follow our expert contributors at >> announcer: this is al jazeera. ♪ >> hello there, welcome to the news hour, i'm shiulie ghosh in doha. our top stories thailand's former prime minister, has been put under house arrest by the country's military. and washington claims victory over beijing at the world trade organization. >> i'll have the news from europe. putin promises to respect the outcome of ukraine's presidential election, but

pro-russian military men are determined to prevent voting in donetsk. after the worst floods on record from the bakkens now land mines have been moved in the sludge. new orleans are using tax breaks to lure filmmakers away from hollywood. thailand's former prime minister is now under house arre arrest. it follows months of political unrest that culminated in thursday's military coup. >> reporter: where is yingluck shinawatra? these are the last pictures recorded of our car as she reported as ordered. a senior military officer said

she had been detained but then allowed to stay at her home. an army spokesman on the record would only say she was being held but treated well, pointing out that the 150 personalities from both sides of the political divide were being detained. >> we wanted to give them time to think over the issue so they can be more relaxed and we look after them very well, vip treatment, and it would not be very long. there will be set free. >> reporter: they were held when the army chief decided they could not agree on a plan to end the political crisis and that the military should take the place of the government. >> i can say that it's not easy for him to do this, and we get from then until now, we can say that it's not quite what we were prepared before, it's an unprepared coup that he just decide to -- to do it.

>> reporter: still a few hundred people did protest, this time against the coup d'etat. soldiers and protesters stood off for several hours. after that, the military had been conspicuous by their absence in the capitol. troops remain in place armed and visible, even though this is a major intersection in the heart of bangkok and the protesters have already left. thailands 67 million subjects may take the opportunity to express their concerns about the future direction of the country. well last yearing, thailand predicted its economy would flourish, but the economy shrunk in the first quarter. foreign investors have been pulling out since protests began in november.

around 200 foreign investment projects have been put on hold worth more than $12 billion. tourism, around a tenth of the economy is also suffering. the number of people visiting thailand dropped by about 5%. thailand's tourism board says numbers could fall even lower. it is expecting a 12% drop in may. financially thailand stands to lose $2.5 billion tourist dollars in the first half of this year alone. murray is from the center for strategic and international studies. he says new investors may start looking at alternatives. >> i think investors that are already there probably are still in a wait and see mode. but some have already said like the two car manufacturers from japan announcing they don't do new investment. i think that's the case for a lot of investors.

the stock market didn't take a very big hit. barely shrank at all, and the currency has always been stable. but i think new investors are obviously going to look for alternatives, and you are starting to see american car manufacturers for example look at indonesia, partially because of the chaos in thailand and the big market in indonesia. and i don't think we'll see a lot of new investment in the months ahead. part of the shrinking is because domestic demand has just collapsed. people aren't going shopping, aren't buying new refrigerators and air conditioners, so it's a lot of wait and see. it will really take some doing to get this back on track. >> the russian president has said he remains optimistic about

the situation in ukraine. although there has been further violence in the east of the country. barbara is in london? barbara? >> vladimir putin also said that he will respect the choice of ukrainians in the country's presidential election on sunday. he made the commitments in st. petersberg. but said it would have been better to hold a referendum and adopt a new constitution. rory challands has more. >> reporter: we had two different sides of vladimir putin on friday. a more conciliatory side of him where he was saying he would respect the results of the election in ukraine on sunday and that russia would work with whoever took our power in kiev. we can hear a bit of that now. >> translator: i am an optimist. i am not losing hope. i am not losing confidence that

the situation with ukraine will calm down sooner or later. >> reporter: we did also hear a more angry side, though. he said what happen interested in ukraine over the last few months was a western-sponsored coup d'etat that lead to chaos and a slide into full civil war. he also said the unipolar world has failed. what he means by that is the post soviet, post cold war order where the united states is the only super power in the world able to dictate what happens politically and economically, according to its own interests, that is coming to an end, and other countries like russia should be given more space to assert their national interest. and that suggests that despite his conciliatory remarks about

your next question the east-west split that has emerged is still with us and will remain. >> meanwhile at least three people have been killed in clashes between armed pro-russians and pro-kiev militia men. it happened early on friday when the pro-kiev group stumbled upon a pro-russian check point. the bodies could be seen lying at the side of the road near to a burned out coffee. hoda abdel hamid joins us live from donetsk. hoda what else can you tell us about this incident? and is it a sign that violence is increasing across the area? >> i think it is a worrying sign about the developments here on the ground in the sense that until recently you had two parties fighting, the ukrainian forces on one side and the pro-russian separatists, now you have the third-party which are

these pro-ukrainian groups. they are also armed militias roaming around this area. and what we have seen that happened earlier today is there was this fight between the two, both sides are armed. the prore-russians are better equipped than the pro-ukrainians, but both sides are willing to take on each other. and both of them seem under the control of absolutely nobody. we have heard a lot of these pro-russian groups say they operate alone. they don't take orders from anyone. they deny there is a chain of commanding, and the pro-ukrainian groups say the same thing. they don't say who is backing them, but the government seems to say they want to take the weapons from everyone on either

side. but that is a potentially explosive development here on the ground. at the moment that kind of fighting is happening on the outskirts of the big cities, but people are extremely worried about this. >> and this is just over a day away from the election. tell us a little bit more about some of the destruction i hear is taking place for preparations for the vote. >> well, apparently this violence happening here in the donetsk region, and the slaviansk region, some commissioners have been kidnapped and later released. others have been threatened and just decided to go home. we have been around donetsk trying to find one polling station that will remain open for the presidential elections and we haven't been able to so far. people are not telling us maybe which one will stay open, and which one will stay closed, but certainly a lot of people are

very afraid of these elections, and a lot of people predict they will be more violent. also a lot of potential voters are concerned about is what will happen on the day of the elections themselves. they are afraid the proseparatist armed groups will not allow anyone to vote. so certainly a lot of apprehension for the next 48 hours here. >> hoda abdel hamid live in donetsk. thank you. now back to shoely in doha. a form drug war lord has been convicted at the international criminal court. >> reporter: sentenced for his role in preparing a massacre. the international criminal court has already von convicted him of several charges. on friday he was jailed for 12

years, although allowing for his time in custody in the hague, he'll serve about half of that. >> translator: the chamber is of the view that he has made a significant contribution to the commission of a number of crimes committed by the groups of commands and combatants. >> reporter: judges found him guilty of four counts of war crimes and one count of crimes against humanity. they relate to an attack on a village, targeting a rival militia. up to 200 people were attacked while they were sleeping and hacked or shot to death. many women were raped and used as sex slaves. child soldiers were also used in the attack. the trial lasted more than four years, in the end his sentence was nowhere near the maximum 25

years. and some sigh the icc should be sending a stronger message. a sentence seen as leanence could encourage further atrocities in the region. >> i'm not sure 12 years is comparative over someone who has been in the bush for many years committing those crimes for many years and still enjoying [ inaudible ]. >> reporter: and for this independent advisor to the icc prosecutor, the fact that he was acquitted of the sexual crimes is is a big dispintment. >> 60% of the individuals charged by the icc have beener charged with some form of sexual violence. so the intention of the prosecutor to prosecute these crimes i think is ambiguous. but i don't think we're seeing the kind of decisions that are yet supporting the -- deterrent

factor. >> reporter: now the war lord is starting a jail sentence far from his native country. iran has been cooperating with the un's energy watchdog. plus a trip to the holy land, pope francis says his visit to the middle east will be strictly religious. and in sport. ♪ >> the champions league final, the new kings of spain targeting a trophy double. ♪ the un nuclear agency says iran has reduced its nuclear stockpile. the iaea says iran now has less

than 40 kilograms of highly enriched uranium. they also provided information about detonators. and agreed to some nuclear concessions in exchange to a partial lifting of the sanctions that are crippling its economy. jim walsh joins us now. jim, good to have you on the program. seems to be a very positive report, doesn't it? does that mean that a long-term deal is closer? well, i agree with you, this is a very positive report. it's positive both in that it says all of the sides that are part of this interim agreement are following through under obligations. plus the additional thing which is they are talking to the iaea about their past program. so this is all progress. i agree. but does it predict success in

two month's time when the iran and the so-called p5-plus-1 the international negotiating partners, will they have deal in i don't know. the last round, last week was bumpy. they are starting to get difficult issues here, so we're really in the home stretch. we're down to the last couple of months. this is a good report. it should add to some momentum, but we have tough days ahead, i think. >> there is always a but in there, isn't there? but the onus is now on the u.s., i think. >> yeah, a couple of big questions for both sides. you know, on the u.s. side and the international side i should say because this involve britain and france and china and russia and england, that -- that -- you know, the question is what is the size of that iranian program. they are going to keep an enrichment program but how big

is it going to be? and then for the u.s. the questions that the iranians are going to have is we are doing this based on the fact that you are promising sanctions relief, will you be able to deliver on your side of the bargain in if either size is unable to follow through on their promises this deal would collapse and i think -- we know what happened when there was a collapse before and it wasn't pretty. so if these negotiations don't work out it will be a bad situation. >> and the nay sayers are saying even though iran has this new seemingly more open attitude, it doesn't mean they aren't intent on developing a nuclear weapons program. >> sure. except i tend to follow the assessment of the u.s. intelligence community, and the director of national intelligence in the united states has repeatedly testified that iran had this nuclear weapons program in the late 1990s.

it halted it in 2003. and then they go on to say with confidence that iran has not yet made a decision to pursue nuclear weapons. they are not actively pursuing that. they have not made the weapons decision. so this is why an agreement now is really important to sort of solidify that. so folks who say they are bound and determined to get the bomb, that's not what u.s. intelligence community believes. >> jim goods to speak to you have. thank you for your expertisexpe. the u.s. has won a major case against china at the world trade organization. the wto cited with washington. china has been told to confirm to existing trade rules. michael furman highlighted the importance of the ruling. >> reporter: this is a significant victory, 2013 the

united states exported $65 billion worth of autos. 8.5 billion of that went to china, which accounts for our second largest expert market for u.s. autos. >> john henren is in chicago. does this change anything? >> it's a significant victory in the sense that the wto clearly sided with the u.s. in the latest conflict with china over trade. china decided that it amounted to subsidies to u.s. auto makers and auto makers were dumping cars at below market value on the chee niece. and they decided they would institute taxes up to 21.5% thoenz cars. the wto said that was not justified. the u.s. was not dumping. and the u.s. has a counterclaim

that it is the chinese that are dumping auto parts on the u.s. market. those tariffs all expired in december. so while politicians are saying this is about jobs, in fact u.s. auto makers are not likely to be selling any more cars on the chinese market as a result of this deal. and meanwhile the chinese have enjoyed years of reduced competition. >> but there does seem to be a growing dispute between the u.s. and china, how serious is this? >> it is the latest in rising disputes. the u.s. has prevailed against china three times. the latest was in march. the wto ruled with the u.s. on hybrid car batteries and wind turbines, and the u.s. has gone to the wto 17 times since 2009. so it is increasingly using it as a weapon in these trade disputes. there are other disputes going

on, involving chick parts, tires, credit card payment services. so they are using the wto as a bhe upon, and this week it indicted five chinese military officers, saying that they were using -- they were essentially using computers to steal corporate trade secrets from american companies. however it's unlikely the chinese will be turning those five officers over any time soon, shiulie. >> john, thank you very much indeed for that. now as people turn to their flooded homes in the balkans new problems emerge for the authorities. >> shoely, the countries effected are having to deal with other issues. the flooding has caused

wide-spread destruction. at least 27 people were killed in serbia, and they are still waiting on news on more than 500 reported missing. many roads are damaged and 30% of the rail network is closed. authorities in croatia have reported two deaths and say 2,000 houses were destroyed. almost 200 farms were also flooded. in bosnia 22 people are known to have died as well as thousands of farm animals leading to risk of disease. and there are fears that some of the 120,000 land mines left over from the bosnian war have been dislodged. >> reporter: this field is dotted with anti-personnel mines. they are light, small, and laid near the surface, so they move easily. experts fear that's exactly what happened when tore enths of

water flowed through here. this is a completely new trags for us. >> reporter: the mines are the legacy of the war in the early '90s. nearly 2.5 thousand meme have been killed or seriously injured since the conflict ended. people here are very aware of land mines. this village is surrounded by three large mine fields. they are worried that now the flood waters have pushed the mines into the heart of their community. this man told me when the dirty water pored through it village it was up to his chin. now the water is gone. he is too scared to walk in his garden. >> translator: it's much more dangerous than it was. it's very hard because we don't know what was in the flood water. we don't know whether there is a mine there or not. >> reporter: it's thought 120,000 unexploded devices still contaminate the land in bosnia.

and signs marking some fields has disappeared with the flood waters. now remapping can begin. the loose mines could also create an international problem. they could travel throughout southeast europe. demining is a long, dangerous, and expensive process. here it lad been expected to cost $400 million. but that's now certain to rise. the bosnian government is already counting the cost of the widespread devastation. we're joined now by [ inaudible ] who is the deputy director of the bosnian [ inaudible ] mine action center in sarajevo. sir, thank you so much for joining us here on al jazeera. i guess it's sort of a two-pronged problem. one is some of the mines have been dislorjed and the other is some of the signs marking

potential land mines have also been moved. do you have any idea how widespread this could be? >> good evening. so we are faced with a real disaster. you know why? let me say that damage is similar like after the war. displaced persons, damaged houses, structures and so on. land mines are also a big problem. now what they are doing -- we are in the first phase of action in this emergency situation. so now we are putting our efforts to aware population and rescue teams about the danger -- new danger, because it's completely clear that land mines are moving with effect of the flooding and landslides. so now i think we have a good

organization [ inaudible ] protection is helping us [ inaudible ] military teams, rescue teams [ inaudible ] is delivering pamphlets with warning messages to villages where there is no electricity. it is very important to act immediately. so we are also collecting all available information and report from the population and other -- others to -- trying to assess the damage and to create first assessment also in the same time, we are receiving help from the international community of authorities regarding the providing -- >> forgive me for interrupting. but we heard how this become an international problem. the mines might be taken down to southeastern europe. are any other of those potentially affected nations,

have they offered you help? because obviously your region is facing all of the other problems caused by the floods. >> yes, definitely it is not bosnian problem. maybe we are the most affected country. today we had a joint meeting with centers from croatia and serbia, and we agreed further joint action, so now we have a coordination body, and we will immediately exchange all informations, and every week he will be meet in the region -- >> deputy director of the fine action center in sarajevo, sir, thank you so much. now back to shiulie. >> barbara thanks very much indeed. still to come here on the

program. [ gunfire ] >> reporter: al jazeera obtains video of rebels attacking malian troops. i'm adrian brown here one day after a deadly bombing. and in sport a freak hail storm in italy didn't slow these bikers down. we'll have all of the detail after the break. saying "this isn't fair"... >> does the punishment always fit the crime? >> had the person that murdered our daughter got the mandatory minimum, he wouldn't have been out. >> the system with joe burlinger

♪ what is this place? where are we? this is where we bring together the fastest internet and the best in entertainment. we call it the x1 entertainment operating system. it looks like the future! he has a phaser! it's not a phaser! it's my phone! he can use his voice to control the tv. you can use your woice? my voice. your woice. my voice. "vuh," voice. his voice. your woice? look. watch sci-fi. [ female announcer ] the x1 entertainment operating system, only from xfinity.

♪ >> welcome back. i'm shiulie ghosh a reminder of the top stories.

sources have told al jazeera, that thailand's former prime minister is now under military arrest. the spokesperson confirmed to al jazeera, 100 other rival politicians have also been detained. the russian president says moscow will respect the choice of ukrainians in the country's presidential election on sunday. and the congo lease war lord has been sentenced to 12 years in prison being convicted of being an accessory to war crimes. nicklas is an international war crimes lawyer who helped prosecute charles taylor, and joins us now. what do you think about this sentence? it has been a four-year trial. some victim's groups saying the sentence should have been stronger to send a tougher message. >> well, i think that germane

should feel relieved today. he was convicted ultimately by the trial chamber of homicides, of murders of destruction of property and looting. and there were approximately 200 victims, and the court talked abc the vulnerability of victims including children. so while 12 years is a significant sentence. considering what he could have faced i think he should feel relieved. >> he wasn't found guilty of rape or sexual slavery or using child shoulder, even though the judges accepted that did happen. does that mean the quality of evidence was lacking? >> it's very difficult to get evidence on these. i don't think -- i think it's very hard for someone not involved day-to-day in the evidence to judge where things went wrong or could have gone better. but the icc is an idea that was

set up that is rather idealistic that we're still working out. it's trying to investigate cases in eight different countries, all of them happen to be in africa now, from a court in europe with a fairly limited number of investigators. so trying to investigate what happened in very remote rule -- rural locations in conflict or post conflict zones is very difficult. >> this of course is a big criticism of the icc as you say. the cases seem to single out africa, but also that it's very, very slow. this is only the second person to be sentenced by the icc in 12 years. >> that's correct. and that's rather disappointing. you know, you have can talk about what the challenges facing the court because it is handling cases in so many different countries, but if you compare it to the special court of sierra

leon, who started in 2002 and was able to complete four trials of high leaders, including the president of a country, head of state, i think the icc vord rather disappointing. >> nicklas thank you very much indeed for joining us. >> thank you very much. now the head of the african union has arrived to start talks with rebel leaders. he says he is there to help find a peaceful solution to the ongoing fighting. he has obtained video on government troops. the rebels advance on more towns in the north, the government has called for a ceasefire. mohammed ball reports. >> reporter: this rebel video seems to know rebel fighters

attacking the malian fighters. rebel fighters take a number of soldiers prisoner inside the base. a rebel fighter removes mali's flag from the tower. soldiers fled the town, while about 100 inside the headquarters. rebel fighters took the town near the board border. on thursday mali's president announced a ceasefire. the rebels say it is not a genuine offer. >> translator: mali has imposed this war on us. it has defaulted on its commitment to us. our plan now is to regain control of the entire area. after that we will be ready to negotiate. the ceasefire declaration doesn't mean anything for us, because we can't trust him. >> reporter: both rebel and government troops have been allowed in the area under a

temporary peace deal. but the rebels accuse government troops of trying to push them out of a town ahead of a visit by the prime minister last week. and accused the government against ethnic cleansing. mally denies the alt gagss. >> reporter: they were heavily armed terrorists. mr. president there is one aggressor. they have attacked the prime minister's peaceful delegation. >> reporter: frenches troops who also have a base in the area took no action, describing what happened as an internal malian affair. france says its mission is solely to fight al-qaeda-linked groups. three people have been killed in anti-coup protests across egypt. marches are taking place ahead of next week's presidential

elections. two protesters were killed south of cairo, and a third was killed in the east of the capitol. security officials in egypt say the heard of an al-qaeda-inspired group has been killed in the sighny peninsula. he died in a drive-by. and the trial of three al jazeera journalists has been adjourned until june 1st. they have now been held in an egyptian prison for 146 days. peter greste's parents have expressed frustration at the way the trial is unfolding. >> we have made disappointingly little progress so far. it's almost beginning to look as if the attempts to grind us down

are succeeding. >> [ inaudible ]. >> yes, and that's not just ourselves as a family, but the efforts of a lot of other people. >> helplessness and frustration like you wouldn't believe. you know? i guess a certain amount of anger as well. you know, you can't help but feel angry over this whole thing, because it's so unjust and unfair and everything else. i know that there's a lot of unfairness in the world. but this was -- you know, five months, a bit more go on, and we're not to the end yet. you know, this is the hard part. >> al jazeera has written to several of the world's leading political figures asking them to help secure the release of abdullah al-shami who has been

held in a cairo prison without trial for more than nine months. voters in the uk and netherlandses have kicked off four days of elections to the european parliament. most countries vote on sunday, so no results will be announced until then. let's go to barbara for more on that. >> yes, voting has indeed started in the uk and netherlands but the rest of the european union isn't going to vote until sunday. it's being predicted that smaller parties will mount a big challenge to traditionally powerful political machines. exit polls xuth the anti-immigration, pvv did not expect to do as well or didn't do as well as expected in the netherlandses in support for the uk independence party in britain was strong. in greece no fewer than 46

parties are standing. it was blamed for the countries financial collapse and the hateds and tearty program that followed. lawrence lee reports. >> reporter: you know a country has a problem when even the rich aren't happy. >> business has been at zero for the past five years. >> reporter: the dealer george speaks bitterly about the state persecuting the well off, of a political culture which discourages those who still have money from spending it. >> translator: [ inaudible ] we're trying to say we're getting better, which is not true. we have certain figures that are better, but they don't filter down to the average public. >> reporter: and if the rich are disillusioned so many others have more questions than

answers. >> translator: the issue is for the young people to find a better future. >> reporter: these pensioners too say old ways of thes are causing problems. >> translator: it's a problem that goes back many years. greece always survived on borrowed money. >> reporter: the greek economy has shrunk by 25% since the last european elections. parties on all sides have been unable to inspire people with a vision of where greece goes from here. the consequence has been the fragmentation of greek politics, particularly on the left, the party which ruled greece for years and years has disappeared without trace. in these elections greek voters will be offered a choice although fewer than 46 different parties. a tour shows how this plays out. the golden dawn holds a rally.

down the road there is a brand new party called the river. this centrist party is populated entirely by non-politicians. at just three months old, they already have 7% of the vote. >> translator: parties have to realize greek society demands solutions and grass roots involvement. the first thing parties always think about is what they need to do to get into government. they should be finding answers. >> reporter: if there is anything good to be said about greece's troubles it's that its people still love talking politics. but all the new politics have in common is if you won't get far if you are linked to the past. pope francis is about to embark on a tour of the holy land. the head of the catholic church says his pilgrimage will be

strictly religious, and he will be praying for peace in the middle east, but the visit is not without controversy. >> reporter: waiving the vatican good-bye before his trip to the holy land. pope francis embarks on a trip to jordan, the pal stin areas, and israel. it is the first between the head of the catholic and orthodox churches in nine centuries. >> translator: on saturday i will go to the holy land, the land of jesus. it will be a strictly religious visit. firstly to meet with my brother to mark the 50th anniversary of the meeting. paul and andrayia will meet again another time, and this is really beautiful. the second reason is to pray for

peace in that land that suffers greatly. i ask you for pray for my visit. >> reporter: the trip is officially a pilgrimage, but in a land marred by religious and political divisions, every step will be watched closely by israelis and palestinians alike. one of them will be this palestinian. he is one of millions who are not allowed to return home. >> translator: the pope doesn't have an army but he has an exceptional moral and political influence, so every word he says will count and will be listened to by the world's leaders. we have a lot of hope for the visit. >> reporter: the trip has sparked controversy before it has even started. it states that the pope will visit the state of palestine, a recognition of the un resolution that granted palestine a new member observer status. a political statement that has

rised some eyebrows in israel. >> translator: for the first time the pope will lay a wreath on the tomb of the founder of zionism, it's a gesture that not many heads of states make. i hope this is a real step forward between israel and the vatican. >> reporter: in the weeks leading up to the pope's trip, hate crimes have increased in israel and the occupied territories, but pope francis has once again refused to travel in a bullet proof car. yet another indication that his are trust in interfaith dialogue is stronger than his fear of religious hatred. in scotland a fire has engulfed one of their leading arted schools. it caused extensive damage to the 100 year old building.

and with that you are up to date with the news here in europe, now back to shiulie in doha. >> barbara, thank you. five suicide bombers were behind an tack in china's northwestern region. 31 people were killed and more than 90 injured. the government blames uyghur separatists who want dense from beijing. adrian brown reports. >> reporter: one day after the bombing, security forces are understandably nervous. police pat roles deliberately high profile now. in other ways it appear's outwardly calm. no one has claimed responsible for thursday's attack. the government blames uyghur separatists. where it happened, a predominantly chinese neighborhood, where people know civilians were the intended targets. >> translator: most of the dead

are injured and elderly. they came to the early morning market to get cheaper food. i'm very sad about it. >> reporter: in the nearby uyghur neighborhood, the scale of the violence has also come as a shock. >> translator: this is bad for us too. even though we are uyghurs, our lives and safety have been effected. we are also victims. >> reporter: assessing the mood of ordinary uyghurs is not easy. we tried to film outside a mosque during friday prayers only to be briefly detained by the police. the control of information is tightening. eventually we were allowed to resume our work, but several plain clothed officers followed. off camera wispering to uyghurs not to talk. >> translator: i have never heard of this. >> reporter: and they are worried for other reasons. many uyghurs are reluctant to talk because in the back of many

of their minds are the memories of the riots almost five years ago when 200 uyghurs and haan chinese were killed. the victims of thursday's attack were overwhelmingly chai that's, but included weeingers as well. the question now perhaps is whether this community can also recover. adrian brown, al jazeera, western china. coming up in sport, the head of european football disagrees with the president saying giving the world cup to qatar in 2022 was not a mistake. i'm in new orleans, we'll show you how the film industry is changing the face of the big easy. ♪ r

♪ welcome back. time for sport now. >> shoely thank you so much. less than 24 hours to go until the champions league in lisbon. real are attempting to win a record tenth european cup. rinaudo is expected to be fit despite missing last week's game. the forward is returning to his home country, having scored 16 champions league goals this season. >> everyone knows how important this competition is for real madrid, and my job is to do the best. i said this the first day that i

was here to do the best to help this team to win this competition. we are very close. >> athletico arrive for only their second appearance in the final. much of their success over the last two seasons has been down to coach who has had too work with a budget less than a quarter of their city rivals. and week after the fifa president said awarding qatar the world cup, the [ inaudible ] has disagreed. he was one of the committee members that voted for the gulf state. he believes the spotlight that the tournament brings will help bring change. >> translator: no, because i voted for qatar. i don't see why i would say it was a mistake. i thought it was a good thing,

and i still think that. but it's a poisoned gift that we have given to qatar, because you they are in the aye of the hurricane. there are always of the dangerous problems involving the work force and they are doing things about this. >> the drawing has been made for the french open which starts on sunday. raphael helping with the women's draw is attempting to win a ninth title. the world number 1 may have to get past last year's finalist in the quarter finals. he has lost three times on clay this season. the first time that has happened in ten years. >> this is the most special place in my career, so i always feel always special memories when i have a chance to be in this tournament. i will try my best. serena williams may face her

sister venus in the third round. thomas bourn and shane lawry are tied for the lead on the 10-under in the pga championships. rory mcelroy who fought back. the northern irishman is five shots behind. italy's player has won the 13th stage of the tour deitalia. what started out as a mainly flat stage, turned into heavy rain followed by a freak hail storm. he sprint finished to win the stage in the biggest victory of his career. the columbian maintain overall lead still 37 seconds ahead. north korea says it will

take part in the asian games in south korea this year despite tensions between the countries. north korea announced it will send athletes to the games on state run television on friday. this comes after disputes over a maritime border earlier this week. north korea has not participated in a major sporting event in the south for more than a decade. the canadiens have pulled back to 2-1 by beating the new york rangers in game 3. new york went 1 up in the first period. they drew level in the second period. and daniel briere then got them a 2-1 lead in the third. it looks like montreal were on the brink of victory, but new york were not going down without a fight. kreider got a shot forcing overtime, and the canadiens finally sealed the victory in

overtime. there is much more sport on our website, check out aljazeera.com/short. there are also detaitz there on how to get in touch with our team using twitter and facebook. that's it for me now. shiulie back to you. >> thanks for that. when it comes to making movies hollywood, of course is still king. but other areas are muscling in on his territory by offering tax breaks. new orleans is one example. andy gallagher reports. >> reporter: the garden district is already a famous neighborhood, now it's getting even more attention. film crews are becoming increasingly common site in new orleans. as features formally produced in california have moved south. offering production companies big tax breaks, is an program

that has worked. louisiana is now the top location for blockbuster movies, and that represents a major change in the movie business. last year louisiana made more than a billion dollars from the film industry. but as the industry has matured it has lead to jobs, opportunities and now well-established businesses. it's estimated that the film industry has created 14,000 permanent jobs, a number equal to the state's seafood industry. when the tax incentives were launched 12 years ago, few had any idea they would be so successful. >> there are businesses that started servicing the louisiana film industry, and now are services, georgia, canada, new york, and even china. >> reporter: one of those business businesses belongs to this man. he started with a handful of vehicles, and now has a fleet of

nor than 300. >> because the industry affects so many different job titles and positions, so it's one of the greatest economic business incentives and stimulant packages i have ever seen. >> reporter: the new found fame as the hollywood of the south have seen many moving here. >> you don't have to find the work. it will come and get you. here you can be a big fish in a small pond. in los angeles, i don't care who you are, you are a very small fish in a very big pond. >> reporter: so the next time you buy a ticket to watch the biggest blockbuster, chances are it was made here in the south. our ending is not quite as explosive, but that is it for the news hour. for all of us here in doha.

bye for you. and thanks for watching.

>> there is no practical obstacle whatever now to the