousands of refugees including many children desperately fleeing the violence in the country. >>