>> good to have your company. i'm david foster with the al jazeera news hour. this is what we have coming up in the next 60 minutes. >> i apologize on this go round we have not had very much. >> reporter: syrian talks end in failure, blaming the syrian government for rejecting the idea of a transitional government. in lebanon, a 11-month stalemate.

controversial reforms to the judiciary. >> i'm lauren taylor in london with the news from europe, including a shake up in italian politics with the appointment of the country's youngest prime minister. we talk to the opposition women's brigade. >> so the second round of syrian peace talks in geneva have ended, and there have been no progress. the united nations have been trying to mediate between the syrian government and opposition fighters. >> i'm very, very sorry, i apologize to the syrian people, that their hopes, which were very, very high that something would happen here.

i think the little that has been achieved has given them even more hope that maybe this is the beginning of the coming out of the horrible crisis. i apologize to them, but on this go rounds we haven't done very much. >> the finger pointing continues. the spokesman for the opposition syrian coalition said this: >> brhimi got some indication from the regime side, but when we sat down they would accept the agenda but to focus only on one track on the issue of terrorism. and i don't want to repeat what mr. brahimi said. we want progress on the two sides and the regime is really

wanting political resolution, not delay tactic. >> by surprise end this is what the syrian government thought. >> the syrian government delegation accepted from the beginning within the first three minutes of the meeting the agenda proposed by the inter national mediator mr. brahimi. we did accept the draft agenda of the meeting. the problem raised was raised immediately to the other side when they gave their own interpretation of the agenda. >> james bays live for us in geneva. no doubt in mr. brahimi's fault. >> no, you heard the two sides. they couldn't agree with the most important issue. and mr. brahimi came up with the plan to discuss terrorism on day

one and the government transition on day two. that was the compromise, and the side that didn't accept it was the government side. >> we have president bush say he's going to try to step up the pressure on the assad regime. realistically how could he do that? >> you got to remember that this peace process supported by russia and america and the deal of chemical weapons supported by russia and american has taken the obama administration away from war. remember last summer it looked like there was going to be imminent cruise miles strikes on damascus, now both of those are crumbling, and there are going to be voices inside and outside of the administration who will say to president obama the only way you're going to get both sides is to negotiate properly is to put the threat of force back on the table.

i think that will now be seriously discussed. >> is there any prospect of another round of talks. if there is, is it going anywhere? >> they're talking about another round of talks. but the opposition is saying if this problems with the agenda isn't sorted they won't be turning up. the government side confirmed they're coming. i don't think there will be talks any time soon unless something changes. >> that's james bays in geneva. while the diplomats are floundering the u.n. said it is deeply alarmed by reports of a major syrian army build up outside of city abrod. as many as 50,000 people are thought to be there. the threat of fighting has caused 25,000 to leave, and they

say they're failing to honor their legal obligations in the city of homs. the city's government said the cease-fire must be extended as there are still people there who want to leave. so let us hear from the u.n. humanitarian coordinate center syria talking to us by phone earlier on. he came back from homs last night. he was in the syrian capitol of damascus, and here are his tal talks. >> we were finally able to deliver assistance to the old city of homs for an estimated civilian population of 2,500 people. that's about 500, i hope this is

not an one-off effort that it is something that we can continue and sustain. 1,400 people have come out. as part of this humanitarian exercise. that was carried out in humanitarian agreement, that the u.n. brokered between the government of syria and the opposition groups. 1,400 people have come out. the great majority of them are now in different parts of the city, but also in the country, they have immediately moved on to join family or go back to where they have lived. there is a group of about 300 males whose age is between 16

and 54 years old, some of them with their families. apparently they were in a facility in the city of homs where the checking of their cases is taken place by the government authorities in full presence of the united nations staff and humanitarian staff. >> next door in lebanon the prime minister has appeared to have bridged deep divisions. a cabinet. the country has not had a government for almost 11 months. groups have been divided on various issues including the syrian war. now involves rival factions hezbollah and future movement and the prime minister cabinet now needs to agree on an agenda

and put itself forward to parliament. we have more from beirut. >> reporter: 11 months of political bickering has now come to an end. lebanon has an agreement. all sides agreeing on the formation of that government. it is being hailed as a positive first step to bring stability to this country. the main issue to this country is security, the direct impact being felt here from the spillover from syria. hezbollah is actively fighting inside syria on behalf of president bashar al-assad and then we have others who are opposed to assad and pro revolution. there is a sticking point there, but people are saying this is the first right move forward to try to get things moving in this country, which has been held hostage where nothing can be decided, no laws can be passed, and people are saying they expect them to look at security, refugees, and they're streaming over the board on a daily basis.

and when it comes to internal issues, all of this has been on hold. next steps are for the cabinet to agree on an agenda. to present this to parliament. parliament will agree on that, and then this government can start functioning. >> professor of international affairs at notre dame university in lebanon, he is in beirut for us. what dinners is it going to actually make? >> definitely the formation of this cabinet today or at this declaration of names has put lebanon on a course of relevant stability for the immediate future. it has been--it was mentioned that for 11 months the country has been in political stalement. the measure of political blocks has come to agree on this kind

of distribution of position in the government. and this distribution which we came out today has given the measure coalition a kind of claim that they have established that they want. they have the foreign ministry, and in addition the--the foreign ministry, and the--also the energy ministry. the energy ministry has been.

>> can i just try to broaden this out to the bigger picture, the regional picture. you talk about general aoun getting the portfolio for his man. now when he was caretaker energy minister, he said look, the refugee crisis in lebanon is so bad that it's effecting national identity, refugees come here because life is easy for them, services provided by the state encouraging further displacement. that's not going to help the situation if he continues that type of staff. >> well definitely mr. bassil is clearly in the--he presents similar situation to the foreign minister in lebanon. but there is a caveat here. the general has taken a new course for political action in

lebanon for which he has been seeking to get contacts, and to point agreement. this is the major reason why the ultimate ca cabinet was born to. >> i wonder your thoughts on how long it will hold together. >> as i see it, this cabinet today has raised the stocks of the general getting the presidency in lebanon. if this course of compromise continue between general and

mr. harir, this may bring a new presidency in lebanon led by the general. otherwise the country will go into another stalemate similar to the stalemate we have seen over the first 11 months and the previous stal stalemate which ld several months. >> thank you, thank you very much, indeed, for your thoughts. live from beirut on the new government there. a policeman has been killed by a bomb, the third anniversary of the up rising of mainly shia muslims against their sunni rulers. two people were wounded by what it calls a terroristic explosion near the capitol. on friday security forces fought demonstrators as they head to the site that has become the focus of unrest three years ago. morallies are expected on saturday. 92 prisoners have escaped from a jail in western libya.

a spokesman for the local council said four guards were watching over 200 detainees at the prison. the prisoners asked for a daughter. when the gate was open they attacked the guards and fled. only 19 have been recaptured. >> in a sign of how the libyan government is struggling to keep control of the prison, 200 prisoners were being watched by four guards. prisoners asked for a doctor, and 92 were able to get out before guards were able to fire on them, injuring two of them, and we're told something like two dozen of those prisoners have been recaptured. this is the latest sign of insecurity in libya where 54 prisoners escaped in the capitol

a month ago. at the same time the government is announcing the latest of coup plots. it has negotiated with niger, and it was the latest of coup not. 30 government military officials are being sought. there was a youtube in which a former commander had sought the turn over of the government here. they stated the obvious that when it comes to security they have a problem. >> the three of english journalists detained in egypt are part of a group of 20 people charged and accused of to having links to terrorist groups. they now have been held for 49 days. among the accusations against

them is having ties with muslim brotherhood muslim brotherhood with has been declared as a terrorist organization. al jazeera rejects all the charges and continues to demand the unconditional release of its staff. police in my gera are on a major offensive. members of the armed group, some of those rounded up say they've been falsely accused and abused just because they're muslim. >> these people are all farmers, they're very much depending on their crops. and the ash is everywhere. and it's not a very healthy. >> a hundred thousand people still displaced afte after the volcano eruption covers with

ash. and we'll have more in sports later. >> in turkey the government has more control over how judges and prosecutors are appointed. the all-night session ended in a brawl that left two politicians hurt. they explain what the new law will mean. >> it increases the role of government in the appointment of judges and prosecutors, and also their actions that should be independent are now to be reported to administrative authorities which gives the government an opportunity to respond. so it is generally judged to be

the separation of powers that has recognized the turkish constitution of system. i don't think the action will be met with favor. the opposition will be sure to take it to the constitution of court, and recently also one might remember the turkish prime minister promised the european union to observe the rules of the european union as regards democratic practices, so this is bound to generate negative response among the opposition both domestically. >> other news out of turkey, the 15th anniversary of the capture of a kurdish leader turned violent. in the southeast of the country the head of the kurdistan part of the pkk is serving a life

sentence. he has dropped his call for an independent homeland and can is asking for some political autonomy for kurds. they could have a new prime minister within a matter of hours. we go to our news center in london. >> reporter: it's looking increasingly likely that the 39-year-old mayor of florence will become italy's youngest prime minister. the president is now in talks about who will form the new government. we have reports. >> reporter: it's now an all too familiar sight in rome, a parliament without a prime minister. staging a lively demonstration the movement set up want to put politics back in the hands of the people. >> just another leader, just another clown.

>> he's likely to have a veto of confidence as prime minister without once being elected to the chamber. here outside of the political circus of rome you get a different perspective, a profound sense of alienation. they just have a new addition to their family. but they don't intend to stay in italy. >> you have the same politicians and in the same place. they work together. yeah, maybe he might have some few ideas different from the others, but i don't know. it's the same school. >> reporter: the list of parliamentary politicians going through the door of the president's palace for consultation is growing ever larger. the result it expected sometime tonight. >> live for us in rome. david, machinations behind the scenes whether they get the

backing for this. if he does get the nod he'll still need support from parliament. does he have the clout to bring together italian politician who is are so divided? >> well, most of the political commentators have been telling me that they think he'll get the sport that he needs in the coalition, and it may be stronger than his predecessor. and the tactics are that matteo renzi wants to keep it going for the next four years while elections are due to 2018. whether he can last that long or whether the people of this country will accept another appointment and anointment of a man who has not been elected to the position. so he's going to have to prove himself very quickly in the parliament, and before he can even start that, of course, if

he can eventually appointed we'll hear some say that it might not be denied after all, it might be tomorrow, tomorrow morning and that timetable is beginning to slip, we understand. he's actually got to prove to the people of italy that he'll make a real difference. now he has got a lot of reputation in florence as the mayor for breaking down institutions, for having new ideas, for being a tony blai blair-like figure. but he's got a lot of work to do on the economy. he has got a lot of work to do on the political stem here. eyes will be on him how soon and quickly he starts. then they'll judge, well, he's just another politician, or he's going to make a real difference. >> can you expect any eye-catching policies that will make him stand out?

>> well, it's impossible to see into his portfolio to see what his policies will be. i have been talking to the professor of economics. he said that renzi is the business and broker's candidate. they think he'll make a difference. the stock market turmoil we've seen has not happened. the brokers and the businessmen like renzi so they feel he's going to start cutting taxes, making sure he gets an increased revenue by making cutbacks elsewhere. i don't know if that's going to go over well, but the businessmen at least think he has got the guts, and he's young enough to make sure that he reaches ambitiously for those targets unlike the politicians who have been too involved in the coalition to get any real results from the italian people. >> thanks very much, indeed. anti-government protesters in the center of the kiev, wants

opposition to live barricades and leave occupied police station by monday. protesters are digging in, among them a growing women' brigade. >> the 20-year-old have come to join the revolution. the protester command center all recruits are vetted. an unlikely new member of the opposition women's brigade. >> the first time i see how they burn and how the police attacked them, after that i just went. >> you said yourself it's a dangerous situation here. what are you prepared to do?

>> everything. i'm ready to fight for my human rights and my country and a better life of my country even to death. >> she is among several hundred women eagle for play a more active role in protest. that means they're ready to fight. but before being allowed to police the barricades they receive basic training. >> for these somewhat young recruits being trained in a whole series different tactics, how to avoid arrest, what to do in a riot situation. if there are any more clashes these women are determined not to play a backseat role in what is going on here. >> none of the people at independent square are afraid of being hurt. they just want to protect their freedom and their lives, but perhaps the bigger danger is that all of this will end in nothing. >> young women are undergoing a

radical transformation. while the country remains in political turmoil this is the changing face of resistence. al jazeera, kiev. >> we'll have more from europe. but now let's go back to david. >> thank you for now. coming up on the news hour uncovering abuses in one of the world's most isolated countries. and who will bag a bear, a golding bear. take a look at the top contenders at the berlin film festival. in sport wide diegoio and his lawyers have 50 million things on their mind. we'll have though story a little bit later. i must begin my journey,

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>> let's go to th the washington institute joining us by skype from progress. they blame each other, but brahimi said it's the syrian government's fault, is that fair? >> you can say in a the syrian government is trying to change the basis of the talks, which is about to be transition into something else which is fighting terrorism and reward the syrian people with something that it should be doing anyway, that is allowing humanitarian access and

evacuation from besieged areas. i think to put it bluntly, i think the assad government is the heavy but not the only part of the equation. it's very economy kateed and unfortunately diplomacy for now has failed. >> so barack obama saying in california that it's time to increase the pressure on bashar al-assad. in the interview that you were going to give me, you said they can do so threw security council resolution 2188, that's the one to do with chemical weapons. help us how that would help us now after the dismantling of the weapons is underway. >> the dismantling is not only going slower than expected, the syrians are trying to revise their commitment to, they don't want to destroy their sites. they want to deactivate them. anyway, the 2118 talks about chemical weapons and it also

talks about the communique of 2012, and the annex of that agreement is the geneva communique. so the two issues of the chemicals we will we weapons ane communique are linked. and it could bring with it chapter 7 penalties, but it would have to return to the security couple. that's where everything has been locked up. >> the u.s. backed out over the use of force. it came very close to launching strikes on syrian major cities including damascus last summer. it backed down from this because of a deal on chemical weapons. has it backed down with this is what we have to do, and this time carry it through? >> yes, president obama would prefer to look at it, he has not backed down, he has only delayed

it. the question is would he have to do it again? it seems that in the cards he could go back and that-- >> andrew, i'm terribly sorry, just as you got to the crunch unfortunately the skype line broke up. we'll try to get you back at some point to give your full thoughts. that is andrew tabler talking to us about syria. crimes against humanity have been committed in north korea. there has been a call for criminal investigation in the haig.

>> in seoul they will heard testimony from among others defectors who had spent time in the notorious prison camps. they illustrate the horrors that they describe. >> the most painful is when they handcuff my hands behind the back. my hands are placed 60-centimeters from the ground. i couldn't sit or stand. i was left there for several days. that was the most painful torture. >> the details not just abuses inside prison camps but throughout the country. murders, rape, political oppression and crimes against humanity. the full report is due to be published on monday. the u.n. is not confirming the contents of this leak, however, if they are an accurate report, it is not a surprise but is a concern for the international community to investigate north

korea's human rights record and to hold it to account. according to the leak the report recommends further action from a competent national or international law of justice to investigate the korean government. and with china, north korea's ally holding veto power at the u.n. the panel's chairman insisted the forensic endeavor would force some accountability. >> they'll have due process and have an opportunity to respond. not just in general that this is a hostile act because it is the act of the whole world community, but a reaction which will be appropriately detailed to all the evidence we have gathered. >> north korea has reacted to the leak calling the cries of crimes against humanity unfounded, and will push ahead for reunions for separated

families slated for next thursday. with a full report on monday those families and government officials in seoul will be watching to see if it's publication has influence on the reunions between the two countries. >> france will send in another 400 peace keeping troops to central african republic. that will raise the total number to 2,000. united nations said the u.n. force need 10,000 to patrol things. thousands of muslims trying to escape the fighting in bangui forced to turn back after christian government conservatived them. divisions in the country run deep. >> you have a split, you have a christian on one side, muslims on the other. we're not talking about normal people but throughout the government and institutions, you're going to need a serious

buffer zone to keep the two sides apart. it will take money and time and more agency effort. the u.n. the african led forces, the european forces to name a few and the french who have actually stepped up on the ground. ultimately the sides are not looking very healthy. we have those who are meant to be providing saved through the africa led forces not to mention the fringe to sustain the violence. >> in nigeria accused of victoryizing muslims. some of the leamed victims told al jazeera that hundreds, mostly men, were arrested as they traveled to the south last mon month. the police say it didn't happen.

>> he was shocked when arrested and jailed by police and accused of being a fighter. he had gone from the north to buy supplies for his shop. he was traveling with other men who were accused of belonging to the group, too. they were traveling in the middle of the night . >> the men were eventually released. some after 15 nights of interrogation. the police say 19 of the arrested men could not give a satisfactory account of why they were traveling. one suspect had ammunition on

him. he is away still in custody. because there have been so many bombings and sued attacks in the northeast some worry that the group could attack the south. especially the police. they say they were acting on an intelligence report that fighters were traveling down from the north. >> when you see people coming from that area, the police are trying to find out what is happening. nobody has victimized anybody. >> but they say it is not active here and the arrests are making people feel uncomfortable. >> we are a muslim community here. we check every person who come

to our city. >> but they have threatened attacks across nigeria, so the security forces may be suspicious to people traveling from the north. innocent people living here in the region only hope they're not victimized as a result. >> thank you, lauren taylor. to london with more news in europe. >> the european home ray fairs commissioner has asked spain for an explanation of how 13 migrant drown after being fired upon with rubber bullets by civil guards. it took place february 6th. off the spanish enclave in morocco. people were trying to swim across the sea border. 33 who made it to shore were returned to morocco. thanks for being with us.

have you planninged to get a clearer picture of what happened before this incident, and tell us what you think actually happened? >> well, i think it is not a n new--it is not a new incident. morocco is very close, but migrants try to reach the spanish coast by swimming, and the guards fired directly. that's what happened. >> it's not clear at this stage the spanish interior minister insist that they did not

directly at people and they did not cause the deaths of those who drowned, is that your understanding of what happened? >> you know what, we have yet the declaration of the interior ministry who declare what happened. but the fact is there are many migrants, and what happened they used violence on people who are trying to reach our coast when they were swimming. that's the fact, i thinks so dangerous to have this, and it's important, we think. >> part of these mass attempts

to cross the borders by either climbing the fences or swimming. what can be done to stop people from taking that risk. there is the risk of drowning, never mind what happens to them when they get there. >> you well, that's a good question. violence is not the solution, and all the society, all the ngos saying in morocco because people move. we are only seeing this violence because we want to control people, and people move. maybe in their old countries, these people are trying to reach spain or europe we are always

having the same answer for those people. it is not a solution. >> maria, thank you very much, indeed, for talking to us. >> thank you. >> days of torrential rain have caused flooding in central croatia. the army has been called in to strengthen the flood defenses and to help with relief efforts. and two people have been killed as britains fear more fierce storms. a woman was injured in london when bricks were flown over a building and crushed the car she was in. >> the cleanup after the eruptiotheeruption on friday and the town with thick ash. many are out of their homes.

many ended up in temporary shelters. we go to the village close to the volcano. >> it's not very far from the volcano. this is the third time people here have felt an eruption in 1990 o 2007, and now last thursday night. they said it sounded like a bomb exploded. stones like these fell on the roof. it fell everywhere, and a thick player of ash is basically on every roof. what happens lots of these houses have collapsed, and they have not seen that happening before during any of the previous eruptions. as you know these people are all farmers so they're depending on their crops. the ash is everywhere, and it's not a healthy substance. the banana trees, all the other

trees, they're completely destroyed so the farmers will have to start planting the crops all over again. people basically here are in the danger zone. some of them are still here trying to feed their animals and taking care of their houses, their belongings. they're worried to go away, but still it's not safe. the mountain now is not seriously erupting any more. it had the big bang last thursday, but after that it has calmed down, but authorities have not given the clear green light yet. >> we have news coming out of the winter olympics in just a moment. we'll have more on the winners.

>> when they try to justify the execution which was really unexpected, they used his relations with china as one of his crimes. so you know clearly right now cline is on the outs, and they don't have that influence that

we hoped that they would have. our political has been predicated on beijing using whatever leverage it would have, so this is not going to work for us. >> the obama administration has been trying to make this asia pivot. >> clearly we would like to spend more of our time talking about the real problems in asia because asia is sliding towards war. it could be a real big bust up. people are talking about 1914 or 1939. today this is the sign that the region is even more dangerous in the middle east. >> you mentioned that danger which brings me to something that china's official news agency said on friday. they ran an h editorial saying quote while beijing has always been trying to address territorial brawls with neighboring countries through peaceful means it will no take

steps towards national security interests. >> it's not just japan but it's south korea, and there has been no easing. you know, over the last two or three months it's gotten worse. just almost every single day. and that's really going to be a problem because that's why kerry is in beijing. that's why he's in the region because he's trying to tap down these tensions but he's not having very much success what what we can tell. >> complicating matters is tension between tokyo and seoul. >> we urge both of them to with us together to find a way forward to help resolve these deeply felt historic differences that still have meaning today.

>> now he looked pretty pained in that spot, to really strike a very diplomatic tone. but belying that how frustrated is the u.s. right now having to deal with this? >> we're extremely frustrated. japan is our cornerstone allies, but shinzo abe, the prime minister, went to the shrine with 13 war criminals it has gotten china upset and countries around the region are not happy. and we're not happy with some of the things that the japanese officials are saying abou sayind war two. the countries are not cooperating, and that's a real issue. at some point they need to understand that they need each other and it might be too late to patch up relations. >> hackers have broken into the black market website known as silk road, a website

administrator said that $3 million in bitcoins were stolen from both the site and it's users. silk road is a middle road between buyers and sellers and doesn't use regular currency. that attack shows how much cyber crime is on the rise. but one school in new york is teaching students how to hack for a good cause. >> every week dozens of students order pizza, play music, and fire up the laptops. >> you're hacking into websites here. >> yes. >> it's scary when you think about it. >> it's called hack night. here the website broken into are fake. >> you have made your own version of footprint. >> pretty much. >> built to teach these students at polytech institute how to become white hat hackers, good guys who can fight off

cyberattacks. >> the best way to defend against the attacksers is to understand how the attacks are happening in the first place. >> reporter: according to verizon business solutions only 11% of companies are properly protected. >> i will not pay for anything using credit card. i will use cash wherever i go. i see the ways hackers can get in and the ways things can go wrong. >> if i could see what you see. >> you would see the world as a hostile place. >> begins onlingangs online, ans difficult to keep up. >> if the attacker finds something that you didn't quite do right, they attack your system. >> they have launched bug bounties offering cas cash prizs for anyone who can discover a

problem in their system. >> i didn't do anything malicious, but it's something that could happen down the road. >> he now leads the hack night sharing his knowledge with classmates. >> in the end it's up to them not to take what they learn and do mean things with it. with great power comes responsibility. >> a great power that is especially in demand. >> speaking of spying, concern about spying by the national security agency could lead to a new secure european data netwo network. chancellor merkel said she'll speak with president hollande about an alternative. she said e-mails sent between european nations should not have to cross the atlantic. meanwhile, the obama administration has given the go ahead for banks to do business with marijuana sellers in spite wherstateswhere pot is legal.

they'll be able to stamp away saves, make payroll and pay taxes. before they were forced to work in a cash only environment, many banks simply didn't want to touch it. >> we have only gone a tiny fraction of the distance we need to go for banks to feel comfortable providing this service. >> it's a huge development for the industry. up until this point these businesses have been forced to operate in almost an entirely cash only environment. >> financial institutions could be rewarded for banking with legal marijuana businesses. according to one market research firm the legal pot industry is expected to reach more than $2.5 billion just this year alone. finally the united states hockey team scored a pretty big win in sochi against russia today. in a dramatic sudden death over time victory the u.s. men's hockey team defeated the home team in a core of 3-2. the scoring the go ahead goal in

the eighth round of the shootout. thanks so much. opening doors ... opening possibilities. taking the impossible from lab ... to life. on techknow, our scientists bring you a sneak-peak of the future, and take you behind the scenes at our evolving world. techknow - ideas, invention, life. on al jazeera america

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school diploma. >> award winning film makers create create unique perspectives. >> everybody's different here... >> just gotta tell ya, it was just a very magical moment... >> al jazzera america presents... on al jazeera america . >> hello, welcome to al jazeera america. i'm morgan radford live from new york city. talks to end the bloodshed and misery in syria have not had much success but they're not over yet. and the north koreaen government receives criticism of its harsh treatment of its people.