announcer: this is al jazeera. hello from al jazeera's headquarters in doha this is the newshour. coming up in the next 60 minutes, i.s.i.l. releases a new recording. new recording. if the government doesn't release the two prisoners on death roll. u.n. calls for maximum restraint. this hour new details about the moments leading up to the

airasia flight 8501 and we look at a massive project that will map the entire planet every three days. we begin with the latest on the fate of two i.s.i.l. hostages. the group released a new audio recording. the message has not been verified but i.s.i.l. wants jordan to release an iraqi woman on death row. if not released, a jordanian pilot will be killed who was captured last december when his plane went down. jordan is working with japan to secure the release of japanese journalist kenji goto jogo also being healed. -- held. wayne simmonds tell us about the latest audio message from

i.s.i.l. with new demands. >> well this going to japanese and jordanian officials. it is believed to be a genuine recording, and it states that in fact there's one part in which the japanese journalist says per for me. i've only been held for a few months she for years. referring to the woman who intended to bomb. she was on death row. king abdullah in a difficult decision decided to offer her release in exchange for the pilot, 26-year-old lieutenant. it caused difficulties in this

country. support for the government is turning away from it. >> i imagine pressure not just within but from those seeking the released hostage. how has the handling of the crisis been. >> there's a veteran journalist. suicide bomber and military pilot with lives at stake. japan vying for its citizens and i.s.i.l. standing to make more capital in the prop a gander stake, suggesting there's more value alive than dead.

what we found now is there's less information coming from the japanese and the jordanians and, indeed from the family of kasabeh himself. there's tension about the latest deadline which has seen here on thursday and the suggestion being that there'll be an exchange on the turkish boarder with them. what we are finding is a suggestion. the last suggestion of the government is that the female was in gaol. if she has to go all the way for the exchange it may work out. it's hard to see it happening. what is probably happening is jordanians want proof that the pilot is alive. the deputy foreign minister from

japan - could the japanese and theored annians -- the jordanians reach a deal. it seems unlikely there's tension in every essential. >> complicated negotiations. andrew sim opposed live for us. -- simmonds live for us. al jazeera has gained access to the syrian border town of kobane the center of a battle between kurdish forces and i.s.i.l. the town has been devastated. kurdish forces face a task of finding and clearing exploded mines. we have this report. four months of battles left kobane in ruins. it was fierce fighting. house by house. here in the north of the town.

there's not one building that was not destroyed. the fighters looked tired. >> translation: it was difficult at the beginning. the air strikes have helped us but the strikes wouldn't have been enough. our presence was kee. -- was key. apart from the fighters many lived here. civilians will not return here. this for example, is what is left of the hospital but the main priority for the kurdish forces is what may be left behind. >> they'll have to comb the town that lay rusting around. there's a sense of victory. >> monday the kurdish people's

protection unit claimed victory. officials are cautious about the victory. the fighting is around kobane. >> it hasn't finished yet. still a threat by the terrorists. they would try to bombshell. we still have more than we had. now the second stage. >> it's a symbolic blow. the black flag replaced by the kurdish colours, it takes many more until the threat of i.s.i.l. is gone let's get the latest from the israel lebanon border.

the u.n. called for restraint. two israeli soldiers were killed in an exchange of fire between israel and hezbollah. we go to the blue line between both. in the occupied golan heights. let's speak to nicole. tell us about where you are, and what the situation is like today? >> it's relatively calm. you can see this is as close as you get to it. now, we are zoming into a mountain top. and above it the israeli border post. information that we are receiving is that just below there is where hezbollah carried out the attack.

schools have reopened. we had investigators arrive from the u.n. and the lebanese army for the spanish peacekeeper killed. they are meeting at the unifield post. half a kilometre from here. local politics in beirut. emphasising that the attack took place in the occupied farms, and stressing that this area is exempt from the united nations resolution, which came about between israel and hezbollah. our local politicians were here he said that hezbollah was well within its rite to carry out an attack. here in lebanon, there's a large rally of hezbollah. southern beirut on friday.

it would be the first time. it is a very successful event against israel. >> thank you nicole johnson. let's get the view from the other side from the occupied gallon heights. the prime minister binyamin netanyahu. they would pay for the troops. what is the situationlike. >> we heard recently that israel received a message from hezbollah saying they are backing away from further violence and that this message was received from lebanon because there were lines of coordination between lebanon and israel through the united

nations peacekeeping station on the border. and that the message from hezbollah was the attack was considered an adequate response and retaliation to the attack. which was blamed on israel and killed a number of inform tifs. here the situation along the border was high. tensions were high. hearing from the army that the increased troops here in the area but they are not giving exact numbers. they are helping people to go about the daily routines. some of the drilling and digging activities taking place on wednesday, starting in search for possible hezbollah are resuming thursday after the attack. halted due to the attacks. the situation is calm at this point, and the persistent

analysis is that it is not willing to escalate. as you know, the israelis recently came out. for 54 games, and too many casualties and because there were protesters end of march. >> thank you for that. in the occupied golan heights more ahead on the al jazeera newshour. castro warns washington not to mess. we go to istanbul on how turkey's building boom is taking its toll on workers' safety in sport - serena williams given a scare in the semifinals by madison keys.

investigators looking into the crash of the airasia saying the plane was out of control when it went down. indonesia's national transport committee says the flight data recorder provided a clear picture of what happened. investigators say the plane was cruising at a stable altitude before it crashed into the seed. all 162 people on board were killed. we follow developments. one month after the airasia crash, a preliminary report has been sent to seven countries, there's no conclusions in the report no conclusions about human error or technical error or what is the cause of the crash. what we know is the co-pilot was flying the plane during the crash, and the plane was flying from surabaya to singapore.

the pilot asked o increase altitude because he tried to avoid clouds. what happened is the plane climbed steep, and there was a stall. the plane couldn't carry higher and it goes down. that is what came from the data that they had found on the flight data recorder and the cockpit before the plane went down. >> basically it took around 3 minutes for the process to happen. which was very very scary minutes for the 100 or so people on board. then the data basically stopped from the two recorders just before the plane hit the water. that is all that the investigators released so far from the accident details about how two hostages died in a gun attack in the cafe in the australian city of sydney. a lawyer told an inquest that

one person was killed by fire from police bullets, the other was killed point-blank by the gunman. andrew thomas has the details. [ gunfire ] >> reporter: it was a dramatic end to a siege lasting more than 16 hours. in a few minutes, two people a hostage taker were dead. thursday a report into how and why they died. >> i want to assure everyone we'll do all within our power to undertake a comprehensive investigation that is rigorous independent and searching. it will strive to establish what happened and whether it could have been ended more effectively. >> reporter: the siege began midmorning on december 15th. a gun was given on customers in sydney. police surrounded the coffee shop. part of the city center went into lock down. >> rarely have such horrifying

events unfolded publicly. >> reporter: as the first flowers were laid police were beginning their investigations. officers have been working on it ever since. the coroner will question them. the police and hostages who survived, but on its opening day the coroner was unable to confirm how he was died. tory johnson was killed by the gunman made to kneel and shot in the head. mon as was hit 13 times and decide. but a hostage, katrina dawson was hit. >> ms dawson was shot by bullet or bullets that ricochetted from hard surfaces into her body. i'll not detail the damage down other than it say a fragment struck a major bloods vessel she loft consciousness and

decide shortly afterwards. >> today the cafe where the siege took place has been boarded up. flowers has been cleared away. the memories are here. the events will be looked at. every fragment of every bullet will be accounted for. the inquest will be broad. man monas was a criminal. why was he free on bail? what was the role of the media and social media through the siege? and how should the event here be categorized. was it terrorism? it's been four weeks since egypt's court ordered a retile for three al jazeera journalists who have been in prison for 397 days. the court hasn't written a full judgment or set a trial. peter greste, mohamed fadel fahmy and baher mohamed were falsely accused of working withes outlawed muslim

brotherhood. egyptian president abdul fatah al-sisi said he would like to see the case resolved. >> the former australian ambassador to egypt talks about why the case drags on for this long. >> the egyptian judiciary will struggle to work out where it goes from here. the court of appeal rendered the initial case so quickly and comprehensively that there's probably work to be done within the judicial system. firstly to write up that outcome in ways that don't cause further harassment to the judiciary, and secondly to decide what approach to take from here. they'll probably come up with a fresh set of charges of what less than those under which peter greste and his colleagues

charged. the approach will be to respect the independence of the judiciary, and there'll be reluctance to make a decision for that judiciary. until there is actually a political advantage to be gained by such intervention i think the line of least costs will remain that of using the judicial pros to its conclusion. -- process to its conclusion. ties between u.s. and cuba have hit the focus. latin american leaders. the president warned. we have this report. >> reporter: he hadn't spokenen publicly when the agreement was announced. many predicted the cold war

between both countries was drawing to an end. after six weeks of silence, raul castro had little to say to the contrary. >> in this year it is a first step towards normalized relations they are impossible while the blockade resists. until radio and television is seized and the people receive compensation for the human and economic damage they faced. addressing the latin american and cuban relations castro made clear that the country would not alter the one-state system. and went further saying the united states changed its

message but not the objective, to overthrow his communist government. >> translation: everything indicates that the objective is to forment an opposition using political and communication methods. >> here castro received support of his peers, who are urging president obama to sues executive powers to weaken the embargo against cuba. not even president obama's plea to the republican controlled congress to lift the embargo softened hei's position. the -- president castro's position. he is playing hard ball where for the first time in half a century, united states and cuba will sit at the same table. between now and then he's expecting more concessions at the white house, without

offering anything in exchange. this would be unethical. >> bodies of 40 of the 44 filipino police men killed by rebels in the south have arrived in the philippines capital manila. they were received by the government and security officials at the air base much the officers will be given state honours on friday in a ceremony led by the president, after dying in a botched raid to capture key members of the group thousands of turkish medal workers are on site to protest low wages. of particular concern, workers' rights groups say construction sites and mines are the most dangerous. the government is trying to improve safety. we have this report. >> reporter: turkey's economic and construction boom comes with a human price.

at least 1,880 people killed in workplace accidents last year. that is according to turkey's workers assembly. turkey's unions are week and demand for jobs are high. >> if a worker is asked to go on unsafe scaffolding he can refuse. he gets on it otherwise he loses his job. the law of the jungle. rules of the construction site. 301 men were killed in turkey's worst industryial accident at a mine. in september 10th were killed when there was an accident on a building site. these and others put pressure on the government to act. >> we need to prick the conscience of those that have been widowed and orphaned. we have to hit them where their

businesses will be hurt. and make them realise if they don't comply accident will destroy their company's reputation. enforcement is weak. the government introduced legislation with gaol time. there are financial bonuses for those that improve work place safety that's an important incentive if you consider in jp so far there has been grk in jan, so far there has been more than 70 work place deaths. let's get the latest on the weather, looking add south america. from one extreme to the other. >> it's a big enough continent. we can do floods and droughts - so we will. we will start in peru. to the north, it's one river. this has been going on for a

couple of weeks. it's seasonal but not practical. the other side has been talking about draught between rio and sao paulo, where you see a line of clouds. it has not been enough to do much good. as an example, they are gearing up to two years for the olympics. it's below where it should be. it's a lagoon. it too, is suffering the lack of water in this part of brazil in the south-east. this is the forecast in the nest 24 hours. this area has been hotter that usual we have had a heatwave. it's in the right place, it's

raining by day. more by day than night. we should be replenishing the reservoirs reservoirs. reports are that it's still no good. no good for those that want the rain now. >> thank you a new satellite to measure soil moisture and unprecedented detail. a 6 meter wide antenna, a space lasso, will be used. science and technology editor ty bazley explains. >> water is life and on planet earth its scarcity affecting almost all living things. our planet's water system is a mystery to scientists.

n.a.s.a. is launching a satellite to measure the moisture in the soil giving scientists a detailed understanding of the role water plays. >> it's required in applications like agriculture, watershed management. application like health drought and land slide, flooding and all kinds. that requires a high resolution from 1 to 10 kilometre. >> the satellite deploys a 6 meter wide mesh antenna. it rotates every four seconds, 680km above the earth's surface using raddy and microwave stants. >> the technology we are using allows us to observe the surface of the earth regardless of any kind of weather, or day or night conditions. that is unique.

with optical censors, there's trouble when there's clouds. >> reporter: data can be used to create global moisture maps. with the 3- years mission, it can help with water for agriculture and provide life-saving information during emergencies like drugsfloods or droughts stay with us - after the break they fled their homes to find safety. now these nigerians are not able to vote in the elections next month. and why china's dairy farmers are finding greener pastures. and in sport. a lot to be drawn to decide the last quarterfinalist in of the african cup of nations. stay with us we'll be back after the

welcome back you are watching al jazeera live from doha. a reminder from the top stories. islamic state of iraq and levant released an audio recording which appears to put a deadline in place for the killing of a jordanian pilot the united nations called for minimum restraint before soldiers and a peacekeeper were killed between an exchange of fire of israel and hezbollah.

binyamin netanyahu warned the lebanese group that it will pay the full price for the death of troops investigators looking into the crash of airasia 8501 say the co-pilot was at the controls when it went down. indonesia's national transport safety bureau said it was at a safe altitude. all 162 on board were killed. the president and former deputy are meeting on the sidelines of an african union summit in the eth i don't knowian capital due to get under way on friday. let's take a look at how we got to this point.

if began in 2014 when there was a coup. leading to fighting between ethnic tribes. the first deal signed in january. it was broken. violence escalated in april when supporters took civilians and killed them. the second ceasefire was signed in may, but that too, ended in july. the u.n. called the food crisis in south sudan the worst in the world. the third ceasefire was signed in november. that was broken. last week both signed a deal in tanzania. for more on this let's speak to douglas johnson, the former international member and specialist. he joined us from southern

india. so there has been many effort to broker peace in the last few months between riek machar and the former president. do you think efforts will succeed? >> there has been small steps. some of feeling is that it's been cautious optimism. right now the two leaders are supposed to be talking about the formation of the government but they are really talking about their own positions within it. they are supposed to be talking about a ceasefire. right now. they may not put too much on internal problems and maybe they are not focussing on the

country as a whole. the conflict has gone beyond the spln in the way the fighting has gone out of control. >> riek machar seems to be in a weaker position militarily. why is he unwilling to compromise. there's a great deal of pressure on both sides to accept the power-sharing deal. why is he not ready to accept it. >> i can't delve into his mind or accurate reason. i think there is understandable reluctance to go into another power-sharing agreement. the two did not get along before. what happened in december rather

disturbing and traumatic. he may not feel that there's enough security to guarantee his own security and that of his group. the position of the s.p.l.a. will be weakened. this is what he did in the 1990s, kept on in opposition past the time. >> what do you make of the fact that there are multiple processes right now to bring these two men together to sign a permanent ceasefire. forcing mediation in the union. we have the chinese who got involved. the multiple processes. is it effective or do you think it is hindering?

well both sides were made aware of strong pressure from the region from the au. a direct involvement concern for south sudan. in a vacuum they know there's pressure on them. i think i've been cut off. >> we'll leave it there. thank you for your insight. joining us there from oxford in the u.k. stay with us. amnesty international says mig's military repeatedly warned of impending boko haram attacks in the north-east. thousands fled a town since the armed group was reportedly

moving there. they said that the military had advance warning of boko haram attacks. the secretary-general of amnesty international says that the nigerian government is not going enough to protect. >> if you look at the underlying problem, long-term exclusion causing tension in the north-east. immediately, i think it is the failure of the nigerian government to protect civilians from the issue, so there's massive corruption no action taken for those not moving. there's no question of people in the front line. they are struggling. huge amount of money spent. leadership - that's the biggest

issue, no political issue on the ground. >> tens of thousands won't be able to vote in the presidential election next month. the electoral commission says it can't register people living in camps. thousands are taking shelter from where we have this report. >> reporter: this man has lost his vote in the nigeria presidential and parliamentary elections next month. that's because he fled when boko haram attacked his village in borno state and burnt his house. he and his family have been living in jos ever since. >> translation: we didn't take anything along with us. everything was burnt. we lost everything. i am not happy. as a citizen i lost my place of

abode. now i don't have a voter's card. everything is gone. if they can help us to vote they should. >> there are tens of thousands of displaced people facing the same situation as joshua. the law says voters can only vote at the poling station where they are registered. >> people that were displaced were given the chance to register in other states. that deadline was last year. anyone displaced this year will not get a chance. the national electoral commission said only a change in the law could make it possible for people to vote. >> there's no way we can take the papers where they are. how do you take the ballot papers to those people. there is the implication moving to the areas.

how do we - how do we develop it. how do we know the presiding officer would consent to that. >> joshua and others felt something should have been done. boko haram has been displacing people for years. it's unlikely the accesses are less than three weeks away. joshua and others are certain. >> in mexico the parents of 43 students missing reject the attorney-general saying the children were dead. it deepened a mistrust of the government and police. >> 2013 an amateur video captures mexico city's police beating a man. it's not an isolated case.

another thing seen from western mexico. local police kidnap a man later found dead. corruption and complicity in a country where police often worked for drug gangs. convictions are rare and evidence is often tainted. security expert say over the years the government clearly lost trust. >> they don't trust them for lying, for the lack of clarity because in some cases they fabricated facts for innocent people. >> reporter: sometimes the courts try to reverse injustices. in 2005 police re-enacted for a frenchwoman. she was convicted and send to prison as an accomplice to a kidnapping. the supreme court overturned the ruling saying the original evidence was tainted. she is suing the former

president and others of $36 million. >> many mexicans did not see the case. it added to the conviction that here the rich powerful and connected receive preferential treatment while mexicans live under corrupt authorities. in the case of 43 students many believe the government was responsible. >> local police killed and burnt the students. only the remains of one student could be identified. parent believe federal police and the army had a role in the attack. >>translation: the current investigation file cannot be closed. there's no scientific certainty,

clearly stating that the student were killed in kokula. mistrust runs deep in mexico regardless of what authorities tell them and likely will be believed. a friend of argentinian prosecutor says he lent him a gun because he did not trust the police protecting him. he was found shot dead a day before he was due to testify into a bombing of a jewish center. thousands gathered outside the funeral home in the argentine capital, turning the entrance. >> a makeshift shrine. he died in mysterious circumstances. prosecutors are still trying to determine if he committed suicide. >> now 100,000 dairy farmers are leaving the industry every year.

the exodus was blamed on the slump in dairy prices. adrian brown visited one of the hardest hit areas. >> reporter: this is a woman with a lot on her mind. encouraged by a thirst for milk she decided to expand her dairy farm borrowing more than $300,000. 12 months on there has been a turn around in her fortune, caused by a slump in dairy prices. >> translation: no one drinks milk. we can't sell it because the dairy farms have stopped buying it. >> for show the priority is reducing the cost like high quality feed. she was forced to sell some

cows. >> each cow is like a chilled. when one is sentenced -- is like a child. when one is sent my heart is broken. i don't want to talk about it i'm so sad. >> she has one customer. a local garden center which buys at a discounted rate at $0.05 a litre. it's mixed with water for the plants a common irrigation technique. >> translation: now the price of milk is almost the same as water. it's so cheap. >> it has been blamed on a number of other factors. overproduction by inexperienced farmers, rushing into one of the world's fastest growing diary markets. >> the global milk glut is part of the problems. this is an industry full of bad

practices. it only had it said to blame. seven years ago six infants died 30 fell ill after drinking formula made with contaminated milk. leading to a surge in imported powder. it is now cheaper than locally produced milk. farms like this are hardest hit by the downturn. >> translation: if the government can help us, i think we can pass the difficult period. without government help the farm is unlikely to survive. in the next part of our dairy series we talk from the yuck where milk is cheaper than water and we visit some farmers so see what it means for them.

>> next on the newshour. all the sports as australia perhaps for the final of the asian cup. and we look back at the country with the football past. back in a

welcome back. china is to build a 3,000km high speed rail lane to connect the country to south-east asia according to the chinese railway corporation it will be constructed in four stages from

china to the capital of loose. then the route will continue to bangkok where it will be split, heading to china and northern provinces. the bangkok line carries to kuala lumpur ending in singapore. even though thailand's system needs an upgrade many ask who will benefit. the railway industry is one of asia's oldest and is showing its age. it's received little funding and no major investment in half a century. >> translation: it's so old. when the train moves, i'm afraid i'll fall off. >> reporter: with a speed of 50 k/hr all the trains run late at a host. compare it to the superfleet. in a couple of decades, the

country transformed the rail system to the technologically advanced in the world. it's offering to do the same for south-east asia's creaking railwayed. the government agreed to start construction in thailand by the end of the year. >> it is expected to cost 12 billion. beijing and bangkok have yet to work out how it was financed. the plan was to lay new tracks. and the 106 shiny trains will be added to the fleet. >> some question china's motives. trains and tracks are not compatible with the real network. it means thailand will have two rail systems, with one to connect to china. >> logistics and transport believe the train network and the route were designed to fit

china. >> it makes assistance for them to have their system to be put in the neighbouring countries. it was a different system. that will enable connectivity and allow china access to the seed and resources. for the grandmother taking the train, seeing her family an attempt to shorten the journey was welcome. >> translation: sometimes it breaks down and we have to change trains and it takes hours. we need a new system. >> people have to rely on the trains. the rail roots have been designed with trade in mind rather than passengers time for sport with farah. >> thank you so much. serena williams has advanced to her sixth australian open final where she'll face number two

seed maria sharapova, the world number one overcoming madison keys in the semifinals. she was pushed in the first set by the big-serving teen. williams going for her 19th grand slam title dominated the 7th closing 7-6 6-2. the american won all five of her previous australian open finals. maria sharapova had an easier time against russian ekaterina makarova. the world number two beat the number 10 seed 6-3, 6-2. >> this will be the fourth time williams and maria sharapova will face each other in a grand slam final. >> i don't think it's me and maria. i'm excited. i love playing her. i look forward to it. i didn't expect to get to the final when i first got here.

i'm happy to be here. yes, i'm happy, like i said to get past the quarterfinals of a slam. andy murray is facing 7th seed tomas berdych in the first men's semifinal. murray lost the first, storming back to take the second 6-0. >> drawing of lots to decide whether mali will secure the last spot in the african cup of nations. an identical record drawing 1-1 for games. andrei richardson has more. >> the group stage action is not quite over in the ecuadorian gin yes match, on the pitch behind me ivory coast bad cameroon to secure a -- beat cameroon to secure their face.

and a 1-1 draw in the last match. it was complicated, because two finished with identical records. a drawing of lots decides who progresses into the knockout rounds. this is how to takes place. the event will be hosted at 4:00p.m. local time. 15 g.m. t. the two names will be placed at the federation of african football official. they'd draw a name out. at that time they join the ivory coast. a nervous few hours ahead for mali and guinea. >> the quarterfinal line-up decided. congo meat the democratic republic of congo followed by equatorial guinea and tunisia. gania gania will play and the ivory

coast. >> saturday we play south korea. in its eagerness to broaden appeal in australian football is australian football forgetting its history? this report from sydney. >> reporter: this is the place that the football federation show the world, reflecting a multicultural image, showing it's part of the ain football group. australia joins the asian football group as early as 2000. history goes back further and has roots with the european immigrants that settled in the early part of the 20th century. many of those immigrants started football clubs, like sydney united. 1958, croatian immigrants, sydney united was a number of football clubs that had links.

he says the club played a vital role. >> it was an important club. football was a number one game that local croatians played. it was attached to where they came from. back in croatia, it was number one. since then it became a community hot spot. >> by the 1980s, crowd violence started. in "85 they tarnished the sport. there was a perception that there were greeks and macedonians fighting. croatians and serbs. at the end of the day football was in danger of violence.

games like this got football australia to get rid of ethnic clubs as the old clubs done away with and relaunched with sydney forced to play in the lower teams. the migrants children and grandchildren ran clubs. there is is natural process of assimilation assimilation. the shame is we live in a multicultural society, and it would be good to deal with sydney contrary asia rather than sydney united. the fear is that the older clubs are left behind. >> that's all the support for now. >> thank you and that's it from me and the newshour team. thank you for watching.

david foster is with you next. i hope you stay with us. the science behind keeping us safe on the road >> oh... >> oh my god... >> the driving force behind these new innovations >> i did not see that one coming >> techknow's team of experts show you how the miracles of science... >> this is my selfie... what can you tell me about my future? >> can effect and surprise us... >> sharks like affection >> techknow... where technology meets humanity... only on al jazeera america

negotiations continue to negotiate the release of a jordanian pilot after i.s.i.s. releases a message threatening to kill him. >> also coming up the u.n. calls for calm. >> moments leading up to flight a501. plus we tell you why china's dairy farmers are