>> hello, and welcome to the news hour. i'm stephen cole in doha. syria's recognizel recognized on has days to decide to attend peace talks. in south so yo sudan, we'ree juba. >> we have news from europe, including claims in the u.k. that some minority are shutting out of the police in favor of

their own form of justice. >> and the rare glimpse at one of the world's most expensive paintings, but still no sign of the mystery owner. but first it is the huge decision for the recognized syrian opposition, should they attend peace talks. the syrian national coalition is divided on who should go and whether or not, indeed, to take a seat in the first place. at the moment we're meeting in turkey. >> there is not a debate about the seriousness of geneva and the chance of success in geneva. why do we have to go to the

geneva, is there a way to find something else? i'm sure at the end they'll make the right decision. the right decision for the people and the right decision for syria. >> many are pinning hopes on the peace talks that are planned on switzer. >> and we open all opinions unify and we're excited about it. >> but it should come from the people because the people are tired. i hope we return back to society when we lived like kings. we didn't need security. >> we're hoping today nothings that gone wrong to thanksgiving would lead us to believe it

could not happy today, a lot to put right. a lot of hasn't been put right. they haven't managed to reconcile the split. the breakaway 44 have not brought back to the fold despite rumors they might. there is a long debate about how to achieve the sort of vote that makes them look like a credible institution. there is a clause in the constitution of the syrian coalition that says they can't meet with the assad regime. what will happen is some form of meeting with the assad regime. how bind something that clause if they get rid of that clause which voting it out. they need two-thirds of the coalition to do that. do they have the numbers? rand if in the end they don't have the numbers and in the end if it's a small delegate who

wanting to, if they're the only ones voting and it's meant to be an umbrella group for all of opposition. all of this is resting very heavily on the shoulders of those delegates. they're damned if they do, they're damned if they don't. >> what are the likely consequences, repercussions for the snc if they don't go to geneva? >> it's almost uncontemplatible of them not going because the political tracks are that there is no alternative. the peace negotiation starting in switzerland, when you talk about the political actors among syrians, they'll also tell you

that a dialogue has to start one way or another. on the ground many people believe this is a fight to the death on one side and the other, and it actually be divided on the battlefield, and it can't be decided in time spent talking. can you implement it on the ground when the fighters don't agree? that's another hurdle they've got. if geneva doesn't happen no one wants to be scene to be the people who say no to peace talks. no one wants to be the party absent when all the other positives and benevolent looking actors take their seats. no matter what their ultimate objectives are, they have to be seen as a part of the process moving forward. it has cost so many lives, civilian lives people who haven't chose ton fight and they're dying anita reporting

from istanbul. the results on the ref republican of egypt's constitution will be out in an hour. the members of the more say it gives the military more power. the parliament said a yes vote would confirm it's democratic credentials. still calling for the meet release of five of al jazeera's journalists. mohamed fahmy and bader mohamm mohammed, and peter greste have been held for 21 days charged with joining terrorism. two other journalists have been held for the past five months.

the military said it defeated a rebel army in bor. the conflict in south sudan has raged for weeks between president can i and his former r deputy. i've lost count how many times bor has changed hands, and it has changed hands again. >> towns have been changing hands from one side to another, that's arguebly why it's been such a deadly conflict. they say the most deadly incidents have taken place in which both sides have tried to capture or recapture. the military of south sudan say they have control of bor, but we

have heard reports of these towns being burned to the ground with nothing left standing in it. that leaves the rebels and those aligned with the former vice president riek machar with a small stronghold, and that is the latest development. >> just to bring us up-to-date with what we're hearing reports of possible cease-fire in a few day's time. is that likely to happen? >> well, if you speak to the spokesperson of the president's spokesperson, he would say that tomorrow or max on monday, when asked what that would entail we're giving little detail other than the main stumbling blocks

that lead to a cease-fire, which are there are 11 political prisoners that should be released. that stumbling block has been removed. the government said if they agree with the rebels that will be discussed away from this current conflict, there would be negotiations. and it was also strange about that announcement there is only one front line left which as i mentioned, and the rebels have not controlled anything else as far as what the government is saying. whether they would be able to stand in other parts where there are renegade commanders who do not answer to riek machar. >> a suicide attack in a

lebanese restaurant. jane ferguson reports. >> reporter: only after sunrise was the level of damage clear. over 20 guests were enjoying dinner at this restaurant when it was attacked by the taliban. it is believed that none of them survived. >> the death toll report we have include 21 deaths, 18 foreigners. >> when the attackers approached the restaurant there were cars parked all around here as there would be on any popular restaurant. there is still blood on the streets. now the first attacker was a suicide-bomber who blew off six

steel doors, and the restaurant is just behind this wall. that's where so many people lost their lives. once inside they shot diners and staff. footage obtained by al jazeera appear to show that many tried to hide under tables before being killed. the victims were of various nationalities, four of them were u.n. staff. the u.n. hoped the restaurant was safe but no place kabul can guarantee security. >> it speaks to the fact that security is a big issue no matter how secure a place may seem, it is always going to be a big issue. >> a rare space in a time of war, the restaurant owner was well-known and liked. he was confident his business would not be targeted. >> we do not take part in any political or military activity

the avenue from this activ reves is beneficial to others. >> the vatican revealed it defrocked hundreds of priest over allegations of child abuse. why some brazilian are speeling swamped in light of crisis and we'll have the latest in sport. there are concerns in the united nations that minority communities are handling crime

investigations themselves rather than going to the police. let's get more from that from barbara in our european service. >> reporter: the question of community justice was raised in the official report and the efficiency of the police is due our next week. but in speak together "times" newspaper he said there are cities in the midlands that police never go because they are never called. they never hear any trouble because the community deals with that on their own. they have their own community justice. the police say they don't know what injustices are being perpetrated, it is a closed book. it could can be low level crime to write up to murder. we go to the head of research at the think tank which promote the integration of muslim communities in the u.k. thank you very much for joining

us. first of all, mr. windsor does not spell it out but i guess the educated guess is he is talking about ethnic communities perhaps the muslim community which we know is very big in the midlands. in light of that what do you make of his comments. >> it was strange that he chose to raise the issue on one hand and remain deliberately vague on the other hand. if we're going to be discussing this issue, often issues are brushed to the carpet or dealt with in house, if you like, community, elders or uncles or family members feel they can get involved and diffuse the situation without involving the police. at the same time it could be misleading to say that they have

their own justice system. it's not as if they have courts or mete out punishment, we have to be careful about how we describe and talk about this. >> what they're saying there are some parts in which the police are never called, not by any kind of crime. does that ring true to you? it is possible. i know when individual have gone to to try to get them back to the u.k. bring it back to the authorities. we'll commit this to the book

before it goes too far. if it's killings or murder or rape any kind of serious crime i would be surprised if those have been dealt with if in hughes, and they should have been if that's the case. >> we did ask for tom windsor to come on the program and explain some of his comments. he refused our invitation but he stood by the comments he made "the times." in light of that, are you worried, and if so, how can this be changed? how could it be that basically everyone in the u.k. refers to the police and the justice system here as their reference? >> people should certainly refer to the police. there is nothing wrong with family members getting involved in issues. but when the law has been broken that's when it's necessary to involve the police. if that's not happening we need to look at why that isn't happening and more work needs to

be done on that. but if the police have examples and clear evidence that that is taking place they need to bring that to the public to have the public debate take place. >> thank you very much for joining us. >> thank you. >> now staying in britain, two men have appeared in court after being charged with terrorism offenses. they were arrested at heathrow airport on monday and charged with terrorism. in a separate case a man suspected of attending a syrian terrorist training camp has been released on bail. a port town where some of the most toxic substances will be transferred from a danish ship to an american one but the

town's residents are angry and concerned over their safety. they say they were not consulted over the weapons disposal. we're joined live now and the fact that the prime minister is making his way to southern italy to meet the mayor that obviously he's taking it easily. but what is he going to tell the people of that town? >> what they're expecting is an explanation why the government made an unilateral decision that this is what will take place without asking them first. that's the problem they have. secondly, they want to be reassured that this operation is risk free. they worry about what will happen even though the government assured all necessary measures will be taken. this is pretty much what they're worried about.

they're being kept in the dark, and today as you can see the people here, you can breathe a mood of cautious pessimism, and as you can see there are not many people. that means they're really waiting for the outcome of the meeting on tuesday. >> live for us, claudio, thank you. and more to come from europe in the news hour a little later, including sex workers in germany question new reform to the country's prostitution laws. >> the vatican has dismissed 400 priests between 2011 and 2012 for abusing children. it is a dramatic increase pope francis called the crimes the

shame of the church. for more on the vatican's response we'll joined by michael welsh, a papal historian. why do you think these numbers seemed to spike in 2011 an and 2012. what is the reason for those rise. >> well, i have no idea, and the vatican has no idea. they don't know why it has spiked. i hope spiked is the word. i hope this is the largest number, but the likelihood is that it will go down from now on. but we have to be careful with these figures. i think it's 384 to be precise, priests have returned to the lay status or defrocked as the term is, some did so voluntarily. the va vatican has to give permission for this to happen, half were dismissed by the

vatican from their posts. >> you say defrocked. for those who are not catholic, that means losing your job. once defrocked, does it mean there could be legal implications. could action could be taken once they're defrocked. >> no, the church has no jurisdiction in the civil courts and what may be considered a crime may be sin which the church believes they have authority over, but they also have committed a crime, and bishops are quite clear if priests have abused children, then what they've done is a crime, and it has to be reported to the prison. that this has not been always

the case but it has been for the last 20 years or so. >> i asked you whether or not you thought the figures might have spiked. one of the reasons for the rise could well be the actions taken by pope benedict. >> well, that's true. >> do we know what the attitude of pope francis is? >> pope francis is equally fierce, as you said in your introduction. he has just spoken out, and he has set up a group of people. they have jurisdiction of the priests around the world. if someone has committed or abused a trial, these it's a matter for the police, not--it

doesn't have anything to do with the vatican. >> but that's been the problem, what used to happen was the bishop would move a priest to another parish, and a priest who might have been offending would be moved from parish to parish to parish. >> that certainly did happen in the past. as i said a few momen moments ae bishops of wales and united states took a stand against this, rather belatedly, but they did. there are rules drawn up in the handling of these cases which now requires them to report them to the police. it was certainly belated. one of the things that pope francis is trying to do is actually to get rules around the world to more or less conform to the english, which are rather

good, the english and american regulation. >> what is the percentage of priests around the world does 400 represent? >> i don't know the current, but i think there are over 400,000 clergy, you can work out the proportion for yourself. your researcher asked me about the spike, and in fact those who are most likely commit these crimes are in the 1970s. it has died out. it's still a major problem for them, but for the most part things occurred in the 60's and 70's. something happened to some extent. the diocese have become more careful about who they recruited

around that time. >> michael walsh, thank you very much, indeed, for joining us. >> not at all, mr. cole. >> we're going to brazil. the rising cost of living there was one of the issues that drove thousands of protesters onto the streets last year. six months later there is raising inflation. >> reporter: it ilast year's inflation running at nearly 6% confirming what brazilians already know. >> it is no longer enough to beach water or a snack. >> they can measure inflation at the beach. >> one easy way to calculate is the price of a coconut, which is

a popular drink here. two years ago coconut drink used to cas cost three or four, but w it's five. >> anriorio de janeiro will have inflation because of events taking place. >> the threat of high inflation is not new in this country. in 1990 prices went up 3,000%. but the government's inability to reduce the rate even after raising interest rates and controlling regulated prices is bad news for the president, who is hoping to be reelected in october. some economists recommend belt tightening. >> you would have to heavily

reduce public expenditure, also not invest in infrastructure, which is badly needed. >> but some bitter medicine may not be politically expedient. for the government taking the heat for the inflation may be the lesser of two evils at least until after the elections. >> on the news hour from doha we'll report from india as there is a funeral for a spiritual leader. plus the man that could have been head of the u.n. and mystery of his wife's death. scandal of the country's ruling party ahead of the election. just days after being crowned football player of the year, christian ronaldo, and we'll have the latest in sport.

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few day's time. fighting that goes on inside syria. in egypt the vote was boycott by muslim brotherhood, who called it a farce. conflict inside sudan raged for weeks between forces loyal to president kiir and his depu deputy. >> people whit's fear many as 1e been killed. 86000 south sudanese have fled across the border. uganda has received the largest number, most of them under the age of 18.

now to that 468 south sudanese entirely displaced inside the world's newest country. to the democratic republic of congo where the army is engaged in heavy fighting against the rebels. the group is largely made up of hutu rebels. >> reporter: the congolese troops have been using this rocket launcher to fire at one of the two groups of ads they have been fighting engaging in the area of forest and bush. here.

>> thousands of people have gathered in the streets to pay respects. >> they had gathered from all corners of india to pay their respects to a spiritual leader. what started as a farewell turned into a disaster. when a large number of mourners were crushed and killed. >> the police should have been here. >> the local police say they were overwhelmed and it's been suggested there was a stampede. >> people were sometimes opening the gates and sometimes closing them so there was suffocation. people started having breathing

problems, fainted and fell over each other. when the gates closed some people died by falling. doctors say most of the deaths happened due to sufficient facing. >> revered by millions of muslims and many had come to pay their last respects. many are grieving for their fellow mourners. what should have been a final good buy to a spiritual leader has ended in many more deaths. caroline malone, al jazeera. >> investigators looking into the death of the wife of a famous politician, and say she died from unnatural causes. the government has ordered an inquiry into the death.

>> it haul began a series of tweets exposing an alleged affair with a journalist. one of the tweets from the minister to the journalist and responding that his twitter account had been hacked. his wife said she had posted the tweets. she went on to tweet against mayor tharoor, and in one of the tweets she asked the her to stop talking to her husband. >> having given full burial rights in presence of her family. her body was found late on friday night. it was expected according to medical officials that the time of death was somewhere between 1:00 to 7:00 in the evening.

the institute of medical sciences has performed an autopsy on the body. the results will be known in two to three days. this is what their senior medical officials have to say about the investigation. >> it was unnatural sudden death. so we're focusing on this issue. the investigative agency is working on the case and there are certain issuesry lated to the injuries, we are aware of certain injuries on the body. >> along side all of this going on some have been tweeting about the state of her marriage. there will be lots of investigation around her e-mail and her internet access, and what she has been saying or who she has been speaking to on the phone. a lot of assumptions being made in the indian press which have been categorically denied by the family. they're asking for space to

mourn her death, and shashi tharoor will be interviewed in the investigation, and we'll find out the results of the postmortem in the next two to three days. >> let's go back to london an ad barbara. >> reporter: in kiev a mass rally is prepared for sunday. there have been new rules that allow the government to punish protesters. we have morwe have more now fro. >> reporter: on any regular day this would be a very busy street, one of the main roads through kiev. for two months this has been no ordinary place. this has been the heart of the

protest movement. you can see behind me the stage where people have been making speeches, singing songs and rousing crowds for eight weeks, for two months. the crowds wax and wane. the numbers tend to get bigger on the weekend. but this is also a well-organized place with tents all around the square, people who make food for the hundreds of people and thousands of volunteers who have been running this protest camp since the end of november. they serve meals, coffee trying to keep people warm in very cold winter months. now this is a sign of what president yanukovych, who just signed sweeping new laws, this is a sign of defiance by the protesters. president yanukovych signed new laws that limit powers of freedom and expression. it's illegal to wear a helmet in the square. the protesters are defiant

against that law and tents like this one is not allowed in public places. it requires the police permit. these laws seem destined to try to tear this whole thing down. protesters say they plan to stay until they get what they want and she see victory and yanukovych steps down. opposition leaders are calling on people to come out and fill this square to show that this demonstration still has a lot of power left. >> germany is plan to go change it's liberal prostitution laws to fight human trafficking. they want police to investigate more frequently and they want

sex workers to register. >> they said germany is a good place to be a prostitute, but she thinks the government's plans to register sex workers to fight human trafficking is wrongheaded. >> we know that cases of human trafficking exists and something needs to be done about them. but we want to separate the discussion of prostitution and the discussion of trafficking. prostitution are people who do their jobs voluntarily. anything else is a crime, and we're opposed to it. >> chancellor angela merkel plans to fight trafficking. no cases of human trafficking have actually decreased in germany. from over 900 case in 2011, even

if any cases go undetected, prostitution seems to be of the legal kind. precise numbers are ladder to come by but it's estimated between 200 to 400,000 women work as prostitutes in germany. it's thought that they work with 1 million male clients every day. francis has worked as a prostitute for 30 years. she's stopping by the resource center for help with they are taxes. plans to make sex workers register with authorities won't work because of the enduring stigma against sex workers. >> you have women who are students, you have women who work in a good job, and they can't get register. >> the german moves come from the growing european debate on

what the best policy is on prostitution. the government has yet to spell out the details, but some german prostitutes decided to defend their professotheir profession a union. >> that's the news here in you were. now let's go back to stephen. >> a giant panda cub has been born in the washington zoo. bao bao, beijing has been using the cuddly creatures to project a softer image to the world. >> this is bao, bao or precious treasure in chinese. for her owner, the chinese government, this rare animal is a crucial tool of diplomatic

engagement. >> the soft power hope is that the love for pandas will translate to a more positive attitude towards china. >> modern diplomacy really started in the mid 1960's as china gifted bears to the soviet union and north korea. giving the u.s. two pandas in 1972. here nixon's wife pat gets a first look at the bears. the u.s. and other countries spend millions of dollars a-year leasing the pandas from china, but because of international treaties on endangered species beijing must use that money to develop it's panda conservation and breeding programs. even so experts say the chinese increasingly are sending pandas to countries that are giving it the natural resources and technology to grow it's economy. coincidentally or not france, australia and canada have reached key energy deals with

china and now are putting pandas on display in zoos. on the flip side, because of issues and disputes over south seas they have not send pandas to japan. >> this is perfectly natural. i don't see this asthma liscious. this is how countries act. >> reporter: there is a diplomacy because of too much money being spend on one endangered species but it is helping to teach a growing china the merits of conservation. >> getting the chinese to think about conservation is huge because they are the largest population in the world. we need them as part of this

team, and this program has been great in fostering that relationship. >> reporter: china's reliance on panda diplomacy is likely to continue to the delight of schoo--zoovisitors. >> it's as if you're dreaming the match instead of playing the match. >> we'll hear from a the man who caused one of the biggest upsets in melbourne.

>> stephen, thank you. rafael nadal, the world number one continued his dominance beating the frenchman for the 12th time, nadal winning 6 6-1, 6-2, 6-3. he'll be joining nadal federer, who won in straight sets. andy murray is also through, just three-time finalist, and eighth victory over the spaniard in as many matches. two-time defending champion remains on form for a third success in melbourne.

maria sharapova was slow to close out her round. and the tenth seed was sent home by spain's who is ranked 38th in the world. ththe last australian to win did just that. >> back in 1976. >> before or after the win. now i certainly--never even thought about 37 years and there hasn't been another australian. we had a few in the final and very close matches.

it's really phenomen phenomenal. i wasn't the favorite at any time. i was the last accepted into the draw, ranked 2011, 2012, there is an austrian who led me in the fifth. i managed to win that match. when i won that match every person i played was from then on was obviously the favorite. >> but he overcame the odds and in extremely hot windy conditions he won the australian open. >> tell me about that. >> you play a few matches in your life where it's a bit like dreaming the match than playing the match. you go, oh, that's what's happened. >> you weren't really a professional tennis player. >> well, it depends on what you call a professional. you can be a professional and not make much money.

all of a sudden i'm a janitor. what do you think of all the changes that have happened since 1976. >> well, i think the game is fantastic. it's a world sport, the money is there. but if you were the best out in the world you would be making a lot of money. >> he now runs a tennis court servicing company although he reached two semifinals during his playing career, the australian open was his only ever grand slam singles win. >> real madrid is looking to go level. they're playing real betis at the minute. cristiano ronaldo is at it again. he scored ten minutes in and gareth bale, and it is now 3-0.

manchester city is just one point behind the gunners and they're hosting cardiff. the score there is 2-1. and the top two in italy, juventus can add to their advantage over samptoria. leading the series 1-o and made 428 in their first innings play ended on day three in pakistan trailed by 137. they're currently 291 for six. the american turned in a

magnificent round of 63, that is 9 under par. errory mcilroy after taking an incorrect drop on the second hole. he still put up an acceptable round of 17. >> it gives me extra motivation. it's not that winning this tournament isn't motivation enough, but stuff like this, it's stupid. there are a lot of stupid rules in golf and this is one of them. >> reporter: going to the final stages of the rally holding the lead. the race in the chilean city where daniel is waiting for the competitors. >> reporter: the finishing touch has been put in place the first

time it has come to valparaiso. a place with unique architecture overlooking the bustling port less than half the number will finish the race. the 2014 rally left the atlantic support city nearly two weeks ago. now 10,000 kilometers later. the survivors will have traversed some of the challenging terrain in the world. the mountains and rivers have done their best to cripple these racers. one racer is dead, and several others injured. so what is the attraction? >> we go to the best, and this

is nice. every time something different. >> while there is no doubt that it is popular with clouds lining the root, the growing concern about the environmental damage that so many powerful vehicles might cause the delicate terrain it passes through that's where the valley should be spent. we don't see the benefit. we don't want our city dying of poverty. >> it's always tough but there are fewer places more relaxing to come home to than this jewel on the pacific. >> that is all the sport now stephen. >> thank you. it's a question which is puzzling the art work. who bought the most expensive

painting ever auctioned for the price of $42 million. we look at the painting for the first time since it's record-breaking sale. >> reporter: separate pieces that bruce gunther said was designed to be viewed as one. >> it's unfolds the figure in space so it becomes a series of baffles, if you will, that show us different sides. >> reporter: a portrait of two people really subject and artist who roamed london after world war ii. >> they come miss rate about their failed love lives, and it comes in the paintings.

>> shattered shifting floyd. gunther hopes people will see their own relationships and their own loved ones in the work. this is a rare opportunity for viewing. it has had few public shows and at times has been broken up. >> it has drifted out of view, single panels shown but not the whole thing until 1999, then it disappeared again physical. >> reporter: now it's here as part of the master works series. >> i you put out feelers, and suddenly it was the painting. it was available for our master works program. >> reporter: it has created quite the buzz because of the price tag and the mystery owner. >> do we know who it is?

>> no clue. >> it could be chinese or middle east. >> i heard someone in california. >> reporter: now the mystery may be solved. widespread published reports name elaine wynn, co-founder of wynn resorts, but wynn isn't talking, and the question lingers. >> who owns this? >> no one knows except apparently the curator. >> so who owns it? interesting question. a question with no answer. perhaps lucian freud knows, but of course he's not talking, either. >> well, stay with us here on al jazeera because there is another 30 minutes of news coming straight up at the top of the hour, and we'll be guiding

you through this. only on al jazeera america

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live news...every hour, on the hour only on al jazeera america >> welcome to al jazeera america. i'm morgan radford live from new york city. here are some of the stories we're following for you. fires burn in california while it deals with the worst drought on record. plus how presidential reforms will change spying by the national security agency. >> hi and dry out west, a wildfire that began in the hills of glendora, california, is still burning. firefighters have stopped the