>> > welcome to this al jazeera newshour, with me, david foster. >> coming up, the mass destruction of syrian homes. the regime is deliberate adestroying entire neighbourhoods. the head of bangladesh's opposition party has been sentenced to death. >> presidents in ukraine call the president's promises of amnesty lives. >> vigilante versus gangsters -

are they really mexico's best bet for law and order? >> the government is syria is accused of deliberately demolishing thousands of homes in the city of damascus and hama. they are carrying out a systematic campaign of destruction. dominic kane reports. >> this is the suburbs of damascus, fought over by the government and rebels repeatedly in the last few years. like much of syria it presents a picture of bombed out buildings and rubble strewn roads. but now new evidence suggests the destruction of property here is not an accident of war. human rights watch compiled a report claiming the government has been demolishing thousands of houses here, other parts of

damascus, and the city of hama. the report uses satellite images to show how extensive the damage is. this is one district in hama seen in september 2012. this is the same place one month later. this is part of the capital close to the military airport seen in february last year. move forward to july, the contrast is clear. human rights watch says it has spoken to the owners of some properties, confirming the demolitio demolitions. the group alleges the government has systematically targeted residential areas. >> the government says it's part of approved urban planning. >> i did not thing this is urban planning. it's mass destruction of civilian neighbourhoods. what the report points out, and in my own research is that this

urban planning is done in areas where the free syrian army had a strong presence, and has hunkered down and difficult to drive them out. >> the authors of the report say there is no evidence of such demolition taking place in areas that generally support the government. the u.n. now says that almost 6.5 million people have been displaced inside syria, and 2.5 million refugees left the county since the war began. >> that is one aspect of the terrible difficulties facing millions inside syria. another is access to basic health, to decent food. that's a problem facing the united nations children's funds. we'll talk to julia tuma, who talks on behalf of unicef out of amman in jordan. you have a warehouse near homs,

and it is crammed with all the things that people need, and you can't get it to people. why is that? >> indeed. we have a warehouse, which is six miles, david, away from the city of homs, where the siege has been taking place. the siege in homs is the longest that we have seen in the past two decades. in fact, sips sary i'vo we haven't seen the siege as on the old city in homs. we have the restrictions. we are waiting for the green light to go and access the old city of homs, and we still did not get the green light. >> when you say a siege, it connours up meddy evil images of people being starved to death, having no water. how basic are the conditions for people inside homs that you are trying to help.

>> well, what we know is that there are more than 1,100 children currently under siege. we have not, in the united nations or unicef been able to access the area since october 2012. more than a year we were not able to access the area. we know they are in dire food. they need to be vaccinated, especially against polio, because it has returned. we want to give them hygiene kits, medical supplies, and they are in desperate need for that. more than a year of us not accessing that part. >> you talk about the children, they needing polio vaccinations. it fascinated me to see you have been able to immunize about a million children already. >> that's right.

in the past year, david, and, in fact, since the outbreak of polio in october last year unicef responded rapidly. we vaccinated about 2 million in polio. a million against measles, but it's not enough. we have not been able to access children under siege of the the united nations agency talks about 250,000 people currently in besieged areas. we also have to reach the children in areas where violence it taking place. so, indeed, we somewhere reached, but it's not enough, it's not enough by all means. >> when you talk to the people responsible for laying siege to homs and you say we need to get these things in, talking about clothing, shampoo, medical items, when you talk to those people saying that you have to get those things in, what did

they say to you. >> it's constant negotiations. we have been negotiating for the past three years. sometimes we are successful. both parties of the conflict have been responsive. we undertook cross-line operations, meaning that the teams on the ground crossed two loans and areas that are under the opposition control. but it's not been enough. it's basically constant and daily negotiations to let us deliver supplies. we are talking about 4 million children who need emergency assistance. this is about 60% of syria's child population, and tees are the children internally displaced in the country because they had to flee their homes or they are caused in areas under siege, in areas where severe conflict is taking place, like

aleppo, ohms, some parts of damascus. >> we wish you luck. julia talking on behalf of unicef, the u.n.'s children's charity. >> a court in bangladesh sentenced to death the chief of the opposition jamal islamist party. they were caught trying to smuggle arms to a rebel group. he was the industries minister at the time. in a second case he faces charges of war crimes admitted during bangladesh's independence war. we talk to hour correspondent in dhaka. this man was the industries minister at the time. was it suggested it was a government plant, a government-backeded in to smuggle the weapons in to india for the group or the actions of one man and his cohorts?

>> well, there are a lot of controversy. the arms phased in in 2004 by then government upped bangladesh nationalist party. the industry minister was implicated on this case, it's a complicated issue. what we see from today is they were implicated on the armed smuggling, no one was indicted. it's the first time the intelligence agency was implicated. the national security had, under that government, has been indicted. it's sensational because it has a reengonnal implication. india has been accusing bangladesh, and has been giving shelter to the separatist movement. the isi is involved and the

bangladesh intelligence agency. the state is interested to see the further implication of this case. they say it deters and uses bank as a secret base to operate as insurgence. >> why would certain elements in bangladesh from this party want to help particularly those rebels in another country, in india? >> well, the accusation has been for a long time. bangladesh intelligence has been aided. it could be for strategic and other security issues. there's not clear evidence of bases inside bangladesh, it is repeatedly challenging india to show where the base camps are. whether this shipment was meant for the indian separatist group called united liberation front

is hard to prove. this particular case, the prosecution is saying they were not meant, but the opposition and defense lawyers say it's highly politically motivated, because one of the jema islamist leaders is involvement, and the military officers. they say it's a political cooperation and they are trying to please the government of india. >> it wasn't so long ago that the other opposition figure was sentenced to death and quickly executed. with this sentence hanging over him, even though he faces other charges, is it likely there'll be a lengthy appeal process or will the sentence we carried out rapidly. >> the defense for all the convicted say they'll appeal to the high court. they have the right to appeal.

this man faces further complication because he is accused in the war crime trial and has the possibility of facing death sentence in that case. that is yet to be seen and possibly we'll see that particular verdict taking place. this will make a great sennation under a tense unavailable climate. >> thank you very much. reporting live from the capital of bangladesh. >> ukraine's president has been under enormous pressure from protesters in the last few weeks. now he is taking sick leave having caught, he says, the flu. the country is without its prime minister. protesters in kiev rejected an amnesty bill. it's a law saying detained demonstrators released if protesters stopped occupying buildings.

they called on the president to resign. nick spicer reports from kiev. >> they voted through an amnesty bill, but with an ultimate matium. the majority gave protesters 15 days to occupy buildings in kiev. >> if they press on peaceful protesters, this will definitely trigger a spiral of violence. >> there were four draft beels of the amnesty law. pro-government politicians this their way. demonstrators are unfound. >> this is ukraine house, one of several buildings occupied by protesters. they have been hoping for an amnesty law so the demonstrator can be freed. the people here are not ready to give up their occupation in change. >> some want the president to

resign. >> the people going first before everybody's let out. the amnesty should happen before. not only the amnesty. if we go because the people have amnesty, it's zero results. we demand more, of course. >> there were clashes outside the agriculture ministry, with one opposition group wanting to continue its occupation of the building, and another trying to get it to vacate the premises. suggesting a split within an opposition that managed to force the government to begin making major concessions. >> we will take a coffee break in a moment. you'll understand why when i tell you the african union talks about food security and we find why farmers in the birthplace of coffee are giving up on the crop. >> there's take of a breakthrough in brainstem

research, we have the details. >> in sport barcelona strolling into the semis of the copa del rey without lionel messi. >> against seemingly impossible odds it appears that vige lanties in western mexico are gaining grouped in their fight with one of the power of the drugs cartels, knights templar. the presence of such armed groups for safeguarding communities has not been welcomed by everybody of the a government decision to legalize the vigilante group is silencing the critics, david mercer has more. >> asking for support. indigenous leader speaks with his community about why they should work together with an armed vigilante group. the same men confronted the vigilantes when he arrived in the town.

>> translation: we were really worried about what would happen when the self-defence groups came. the day they arrived we saw that many were not from the community. we changed our mind after speaking with the leader, who we know and trust. >> tired of kidnappings and extortions vigilante groups sprung up in the western states to fight the knights templar. the government tried to reign them in. this week the government changed tactics, choosing to integrate the group into a world eventscorp. one of the first time they have worked together with the federal police to bring a message of security to the communities. it's a new strategy, one they hope will pay off. >> vigilante leaders say the partnership is working. in the past few days they've

moved to 10 new communities. >> we have won people's confidence by showing them we are honest working people and they see the results in other towns where people have risen up. >> analysts say one of the biggest challenges is how to put 20,000 heavily armed civilians under government control. >> the process of legalization will be complicated. it will be slow. if possible the vigilantes could be corrupted and commit crimes. it couldn't be worse than we have witnessed. >> ambrose see the vigilantes as the best hope for bringing security and prosperity back to the community. peace may come from the barrel of a gun. >> it is a big day for many leaders of a number of african countries - those in charge of

many of these nations are gathering for the national it summit. egypt is not attending, suspended after president mohamed morsi was deposed. while mali and madagascar were suspended, but are back in the fold after holding elections. we are expecting south sudan to sign a peace deal with one of the rebel groups from jonglei state. the theme is food security. >> we have been looking at ethiopias, a country that prided itself on growing coffee. >> a way of life here facing extinction: for generations the people of this region cultivated ara mattic coffee. bartered by drought and low coffee prices they are pulling up coffee trees and replacing

them with a leafy narcotic chewed in the horn of africa. >> the fortunes improved once we grew this. it grows on less water and in less time that coffee. >> 20-year-old man and his brother continued the family's last patch of coffee trees, the red coffee berries are rotting. they say they can no longer afford pesticide. >> we are considering aborting the last coffee trees and replacing them. with the pest and plant diseases i doubt the land is suitable for growing coffee any more. >> a few metres away the nar cot k bushes is are the. it is drought and pest resistant. this is a practical solution to the formers' problem of lack of enough food to eat. unlike coffee, which is

hariested once a year. this can be harvested self times, meaning more money. growing it means less income for the government, for whom coffee was a source of currency. it's part of the under ground economy and is not taxed. feeling the pinch are exporters of coffee. >> translation: the supply of coffee from the region is dwindling. i doubt we'll be in business soon. >> hopes of workers preparing this for delivery to consumers. it has to be in local markets and airports. whatever the most may think about the industry, both traders and farmers expect business to grow.

>> in thailand they are getting ready for a security operation ahead of sunday's controversial elections. tens of thousands of place will be deployed across the country. in bangkok the protesters are mobilising calling for a boycott of the vote. they say they will not stop demonstrating until yingluck shinawatra redesigns. she is determined to push ahead with the poll. >> the leaders of the anti-government protest movement issued a call for their supporters to stage their biggest rally yet. to do that they are saying their supporters will feel the streets of the capital city bangkok. this will start today, running through the election on sunday. the focus of attention not just in bangkok. they want supporters to gather in other centres around thailand to set up stages outside

government facilities such as the city hall. the leaders are saying they won't physically stop people voting, but by doing so they'll support the regime. security is a big concern. the police say they'll deploy 200,000 officers around the country. the military saying they'll step up security. away from the protests in bangkok in rural northern thailand, it's a stronghold of the ruling party supporters, those known as red shirts. there's a concern the prime minister could lose support. we have this report from the north of the country. >> i'm scott heidler in

shanghai. the homeland for the prime minister. coming up... >> it was a rev eared king established routes of the industry. it was the wealth of a country weaving together a thai political dynasty in the north. >> the town was put on the map by the shinawatra family. they have had unwavering support for their party. some feel that might erode if thai lan's political crisis drags on. >> they are watching how prime minister yingluck shinawatra handles the mass process calling for her resignation. she is being called a proxy for thaksin shinawatra. >> a lot of supporters of yingluck shinawatra would want her to take more action against the radicals in bangkok.

yingluck shinawatra's party was democratically elected. she should be allowed to do the thing she was elected for. >> the northern part of the country enjoyed expansion and tourism. the red shirts want that to continue and their home town family to rule in bangkok. keeping with the family tradition yingluck shinawatra's nephew is running for a seat in parliament. the campaign is not fallen popularly. it's for everybody who loves democracy. for five or 100 years, democracy. >> thais in the north are eager to enter the job market but are concerned about decisions. i believe both sides love the country the same. >> no matter if led by a member

of the home-town shinawatra family for the opposition, bringing the two sides together will be a challenge for the government for years to come. >> a snow storm hit the southern united states leaving six dead. three states declared emergencies closing roads and airports. alan fisher with the details. >> traffic is moving again in at lanta, but only just. many are abandoning their cars. they started to dig the cars and lories out. the national guard has been called in it help. the problem was when the snow hit everyone had the same idea - to head home. >> cars were going sideways. trailer trucks jack knifed. >> i didn't have control of my car. i pulled over, i

hyperventilated, i thought i will have to tough it out. >> the mayor denies the city did not do enough to help even though there was warping that the storm was coming. >> the error was letting everyone out at once, causing a traffic jam. private sector business, the government and the school system got out at. . >> most of the southern state were used to the weather, bringing conditions drivers don't experience, and it shows. hundreds of cents have been reported, more than 80 on the western commute. the cold snap hit as far north as virginia. more than 50 million hit by winter's worst. a number of schools didn't get children on the way home. they were forced to spend the night camping out. >> who knew you were going to stay overnight and have a slumber party.

it will be a great story for the kids. >> airports have been closed. 3,000 flights cancelled. more than 6,000 delayed. the south unaccustomed to the weather, doesn't have the resources to deal with it. somewhere like chicago has thousands of snow ploughs smaller cities have a handful. freezing temperatures last for a day. an extra day off school and a moment to play in the snow for children who rarely get the chance. >> richard with us now. okay, it's pretty, it's caused problems, but in meteorological terms, not a great amount. >> no, it didn't look that much. it was a problem that they are not alternatived to dealing with it. in the u.k. we have the same thing, a couple of mild winters and it catches everyone out. if you take atlanta,

temperatures out to 12 and two degrees. day time highs. overnight lows of minus nine degrees. now, it's haul from this particular weather front purposing through the carolinas, across georgia through to texas. there's an area of high pressure giving a couple of nights of low temperatures with another weather system to the west, that will be some significant weather in terms of snow. but you can see the blues, and those drifting to the north, over the next couple of days, the air re-establishing itself. it will be a slow process. as we get through to thursday, the law thicking lace, night time lows still subzero. we have an area of snow clearing by the time we get through to the super bowl. by the time we get through, temperatures coming up to 11.

we could be looking at temperatures. >> still ahead on the newshour. al jazeera and others in the media call for journalists held in egyptian gaols to be freed. >> and the n.b.a. stay with us if you can.

>> you are watching the al jazeera newshour, i'm david

foster. >> syrian government accused of deliberately destroying thousands of homes in hamas and damascus. carrying out a systematic campaign of destruction. >> viktor yanukovych has gone on sick leave with an acute respiratory disease. it comes as protesters refused an amnest by bill seeing the release of activists. >> a chief opposition party jema islam islamica leader has been accused of smuggling a huge cache of weapons to a rebel group in india. >> mining executives from overle world are meeting in south africa. it is a difficult times with tens of thousands of minors. in fact, the union rejected their employees latest offer.

as for mine juniors. nan are there, and they are struggling to feel safe at work. >> south africa's economy was built on mining but conversations hit by strikes. they are demanding that entry level pay be doubled to 1,250 a month. men and women protest together. when they are underground many women complain about discrimination, sexual harassment is common. it's a part of south africa's mining culture. >> it's for me to appoint you as a chief supervisor. we can have a deal. the deal is that you get that particular person the cell number. meeting the lodges. then you start having, you know, some things like being in love, dating each other.

that's where they give you an appointment. >> one in 10 miners is a woman. they are isolated and vulnerable underground. most don't report sexual discrimination, assault or rape because they don't think they'll be taken seriously. this statue celebrates the role minors made. much happens under apartheid. the discrimination based on colour is over. they are still the deception that mine owners care more about assessedy than each other. >> 2012 - this woman was raped and killed. despite her high profile case, nothing has changed. the chamber of mines says it set up a task team to address the women faced. we tried hard. she is are the channels that

should be used. we'll support you when you come and report incidents of harassment. >> the government wants the numbers of female miners increased to 13%. unless the culture under ground changes, sending more women down the mines will just put them at risk. >> let us bring in the coordinator who is the coordinator for justice. joining us from johannesburg. has there been justice yet? >> we cannot really say there has been justice for pinky until a point where the person alleged to have been involved and sentenced. at the moment what happened was the suspect was arrested and has been appearing in court again

some time in february. until such time as he's been convicted, we cannot say. >> i i understand there are legal implications. the bigger question is how isolated do you think her case is. are there many women who face similar treatment at the hands of bullying men? >> according to research that has been done, sexual violence in the mines is a norm, that has been happening for many years. the only difference is that she ended up being killed. others have gone through what she went through but have not been killed. after pinky was also raped, another woman in another mine was also murdered. it's a culture happening in the

mines. >> when we see someone from the chamber saying there's a proper route for complaints. is that, in a sense, window dressing. is it possible as a woman miner to make a complaint now and get it taken seriously? >> unfortunately it is not possible for women miners to make complaints and as i mentioned earlier on, this is a culture in the mining industry, and also the people that women should be reporting to, the same people that abuse women sexually and any other way they deem fit. in actual fact women, majority of women have to sell their bodies to get a job in the mining industry because you would be told that it's impossible for you to get a job if you wouldn't give sexual

favours. so all the other things that the companies are saying about women's safety in the mines are quite true, but there's no evidence of companies making sure women have an environment to report this incident. >> a tough job, made tougher by the attitude in the mines. >> we have received this in the last few minutes. russia saying it has identified the suicide bombers responsible for two attacks that killed 34 people in the city of volgograd last month. the national anti-terrorism committee says two suspected accomplices have been arrested in dagestan province. more on that as as soon as possible as we get it. >> saudi arabia is expected to give egypt four billion in aid.

>> funds from arab gulf states have been helping egypt keep its economy afloat during political turmoil in the county. al jazeera calls on the egyptian government to release five of its journalists. the government in cairo says the cases have been referred to the criminal court. al jazeera has not been notified of any formal charges. >> the three staff of al jazeera english, baher mohamed, mohamed fadel fahmy, and correspondent peter greste have all been held for a full month. from arabic language channels abdullah al-shami has been held for six months and mohammed badr 200 days. >> in london on wednesday was the latest attempt to get them released. organised by al jazeera, but with speakers from bbc, sky news and the british "daily telegraph" newspaper expressing returns over what is said by the interim government in egypt and

commitment for a free press. >> for a great nation like egypt to treat people doing their job as journalists, an ethical decent job which all societies need, for egypt of all countries to treat journalists in this way is a shame on that nation. >> while this happened in london egypt's prosecutor general has been considering peter greste's future in cairo. he, like his colleagues had detention renewed regularly, held in prison conditions as harsh. >> the picture now is so polarized in egypt. people are seeing what they want to see. having independent journalists reporting the truth from the ground is crucial for the egyptian people and the world. >> egypt's rules allow for people like al jazeera abdullah al-shami to be held without charge for long periods.

opponents say it's more draconian than the hosni mubarak government. >> large sections of the international media and human rights watch are worried as to what is happening in egypt. it's an open question as to how much of that is shared by poll in the west. the british foreign office issued a statement saying it was concerned at attacks around kio and elsewhere. in diplomatic terms that language is mild. >> western countries in alliance with egypt are in a moral bipd. they have been rather equivocal that their response to a military coup and a violent crackdown against the muslim brotherhood, and their supporters. they have been less quick to condemn that, than they have lesser abuses by other regimes

in the middle east. >> there's an obvious point that egypt's intentions of staff may be seen as a form of revenge on qatar. it doesn't explain why dozens of others have been subjected to similar incarceration. al jazeera insists on objectivity but says interviewing the muslim brotherhood does not imply sympathy with people seen by rulers as egypt as a terrorist organization. >> canadian film maker john grayson was hold the toura prison in egypt. he says conditions are appalling and those in capt ist ist -- can'tivity and those held were subjected to abuse. >> it's called hot boxing. they are left in the cairo sun and you bake. a number of prisoners suffered severe heat stroke. then we were let out into the

prison, welcomed into the prison by gangs of 10 guards. systematically, we learned that this is the standard welcoming party. >> it's practical. it means that we are going to be fairly subdued for the days that follow. >> coming up, we are in the philippines looking at torture. >> mann city goes top of the gish premier league -- english premier league.

>> a 300-year-old violin has been stolen. frank armond was attacked in a parking lot. the robber used a stun gun. he was borrowing the stradavar. >> us, believed to be worth $3.5 million. >> we have been in contact with the federal bureau of investigation. they have a fine arts unit that investigates these sorts of thefts and through them we have been in contact with interpol, we are dialled in to the pawn shop industry. >> in japan stem cell researchers made a major discovery which could bring about a new age of personalized medicine, finding a way to produce embryo-like stem cells

by putting animal blood cells into acid. it works on mice. if it does the same in humans, it can offer ground-breaking therapies. >> translation: in the future it allows us to carry out organ regeneration. >> the discovery is important because it may produce stem cells from a patient's own blood cells. they don't require the destruction of a human embryo which is a much-debated technique. >> stem cells can be transferred to any tissue. they were used to create a functional human liver and beating heart muscle tissue. it could lead to personalised treatments. >> human rights groups accuse philippine police officers of using a so-called torture wheel

at a detention center. they reportedly spun the wheel to sort out how detainees will be abused. veronica pedrosa has the details. >> you wouldn't thing there was anything special about the area, a quiet middle class neighbourhood. notorious. a group of police men held suspect without charge and abused them for fun, apparently. >> it looks like an ordinary suburban street. this house right next to others, was effectively what human rights advocates call a torture chamber, an illegal police detention facility, not register registered with anyone. they keep people here after capturing them on drug raids. this is the office, and this is where they kept their suspects. they turned torture into an

elaborate game. they'd spin this wheel and let charts dictate what the victims, as many as 50, would be beaten, hung upside down, poked in the head or other abuses. this case is significant because the police have been caught in the act. 14 men have been disciplined and ranking officials relieved of duty. >> it's a wake up call for higher ups, to show that despite your police operations, procedures, manual, despite your programs and practices on human rights based policing, there are people, personal on the ground who blatantly defy you. >> are the reforms window distressing? >> you know, this is an organization of 149,000 police personal as big as that. there's bound to be some people

challenging the system. and the only appropriate action there is, the counter action taken, and this is the most critical part, what do we do after this? until then the police are trying to reassure the public that this was an isolated case, and the motto to protect and serve is not meaningless. >> human rights lawyer joins me from manila. the police chief says it's not institutionalized, it's isolated. do you believe him when he says that? >> well, i disagree. i'm prosecuting an entire police station for torture, and this torture was broadcast on al jazeera. until today the chief of police station, the police colonel has not been caught. what we are dealing in manila is

a culture of where the police torture for pleasure. >> what is done about him? >> well, i think what is important is to prosecute the individuals and punish them. it does not help that the anti-torturing law is new, and there's only one ongoing prosecution, which is the case i'm handling. i'm hoping the second instance will be prosecuted, and that the police men will be behind bars. that's the only way to send a message that when they break the law they'll end up in gaol. >> you have to take a look at a culture. you have to examine the reasons why it was allowed. he was saying it's a few bad apples, why were they allowed to do it in the first place. any kind of thorough investigation going on.

yearly the con flict in the situation is criminal justice system is not working. police are resorting to torture as a substitute for investigation, and they don't try to get past. they target common criminals. they have not evidence procured through torture. you said it's for amusement, now you say means of investigation, is it both or one. >> i think it's both. in this incident we see that they were making fun of torture, torturing for the pleasure of it. chances are the sheer plan, the sheer torture for the fun of it will result in a confession. i think the culprit is to make

the criminal justice system work, make the police do theiron, the court do their job is and the prosecutors. >> thank you very much indeed for bringing that to our attention. professor talking to us from manila. >> we have time in the newshour for the sport. >> first the copa del ray finals. z an own goal from certainlyingy. adriano equalized for barca, scoring four times. sanchez netting two. 9-2 on aggregate. that is without lionel messi. he was rest theed. >> atletico madrid set up a derby. atletico with a lead. equalizer in the first half.

atletico secured the 2-1 victory on the night and 3-1 on aggregate. their top storer diego kavt costa. >> mexico city takes top spot. city ended the first half one-up, and the goal gotten after the break. in the second half the company rounded off the scoring. manuel's side sits one point clear of the gunners. >> it's very important because i have adjusted better on what we do in every match. we still have to fight for 45 points more, and i don't think we had that advantage, seeing that the premier league is finished. i think that arsenal, chelsea, liverpool, all of them including

tottenham - all of them have chances. >> chelsea remains in third after a goalless score. chelsea manager jose muirino was not impressed with the visitors. >> his objective was not to come here and play good football and try to win or feel part of the quality of the family. his objective was to come for a point. he takes the point. after that he's a lucky man. congratulations. .

>> he can't take it because we outwitted him. he can't cop. >> he can tell me all he wants [ bleep ]. players saying we play [ bleep ] it's brilliant when you get a result against him. hard luck jose ra. >> bayern have gone 13 clear at the top of the bundislega with a win. it was rescheduled due to world cup commitments. the men had a tough time. stuttgart took the lead. second-half strikes sealed a 2-1 win for the barr barrians. >> james apologised for using the word retarded in a post-game interview. it game after a loss at home to

the oklahoma city thunder. he scored a came-high 35. kevin durant was the top scorer. 112-95, oklahoma's ninth straight victory. >> ben scrifens of the mcdonald's oilers set a record in a regular game, making 59 games shutting out the sharks. it tops a record of 54 made by mike smith in 2012. this is the oilers third win in a row. new york and new jersey authorities say there have been no threats against the super bowl. security will be heightened in and around the stadium. the broncos braved the wintry elements holding a practice session. conditions are said to be similar. peyton manning and his team will take on the seattle seahawks.

>> seattle is getting a tonne attention this week as they deserve it. you don't get to a super bowl unless both defenses play well. i sure feel like our defense is peaking at the right time. >> meanwhile the seattle sea hawks move their training on time. quarterback russell wilson starts for the sea hawk in his second year in the n.f.l. the 25-year-old knows he's being compared to peyton manning. >> obviously peyton manning is known for his leadership and all the amazing thing that he does at the line of scrimmage and checks and all that. i'm working to get there. i think the competitive edge is similar. we are competitive. we want to lead the team and put them in a great position every time we step on to the field. >> thank you. just want to update you on a developing story out of iraq. eight armed men stormed an

office of the human rights ministry in north-east baghdad, believed to have taken 50 people hostage. three of the gunmen were killed by security forces, the others inside the building. the president an sick leave, no prime minister, no end to protests. the crisis in ukraine keeps worsening. we end the newshour with a photo series from kiev which you can find on the website. thanks for watching. see you soon.

>> a rare winter storm brings the south to a standstill. in one city local leaders are coming upped fire akust of -- under fire accused of not doing enough to keep people out of harm's way. >> a verdict in the amanda knox case in italy. she won't be in court to hear it. >> an embattled