n life will imitate art, exactly. >> my pleasure. >> geena davis, thank you so much for talking with al jazeera. i appreciate your time. >> my pleasure. thank you. thank you. >> announcer: this is al jazeera. ♪ welcome to the news hour. i'm bob mathisson live from our headquarters in doha. the sau -- saudi-lead air strikes continue on yemen. the co-pilot blamed for the plane crash hid an existing illness from his airline.

a day before the elections nigerian military claims big success against boko haram. i'm jonah hull with the story of how war in ukraine is [ inaudible ] for fish farming here in the faroe islands. ♪ good to have you with us. now we begin this news hour in yemen where air strikes have continued across the country. over the past 48 hours at least six provinces have been targeted. on friday a northern strong hold was hit. with a coalition looking to neutralize the houthi's air defenses. >> reporter: this is the aftermath of a new round of saudi-lead air strikes on houthi sites in yemen. witnesses say houthi air defense

batteries southwest of sana'a were destroyed. for a second night the alliance says it hit military positions in the capitol sana'a and the cities of elsewhere. the locations seem to include large military depots that have been hit. this one shows a raid on airport likely in sana'a. saudi officials say there is no plan to send troops at least for now. >> we should be ready for all of the circumstances. our forces are ready for the different threat. air threat or ground threat. for the time being there is no such operation, but if need we will be ready to face this kind of threat. >> reporter: the houthis say

there have been civilian casualties but despite the on slot the houthis remain defiant. >> translator: what do they expect us to do? surrender? act like cowards? what do they expect from us? to walk away? absolutely not. >> reporter: yemen's interim foreign minister says there is still room for dialogue. >> translator: we're about to start preparing for the upcoming conference. the door is still open for dialogue, and all that is happening now is preparation for a dialogue of equals where no party can deal with the other from a standpoint of force. >> reporter: yemen has been unstable for years, a situation that got worst when last september the houthis took over the capitol and forced the president to flee a few months later. the president is now in saudi arabia he is recognized by the

saudis, and the u.s.st as the legitimate leader. the saudi-lead intervention in yemen is being seen as a message against iran's increasing influence in the region. but for yemen east caught in the conflict hopes of a peaceful solution are dwindling. >> let's talk to the director of the aden research cooperation, and he supports the southern separatistsist movement in yemen. thank you for being with us. how is this conflict impacting the people in the south? >> well thank you very much for having me on your show rob. yeah, the people in the south have probably paid the biggest price of all for this conflict and for what has been going on for the past two decades, but particularly the most recent days. the city is now going through wide-spread looting and

disorder. civilians are worried. they are staying in doors. people arer worried that food and water and electricity will be cut soon. >> will this effect the amount of support that the houthis get in yemen? >> i can tell you that the houthis have very little support in the southern provinces. a lot of the militias and military units that are loyal to president hadi are able to secure many of the southern provinces, the only issue are pockets of yemeni militants that are supporting president hadi. but they have very little support in south yemen. >> do you think this crisis is sectarian in nature? there seems to be a dividing line that a lot of people are being attracted to if you would

like, at the moment. >> well i mean sectarianism is -- is a simplification of what is going on on the ground but it's not overly simplifying the issue either. people are taking sides, and the issue -- i mean there has been a -- a very direct policy by the former president, the former dictator in using sectarian divisions for his own purposes and supporting them financially and politically. so now we begin to see the consequences of this, as the houthis are beginning to come to the south and see the remnants of these organizations, the radical militant groups but also the issue of southern separation and the aspirations of the southern people have been neglected. they have been protesting non-violently since 2007, only for arrested and people being shot at. and so you are seeing a

multi-dimensional conflict that does also fall within sectarian lines unfortunately. >> i want to ask you about the role the president may play in the future. he is expected to be at talks in egypt on saturday. what role can he play in the future of yemen now that he's actually out of the country? >> well i -- i -- i do believe he is just attending an arab summit. he is the legal president of yemen. and most people in yemen accept him and their legitimate president. so we expect him to be back in aden, after he attends the summit. but he has a positive role in the future because he has attempted to deliver on some of the aspirations of the southern people. we don't believe those are complete yet. so we would like to see for example at least a referendum somewhere down the line. we would like to see more political reforms and to deliver on the democratic promises that

were made during the unity. we believe he has made steps in the right direction. he has tried to enfranchise, and bring in more southerners into government and into the military. and so for all of those reasons we think he can play a positive role. but i want to emphasize also that the aspirations of the arab spring and the southern movement have not been fulfilled yet. and we hope those will be on the table when he returns. >> thank you very much for your time. now let's cross to david foster in our london news center for our top stories from europe david. >> thank you. iran's foreign minister is into his second day of nuclear talks with the u.s. secretary of state john kerry in the swiss city. six major powers which include germany and the united states are seeking to reach an historic framework agreement by the end of this month, just four days

away. it is hope this will lay the foundation for a full nuclear deal. let's go to our diplomatic editor james bayes. it would be a surprise if they didn't discuss what was happening in yemen, given the association when that country and iran. have you any idea what ground they covered? >> reporter: well certainly they have had discussions. the formal negotiations here very strictly limited to iran's nuclear deal because the clock is very much ticking towards the end of the month when they are supposed to try to get that framework deal. that's the deadline. when you have people as important as this talking as much as they are, and staying in the same hotel, of course on the sideline they are talking about owe issues. and iran's foreign minister when he took a break and went for a walk on the like side confirmed to me that yes, yemen is being

discussed. >> we condemn them [ inaudible ] loss of human life. everybody has to encourage dialogue and national reconciliation in yemen rather than making it more difficult for the yemenese to come together. this is the hot issue of the day. any two diplomats will discuss that issue. that doesn't mean we'll negotiate it. our negotiations are confined to the nuclear issue. >> okay. james let's go back to the reason they are there, and we're going to see a greater push as the days run out before this deadline. we have had different words from the iranian president, different words from the french foreign minister. does it all add up to some kind of picture that could perhaps end up with a solution? >> reporter: well, david we have not ever been given a running

commentary exactly where the sticking points are around the table. but both sides say they can see a way forward and they are getting close. and the real indication to me that they are getting close is these talks are being widened. you have representatives of the p5-plus-1, and others are now coming nchlg -- we're going to get the british, the french the chinese are on their way as well. we believe all of the seven delegations will be here by the weekend. but when you get close -- and these have been such torturous difficult negotiations, the end is the hardest part. >> understood james thanks very

much indeed. well questions are being raised over whether the co-pilot thought to have deliberately crashed a germanwings plane into the french alps should have been flying at all. he has a history of depression. he broke off his pilot training six years ago, and spent a year having psychiatric treatment. prosecutors who raided his home found sick notes from doctors showing he had a health condition that should have prevented him from flying on that faithful day. but the notes in the apartment had been torn up. the developments are likely to raise questions over the airline's screening procedure for pilots. a number of airlines have already introduced new rules preventing just one person from being in the cockpit alone. more now from nadine barber.

>> reporter: a president paying his respects as more information emerged about the co-pilot germany's head of state joins hundreds of people at this church. this small town is in mourning for 16 pupils killed. >> translator: i came out of the church amidst people who have lost the most precious thing to them, a child, a loved one. i sat among the crowd and i wanted to mourn with them. >> reporter: in germany many people are struggling to understand why lubitz flew the airbus into the mountain on purpose. the german media report say he suffered a serious bout of depression after he finished his training. and now a new twist in the tragedy. >> translator: document documented were confiscated

pointing towards existing illness and corresponding treatment from doctors. this supports the assumption based on preliminary examination that the deceased hid his illness from his employer and his colleagues. >> reporter: at the crash site they are still trying to find human remains. they will be taken away for dna analysis identifying the victims and notifying the relatives will be a slow process. >> translator: the airline is label, and the insurance it took out for such cases will step in but it can refuse to payout if it appears the pilot acted deliberately and that the airline could have prevented that. >> reporter: the families of some victims have left their own tributes at this memorial near the spot where their loved ones died. they have now gone back home

with more questions than answers. nadine barber al jazeera. now live to dominic kane ours correspondent who is outside of the house of lubitz's parents in germany. thankful for their take dominic, we understand that they are in france being kept apart from the relatives of other people who have died. and i think those are media tents behind you. how quickly are people in germany going from the understanding that this was a man who may have perhapsed died in an unfortunate aircraft accident to understanding that he is the man who is pretty likely to have caused it? >> reporter: well david the thing to say here is that in the last 24 hours, we have been finding out far more about the events that lead to this disaster, and more about the mind set of this co-pilot mr. lubitz.

the prosecutors say they found evidence that he had sick notes that he should not have been flying at the day he was at the controls, when he prevented his colleague from getting back into the cabin, and plunged the plane into the -- alps. the mass media are portraying him in a much less flattering light. the paper [ inaudible ] one of the largest in germany is referring to him openly as mass murder, and that gives you a sense of how he is being portrayed in the media, and certainly the prosecutors want to establish what it was that made him do what he did. as you heard there was a history of depression in his life and certainly his employer will be very keen to find out how long he was deceiving them or preventing them from finding out that doctors were so concerned

about his condition that they were telling him not to go to work and giving him sick notes, but certainly here in this community, the overwhelming sense is still of disbelief that one of their own could have been responsible for such a disaster. >> okay. dominic, we'll leave it there for now. let's talk to shawn, a former navigator who joins us from oxford in southern england. given they have said there must always be at least two people in the cockpit at all times, and given the fact that there have been at least eight pilot suicides over the last 30 years, with 400-plus people killed why on earth did airlines allow only one person to be in the cockpit at one time? >> i think it's a good question david, but i'm not entirely convinced that having a member of the cabin crew on the flight deck is going to do necessarily

what you hope it will. they are not qualified to do anything tech nick cli on the flight deck, but they would be able to open the door in the circumstances in which we saw on tuesday, but on the other hand if somebody is determined to do damage after all, somebody else completely unqualified standing on the flight deck can quite easily be disabled, they have things around them like fire axes, and goodness knows what else. i'm not sure this is all together the right answer. however, i do think it is going to happen and the other concern about this is that this is a kind of knee jerk reaction and those things don't always go very well look at the whole idea of the cockpit door being closed. that came in after 9/11 and now we are seeing that more people have died because cockpit doors

have been locked and airlines have been hijacked. >> do you believe that luz than sa should have known more about his mental state? >> i don't know. this sick note that he is supposed to have torn up it could have been for a cold. you shouldn't fly when you have blocked sinuses. we don't know that it was anything mental. at least i'm not affair that we know that. and also of course these pilot don't get regularly mentally checked. they get physically checked and they have to do their simulator sessions which they are forced with all sorts of situations and must deal with them. but they don't get checked by a psychologist on a regular base. perhaps that's going to be called for, but there are always

pros and cons for these things. all they are doing is looking at a particular person on a particular day. >> appreciate your time. talking to us there from oxford. >> thanks. poland has charged two russia flight controllers with killing the president. the plane clipped trees as it was maneuvering through mad weather. the russian pair could face prison time although it is unlikely moscow will extradite. coming up in the rest of this news hour turkey's police are given new powers but critics fear they will over step the mark and -- [ explosion ] we'll bring you in the latest in the battle for tikrit in iraq and more.

i'm bob mcbride at korea east formula 1 circuit, trying to figure out a future without formula 1. ♪ now nigeria's military says it has destroyed the headquarters of boko haram in the north. this comes ahead of presidential elections this weekend. government forces and a coalition army have recaptured several towns in the last few weeks. >> reporter: the nigerian opposition are expressing doubts about the authenticity of this news that the town has been recaptured from boko haram, because they say there have been restrictions placed on civil society, human rights organizations and the media in terms of accessing the area and other towns that the nigerian

military say it has liberated from boko haram. they say the timing of this announcement is way too suspicious as it comes just a day before hotly contested presidential elections take place in which insecurity was going to be a major issue for the incumbent president. however, the military say that this is accurate, that this is due to the hard work of the nigerian forces and they hope to eliminate boko haram very soon. about 170 million nigerians will cast their vote in the elections on saturday. the election was delayed by six weeks because of security concerns. both sides say they want tend to the conflict of boko haram in the north of the country, but the parties have been accused of using the fighting as a political football instead of directly addressing the insurgency. the economy is going to be a key issue too. falling oil prices has weakened

the currency that is not helped by the corruption which still haunts the political and business world. both sides are promising to do more to tackle the problem. we are joined by someone who specializes in boko haram. thanks very much indeed for being with us. >> thank you for having me. >> can people be convinced that either of the candidates can actually deliver on their promise promises? >> well, at the minute one cannot say for sure whether it's [ inaudible ] can deliver on their promises. but we have got some record of the incumbent president, goodluck jonathan, which he know apart from the last six weeks is legitimately trying to calm the concerns of boko haram. the whole time he has been there for five years, nothing has been done to deal with the boko haram problem. of course we have the economy which is a major issue. the economy is in very serious

downward spiral and the current -- now our currency is facing its most difficult period in terms of exchange. these are issues that are going to be disclosed for as long as this election is going to go on. if you look at the opposition politician, he himself, he had to shed things like ethnicity, which a lot of people thought he was a tribal leader or something like that. but he has exchanged a lot of changes as far as that issue is concerned. to hold them accountable would be one thing, but it depends on the situation that the country would find after the election. >> as i understand it nigeria has overtaken south africa as the region's largest economy. it did that last year. there are going to be a lot of countries around nigeria that will be watching this election

very closely, aren't there? >> yeah, definitely. there will be a lot of interest as far as this election is concerned. nigeria being the biggest economy in africa or so-called biggest economy in africa but the question is whether this issue -- i mean the fact that it is the biggest economy in africa, it would also translate into the wealth of the people being better. other people have been asking questions, because it also mean that people's standard of living is going to improve? that has not been the case so far, because a lot of people have been out of employment. workers are not paid their wages because of the fall in the oil revenue. so there will be a lot of interest in this election. >> jonathan bahri have signed a deal promoting non-violent voting, but is there still a

risk we'll see violence at the polls? >> well, from what we have seen in the last few weeks, there is a high possibility that there might be some violence especially in some states. like river state we have seen at least twice lives have been boss r -- lost. in one occasion in the president's wife's home down. where the opposition atc was attacked, and lives were lost and then also in some other parts of the southwest, particularly leggo state there was violence even yesterday. and we should not forget that elections in nigeria are always open to violence. >> always really good to get your opinions on these matters. an independent researcher on war and conflict. thank you so much for being with us. >> thank you. >> a reminder you can keep up to date with all of the nigeria

election stories on aljazeera.com. that's aljazeera.com. seven people have died in a blast in the somali capitol mogadishu. police say the casualties might rise and there may be hostages. al-shabab militants have claimed responsibility for the attack. on thursday a government spokesman announced it has captured a top commander from sal shabab who was planning an attack. coming up fears of new cases of ebola forces a lockdown in sierra leone. plus -- >> i'm jennifer glasse in afghanistan where avalanches have torn count electricity towers. and afghan engineers are rebuilding them by hand. and where this american basketball player is taking just the bear necessaryities to his new

team.

♪ welcome back. here's a quick look at the top stories here on al jazeera. over the past 48 hours, a

saudi-lead coalition has continued air strikes in yemen. the co-pilot of the germanwings flight which crashed into a mountain is said to have been hiding details of a mental illness. german police are said to have found a torn-up sick note in his apartment. nigeria's military is claiming to have destroyed the headquarters of boko haram in the north. the statement comes ahead of presidential elections this weekend. now the arab league is among those supporting the saudi-lead air strikes in yemen. many other nations have also contributed to the resources nearly 200 yets are involved in the operation. gerald tan takes a closer look. >> reporter: the air strikes began early on thursday. saudi arabia is leading the

campaign. it has an estimated 100 fighter jets conducting the air strikes, and 150,000 saudi soldiers are standing by near the yemeni border. the operation is supported by a brood coalition. four other gulf states have lent air support with additional fighter jets. you see the break down here. morocco, jordan and sudan have also contributed. although the campaign so far is centered on air strikes. egypt has sent four ships through the red sea to help secure the gulf of aden. this shipping lane is vital in the global oil route. egypt has always said it is ready to take part in a ground offensive, with sudan, and jordan claiming the same. the u.s. has said it is providing logistical and

intelligence help. it's unclear how long this air campaign will continue, or if ground troops will be deployed. and little is known about the military capability about the houthis. except that they are a well organized force backed by a regional heavyweight, iran. strikes in syria near damascus has killed at least 12 people. al jazeera is unable to verify this video. dozens of people were also injured. a syrian president bashar al-assad says he is open to talks with the united states. assad made the comments in a television interview with cbs, but he said there must be no threat to syria's sovereignty. >> in syria, we could say that every dialogue is a positive

thing, and we're going to be open to any dialogue, with anyone including the united states, regarding anything based on mutual respect. coalition military forces in iraq tell al jazeera they are ready to launch a ground offensive in the northern city of tikrit. the u.s. has been conducting air strikes in an effort to retake the city from isil fighters. natasha ghoneim has more. >> reporter: the sky over tikrit has been full of smoke since the air strikes began on wednesday. bombs have hit isil facilities, check points bridges, staging areas, and fighting positions. >> translator: their fighting capabilities have been badly hit, and our troops are prepared to launch the ground operation to liberate the city at the lowest possible loss. >> reporter: iraq initially reached out to iran for assistance in reclaiming tikrit. they had been working with iran

to push isil out of the city. but when the mission seemed to stall, iraqi forces turned to the u.s. to give them an edge. >> translator: we are ready to move in all directions now. we hope the bat ll be decided sooner rather than later. >> reporter: the u.s. air strikes have also generated a battle of words. iranian-lead shiite groups had been fighting alongside the iraqi military. the u.s. said it agreed to assist only if those shiite groups left. but iran said it refuses to work with the u.s. and boycotted its mission in tikrit. the concern is the remaining soldiers will be no match for isil. >> translator: every single soldier is determined and has high morale. we are raising one another in the fight. >> reporter: but isil has proven to be a patient and resilient enemy. natasha ghoneim, al jazeera. turkey's parliament has

passed a new law after a 16-hour debate that lasted all night. it's a stripped down version of the country's home langdzland security bill. but critics fear it gives the police sweeping powers. from istanbul bernard smith reports. >> reporter: this police officer was suspended after he screamed at a colleague to spray tear gas at protesters. in another incident four police officers were jailed for up to ten years for beating up this protester. critics say they are examples of a culture of police heavy handedness. the government says it proves abuses of power are punished. the victim of the beating was a 19-year-old. he fell into a coma and died month later in july 2013. >> translator: the date i heard the sentence read at the court,

i felt the same pain as the same day i lost him. we were extremely disappointed. we thought that even a tiny be it of conscious existed, but there was not one. >> reporter: the government says it was prompted to give police enhanced powers following riots in kurdish parts of the country last october when more than 50 people were killed. >> translator: our government acted immediately as measures were needed to be taken against the vandals who destroyed cities and set them on fire during the october 6th and 7th incidents. >> reporter: the security bill will allow police to detain people for up to 48 hours by citing what they describe as serious threats to public order. they have also been given broader powers to use firearms to prevent attacks on buildings, vehicles or people in public places. and they can now search people and vehicles without prior approval from a prosecutor or

court. human rights watch says in a report on the draft security bill that it's concerned by what it sees as plans to increase police powers without appropriate safeguards particularly alarming are plans to sideline the supervisory powers that the judiciary and prosecutors have over the police. there are thousands of protests in turkey every year. most are noisy but peaceful like this one opposing the security bill. the government say there's no threat to the constitutional right to freedom of assembly enjoyed by turks now. bernard smith, al jazeera, istanbul. a three-day lockdown aimed at stopping the spread of ebola is in effect in sierra leone. the president has ordered everyone from stay in doors from friday morning until sunday night. the world health organization says sierra leone is trying to bring new infection rates to zero. >> it's simply being done to

mobilize the community to reinforce the need for vigilance, for the behaviors that we know really make a huge difference. increasing hygiene always washing hands after every contact, and understanding what the similar -- shymptoms of ebola look like. and anybody who has known to be in contact with somebody who has ebola is on a list and followed up. we're seeing these things being done now in sierra leone. numbers of new cases are falling right down and most of the new cases we're seeing are now coming from what we call contact list which means that the sierra leonian authorities with the help of us and other partners have really -- getting their arms on where the virus is and they are really really making all of the efforts to

contain and stop this violence. an avalanche in afghanistan last month killed 198 people and destroyed electricity pylons. the conditions are so severe, the equipment is being rebuilt by hand. jennifer glasse reports. >> reporter: 3400 meters high in the hindu curb afghans are working to restore power to millions of people. >> translator: we were standing right now, there's 10 to 15 meters of snow so we can't bring in any of our heavy machinery. we can only use basic equipment. >> reporter: this tower and two others are completely destroyed. piece by piece, workers must carry all 10 tons of the replacement power through the snow. the average came from three different directions and the force of the snow was so

powerful it tore a 15 ton tower off of his base and carried it down the hill. working in these conditions means doing almost everything by hand. one line now carries 100 megawatt tosca bul. a third of the normal load. two hydro electric plants and expensive diesel generators are making up the shortfall. but these men know the faster they can work the better. >> translator: avalanches, high winds and the possibility of rock falls make this a doing rows area it's also very remote. >> reporter: if the weather cooperates, it will take about a month to get the electricity flowing at full capacity. this is the worst that has happened since the lines were installed six years ago. 5 million people depend on this group of men, as they repair what the falling snow destroyed. jennifer glasse al jazeera,

afghanistan. two policemen have died in a bomb attack. the taliban has claimed responsibility. the bus carrying security officers drove by. 13 others were injured in the blast. at least ten people have been killed and dozens injured after a stampede during a hindu ritual in deng-- bangladesh. the holy site attracts pill grams. myanmar's military commander says he will support successful elections in november, but he has warned the army will not tolerate instability or threats. he was speaking to troops at a military parade on the 70th anniversary of armed forces day. this year's elections will be held by the government who swept

to power after a vote in 2010. still ahead -- >> i'm rob reynolds in los angeles where a battery recycling plant which has pewed toxic waste for decade is being forced to shutdown.

♪ now in the u.s. a controversial recycling plant is to shut down after its

management admitted it stored hazardous waste illegally. none of the company executives will be prosecuted. residents on the edge of los angeles say it has been making them sick for years. >> reporter: for decades this plant spewed toxic substances into the air, water, and soilover a low-income hispanic neighborhood in southeast los angeles. maria is one of the thousands of residents who live down wind from the plant. >> translator: the smell in the air is an ugly smell. they are so ugly. >> reporter: the plant owned by the exside corporation was cited dozens of times for serious violations. but the agency levies fines on exside only a handful of times and allowed the plan to operate for 33 years on a temporary license.

state lawmakers are now considering a top to bottom reform of that agency. garcia suffers from tremors and shortness of breath although she has none of her doctors have established a firm link between her symptoms and exposure to toxins. >> translator: it's the environment. it can't be anything else. >> reporter: earlier this month, exside truck a deal with federal government prosecutors. the company agreed to shut down the plant, tear down the buildings, and take full responsibility for cleanup. the company, which is emerging from bankruptcy is expected to pay about $50 million for the cleanup. but company executives will not face criminal charges. community activists say that's wrong. >> they deserve to be fully investigated prosecuted and they need to be -- do some prison time. >> reporter: when some of the pollution problems at exside

were made public los angeles country set up a free blood-testing program for local residents. the test showed this woman's daughter had high levels of lead in her blood. lead exposure can cause brain damage and is especially dangerous for young children. >> translator: the doctor told me it could affect her brain, she could have problems with her speech, so this is very troubling. >> reporter: exside would not agree to an interview, but issued a statement confirming details of the agreement to close the plant. california's toxic substances agency declined to answer al jazeera's questions about his failure to halt the pollution. it is expected to take four years or more for exside to demolish this plant, cleanup the area and remove contaminated soil. now it's time for the sport. here is andy.

>> thank you rob. lewis hamilton has still managed to set the pace ahead of the malaysian grand prix despite serious engine trouble. fernando returning to action after being ruled out the australian grand prix with concussion. the mercedes teammate was third fastest, almost a half a second down on hamilton. of course hosting a grand prix is enormous in the last week germany has pulled out due to the feed involves. while south korea has also hit a wall. the korean grand prix has been dropped due to a lack of sponsorship and small crowds but it's experience hasn't stopped the country from xhiting

itself to the 2018 winter olympics. rob mcbride reports. >> reporter: it was the world class circuit that was supposed to put south korea on the map. but unable to generate the local support or revenue needed to keep formula 1 here the racetrack operators have been looking for other events. still they insist the circuit should not be viewed simply in dollars and cents. >> translator: a facility like this should be seen as a social investment instead of a business that has to earn revenue. the central government is introducing various sports. the government does not feel it is obliged to sponsor us. >> reporter: at the root of the problem is planning. it is located in the relatively remote south of a country that has limited interest in motorsports. critics say a lack of foresight seems to be a national failing.

>> when it comes to planning, you really have to look at how to make these venues or the surrounding towns as a preferred or favorite destination place as opposed to a single venue. but i'm not sure if we have done a good job of planning that way. >> reporter: south korea's third city certainly has enough people, but such was the scale of the 2014 asian games it hosted last september, it is still tackling the problem of finding new uses for their facilities and it is deeply in debt. it has high hopes, even its main stadium will find a new use, but admits it could take years, and it knows the whole country is watching as south korea prepares for its next sporting feet. construction is already well advanced for the 2018 winter

olympics. so is the depate over its cost and future use of the site but at least that debate is happening now. >> the biggest lesson from those past events i think is an opportunity for everybody to get involved in the planning stage and at least the dialogue has begun. >> reporter: the operators say the olympics like formula 1, will encourage the growth of interest to fill these facilities. a strategy of if you build it they will come but experience has shown they might be a long time in coming. rob mcbride, al jazeera, south korea. japan's new national football coach is off to a winning start. the bosnian taking over after steering algeria. they went 2-0 at home. defending european champion spain are back in euro 2016

qualifying action later against ukraine. spain and ukraine second and third respectively in their qualifying group. slauf aukia are leading group c. austria are four points clear going into their game harry kaine would take his someday bu against lithuania. >> i think he fully disserves his call to the squad, and we have seen after the last couple of days if he gets a chance, we can get goals early, and nirn. he has been excellent all season, and i think it's great for english football to have someone who is scoring goals the way he is. >> reporter: south korea's first olympic gold medalist has apologized. she was banned earlier next week.

his 18-month ban has been backdated and will expire next march. >> translator: i would like to express my sincerest apology to those who have always supported me. even though i was not always a good enough person. i am sorry, and i'm ashamed of myself for arousing criticism with an incident which is even unacceptable for myself. i am bowing down to ask for forgiveness. in the nba, milwaukee won on thursday. the star on the night for the bucs, with the turkish player hitting a high 34 points. the pacers were just half a game off of the playoff paces took it all the way. they could have forced overtime but george hill missed a

game-tying basket with just seconds left in the game. one of basketball'sest more interesting characters is bearing count on his nba challenge. he former nba star has signed up to play in italy. 15-year nba veteran, he gave himself a new name to promote global peace. and in china, he started calling himself the panda's friend. now he's happy to let people call him what they want. >> some people know me as ron arrest. people that saw my career. so they still call me ron. so that's fine. most of the young players, young kids they call me meta. and then everybody in china calls me panda. [ laughter ] >> so, you can pick. >> back to the man that will always be rob. >> thank you very much indeed.

going to a new restaurant in the north faroe islands, you are likely to see salmon on the menu. now they are exporting to russia. >> reporter: when russia banned certain imports from the european union in response to sanctions over ukraine, the salmon-farming faroe islands stepped into the breach. this tiny nation in the north atlantic suddenly found itself with a near monopoly on salmon sales to issue. after a fallout on the war in eastern europe and with no apologies. >> we're not a part of the e.u. so we do our trades ourselves. >> reporter: in 2013, brussels banned faroese mackerel over disagreement over fishing quantities.

the prime minister was only too happy to take his business elsewhere. >> we were boycotted just before, out of e.u. and if you are boycotted from e.u. where should you go in if e.u. is locking their harbor for us because we are not reaching an agreement in the north atlantic then we need to find other markets, and we are doing business as usual. >> reporter: the faros upped both production and price by year end fresh salmon sales to russia have increased by almost 700 percent. and many faroese were happy to see their tiny nation exercising its trade independence from the e.u. >> we are not allowed to sell there. so we look for new markets. and there was russia. >> no one should tell us where we shall send -- sell the salmon. if -- if we decide to sell to russia i believe that's the best for us to do. >> it will not help the faroe island people the e.u.

so why should a little nation the faroe island help the e.u. >> reporter: the salmon thrive in perfect north atlantic conditions. >> our company is producing salmon to the very high end consumer market around the whole world, so we are looking for the high-end sushi restaurants all over the world. and there in between is moscow also. an interesting market for us. >> reporter: since september last year russia has received almost all of its fresh salmon from these waters in the faroe islands, and 140-odd million sushi-loving russians eat a lot of salmon. and that's a market thor faroe eye lans have captured in the chopper waters of a new cold war. stay with us on al jazeera, adrian is here in a couple of minutes. bye for now.

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sunday, 6:30 eastern. only on al jazeera america. saudi-lead forces again bomb houthi forces from the air, with troops on standby for a possible ground deployment. ♪ hello, this is al jazeera live from doha i'm adrian finighan, also on the program, evidence that pilot andreas lubitz was excused from work by a doctor. he lead a coup and then failed to get elected three times, so why is this man trying again to be nigeria's next