humanity! only on al jazeera america >> a suicide-bombing using american tanks and humvees. >> i'm david foster, you're watching al jazeera live from london. also coming up in this program after the u.s. surveillance act expires there is discussion on communications monitoring. malaysia will fire 6,000 of

its employees. their services no longer needed. and banning smoking in beijing, will it work? paris removes the love locks weighing down a 19th century bridge. >> okay, starting in iraq where government forces have suffered major losses as they try to drive the islamic the islamic state in iraq and the levant. there were explosived rigged into a tank in front of a base. the base is supposed to be a secure position just before that, 42 policemen died in a suicide attack north of fallujah and on sunday, 33 iraqi government fighters died in an ambush east of the

provincialal capital ramadi, which isil had seized two weeks ago. government said its operation in anbar would be a quick current offensive. just a few days in and iraqi forces appear to be struggling. we have more on a tank near tikrit. >> this was perhaps one of the boldest brazen attacks that isil has mounted against iraqi security forces. the base is home to iraqi shia militia and iraqi forces. isil is alleged to have driven a tank to the gates of that base where it exploded hence the amount of casualtyies that we're seeing. now we've seen throughout the last few days isil forces use humvees, suicide car bombs to great effect. those humvees are reinforced, and there are plenty of them. isil has stolen 2,300 after the

fall of mosul alone. now this is a very controversial tactic. they'll have to realize that there is their own weaponry being used against them. indeed american weaponry that they bought from the americans from being used against them. we've seen a number of these suicide attacks using hum advice but it's a first time in a long time that we've seen a tank being used as a delivery vehicle for explosives. >> the loss of humvees strengthened isil forces while breakening iraqi's military capabilities. we'll take a closer look at what equipment the army still has. >> iraqi gets its weapons from several countries, but exactly how much military hardware it has is hard to say. the clearest picture comes from something called the military balance, annual assessment pushed by the international

institute of strategic studies. iraq ace army is equipped with more than 270 battle tanks this includes u.s. abrams and russian t-72 and t-55. mostly russian p bmp 1s. the armor carriers designed to transport troops to the battlefield there are 13 russian attack helicopters in service but beyond the hardware is the actual manpower that can determine the fighting strength of the military. iraq's ministry of defense said that it employs 141,000 active duty soldiers as of april of this year. but some estimates suggest the true number may be as low as

50,000. now iraq's military had already been facing significant internal problems but the conflict with isil fighters has eroded its capabilities both in personnel and equipment. >> we'll move from iraq across the border into syria where isil seems to be making gains there too. the government continues to bomb isil target from the air. the. >> major forces in the syrian war now are involved for fighting for parts of aleppo. rebel groups have lost the countryside towns to isil. isil used a car bomb in an attack before moving in. isil has released this video

said to be it's fighters in control. they are blocking opposition supply routes from turkey to syria. turkish fighters have made gains further east. the government is fighting in aleppo too. they have troops on the ground but have an advantage with their air force. activists say this is the aftermath of a syrian early attack. government bombs are killing civilians here, too. opposition groups fight on the front line while pushing for new grounds against bashar al-assad's government government, asking for help from the international community. >> the international coalition is supposed to be meeting tomorrow. the big question where are the jets of the international coalition?

i think this won't even wait until tomorrow to be frank. those airstrikes really have to start today. otherwise, syrians will really feel that they are really in this alone. >> for now syrian opposition groups are having to focus on defending themselves from the isil attacks by sending reinforcements into key starts of aleppo rather than consolidate the gains they've made against asass in the last few years. caroline malone. al jazeera. >> to the conflict in yemen where local sources say that they hit a weapons depo. the forces loyal to ousted president ali abdullah saleh in sanaa. they also hit the presidential palace in the capital. fighting on the ground continues, 20 people were killed between popular resistence fighters as they're known and

houthi fighters. >> in the city where red cross most of the victims were burned beyond recognition. the truck exploded on impact insend rating 11 nearby vehicles. >> the election planned for june june 26th in burundi will go ahead. the violence erupted in april but the president announced he was running for a third term in office. were testers say serving three terms is unconstitutional.

dozens of people have lost their lives during the demonstrations. the u.s. national security agency has lost its power to collect phone records in bulk from american citizens after the senate failed to extend the patriot act. the run senator who is a presidential hopeful with the fall against the mass surveillance program with the senate moving ahead on the freedom act. it is more of a targeted collection. but critics say that it does not go far enough to prevent government snooping. well discussions on the freedom act are now under way. let's get the latest from kimberly kimberly halkett. it looks like you're in the rotunda in the heart of congress. it looks like the practical implications and political implications as well. >> well, in terms of practical ramifications it's really something that may not be very

long in duration, you're right. both surveillance measures put in place after september 11th from vinces within the patriot act did expire at midnight. this is that mass massive program that edward snowdon exposed in the bulk collection of telephone records. but now we have this other piece of legislation that has been passed in the lower house of representatives, now could be passed in the u.s. senate. if that occurs what this means essentially is that the program will--has lapsed for what we believe will be a very short time will kick up again. the only thing that will differ is who is actually collecting this data. it will no longer be the government. it will then be private phone companies. the government could still access this information. it would require an additional step by going to court to retief this information from private companies. so in terms of political ramifications what i can tell you is that the patriot act and

provisions in it has been rubber stamped several times but the attitudes of americans have shifted. they're the new generation of americans, much more skeptical a younger group less trusting of their government and institutions in general who feel this gathering of information bulk collection is is not a necessary thing. >> why would a republican who wants to be president of the united states want to see the patriot act lapse even though it may be replaced by this freedom act pretty soon. is it to get attention on himself as sort of a young liberal, as you're suggesting, it has drawn some flack hasn't it? >> it certainly has, but you have to remember that rand paul is no ordinary republican. he's very different from the sort of mainstream republicans

that the country has seen. he is part of the libertarian wing. one that is very attractive to younger voters. you can see why he would be making this push. he's very much a person interested in protecting the original intent of the constitution and so he has very much made it a part of his presidential platform to protect these rights and freedoms that are enshrined in the constitution. in terms of political calculations one might argue with this new generation of voters coming up that it is a very wise calculation but it certainly has at any rate changed the debate here on capitol hill one to that is very caustic at times as many fight sort of the old mainstream ideas with this injection of new protections for civil liberties. once that are not new but originated in this country

several hundred years ago but are really brought to the forefront in terms of right to privacy, the right to keep the government away in terms of search and seizure. these are things highlighted as you pointed out right now on the senate floor as they resume debate on the usa freedom act really the same in many ways in terms of surveillance protections of the patriot act. >> kimberly halkett, thank you. we'll see a lot of you i think. thank you very much. kimberly halkett in washington, d.c. now still to come on this program here on al jazeera the murder charge against the owner of a bangladeshy clothes factor that collapsed and killed over 1,000 people. we'll tell you why a plane powered by the sun had to to abort an attempt to cross the

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>> al jazeera's investigative unit has tonight's exclusive report. >> stories that have impact. that make a difference. that open your world. >> this... is what we do. >> america tonight. tuesday through friday 10:00 eastern. only on al jazeera america. >> that's are the major stories this hour. iraqi troops have suffered huge losses in the battle against isil in anbar province. 45 people died when a tank rigged with explosives was detonated at a military base southwest of tikrit. this is after attacks where isil used humvees taken from iraqi military. isil making gains from syria. it's reported that with intense fighting with northern aleppo province. the u.s. failed to extend the patriot act which gives security services powers to spy on

american citizens. the senate is now discussing its freedom act which imposes more control on data collection. to the crisis in eastern ukraine, united nations said more than 6400 people have died since the conflict began in april of last year. russian military has long denied it has been helping separatessist fighters there but al jazeera has found evidence of a russian troop build up and military maneuvers in the area. charles stratford send this report from close to the russia-ukraine border. >> russian military equipment on a train close to the ukrainian border. al jazeera has no way of verifying with these vehicles are being moved to or from. the equipment includes armored personnel carriers, medical supply vehicles and tanks. the russian military insignia and number plates have been removed or seemingly printed

over. we'll drive out of town to where we heard there was a makeshift military camp. we noticed clouds of dust over an area that looked like a farm. large military vehicles were moving in convoy along the traps. around ten kilometers behind me is the border of russian ukraine. the reason why there are so many troops in the area is because it's conducting military exercises and categorically denies that it's troops have been fighting along side separatist fighters along the border. there have been bases in this area for many years. the government described a question on whether it was prepare forgive an attack as completely inappropriate. a photo journalist shot these pictures in the same area of last week. russia has recently included the death of military personnel on what it describes as special operations in peacetime as a state secret. the government says that the law has nothing to do with the

conflict in ukraine. and recently released report details what it says is proof the russian military is operating in eastern ukraine. one of the authors of that report opposition leader boris nemtsov was shot dead in moscow before it was published. a close associate of nemtsov is in hospital fighting for his life. it is believed he was poisoned. russia says that it has the right to conduct military maneuvers wherever it wants in its territory. despite the sensitivity of its time and place. charles stratford al jazeera, near the russian-ukraine border. >> a trial of two al jazeera journalists in egypt has been adjourned until thursday. the latest of a number of delays. the prosecution failed to

present new evidence against mohamed fahmy, baher mohammed. they've been accused of spreading false news. they have been accused of supporting muslim brotherhood something that al jazeera strongly suggests. the defense will make it's closing arguments when the trial resumes. qatar is suing a french right-wing politician who accused it of supporting terrorism. vice president of the national front in france. he allegedly implied a link between qatar and the deadly attacks of the paris offices of the charlie hebdo magazine. >> accusing qatar of financing what it calls the killer of islam means that such a country is involved in such terrorist operations. we say enough is enough. the state of qatar which has the best relations with france, does not support terrorism. >> bangladeshi police have charged the owner of a clothes factory complex with murder two years after a building collapsed

killing over a thousand people. 41 others are also facing murder charges. stephaniestephanie dekker reports. >> they made clothes for some of the world's biggest brands. 1,137 people died when the factory collapsed. it was bangladesh's worst industrial accident ever. it opened the eyes of the world to the appallly safety starts of the clothing industry here. the owner of the factory was arrested soon after and now we know he will be charged with murder along with 41 others. lead investigators in this case say it was a mass killing and all charge have had a connected responsibility for the tragedy. if convicted they could be sentenced to death. >> whatever the verdict it will offer little consolation to those who lost their loved ones in a disaster that was completely avoidable.

>> the newly appointed chief exec i have malaysian airlines has announced a radical restructuring of the airline that is technically bankrupt. but he said that the decline had begun long before last year's two disasters. it has had $1.34 billion losses in past several years. and the downing of the he's aiming to cut 6,000 jobs, a third of the workforce and to rebrand the airline. >> a smaller fleet with a new look and possibly a new name. that's what is set to emerge from the malaysia airlines

restructuring. the new ceo described his plans with a harsh program with reason. 6,000 employees out of the 20,000 workforce will lose their jobs. the changes follow two tragedies involving malaysian airlines in the past 1 months. but analysts say that the carrier has been racking up losses for years. >> this restructuring is driven by business imperatives and the need for it was identified long before last year. i wouldn't put too much direction connection on the intensely competitive marketplace that the airlines operate and being competitive. >> it was forced to fly unprofitable roots to promote the countries' foreign policy. it had excess tax to powerful unions. and analysts say all this made its operational costs at least 20% more than it's rivals.

more people than ever are flying now. in fact, this industry revenue has doubled in the past decade but much of that growth has been driven by low cost airlines, which now have 25% of the worldwide market. and not expected to get bigger as they're expanding at a much faster rate than major airlines. in the asia pacific reason there are 50 budget airlines. one of the most successful is airasia. it dietz directly with offers direct competition. >> new entity, new shareholder new strategy, in large part new management. >> but winning back public confidence will likely be it's biggest challenge. al jazeera hong kong. >> smoking in public has been banned in china's capital beijing. the tough regulations prohibit

lighting up in restaurant and on public transport. that's with china having 300 million smokers. adrian brown reports. >> china has long been a smokers' paradise. previous bans failed mainly do to lax enforcement lacks enforcement. since children are considered to be most at risk from passive smoking. antismoking campaigners say there are clear signs that the authorities appear serious this time. >> for the first time the regulations clearly spell out what happens if someone does not adhere to the regulations. it's not just that the smokers will be fined but the owners of a business will be charged quite hefty charge if they don't help to make sure that their places stay smoke-free. >> it's not just bars and

restaurant that must comply. local historic sites including the great wall and forbidden city is now off limits for smokers. but in beijing the risk from passive smoking can be the least of your problems. some doctors say breathing the city's air on a particularly polluted day can equate to smoking a whole pack of cigarettes. they say that the ban is a start but does not go far enough. they want a significant rise in tobacco tax point out that a pack of cigarettes in china cost on average just $1.50. the world health organization hopes that can change. >> the more expensive cigarettes are, the less people will smoke and for us the better. >> but the industries ma be squeezed too hard. china has more smokers than the population of the united states.

and on monday we found one of them openly violating the new law. and the restaurant owner openly telling us to leave. adrian brown al jazeera. >> a solar plane attempting to fly around the world had to make a stop because of bad weather. it landed in japan. they took off from china on sunday on what was to be the longest leg of the journey. a six-day flight to hawai'i. the 36 hours in he decided to cut it short. the chairman says its still an incredible aircraft. >> it is fantastic. you fly in the only airplane that can stay airborne day and night with no fuel at all. it's a triumph of technology triumph of clean technologies and renewable energies. in that sense we're happy when we can fly with that plane and fly day and night.

that's the dream i had since 16 years since i completed the flight around the world nonstop in a balloon. to do this flight again but with no fuel. we're disappointed because the weather became worse on the pacific, which we know in a few days we'll be in the air again. >> in paris they've gun removing tens of thousands of pad locks attached to this bridge. they've been left there by tourists as a public declaration of love. but the 500-kilos of metal were proving to be a weighty problem for city hall. jacky rowland reports. >> it's early morning in the city of love, and a bit of romantic history is about to come to an end. they're closing off the bridge, a popular destination for couples to attach a pad lock to the railings as a symbol of their love. but the weight of the locks is threatening the bridge so it's

time for them to go. >> i found it ironic, we're here on our engagement to put locks of love here, and they're cutting them all down. maybe that's not an omen on our future relationship. >> i came here today after 42 years of marriage to put a lock on for my wife, and i can't do it. >> that's rubbish, of course. >> the whole saga of the pad locks has putcy hall into a tricky position. obviously it doesn't want to do anything to disrupt the tourists but he also has a responsibility to the people who live and work in the city. in the end it came down to public september. the fact that a bridge to could fall. >> so the bridge will soon be

released from its locks but one tourist thinks he has found a solution. >> i'll try to find another bridge. >> jacky rowland al jazeera, paris. >> of course, you can keep up-to-date with everything we're cover hearing on al jazeera. www.aljazeera.com. that's www.aljazeera.com. azeera.com. >> the senate is set to try again to pass legislation restoring the nsa spying authority. and the supreme court announce it was major decisions centered around the freedom of expression. and the field of republican candidates running for the white house gets more crowded. senator lindsey graham gets in the race.