>> snoo >> announcer: this is al jazeera. mousse >> hello, a warm welcome to this newshour, i'm here from doha. the top world stories. decision day in a divided nation - millions of iraqis vote in an election that will shape the country's future. close to calamity - that's the warning from a top u.s. official as to what is happening in south sudan. a botched execution raises questions around the secrecy surrounding lethal injections

used in u.s. prisons. plus... (♪) . an orchestra in the u.s. for musicians with mental illnesses. it's a crucial day for iraq's future. millions of people are voting in elections that will decide the shape of the new government. despite the high security we have seen some violence. roadside bombs killed two women as they were on their way to vote near kirkook, north of baghdad. >> reporter: iraq's prime minister nouri al-maliki voted. he wants a third term in the job. >> on this occasion i call for outline iraqis to go to the ballot box. >> others have been out to cast

their vote >> translation: today is the day of iraqis, it is the day of their did you suggest. and to put their votes in the ballot boxes and destroy terrorism and the enemies of iraq. >> it's the first election since the u.s. pulled out its forces three years ago. this time there's a massive security operation underway to make the streets safe enough to get as many people as possible to go out and vote. many will have to walk. roads to the polling station are closed. >> translation: i could describe the election day as a day change, prosperity and freedom. we hope to get rid of sebbing tarians and those -- sebbing tarians and those that corrupt. >> no single bloc is expected to win. a coalition will have to be formed. >> when you have so many opponents you must sit and make negotiations even if they are not with your ethnic, let's say,

members, or even if he's a christian and so on. this is the positive thing about it. >> iraqis have a day to vote. establishing a government could take many months. >> our correspondent imran can live from a polling station in baghdad. a huge day for iraqis, are you seeing many coming out to vote? the referee: . >> reporter: well, the polling station i'm at is in central baghdad. there has been a steady stream of people coming in, 3,500. so for we have seen about 1,000 come through. according to an independent election monitoring group, in baghdad the turn out has been about 40%. the official figure, an independent monitoring group has given that figure.

it is high. there's about four headquarters to go. it seems the security operation has worked. they cleared the streets of all cars. there's no commercial traffic, no cars on the roads that don't belong or have an official sticker. so the closing of the air space, the security operation has encouraged people to come out and vote. this day has been marred with violence. >> thank you for that. the scene there from a polling station in baghdad. we'll cross back later in the day. more than 32 million in iraq can be divided into three major ethnic and religious groups. politics and power revolve around the shia, sunni and kurdish community. in northern iraq the kurdish makes up a fifth. the semiautonomous area has a kurdistan government. areas further south are a mix of sunni, arabs and kurds in

oil-rich kirkuk and mosul. a third of the population are sunni muslims and are in central and western parts, accusing the shi'a-led government of discrimination. baghdad and its surrounding areas have been a mix of sunni and shia muslims. both wrestled for control of districts and neighbourhoods. the majority of the shia population is concentrated in the eastern and southern parts of iraq. including cities like basra. >> so for iraqis heading to the polls, it's not just sectarian challenges, there are regional ones as well. >> iraqi president is showing the rare public appearance at a hospital in germany where he is being treated. the ballot he is passing is for the first parliamentary

elections since 2011 when the u.s. pulled out of iraq. these elections are seen as crucial. voting in some regions is expected to be difficult. in places like anbar, there's intense fighting between the army and members of the islamic state in iraq and the levant. tribal leaders control post of anbar, including the city of ballujah. sunnis accuse the shia-led government of mistreating them. during a rally, protesters accuse the prime minister nouri al-maliki of being a puppet of iran. maliki's problems do not end there. leaders in the gulf accuse the government of discriminating against sunni. nouri al-maliki blames saudi arabia and qatar for helping armed groups. the last summit on syria in

march underscored the political divisions between iraq and its sunni neighbours. >> translation: sending fighters increases the violence and the people are paying the price. >> the saudis and their allies want bashar al-assad out of power. >> none of them have a place in the future of syria. with the war in syria showing no signs of letting up, concerns of sectarian violence can spread to neighbouring countries and could leave iraq more isolated. >> the united nations top human right official said the situation in south sudan is close to calamity. speaking at a news conference in the capital navi pilae said the

u.n. requested an investigation into the killings. rebel leader riek machar met with her on friday to discuss the violence. >> chemical weapons inspectors are being sent to ir-syrsyria t investigate gas attacks. the syrian government denies using chlorine on civilians, it is out laud as a wep on of war. it is not an a banned lift of chemicals. >> reporter: there has been a spate of incidents believed to involve chlorine, these you talk pictures show what act visits say was the aftermath of a barrel bomb dropped by the syrian government. it's claimed that chlorine in can strs was packed into the barrel so the gas would spread on impact. a team a being dispatched to syria. news welcomed by the u.s. ambassador. >> translation: we welcome the announcement that the ocd's

mission to determine the agas attacks. syria must immediately cooperate with such fact-finding and anybody responsible for such attacks must be held accountable. >> syria's ambassador to the u.n. made it clear he doeses not believe there has been attacks. >> the aim is to overshadow preparations for the elections in syria. they will not spare any effort or any argument to overshadow the successful preparations for the presidential elections. >> investigations arrive in the country as a separate joint u.n. opce continues its work removing the chemical arsenal. >> that says 95% has been removed and. >> the issue has been

surrounded. some documents hint that bashar al-assad did not declare his entire chemical spot and may have hidden some of the agents. >> syrian activists say an air strike hit a school in syria. nine have been reported dead, at least three children. it happened in aleppo where the government is battling rebels. al jazeera can't verify the picture. >> taking you back to the top story - the iraqi elections. we speak to an iraqi mp and senior member of a kirkize tan alliance. thank you for being with us. it is a distinct part of iraq. what are the main issues for kurds there in this election. unfortunately we have just lost the line. we'll try to get him back a

little later in the programme. now, a powerful u.s. senator says he will block u.s. aid to egypt because of what he calls sham trials. on monday egyptian court sentenced 683 to death. senator patrick leahy joined a number of politicians who want to stop the obama administration sending aid to egypt. patty culhane, white house correspondent, has this report. >> 683 egyptians sentenced to death in a lightening kick trial. it was one step too far, chairman of the committee that approves overseas funding. >> if i was not chairman of that, i would have been watching this situation with great interest and growing dismay. hundreds of people could be sentenced to death after a sham trial lasting barely an hour.

>> it's a flaunting of human rights by the egyptian government. an appalling abuse of the justice system which is fundamental to any democracy. nobody, nobody, can justify this. >> he says the u.s. won't help pay for it. he's blocking the 650 million in military aid, the obama administration just announced it would give to the egyptian military for counterterrorism and upholding the treaty with israel, money it promise even after 529 egyptians were sentenced to death in another quick trial in march. meeting with the foreign minister, secretary of state john kerry described the cases as disturbing. for his part, farmee tried to offer reassurance. >> i can't comment on the content of the decisions, but i'm confident that due process

is allowed and that the legal system will ultimately end up with proper decisions in each of these cases, and we will build a democracy based on the rule of law. >> for now, powerful politicians in the u.s. do not believe him. senator leahy says this is not democracy, but a dictatorship run amok. until that changes, he says the u.s. will be keeping its cash. >> al jazeera continues to call for the release of its journalists held in egypt. the trial has been adjourned until may the 3rd. they've been in gaol for 123 days. peter greste, mohamed fadel fahmy, and baher mohamed are falsely accused of providing a platform to the muslim brotherhood. al jazeera relates all the charges. >> abdullah al-shami, a fourth journalist in detention has been

held without trial since august. he's been on hunger strike for 100 days. authorities refuse him medical attention. he began his hunger strike on january 21st, taking milk, juice and two dates. he weighed 128. two weeks in he went to liquids. by march he was taking juice and water, and 15 days later abdullah al-shami limited himself to water. 10 days ago he weighed 74 kilos, meaning he's lost 34 kilograms. still ahead here on this newshour... ..pro-russian groups seize buildings in another eastern ukrainian town. plus, simple message. fined out how a group of syrian graffiti artists are encouraging people in their war-torn country

not to give up. >> for all people of all races, especially, you know, african-americans and latinos. basketball responds to the life ban given to l.a. clippers owner donald sterling. . >> russia accused the west of revising cold war tactics after new sanctions were imposed over the ukrainian crisis. 15 more people were added to the list of russian officials, facing asset freedss and travel -- friezes and travel bands. >> the chief of the international monetary funds megs to moscow says russia's economy is falling into recession. antonio says the country experienced two quarters of negative growth which is likely to continue.

he had sanctions against russia over the ukrainian crisis. to further damage the economy. >> let's spoke to the correspondent. it's a bleak picture painted by the i.m.f. >> it certainly is. the i.m.f. chief in moscow said, as you explained, he believes russia's economy is in recession because there has been two quarters of negative growth. the prediction for this year was 1.3% growth, they are saying the economy will grow by 0.2%. i think that's a worrying statistic for many economists. further to that the i.m.f. mission chief says that there'll be $100 billion in capital outflow from russia. that chimes with what the russian central bank said. they saw $64 billion leave

russia. worrying for ordinary russians. the i.m.f. says consumer prices could rise bias much as 6%. to what extent is this linked to the crisis in ukraine. >> well, the i.m.f. mission chief believes that the political crisis around ukraine has greatly contributed to the slowing down of the economy, and most of the capital outflow has been linked to people confurthering local country, ruble in ci sis since last year. the ruble started to weaken against other currencies. it took a hit around the annexation of crimea in ukraine. at the moment it's not a case where we see people lose their

jobs in russia as a consequence of what is happening over ukraine, as we know the u.s. and e.u. sanctions have started, but it's early days. i think the real impact is over the capital outflow. the trouble with the currency. in the coming months, we could see further sanctions. that is what people are really worried about as well. >> thank you for that, from moscow. well, in eastern ukraine pro-russian groups seized the local government building and police headquarters. from east ukraine barnaby phillips reports. >> reporter: the pro-russian crowd forced their way into a government building in luhansk. despite widespread rumours, the

police did nothing. they seemed incapable or unwilling to take on the crowds. they refused to hand over their weapons. they were escorted away. the crowd revelled in their victory. they took over more buildings in the town. later pro-russian gunmen opened fire in an attack on the police station. >> reporter: and so pro-russian groups continue to extend their control in eastern ukraine. they want to hold a referendum in early may. for that vote to be credible, they need to have a large enough area under their authority, and that is what is driving them on at the moment. >> how fair would such a vote be. this man runs a news website in donetsk. we are going to his office. he's taken down the name plaque and most of his staff are too afraid to come here after a visit by a group of masked me with baseball bats who said he should report more favourably on

the self-declared people's public of donetsk. >> if the influence of the people's republic of donetsk grows, it will be difficult and dangerous for journalists to work. it's dangerous now. i have a colleague that received death threats flagged with his colleag colleague. >> some opposed to russia say they have sh enough. the vid -- have had enough. these men say they are ukrainian patriots. conditions in the east are heartening. >> a man on daeth row in the u.s. state of oklahoma died of a heart attack after a boxed attempt to execute him. clayton d. lockett was given a lethal injection. the execution was called off once he lived his head and started mumbling. a prison spokesman said the vein was broken and the drugs not working properly. another inmate was to be put to death, that has been delayed. both convicts sued the state for

refusing to disclose details of the judge. oklahoma supreme court dismissed the claims. several u.s. states that carry out the death penalty have been using secretly acquired drug cocktails. they can glow locker access sodium theo pen tral, and another drug used to paralyze the condemned. the lone u.s. manufacturer stopped producing to drug in 2011. the e.u. barred european companies from exporting drugs used for execution. states like oklahoma have been using untested combinations or buying from regulated pharmacies buying the chemicals. they have been able to keep the cocktail secret with the help of court rulings. >> in ohio, an inmate took 25 minutes to die, and was seen convulsing. it's an untested combination of

trucks. >> a usa researcher joins us now joining us from london. it's horrific to think of someone taking 25 minutes to die. what is going on. >> well, it is horrific, and they need to investigate what happened last night. that's what his lawyers are calling for. you know, i have to say it's not the first time you alluded to that in your introduction. it's not the first time there has been a botched execution. a list is wept and there are more than 30 that is a taken a variety of length of time and a variety of lesson and methods have been batched. >> it seems they are linked to cocktails, one wonderers why and how they an keep the cocktails

secret. >> well, as you suggested, the lawyers were litigating to try to discover where the origins of the drug and precisely, you know, doses and so on. the courts have, you know, the two courts are against each other. one stayed the execution, the other overturning it. i imagine the executive of oklahoma are regretting the amount of pressure they put on the courts to see this execution go ahead. now they face a huge outrage that happened. and, you know, the legislature and the executive need to work against the punishment generally as well as discovering what happened last night. do you think they will start working against the death penalty. is it time? >> well, it certainly is time from our perspective. some states have started to work against this in the u.s. and there have been four states in the past four years that abolished the death penalty.

this is oklahoma, one of the state's very enthusiastic supporter of the death penalty one might say, and conducted over 100 of the executions and - we are not seeing any sign after last night that they are having second thoughts about this. they are delaying the next execution by two weeks why they look into this. but there'll be a lot of litigation and pressure on the legislature and the government to see an end to this form of punishment and we hope that what happened in oklahoma will affect some of the marginal states in the u.s. which are having second thoughts about the punishment. >> great to speak to you. thanks very much from london. it's been a week since reuban "hurricane" carter known

as a symbol of racial injustice died of prostate cancer. his dies wish was to free another black man he believed was wrongly imprisoned just like him. christen saloomey reports. >> reporter: it was 1985. crime in new york was at a high. two teenagers from brooklyn were convicted of stealing a car and shooting and killing the owner. david mccullen was one of those. >> i am 40 years. i've been incarcerated since i was 16 for a crime i didn't commit. >> he is the subject of a film "david and me." it's an effort to overturn the conviction by a canadian family and hurricane carter. he had spent 19 years behind bars for a case dismissed due to prosecutorial conduct. >> there's thousands wrongly convicted. david mccallum is one of those

people. we are trying to do our small part to affect his. >> while david mccallum confessed, there was no physical evidence against him. >> the two teenagers had no chance with professional integrators. >> experts say there's evidence that his confession was forced. >> this is before d.n.a. evidence. one thing established is people falsely confess to cops. particularly young teenagers. >> they since uncovered d.n.a. from another person, but none from mccallum, giving him and his family new reason to hope. >> i just hope that my sop is able to come out and relate back into the world like, you know, mr carter did. >> one of the carter's lasts

acts as he lay dying of prostate cancer was to write a letter to the brooklyn district attorney to reopen the case. the brooklyn attorney will not open the case other than to say it's underreview. legally it's an uphill battle. the fact it it's getting a second look is enough to keep hope alive. now, let's get the weather with everton. you'll have people breathing a huge sigh of relief in the tornado areas. >> i'd like to think sox we have signs that the -- so. we have signs that the tornados threats have diminished. there are storms in the forecast. there's flooding and hail. taking a look at the satellite - huge mess of cloud in the same place as it was yesterday. it's not moving too far too quickly, there's a good reason. there's a large area of high pressure. it's blocking things off.

it's having the effect of diminishing the down pours now. hopefully things will start to improve over the next couple of days. this is a picture we have out of - these are pictures out of alabama and mississippi, where the tornados have been causing major problems. buildings flat ned. powerlines down, trees down and major problems. we go through the remainder of wednesday, heavy rain continuing. up the eastern sea board, and this is where we'll hang on to the flood threat over the next couple of days. know in place across central parts of canada, going into thursday. wet weather. drier, brighters skies. doing nicely temperature wise at 24. other side of the country, we have fine weather. santa ana winds are causing problems around california. that could cause fire risks. a cause for concern there. the wetter weather around the

eastern sea board making its way around this weekend. >> thank you very much. still ahead on the programme - jordan is home to 600,000 syrians who fled from the war. we'll be live at a new refugee camp where tens of thousands more are expected. plus myanmar's plans to restrict interfaith marriages amid increasing ain muslim -- anti-muslim sentiment. >> and a tense european cup title. title. andy will be here with that true business-grade internet comes title. andy will be here with that with secure wifi for your business. it also comes with public wifi for your customers. not so with internet from the phone company.

i would email the phone company to inquire as to why they have shortchanged these customers. but that would require wifi. switch to comcast business internet and get two wifi networks included. comcast business built for business.

story. hello again. we are at the al jazeera headquarters in doha. we'll give you a run through of the top story. iraqis are voting in parliamentary elections, the first vote since the withdrawal of u.s. troops since 2011. security is tight. there has been some attacks on polling stations. the u.n.'s top human rights official said the situation in south sudan is close to calamity. the u.n. requested an investigation into mass killings in unity and jonglei state. pro-russian groups seized a building in the eastern ukrainian town of holifca. they stormed a government building this -- building in luhansk on thursday. >> 100km east of the capital, a

camp will be opened in jordan. it will house refugees fleeing, taking some pressure off the largest camp, and second largest in the world. it opened in 2011 and as expected to house 30,000 refugees. it crew rapidly with more than 100,000 living there. when it opens it will accommodate 50,000 new refugees, but eventually housing up to 130,000. jordan is currently home to over 600,000 syrians. we are joined from as rat camp to show us what it's like? >> well we listened to a news conference where lots of foreign dignitaries, security officials and nongovernment organizations held a ser knowny to -- ceremony

at the camp. officials said there's no indication that the war in syria will end and refugee crisis is growing and continuing. this is why they are opening a large camp, which is expected to have a capacity of over 130,000. they said that this is not a moment it celebrate. with me to talk about this more is the united nations refugee agency representative in jordan, andrew harper. thank you for talking to us. this is not a moment to celebrate, we under, even though it is a big achievement for jordan, it's a large camp. better equipped. you probably have learnt lessons. why shouldn't we celebrate the moment? >> no one can possibly celebrate the impact of what is going on in syria, and what is going on in syria has an impact on the refugees into michael jordan. what we can be proud of is what jordan has down to keep borders open, work as agencies such as

u.n. hncr to better protect the refugees across the border. it's not allowing them to come across, but allowing access to schooling, service, and provide a language, a massive piece of land to accommodate up to 130,000 people. i think it's - you are correct. it's nothing to be happy or celebrate. it's something we can take satisfaction in, that we have done whatever we can given the limited resources. it was one of the level-planned camps anywhere in the world. it's up to the international community to give us the resources to ensure that the refugees that come into the camp can be provided with the schooling, health services, food and water. >> it's been three years, and it's fair to say that the international community is experiencing donor fatigue. jordan received a fraction of the aid. what is your message to the international community. the crisis is not going anywhere

soon. >> if the international community expects junioredan to keep its borders open, int a proud tradition, then jordan has every right to expect the international community to offset the costs. there are countries who have a close interest in syria. we need their support. and it's not to deny that there has been funding. we are thankful to the countries that stepped ford. it's not enough. jordan is going all the right things, sending the right signals out that it's reported to continue a commitment to provide security and application where there's no security and application. it cannot do it alone. >> that is the view from the united nations refugee agency, and this camp has opened its

doors to arrivals of refugees, they'll no longer be receiving refugees. >> thanks for joining us. interesting story indeed from as rack camp in jordan. human rights watch says the syrian government attacked 85 parts of the ancient city of aleppo with barrel bombs, and hundreds died since a u.n. resolution in february calling for a halt to such attacks. a group of graffiti artists responded with its own campaign. there isn't a single barrel bomb in site. >> reporter: on the streets of aleppo it's hard to imagine people driven by more than staying alive. the bombed out buildings became this graffiti artists canvas. an inspiration to people living under siege.

it's said asaad's barrels could under mine our forwards. determination grows. >> this is an artist turned activist. the barrels he writes about are barrel bombs. the indiscriminate weapon of choices in aleppo. for more than seven months barrel bombs terrorized people here. packed with fuel and metal. the bombs are dropped from helicopters. human rights watch says they are inadequate with little chance of hitting their targets. they have hit and killed hundreds of civilians. >> jamar and his artist collective know they can't beat the bombs. they are determined to deal with the terror they generate. messages to encourage people in their third year of war not to give up. >> we are like any other media trying to convey a message to the people, and raise awareness. we write things that give clear

ideas about the revolution. >> the work is on display. this reads, "aleppo more precious than gold", another, "aleppo, you are in our hearts." the artists contend with rebel fighters painting over their grap eaty with -- graffiti with their own slogans, but the war can be as much as information. it means that the sprai can is an effective weapon. throughout the day we are covering the iraqi elections and monitoring them online, looking for reaction and developments there. and kamal is keeping across that aspect of it all for us. >> reporter: early days, but it's a positive feeling about the elections. people want to get out the vote and show. we'll show you pictures. a bit of housekeeping, logistics. i want to talk to you about

baghdad. there's a term about lockdown which is not quite accurate. i want to show you a map. it's a pop u last government. this area in the center of baghdad. foot traffic only. 200km. there are no taxis, private considers. everyone ion foot. another area to the west, a flat area that you see on the map. it's the airport. commercial flights suspended. when we talk about security forces these are the major things going on. when people get out to the polling stations this is the picture we have online, the purple fingers, dipped in purple ink to say yes. we are talking about an accurate election.

it says "i can't vote again." they go through multiple layers. there are no risks being taken. let's talk about online rehabilitation. i'll show you some of the tweets. children who want to get their fingers dipped they want to say they are part of the process. a couple of shots. there's a close-up of a journalist talking about a card-reader system. it's causing delays. there's one more to tell you about. this is in basra:. >> a few technological problems, and one more tweet i liked someone saying:. that's nice. a couple of other things to tell you about. our own website at

aljazeera.com - i encourage you to go to the interactive section. our team put together fantastic info graphic. a lot of information for you there. nicely laid out and also when you get down to this part it's telling you about the coalition parties and how this might come together once the vote has come together. that is online at aljazeera.com. a reminder of how to keep in touch on twitter. definitely worth following. >> now, a journal lift in pakistan are being abducted, tortured and killed at an alarming rate. reach by amnesty international reveals 34 journalists have been killed as a result of their work

since 2008. only in one case has the killer faced justice. many more journalists have been threatened or physically attacked. those reporting only national security or human rights conditions are not the only ones, they face threats from political agencies and arm groups like the taliban amongst others. 64 fighters have been killed near the boarder of pakistan. 300 afghani fighters came under fire when storming an afghan military base. four afghan soldiers were killed in the battle. it's round 7 of india's 5-week long parliamenty elections. the rule ag alliance is ruled by the bhp party, he voted in his home state. the he's been the chief minister

for 13 years. zachariah modi has been accused of allowing g aind muslim riots in which more than 1,000 were killed. he denied wrongdoing and was cleared. on the campaign trail he steered clear and pitched his case as the level to revise a slowing economy. he pointed to economic growth. corporate leaders praised him. others are skeptical. >> reporter: this is the sound of progress in india's western states. a multi-million german manufacturer employing more than 350 indians. khs makes machines to process and package machines for clients like coca-cola.

the company has tripled its annual turn obvious, increasing their staff five fold. >> it's typical bureaucracy, it is absent here. instead of red tape you fine a red carpet. >> foreign and indian companies like tatar motors have been lured by the state's chief minister, and now prime ministerial candidate nareneda modi. he's credited with building infrastructure. streamlining democracy and providing cash incentives. it seems to be paying off. signs of prosperity are everywhere. the state enjoyed growth rates of 10% since norened ra modi became prime minister. under his leadership per cap ita income has doubled. giving more disposable money

economists say these axrooests are more hype than substance. >> this is an economics professor. he says modi's policies plunged the state into a fiscal deficit. >> it is a great concern. in 2001 when he became the chief minister, it was around $4 billion. it has gone up to $30 billion this year. >> there are those that are suffering under government policies. these farmers are accusing the administration of stealing their land and selling it to auto giants. they say they have been tilling their farms for three generations but were never given a land deed. >> translation: last month the government sent the police forcefully to take the land,

defeat us and smash it from us. >> while narenda modi continued his campaign, the farmers will continue their campaign against his economic policies. >> china is on track to surpass the u.s. as the world's largest economy. data released by the u.n.'s international comparison program re-evaluated g.d.p. estimates of purchasing power parity. it means what money can buy in different economies. china's g.d.p. says $13.5 million, larger than thought. bridging the chinas -- bringing the chinese economy closer to the u.s., estimated at $5.5 thrillion. china could overtake the u.s. this year. india emerged as the

third-largest economy moving ahead of japan. >> myanmar's parliament is considering a law to restrict puddist women to marry outside of their faith. this means men would have to convert. we have this report. >> reporter: theirs is a marriage that lasted a long time. although the muslim father wanted his son to marry within his faith, he relented. he knew religion would never be an issue in his relationship with his buddhist wife. >> if she wanted to go to the monastery i went with her. i invited immans to my house to read the koran, she made preparations for that. >> myanmar is a buddist country. interfaith and interethnic marriages are a fact of life here. a proposal to regulate and restrict marriages is being

considered. >> human rights groups criticised the law saying it would violate basic rights. the right to liberty. it confirms that it will divide the community along religious lines. in the last two years, muslim sentiment occasionally turned violence. several conflicts killed 200 people. and displaced 170,000. a group of buddhist monks that support the law are adamant that it's necessary. >> we need this bill. there are no legal rules and regulations to protect the rights of buddhist women in this country. >> they want to make it compulsory for buddhist women to get permission from parents and community leaders before marrying a man of another village. women's rights activist find it

insulting. >> we women have our own rational to make decisions that affect our galy lives. nobody, including state and the religious leader have no rights to control woman's right to choice, woman's rights to make decision. this man and his wife were glad they were free to make their own choices and say they have given that freedom to their own children. they wonder if that will be restricted by the government. researchers at the medical university of vipa say they -- vienna say they have designed a blood test that can predict depression. it detects low sera toniun. it monitors the way it is transported, identical to the way it operates in the brain.

>> the u.s. state, a unique group became a retreat for musicians with mental illness. created by a conductor diagnosed with bipolar, the me too offers a safe place to practice and reform. kath turner listened in on a rehearsal. >> typical small talk before rehersal, it's one of a kind. >> as a young conductor, ronald had a promising career ahead of him, winning several awards, conducting orchestras from san francisco to ber lip, from os -- berlin, from oslo to auckland. his performances were interrupted. >> grandiosity, being on top of the world. it fits into the personal - general personae of a maestro. it can go undetected.

>> in 1985 he was diagnosed with bipolar. there were period he struggled to get out of bed. he claims he was fired because of his mental condition. [ ♪ music ] >> good, good, good. okay. >> in response, the 58-year-old created the me too orchestra, made up of musicians with mental illness, and those who love them. for dylan moore, who has schizophrenia, the group gives him a sense of purpose. >> i had nothing to go to. once i was diagnosed with a mental illness, i had nothing i was supposed to do. i was on a bunch of meds, sitting roorned. and i couldn't get anywhere. >> the orchestra helped to soften the stigma associate with mental illness. it lead him to caroline, who became his wife. >> all i want to do is support

him, and make sure he is in a place where he can be the greatest artist he can be, because i could see there was manningic when he got on the podium. >> sometimes the magic is hard to find the not long ago he was having a rough day and came close to caning rehearse -- cans lick rehearsal. he realised he didn't have to pretend or make an excuse. when i came through the door, i felt so much love. it was huge. >> a room free of judgment and full of musical passion. [ ♪ music ] >> a combination that proved the level therapy of all. now, let's get the latest sport. here is andy. >> thank you so much. magic johnson says the decision to ban l.a. clippers owner donald sterling from the n.b.a. for life is great news for

people of all races. the unprecedented punishment follows racist remarks made in a leaked audio recording. n.b.a. commissioner adam silver dished out the strongest penalty in his power against l.a. clippers owner donald sterling. >> effectively immediately i am banning mr donald sterling for life from any association with the l.a. clippers's organization or the number of ba. >> donald sterling, a long-time owner of the team was caught on tape making racist statements about african-americans to an ex-girlfriend:. >> adam silver called the remarks deeply offensive and said he was personally distraught. donald sterling will be fined $2.5 million and silver says he will try to force him to give up the team, estimated to be worth $575 million. >> i will urge the board of

governors s to exercise its authority to force a salt of the team and will do everything in my power to ensure that that happened. >> it's a great day for all people of all races, but especially african american latinos. he was speaking out against. i think i'm just happy that commissioner adam silver came down hard. >> the l.a. clippers' coach, doc rivers, said highs players felt a great sense of relief. >> i told the players about the decision, and you know, i think they were happy it was a resolution. >> let's hope this is an opportunity for all of us as former players, a league, a community to help educate and take one step further to eradicating racism in the

community. >> as part of the n.b.a. investigation, adam silver said he spoke to donald sterling, but he had expressed no remorse whatsoever for the words that outraged so many. well, we heard n.b.a. commissioner adam silver saying he'll do everything in his power to force a sale. ironically that is something donald sterling will profit from. he bought the clippers from $12 million, the franchise words around $575 million. music and movie boss geffin is a bidder, saying he would like to buy the team. magic johnson, the 5-time l.a. champion once owned a fake in the l.a. -- stake in the la lakers. floyd mayweather, he's an l.a. clippers fan and says his interest is not just talk. real madrid are through to

the first champion's league final in 12 years after a demolition of bayern munich, a 4-0 win. real fans given every reason to celebrate. their club aims to win the title for a 10th time. chelsea or atletico madrid await them in the lisbon final on may 24th. the chelsea atletico tie is goalless ahead of a leg coming up in london. jose muirinio aiming to win the title. his players setting up a final against a side. the goalkeeper is not fit but john thierry is ready to play after recovering from an ankle injury he picked up. >> you get the hand on the trophy and memories you live with, when you are in a difficult period personally and professionally you look back, it spurs you op, there's nothing

bugger than the champion's league. >> more on the build-up to the champion's league semifinal. that is it for me for now. >> thank you. before we go, we'll leave you with some pictures from our to story. here are some of the its from iraq's first parliamentary election since the withdrawal of the u.s. troops back in 2011. [ ♪ music ] r

>> results of analyses were skewed in favor of the prosecution >> the fbi can't force the states to look at those cases >> the truth will set you free yeah...don't kid yourself >> the system has failed me >> no family. >> that we can stay with. we don't have anything. >> one of the worst storm systems ever in the u.s., more than 100 tornadoes leveled neighborhoods leaving 35 people dead. >> a new drug cocktail under the spotlight, it takes more than 40 minutes for an