tv News Al Jazeera July 8, 2015 12:00pm-12:31pm EDT
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bosnians remember as russia vetoes a u.n. resolution recognizing the massacre as genocide. ♪ hello, good to have you along. i'm david foster you are watching al jazeera live from london. after months of conflict could yemen's warring sides be close to agreement? israel's bombardment of gaza destroyed 18,000 homes, a year on not one has been rebuilt. a warm welcome for tsipras,
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though not everybody is impressed with his reform package. ♪ russia has used it veto power to block a draft resolution at the u.n. which would have labeled the mass killings in bosnia 20 years ago, genocide. the majority of security council members voted in favor of the u.k.'s proposal to condemn the massacre as genocide but russia used it veto as one of the five permanent members. the vote comes just ahead of the 20th anniversary of the killings. in bosnia itself, thousands of people marching in memory of those who were killed. the three-day peace march as it is called will retrace the path taken in 1995 by those men who fled the eastern bosnian town in
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hope of escaping the serb forces. let's go to gabriel live for us at the united nations. where did russia decide it didn't want to see this resolution passed? >> reporter: well, russia essentially thought that this resolution was unfair and basically pointed the finger too much at the bosnian serbs, and as we know that russia has very close cultural and political ties to the bosnia serbs and serbia, so they are being pressured to veto this and that's exactly what they did. this was very strong worded language by the russian ambassador when he took to the floor and explained the veto. let's listen to a little bit. >> translator: the draft submitted by the united kingdom turned out to be not constructive confrontational and politically motivated. the blame for the past is placed
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basically on one people. the approach to which you single one responsible party for a war crime is not legitimate and can result in greater division within the bosnian society. >> reporter: for the u.k. and the united states this was clearly unacceptable especially for samantha power, the u.s. ambassador to the u.n. she was a young journalist in bosnia during this massacre and this was her response to the russians. >> why would russia vote to deny recognition of the genocide? today's vote mattered. it mattered hugely to the families of the victims of the genocide. russia's veto is heart breaking for those families. and it is a further stain on this council's record.
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>> in fact samantha power there was a journalist at the time of the bosnian conflict believed to have seen an awful lot of what happened firsthand. let me move on to what might or might not happen now, gabe because this was picked symbolically because it's 20 years since the massacre. does that mean that it has gone away now that russia has vetoed it? or could the idea surface again? >> reporter: well, it's important to note that this has been labeled as genocide by the international justice tribunal so that precedent has already been set, but this going beyond or any further in the u.n. security council, it is probably not going to happen in the sense that we already saw last year, for example, that the security council did take up the issue of the rwandan genocide
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and that resolution was adopted. this one clearly much more controversial, and probably won't be taken up again by the undersecurity council, the issue has been dealt with here and russia has spoken and used their veto power to essentially rip up this resolution so it can't go anywhere forward. >> gabriel, thank you. live at the united nations. ♪ well there are growing signs of a possible truce between yemen's government and houthi rebels after months and months of fighting. we'll get the details now from mohammed jamjoom live for us in doha. we have seen a lull in the mighting on one occasion before does this look like it could be
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something long lasting? >> reporter: david the news is really underscoring how complicated the conflict has become. while you have the spokesmen for yemenese government saying they have informed the u.n. that they have accepted a conditional trust, we must stress that that is a conditional trust that we're hearing about. yemen's government in exile say they will accept a ceasefire if the houthis withdraw from areas they have taken over and if the houthis release prisoners that the government has been asking for to be released for quite sometime. we have not yet heard from the houthis. while there has been a slowdown in fighting today and yesterday, air strikes are still taking place. over a million have been displaced in this three months of fighting. the situation on the ground extremely bad still. aid workers not getting in. on many occasions ships have not
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been able to enter the port of aden to bring food and medical aid, other supplies to the people of yemen who desperately need it. so while this is good news it is still going to take time to find out when and if this ceasefire will actually take hold. i can tell you that everybody i have spoken with on the ground in yemen for the past few weeks they have been expecting a ceasefire to be announced since the beginning of ramadan. and people are wondering why humanitarian pause has not yet taken effect. david? the >> mohammed thank you very much indeed. it has been a year since israel began its bombardment of gaza. the united nations says 75% of the victims were civilance. among the israeli victims 66
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soldiers, 5 civilians who lost their lives, nearly 470 soldiers, and more than 260 civilians were hurt. the united nations says 18,000 homes in gaza were destroyed and many more will damaged. and it will cost nearly a billion dollars to rebuild. >> reporter: this man hasn't climbed these steps in nearly a year. they used to lead into what was once a large home he shared with his extended family. now all that is left is rubble. he also lost much more than his house during last year's war, he also lost most of his family. these photos are all he has left of his wife three sons, daughter-in-law, and grandson who were all killed in an israeli strike. he says for the past year he and the surviving members of his
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family have barely been able to make ends meet and that hamas and fatah haven't done enough to improve things. >> translator: hamas and fatah are both too busy fighting each other than trying to help us. they only give money to their own supporters but not the needy people. only god can help us. >> reporter: international donors including the united nations and gulf countries have pledged billions of dollars to rebuild gaza but israel's siege which has lasted for years, means badly needed construction materials haven't been allowed in despite offers by the united nations to oversee the continuing blockade of gaza means just 1% of reconstruction material needed has been delivered. according to the united nations, the influx of goods is so slow that it could take up to 30 years to rebuild. which is why around 20,000
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palestinians now live in temporary shelters like these. most don't have electricity or running water. and extended families often have to share just one room. as living conditions worsen many here are becoming increasingly angry. senior hamas spokesman says he understands the frustration. >> the people are suffering. that's why we have to do everything to help people. we have to open the crossings, to give a chance for reconstruction. but as i said this is now the mission of hamas and fatah to walk together and put all of the differences behind their back. >> reporter: that is small comfort to this man. at 80 years old, he is now the main guardian of his four young grand sons after their parents were killed. he says it finds it difficult to worry for their futures when their lives now are so hard. the greek prime minister has been talking to the european
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parliament calling for what he describes as a fair deal to keep his country in the euro. he spoke after e.u. leaders set a deadline for the end of this week for greece to come up with its proposals. >> reporter: after the brinkmanship of refusal and referendum in greece the prime minister made his case to the european parliament. >> translator: today we come with a strong mandate from the greek people and we're determined not to clash with europe, but to tackle head on the establishment in our country, and to change the mind set which has taken us and the euro zone down. >> reporter: the grandstanding is unlikely to have improved e.u. leaders who gathered in brussels only to discover that the greeks would not present new reform proposals until thursday.
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>> until now, i have avoided talking about deadlines, but i have to say it loud and clear that the final deadline ends this week. >> reporter: the view is that we're into the final countdown, a matterover days to term the future of greece and itself people. but at places like this a charity serving those who have really nothing left that may mean that life is about to get marginally better or much much worse. doctors of the world cares for the swelling armies of migrants asylum seekers, and greece's own sick and poor. this man hasn't had a job for two years, no pension or medical insurance, but he does have a medical condition. >> translator: if i did not have this place, i would fight for as long as i could not stand on my feet and then i would jump off
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of the acrop louse. >> reporter: how does a charity survivor when the givers can no longer afford to give. >> if this situation continues the people will stop offering because they cannot have access to money. they won't have money. they won't have any food items to bring, so it will collapse. >> reporter: this woman is a german doctor. >> i'm feeling very weak after living 25 years in greece. >> reporter: whether a deal is struck to save greece in the euro zone will depend largely on german leadership and german money. >> i'm sure they know the people are very bad. and many german journalists have visited, and i'm quite sure they are going to try to do the best. >> reporter: but in brussels and berlin, as in life there are
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security council resolution which would have condemned the 1995 massacre during the bosnia war as a genocide. yemen's government has told the united nations it has offered a conditional truce to houthi rebels. there has been no comment from houthis as of yet. a year after israel began its 50-day bombardment on gaza there is little sign of recovery. the u.n. says it will cost nearly $8 billion to rebuild the palestinian territory over the next 20 years. we'll get on to financial events in china in just a moment, but an update on what has been happening in new york. the stock exchange has been closed down. we understand it is a technical fault. just to keep you up to date on that. now china, the government says it is doing everything it can to contain a potential crisis on the stock market there. it has fallen yet again closing
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down by 5.9%, and dramatic losses in asia's other top markets. hong kong 5.8% down. that's the digest drop since the global financial crisis seven years ago. china's markets have now lost a total of $3.25 trillion. losses being driven down by fears about china's economic growth. and the country has ordered a ban on major shareholders from selling off their stakes in the next six months. some people suggest it is more important to the world economy than what is happening in greece. scott heidler has more. >> reporter: the markets in china closed down again on
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wednesday. the shanghai index closed down nearly 6%. this ads to the nearly 30% markets here in china have seen a selloff in the last several weeks. something else we see continuing on wednesday, and that is more companies are taking their shocks off of the market. they are not allowing them to be traded. the total number is about 1400. the central government has react. they say that state-controlled enterprises that are traded openly on the market they will continue to be traded. the government has also encouraged senior managers and large stockholders to continue to trade on these markets. the government calls what has been happening as a panic. but we have seen certain mechanisms put in place over the weekend, these statements today, and commitments today, the market selloff is still continuing. an iraqi court has sentenced 24 people to death over the murder of hundreds of mainly
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shia soldiers last year. as many as 1700 soldiers were killed by fighters from the islamic state of iraq and the levant as they carried out their offensive through northern iraq. many of the soldiers killed were fleeing a former u.s. military base. another 604 suspects are wanted in connection with those killings. video pictures posted online are said to show the aftermath of a gas attack in the northern syrian city of aleppo. activists are accusing the government of using chlorine gas on monday. the attack is said to have tapped near a scientific research compound. the u.k.-based syrian observatory for human rights says more than 40 people have been killed in aleppo since monday. the first round of talks between afghan officials and the taliban have ended and are set to resume after the holy month
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of ramadan. pakistan hosted the initial summit aimed at hosting nearly 13 years of war in its maybing state. kamal heidler is our man. >> translator: although it is not clear as to who was representing the afghan taliban, the pakistani foreign office has issued a statement saying that meeting between representatives of the afghan taliban, the afghan government and the presence of representatives from the united states from china, with full backing of the leadership, met about 45 minute's drive from islamabad. those talks were held in a chordal atmosphere. pakistan thanking all of the parties, including the afghan taliban for participating in those talks. now although the afghan taliban are on the offensive in one province and have gained fresh
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territory, there is also the emergent threat of isil which is trying to make inroads into afghanistan. on that count the afghan taliban have reportedly fought several skirmishes with isil. so there may be a convergence of interest, but it is early days and the important thing will be to see what kind of progress is made in the next round of talks that is going to be held after ramadan. monsoon rains in nepal are presenting you dangers to those who survived the earthquake. the wet conditions have brought with them landslides in mountainous areas where people have been taking shelter in makeshift camps. >> reporter: in this district headquarters colorful tents dot the hills. every bit of flat land has been occupied here. every few days another tented
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camp pops up nearby. this man walked three days with his six children from his village. >> translator: there have been massive landslides in neighboring villages. in our village rocks have started to fall. now it's no longer possible to go back to our village. >> reporter: most survive beneath these tarps. but he says he is not even worried about that. >> translator: [ inaudible ] are still up in our village. they haven't been able to abandon their livestocks. they are harvesting crops. some 50, 60 villagers are still up there. those in the village, how will they survive the rains and the landslide landslides. >> reporter: more than 500 have moved here and more are on their way. in this district alone, more
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than 2500 people need to be resettled. the district government has been told that they need to start the resettlement process by the 15th of july. >> translator: our main challenge in this emergency is lack of resources. we have estimated the budget in the work plan. six month's expenses for each family will be around $3,240. we need around half a million dollars for the resettlement of the total proposed population. >> reporter: the district government hopes that the budget needed will be swiftly handed over from the central emergency fund and it is still not clear whether these people will ever be able to return home or whether they ever will. south sudan's rebel leaders called on the president to
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resign by midnight or bring about a revolution. he is asking the international community to pool its support for the government. >> reporter: in this strategy meeting, south sudan's rebel commanders weigh their options in the ongoing battle between their fighters and government troops in parts of the country. generals and other influential individuals from both sides of the conflict have often been accused of being hard liners and hampering negotiation brokered by the intergovernmental authority. >> reporter: so you don't consider yourselves hard liners or spoilersover the peace process as a general on the
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ground? >> yeah, because i don't even know the reason. >> reporter: they all say they want peace, but fighting is still going on despite a ceasefire. according to the u.n. many have been killed their homes burned women raped and tens of thousands of people displaced in the latest government offensive. rebels are also on an offensive in a neighboring state. both sides blame each other for starting the fight. >> translator: we are not the ones that are rejecting peace. but let me ask you, if i kill two of your children how do you start peace? the only thing that can stop the war is salva kiir's removal from the helm. >> reporter: the rebels claim
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they tried to ethnically cleanse the second largest tribe in the country. the commanders here say they will not accept anything less than separate armed forces for at least three years. these generals say that 18 months is not enough to heal wounds and build trust between the rival forces. >> to organize and come together as a national army of south sudan, is that -- that one will not be enough. and that you will force people to fight again. >> reporter: these men are all-important advisors to their leader. they say they will follow his lead but will not accept something that will not properly address the route cause. for the next two days leaders from across the americas are talking climate change in canada. ahead of a massive world meeting
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taking place in december in paris. so how do they lay the ground work? here is daniel lak. >> reporter: this two-day meeting has been called by the government of ontario, that is their legislature, what they are doing is bringing together other subnational governments. big-city mayors al gore is here, and others. they are discussing how those levels of government can impact climate change. notable by its absence is canada's central government. >> it's a important to have these kind of discussions. you have people from countries across the americas and it's really embarrassing that canada's own national government isn't here to talk with others about how we can work together to stop dangerous climate change. we need on the ground action that means putting a price on pollution, investing in the
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alternative, things like public transit, renewable energy and taking the science seriously. >> reporter: what we're going to hear is how the largest provinces are dealing with climate change. canada has announced greenhouse gas mitigation targets for 2030. they are going to be 30% below 2005 levels. that has been widely dismissed by most people who follow the climate change file. appropriately enough we have pictures of a massive volcano in western indonesia. the town below has been blanketed by ash and smoke. it has been erupting since early june. more than 10,000 people so far
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have had to leave their homes after the volcano was dormant for 400 years. it's a threat level of the highest possible category right now. ♪ major computer problems hit yat -- united airlines and the new york stock exchange. greece submits it's latest plan for a bailout. and one year after the war in gaza nearly 100,000 people are still displaced. the slow process of rebuilding. ♪
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