meets humanity. only on al jazeera america. >> hello and welcome to the news hour. these are the top stories on al jazeera. suicide bomb blasts at two churches packed with sunday worshipers in pakistan. at least 14 are dead. >> the war in syria is in its fifth year with the number of refugees about to surpass 4 million. the human costs of the conflict and impact on syria's neighbors. >> aid arrives after a cyclone

pam. the true scale of the damage still isn't clear. >> hamilton with help from arnold schwarzenegger sends out an ominous warning to his formula one rivals. >> when it comes to the next race i'll be back! ok? >> defending world champion starts the new season with victory in australia. >> taliban fighters in pakistan have claimed responsibility for two bomb attacks on churches packed with sunday worshipers. at least 14 people were killed and dozens wounded in lahore. victoria gatenb. >> reports. >> the pakistani taliban timed attacks for maximum devastation the two churches packed with those attending sunday services. there were chaos in the moments after the bombs exploded within

minutes of each other. >> i was on guard inside, a small gate was open. suddenly, there was the sound of a blast and the gate was blown away. i turned around and all these splashes of blood fell on my clothes. we got busy with the rescuest. >> it was the biggest attack since the bombing in practice shore in 2013. we demand protection to place of worship from the government. in pakistan. minorities are insecure and we want security. >> lahore is the capitol of pakistan's wealthiest province. the city is eventually considered peaceful compared to

other areas but attacks have been increasing after the government's failed attempts to hold peace talks with the taliban last year. christian community leaders say the government isn't doing enough to ensure their safety, and that attacks like this show they're a target. al jazeera. >> crossing over to islamabad and bringing in our correspondent to tell us what the government has been saying about this attack by the taliban on two churches and what they will be doing to protect the mines in pakistan. >> there's been strong condemnation because after the attack the christians were very angry, most of them coming out on the streets. there was protests on the streets in lahore and other cities, as well. after that, the government went into negotiations trying to tell the people that everybody was under attack, that it was not

just the christian community that there will be adequate compensation. interest ling what we've seen is pakistan taliban is now picking on the minorities, something they've done in the past, but attacks an christians indicate they want interior conflict within pakistan. they were quick to take responsibility for the attack. the situation is now under control and the rioting which ensued after those attacks have also come to a halt. >> with them targeting these churches, what is the message the pakistani taliban is sending here. >> what the taliban in pakistan is saying is that nobody is safe. they've targeted schools the majority sunni population, they've targeted the security forces, they've targeted the minorities including the shia's,s christians as well as

the amify. they want to create maximum mayhem and try to put the security forces on the back foot, because there's a demand for the security force to say guard the schools other installations and of course now they will also have to guard minority worship place, as well as mosques something that they've been doing but it obviously puts a lot of pressure on the government. >> thank you for that update. >> it began with peaceful protests against a president but soon exploded into a vicious civil war. the conflict in syria is now four years old and the group of people in rebel held areas in douma. activists say as many as 20 people including children died in airstrikes on residential buildings in the town just

outside damascus. dozens more have been reported killed and injured in the last three days, that as the air force steps up attacks on the area. the u.n. estimates that at least 220,000 people have been killed in syria's war and very large numbers of people have had to flee their homes, many leaving the country altogether. we can show you now how the number of refugees has increased as that war has gone on. >> so almost 4 million syrian refugees have fled the war. 1.5 million of them are in lebanon itself and al jazeera's

zeina hodor is there. how are they coping with the influx? >> lebanon is not coping, imposing tighter entry restrictions. there has been a significant drop in the number of refugees entering the country since then. 1.5 million, and this is a very small country approximately 4 million people. it's not just that. it's not just the strain on the infra structure. at the end of the day is resentment and growing animosity. lebanon blame them for taking their jobs, saying they work for much less. you talk to anybody in these makeshift camps close to the border, they say we're too scared to venture out because we could be arrested, their paperwork is not in order. lebanon is not home.

these people do not feel safe even here. >> what do they tell but the possibility of returning to syria? >> well at the end of the day every single person here will tell you we want to return home but they've lost hope. there is no meaningful political process underway. it will take time for a settlement to this conflict, especially since the war has become a costly war with international players involved. on the anniversary of the start of the uprising, activists really want to tell the world remind them that at the end of the day isil is not the only force in syria because international community really has been prioritizing the fight against isil. they are not really remembering the fact that on a daily basis people continue to die. abdullah produce add film saying he hopes the world will remember that there was a struggle for freedom and continues to be a struggle for freedom in syria.

>> it's the spirit of the revolution, a film about the struggle for freedom in syria. the man behind it is a syrian activist who is worried that the u.s. led fight against islamic state of iraq and the levant has overshadowed the uprising against the syrian government. it's one of the reasons he wants to raise awareness. >> the international community should remember there are syrians who oppose the regime and islamic state of iraq and the levant. we are trying to remind those inside syria to focus on the goals of the revolution. they shouldn't join extremists and should reject reconciliation with the regime. >> he is from the city of holmes. protestors were killed in the uprising and it became a civil war. his city, like so many other areas became an urban battleground. years later homs is back under

the government control. >> opponents are increasingly worried that the global war sense isil has shifted the focus from the fight to out of the the assad government. >> it's been four years since many syrians decided to challenge a state they long feared demanding freedom dignity, a state of law and an end to arbitrary detentions. they complained of a corrupt political system that didn't provide equal opportunities for all. abdullah believes the opposition has won simply because it broke the fear barrier, but now faces a new enemy. >> it is no longer a people's revolt against a criminal regime, now the people are fighting an alliance that includes iran and its militias. this doesn't mean our revolution is over. >> this film is about the determination to continue the fight against the regime and

islamic state of iraq and the levant and counter the government narrative that it is a war against terrorists. >> the rise of isil has overridden the civil war in syria. the opposition wants the international community to deem with the crisis the way it is dealing with isil. >> reporting from the becca valley in lebanon, thank you very much. >> here's what's coming up, a new push for a nuclear deal, the top diplomats of iran and the u.s. meet again for talks. >> coming up in sport find out with the west indies could fit into the quarter finals of the cricket world cup. >> first first aid teams have reached the wake of tropical

cyclone pam. 18 people have been confirmed dead but humanitarian agencies warn that death toll is likely to rise. the category five cyclone the most severe on the scale richter hit the island nation on saturday. kim has the latest. >> this wall is a sturdy, traditionally built house and this is all that's left. after cyclone pam this family is homeless. it is a scene repeated over and recovery. the roof of this home has been torn off completely. from this hill position, the scale of the devastation becomes clear. jayleen's family owned a shop. everything has been destroyed. >> the winds started coming and glass windows smashed.

>> thousands of now homeless, focused on trying to survive. one aid agency believes up to 90% of homes in port villa have been damaged. the worst damage is thought to be on the outer islands. workers worry the death toll is likely to rise. >> we need to make contact as soon as possible to get an idea of the sense of devastation that these outer island communities have faced. what we've seen in port villa is a benchmark and we can only assume complete devastation. >> with 65 islands ahead to assess the task is daunting. >> a quick reconnaissance

flight, they have looked at how the small island is hit and on to port vila. >> thousands spent the night in an emergency shelter but more homeless are expected to arrive. this tiny island nation is coming to grips with what's being called one of the worst disasters in the pacific. >> after that devastating cyclone, let's get a check on the weather with a check of the other world weather. >> what we've got at the area, it's making its way away. we are not talking a direct hit for new zealand thankfully, but are talking pretty bad weather the next few days. the storm will actually pass to the north and east of the north

island, but you can see the sort of size of the storm so we're looking at really, really lively winds pushing through. 120 kilometers per hour, the possibility into the ranges, as well. lots of range in some parts could well see as much as 200-milliliters of rain over the next 24 hours or so. lots of showers coming through winds going to be a keen easily there. possibly six or seven meters will pass through new zealand so moving quickly. 57 kilometers per hour, so sweeps through as we go on through tuesday, things will quiet down significantly by that state. another little band of rain will free its way across the north island at this stage. elsewhere, back up towards australia, we have nathan making its way clues the eastern corner. it really shouldn't cause too many problems as we go on

through the next few days. we've seen flooding rains through queens land. that's in the process of pushing further east with brighter skies coming in behind. we do ever yet another tropical storm around at the moment, which you believe further north into the pacific close to guam. we've got this system making its way in. it will push toward the philippines for the weekend. it will weaken though, at the moment those gusts are 120 kilometers per hour. >> thank you. iran's foreign minister is in switzerland for talks with the u.s. secretary of state john kerry over iran's nuclear program. the deadline for a framework agreement has been set for the end of march. kerry said an extension of talks past that date is unlikely. the white house is asking the u.s. congress to stay out of negotiations with iran. cross be over to our diplomatic

editor james bays. when john kerry said that the port of these talks is not for any deal, but the right deal, to find the right deal, what does that look like for both sides? >> well, the iranian foreign minister arrived here a couple of hours ago. john kerry expected in a couple of hours is coming. we are reaching a crunch period in all of this. remember, we had an initial interim agreement back in november, 2013 and they've been extending the deadline ever since then. we've heard in the last hour from the deputy foreign minister of iran who says there will be no more extensions. that's almost impossible, mean that go we're getting close to the time where they have to come up with a make or break deal. they're certainly getting closer closer than they've ever been before, but there are still outstanding issues to deal with. remember, this is the first meeting since that letter that was written by 47 senators

saying a future president a republican president could tear up any deal. the foreign minister has said since he arrived here in laws san that that should make the u.s. deal stronger. they are optimistic hoping dex something can be achieved before the end of the month if not before that. >> john kerry has also been talking about syria, as well. >> absolutely. john kerry's been giving interviews before he comes here. he says there needs to be perhaps a new approach in egypt. he said the u.s. administration is prepared to negotiate with the assad government. they've never negotiated directly, although the assad government negotiated with the s.n.c. the moderate opposition, which is very much backed by the u.s. administration. i think there is a real feeling

among diplomats and i certainly felt this in new york in the united nations that a plan is needed, a plan for a local free, starting in aleppo is stalled and virtually dead. rather than a bottom-up approach, there is talk of a top down approach. interestingly, i think what's going on here, the nuclear negotiations could play a part in this. when i spoke to the e.u. high representative of foreign affairs last week, she understands the nuclear deal could bring a unique and historic opportunity for remaking the regional framework of the middle east. in other words if they get the nuclear deal, maybe they can bring iran in as a partner on the issue of syria. >> james, thank you very much. our diplomatic editor james bays reporting from lausanne. >> israel goes to the polls tuesday with the high cost of

living and increasingly important issue for many voters. in a country where security typically dominates elections we have a report on how political parties are struggling to address the latest concerns. >> they put together gift packs for family and friends the treats handled out during the jewish holiday. the carefully chosen sweets are more expensive this year. >> everything costs so much now. you go to the market to buy something and you have to stop yourself, because if you buy this item or that, you'll be short of money the following week. >> he isn't only struggling with the rising cost of food, but also his rent. >> according to a recent government survey, four out of 10 israelis struggle to make ends meet every month. part of it is a shortage of affordable housing. >> we are showed around the

families 40 square meter apartment, which is about to get more cramped with a baby due. >> my wife and i both work. we make average income, but our rent is so high. even if we made more money it would still be difficult. we can't even think of buying a place and getting a mortgage. >> the high cost of living has led to small street protests everyone cities like tel-aviv in the weeks ahead of the march 17 general election. it follows massive protests in 2011, when hundreds of thousands of israelis rallied against rising costs. since the campaign began the labor parties have struggled to offer voters an economic plan while staying focused on the key issue of security. >> this has become a symbol of government ineptitude, of how the bureaucracy here is unable

and perhaps unconcerned with meeting the needs of every day israeli, the average israeli. >> economic analysts put blame for rising consumer costs on israel's high income taxes. the lack of housing is blamed on land reform in israel while the government spends billions of dollars on illegal settlements inside the occupied west bank, somewhere many israelis don't want to live. whatever the case, until major parties offer a solution to these many problems, people like he and his young family will continue to struggle to make ends meet. al jazeera west jerusalem. >> the world's second biggest economy is struggling to meet its growth target and china's premier said the government has failed the people in the fight against smog. speaking to reporters at the end

of the annual session of china's parliament from the national parliament in beijing here's adrien brown. >> in the great hall of the people, another sober assessment of china's economy by the man who runs it. he has set a target of 7% economic growth this year, the lowest in a quarter century. now he says even meeting that will be difficult. >> we estimated growth rate for china's economy of 7% this year. that number is much slower compared with the years before, but in fact will be by no means easy to hit the target. >> at his only news conference of the year, the prime minister had another target in mind, the government's own bureaucrats. in blunt language, he said reforms to reduce the state's

role in some of china's biggest industries will be painful. >> this is not nail clipping. this is like taking a knife to one's own flesh. pain is only natural but however painful it might be, we are determined to keep going until our job is done. >> the job of china's national people's congress has been done for another year. at the finale of this gathering the prime minister's economic plans were approved. >> it's rare for journalists to be given access to the parliament. this is not a rubber stamped outcome. >> there were two dominant themes the continuing campaign against corruption and pollution. the premier vowed to punish factories responsible for

excessive emissions and said everyone needed to do more to clean up the environment, as well. his strongest words were on the economy. we're in the new normal, he said, although to many, china's economy feels anything but. adrien brown, al jazeera beijing. >> oil production could be returning to parts of southern nigeria more than 20 years after people there decided they'd had enough of pollution. oil joint shell was kicked off the land after massive environmental damage. local companies will soon be able to bid for licenses and resume operations. not everyone is happy as we report from river state. >> emmanuel used to fish here. the fishing waters were destroyed by oil spills caused by the oil company shell. they kicked shell off their land more than 20 years ago but now the government is issuing new

license to say nigeria companies to operate. some worry they could cause damage too. a nigeria oil company might get the license. >> it is important to our people to have this place cleaned first before they come to do their operation here. soon, the water will be clean and when our people come to fish, they can fish where not polluted. it mess up with shell, we know -- >> oil installations like this are a constant reminder of the devastating pollution caused by shell. this one has been abandoned by the company since 1993. locals received no compensation. shell say they will clean up and have agreed to pay compensation, but they are divided about

whether oil consumption should resume before the cleanup. the ruler said it's the only way to fight poverty. >> the people are yearning for the activities of oil exploration to come. there are a lot of benefits. we are going to build centers. >> 2,000-barrels of oil a day could be produced from the oil in this area. it promise to say give 10% to the community that could mean hundreds of millions of dollars every year. >> they take full responsibility of whatever is on the ground and i will not blame shell or any oil company that has been there before. we will have to take full responsibility of fixing the soil fixing things up, because this is my region. >> oil companies of broken promises before. the hope is that because the new

companies are nigerian, they will be more accountable. production will start next year. al jazeera river state nigeria. >> still ahead on the al jazeera news hour, putting profits to before public safety. the u.s. police in ferguson are targeted for using excessive power against targeted citizens. >> apparently, this is what the future will look like. noise, isn't it? more later in the program. >> in sport why maria sharapova is trying to make history.

>> hello again, the top stories on the al jazeera news hour. taliban fighters in pakistan claimed responsibility for with it bomb attacks on churches packed with sunday worshipers. at least 10 people were killed and dozens wounded in lahore. >> iran's foreign minister arrived in switzerland for talks over its nuclear program with the u.s. the deadline has been set for the end of march. u.s. secretary of state john kerry said a temporary agreement past that date is unlikely. >> a conflict in syria enters its fifth year with no end in sight.

>> when a group of children were arrested for scrolling anti-government graffiti on a wall in syria no one could have predicted what would follow. the united nations estimates more than 220,000 syrians have been killed. more than 7.5 million people have been forced from their homes, but they've stayed in syria. there's another 4.5 million trapped in areas besieged or hard to reach in the country. in all, more than 12 million syrians are in need of help inside their own country. almost 4 million others have registered as refugees in neighboring countries. we look back on four years of war. >> these are the i am manuals that helped spark the revolution in syria. people raising their voices against the rule of president assad four years ago.

>> when we took to the streets each one of us felt as if we had a revolution simmering inside of us waiting for the right moment to come out and we could feel free. the fear barrier just collapsed. we all went out my mother, my brother, my whole family. we used a chant. the yelling came from the bottom of our hearts. >> she is an activist, now living in beirut. she says now she crisis when she looks at the videos of the early demonstrations. >> it's hard now to cancel plate a demonstration while people are starving looking for something to eat. >> four years after the revolution she insists on hiding her identity. she's afraid of the assad government which still controls parts of the area where her family lives, as well as parts of damascus. we were there for this rare

moment four years ago when people's hopes were high. most believed they would be able to overthrow the syrian government within weeks. many syrians hold the army would turn against president assad and the international community would come to their rescue and bomb his ball lass. that's not how events unfolded. the revolution turned into a civil war. syria turned into a battleground for regional and international forces to fight for their own agendas. more than 200,000 syrians have been killed. more than 3.5 million became refugees in neighboring countries and 80% live in poverty. across the country cities and villages in ruins. >> syrians are exhausted frustrated, so much daily suffering, and too much blood has been spilled. the bill has been high for both sides. the bloodshed must stop. most syrians are now lost, don't

know where things are heading and know things have gone out of their hands. >> foreign fighters flooded into syria, including those linked to al-qaeda who came to help the opposition, while the government has help from members of hezbollah and fighters from iran. to add to the complexity, the islamic state of iraq and the levant now controls parts of syria. many of the activists who first rose up against assad found themselves targeted by isil. >> now the problem is not only with assad. the foreign powers fighting each other on our land, this is what changed the course of the revolution. >> during the early days of the revolution, the country was split between supporters of the syrian opposition and those of the syrian regime be it was an us or them approach. the conflict today has many players, and that dragged on with no clear winners, only losses on both sides. as the majority of syrians

including those who started the uprising are left to watch from the sidelines. al jazeera, amman, jordan. >> good to have you with us on al jazeera. you know, the war is entering its fifth year now and let me put these comments to you that the u.s. secretary of state john kerry has made. he's saying that the united states will in the end have to negotiate with syria's assad. he's made these comments recently to american media. is this a shift in the u.s. strategy when it comes to the war? is there now a new approach that's going to be taken to solve this conflict? >> clearly, it is. i don't know if it's a shift in the strategy, because i don't know if there ever was a clear american strategy. there was an american de facto

respondents to the events in the region trying to pursue certain policies to help the opposition in mostly non-lethal ways, but a clear strategy was not to be had -- >> obama has said that assad's days were numbered and it was non-negotiable to negotiate with assad, so this is something new. >> it is new. they did say very early on that he had lost legitimacy. that's not really a strategy, that's a reaction, a position. a strategy would be to help get rid of the leadership or opposition and neither thing happened. i think clearly the u.s. and many others of having to come to terms with the fact that assad hasn't been overthrown. he's still in power but only in power with massive assistance from syria iran, hezbollah and russia and some other people, but he is still there and he controls aizable number of

troops, and there are, you know, some million was syrians who still support him so it's not so easy to get rid of him as many people want to do and therefore, this is the next stage perhaps to figure out some kind of mechanism to negotiate with assad and the opposition, though the opposition say they will never negotiate with assad unless it means a transition to get rid of the ruling regime. >> you mentioned iran just a moment ago and what's happening i have lausanne are the talks between as herry and prime minister about the iranian nuclear talks. if we see a deal, could that pave the way for solution when it comes to syria? >> yes, but i would think only indirectly. the appearance insist that no grand bargain is being worked out. kerry was telling the saudis and others in the gulf last week, trying to reassure them that

nuclear deal with iran would not come at the expense of america's relations with saudis and other allies in the arab world. the question is how much can you believe what the americans say in public, because they're actions often contradict that. i think the reality is that a deal of iran on the nuclear issue and the sanctions would radically change regional mitt it will dynamics and create a whole new world for iran to have normal relations with the u.s., with europe, with people all across the region. there will be massive trading opportunities and investments oil sales industrial work. there would be huge, huge incentives to have good relations with ran and everybody around it. one of the repercussion of that would probably cause the iranians to try to play a role in winding down the war in syria, not getting rid of assad directly, because that would be against their principles. >> right. >> but basically paving the way to a political transition in syria that would take some

years. >> as you're speaking to us, we're playing images of the devastation that's been causing the country due to this war. five years on, did you expect it to take such a turn for the worst with the disastrous humanitarian situation, the refugee crisis, as well as the rise of armed groups like islamic state of iraq and the levant in the country? >> you know, nobody could predict exactly what has happened. i was in damascus actually march four years ago attend ago conference in syria on civil society issues, and i was there when some of these early demonstrations happened. we saw small grooms of demonstrators supporting the government marching around the center of damascus. people asked that question then, i remember, with uprisings in syria and other arab countries my response was the conditions in syria are ones that lend themselves to an uprising as

happened in other countries. nobody could see the extended of the savagery and wear fair and external intervention that has actually happened. you have to see this as the biggest proxy war in modern history anywhere in the world. we've never had so many regional and international players pour so much energy and money arms, diplomatic support into this conflict to keep it going. the syrian people are exhausted but the external players predominantly the u.s., russia, ran and saudi arabia, with others involved as well, they are not exhausted. they're prepared to keep this process going, because the fighting is going on in syria. the question is when will it start to hurt their interests when will the refugee flows the radicalization, the desperation the growth of isis and other groups like that, when will those processes prove to be so damaging to the external powers, especially iran, hezbollah

lebanon, jordan, turkey, saudi arabia, that things will be so bad that they will then decide it's in their interest to try to wind this down somehow. really the difficult problem is nobody has any credible scenario for a solution of this conflict. >> we'll leave it there, thank you very much for joining us mom beirut in lebanon. >> activists in ferguson, missouri are pressing ahead with their calls to have the city's mayor removed from office. resentment lingers over the killing of a black teenager by a white police officer there in august. a u.s. justice democratic report said the black community was targeted. >> how much do you figure you owe in tickets? >> i'm pretty much it's almost $2,000. >> at 31 years old leonard has

had more than his share of traffic violations. it started with things like not stopping fully at a stop sign. >> when they stop me, the cop was very rude, i was called a [bleep] >> when he couldn't afford the fines, he got late fees. it ended with a suspended license. that led to him getting arrested and thrown in jail for two days. >> if i had to choose between paying a $200 parking ticket, i know at the stop, it wasn't justified in the first place pike the ticket or my rent or electric bill, the ticket's going to lose every single time. >> he might be tempted to dismiss his complaints of racial profiling and mistreatment if not for the fact they are so common in his hometown of ferguson missouri. >> aries report from the department of justice criticized the police department and the court system for putting profits before public safety. it found that police often pull over motorists without reasonable suspicion putting an

undue hardship on the city's most vulnerable residents. >> the department of justice found that although only two thirds of ferguson's population is black blacks are given 90% of tickets and are pulled over in 85% of all traffic stops. this year revenues from tickets were projected to account for 23% of the city's budget. wesley bell is a ferguson resident and a judge in another city. >> there are some courts doing it right but there are courts that are abusing what they should be doing and what their man dates should be. that's something that i think absolutely needs to be addressed. >> the mayor of ferguson did not respond to al jazeera's request for comment but the former mayor does not agree with the justice democratic's finding of systemic racism. >> what's left out of the report are the other sides of the city side of the story. you're only hearing the department of justice. >> blare has taken to videotaping his encounters with

police. >> i'm tired of being harassed for just being who i am. >> it's that anger that continues to fuel anti police demonstrations in ferguson, and blare says more reforms are necessary before he and others will stop protesting. al jazeera ferguson, missouri. >> a bus plunged into a ravine in brazil, killing 42 passengers, 12 more taken to hospital. police said it appeared the driver lost control on the mountain roads. >> anti-government protests were underway across brazil in rio de janeiro. thousand us gathered calling on the president to resign. a political corruption scandal and weak economy have made the president more unpopular than ever before. >> still to come on the al jazeera news hour in sport, how a racing driver managed to walk

away from this high speed crash.

>> part of the reason is that they hang on. you can ever a little bit of

power and little bit to say over that future. >> the question here, what kind of future do you want? something there to focus on. al jazeera london. >> time for all the sports news with andy. they are once again selling the standards in formula one the defending world champion won the opening race of the season in australia with something to spare. his teammate coming home in second place. richard parr reports. >> let's say together, i'll be back! >> formula one is back and hamilton is the man to beat. 15 cars started, two pulled up to the grid, unable to race. world's champion lewis hamilton began an pole alongside his teammate. both made clean starts in melbourne. the same couldn'ting said for

this driver, spinning out. teammates also retired at the end of the first lap. sergio did manage to recover after his car collided with another. the youngest driver, the 17-year-old lasted half the race due to engine failure. former world champion didn't last much longer, after trouble with his back left wheel. there were no problems for mercedes, who completed a 1-2 finish rossberg coming second to hamilton, the britain excited for the victory and chance to meet arnold schwarzenegger. >> congratulations. congratulations. >> how are you doing? >> what does it feel like

winning last year and now winning the race again? >> it's obviously a real pleasure. we have the greatest fans here today. thank you for coming out. my team did an amazing job today and it's an incredible feeling to continue on from last year, but also to be up here with you man, i thought you were taller. i thought you were taller on the terminator. >> mercedes remains on top of the podium. richard poor, al jazeera. >> the quarter finals of the cricket world cup the 1992 champions got the win they needed in their last group game against ireland. score a century but their title of 237 always looked below par. pakistan won by seven wickets. next up for them is cohost australia, island ireland are out. >> a win against the united arab

emirates, they chased down a victory target of 176 to win by six wickets. after a back injury, he is set to return for those muck out rounds. >> he has bad days, his fitness is key. he'll be up for it, even though not 100%. >> they'll need him in those quarter finals playing cohost new zealand, south africa, defending champions india play bangladesh. it's australia versus pakistan. >> chelsea can take an 8 point lead in the top of the english premier league if they can beat south hampton. manchester city lost saturday. chelsea warmed up early in the first half of the game.

manchester united, they'll be looking to hit back after beaten by arsenal. both teams aiming for champions league qualification. >> what i have seen this week in how they react i'm very pleased with that reaction, and i hope that they can show -- >> football in the united states has never been more popular the national team gave another boost to the popularity of the domestic league, the mls. this season sees new york getting its second major team, as we report. >> historic day in new york. >> there's a new thing the new york football club. the second major football team or soccer as it's culled in the u.s. it's not just about goals.

the nycfc are an example of how high powered foreign money interests are trying to get a piece of the north america soccer business, where each team is worth $100 million and new t.v. contracts generating $90 million in revenue. nccfc is funded by a group and abu dhabi group. one of the teams top span serious is airways from abu dhabi. globalized business of the game is getting bigger in the united states. >> soccer is a global game, there is no doubt about it, when you look at the premier league, it deals with japanese companies and likewise french companies french clubs and it's just a global market right now. new york city is obviously a big market, a very well known city,

so it becomes attractive. >> they've signed spain's star, all part of a larger effort to make nycfc a global brand. >> this team was brought with the mindset as a focal point for major league south carolinaer in this country and around the world. >> they've got the star player, they've got the fan base and they've got the home city, but what the new york city football club doesn't have yet is their own place to play. until that time comes their home matches will be at the famous yankee stadium. >> he's got to get through next season. >> a popular new york sports commentator it is the money behind the team doesn't matter as much as the popularity of the team in the u.s. >> mls has a following, but still not is the league that compare to europe. it does have a core group of fans. people in this country love it. kids play at a young age. there's a huge fan base, but

having the second team here in new york, the fact that they play yankee stadium i think is going to add a little something to it. >> helped along perhaps by money from abroad, jumping on the u.s. soccer bandwagon. al jazeera, new york. >> djokovic has become the defense of his world title in california. the world number one needed less than an hour to win 6-1 6-3. he now faces the spanish player in the third round djokovic attempt to go win his fourth title here. >> maria sharapova progressed into the third round trying to become the first woman to win this event three times. she'll face former world number one. >> a driver in the united states had a really lucky escape during a drag race in florida. three time national hot rod champion larry dixon the man

involved reached speed of 450 kilometers an hour in these races. amazingly, he was apparently up to walk away from this with just some soreness in his knee and back. more on that and the rest of the sport on our website. you can check that out aljazeera.com/sport. >> ok. that is it for now. >> we'll see you later on. thank you very much. >> the world record has been set for the highest recorded bird flight from a man made structure. an eagle with a small camera on its back flew from the top of the world's tallest building in dubai. video from the imperial eagle was live streamed as it swoops more than 800 meters to its trainer on the ground. the event was staged to highlight the play of this endangered bird of prey. much more news coming up in just a moment.

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>> suicide bomb blasts at two church packed with sunday worshipers in pakistan, at least 14 people are dead. >> also coming up, the war in syria is in it's fifth year with the number of refugees about to pass 4 million. the human cast and affect on its neighbors. >> the true scale of the damage of