. >> hello and welcome to the news hour. we have your top stories on al jazeera. [ gunfire ] >> yemen pushed to the brink once more. houthi rebels battle soldiers near the presidential palace. the prime minister has been attacked the government calling this an attempted coup. iran confirms that one of its

generals died, and hundreds of thousands protest against charlie hebdo magazine, this time in russian-controlled chechnya. >> it's a violent and tumultuous day in yemen where the government has been facing an attempted coup. after hours of fighting between houthi rebels and soldiers, a cease-fire is now holding. earlier nine people were killed near the presidential palace. the president is safe in sanaa but earlier the prime minister's convoy came under fire. >> reporter: the fight something being heard from blocks away. the building is a symbol of who yields power in yemen.

the information minister described the scene. >> to be honest, i don't think any single party is in control. there are places where the state security is in control. there are places where the houthies are in control. most ministers of defense and interior were in the committee but those who wear the uniform they do not obey the orders of their superiors. >> reporter: houthi rebels have beened a been at odds with the government for years. >> nothing like this had been seen before. this case is the first of its kind even the attack of sanaa. months ago with nothing close to this. the attack months ago in sanaa by the houthis are focused on certain areas of the capitol. there were no attacks by the president or prime minister. >> reporter: houthies have

reportedly taken control of the state television and have gathered more forces outside of the capitol. the prime minister's convoy cass convoy was attacked. >> there were armed men. they came in. we have news also of people who are affiliated with with them because they are wearing the uniform of the republic. >> the cease-fire declared earlier in the day was ignore: security forces refused the orders adding there could be a new yemen by the end of the day. >> we'll now cross over to yemen and speak with hamid. tell us what you're hearing about after the announcements of that cease-fire was made an hour ago. are you hearing that it is sticking in sanaa. and also tell us what is going on if anything, where you are.

>> yes well, the news we've been getting from sanaa is that the cease-fire has been holding. it's been holding for over an hour. also before the cease-fire was declared and accepted the houthies have made some gains with regards to their battle against the presidential guards. so now i think also the political parties are trying to find a way out of this whole mess. now with regards to what is happening, it's pretty much quiet, however we've seen some increased security in the city, a number of check points that were never there over the last few days. and i think they are feeling the tense situation in sanaa could be replicated here.

>> let's explain how we got to the situation that we're seeing right now. there has been up rising, the former president ali abdullah saleh stepped down in 201237 and the new leader, abd rabbuh mansuh hadi led to the storming of the shia houthies in september. the power struggle continues and in november the u.n. security placed sanctions on the former president saleh and two houthi commanders. now we were just mentioning the former president ali i an beulah saleh. it is known that he supports the houthi movement, and now that

the cease-fire has been agreed, there are deep political differences. >> absolutely. with regards to the peace--with regards to the cease-fire, rather i think it's a debttive one. the situation remains pensive and it could change any minute. with regards to the influence that he has huge influence. he has influence over the tribes. remember he ruled yemen for 53 years, and he built this complicated network of loyalties within the tribes and also the military. that's why when he allied himself with the houthies, they become the biggest power and i don't think anyone in yemen can really stop them from doing whatever they want to do. >> not even the government it seems, up until this point. what is it that the houthies want?

>> again that's a big question. when you speak to the houthies and their political representatives, they tell you quite frankly that they want implementation of peace and partnership agreement. the irony, the critics have accused them of not sticking to the terms of that deal. under that deal signed last year and backed by the u.n. the houthies will get more political representations in government. they will have more say in key decisions by the president. in return they will have to withdraw and go back. so they're not sticking to the

terms of the whatever agreement they've signed. >> at this point is there a sign that the government going to be able to offer the houthies what they want? >> i think this is what everybody thinks is going to happen. the president can't do anything because the army is not loyal to him. he has a small portion of the army and the presidential guards defending him and the palace. extending his influence outside of that, i don't think president hadi has the ability to do anything. i think he'll bow in to the pressure and he will perhaps agree on answer terms set by the houthies. remember the houthies did impose different decisions on president hadi. they appointed key members within their movement. and without pressure, nobody

would give in to that. >> thank you very much for that update. reporting for us from aiden in yemen. we go to the editor in chief from the "yemen post." >> a deal has been reached by both sides. both sides--the deal has been agreed to by the negotiating committee. in the next hour we expect all to be halted. the houthies are sending reinforcement inside the capitol. the only option from the president is to reach a cease-fire. or by nightfall.

the president has asked for the chief of staff who was kidnapped by houthies two days ago, to be released or things could escalate. because did not do a successful job in unifying the military. many of the military refused to fight and remain neutral. >> iran confirmed that a general from the revolutionary guard was killed in an airstrike in syria. there are reports that an israeli helicopter fired missiles at a convoy in golan

heights. six hezbollah fighters also died in that attack in syria. their funerals will take place in southern beirut on monday. among those killed was a 26-year-old, son of a former hezbollah commander who was also killed in israeli attack seven years ago in syria. nicole johnston has more. >> reporter: hundreds of people possibly a couple of thousand have turned out for the funeral. he was a rising star inside hezbollah, someone who was being grouped for senior positions. he was also important because of who his father was. his father was a senior commander in the group. he was assassinated in syria in 2008. this attack inside syria is significant because it's the first time that the group has been targeted in this way. largely focused on weapon stores and web convoys. the real question here in

lebanon is how will hezbollah react, and when will they react. what sort of reaction will it take against israel for this? now most people say that they expect some kind of reaction, perhaps something that isn't large enough to cause a war. at the moment hezbollah is deeply mired in the war in syria fighting on the side of bashar al-assad. >> well, as we were reporting, a general in iran's revolutionary guard was also killed in that israeli strike. now the group was formed following the revolution in 1979 to counter the regular military and protect against a possible coup. now it has its own army, navy and air force. the revolutionary guard has around 150,000 fighters. it's paramilitary arm force has around 150,000 men. they often operate outside of

iran. let's cross over to iran and speak with a professor at the iran university, and is also a political analyst. thank you for joining us on al jazeera. >> thank you. >> looking at the israeli air strike that killed hezbollah fighters and irans and this general from the iranian revolutionary guard. a lot of analysts think for hezbollah it's not a matter if they will retaliate but a matter of when and at what time. for iran what will they do? >> well, i think the same is true with iran. iranians will not let the israeli regime get away with this. the troops were there to assess the situation with regards to the al nusra front an extreme

ist group supported by the israelis and the united states and the saudis and southern syria. just like isil is supported by the turks in the north. so the iranians have been working hard to beat back the extremists and this attack about the israelis was basically in support of the extremist groups which have had many set backs in recent weeks. we think ultimately the irans have a lot of patience. i think when the in time the israelis will be hit. >> you say they will retaliate. how so? >> well, i have no access to know that sort of information but it's obvious that when the israelis start targeting iranian citizens in a third country which iranian commanders, which

have been in syria at the invitation of the syrian government and fighting against extremist organizations that the united states and the europeans claim to be fighting, when israelis strike in defense of these extremist organizations there are conclusions to be made the fact that the iranians will. >> not the first commander general to be killed, iranian commander general the first one was killed in clashes in iraq. in fact, with isil. that happened a couple of weeks ago. let's look at the role that the revolutionary guards are playing in all of these conflicts in the region. we know that they are in syria. you also just told us that. they were there on some sort of training mission we understand. they're reportedly in yemen as well. backing the houthi fighters there.

we know that they are in iraq as well. in syria and iraq they are both at the invitation of the governments, after the fall of libya they used extremists to overthrow qaddafi and then they were affiliated with the free syrian army. since that time they allowed them in syria to use them to overthrow the syrian government. they created the monster and it's the irans and the syrian army and the lebanese who are pushing them back. the americans on the one hand are allowing their allies and turkey to continue to support

isil. americans carry out a few airstrikes here and there much less than the syrians and iraqis are carrying out and the americans support extremist organizations through the jordanian border, and there is clear evidence that the israelis are doing the same. while they claim to be fighting extremists, it is the iraqi who are fighting the he can treatmentist forces. >> what is the extent of the revolutionary guards and fighting of that's battles on the ground. >> yes, it has been open. people in iran know very well the commander of the quds brigade. favored among the iranians.

and irans are very much aware of the calamity that the revolutionary guards have prevented from happening. indeed if damascus had fallen, without a doubt beirut would have fallen, too. so i think that this fight it is ironic that the situation is framed in western media but the reality on the ground is almost the exact opposite. >> thank you very much for joining us from tehran. >> thank you. >> here on the al jazeera news hour we have much more to come. in cameroon people taken hostage by boko haram on sunday. and how raw sewage dumped in the desert becomes a welcoming oasis for flamingos.

>> and we're at the football pitch in the africa cup of nations. >> cameroon spokesmen say that 84 people have been taken hostage by boko haram fighters. they were captured in the north. there were many children among the hostages. cameroon shares a border with nigeria where boko haram is active. the army did manage to save some hostages by chasing the hid cappers, but could not pursue them once they reach the border going into nigeria.

>> let's get the latest. joining us on the phone line from niger. ahmed, what are the whereabouts or information on the remaining hostages? >> well, basically cameroon shares a very long border with nigeria, hundreds of kilometers, hundreds of kilometers. so basically what is expected now they have crossed over into nigeria.

indeed basically the suspicion is that they have been taken to particular locations. >> how much coordination can we expect between the cameroon as well as nigerian government? >> from the statement from minister of information it is clear that any--it crossed over

to the border. so basically it is becoming more and more in these countries. they coordinate against boko haram. >> ahmed, thank you very much. giving us an update from niger. in the democratic republic of congo police fired tear gas to disperse hundreds of protesters in the capitol. opposition party members are protesting against a law that will hold elections in 2016. turkey's president is chairing his first cabinet meeting. the turkish constitution says that the president has a right to chair cabinet meetings but his two predecessors didn't. iran's oil minister has expressed hope that opec will

begin cutting production. the fall has hurt the country already battered by sanctions. oil prices have dropped by half since last year as production output across the world. crude fell below $50 a barrel on monday. this is what the oil minister had to say. >> it is necessary for opec and non-opec countries to cooperate to restore balance to the oil market. the oil prices should be rational so future investments will be economical for investors. >> two civilians have been killed and a number of others injured in donetsk. one person died when shells fell on a market in the early hours of the morning. the other person was killed when a park was hit. fighting has intensified in donetsk when both the army and pro russian rebels claim to be in control of the symbolically

important airport. more than 700 people have been killed in ukraine's east since april. no. russia's chechnya hundreds of people rallied against the depiction of prophet muhammad in the magazine charlie hebdo. peter sharp has the latest from moscow. >> this was without doubt one of the biggest demonstrations in grozny. hundreds of thousands of men and women taking to the streets to protest against the public charliepublication charlie

hebdo's characterization of prophet muhammad. it was an opportunity for the president to remind the kremlin that he enjoys widespread support not just in chechnya but neighboring rubles where tens of thousands of people responded. there was no aggression here. posters read "keep your hands off our prophet." they said they would never allow the prophet to be insulted, and said they're ready to die for this. he said european journalists are insulting the feelings and believers in the guise of free speech western countries are only interested in provocation. the russian government only too aware of the depth of feeling against the charlie hebdo public was quick to distance itself from the je suis charlie movement following the paris killings and reiterated his

full support on the publication of religious caricatures. the turnout in grozny appears how widespread is the support for that move. peter sharp al jazeera, moscow. >> pope francis is flying home to the vatican after his trip to the philippines. thousands arrived at the airport in manila to say goodbye. he spoke against corruption saying it is robbing people of a dignified life. here still to come on the program, the european union's foreign policy alliance speak of

anti-terror alliance. and coming up, relief for rafa as he races through the first round of the australian open. >> tomorrow. from race relations to foreign policies, terrorism and the economy. >> if this congress wants to help, work with me. >> ali velshi kicks off our special state of the union coverage at 7:00. >> we'll take an in-depth look at our nation's financial future. >> then john seigenthaler breaks down the issues. >> we need to know what's going on in our backyard. >> plus, objective analysis and live reports from across the nation and reaction from around the world. the state of the union address. special coverage begins tomorrow at 7:00 eastern. right here on al jazeera america.

>> houthi rebels and soldiers say a cease-fire is holding in yemen's capitol. it follows hours after nine people were confirmed dead. an israeli strike in syria. funerals had been held for six hezbollah fighters who also died in the attack near the israeli occupied golan heights. cameroon's defense ministry said that the army has rescued 24 of 80 people taken hostage by boko haram fighters.

there were many children among the hostages. let's get more on yemen. joining us here in the studio, and we've been asking a lot of people we've been speaking to whether the cease-fire is going to stick. let me ask you that as well. and if so, if there was any potential for it to stick how? how will that be possible? >> well. >> it has political stability in yemen. i don't think this will hold for the the following reasons. the president has appointed a top political adviser the man a few days ago said that there are

huge differences and i don't see them coming together in the future to solve some of these problems. it's not just about minor political issues. it's about who is going to rule in the future, and the houthies have made it clear they want to be the ones to rule yemen. >> more specifically, what is it that the houthies want? >> the official narrative of the houthies they want bigger representation and bigger say in the running of the government. it stretches to the north afterwards therefore the one who represent the shia in yemen they want to have a bigger say. how to translate that into reality, they want to be the

ones in the near future. there is also a majority. if you play into that rhetoric, yemen will disintegrate. this is a problem that we face. the houthies want to have a bigger say and the sunnies are very skeptical of the houthis. >> is there a scenario where we'll see more action from the international community now that we've seen the latest developments in yemen with more action from regional leaders something along the lines of what is going on in libya, for example? >> the houthis know very well by unintentionals themselves in politics they'll have to pay for the running cost. iran, the main sponsor, is having financial problems.

it has been dispensing millions of dollars. it's the one that backs the most powerful military and tribal leaders. the problem is how can you get the americans and the iranians together to work out a deal. to see yemen collapse or to see the houthis take over as the houthis are proxy for the irans in the region. >> i asked about a reported iranian involvement in yemen. he categorically denied that. you've been in yemen for a very long time. you cover it expensively. what do you know about that

reported involvement for sure? >> well, the government has said on many occasions that it is sure that the irans are providing the houthies with substantial military and financial support. they say that it was coming from iran for the houthies. it was dismissed by both the houthis and the irans iranians. the iranians have sent in a new ambassador to work out a political settlement where the houthies play a political role in the future. sunnies are extremely cautious and and skeptical and they've made it quite clear. they say they will seize the oil

installations and they will breakaway from the north. it's a very delicate situation. >> hashem, thank you very much. joining us here in studio. >> security sources say a divorce was planted inside of a military vehicle where soldiers were transferred to a military hospital. al jazeera continues to demand the release of our three colleague who is have been imprisoned in egypt for 387 days. mohamed fahmy, bader mohammed, and peter greste were sentenced for helping the outlawed muslim brotherhood, charges they deny. the appeals court has ordered a retrial.

an anti-terror alliance fed frederica looked at a meeting in brussels who are discussing how to improve security after recent attacks in france. the top of that agenda is intelligence sharing. they talked about how information could be shared to prevent potential attacks. the conflict in ukraine and whether sanctions against russia needs to be changed. crossing over to brussels joining us from there. we're talking about what is going to be discussed. what is going to be decided? >> well, during the meetings, due to end shortly but they're coming up with ideas to put forward to european union summit in february around three and a half weeks from now.

also the secretary general of the arab league, he has been meeting and she's been stressing greater cooperation is needed with the muslim and arab world. another issue of jihadis going in and fighting in iraq and syria and then coming back into europe is turkey. they're talking with the april league trying to share as you were hinting at, the detail of passengers, and at the same time before the meeting got under way, a lot of ministers were stressing that the ultimate solution really lies in stopping the conflict, and trying to bring in the negotiated end of the war in syria to stop the conflict in iraq as well. the e.u.'s anti-terrorism coordinator said that people

coming back from the so-called jihadi activists should not be jailed unless they have blood on their hands. otherwise, they should be butt in disengagement programs. in other words the governments in the european union trying to deradicalize them in some way. >> thank you for that update. in argentina a prosecutor has been found dead. he was found in his argument apartment from a gunshot wound. he was due to testify on monday. all signs point to suicide. 80 people were killed in the 1994 bombing that happened in buenos aires. andrew simmons joins us from buenos aires where they've been following all the latest developments of the case. andrew? >> well, this is quite a shock. a shock across the board in all

political parties and in all areas. implicating the president herself saying that christina kitchener had deliberately tried to pervert the course of justice, trying to dissupport thedistort the process of law after the bombing nearly 21 years ago. now also implicated was a senior foreign minister. he was due later on monday to give evidence to a congressional hearing. of course, his body was found late on monday night. now the security say that there are suggestions this could be suicide. it's a classic situation with a handgun nearby and a spent shell case, but many are raising

questions already in this case 37 among them is diego gala, who is with us now. he is an opposition member and former ambassador for argentina. what is your reaction at this news? >> we're all all argentinians are extremely shocked that this has happened. it is hard to believe that we're facing a suicide case. he was a committed young man. >> what do you say the allegations, presidency, and prominent people within government that this was really a political when there was a row

amongst the people, the agents, that was put forward as throwing functional dirt at the government? >> no, i don't think so. there was an internal struggle of service in argentina. >> thank you very much for your thoughts there. we're now expecting an autopsy

on the body. meanwhile, politicians debate the implications to hear what the government and indeed, the security ministry and the police discover. >> thank you. reporting from buenos aires. still to come, how raw sewage, which is dumped in the desert has become oasis for some birds. and the seattle seahawks are september to their second straight super bowl.

>> hello again. time for all the sports news on the al jazeera news hour. >> later south africa will play algeria. it's happening in equatorial guinea who are hosting the international games for the first time. >> designed with the hope of one day welcoming the pope. what the president's hometown was less prepared for was the sudden arrival of the africa cup of nations when morocco drops out in november, of they had just two months to turn its local pitch into a host venue. this turf was flown in from

spain a few weeks ago a and and the whole playing service was relayed to bring it up to international standards. these blades of grass will be home to the tournament located on the border with a population of no more than 8,000 people, the type of football normally on show is not always at the highest standard but that is all about to change. >> we wish our international team good luck. >> 100% great. now equatorial guinea will just have to win. >> while the locals are happy not all the locals have been enthusiastic. some have been criminal of accommodation and complaints about the training facilities. >> as a player, i've known that

we have played a lot of games in africa. sometimes we have to change the mentality and prospective. not everything is going to be as perfect in europe in terms of facilities. >> in 2008, they were guarding chelsea to the champions league final. now he's negotiating himself through this unique coupe of nations. >> i cannot say that it is perfect, but they did well. >> organizers are hoping that star performances on the pitch are not complains about the grass can be the laster memories of this tournament. >> let's go live and our correspondent. who in this group will have the biggest in fact, on this tournament?

>> well, whoever comes out of this group, you have to think will have a chance of winning this cup of nations. they are the tournament favorite. ghana is about to kick off their tournament. there is a lot of interest around their nags president. last year's world cup is overshadowed by pictures of

saying that the team has a lot to do to. >> as you see the world cup host africa is also in the group. what can we expect from them? >> well, they qualify for a tournament, which is a big step forward. they failed to qualify before 2013, but they were really impressive in qualifying this time around, unbeaten in their group. a group that included reigning african champions nigeriaen.

a lot is hoped that they can continue here in equatorial guinea. >> we'll leave it there. the asian cups because they finish the group of top c they'll likely avoid a meeting against defending champions japan. rafael nadal has cruised through the australian open playing his eighth competitive match in eight months. a huge confidence boost for the spaniard who was sidelined because of injury. andy murray

has made a strong start to his campaign. the brit has never won an australian title recovering from 4-1 down. and the women's draw, maria sharapova will close out the match and takes on alexandra pinova in round two.

reigning champions seattle seahawks will face the new england patriots in the super bowl. they beat the green bay packers in overtime to. they'll play the patriots who thrashed the indianapolis colts. >> to be in that situation and go back to arizona and play in the super bowl, and play in back-to-back years when everyone thought we were out when we were 3-3. when everybody thought we were out at 6-4. you trust your experience and you trust the guys around you. >> that's all your sport for now. >> the summit to address water shortages and energy challenges around the world are under way in abu dhabi. we have more from the u.a.e.

>> reporter: this summit is being held in one of the highest consumption rates in the world. and take the gulf state of qatar where they say there is only enough emergency water supply to last two days. you wouldn't think that water was in short supply given the amount that is used to make things grow where nothing should. here is the primary source, the arabian gulf. water is sucked in every day by desalination plants. this is about as close as you can get to a desalination plants. it speaks volumes about how crucial these installations are to this region. without them there would be no drinking water the taps would run dry and life in the gulf just could not exist in the way that it does.

in this parched air rid land you don't expect this. the ancient aquifer is almost depleted due to over extraction across the country. this can be a big problem if we don't use the available water in a reasonable way. >> now they're piloting a soil free hydroponic to encourage the region's farmers to adopt similar systems. believe it or not this is another source of water. raw sewage. it comes from a workers camp outside of doha where always water is recycled utilizeing

emphasis-designed tape. >> if you look at it under a microscope you see millions of micro perforations. this is what happens in nature, a perfect environment in our concrete tanks or containers. >> it leaves clearwater that runs to an adjacent farm giving life to new growth. on a larger scale more and more sewage treatment plants are being built. recycling water that can be used for irrigation. but there is a long way to go. these trucks are dumping raw sewage in holding lakes where it lies untreated evaporating into a hot desert air. the remarkable thing is that nature takes its course. the waste water becomes clean enough for a flock of flamingos to take up residence. water scarcity is the number run

risk when it comes to global security. it's all about innovation and sharing ideas. this is the innovation center talking about quality to improve its water retention. here is new technology for new desalination plants that will reduce the carbon footprint. this is taking water out of the air that we breathe. 500 liters a day. here is small water drinking unit that explains how it works. >> this is for your home or office. this has a couple of bars of water, which we started with today. people have been drinking all day long. it's at the same level because it's making water while we're talking. this shows you that we're condensing. this is pure water from the air. no heavy metals. no fluoride. no chlorine. taste. of course this system is scalable. >> that's pretty good.

>> this systems makes 12 to 15 liters a day. we have new patented technology done two weeks ago where we're going to scale up to millions of gallons a day. >> at that price with no environmental impact, i think it is a good solution for many companies. >> there you go. it's not just about taking water out of the air it's also taking water out of oil and gas. desalination plants may be here to stay for the time being but the future could look very different. >> for our viewers in the united states, it's back here for other regular programming. for the rest of our viewers i'll be back in just a moment.

the u.s. facing new terror threats just a week after the paris attacks. investigative journalist jeremy scai hill joins us. forced into chemo - the legal and medical ethics in the case of a 17-year-old girl who refused cancer. and glen close's family struggles with mental illness. i'm antonio mora, welcome to "consider this". those stories and more ahead. >> the fbi revealed a plot by a capital. >>