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tv   News  Al Jazeera  November 23, 2014 3:00am-3:31am EST

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>> the stream only on al jazeera america >> polls open in tunisia's first presidential election since the fall of ben ali in 2011 hello, i'm shiulie gosh, you are watching al jazeera live from doha. coming up, a deadline on the iran nuclear talks could be extended as big gaps remain between the two side. guidelines for troops in u.s.'s afghanistan, they'll still be able to target the taliban.
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and... >> i'm in eastern blifia, the government is -- bolivia, the government is applying economics in the fight against drugs. it's looking increasingly unlikely that a deadline for a deal on iran's nuclear programme will be met. talks in vienna when u.s. secretary of state john kerry met iran's foreign minister zarif and u.n. envoy katherine ashton. there's two days to reach an agreement. talks on an extension could begin on sunday. >> we are working hard. we hope we are making careful progress, but we have big gaps. we still have some gaps. we are working with those. >> the afghan parliament approved two security deals,
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governing the role of foreign troop in september. a bilateral agreement with washington, and a separate n.a.t.o. agreement has been passed. u.s. troops will be allowed to target fighters, reportedly approved by president obama. the role had been limited to tackling al qaeda, and training troops. welcome to the programme, the afghan parliament approved the two agreements, that paves the way for the deals, and that has security and financial benefits for afghanistan. >> yes, indeed. it was crucial for the afghan parliament to approve this agreement, the agreement with the united states, and the agreement with n.a.t.o., which will allow not only the military support for afghanistan, but also will provide substantial
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financial support. as you know, the afghan security budget is all paid by donor countries in afghanistan. they will not be able to pay a fraction for the foreseeable future. why it was important today for the lawmakers to approve the agreement and allow financial support for the security forces for a decade to come. >> what do you make of president obama's amendment, that u.s. troops will be able to engage the taliban, and provide air support, and not just focus on al qaeda? >> well, what we were also thinking that certainly some of the decisions that president obama made during last year was certainly influenced by the behaviour of president hamid karzai. he was not on good terms with washington d.c. why the decisions were, for us, not serious decisions, and now
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it's good that the united states is reviewing the decisions and, for example, the extension of another year for u.s. with their combat mission in afghanistan will help the afghan security forces and reduce the strength of the taliban. we believe the number of sources may be reviewed. perhaps they may need more troops during 2015 in order to contain the insurgency, not allowing it to reach out to big populations. >> is na not just a tacit acceptance that afghan security
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forces are not capable of taking on the taliban. >> the afghan security forces are still not in the capacity to protect the important cities in afghanistan, to protect the afghan border. so for that we still need the support of n.a.t.o., not only in terms of turp aring, but air support, as you mentioned earlier. it will be a long time before the afghan government will have an adequate air force. for that reason. i think of the combat mission is necessary in order to maintain the current gain in afghanistan. the gain, since 201 in advance of the collapse of the taliban is fragile, reversible. in order to make it sustainable,
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we need the support of n.a.t.o. for another decade. >> thank you for that. good to speak with you. good to speak to you. >> now, in central iraq, air strikes targetting i.s.i.l. fighters killed eight civilians, including women and children. buildings were destroyed in the city of heet. in ramadi, anbar, i.s.i.l. fighters reportedly killed 25 members of a sunni tribe. the iraqi army found the bodies during a counterattack against i.s.i.l. on saturday. >> shia houthi fighters stormed the house of a sunni leader, the attack happening in marab prove since. the houthis pushed south. a growing numbers are putting pressure on the government to end the fighting. this report from sanaa. >> popular discontent with armed
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militias is growing, protesters want the fighters to pull out of the capital. four years ago the protesters gathered here, calling for the government to step aside. now they feel betrayed. their revolution hi jacked by the militias. >> we want the militias to pull out. security forces must resume. >> the government is negotiating with the houthis to disarm the group to secure fighters. the houthis insist that presence is crucial for yemen's peace and stability. a growing number of account visits want the government to rein in its factions. >> the government must deploy the army and the police to secure the country. we launched a revolution in 2011
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to build the civic nation. we'll continue our fight until the demand for the country free of militias are met. >> a fight that may not end son. in al-bayda province, fighting between the houthis and sunni tribesman are allegedly backed by al qaeda, finding no signs of abating. the houthis agreed to pull out. now that there is a new government, the shia group maintained that their military presence is the only guarantee against al qaeda attacks. >> the ukrainian crisis was triggered by crisis beginning a year ago, leading to the overthrow of a president. many of those that supported the uprising are focussed on action. now they are helping in the
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east. >> reporter: saturday in this home it is another day in the office. it professional runs a facebook page in his spare time raising money for the war in ukraine's east. he joined the pro-european protest movement last november and his family has not had a day off since. >> translation: this war heeled ukraine. thanks to the war a lot of people woke up in ukraine and felt unable to take up arms to defend the country and become soldiers. >> that is the kind of patriotism driving the donations which pay for the equipment. worm clothes, sleeping bags, telescopic flights and home made vehicles, and volunteer battalions to which so many have enlisted. this commander, who lost an eye to a sniper, says the public
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donations are vital. since the first day that they came into existence, we have been given massive aid. the way the dense ministry helps, i can't say it helps 100", only 50%. they have helped to raise tens of thousands, an important civilian contribution to the war effort. going to where it's needed, the front. >> the funds are flowing at the spiritual center of the revolution on the maydan. here the sentiments of andre and his family are shared by many ukrainians. they believe much has been won - a new president, a new parliament, a new patriotism. so many lives have been lost. they expect more sacrifices to come. polls are open in tunisia
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for the first presidential election since the revolution in 2011. voters have 22 candidates to choose from. but two front runners have emerged. ahead is 87-year-old beji caid essebsi. he is the chairman of the secular leader nidaa tounes party which won the object elections. second is the current interim president moncf marzouki, in power since the ousting of former president zine el abidine ben ali in 2011. nazanine moshiri joins me from tunis. a lot of people are waiting patiently to vote. this is a big moment for many tunisians. >> it is a big moment. i can show you that people have brought their children with them, too young to vote. as an example of what this moment means to the father, the family - you can see there's a
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mixture here. there is hope that young people will turn out in the election. most people we see here are older. i can speak to, despite your age, it's the first time you voted in a presidential election. >> yes, right. >> why is that? >> because it was - it was worthless to vote in the past. voting was not - was not managed properly. that was big games and that's it. >> how are you feeling right now? >> very excited and highly optimistic about the future. >> but there are a lot of people who are concerned. economy problems, security problems in the country. that's on voters' mind at the moment. do you think the new era, government, president, can solve the government quickly.
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>> i think so. i think so. because the power will be entirely for the people, and then country managed by non-is rapist party, and hopefully the president will be from the same party, so they will not be any conflict between the president and the prime minister. >> thank you for that. voting is ongoing. we have to wait and see how high the turn out is. >> nazanine moshiri, the gentleman you have been speaking to obviously has high hopes of the next president. i am sure everyone wants the next president to make issues. issues like unemployment, poverty and the economy. tunisia for the international community is seen as a role model, the only success story of
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a so-called arab spring, for many. that is not over. this is a transitional phase, things that brought people on to the streets. jobs, dignity, freedom of speech. this is an example of that. jobs and dignity. that's what people want, and a big question of the election is who will be in government, who will be in coalition with nidaa tounes, and who will win the election. if they win the election, and has a majority in parliament. there are fears that some old types could come back into the fold. into business, into politics, into tunisia, some are concerned about that. >> thank you for that. those poles pope for the next few hours. more to come in the next 15 minutes, including - bus passengers killed in kenya,
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sparking a new alert over al-shabab fighters from somalia. and how free school lunches are the main attraction for kids in ghana. stay with us. you gonna be stuck here... i don't wanna be stuck here. >> catch the whole ground-breaking series. "edge of eighteen". thanksgiving marathon. friday. 9:00 am eastern. only on al jazeera america.
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concludes welcome back. i'm shiulie ghosh. the top stories - polls are open in tunisia for the first presidential elections since the revolution in 2011. the frontrunners are beji caid essebsi from the secular nidaa tounes, and the interim
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president moncf marzouki. monday's deadline for a deal on iran's nuclear programme could be extend the. world powers want to limit capabilities in return for lifting sanctions. >> u.s. troops in afghanistan still want to target fighters. previous were limited to al qaeda and training afghan troops. security on kenya's boarder has been stepped up after al-shabab's fighters shot dead 20 bus passengersers. thee said it was revenge for police attacks on mosques and mass arrests. >> reporter: witnesses said the victims were forced from the bus. ordered to separate out the non-muslims, forced to lie down before being shot in the head one by one at point blank range. 60 passengers were on board. 28 were killed.
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nine women and 19 men. among relatives waiting for news, one man told about an amazing mistake. pretending to be dead, while others were shot. they were shooting other people. >> he kept pretending to be dead. people went away. he lay there, not knowing what to do. the attack happened near the border with somalia, the bus had been travelling and was ambushed near mon dara. it's believed there were about 10 government kenyan police. and they are trying to track them down. >> they fled towards the border. between kenya and somali. >> the kenyan government said it
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was determined to bring them to justice. >> already some offensive have been taken. they've been identified where they came from and continued to make inroads to make sure that we bring to justice those responsible. >> the islamic group al-shabab said it carried out the attacks in revenge for a number of raids on security forces in mombassa. one was shot dead after police said the mosques were used. >> translation: they closed the mosques in mombassa. the ones we killed from not for the kenyan government. this is a war. got tells us to fight non-believers. if they want peace they should withdraw crops.
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kenya suffered a series of attacks. as part of an african union force to bolster the government. the assault on the westgate shopping mall resulted in the death of 67 people. al-shabab said it carried out other attacks on kenya's coast. in which 90 people have died. late on saturday the bodies of those who died in the latest attack were flown by military aircraft in nairobi. at the airport gates relatives waited to see the dead. others waited for news of those they hoped had survived bolivia is one of the largest producers of coca, a plant used to produce cocaine. the government tried to control production after kicking the drug force agency out in 2008. we see how the programme is
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working. >> reporter: this person farmed this land in bolivia since inheriting it. she is proud of her bountiful and diverse crops. it is this one, concentrated on 1600 square meters of her land that is her favourite. this is coca, the leaf used for medicinal and spiritual purpose, and is the raw material of cocaine. it has been at the center of a controversy for bolivia and international drug enforcement agencies for year. the drug agency has in force an aggressive and violent campaign, claiming the coca was sold to make cocaine. >> translation: until president evo morales, a former leader of
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the coca growers union kict d.e.a. out in 1978. >> translation: the d.e.a. wanted to eradicate everything. the growers were opposed to that. coca is the livelihood. there was much violence and death until they found the way out. >> evo morales put the control of the crops in the hands of units. they allowed individual growers to farm a float and encouraged farmers. >> growers preferred coca, they could be harvested up to four times a year. it will make them a crop. bolivia's former drug tsar says much of the cocoa are produced in the region, and are used in illicit purposes.
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>> coca is up for human consumption, it's not very good. it's a bad test. it is not commercial. people don't want it. buy it. but the government is convinced the approach is the most effective way to control the use of coca. farmers would prefer to be allowed to grow more of it, but say this prefer policing to a more aggressive means in the past china's most westerly province saw the first high-speed train line open. it's an area known for tensions with muslim separatist. it's on the ancient silk road trading road, from china to europe. we report from cash gar, a city they want to become an important
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hub again. >> reporter: it is one of the world's oldest bazaars, where butchers, farmers and traders inspect and haggle over livestock, just as they have done for centuries, a reminder of the days when cash gar was a hub of the silk road trading group. kashgar was a hub of the silk road trading group. this yak farmer made a 12 hour journey. >> translation: i come every week, steams i sell three, sometimes one. >> most of the people are ethnic muslim uyghurs. the market is considered a symbol of their culture. >> the baz areas are important to our uyghur line. standing here, it's hard to believe you are in china. the borders of the pakistan, kurdistan and kazakhstan are a few hundred kilometres away, helping to make it the world's
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original marketplace. >> down the road, change is coming. the old city stood as a powerful symbol of uyghur identity. chunks have been torn down on the orders of the government, promising new homes and better living conditions. you see the occasional tourist. most have been frightened away by violence that the authorities blame on uyghur armed group, some of whom want independence from china. most uyghurs are wary of talking to foreign journalists, those that do, don't like to be identified. >> the government says this is not very safe for tourists. they hope next year will be better if more tourists come, it will be easier for us to make money. >> road side billboards show the vision for kashgar's future. a city that could be the shanghai of central asia. the new high-rise developments
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point to the billions that the central government is pouring into roots and buildings, a construct boom it hopes will build prosperity as it drives to transfer the city into an economic trade hub of old. a free school lunch programme in ghana is running into trouble. more than 1.7 million children from poor families rely on it. caterers say they have not been paid for months. >> reporter: miriam is five years old. the free school lunch is the main reason she is in school. otherwise she'd be at home, helping on the farm. today's meal is a local maize dish with palm nut soup. school feeding had a huge impact on classroom attending. there's no evidence to suggest it translates into better or improved results for a child.
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at this school, some children turn up from other areas just to have lump here. ♪ ♪ if you're happy and you know it clap your hands ♪ there has been a 30% increase in enrolment. according to the chief executive, there's other factors that influence a child's schooling. >> we need school uniforms. some of them work through. we need them. they are coming to school and after eating they will not come. >> the programme is running at a deficit. many caterers are preparing meals at their own cost because they have not been paid for the last academic year. the government allowance is
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$0.15 per child per day. >> the price of school. we buy 15 kilograms of life. 50 is no more for me to provide quality food for the children. the man that obvious saw the programme is dismayed with the progress. >> it's the right of the children to have education, and to be fed. if school feeding is to work, the government has big advantages in producing low-call foods, other valued foods. so that the government will grow economically. it benefits everybody. it can be turned around. >> school feeding had a positive
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impact on the poor communities. but poor financial management and lack of monitoring presented it reaching full potential. >> all the news, all the time on our website. aljazeera.com. >> gang rape, among the most shocking of violent crime is stirring a global outrage. throughout asia, it is believed to be far more common than most people think. >> rape is a major problem in all countries across this region. >> women's experiences of violence are well documented, but the