>> lz polls open in egypt's presidential election. former army chief abdul fatah al-sisi is poised for victory. this is al jazeera live from our headquarters in doha. also coming up, a political earthquake in the european union - the far right makes big gapes in the elections. the coup in thailand gets royal approval as the military rules to stifle dissent. an appeal for two presidents. the pope invites israeli and

palestinian leaders to the vatican. so people across egypt are voting for a new president. polling stations are being heavily guarded and the election is taking place amid tight security. retired field marshal abdul fatah al-sisi is the front runner, he was appointed egypt's military chief. abdul fatah al-sisi quit the armed forces. then his rival, hamdeen sabahi. he ran for president in 2012, winning 21% of the vote at the tomb. abdul fatah al-sisi supported roxana saberi in 2002. be talk to a professor, the author of "counting islam" and

will talk to us about the election. turn out is key, is it not? >> i don't know if it's key. it's a battle ground because supporters of abdul fatah al-sisi would like to point out that the majority of egyptians are hope with the coup and the roadmap egyptians are taking them in. the opponents of abdul fatah al-sisi and the opponents of the change, like the muslim brotherhood would like to point to low turn out to say that the majority of egyptians are alienated from where turn out so now. >> it sounds like turn out is key, because some oppose the vote, and they'll show up. >> turn out is key, i guess, to the broader narrative, it's not key to the outcome. whether it's high or low, we are sure that field marshall abdul fatah al-sisi will quin.

>> that is the question. many say that really it's a foregone conclusion that abdul fatah al-sisi will win the election. if you look at the polls, the pew research center put out a poll showing that his popularity is limited. more than half, about half, say that they have a favourable image. in your opinion, is the election going to be so straightforward, the outcome of it. it isn't going to be straightforward, some say. >> it was an interesting poll. abdul fatah al-sisi had a high negative rating. his main rival, hamdeen sabahi, his negative rating was 65% in the same poll. thinking comparatively abdul fatah al-sisi is running against hamdeen sabahi. abdul fatah al-sisi is poised to win. those that don't like abdul fatah al-sisi, what will they do - show up at the polls and register discontent and vote for hamdeen sabahi.

doubtful. what will probably happen is they'll go home. >> is hamdeen sabahi not going to offer another alternative? >> he represents an alternative, but remember there's a swathe of supporters who would not look at it as an alternate. he was a key figure in the movement to overthrow or remove mohamed mursi. for 15%-20% of egyptians that would vote for the muslim brotherhood, i don't think they'd look at hamdeen sabahi as an alternative to abdul fatah al-sisi. >> thank you very much. joining us here to discuss the elections. al jazeera continues to demand the release of its journalists held in egypts. peter greste, mohamed fadel fahmy and baher mohamed have been held in prison for 149 days. their trial has been adjourned until june the 1st. they are accused of conspiring with the muslim brotherhood. al jazeera rejects all the charges.

a fourth journalist abdullah al-shami has been in a cairo prison for more than nine months without charge. a lawyer filed a grievance demanding release, and requests a medical report to document poor health. european elections have seen a swing towards the far right across the continent. the national front topped the poll for the first time ever. the story of the election from copenhagen to athens is one of mainstream parties losing out. greg simon mcgregor-wood has the details. populist parties did well. in france, the national front came first, aggressively anti-immigration, anti-e.u. it campaigned on a platform of returning power to france's parliament. >> translation: our people demand a single policy, the

policy of the french, for the french with the french. it will no longer be directed outside. subservient to laws which they have not voted for or obeying those that have not committed themselves to universal suf ridge. the uk independence party wants to pull the uk out to top the poll. it was the same message in denmark. in greece, the far left socialist won, where bailouts and e.u. prescribed austerity are unpopular. >> this is an election of discontent. europe has been harassing people, ruinning the lives of thousands. people react. and here they are well organised, also organised left wing. they vote for it. >> results show that the parliament has more members than ever who want to take votes back

to perimeter and take countries out. they won't be in the majority, but the influence could be significant. all at a time when the parliament is getting more influence over european law and on who gets the top jobs at the commission, who makes the big decisions. >> the ongoing crisis has taken its toll. the terrible costs persuaded many that the e.u. is powerful. the challenge will be to respond to the anger. keeping the european project moving forward. they won't do that without growth and jobs. let's bring in jonah hull joining us from london, to tell us more about how these results mean that voters across europe feel about the e.u. >> reporter: well broadly speaking they probably tell us two things - on the one hand it's probably important to point out to cut through some of the hype while there has been a

number of political earthquakes in a number of countries with strong winds, the european parliament has not fallen. the center has held, there's a strong majority on the center right and left in that parliament. on the fringes it's clear that a lot has changed and dramatically since 2009, the last time a vote like this was held. look at this country, the united kingdom independence party, that has beaten the mainstream parties, the first time a minor party pulled that off in a poll since 1906. a similar picture in france, a win by the national front in the second-largest economy, and a similar picture in denmark, offria, italy and -- austria, italy and greece. the reasons are not hard to fathom. since 2009 there has been backing failures, debt crisis, bailouts and programs cutting

into the social fabrics of many countries. living standards have gone down, unemployment gone up and austerity has risen towards one of the central tenants, the open borders policy and the free flow of migrants and politicians seen as disconnected elite. >> having said that how are the results likely to effect the e.u. and how it functions? >> like everything, it will affect it slowly, on the one hand they'll have a summit, perhaps, on the choice of e.u. commission president. that's a complicated process on tuesday. haggled between national leaders and parliament. more pervasive is the effect on future change in the e.u., inside the main --s in the parliament there's a lot of party and people.

more power for brussels, to decide on european laws. the rise of the parties represent large percentages against that. they want less power in the center, or no power at all. you see it in france where a poll showed 39% of people were in favour of the e.u. at all. here in britain, the u.k., independence party, its strength is likely to have an effect on government policy, tough nipping its stance on immigration, strength nin efforts to bring power back from brussels and resulting in further shifts in views as the country looks for a possible referendum in the e.u. in 2017, if the conservatives win the next election next year. >> jonah hull reporting from london. petero poroshenko claims victory in the presidential election. results are not out. exit polls suggests the

billionaire wants 56% of the vote. a fire at a bus terminal in south korea's capital killed six the the fire started close to the station and spread. 27 people were injured. most killed were construction workers. thailand's army chief received the royal family's official endorsement. the head of the ruling military council - scott heidler with more from bangkok. >> prayuth chan-ocha is the head of thailand. he says there's a long road ahead of reform, and still it will bring the country back to democracy, he mentioned that the anti-coup movement we saw grow on sunday, that he'll have to crack down on that if it continues. we are in the attorney-general's building, because the leader of

the anti-government movement has been processed for four charges of insure ection and will go on to criminal court. some cabinet members and the military party have been released. we don't know the fate of the pro-government grouch that were holding -- group that were holding their protests on the out-curts of bangkok -- outskirts of bangkok. egyptians go to the polls to select a president, we look at the man almost certain to be the next leader and in belgium - a search for a gunman who shot dead three tourists in a belgium museum. back in a moment. >> every saturday join us for exclusive, revealing, and surprising talks

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hello again. the top stories on al jazeera. voting started in egypt in the country's presidential elections. polling stations are guarded and the elections taking place amid tight security. preliminary results for the european elections. far right parties made big games. the national front party in france has taken the largest share. leadership of thailand's army chief has been endorsed by the royal family. court proceedings have begun against the leader of anti-government protests. let's have a closer look at a top story, the election in egypt. former army chief abdul fatah al-sisi is expected to win. bernard smith takes a look at

the front runner in the race. >> reporter: abdul fatah al-sisi has come a long way in the last few months. large scale protests blocked cairo. the military delivered an ultimatum to the egyptian president. negotiate with your opponents or the army will intervene, abdul fatah al-sisi warned. two days later, abdul fatah al-sisi led the coup that deposed mohamed mursi. launched the general on a trajectory that seemed to propel him to the president si. a year earlier mohamed mursi had given abdul fatah al-sisi the top military job. the president must have thought he was appointing an ally. abdul fatah al-sisi was to have mohamed mursi locked up. he presided over a ruthless crackdown. >> our president is mohamed mursi. we are calling for legitimacy.

this is our poist. that's why they are -- point of view, that's why they are killing us. >> abdul fatah al-sisi did it seemingly with populous support. the general was beginning to attract a cult following. abdul fatah al-sisi has ridden a wave of nationalism that has kept him in the spotlight. he has been compared to nasser. he was a general, popular, the first leader of an arab nation to challenge western dominance of the middle east. abdul fatah al-sisi is known as being religiously devote. he hasn't expressed an opinion on how he views the role of islam and politics. he said recently: before that conversation starts, abdul fatah al-sisi knows his priority is to

turn egypt's economy around. >> translation: during two revolutions egyptians were aspiring to freedom and justice. i need to give them security, stability and development. >> reporter: within two years abdul fatah al-sisi says he can improve egyptian people. he'll need to retain popular support if he's to have a chance of achieving that goal. increased security has been ordered for a jewish site in belgium after two israeli tourists were shot dead. a nationwide man hunt is under way for the lone gunman and andrew potter reports. >> reporter: security camera footage shows the moment the gunman shot. firing an assault rifle into the museum in brussels, before

making off on foot. he's on the run. >> the camera images showed us that we have to do with one, that he was alone, probably, that he was prepared and that he was armed. >> the museum remains sealed. no one knows why the gunman opened fire on a saturday afternoon, but anti-semitism is widely suspected. >> we have to remember that europe was built on a promise. the promise is never again. today people in the streets want to do one more kind. >> israel's prime minister lashed out at european leaders for failing to condemn the killings. >> there are elements in europe that condemn the destruction of a house there but not when it involves jewish. security has been increased in belgium and france.

jewish leaders fear more attacks can follow. >> we can feel reassured. attacks can happen anywhere, anyhow, any time. anything can be expected. if proved this would be the worst attack against belgium juice in 30 years. authorities say tips from the public will be crucial in tracking down the gunman. >> pakistani prime minister nawaz sharif arrived for narendra modi's inauguration. nawaz sharif is the first spak stanny -- pakistani leader to visit. narendra modi will take his oath after leading his party to a landslide victory. the b.j.p. won majority in 25 years. many hope for a change. here is what some of them told us. >> me being a doctor i have late working hours. he can ensure the safety of the

women. we use public interest. it should be safe. >> translation: what i want from the narendra modi government is water. we get it once every 15 days. we need water, that's all. >> we need to make the army stronger so if we are attacked at the border we can deal with it and the pakistany minister needs to stop the terrorism. >> he needs to take care of underdeveloped states, we don't want educated youngsters leaving the country. >> i'm happy that narendra modi said i'm responsible for over a billion people. i intend to take everyone with me, including the muslims. >> translation: the cost of living is high. he needs to control inflation. >> narendra modi will deal with all the issues that matter to us. there are so many. he cared about the issues before. i am sure he'll tackle them head on, now he's in charge. the white house mistakenly

revealed the identity of a top c.i.a. official, included on a list of people attending a military briefing during a surprise visit to the bagram air base. >> reporter: it was an unexpected visit by the u.s. military's commander in chief. president obama touching down at bagram in afghanistan to get what his advisors called a read on the security situation. soldiers waited patiently to hear from the president while he held a closed door meeting with top commanders. the soldiers were entertained by a u.s. country music sippinger while they waited. >> anybody homesick? >> when he emother-in-lawinged -- when he emerged from his meeting president obama thanked troops. he announced he'd soon decide how many soldiers were remain in

a supporting role. >> for many of you, this will be your last tour in afghanistan. bit the end of this year the transition will be complete, and afghans will take full responsibility for their security and our combat mission will be over. the war in afghanistan will come to a responsible end. >> the pentagon indicated that it would like to see 10,000 soldiers stay in afghanistan in 2014. any u.s. appearance is contingent on a bilateral agreement, granting u.s. soldiers immunity under afghan law. the afghan president refused to sign an agreement, but for both candidates to succeed him indicated an agreement can be worked out allowing u.s. forces to stay. america's commitment to the people of afghanistan will n dur.

there's 32,000 u.s. soldiers in afghanistan. the president says its his goal to have a smaller number stay. the exact number of forces is not clear. it's a decision the white house promises will be made soon. >> pope francis is on the third and final day of his visit to the middle east. the leaders of the roman catholic church has been visiting sites today. what is on the agenda for today? >> hi there. today is a day for unity, he started the day by meeting with the grand mufti of jerusalem and taking a tour in the dome of the rock. he went to the western wall, prayed at the wall and left to go to mt herzl where he laid a wrated on the grave site of

theodore herzl the mother of zionism. he -- father of zionism. he was met mr by binyamin netanyahu, and shimon peres. he made another upscheduled stop, at mt herzl. from there, currently, they are at the israeli holocaust museum in jerusalem. he's supposed to meet with the spiritual leader of the eastern orthodox church. that's a private meeting and he'll meet with the prime minister and the president at the vatican, at the notre dame center, later in the afternoon, he'll hold a mass at the senn abbingle, a room considered to be the place where the last supper took place. >> we understand he invited president mahmoud abbas and israeli president shimon peres

to come to roam to meet and pray. what is that about at a time when negotiations are stalled between the palestinians and israelis. >> absolutely. it shows that pope francis is taking an interest. he wants a 2-state solution. he called for that. he signified the state of palestine, showed his sympathy when he went to the separation and prayed for five month. he invited both presidents to the vatican and according to media reports, they may be meeting on june 6th at the vatican. mahmoud abbas has power among the palestine authority. president shimon peres is a symbolic gesture. he a man within the israeli government that called for peace negotiations, he's more open to it than, say, other politicians

within the israeli side. >> thank you. that report from jerusalem on the pope's visit. >> now, as floodwaters recede in the balkans residence face new difficulties, on one town on the serbian-boss ni jp boarder, an e -- bossy non border an evacuation has been planned. >> reporter: when the cliffs fell away there was little warning. those living below are told the worst is yet to come. after last week's record rain fall experts say the entire hill will, at some point slide down. they say that could dam the riff, the border between bas nia and serbia, flooding the villages on both sides, potentially. >> translation: there's a risk it will fall, the mountains could fall. i know there is danger for me and the people that pass through here. >> it could happen.

the ground up the hill could slide into the river, and it could flood the city. it would be a catastrophe. >> ladies from serbia and bosnia are working on evacuation plans. this road, cutting through a quarry, deep into the hills, is one of them. >> basically our country will be cut into two parts. in one part we have bakeries, gas stations and shops. on the other side industrial buildings, basic necessities won't be able to get in. there has been thousands the landslides across serbia, bosnia and croatia. in some parts of the balkans three months of rain fell in three days, bursting river banks and sending forth powerful torr ents of water. this gives you the idea of sheer force of the water. this was a road, it's a sea of boulders churned up and forced down from the hills above.

no one was killed by the boulders. locals believe it was just luck. rain fall is predicted for the coming days. residents are making sure they have a plan, hoping to remove it from the equation, when the hill comes crashing down. makeshift memorials of candles and flowers appeared throughout a californian town where a gunman wept went on a shooting rampage. a congress woman was among those paying release. a 23-year-old son of a hollywood director stabbed his room-mates before killing 13 people. a wildfire is causing thousands in arizona to evacuate. it's burning in a wildlife refuge. the fire has already destroyed

nearly 37,000 hectares. high winds and dry conditions are fuelling the fire. you can read more about the fires in alaska on the website aljazeera.com. there you'll find the top stories at aljazeera.com. hello, i'm richard gisberg and you are at "listening post". this week, life in the past lane. searching for a solution for net neutrality - where does the internet go from hear. television in thailand goes