monitored) [ ♪♪ ] a yes vote in greece - the parliament approves the contentious eurozone bailout deal after clashes on the street hello, welcome to al jazeera, live from our headquarters in doha. i'm elizabeth puranam, also ahead. the u.s. president... >> it solves a problem, making sure they don't have a bomb. >> the u.s. president urges congress to support the iran nuclear deal. >> whoa. >> celebrations in yemen as the government fighters make gapes against houthi rebels in the

battle for the port city of aden. up close and personnel - n.a.s.a. releases the first pictures of an historical flyby near pluto greece's parliament has approved tough economic measures needed to open the door for talks on an 86 billion euro bailout package. prime minister alexis tsipras struck the controversial deal with international creditors on monday in brussels and the end to 290 m.p.s voted in favor, 64 against, and 6 ab stained. half of the no votes came from within the governing syriza party. we have this report from athens. >> reporter: at the end of a long day greek prime minister alexis tsipras pleaded with parliament to mass austerity measures he didn't believe in. >> translation: i will admit that the measures we are tabling

are harsh and i don't agree with them. i don't believe they will help the greek economy. i say so openly i say that i must implement them that is our difference. >> and parliament obliged. 229 voted it through. an overwhelming majority of m.p.s. the memorandum, as controversial as it was, was expected to pass. alexis tsipras can't breathe easily yet. he must go from worrying about whether greece will go bankrupt to worrying about the fractures this his own party. dozens of alexis tsipras m.p.s voted against it underscoring how difficult economically and politically the road ahead will be. [ chants ] >> reporter: earlier in the evening as demonstrations in athens began, a sense of exhaustion was apparent, with thinner crowds and quieter

chants than expected. >> marching behind me is the communist block. they are calling for revolt. they want out of the eurozone, out of europe and out of n.a.t.o. they are converging around the square, and although there are riot police, they want the situation to remain calm. so far it's been more volatile inside parliament than it has been outside parliament. as the sun went down the anger built up. inside parliamentarians hurled insults, while outside protesters hurled molotov cocktails. crowds dispersed as fast as the tear gas fired at them. protesters departed by the time m.p.s voted. now the question will there be a collective sense of relief or has the struggle just begun so what does the bailout bill many for greece?

for the 86 billion euros, the government will have to return value-added tax. taxes on small company and luxury taxes will have to go up. they'll have to reform the pension system cutting payments and increasing the retirement age, and transfer 50 billion euros worth of its assets into a fund supervised by the e.u. jacob is a senior fellow from the peterson institute of economics and says the vote will help the banking system. >> first of all, the vote passed with three-quarters of parliament support - that is good news for greece. i think it makes it virtually certain that the euro group tomorrow will have a teleconference and approve this and send a signal to the european central bank that it is okay for it to increase the assistance to greek banks, which may mean that may be as soon as tomorrow, maybe only friday

that the limits on government withdrawals, which is currently 60 euros a day, will be raised somewhat to maybe 150 or 200. who knows. that will be big news for the average greek. the europeans knew that when they struck the deal this weekend, because the managing director of the i.m.f. was at the negotiations in brussels and the other thing is that therefore, the fact that they struck the deal signals to me that they are prepared to give greece debt relief probably as early as 2016, provided that alexis tsipras does his part of the homework so that the i.m.f. can agree to join a new deal which, from the perspective of the i.m.f. begins march next year so in that regard i don't think there is a big, sort of confrontation brewing between the europeans and the i.m.f. they are actually coordinated, and debt relief is coming to

greece. let's move on to other news. u.s. president obama is defending a landmark nuclear deal with iran saying it makes his country and the world safer. the agreement is expected to be fought over in congress for the next two months. patty culhane reports. >> reporter: a confident u.s. president. >> i think there's a helicopter that is coming but i really am enjoying this. >> reporter: he kept talking long after the news conference was supposed to end. the focus selling the iran nuclear deal. arguing that if the u.s. congress prevents him lifting sanctions iran will not be isolated. >> the sanction system unravels. and so we could still maintain some of our unilateral sanctions. it would be less effective. maybe they don't $100 billion, maybe they get 60 or 70. >> reporter: he's not the only one making the days.

israeli president binyamin netanyahu was all over tv warning about the deal. >> for them we are the little seed. >> a.p.a.c. made it clear that it will do all it can to kill the deal in congress. the president indicated he'll take them on directly. >> for all the objections of prime minister binyamin netanyahu, or for that matter, some of the republican leadership that has spoken - none of them have presented to me or the american people, a better alternative. if the alternative is that we should bring iran to heel through military force, then those critics should say so. >> reporter: the obama administration is going all out to keep his own party members from defecting, sending the vice president to capitol hill, and the defense secretary to israel with words of reassurance. it's clear that will not be enough to stop israel battling the president in congress.

a day after the deal was announced battle lines were drawn. we may not know for two months which side will win. >> to iraq now, where at least 23 soldiers and an i.s.i.l. fighter has been killed in an attack north of baghdad. it happens in baiji, laying on the main road. government forces are moving closer to ramadi and the battle to retake anbar from i.s.i.l. in syria at least 13, including children have been killed in government air strikes. helicopters reportedly dropped barrel bombs in aleppo province in the north. i.s.i.l. fighters have been gaining ground around aleppo. elsewhere rebels are trying to make inroads into the government-held city of latakia. it's one of a few cities under full government control, and has seen months of fighting. >> photos of alleged torture and

executions by the government has been shown to the u.s. congress. pictures were taken and smuggled out. they were put on display as critics of the obama administration accuse it of abandoning attempts to end bashar al-assad's role. tom ackerman reports. >> reporter: these are images of horror leaving little to the imagination, a body scarred by am pew takes -- amputation gouging and starving. they were taken in two damascus military hospitals on the order of the syrian government intelligence services. the unidentified man who claimed to take the photograph is code name assessar, a former -- seizar a former military photographer. he defected with more than 50,000 images of torture. syria dismissed them as forgeries, the fbi and others are convinced they are authentic. a sample on display by the

holocaust museum was put on exhibit in the capitol building. a former detainee described how he had to walk over dead bodies on the way to be questioned and tortured. >> it took them five hours of beating me it get tired, before carrying me to my cell. >> he identified two photos a doctor and a neighbour who were never involved. a senior public politician said america lost its moral clarity by backing off action in response to the first confirmed reports of syrian chemical weapons attacks. >> that was a moment in time for us as a nation to step forward with an operation that could have greatly changed the momentum. >> another condemned the decision to restrict u.s.a. to syrian opposition fighters. >> we are training people. the plans are to train more. send them to syria to fight i.s.i.s. and not vow to protect

them against bashar al-assad's barrel bombing. that, my friends, is a shameful shameful policy. >> reporter: it's feared the u.s.-iran nuclear deal will enable the iranian republic to support bashar al-assad. >> the iranian guard operate on the same base i was arrested. we know their effect. when i talk to extended family in damascus they tell me they see iranian, iranian officers like, at the checkpoints, standing there. >> reporter: u.s. military action may fall short of what is demanded by some. but they are moving to document alleged war crimes in syria, for the one day when the victims may get justice. still to come - japanese soldiers could get the green light to fight overseas for the first time since world war ii.

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good to have you with us i'm elizabeth puranam in doha. these are the top stories on al jazeera. the greek parliament has approved the controversial bailout deal struck with eurozone nations on monday. 229 m.p.s voted in favor, 64 gains. prime minister alexis tsipras faced revolt from his own syriza party, with 30 members voting

against the deal president obama says the nuclear deal with iran will make the world more secure. obama made his case during a news conference responding to critics at home and abroad and urged congress to ratify the agreement. congress say they'll oppose it. in yemen supporters of the exiled president celebrated as houthi forces were overtaken, they were pushed back from aden's main airport let's go to japan where the lower house is debating a contentious set of security bills, that could change the defense policy. these are live pictures of the debate in tokyo. wednesday, there were protests in and outside parliament. opposition m.p.s tried to stop the vote but a key parliamentary committee approved the legislation. let's go to our correspondent harry fawcett now, he has been following this closely, and is

in sole for us. prime minister shinzo abe, why is he so keen to move on this to change the constitution here? >> well, this has been a long held ambition for shinzo abe to in his point of view normalize japan 70 years after the end of world war ii. the passivist constitution held up until now, which has constrained japan's military to the terms of defending its own territory. as far as shinzo abe is concerned, this security situation changed in his neighbourhood, and the rise of china, the more assertive nature of china, in terms of territorial disputes with japan and others means that japan has to play a muscular role in terms of military capabilities. that is why last year he saw the cabinet, led the cabinet to

change the interpretation of the constitution to allow japanese forces to go to what is called the collective self-defence of an ally if that ally is under attack. now we have this legislation, which is debated, as you can see, heartily again in the diet in the japanese parliament on thursday. we saw the chaotic scenes on wednesday, pushing through cabinet. it seems it will go further than coming to the aid of an ally under mortal attack. this will be labelled japanese forces to work closely in cooperation with their main ally, the u.s. in the region, in north-east asia allowing them to come to logistical support of the allies further afield. one scenario is mine sweeping in the gulf. if there was to be an oil blockade, allowing japanese forces to act in humanitarian crises and disasters under the auspices of the u.n. so as for as his opponents are

concerned, it's a deep change to the way japan handled the military. >> if there is so much opposition to the bills, are they out of touch here with what the public wants? >> well his argument is that he won an election at the end of last year won it handilly. the opposition was in disarray. it was cast as a referendum on abe-nomics. they have been performing well in the months since, and will perhaps see he's in a position of power. the opposition has been growing rapidly as the reality of all of this really does bear down on the japanese public. anywhere between 56 to 80%, depending on which poll you read, of japanese citizens are

against the bills going through, there's some disquiet within the party and his main ally in the ruling coalition about the tactics used. most of that within the politicians, as been about the way he promised to his main ally in the united states during a state visit, that he would get this through parliament by the end of the counter session, september 27th allowing japanese forces to work in the new way by the end of the year. the opponents and allies are saying he should never have made a pledge before the legislation had been published or debated. we are seeing the opposition within and without. he has the numbers in the lower and upper house to get this through and is determined to do so. whatever the political cost at home. >> harry fawcett joining us live from seoul there to yemen, where houthi rebels are suffering a setback in the southern city of aden.

supporters of the exiled president have celebrated the losses. houthi fighters have been cornered in the city's port and lost control of the airport on tuesday. we have this report. >> reporter: with no movement on the diplomatic front in yemen, it's on the battlefield that developments are happening. fighters loyal to abd-rabbu mansour hadi have taken control of aden's international air force, or what is left of it. they have been making significant advances to recapture the southern port city which, if they do will tip the balance. they call this operation golden arrow, the first time fighters on the ground engaged with a joint operation with a saudi-led opposition which has been conducting air strikes for almost three months. these pictures show new reinforcements including armoured personnel carriers driven by pro-abd-rabbu mansour

hadi fighters. they captured areas home to compounds, and the special forces military base. >> translation: we are going to focus our attention on other areas in the city and by the bravery of young fighters we'll recapture all of aden. >> aden is the second city taking control of it would allow for president abd-rabbu mansour hadi and his government to return to the country and potentially launch a campaign to recapture the capital from houthi rebels and allies loyal to deposed president ali abdullah saleh. >> there's fierce fighting in tiaz which is on the road between aden and sanaa. there pro-abd-rabbu mansour hadi fighters propelled an attack by houthis and their allies, who attempted a raid on the main prison compound. >> most of those fighting for president abd-rabbu mansour hadi never fought a war, but have the advantage of air cover from a

saudi-led coalition, which is ade a plant about defeating the houthis and salah. almost three months of air strikes failed to change the situation on the ground. now that the fighters are coordinating their efforts, and in the absence of peace talks, this could be a decisive battle for yemen libya has accused the united nations security council of hampering effort to combat i.s.i.l. affiliated fighters. libya's ambassador to the u.n. says the security council is yet to respond to a request to import new weapons. libya's internationally recognised government had the council's approval. >> translation: regrettably, and i would say this frankly, mr president, the committee indirectly contributed to continuing instability, as well as entrenching terrorism in

libya, beinsisting on an undeclared veto. >> a cost of national accord can be the only interloquitur through which the growing threat of d.a.e.s.h. and groups can be tackled the egyptian government modified part of a draft anti-terrorism bill. under the proposeded law reporting an attack is a criminal offense if contradicting the government's version. it imposes financial penalties instead of prison terms. egypt gaoled a record number of journalists in recent years, and there's restrictions on reporting in the country. the government approved plans to honour murdered prosecutor. the site of anti-coup sit-ins two sittens will be renamed after the prosecutor. 800 were killed in 2013 a member of the egyptian

rule of law society says that the new draft bill does not protect journalists from prosecution. >> the draft law that has been circulating since february has five articles that could lead to the imprisonment of journalists, especially if they move outs of anything contrary to the state narrative. in egypt, there has been statements made. those in the official media and by government officials, that call for media journalists, sct and suspicious. one went as far as to say that egypt is facing a 2-front war, one against the terrorists and the second against foreign media, that is out to tarnish the image of egypt. with the new draft law that was protested on saturday in front of the journalist syndicate, the changing of the punishing of journalists for saying anything counter to the state nar difficult. taking out a 2-year prison

sentence and replacing it with a fine was a way to apiece journalists. if we look at the principle, it is saying anyone writing or speaking against the state narrative as a foreign journalist can be prosecuted. >> u.s. president george h.w. bush has broken a bone in his neck after falling at his home in the state of main. he is in stable condition in hospital, and will have to wear a neck brace a german court convicted a 94-year-old man of being an accessory more than 300,000 murders at a nazi death camp. known as the bookkeeper of auschwitz worked as a guard, collecting belongings from jews as they arrived, and has been sentenced to four years in imprison contracts offered to

international companies for the first time as part of a reform programme by president peno nieto of mexico. only two of 14 oil fields up for sale were purchased. adam raney has more from mexico city. >> for more than 80 years pemex, mexico's national oil company has been the only player. that changes. earlier on wednesday the government opened up 14 exploration blocks forbidding. it attracted attention. all may not be shown off. some are more appetising than others. it shows we are entering an era of competition, a long state-run monopoly is no longer a monopoly, and an oil analyst says it's effectively a game changer. >> effectively it's breaking up pemex's monopoly. it's the first stone in

transforming an industry. >> although there has not been so much interest in this first round of bidding, there'll be subsequent rounds in the coming weeks and months and that will be the crown jewel that is for companies allowed to bid on deep water products. they'll attract attention, they are lucrative products, and the country has been unable to truly take advantage of reserves in deep waters in the golf of mexico. they benefitted by being a monopoly on oil in this country and could find a silver lining. if they are able to modernize and produce more and more one analyst said it will be a lot better to have something assured, than a resource dwindling under their watch after a 9-year journey, n.a.s.a.'s fastest unmanned spacecraft is sending back the clearest pictures ever of pluto, john hendren takes a look. >> reporter: this is pluto as

never scene before. n.a.s.a.'s new horizon's spacecraft flew past it capping an operation that began 50 years ago. the nuclear-powered probe was watched by scientists at john hopkins physics lab as it passed between pluto and its primary moon sharon. fasten your saturday belts, new horizons landed at pluto. >> yesterday america's space programme took a leap for humankind. today the new horizon team was bringing a blurred point of light into focus. >> pluto is the last major unemployed body in the solar systems. n.a.s.a. officials say they have learnt something new. >> pluto is a lit the larger than anticipated.

we have good measures of its diameter and radius. it's 1185km, plus or minus 10. that settles the debate about the largest object in the copier belt. new horizons spent more than 8 hours looking back at pluto, for a series of experiments, photographing it and mapping it. it took 4.5 hours to send back the time it took radio signals at light speed travelling to earth. once considered an icy dead world, the new images say that it contained mountains and water a main building block of life. >> the steep topography means the bedrock making the mountains must be made of water ice. >> it will take 16 months of new horizons to transmit back the measurements. pluto was demoted to the status of a dwarf planet. objects are believed to be

remnants of the solar system 4.6 billion years ago. a reminder that you can keep up to date with all the news on the website. that's at aljazeera.com. >> on america: cosmic cash. buying in on the most valuable souvenirs from space. >> did it go to the moon and orbit the moon, did it land on the moon, was it taken out of the lunar lander? >> "america tonight's" adam may. and gearing up, the pentagon's most expensive weapon system ever and should it be cleared for takeoff.