>> [ chanting ] more demonstrations expected in egypt as university staff protest against a planned overhaul of the law hello, welcome to al jazeera. i'm martine dennis in doha. also coming up, watching the fight from afar. shedding tears for the homeland. we meet the syrian kurds that fled the fight against i.s.i.l. in kobane. removing barricades in hong kong begins to clear the

protest site back for a third term - evo morales secures a landslide in bolivia's presidential election. [ singing ] but first, university staff in egypt plan to protest on monday against a proposed overhaul of college laws. at least six students were arrested on sunday during protests at the universities of cairo and islamic alasar. the giant government protests coincided with the start of the academic year. [ chanting ] >> reporter: students out in their thousands across university campuses. they say if the protest ends, everything will be fine in egypt.

students are demonstrating against a coup, and what they say is the violation of rights. among the charged crowd were the supporters of the outlawed muslim brotherhood, as well as many other activists opposed to the removal of an elected government. scanners and walk-through gaits by security firms didn't help. students were angry at the arrangements. >> we find as much as possible to avoid clashes with security forces. they detain haphazardly. so we are trying as much as possible to be away from that. if they know students are protesting, they see right away. we cover our heads and faces and are trying to do peaceful contact. exercising the right to disagree comes through. egypt bans demonstration, and

security forces will ban gatherings. people escape for voicing an opinion. arrests of former government supporters is what happens. it's not just aggravated staff. university staff are concerned over government attempts to overhaul policies. there has been amendments to legalize the dismissal of faculty members. president abdul fatah al-sisi's government arrests those protesting. thousands of students are determined to express their opinion on the streets we can talk about this now

with a professor of contemporary middle east history at qatar university. what are we witnessing in cairo at the moment. we are seeing many protesters, students. what are they protesting against? >> it's important to remember that this kind of protest were expected from last june. then the government was worried. university was delayed for three weeks. what we witnessed last month is sir ketizing the university, imposing a new law on university and students, and giving authority to the president of the universities, and having this company, which basically was secure tieing the invest instead of a normal security. >> all of this together, with people, is in a context which is

basically the anger within the egyptian people of the failure, the problem of the city, the problem of the people there are not having a normal life. this is added to their lives, it's a trend, it's likely to continue. >> sounds like this is continuation of the kind of protest that began when abdul fatah al-sisi took over. is that the case? >> you cannot separate that from the contest of more than a year. >> students, community, basically this community has been targeted by the government for one year. thousands of egyptian students under prison, without going to the court, and the new legislation and the new power given to the universities complicated the scene and made the student face to face with the university and the government.

this situation is likely to continue, and they don't understand the uniqueness of the university, and the platform for a normal political discussion. the government in egypt does not like this now. >> looks like cairo is preparing for a showdown between security forces and the student protesters. >> yes. this is likely to continue. >> thank you very much. >> it's a pleasure. >> now, al jazeera is continuing to demand the release of its three journalists imprisoned in egypt. peter greste, mohamed fadel fahmy and baher mohamed have been detained for 289 days. they are wrongly aused of aiding the -- accused of aiding the outlawed muslim brotherhood, and are appealing against their convictions. now, the u.s. secretary of state john kerry admitted that saving kobane from the islamic state of iraq and levant o-i.s.i.l. is part of a long-term strategy to defeat the

group. kurdish forces are struggling and there are fears for the safety of thousands of civilians who are trapped there. john kerry said the focus should be on defeating i.s.i.l. in iraq. >> kobane does not define the strategy. not with respect to dash. it is one community and it is a tragedy. we don't diminish that. we have said from day one that it will take a period of time to bringle coalition thoroughly to the table, to rebuild some of the moral and capacity of the iraqi army, and begin to focus where we ought to moction, which is in iraq. it is iraqis who will have to take back iraq. it is iraqis in anbar who will have to fight for anbar.

we are confident that just as that happened before, that can and will happen again, though it will take some time to build that capacity in order for is to be able to be affected. so no one should anticipate as president obama said from day one. no one has been guilty of any exaggerated expectation here. certainly not from the administration. military leaders. civilian leaders from day one said this will be difficult. it will take time. we have to rebuild, we have to constitute the coalition. responsibilities have to be divided up. people have to get to their place of responsibility. that is taking place now. and we also continued our conversations to help define the specific role that egypt will play in the coalition against i.s.i.l.

we are very grateful for president's abdul fatah al-sisi's engagement on that from the word go. they have been in discussions and involved. as president obama made clear, the united states is committed to degrading and ultimately defeating i.s.i.l. we can go live to stefanie dekker who is on the border between turkey and syria border. first of all, it's been announced that turkey has given the go ahead for its bases to be used against the i.s.i.l. campaign in syria. >> that's right. we've heard that from the americans, not from turkey. the base is a couple of hundred

kilometres from the border. turkey has a requirement. their priority is the removal of bashar al-assad. they said if you don't deal with him, i.s.i.l. is a consequence of that regime. they want a buffer zone, a security zone along the border involving a no-fly zone - something that is complicated. and the coalition said they were not on the table. it will be interesting the detail the turks agreed to the use of their base, whether humanitarian, but the u.s. has been upping the pressure to get involved militarily. >> has there been reaction from john kerry's words in cairo, where he pretty much acknowledged that saving kobane is not top of the priorities. >> that's right, he said it was a tragedy what was happening there. as we heard earlier, the focus

is on iraq. we spoke to the head of the self-proclaimed independence of kobane, and he told us that they support any attack against i.s.i.l., whether in syria or iraq, but it was the responsibility of the international community for the civilians inside kobane. there are 500 to 700. he told us there are over 1,000. numbers are not clear. we are not there to verify ourselves. it will be on the hands of an international community in terms of a massacre if i.s.i.l. gets in. that brings it back to the bottom line. it boils down to a huge amount of people that had to flee their homes, many of which will stand on a position where we are now, and see the battle unfolding across the border. >> reporter: this man left

kobane five days ago and watches his home from a foreign land. >> translation: my cousin called from kobane and said i.s.i.l. killed a family. seven children between three and seven years old. four women and two old men. they chopped off their heads. this is genocide. all the world is watching, and there's no compassion. >> he is one of so many who are refugees across the border. here what was once a routine feels foreign. so many young children are forced to grow up without toys and an uncertainly future. mostly i'm concerned for my children. my son is nine years old, and he doesn't know how to read or right. my children are forced to leave. the battle for kobane is an example in the four-year war, a

war that killed and displaced so many. the push resulted in a refugee exodus. almost 200,000 people. many have been forced across the border into turkey. >> there's so many stories. mohammed left with his family and the clothes they were wearing. what can we do here, this is not our land, we have nothing. we are foreigners here. what can we do to improve our lives. we are waiting and hoping to go home. >> reporter: that is what they want. as they watch kobane, two of his sops, somewhere -- sons, somewhere, are fighting to protect the town. >> we are with humanity. please save the generation, worries france, the u.n. there's a massacre happening. women are being raped. they believe that regardless of

coalition air strikes the threat remains, meaning they were no closer to going home. he bearing an unimaginable pain and a feeling no one is listening well, hundreds of kurdish fighters have been injured in the fight against i.s.i.l. in kobane. our correspondent has been to a hospital in turkey where they are being treated. >> reporter: on a hospital bed is a young kurdish fighter wounded from battle. all he can think about is returning to defend his home town. he is 23. he and his sisters are fighters for the pyd, a syrian-based rebel group. they've been at the forefront of the battle to save kobane. >> we were manning our post when four fighters attacked in the middle of the night. we managed to kill three, i was

injured in the fight. this man considers himself lucky to be alive. as notorious as i.s.i.l. became. there is confliction about their numbers, weaponry and where they come from. he describes what his comrades were up against. >> reporter: i.s.i.l. has so many fighters from different countries, mostly from africa, algeria and morocco, we captured a moroccan. >> in this private hospital several fighters were being treated. they refused to tell us who was paying for the treatment. sources told us it was likely the p.k.k. barely old enough to graduate from high school, he is another injured. >> i.s.i.l. fighters were 10 meters away from us. i was shot at that moment. i was alone. my friends were not near me. i promised not to let them

capture me. as they got closer to me, i was ready blow myself up. >> i asked if he was scared. >> yes, to be honest, i was scared. the relief, and the solidarity shown by my friends made me stronger. >> i wanted to fight to protect my homeland. >> a young kurd from northern iraq travelled to kobane, because he says it's his duty to defend the nation. >> translation: they are hijacking islam for their actions. this is not islam. we are muslim. our faith is strong. >> until now, ankara refused to send in ground troops. the turkish kurds refuse to, but the kurds don't want the turkish

army to intervene. what they lack in weaponry they make up in conviction. we have more to come, including back on track - the sri lankan railway that has finally reopened. come election day? an al jazeera america special report amererica votes 2014 5 days in alaska all this week

hello again. these are the top stories at al jazeera. egyptian university staff plan to protest on monday against a proposed overhaul of college laws. six students were arrested on

sunday during illegal protests. the u.s. secretary of state says saying kobane from the yam is not part of the long-term strategy to defeat the group. kurdish forces are struggling to defend the border town, and there are fears for the safety of civilians trapped there an angry crowd in hong kong are trying to charge the barricades blocking the financial district. hundreds chanted "open the road." police have reduced the size of the protest zone. demonstrators are rallying again-beijing's decision to screen candidates for the 2017 elections. we can go live to our correspondent in hong kong. so a very, very polarized society in hong kong. >> that's right. in fact, the protest leaders

announced over loud speaker that there are about 1,000 anti-protesters amongst them. we have seen them in pockets of concentrations around the area. the main road, a big boulevard which has largely been unopened, i would say, but with barricades, a big truck went and rammed the barricades. this is after a morning where police tried to dismantle them. members of construction and workers union, taxi union and members of the general public are fed up with the protest. >> since the words of c.y. leung have gone around the territory, that there's not a chance in hell that the protesters will get what they want, how has that impacted on the protest? >> as far as the protesters go,

they made it said that they want him to step down, and they are not going to move. they don't have an impact. c.y. leung is in mainland china, across the border, attending a trade fair. moments ago it looked like there would be a crackdown. he refused to answer that question. it's a wait and see situation. >> keep your eyes open for us international donors pledged nearly 5.5 billion to rebuild the gaza strip. 100,000 palestinians across the occupied territory lost their hopes during the 50 day conflict with israel. >> reporter: this man is not sure whether there's anything else he can salvage from what is left of his home. it was damaged during the 7-week bombardment of the gaza strip. his family of 11 live in a u.n.

shelter at a school. international donors attending a conference need to know people like him need help. >> i can't live in my house. it is not suitable to live. a lot of houses here are the same. we expect them to help us, give us money to reconstruct. >> the donors conference was hosted by the egyptian president abdul fatah al-sisi, and the norwegian government. speaking to delegations representing 50 countries, abdul fatah al-sisi called on the palestinians to commit to a long-term truce. >> translation: the process of rebuilding and answering the needs depends on two major calms. permanent calm and practicing authority in the gaza strip. >> reporter: palestinian president mahmoud abbas went further saying global leaders

must push the israeli government to enter into a timetable to end occupation. >> translation: the international community is asked more than at any other time to support the struggle. toish u a decree absent from the construction conference were representatives from israel or hamas. the two sides fought three major conflicts against each other since hamas seized control. a 50 day conflict killed 2,300 palestinians and 72 israelis. a senior spokesman for hamas was told the unity government was made up of professionals, hamas is not going anywhere. >> we are not going to disappear from the political landscaping. we are going to be part of it and hope to build with a strong

political party. until that happiness, many challenges remain. rebuilding gaza and the push for a timetable for the creation of a palestinian state is magnified by the ongoing blockade of the gaza strip. without the opening of border crossings, reconstruction is next to impossible. while israeli officials didn't attend the conference, they'll have a major say in what happened next now, evo morales has won a landmark third term as the president of bolivia. exit polls suggest he took around 60% of the vote. the latin america editor has this report from la paz. >> it was historic, bolivians giving a third term to a president, albeit after a court decision allowing evo morales to run yet again.

from the presidential balcony, evo morales savured his victory. on behalf of those of us that fought for the liberation of all bolivia, we thank you for your great support. >> bolivia first indigenous president is the same fiery socialist who struck a pose, five years ago. but that is all in the past now. under evo morales, south america's poorest nation has been transformed. socialist rhetoric and programs balanced by mainstream economics helping rich and poor benefit from unprecedented growth. spurred by high commodity prices. and to the indigenous majority, it is the end. >> it is the feeling that this country is for everyone, not

just a few people. that everyone has the same opportunities. whilst supporting his policies, some are concerned that evo morales is accumulating too much power, and may want a fourth term. on the eve of the vote i arrived if it was true that he planned to open a restaurant when the term ends. >> translation: i would make more than as president. restaurants are a great business. i would double up as a waiter. who would not want to have a picture with me, a former president. i would charge for that too. >> reporter: president evo morales's popularity is unquestionable. what is unquestionable is how he would use it, whether he would stay the course or use the victory to consolidate the socialist revolution. >> north korea warned of

military acts if leave element drops continued. balloons were released. pyongyang said the balloons were shot down because the leaflets are provocative propaganda. activists are asked to exercise restraint. there's no legal ground on which to pan the balloon launching. >> the sentencing phasing beginning in the trial of the south african athlete oscar pistorius. he was found guilty last month of killing his girlfriend reeva steenkamp. he could face 15 years in prison. >> a rail route in sri lanka has opened for the first time in 40 years. civil war cut the mine from the north to the capital columbo. >> an historic day for transport as a whole.

as the queen of jav ner, this train will fly between north and south, an historic route linking the north and south since the early 1900s. came under repeated attack during the war. essentially with the attacks in 1990, on 30 june, the last train pulled into the station. an attack on the track, which destroyed the tracks meant it couldn't go back. that essentially was the last of the trains to run up to jaffna. now, the government is putting in a lot of resources. a line of credit from the indians that helped to build and restore this railway station. the governments are hailing this as one of the key developments, sort of projects for jaffna, and bringing development to this northern region. for the people who this train is

all about, severe many, many decades that used to be a key route of transport for people as well as goods and things like that, it is considered an important part of bringing back normalcy, helping this region pick up the pieces after the war. ♪ i am richard gizberg. with the news story as beg as, as devisive, battles are fought not just on the ground but in the news media for hearts, minds and political support. is's attacks on the gaza strip began is july 8th. in all, more than 2,200 palestiniansians were killed. most civilians compared to 70 israelis, the vast majy