aljazeera.com/techknow. follow our contributors on > announcer: this is al jazeera. good to have you along. i'm david foster, you're watching the al jazeera newshour. this is some of what we have coming up in the next 60 minutes. five hostages managed to escape a siege in a cafe in australia. an armed man in sydney continues to keep an unconfirmed number of hostages trapped inside. libya - 16 die after violence near the border with tunisia a report from south sudan - a year on from a city coming back to life after a conflict

that left thousands dead from chuck out to check out - the supermarket putting food on the plates for some of u.k.'s poorest. start of the newshour in australia where an arm man is still holding an unknown number of people hostage inside a central sydney cafe. martin place is where it is. this is the scene outside. we see security forces there behind a lamp post on the right of your screen. others are positioned elsewhere. it's an area which has been locked down since this siege started at 9:45 local time, 12 hours, it's 9 o'clock at night, and much of the area remains cordoned off. andrew thomas, our correspondent, close to that area. there is an area that has been sealed off. i know we can't go into it. we heard from the

new south wales police commissioner sa short while ago -- a short while ago. not a great deal of detail coming out, but a few interesting points. >> they are being careful, camy about what they are saying. they have -- cagey, they have more information about what they are sharing. cautious about how many hostages are held, and how many hostage takers there may be. we know of one armed man, we don't know of any more. the siege has been going on for 11 hours. it was the morning rush for coffee at the time this began. 9:45, the local time in sydney. my colleague carol line malone -- caroline mall own talks us through the event. >> reporter: this woman is running from the scope of a hostage taking. a number of people escaped from a cafe where they were held in a

cafe at martin place. others have been trapped inside, and have been all day. tony abbott says the hostage taker is politically motivating. >> this is a very disturbing incident. it is profoundly shocking that incident people should be held hostage by an armed person claiming political motivation. here one of the hostages who escaped is taken away by police. the information escaped hostages provide may be useful to security forces who are working to get other people out safely. the new south wale's deputy commissioner confirmed that the police are negotiating with the hostage taker. >> we know that there are people being held in the building in martin place, we are aware that there is a person who is armed also in the premises. what we are seeing now is this

evolving as a negotiation that the new south wales police is undertaking with the person who is in the premises. >> reporter: it started during the monday morning rush hour. >> a woman was summoning police, three police had been motorcycles arrived and others on foot. she told them she'd gone go inside the cafe, and the automatic glass sliding doors that normally open and allow you in had been disabled and shut. she thought the cafe was closed and realised something was going on inside. she told police she saw a man with a blue bag and what she thought was a shotgun. >> reporter: these pictures show that man, who appears to be wearing a bandana and carrying a rucksack. at one point a flag is held up at the cafe window, on it a statement of belief of islam. many left the area. the block around martin place has been cordoned off, and there's heavy security presence.

andrew is still was. a couple of points struck me from the police conference, he said we understand nobody has been injured, for that we are grateful. that is the first time we heard no one had been hurt, in any way, shape or form. and it was just this location we were concerned about, not any other, because there were suggestions that devices could have been planted in different parts of sydney. with regard to the city as a whole, because this is a busy area, what did the new south wales premier have to say about what is going to happen in the next 24 hours, perhaps longer? >> that was interesting the new south wales premier mike baird at the press conference said sydneysiders should go about their business as per normal unless they work this the immediate vicinity of martin place, in which case they should work from home. otherwise he said sydneysiders should get on with their business as per normal.

there was an assumes in what he said that this siege will be as it is now, some eight, nine, 10, 12 hours as people get up and start their tuesday. that implied he was suggesting nothing would move, that the police would not mount action nor reach a resolution. i'm perhaps reading too much into what he said. but i found it interesting that he said on tuesday people should get on with his business, assuming nothing changes. the police also said they were in ongoing negotiations with the hostage taker, this armed man inside the cafe, but would not confirm how many people are inside. it is believed a lot of the local media reported that the hostages, or some of them inside the cafe have made contact with them on behalf of the gunman or the armed man. we are not sure he is carrying a gun.

having said that the police made sure they requested all media outlet not report what the armed man was requesting, nor to give further information about the calls. they have taken case, there has been some contact with the local media organizations in australia, and indeed there is ongoing contact between police negotiators and the armed man inside the cafe. this ordinarily is the heart of the c.b.d., martin place, a key election in the heart of the central business district of sydney, close to the opera house, close to the famous harbour, and around it lots of shops, 10 days from christmas, of course, the area was very busy. opposite the channel 7 newsroom, a main network here, rite opposite the cafe. it couldn't be a more high profile spot in the center of sydney, where all this is taking place, and has now been for some 11 hours that the siege has been underway.

>> we'll get the update from you later in the newshour. thank you andrew thomas for that all of this in sydney follows a ratcheting up of australia foreign and domestic security policies in light of armed groups in syria and iraq. early october australia joined the u.s.-led coalition, the first to say it would do so, against i.s.i.l. australian military jets were the first to carry out air strikes. police raided 25 homes in sydney earlier, and up the coast in brisbane, days after the government raised domestic security threats from medium to high, following concerns about australian citizens returning from fighting in syria and iraq. legislation was passed where tony abbott argued it would be easier to prosecute people who engaged in terrorist activities overseas. let's bring in mike carlton joining us via skype from sydney. i read this out in the contempt of what australia is doing to

fly what it sees as extremism in the middle east. there's no direct suggestion that what is happening in the cafe is related to that, although we have seen the flag with the islamic crede on it. is there a sense in australia that this was inevitable, if it turns out to be something like this, because tony abbott is saying this conflict a reaching out to us whether we like it or not. you can't avoid it. >> yes. there is a fear here that i.s.i.s. or i.s.i.l., call it what you will, made that public call a few weeks ago for spontaneous acts of terror. there's a feeling in this country this is what we are seeing. the black flag here has people worried. it's not an i.s.i.l., i.s.i.s. flag, it's a statement of the islamic crede, there is only one

god, allah, mohammed is his prophet. that is normal. black and white is a worry, green and white would be nicer. there is a worry that is a fr freelan freelancer, devotee, seduced by the i.s.i.s. propaganda. >> the australian new zealand counter-terrorism were worried about what you talked about, a lone wolf. >> yes, the lone wolf, the freelancer. it's impossible to protect a community against that. as we saw in the boston marathon, same thing in a sense. that is the worry here. we don't know how serious this guy is or how far he intends to take it. it has been going after 9 o'clock is the night. it has been going all day, it's not looking particularly better.

where we go from here, i don't know. >> the grand mufti saying it's nothing to do with islam, there has been tension between communities, i noted earlier today there's a hashtag called i will ride with you, or something. which aims to protect women wearing the hijab. >> this is something that makes me proud to be an australian, despite the racist and the islama phones and a muslim woman was abused on a bus or train, and forced to take her hijab off the the response on twitter "i'll ride with you", ordinary australians offering themselves up on public. i'll be here, if you want to catch the bus, i'm on the train, i'll be there to defend you and protect you. there's a wonderful thing trending on twitter, i don't know how big it is, but it's the expression of tolerance at the heart of this country, making me

happy to see it. >> thank you, mike carlton talking from sydney. we have seen the pictures of the siege. it's after 8 o'clock at night. after 9 o'clock at night, this is close to the lindt cafe, the chocolate cafe in the central business district of sydney, where a man has been holding a number of hostages off since first thing this morning. we will continue to report on that, any developments we'll bring here immediately. >> on the al jazeera newshour police in france have launched raids targetting an alleged network suspected of sending fighters to syria. police units moved in on a dozen target in toulouse. it's not clear how many have been arrested. almost 1,000 nationals are thought to have left france to join fighters in iraq and syria. in syria there has been

fierce fighting. opposition forces say they killed about 15 soldiers in idlib in the north. the al qaeda al nusra front and other opposition groups are said to have taken part in the operation. rebels say they control seven military checkpoints in the area nine iraqi police men have been killed in clashes with i.s.i.l. there has been violence across anbar. coalition air strikes and iraqi security forces are being backed by tribesman on the ground there libya's biggest oil terminal has been shut because of violence, putting the only significant source of revenue under threat. fighters intensify near the border with tunisia. this report is by kim vinnell. >> smoke rises over western

libya. the sound of air strikes echos for kilometres. the battle is most feaierce, cle to the border with tunisia. the group aligned. not sided with the former general. on the other side the forces of libyan dawn, a loose coalition of militias, associated with the military-based government. >> today we lost 14 fighters, that they targeted a residential area, we managed to repel the ground forces back to the area with the country awash with powerful militia, and rival governments in tunisia and tobruk, likia is in a state of law -- libya is in a state of lawlessness. the militants are advancing on the biggest oil terminal.

fighting in this region forced the nearby terminal to close. >> translation: the attack on the oil region shows that libyan dawn wants to be in charge of oil resources that it needs to sponsor terrorist oppositions, just like other terrorist groups have done in other parts of the world. >> complicating matters, the group has established a council in the city. it plans to offer help to fighters al jazeera continues to demand the release of our three journalists in gaol in egypt for 352 days. you'll know the names - peter greste, mohamed fadel fahmy and baher mohamed. gaoled on charges of helping the outlawed muslim brotherhood. they have lodged appeals against the convictions. still to come on this al jazeera

newshour. anti-government protesters shut down major roads in the city of lahore. the former u.s. vice president once again defending the c.i.a.'s brutal torture techniques. in sport - the latest from kobe bryant, moving past michael jordan on the n.b.a. all-time scoring list. jo will be here with that and the rest of sport in about 30 minutes. the israeli prime minister binyamin netanyahu says he will not accept any attempt to set a timetable for israeli withdrawal from palestinian territory. he's due to have a meeting with the u.s. secretary of state, john kerry. the two of them in rome on monday to discuss various proposals for a palestinian state. jordan circulating a palestinian drafted resolution to the u.n.

council. calling for israeli occupation of palestinian land to end by november 2016. less than two years from now. we join barnaby phillips in rome. i guess since the two sides don't want many people to know... [ no audio ] ..and there's no indication that there'll be a form of public statements afterwards. binyamin netanyahu does have a meeting here in rome with the italian prime minister, renzi, before he meets john kerry. i suppose you could say the visit is a reflection of israeli concern that they do face a

diplomatic onslaught, not just the jordanian motion that we expect to come before the security council, but the symbolic non-binding votes in other european parliament - britain, france, spain, and others, recognising palestinian statehood symbolically, and at a time when israel may feel isolated. there's no ally more important than the united states. >> i once researched how many times the u.s. vetoed u.s. resolutions criticizing israel. i can't remember how many it is exactly, but it's 80 to 100. is there a reason to suspect that israel's best friend will not remain that way throughout this? >> well, that is a good question. and i am sure binyamin netanyahu will be seeking an answer to it when he sits down with john kerry. i mean, there's no secret that

when it comes to the obama administration over the last six years, relations with binyamin netanyahu have been strained. more strained than typically they would be between an israeli prime minister and an american government. to go from there to the next stage to say the americans would not support the israeli or support the veto in the u.n. security council, that is an enormous lead, and that would take us into unprecedented territory. we have no indication that that is what the americans are contempla contemplating. >> good to see you, thank you indeed. probably a cold after noon outside the ambassador's residents. good to see you anyway. >> iran negotiators will head to geneva, to meet with representatives of the p5+1,

countries, to continue discussion about the level of uranium iran can enrich. they want to talk about the possibility of more sanctions being lifted in pakistan, anti-government protesters shut down major roads in the city of lahore. supporters of the potential pakistan tariq party are staging sit ins. it's a party led by former cricketer imran khan. and wants an independent audit, a check of the results last year. scott heidler sent this update, and he is in lahore. >> reporter: pakistan's second largest city is at a virtual standstill. after the pakistan, led by imran khan, and he said he will bring the city to a grinding halt.

he has been holding protests outside islamabad for over four months, and demands for the setting up of a judicial commission to probe allegations of massive rigging. he wanted the prime minister to resign, but is willing to call off the nationwide protest of shutting down the country on the 18th if the government agrees. the government showed a determination not to buckle under commands. imran khan has considerable support in the city of lahore. workers are out in large numbers, and in order to ensure that the strike and the protest is successful. >> it is that point in the news when we join richard angwin and it would appear winter arrived across asia. >> that's right. looking on the satellite you see

the weather system stretching out the way from tokyo in the east towards new delhi in the west, bringing about the arrival of winter in many parts of the region. if we move to the nearby parts, we'll see heavy snowfall developing over the next few days, this area across the far east of russia, as it begins to develop. it will give 25 sent needs, not that amount. certainly on the western side and over into the mountains, significant snow fall. you notice, obviously, for wednesday, tokyo is at 7 degrees. we are expecting rain. cold conditions across the caribian. we see snow fall developing. further towards the west, we are seeing winter arriving across parts of india. and we have seen snowfall, not particularly heavy, but it brings the tourists out. interesting to see the first

decent falls of snow. if you look at the bulldozer clearing it away. doubt amount to a great deal. across the tibetan plateau, it's heavier, half a meter of snow falling. for the time being, it should have cleared away. >> thank you. monday marks a year since the beginning of south sudan's civil war. 10,000 people have been killed, millions lost their homes and aid agencies say up to 4 million people need help. catherine soi reports from the upper nile state. >> malakal is coming back to life. it was a center of conflict. hundreds decide, more disappeared. malakal has changed hands several times, each after intense battles. the up to has been quiet for -- the town has been quiet for months much many are afraid. this woman, family and friends

left their homes, going back is not on option right now. >> i blame the government. it's come down to us. why? i don't know. >> a few like this man had to come back. he had to restart his life, no matter the risk. >> hundreds of miles from here in youth, leaders have been holding peace talks. there's not been political settlements, grandstanding between rivals hampered progress. >> the negotiating team agreed on the transition government. with salva kiir as president and a prime minister to be nominated by riek machar's rebel group. other details need to be worked out, including the powers of the prime minister and how and when the two armies will be

reintegrated. >> i think the government is flexible, from day one, sitting with someone who tried to make a coup is a great compromise. >> reporter: many analysts, including this man, believes it is a power struggle that may not yield much in the long run. >> the leadership in government and in the opposition. i think we will not have piece. if the only condition for peace is that one sustains a current position. >> reporter: both salva kiir and riek machar say they want peace. many are suffering in makeshift homes and are not sure. >> i don't know how many times you reported on the contlik, but it's more than a few. do you sense that things are

getting better in any way. >> people are certainly tired of the conflict, they are not seeing a political solution in the offing. they hoped there would be a political deal. clearly that has not happened. they are hopeful that they would be back to their homes by christmas. that will not happen. i've talked to politicians from both sides of the conflict about this peace process happening in ethiopia, why it has taken so long, and they tell me they feel they have made good progress, and say it is a delicate progress, and both parties have to scrutinise closely any proposals put on the table. joining me to discuss the peace talks further is a conflict resolution expert, and followed the talks closely. are you hopeful of a political

settlement soon? >> yes. there are reasons to be cautiously optimistic. if you look at where the parties are at the moment, they move, you know, quite significantly. because at the beginning, the two in positions on either side, where that - the government was legitimate, and has to go. or the rebels, or the position, you know, you have a point, and, therefore they should not think of coming back in any government. right now, that changes, both sides change those positions, and we are talking of the possibility of having the president and the prime minister who will be coming from the opposition that is significant. >> yes it is. we are hearing that the opposition side, riek machar, the rebel leader, has been meeting with his generals, and they are not happy with the

proposals. potentially, do you think that will be a big problem. >> well, it will be a big problem. that is where the pressure is needed. it is difficult for the opposition or the rebels to say that they - they will get what they want. a total replacement of the government. that will not happen, especially the government was elected, including dr riek machar, the vice president. and he did not have a problem with the election. the conflict started as a result of internal power struggle within this power, and they did not win elections for the internal reforms. it's a big leap for the opposition to say they'll not take anything less than the prime minister with executive powers. what do you do with the president. this is a dangerous precedent which cannot be set. >> thank you very much. that was zackaria diing.

the talks, the 7th round and hopefully the last round of talks in ethiopia are supposed to resume soon. we are hearing in the coming days or week as well, so it will be interesting to see what political deal is finally assigned, how binding it will be, and, more importantly, the reforms that will follow, reforms that people say needs to be implemented so that south sudan does not find itself, the people of south sudan do not find themselves in a position they are in right now. >> thank you, catherine soi in juba coming up on the newshour - no trains, no planes - belgium grinding to a halt because of a 24 hour strike against austerity measures why people in this remote region of nepal think a road to tibet could be their way to a better life and a virus sending a dozen

players in the national football league, rather than them hitting themselves for a choping. jo will tell you what is keeping them off the ice.

pass halfway through the new, time to update you on the global headlines. a siege in australia. now entering its 14th hour, after a man believed to be armed walked into a sydney cafe, took hostages. five people have been seen running from the building. there's an unknown number still

side. nab the police know, but -- maybe the police know, they have not released details of the number. al jazeera shot footage of what is believed to be a hostage being escorted away. police say they are negotiating with an armed man, the hostage taker inside. the seem brought sydney's central business district to a standstill. thousands evacuated from their hostages, within the perimeter of the area cordoned off by police. this is the area. we'll zoom in on sydney, to show where it is going on. it's the lindt cafe, located at the end of martin place, next door, the rank of australia bang opposite it. the cafe, bang opposite. the tv studios for channel 7, the aussie network. the parliament evacuated and the supreme court building nearby, and andrew thomas, we'll join

him in a second, telling us it's about 200 yards from the sydney opera house. i don't imagine there's a great deal more to say than you told us 25-30 minutes ago. but it is going into the night time now. it will be interesting to get a recap of what you think the main points are this hour. >> it's half past nine at night. it was almost 12 hours ago that the siege began. people were making their way to work. this a cafe, o coffee shop, would have been at its busiest in the midmorning rush at 9:45. you are right, the information from the police is very, very limited. they are cagey about what they are saying. they are doing updates for the media. they are, frankly, more stonewalling questions than they are answering any. they are not telling us, for example, how many hostages are in the cafe, if they know that.

they said there are - they believe not as many as 30, as was speculated earlier on monday, but they will not say how many they believe there to be. they will not say how the five hostages that have got out of the cafe got out. whether they escaped or whether they were released. and nor will they say, or confirm anyway, how many armed people may be in the cafe, whether it's the one, or whether there are more than one people involved in this siege. so no, i'm afraid not much more information, xapt to say as far as we know the seem is ongoing. there's plenty of heavily armed police in martin place, 120 meters from where i stood, on the left-hand side, the central square in the middle of sydney's c.b.d. a busy hub for shoppers and workers, a hotel on the square as well, and all this a couple of hundred meters away from the

famous sydney opera house, right in the middle of city. it couldn't be a more high profile spot. it's a long and enduring siege situation now. >> thank you, andrew thomas, there in sydney. >> pretty much halfway around the world to belgium, and a strike brought parts of a country to a stop. thousands of trade unionists taking part in a 24 hour flight. flights cancelled, rail services. they are angry, they say, about spending cuts and a rise in the pension age. let's go to jowelled in belgium. seems it's pretty well heated. >> the town is deserted. i'm in front of brussels central station, which you expect to be busy, but it's deserted. the shutters are down, doors are

closed, it's the same with underground stations, no buses are running, and no international trains, the unions do seem to have brought to a standstill. the unions are saying why are workers being asked to shoulder the burden. why is it not put on to big businesses, or on financial transactions, for example. that is what is at stake here. i travelled 50km to the south, to see how the economic crisis is affecting people there. >> reporter: this used to be an industrial heartland with coal mines and steelworks. most of the factories closed half a century ago. nowadays it is one of the poorest parts of belgium, with

high unemployment. this construction company on the outskirts of the town is an example of how the region is trying to diversify economically. it makes blast furnaces and employs 60 people. the factory is not working during the strike. managers expect traffic chaos, and prefer to remain closed for the day. the technical director can see both points of view, the government and the trade unionist. >> i'm between the two. i would like to work less. i would like to have a pension. the truth lies between the two. >> belgium's new government, which took office two months ago is trying to tackle the huge debt, and plans to raise the pension age from 65 to 67, and scrap a pay rise due next year. >> the government says it is

facing up to economic reality. the spending cuts, it says, are necessary and unavoidable. those who oppose the austerity program say it risks tearing apart the fabric of belgium society. there has been a strong labour movement going back 150 years. the trade unions of today have been the driving force behind the anti-austerity protests, which are culminating in a general trike. strike. >> we are moving away from a strong social model of europe and the world, a system many envy. with the war on ages and allowances we'll destroy the system of social security. the struggle to balance the budget and reduce debt is not only for belgium. >> as i said, the strike seems

to be very widely respected here in brussels. however, we spoke to some people who don't think it's the rights way ahead. there's a group that call themselves the citizens movement against the strike. their position is "look, we only had of coalition for two months. belgium went for a year without a government. we need to give them a chance, time to see what their programme might yield. >> that seems to be a minority view. the general strike respected. the question is where next unions will take protest action. >> good to hear from you, jowelled live in brussels. >> from belgium to hungary. thousands on the streets protesting about spending cuts and corruption. these were demonstrations against the prime minister. pretty common on the streets of

budda pest. many people saying they distrusted close economic ties with russia and against fraud by top hungarian officials. hundreds have been protesting planned cuts to education and health care. 28 hospitals will close leaving 10,000 staff out of work. >> in mexico dozens have been hurt. there has been violent confrontations in guerrero, where 43 students were missing in september. the two were taken by local police. there are reports that the federal police played a part in their disappearance. hong kong police arrested a dozen people as they cleared the protest site on monday. the streets have been blocked.

they want free leadership elections, and candidates now have to be investigated by future, and it says it will continue to do so. china saying it will not comply with a deadline to attend an international court hearing at the hague. the u.n. court of permanent arbitration is looking into its sovereignty claims in the south china sea. beijing says 80% that lies in its territorial orders. neighbours are making competing claims. andrew brown has more. >> reporter: some of the contested its are more than 200km from the chinese coastline of the the philippines and five others lay claim to parts of these waters, rich in minerals. recent photographs demonstrate how the chinese government enforced its claim. an influential defense magazine that claimed the villages says

the reclamation point to construction of a run way. the philippines government is challenging beijing's actions at the united nations court of permanent arbitration in the hague. a stunt, says china. >> translation: this is a diplomatic move to try to get sympathy from the international communitiment so china will not accept any arbitration from the international calls. >> reporter: i asked china's foreign ministry spokesman how the dispute can be solved without violence. >> china has a strong resolution to protect the sovereignty and the rights of the sea. if other countries take unilateral or provocative action, china would have to respond accordingly. >> china says it's claim to 80% of the china sea is incontestable. backed up by ancient maritime documents saying the waters have always belonged to china.

in this dispute beijing is on its open. >> the dispute also includes vietnam. now taking legal action against beijing. china's government says it's willing to hold talks with both governments, but in the if they try to internationalize the row just as soon as we can we'll go back to belgium. we saw our correspondent talking about a 24 hour strike. there is a developing news story there. interesting in the light of what is happening in australia with the hostage taking. i'll read this to you from reuters. four armed me have entered an apartment in the western belgium city of gent. police blocked off a perimeter in the area. two years into the incident, unclear what the reasons behind it are. no information available about the armed men, who entered the apartment block or whether they have taken hostages. big police operation, it says, set up in a working class

neighbourhood to keep bystanders away from that scene. armed men in an apartment block surrounded by police in the belgium town of ghent the former u.s. vice president dick cheney again defended brutal interrogation techniques which the c.i.a. used during his time in office. chain made no distinction between approved enhanced techniques and those that wept beyond what the white house had authorised. the comments came after the u.s. released a report last week on enterdags techniques used against inmates worldwide. here is kristen saloomey. >> former vice president chain and other officials face tough questions over the c.i.a.s enhanced interrogation techniques. new details have been coming out of the 500 plus page senate report about c.i.a. tactics in the wake of the september 11th

attacks in 2001. prompting great debate. including descriptions of the tactics used, like waterboarding, hanging people by the wrist, putting them in life size or coffin size bombs, and even a technique called rectal rehydration. they may sound tortuous to the everything person. dick cheney and other officials say they stop short of torture as defined by the justice department. and the report outlined steps taken by the c.i.a. to stay within the guidelines, having medical personnel on hand to make sure they didn't overstep the bounds. vice president, former vice president chain is unapologetic and stands by the techniques. >> torture, to me, chuck, is an american citizen on his cell phone, making a last call to his four young daughters, shortly before he burns to death in the upper levels of the trade center

in new york city on 9/11. there's a notion that somehow there's moral equivalence between what the terrorists did and we do. that is not true, we were careful to stop short of torture. the senate saw fit to label the report torture, we worked hard to stay short of the torture. we captured bin laden and others. i'd do it again in a minute. >> while the report and that point of view is causing debate. at this stage it's unlikely that congress will move forward with any form of prosecution against former c.i.a. agents or former officials, especially considering that the congress convening in january will be made up primarily of republicans who have been supportive of the bush era techniques in large part. >> kristen saloomey reporting there. >> if you live in the remote part of nepal, you know it will

be difficult to get food in. what you are not prepared for is how much it will cost now to get it there. the authorities say they'll connect to a place called humla to the rest of nepal. that is not good enough for those that live there. they say the right way o go is tibet. we have this report from simikot, in humla. >> reporter: there's little to choose from this shop in the north-west, and what can be found is as much as five times more expensive than kathmandu. a kilogram of sugar there is $0.80. mere assist $2.50. >> they are the only two districts in nepal connected from the rest of the country. they are some of the poorest, but pay the highest prices. >> humla is connected by road not to nepal, but tibet, in

china. when this road is completed. it will take four hours to reach tibet. some say it's a road to prosperity for the distribute. >> apple farmer has been planning for the day the road link is complete. >> if we set up a shop in tibet, you can get up to $6 a kilogram. i started the farm without roads. >> apples, herbs, nuts and vegetables are something that the area has to offer. it's been 17 years since they started construction. locals say nepal's government was not keep on the road, as it prepared to connect the distribute to the rest of the nepal, not tibet. >> we face problem in the past. i should say the government allocating budget. by next year they'll complete. if the government has given interest in the past, we could have already joined the road

from the border to at least up to bajura. >> tibet might be the nearest mark. trade agreement with china would have to be carved out. building materials have been acquired, driven hundreds of kilometres across tibet to be brought back. locals say roads and a favourable trade treaty could change the lives of all those living in districts bordering china after this break, jo with the sport. she'll tell you why serena williams is hitting the road ahead of the new tennis season. stay with us.

millions of tonnes of food wasted in the u.k. what's that, discarded and thrown away by supermarkets with too much stock. one new start-up chain is snapping it up for next to nothing and selling it on for less, to help the numbers much people struggling to afford any

type of food. >> reporter: a whole chicken reduced from £4 to 2.40. you don't see that. this beef down from £6 to 1. the whole lot for a little over $5. special offer - no, standard fare at a new-type of supermarket. 15 million tonnes of supermarket food ends up in the bip in the u.k. every -- bin in the u.k. every year. bypassing checkout to chuck out even though it's fine to eat. the box may be damaged, the store over ordered. much will go social supermarkets like this one. and be reside for next to nothing. >> the promise of cheap food is going to lure crowds in. but the point behind this place is the door will remain firmly closed to all but members. to become a members, customers have to meet a number of requirements.

first of all, they have to live locally by the area. secondly, they have to receive a form of benefit like income support, and thirdly they have to agree to go on a development programme, a number of places run on things like debt management, confidence building and how to apply for jobs. on top of that the membership will not last forever, we are talking six months max. after that time it has to be reviewed to see if someone else needs it more. >> if they are motivated and enthusiastic about changing their lives. this will be the right place for them. if what they are looking for is cheap food. there's a few places on the high street that you can buy that from. >> this is the first large community supermarket to open, and it's based here in london. a trial store proved so popular in northern england that 20 more are due to open their doors, and mavis is something of a regular.

>> it's a supermarket. you are paying for the goods and its, however small, for a reduction. but you feel there's some dignity about it. >> reporter: last year, one of britain's biggest supermarkets tracked the top 25 selling product, and found 40% of apples are wasted. as for bananas, 20% are never eaten and half of its bakery goods end up in the bin. much will be sold to social supermarkets for pennies, and to customers for little more. putting food on plates and smiles on faces. food for thought, and now food for sport. >> thank you. he's dominated basketball for the best part of two decades. kobe bryant surpassed michael jordan to move to third on the n.b.a. all-time scoring list in

his 1,296 career match. he finished with 27 points in the lakers 100 to 94 victory. bryant's career sits at 33,310 points, 18 more than michael jordan, he needs a further 4,000 if he is to catch carl malanswer. the leading scorer is kareem jabbar ending with 38, 387. >> reporter: will you play long enough to catch those guys. >> do you have any idea how much my body hurts from day to day. it's stuffed. i'm no spring chicken. it's good to be out here. >> steph curry was in golden form for the warriors, scoring

28 points, they won 128 to 122, their 16th straight victory. >> the national football league has been hit by an -- national hockey league has been hit by an outbreak of mumps. the latest it pittsburgh penguin star sidney crosby, he was kept out of the last two games while the team waited for test results. he'll miss the game against the tampa bay lightning on monday mumps hit five teams, penguins, anaheim ducks - and others. vaccinations are given to children, but doesn't always stop the disease. it can be spread by contact with an infect perp's saliva when they cough or sneeze. it would be difficult to contain

in an n.h.l. locker resume. real madrid has been assigned 40 body guards for a trip to morocco. five responsible for the safety of cristiano ronaldo. amid tight security, real madrid arrived in the north african country to begin preparations. they played mexican side on tuesday, in the semifinal. the match was moved after heavy rain made the pitch there unplayable on to contribute now, and steve smith has been picked to captain australia for the rest of the test series in india. the 25-year-old will become australia 4th test captain, and third youngest of the match in brisbane on wednesday. he replaces michael clarke, who will have surgery to repair a hamstring injury on tuesday. >> well, another stand-in skipper shah heeda freedy helped

pakistan to crash australia in their series. shazad made 113, his sixth odi century. after he was dismissed. alfreedy laid into the new zealand bowling. smashing 55 off 26 balls, and pakistan posted a 364 to 7 of their 50 overs. he took three for 37. as pakistan won by 147 runs, leading the series 2-1 well, best female tennis player kick starred her tennis regime for 2015. serena williams ran her first 5km race to raise money for charity. she started her foundation. that's all for sport. >> that's it from the nouri al-maliki team.

-- from the news hour team, thank you for watching. bye-bye.

>> beyond the verdict and on the streets >> there's been another teenager shot and killed by the police >> a fault lines special investigation >> there's a general distrust of this prosecutor >> courageous and in depth... >> it's a target you can't get rid of... >> the untold story... >> who do you protect? >> ...of what's really going on in ferguson >> they were so angry because it could have been them >> fault lines, ferguson: race and justice in the u.s. one hour special only on al jazeera america

hostages run to safety in downtown sydney, australia, others are trapped in a cafe, held by an armed men. the city central business district is in lock down, major buildings have been evacuated. we'll be live in sydney for a moment. this is al jazeera live from do doha. also ahead - the battle for libya - 16 die in violence near the border with tunisia