today. this is al jazerra. hello and welcome to the news hour i am in doha with your top stories on al jazerra. syria's war spreads beyond its borders, at least 16 dead in a third day of fierce fighting in northern lebanon. america's ambassador to the u.n. makes a high-profile to west africa to mobilize support for the fight against ebola. >> reporter: i am barnaby phillips in kiev where we are expecting exit polls in just a few minutes after ukraine's crucial elections.

held. hello i am robin adams with the day's big store sports stories. didier drogba gets a big goal but was it enough to hold man which of ther united at bay? details later. so we begin in lebanon where there has been another day of fierce fighting in the northern town of tripoli. the fighting started on friday and so far at least 10 soldiers and six civilians have been killed in the violence, which is related to the conflict in syria. stefanistefanie dekker is in tri not far from where the battles are being bought. >> reporter: there remains able credibly tense standoff between the army and fighters hold up in an area which is a sunni neighborhood. the road where we are, you can hear it there, this has been ongoing throughout the day. sometimes more intense, things being used like artillery. rpgs, small arms fire. it certainly does sound

incredibly intense from what we have been hearing throughout the day. now, when you talk to people here, many people who have been here waiting have relatives inside the city. they are calling for a ceasefire, they say at least give time to be able to get our women and children out of there. the civilians who are not fighting, so at least we can bring them to safety. at the moment, that hasn't happened. politicians and religious leaders are meeting here in typically trying to find a solution, the message we heard from them was that they weren't happy with the army we sieging as they called it, this neighborhood. because of the civilian presence they say that they stand behind the army trying to root out what they call terrorist elements or sleeper cells that may have do with the spill over from syria. but certainly an incredibly intense situation. remaining here. people concerned. people angry and it's heightening the sectarian tensions here, lebanon, of course, incredibly sectarian divided between those that support the syrian revolution and those that support bashar

al-assad. the u.s. air force has launched several strikes again isil hitting several tagger residence in the past few hours. destroying seven vehicles as well as a building occupied by the group in iraq three air strikes by the isil damn destroyed three vehicles and two buildings and three air strikes south of fluk fallujah, more no. >> reporter: all that separates turkey from syria here is just a little bit of barbed wire and most of it pushed down. just on the other side of that, jeans, syrian kurds, if they wanted to, they would be allowed to cross. but they don't want to leave behind their cattle or their vehicles. and they are not allowed to bring those over. so most of them have elected to stay there. and they have been there now for weeks on end. really since isil started to encircle and push on kobane. in the distance over there, it's kobane, this entrance to the area, is one of two that could

potentially be used by the iraq peshmerga when and if they come to cobane, and you can see how close we are just hearing the gunfire and the artillery in the distance. the other border crossing, right in the center of kobane, is where isil forces have been shelling with mortars, because they want to stop, they want to take control of that border crossing to prevent the passing of the peshmerga so they can control access to kobane there. that is why this border might be the one that is used instead because here the turkish military are in control on. this side and just on the other side, that for the time being remains in control of syrian kurdish fighters. in syria at least 16 people are believed to be from the same family have been killed in a government air strike. activists sigh the syrian government has carried out more than 530 aerial attacks in two

days. central homs province has taken the brunt ex-sass aske asker exe plight to flee. a warn that go some of of these might be disturbing. >> reporter: this is a child in homs. activists say president is happened's forces have killed dozens people. we can't independently verify. but women and children are among the victims of the indiscriminate campaign. rebels say in addition for artillery, fighter jets have been relentless, rights groups have recorded more than 500 government aerial attacks across the country in just two days. there are reports of more attacks on rebel-held areas in damascus, the outskirts of other towns. the country is a side of a help aleppoand homs but the syrian re

says it's only targeting what it calls terrorists. and after each hit, those still alive look for survivors under the rubble. this is h a rebel-held town. here the search for the missing continued in to the night. rebels say they retill yachted by firing rockets at government-controlled homs. city. with each destroyed home, there is more despair. this family is burning parts of a foam mattress to make bread. they choose to face the odds among the ruins of their home. [ covering ] >> reporter: and the situation isn't much better for those who decide to take refuge, the suffering in this camp for displaced syrians is far from over. >> we were forced to leave our homes, we came here seeking shelter but there is no food or water. nothing but further humiliation. >> translator: where is the national coalition or the national council, what are they doing for displaced families and children whose homes are destroyed?

>> reporter: nearly 11 million people inside syria need help as the three-year war drags on in to another quintar. this camp is named hope. and among other things that, too, seems to be running out. al jazerra. british forces and u.s. marines have formerly ended their combat missions in afghanistan. they hand their bases over to afghan forces marking the end of nato's operation in the province. jennifer glass reports from southern afghanistan. ♪ ♪ >> reporter: the lowering of flags marks end of a 13-year combat mission in afghan that. british forces and u.s. marines handed over their last bases to afghans. operation enduring freedom effectively began in october 2001. they were once more than 30,000 foreign soldiers on these bases alone. nato's combat mission is over tend of the year and, most of the troops are going home. the british defense secretary

says they have achieved their mission. >> there is a better chance of a more stable future in afghanistan because we have a government there of national unity. and an army that is supported by the local population that represents all parts of afghanistan. >> reporter: but afghan forces suffered heavy losses this year in battles with the taliban and over the years thousands of coalition troops and civilians have been killed or injured. the head of the british forces admits the security situation remainsbility difficult and that's one of the reasons why some 12,000 nato forces will remain in afghanistan until 2016 to support the afghan forces. but their role will be vastly different than in the past. they will train, advise, and assist the 355,000 afghan security forces. for britain and the u.s. marines, the hand over means their war in afghanistan is over. jennifer glass, al jazerra, kandahar. the u.s. ambassador to the

u.n. i samantha power has arrivd in guinea beginning a west africa tour to increase support against the ebola outbreak. much more needs to be done to combat the outbreak, but she also criticized how u.s. authorities are treating american medical professionals returning from the region. tom ackerman reports. >> reporter: samantha power is the highest ranking an ranking t pro time american coming here. before leaving for guinea she said she wanted to increase pressure other countries to provide moredock tours, beds and money to fight ebola. but power also criticized the new mandatory quarantine protocol that his three your honor states, new york, new jersey, and illinois have impose odd returning medical volunteers. she called them, quote, haphazard and not well thought out. >> all of us need to make clear what these health workers mean to us and how much we value their service, how much we value

their contribution. we need to encourage more, we need many more than are going right now and we need to find way when they come home that they are treated like concurring heros and not stigmatize today the work that they have done. >> reporter: american nurse casey hickox who has been placed you were a 21-day quarantine said she was made to quote, feel like a criminal, when they returned from west africa even though she that is shown no symptoms. in a statement from her employer, do tours without borders, measures are important but they must be balanced against the rights of health workers returning from fighting the ebola outbreak in west africa to fair treatment and full disclear tower them. the mayor of new york city, bill de blasio also said the quarantine orders could discourage aid workers from volunteering in africa. but the governors of new york and new jersey have defended their state's tighter protocols which go beyond the isolation guidelines issued by the federal

centers for disease control and prevention. >> these action that his they are taking jointly today i believe are necessary to protect the public health of the people of new jersey and new york. and it builds on what we have already been doing at the state level in both states. >> reporter: christy a potential presidential an candidate and cuomo may be suspected of political mows i haves. but a national poll by the economist finds 72% of americans surveyed favored quarantining anyone who has recently returned from the ebola-stricken countries in west africa. tom ackerman, al jazerra, washington. tension remain high in nigeria despite the government saying a ceasefire with boko haram is still in place. many are skeptical about the deal and the country remains uneasy. >> reporter: people say this man raised suspicion when he refuse today open his bag. he is an unfamiliar face in this

part. at a time when residents are nervous. attacks in the northeast are still going on. despite the my year general government insisting a ceasefire with boko haram fighters is holding. [ inaudible ] >> reporter: they suspect the man could be from boko haram. because he was carrying these. he says he's just a cattle hearder. the guns are to protect his animals, many here don't believe his story. people are angry, but most of all they are scared. they don't know what this man was doing in the neighborhood. they don't know why he was carrying the ammunition that he was carrying. people are worried about boko haram attacks in nigeria and are not take anything chances. the capital is more than 500-kilometers from boko haram territory, but residents know they are not safe. there was an attack on a shopping mall here in june. >> you can imagine somebody bringing this kind of thing to our domain.

because of boko haram and other things. so we are afraid. >> reporter: the government says the ceasefire wa with the main t of boko haram holds but the government also says. >> you cannot rule out people that are not very happy with the ceasefire to bring up vigilantes within the regions and some of them do cause problems, you know and, what the main thing is that the federal government is committed to the ceasefire. >> reporter: many nigerians say they are skeptical about the ceasefire and on edge. that's why some here want the man they have captured killed others want the police to question him. it's a challenge getting him in to a nearby car. but this may have saved his life. al jazerra. abuja. still too come on al jazerra, more than 20 european banks fail to make the grade, so what has gone wrong?

plus. >> reporter: i am in cal cut, a coming up heel we'll see how a ban on bicycles in the main road is affecting livelihood and the environment. serena end the season at the the a at the top of the game. we'll have that and more in sports. but first to the far lament are you lexes in tunisia. polls have now closed and the turn out is estimated to be 51%. the front runner is up against the tunisian party. tunisia is about to complete a vital step in its democratic transition, this is the second vote since the up rise that go overthrew the former president. they are inspired by political

islam, this party took 40% of the vote in elect that his followed the resolution in 2011. well, that made way for lexes under a new constitution this year, which allows parliamentary oversight and independent monitoring. the parties are competing on two key issues, a shaky security situation and an economy with unemployment at around 15%. we are following the elects and joining us from a polling station in tunisia. voting has now ended and the talk is that a national row lungs is inevitable. >> reporter: that seems to be the likely for civility. if you look behind the doors are closed which means that the counting officers and candidates are now doing the count. a very crucial moment ahead for tunisia. now, latest development is the official say that the voter turn

out is at 51%. that's quite significant for them. because they were concerned that the uncertainty, the dissolution. over the event. might prevent people from further taking to the polling stations and cast a vote. who will win these elections? we don't know. but we know that parties are braced to make some significant gains tonight but there might be some surprises. independent candidates or other blocks having said that, the only way sought a government of national unity. most of the political leaders said after tonight they will reach out to each other. they will try to form a

government. >> we were mentioning some of the challenges for tunisia as a country including the security challenges as well as the economy, it is still being hailed as a landmark elections, really a success story, a model for the arab world following all of the revolutions that have taken place. >> reporter: it's interesting to hear people when we talk to them about these elections saying that at least we inspire the arab spring and we wanted to remain the exception, we don't want to see the same falling like other country that have been set we military coupes, civil war or sectarian divide. know, it seems that we have a success story, a happy ending in tunisia, where second approximate free elections after the 2011 will lead to results tonight and then political parties will come together and form a national unity

government, but then again, people here want to see a very strong government to tack two main issues, first of all civility and violence and the rise of armed groupings, the second more important issue for people is talking about 15% of a population that is unemployed and mainly young identity near y want to see a government that offers them job opportunities in a country that doesn't have the resources like neighboring countrys like libya has. this will be a huge responsibility on the next government provide tunisians with better living standards. >> that's, in fact, what sparked the whole revolution in true mischa, but thank you very much for the time being, reporting for us from tune us. an egypt court has sentenced 323 activist to his three years in prison. many have already started a hunger strike including the prominent activist.

amnesty international has described her as a prisoner of conscience. al jazerra continues to did he mend the immediate release of three journalist who his have been detained in egypt for 302 days. petethey were convicted of helpg the outlawed muslim brotherhood. they reject the charges and are appealing against their convictions. brazilians are vote for a new president. the incumbent is hoping for another four year term. but the polls suggest that the result is too close to call and that's what wall talk about. lucia is our latin america editor joining from us the capital. that's it, a lot of people are saying it's a very, very close race. >> reporter: it is an extremely close race, in fact, there was ab 11th our election eve poll that came out, you may recall, that gave the president somewhat of a lead, a small lead over her

rival. but it is still within the margin of error, there are a lot of people who are unundecided. people i talked today today who went to the poll without knowing who they were going to vote until for and said they wouldn't know in him they were behind the machine. it's an electrotonic voting system here. so really anybody could win, we don't know. very, very exciting. a nail-biting race for certainly. both candidates have similar platforms in the sense that they are both promising brazilians the same thing, improvement of the sluggish economy. an end to high inflation, better security, and better education for brazilians. even buying and selling a cocoa knit at this busy market is a chance to show allegiance. no opportunity is too drive yell to demonstrate whose side you are on in brazil's most fiercely fought elections in decades. the duel is between the incumbent party a former left

wing gorilla tortured and imprisoned in the 1970s and social democratic senator, the grandson of a famous politician who died the day before becoming brazil's first elected president after its military dictatorship. unlike her immensely popular and charismatic predecessor who set the scene as brazil's iron lady. a tough person that represent the political party that in the last 12 years dramatically reduced poverty through increased wages and social programs. promising more business-friendly policy is his the market's favorite. mayor toyed a famous model he insists like his image it is a former playboy, brazil can change. someone who will go to brazil to combat corruption, reduce inflation and jump start the economy. now technically in recession. brazil's capital was built in 1960, literally in the shape of

an airplane. and in the cockpit is the presidential palace that you see here. it is an apt metaphor what for what's happening right now. a country that had finally taken off against the previous government but under the president has been losing more and more altitude. brazilians want change. but are torn about who can best deliver it. >> and there is a roman god that has two faces he looks to the future and he looks to the past. looks both ways. and the middle class looks like that figure today because they look to the past, and they are thankful for everything that the p.t. did for them. but they also look to the future they are not sure if she will give them the extra mile they want. >> reporter: the strongest support comes from the poor sectors, people who have not risen to the middle class. but who believe it will be their turn next if she stays in office. but that's not the case for much of the middle class that has

come to expect more. >> translator: it hasn't been all bad. but there is too much corruption and bad health services. we need to renew things. >> reporter: in the end, the outcome will be decided by the middle and new lower middle classes that have not given up on the dream of their giant nation taking flight once again. >> so when do expect the counting to start, lucia. the i understand that some polls close in less than an hour's time. when are expecting results? >> reporter: some polls close in around an hour and a half to be exact in most of the country. but in the west of the country it's two hours later so that means in three and a half hours we should be getting the first bulletin from the electoral council with around 60% of the votes already counted so that will give us a very good idea who is ahead unless the race is as tight as some people have been predicting. >> all right, lou see, a thank you very much. lucia newman reporting for us

from brasilia. >> reporter: thank you. now, there is still little information about the fate of 43 missing students in mexico. there have been angry protests for weeks now police accused of being complicit in the disappearance. adam rainy reports. >> reporter: these are the faces of mexico's 43 missing students. a few dozen more names to add to the more than 8,000 who have gone missing since president enrico peña took office less than two years ago. in the past years, mexico has been hailed abroad for pursuing major reforms under vibrant tell genic new president. as the case of the missing students highlight's mexico's ongoing drug violence, corruption and impunity, the shine is wearing off of enrique's administration. at protests many say they have been living in a narco state, a place ruled by drug cartels. families of the missing and their advocates say the president has largely ignored

them. he often tours natural disaster zones with camera could yous in t.o. w. but he has yet to visit the crime scene or the parents. >> translator: it's questionable and unacceptable that he has not met with the 43 families. he knows that all families in society blame the federal and state government for being absent in how they have act today many years. >> reporter: it's not that the president has disappeared from the media. in fact he appears on television every day in at event like this one where he's opening up a new cancer ward but doesn't speak often about the missing students, when he does they are very brief remarks and he has yet to take a question from the press. and he often proclaims his leadership. >> translator: the federal government will keep working a firm determination to find the students, clarify what happened and apply the full forms of the law against those responsible for these acts. >> reporter: alejandro hope was an intelligent official under former president felipe calderon

who launched mexico's drug war in 2006. >> reporter: would you say that this shows enrique's security policy has failed? >> yes. yes. because he doesn't really have a security policy. he innin inherited a security p. he has continued with that security policy albeit with better communication skills and some improved communication. but it's the same poll 1eu6789 an unchanged mexico. one still where large parts of the country are controlled by criminals, and not authorities. one where people pay the highest price for its government's failures. adam rainy, al jazerra, mexico city. 25 european banks have failed stress tests designed to check their financial health. the banks have nine months to improve their finances or risk being shutdown the greatest concern was italy with nine failures, three each from greece as well as cyprus. more from financial analyst martin, he is joining us live from london.

martin, first of all give me your initial reaction to the results that came out of this stress test. >> well, i mean, if we are going to be frank, there have been quite a lot of leaks on the way in to the results over the weekend and they were designed to be published today in order not to interfere with a whole lot of market activity, giving inventors several hours to digest the numbers before markets opened up in asia. they were pretty much in line with what they were anticipating. maybe some of the results were softer in other words, not as many banks failed as perhaps first anticipated, but this is a good way to try to draw a line in the sand, if you will, with respect to the previous financial crisis, trying to set and establish some baselines of confidence and real get a health check of the banks ahead of the european central bank becoming the single regulate fore financial institutions in europe. so when you put all that together. the result remember, again, pretty much in line, when you look at the capital that's been raised already this year, banks are really only about 10 billion under water. they will be able get that from

private sources quickly. so all in all it's a good result and probably will set the banks up confidentsly going in to next year. >> was there anything about what was outlined in the stress test that concerned you. because there is some who have the view that are actually questioning the credibility of this whole stress test by the ecb in asking, do they test for the right things. >> yeah, that's a really good question. when you look at and compare these results to 2011 they seem to be a lot stricter. in 2011 about 91 banks were tested, only seven failed and the amount they had to raise was very small only about 3 1/2 billion euros, we know the difference between 2011 and today there was after that the crisis in greece, cyprus and the economy has been flat lining sense, people have a right to question the test. but they were more rigorous than in the past. they didn't test the banks for what would happen in the

deflation air i scenario and that's a very important context that we are looking at in the european economy right now. all things considered it was relatively rigorous and kind of what investors were anticipating and giving them no surprise is probably better than testing them too onerously and coming one a number that would be much higher than people had thought. >> when it comes to banks and market, it's all about confidence, that's the key word. >> absolutely. what does this to confidence in the european economy and banking system? >> you hit it right on the head. that's exactly the word people are trying to engender right now it is confidence. not only in the banks themselves, it's not long before they stop lend to us, to small businesses to homeowners people buying big ticket ideas, right now the best thing that we can hope from these tests is that the banks will trust one another. they'll be transparency in no to what each other are holding and as a result they'll be able to lend to one another and

ultimately in to the businesses in to the really con my. so in some respects the market reaction that we see in the next couple of days probably won't mark whether these tests are a successor not. what will be more important to see is going in to 2015 whether banks are prepared to lend more money to small businesses, to create more money, in an economy that as i mentioned has been flat for several quarters and, is threatening to turn back in to reception as a result threatening deflation, if that can be held off the european central bank will be able to look at the test as an incredible success to en injured exactly the word that you say, at the end of the day, confidence is everything in the banking system no less so than here in our up. >> thank you very much for joining us on the al jazerra news hour. martin speaking to us from london. well, still to come on the news hour we'll be reporting from streets of hong kong where opinion remained divided after weeks of protests. and still a big draw the artist that is pulling in the crowds in paris. plus coming up in sport it's

another record for the motto g.p. world champion mark martez, rob ill will have all the details for you. federal authorities have charged seven people with conspiring with al qaeda. >> since 9/11 the us has spent has spent billions of dollars on domestic counter-terrorism operations. >> i wanted to be in on the big game and to be paid top-dollar for it. that's it. >> many of these involved targeted informant led stings. >> to them, everyone in the muslim community is a potential informant or a potential terrorist.

there's more to finical news than the ups and downs of the

dow. for instance, could striking workers in greece delay your retirement? i'm here to make the connections to your money real. >> america votes 2014 >> the race is still a dead heat >> filmmaker aj schack turns his camera towards elections in the swing states >> it shows you who these people are... in ways that you don't get to see from the short appearances >> unconventional... >> if i can drink this... i don't see why you should be able to smoke that... >> unscripted... >> we gonna do this? >> ...and uncensored... >> are you kidding me? >> america votes 2014 midterms the series continues only on al jazeera america

the top stories on the al jazerra news hour. gunfire and explosions have been ringing out from around the lebanese city of tripoli where the army has been battling armed fighters at least 16 people have died in two days of fighting sparked by the arrest of an alleged isil recruiter. the u.s. ambassador to the u.n. has criticized the international community over its slow response to ebola. samantha powers says some nation that his offered to help have yet to send their contributions. she's on a visit with to west africa. votes being counted in tunisia in the country that sparked revolution in the east and across africa. the up rising that over through former president. turn to go our are top stories and fighting in lobe no one, stefanie dekker has more from triply that's where the army is battling armed groups.

>> reporter: it's extremely tense. the lebanese army has surrounded the sunni neighborhood in the northern city of tripoli there is now a standoff with what the army calls terrorist cells. just outside of the area people wait for news from their relatives inside. >> translator: what is the reason? nobody knows what is going on on the ground. we hope our families are okay. all we ask for is that the government open up a passage, let the civilians come out and then do whatever they want. >> reporter: security has been increased the army checks the ambulances that are coming out of the area. there has been calls by religious figures to attack the army for raids that started on thursday. that began the stand off. the man arrest second degree one of isil's main recruiters in lebanon. syria's war has already divided this fractured country.

tripoli that is seen fighting before a bushelly betwee but use syrian opposition and those that support bashar al-assad. but now the army is involve. there is an intense fight ongoing the army has positions there about one kilometer further you. but even though this remains a stands off, many people will tell you the only way to end it, is at the negotiating table. tripoli's politicians have had meetings with religious figures and called for an immediate ceasefire to allow civilians to leave the area. there is anger at the army here. >> translator: before this issue of aisles we had men in jail for seven years, there was nothing called isil at that time. we are paying the price because we are with the syrian revolution. and we are against hezbollah and lebanon and iran's influence on the country. >> reporter: lex no one's complex web of second tech year ties means that what happens next door has a large immateriat

here. after three days of fighting it will continue the security operation until its finished stefanie deck al jazerra, tripoli. to ukraine now where we have just had the exit polls after a day of voting in parliamentary elections there, barnaby phillips is joining us from kiev to tell us, barnaby, you are hearing about the exit polls, what are they point to go? >> reporter: what they are pointing to is more or less what expected. which is a clear domination in the new ukrainian parliament by pro even u. e youu, pro reform . perhaps they'll have as much as 75% of the seats in the par lamb to. that extent i think many people in kiev will be very happy. they will believe that what they have call their revolution against president yanukovych back in february has been consolidated today. president poroshenko's party came out on top. not by as much as perhaps he might have hoped, he'll have to

form a coalition, it may well be with the existing prime minister his party did very well, another reform party, the self help party did well. the old party of president yanukovych, that exists no more, bringing in new guys it has returned to parliament. the communists who have been historically such a historical force in the country he should they have not got in according to the exit polls. so that's interesting. we have been looking at the day's voting here in kiev. on the very street where dozens of people were shot dead in february's up rising, today they came to vote. the young and the old. everyone knows this is a crucial time in ukraine's history. but they disagree on many other things. we hope many things will improve

soon that we have peace and that the economy will get better. >> these lexes are very important to me. >> reporter: madam, what do you see at importance or significance of these elections? >> nothing. because nothing will change the situation in ukraine. and i can't tell you that these people who now are going to be in the power you hav of ukraine, practically they seem different but they are the same. there mentality is the same that it was. >> reporter: president poroshenko traveled in the east, this town was captured bicep tests earlier this year, but was then retaken by the government. he wanted to say that this town belong to his ukraine and that better times are ahead. >> people are intense and want to heat vogt and vote for the new country also, for the

reform. for the anti-corruption for building up new states. and for the peace, all these people are waiting for the peace and we are together with them. >> reporter: much may depend on these men in the weeks and months address. the soldiers were given time to vote but the ceasefire is shaky. and many ukrainians fear that the conflict is bound to resume. there is a lot of talk in kiev of kikihe have ofinky kevof a n. there is t* depends on the west and decision bees vladimir putin and the russian to his the east. life goes on. a vintage car rally is held with people died just a few months ago. families enjoying the winter

sunshine hoping all the sacrifices of the past year have not been in vain. now it's important to say that any new government is going to face enormous challenges. you heard the skepticism of that woman in high report about the extent of corruption, vested interest the. the government of the past two decades. the the national currency sliding lots of fears about stability about the banks. and then, of course, there is the war in the east. how can a new government bring peace to this country whilst keeping its territory intact. because let's not forget in the eastern breakaway regions, some 3 million people did not participate in today's elections. >> barnaby phillips, thank you very much. barnaby reporting for us from kiev. a record 5 million workers

in the united king come are now in low-paid jobs reporting to research by think thank, harry smith reports on how the problem of low pay has sparked calls for government action. the. >> reporter: bility an's economy is growing faster than that of any other major developing country. accord to this international fund. but judging by recent practice tests. below the rate of inflation, effectively giving them a pay consult. the new report says they are not alone. more britains are now in work but a record number of officially in low-paid jobs. >> record employment levels are really welcome because it's true that any job is better than no job at all. but in order for our recover foy gain ground, we need to focus on the quality of jobs as well as the quantity. >> reporter: low pay is defined as below $12, 230 of the

national median. another 250,000 workers have slipped below that rate. bringing the total to 5.2 million, the largest since records began. union leaders say it could have a long-lasting effect on the morale of the workforce. >> it's very nonmotivating because the increase in low play means people deflated, affect says their self confidence, they need permanent jobs so that they can get a mortgage, more support for their family. less stressful. >> reporter: the figures come at a time when more people are relying on charity food banks to feed their families. and workers in britain are now more likely to be low paid than those in comparable countries such as germany and australia. the report will prove embarrassing for the british government which has staked its reputation on turning around the economy. and with an election due early next year, they'll now have to prove to voters that they, too, can benefit from the country's growing prosperity.

harry smith, al jazerra, london. still to come on the al jazerra news hour, the sixth inning is where the 40 game of the world series exploded. we'll show you why it's looking a lot better for san francisco now. that is coming up in sports. and that is in just a moment.

protesters in hong kong have canceled the votes on the next step in their month long demonstration. the two-day vote was supposed to decide whether to continue the sit-in or agree to government proposals and end it. protest organizers admitted

there has not been enough consultation with demonstrators before announcing that vote. it's been a year since the indian city of calcutta banned bicycles. the measure was introduce today improve the flow of traffic. but it's upset environmental assists and those without other means of transport. al jazerra reports. >> reporter: calcutta's roads are brimming with all sorts of vehicles, just like any indian city. with one difference, there are no bicycles on the main roads. for the past year aircraft bicycle ban has pushed cyclists onto these back roads. it's especially hard for those that use a cycle to make a living. saying for him, the ban means traveling longer and working less. he estimates his income has gone down from $200 a month before the ban to just $80. >> translator: the ban has

affected by family heavily. if the ban goes for eye longer time, i don't think i can make end meet. >> reporter: business is also bad for those who repair bicycles, since many cyclists have switched in the past year to other forms of transport. >> translator: before the ban i used to have at least 20, 30 cycles in the garage for repair every day. now you can see there is not even five here for me to fix. imagine what will happen if it goes on for another year. >> reporter: calcutta police declined our request for an interview. but in past media statements, police have said general safety and traffic congestion were the main reasons behind the ban. and there is no plan for lift it. with traffic increasing every year. calcutta police say that since banning bicycles from these main roads, traffic flows faster. however, critics say that besides affecting those whose livelihood depends on traveling by bicycles, banning this form of transportation also puts down one of the greenest forms of

getting around. the state's pollution control board says 50% of calcutta's air pollution comes from cars. and this environmentalist says banning bicycles will make that worse. >> if we allow more and more vehicle to his come on calcutta's streets it would only mean that the air pollution is only going to rise and if you don't look at more sustainable methods of transportation, it's going to become a problem. >> reporter: they are still trying it fight the bana long with others who use their bicycles for work. they want to stop sitting idle and start moving again with rest of the city. al jazerra, ca calcutta. after lengthy delays and a pricey overall, the by caso museum has reopened to the public in paris. large crowds turned out to see one of the most extensive collections in the world. it features thousands of picasso works the. the spanish artist spent most of

his life in france until hits his death in 1973. the $66 million project took five years to complete. let's find out what's happening in the world of sports and bring in robin, robin is here with us. >> thank you very much. we are going to start with football and it was a late show on sunday's stand-up fixture where manchester united hosted leaders chelsea didier drogba giving the visitors a lead. his first goal in the league since march 2012. they have done the business for chelsea. but united kept up the pressure and they were rewarded deep in injury time through robin van persie. 1-1 is how it end the at old trough fort. so with that chelsea lead is three points. everton 3-1 winners of burnley on sunday thanks to two goal from samuel eto'o. newcastle with a come from behind victory against tottenham. four to look forward to.

severe could go level on points with the leaders barcelona with a win at home against villarreal. that game is just about reaching halftime now. and it is still goalless, atletico madrid could also close the gap on the leaders in the last make, malaga moved up to seventh. after a 4-0 thrashing by rayo vallecano. a tournament they have never competed in the world couple of but the gulf state has won arguably its most significant people of silverware to date. andy richardson smoke qatar sports minister about the significance of the team's victory and the broader issues surrounding the 2022 world cup. >> football, are the good thing about football is that you can really see and test the results. you know, you can see winning tournaments. you know. and but really the focus, the world cup in qatar, for many, many aspects of life in qatar, you know, is amazing.

of course one of them is having, you know, a focus on our team, that will participate in 2022. and that positively. but believe me, in all aspects of life in qatar, there is -- we are winning in many, many aspects. >> how important is it for qatar not just to host the world cup in 2022, but also to have a competitive team taking part as well? >> i think it's very important. first because i think the the qataris by nature love football. they love participating in football. they like playing, they like winning, and they like to host, of course, big events and especially football. and we really, you know, think about it as more than just playing a game. it's -- it's a positive driving tool for change. and it makes the nation really

focus. >> reporter: do you have any concerns at all that the world cup will be taken away from qatar? >> no. really, we are as a nation, we are, you know, focused 100 percent on delivering what we promised. we promised an amazing world cup. and we will do that in 2022. we understand. and the amir himself he came, you know, he led the way on talking about some of the short comes that we have. and the prime minister and the whole cabinet is riley following that lead. >> reporter: in some ways are you looking towards the followings of the report in to corruption? do you hope once that come out qatar will be given a chance to move on? >> yeah, of course. first of all, we need to realize that 2022, or any world cup is a high-profile vents. so people will keep talking

about 2022. and other world cups also. and hopefully, when the tournament starts people will realize how amazing is the world cup in qatar. so, yeah, we don't k.we don't really have, you know, a big concern because we really won fair and square against tough, tough, tough competitions. and we were very transparent all the way. and we know that the report will come positive. okay from, football let's get you caught out latest tennis news and serena williams in the wta finals title wins in straight sets n singapore 6-3, 6-3, 6-4r0 was the result. she had lost heavily to the romanian earlier in the the group stage but exacted some revenge in this match. the one that really mattered the american also finishes the year

in the current ranking which is world number one. over in switzerland roger federer won his sixth swiss indoor crown after beating david gaufin in straight sets 6-2. also moves within five points of the world number one but with only two tournaments of the season remaining. pakistan's cricketers have ended australia's hopes of regaining the world number one. the first test in dubai, taking a maiden five wicket haul. four to dismiss australia 221 runs short. this was the al aussie inches nh did he fees in asia in the last 14 tests, needed to win the first two tests to displace out africa, instead they head to all al jazerra by dhabaustralia bya.

san francisco leveled the world series at two a%. they came from behind against the kansas city royals to win 11-4. >> the fourth game series, kansas city up 2-1 and they were about to go ahead in game four, omar infante singled down the middle. kc up 3-1 in the tie and looking good to go 3-1 up in the series. web we are two outs. here is the thief one. >> in the same frame, salvador perez summoned up a hit. gregor blanco is too far back and it's 4-1. >> it's 4-1. >> to the fifth and signs of san francisco getting their act death. hunter pence reduces a rears. juan perez, jerrod dyson with an excellent catch but the giants even the game at 4-4. bottom sixth, pablo sandoval delivered at just the right ti time.

and one run scores, here comes another. >> reporter: kung fu panda pits san four ahead. and the they were not done yet n thinning. by the end of sixth it was 7-4 and kc's usually tight defense was starting to look shaky. a fielding error allowed them to go u up 88-4. >> it is exciting. the game tonight, obviously we think it's a great game. they fought hard, scratch and law khra*u to get back in it. you get down against this club in that bullpen you have your work cut out. >> reporter: so an 11-4 win for the giants, it's 2-2 now in the series, we know that there will be at least one more game in kansas city. but the next installment is in san francisco on sunday. >> and it's 11-4. >> reporter: dare i hadavid dar, al jazerra. world champion mark marquez has equaled a season record by

winning his 12th g.p. he had a poor start but clawed back to finishing three seconds in front of the runner up valentino rossi. the victory puts him equal with the record. and from one motor sport world champion to another. sebastian has clinched the second straight championship after winning the valley led for most of the four days and some ways was in charge of the title most of the season, his 23rd career victory means his teammate can't catch him. in the standings. all right, robin, we'll see you later on. thank you very much. that's it from robin, myself. the team here on the al jazerra news hour for viewers in the united states it's back to your regular programming on al jazerra america. for international viewers, more news in a moment.