>> hello this is the news hour live from london. coming up in the next 60 minutes: isil said it carried out a suicide bombing that killed 15 soldiers in saudi arabia. >> no closure relatives of mh370 passengers protest in china. many don't believe part of the missing plane has been found. >> hundreds of refugees rescued from a boat that sank off the lierian coast on wednesday arrive in sicily.

>> sailing an the suez, welcoming the first vessels on the suez canal. >> bowled out for just 60, a record breaking eight wickets felled by england poised to regain the ashes. >> fighters from islamic state of iraq and the levant claimed responsibility for suicide talks an security personnel in saudi arabia. 15 were killed in the attack in a town close to the border with yemen. at least nine soldiers were injured and are being treated in local hospitals while isil is becoming increasingly active in saudi arabia, they claim

responsibility for a suicide attack in may at a mosque. we have this report. >> this is where the attack took place. a suicide bomber managed to get into this mosque in the southern city bloke himself up and killing police trainees. the governor of the province i.v.ed the injured in a nearby hospital. fighters from islamic state of iraq and the levant claimed responsibility for this attack. 25 worshipers were killed in the heartland of saudi arabia's shia minority. last month police arrested hundreds of suspected isil members and displayed some of the weapons which were

confiscated. the saudi minister's interior said it stopped isil attacks on mosques, security forces and western diplomatics. the kingdom has seen a surge in violence in the last two decades when al-qaeda launched nationwide attacks. security forces led a crackdown. al-qaeda's top leaders were either killed, arrested or fled to yemen where they formed al-qaeda in the arabian peninsula six years ago. now, saudi arabia faces new challenges a fight at home against isil, and a military campaign in neighboring yemen against houthi militias. al jazeera. >> jane is with the middle east and north africa program at the global affairs think tank. thanks for coming into the studio. isil is proving it can strike in saws rain. how big a threat is the country now facing, do you think? >> it's certainly a severe

threat the most severe threat that saudi arabia that faced for a decade since it managed largely to contain the wave of al-qaeda attacks carried out there. >> where are the supporters of isil coming from within the saudi community? how are they being recruited? >> it seems that it's only a small minority of saudi's who will express support for isil as was the case with al-qaeda, but the movement looks particularly for disaffected unemployed young men with time on their hands, without much purpose in their lives and focuses on a narrative that the saudi government is corrupt that it's too pro western and they're offering an alternative system that as they portray it would be more just. >> the problem with the saudi government is a lot of recruitment these days being done in other country is on line and they are used to cracking down on protestors in the street but on line is a different matter. >> the internet is heavily

monitored in saudi arabia. face-to-face recruitment and communication is often more effective for these sorts of groups. >> how is saudi arabia likely to respond to this latest attack? we've previously seen hundreds of suspects people have thought are associated with isil. what is likely to happen now? >> questions will be asked about how the suicide bombers got inside the mosque. this is inside a complex that belongs to the security services. >> and not civilians. >> and raises questions about sympathizers that might have been been inside the security services but more broadly since saudi arabia faces this confluence of threats mentioned in your package, they will be debating where to place their energies have they been too preround with the fear of iran and perhaps looking west at the

current conflict in iraq and syria. >> it is part of the wider coalition fighting isil in syria and iraq, but a lot of the focus is on its border with yemen because of the houthis. >> saudi arabia has paid attention to jihadi terrorism since 9/11, but this year, yemen has been the main focus of attention for the new leadership. >> most of the attacks have been on the sheer minority in saudi arabia. how much pressure is there from the shia community for the saudi leaders to be doing more? >> many saudi shia feel that there needs to be a deeper look at saudi arabia's open education system and the general mainstream sculpture around it affecting religious diversity in the country which is very conservative and shia displayed sometimes at heretics.

>> the regime sometimes reflects the way society is very conservative in itself. >> jihadi groups like isil or al-qaeda have fused the very puritanical form of islam with more revolutionary interpretations that permit violence because more mainstream saudi clerics the key point is that it's i will legitimate to fight the government so that's where isil really deviates is that it says that non-state actors can take matters into their own hands. >> thanks so much. >> if the security situation in iraq deteriorates, more and more civilians are caught in the crossfire between government forces and isil. in may isil seized ramadi in their latest offensive. fallujah another key city in

that province is now under siege, as we report. you may find some images in his report disturbing. >> in fallujah, bullets and bombs don't discriminate and the wounds have only grown deeper. residents say the young are now just as likely a target as the old, that civilians of all ages of under siege from both isil and the iraqi army. >> look at this, this happened as a result of artillery shelling by the army today. look at this, are we terrorists waging the war? are these innocent children waging war? this is my daughter. she's dead now. what did she do to deserve this?

>> many parents who thought the hardest trial would be surviving this war are finding it harder to be surviving their children. >> we want medication and proper surgery. >> even hospitals are caught in the crossfire. this is her condition now. we want medication and proper surgery. >> even hospitals are caught in the crossfire. >> we are entering the second year of this crisis already. we're not treating terrorists, we're treating young babies, infants, we need proper attention and supplies. we need more doctors. >> instead, just days later, this sanctuary for the sick was turned into a casualty of war. here, moments after being shelled, the hospital corridor is lined with broken glass, as smoke billows through the air, a medic searches for injured patients and wounded colleagues.

homes are no safer. in this video, a man decries the killing of an entire family, enraged at iraqi officials he says are providing them with more destruction than protection. walking through the house he says was destroyed by government bombing raids, he points out all the blood stains. we can't even find the young kid under the rubble, he says. they say they are targeting isil. where is isil in here? are young children somehow now affiliated with isil? >> more expressions of pain come from this graveyard, where two sisters, their mother and aunt all killed because of air raids are laid to rest. >> while the anbar offensive may have officially started only a few weeks ago, for residents of the city of fallujah, war is all too familiar. many civilians there feel caught in a seemingly never-ending conflict.

>> iraqi government leaders who have vowed to defeat isil in fallujah and anbar province say they've arrived at the moment of truth. families in fallujah worry that promise only means they'll face more fighting and that their reality will become far more harrowing. >> we're getting reports of a large explosion in having afghanistan at district eight in kabul in the vicinity of an american and afghan army base, but no confirmation yet what the target might have been or what caused that explosion. an folks being heard in district eight in kabul the afghan capital in the vicinity of an american-afghan army base. our correspondent is kabul working to get more information and we'll bring that to you as soon as we get it. >> there have been street battles in the yemeni city of

taiz after local resistance fighters broke into a prison and freed detainees releasing 25 captured by houthi forces. taiz is yemen's third largest city and it has been under houthi control since march. >> one any of the eight yemenis who fled the fighting early this year returned home to aden. the city borders are now being secured and allowing civilian flights to bring home refugees or allowing in humanitarian aid. the saudi-led coalition is controlling all flights in and out of aden. >> the government announced that part of an aircraft wing that washed up is from the missing malaysian mh370 flight. some relatives of missing chinese passengers say they don't believe the debris from the jet has been found at all.

>> for 16 months, their emotions have swung between despair and hope. barging into the offices of malaysian airlines, they may have felt they had nothing to lose. some even believe the wreckage was planted on reunion island. >> it's not true. a lot of things would have been easy to find, but they didn't find them, like the chairs baggage and other stuff that's much larger. >> they want answers. this was not a protest against china's government, which is why it was allowed to happen. one placard appealed for help. >> it's not true. a lot of things would have been easy to find, but they didn't find them, like the chairs baggage and other stuff that's much lighter. >> during this time, we cannot believe anything, because aircraft had a g.p.s. the airline doesn't want us to know the truth. that's why we cannot believe them. >> they want answers. this was not a protest against china's government, which is why it was allowed to happen.

one placard appealed for help from china's president. by coincidence, his foreign minister is in malaysia attending a regional conference. the search should continue. at the same time, we agree with malaysia that we should find out the truth and start rolling out the next phase of the plan. >> quite what the next phase is far from clear. analysis of ocean currents shows search teams looking in the right area, but it's a vast area of ocean, australia's prime minister, though, is hopeful. >> it suggests that for the first time, we might be a little bit closer to solving this baffling mystery. >> malaysia's prime minister is now animate that the wreckage found on a small french island did come from mh370. these people don't believe that. after an emotionally draining time since the jet disappeared the psychological strain has more than taken its toll.

>> on friday, they will attend a briefing given by a senior airline manager. there will be many questions but undoubtedly not enough answers. al jazeera, beijing. >> still to come from london, 21 years a court looks at what happens in the aftermath of this shocking attack. >> ready for his closeup donald trump prepares to debate his fellow republicans in the u.s. >> news of a big name signing for the french football champions. >> aid agencies adescribing to help away quarter million people affected by flooding in myanmar. 74 people have died as a month of unusually heavy monsoon rain

caused vast areas of the country to be flooded. we have the latest. >> this is one of four states declared a disaster zone because of the severity of the flooding here. >> this is one of four states declared a disaster zone because of the severity of the flooding here. it's also the state that recorded the highest number of people killed by rising floodwaters or in landslides. in the capital, planes have been flying in, transporting much needed relief supplies. the international red cross that said it's scaling up its emergency response because of the severity of the humanitarian situation. in some parts of myanmar, areas are still completely cut off. aid workers haven't been able to reach those areas either because the roads have completely disappeared or become impassable because of landslides. some reports say there are villages in need of clean

drinking water and it will become increasingly urgent that aid workers reach these areas in the coming days. rain is expected to continue which means that you could see more areas being inundated with floodwaters, especially in central myanmar in places already severely flooded. there are some dams already nearing capacity and in the delta region, some rivers have already exceeded the danger levels, which means we could see more water in the coming days. >> landslides in nepal killed 90 people and 35 others are still missing. aid agency says are struggling to reach people affected by april's earthquake. people in the district say that latest disaster could have been avoided. >> shocked by the death of loved ones, mourners in the village in west nepal line up for a memorial service.

july 30, villagers woke up to a rumbling sound. by the time they walked out of their homes, parts of their village were swept away by a massive landslide. 27 died. one is still missing, feared dead. >> our entire village is in grief. >> after coming back from visiting relatives, she found she had lost everyone, mom brothers, sisters, all six of them. neighbors hope that her dad, a migrant worker in qatar comes back soon. i asked her if she needed anything. the thick smell of death, of rotting flesh is heavy here. all the cattle that were buried under debris have not been pulled out. >> this area of nepal gets the highest amount of rain.

sections of this mountain is made of very loose soil and when rain water percolates in, it makes the entire mount be side makes the entire mountainside fragile. >> 35 hectares of forest were swept away. a major cause of the disaster is a haphazard believe of new roads. >> development activities have to be done keeping possible disasters in mind and making sure they don't happen. here, even though environmentalist assessments are are done for infrastructure development, suggestions are not carried through, risking people's lives. >> more areas are in danger in the district, where at least 35 people have died. across nepal, floods and landslides have killed more than 90 people already this monsoon and as usual, people were unprepared. on the day of the landslide, he was busy pulling out the injured.

>> we never knew this area was dangerous. now we are told this entire village is in danger. it is not like asking one family to move, the whole village has to move. where will we go now? we are grieving here, everything including our grief is here. >> houses next to the landslides are perched precariously. there was heavy rain the night the disaster struck, more rain than in decades. locals say had there been a warning system, this tragedy could have been avoided. al jazeera, nepal. >> argentina's former president is standing trial along with other officials accused of trying to obstruct the investigation into the bombing of a jewish center in buenos aires in 1994. no one has been convicted of the attack that killed 85 people. al jazeera has more from buenos aires.

>> this trial started back in 2004, and at the time, the trial was suspended and all the defendants acquitted when the judge in charge of the tribunal was found trying to bribe $400.000. they wanted to know why he was bribing the reasoner of the van used to do the bombing. he is accused of cover up of abuse of power, apparently, the case against him involved him trying to deviate the investigation involving a family friend of syrian or in, so all of these things are going to be debated for about a year and around 140 witnesses are going to be presented here. since the very beginning, there was accusation against iran in this whole trial. what this trial specifically is

trying to investigate is what is called the local connection, who facilitated the attack locally who facilitated the van, the explosives among other things. the former president is chief of intelligence among others are banqueted in this case. >> the republican presidential candidates are taking to the stage in ohio, as tom ackermann reports. >> i am announcing that i'm running for president of the united states. [ cheers and applause ] >> the republican nomination for president of the united states of america. >> republican contenders who have officially declared for the presidency. >> i am putting myself forward as a candidate for president of the united states of america. >> last and by no means the final count, more than 120 men and women are running. 17 of them have been invited for the first debate, still too many

to fit on the stage at the same time so they will be split into two shifts. the main act to feature the 10 oh contenders with the highest average rankings in the polls. after the 2012 election which saw barack obama defeat mitt romney, republican officials decided the primary debates had hurt more than helped their nominees' campaign. >> i think our debate calendar needs to be shrunk. we had way too many debates candidates slicing and dicing each other and they had to wait too long to get to the convention. >> slicing and dicing is the specialty of the front runner, billionaire businessman and t.v. personality donald trump who doesn't hesitate to bad mouth fell republicans. >> you need somebody, because politicians are all talk, no action. nothing's going to get done. they will not bring us, believe me to the promised land. >> somebody who brings that level of aggressiveness to a debate and is that prepared to

go for the jugular is just going to be shocking to a number of these people when they're on stage with him. some will find it very hard to prepare for this debate. >> four years ago rick perry learned the perils of stumbling in a primary debate. >> it's three agencies of government that are gone when i get there commerce, education and the what's the third one there, let's see... >> perry is one of three major candle dates making another try for the nomination. in the past, candidates were more likely to drop out of the race as their donations dried up. >> we are joined live from cleveland, ohio. the main contenders preparing for their debate later what can we expect? >> the center of the debate will be donald trump standing in the middle of the stage flanked by the 22nd standing people in the polls but those two don't

have or trump has twice the standing, if you believe these polls and of course they're debatable in themselves, they -- he is twice as popular as the two of them and so the inevitable situation will be that they will try to be cutting back at trump cutting down trump without necessarily being exposed to offensive attacks on his part, and he is known to be as we heard from that consultant, very good at going for the jag larr, and he is an insult artist. he doesn't hesitate to talk about his opponents in the personal so the question is will they try to elevate the debate to a more statesman like level, will trump try to elevate his debate to a more states man like level. we'll see. the other question is to what extent are they getting into issues. remember that this is a debate

that is intended primarily not to the american public at large but to the republicans and republican leaning voters and of course the very wealthy donors who are able and willing to bank whoever they reward as the most electable as most probably hillary clinton. the question is what issues resonate most with them, and they may not at all be what americans at large are talking about, facebook, which is a co sponsor of this debate has ranked the most discussed topics in america on their pages and they are in this order racial issues mexico, the economy same sex issues, and immigration. of course, immigration will inevitably be a very interesting topic of discussion, to see what kind of nuances all the candidates will be talking about. like many of these debates the republicans will be united for example on being united on

tightening up immigration that is particularly unauthorized immigrants in the united states closing the borders to them. >> thanks so much. we look forward to hearing from those contenders a little later. >> still to come, losing the battle to educate future generations in south sudan. unicef says civil war means only one in 10 children will compete primary school. >> also, appetite for destruction, why western food imports are being seized and destroyed in russia. the country hoping to net basketball's biggest tournament.

>> welcome back. a reminder of the top stories here on al jazeera. isil said it carried out an attack in saudi arabia in which 15 people were killed. a suicide bomber targeted a mosque used by army personnel. in iraq, the number of civilians

injured or killed in the fight against isil is rising, anbar province is one of the worst history and hospitals are under increasing pressure. >> the crisis in myanmar deepens as aid agencies scramble to help a quarter mill people affected by flooding that has already claimed 48 lives. >> the number of mike grants crossing into europe has reached 224,000. almost 400 survivors of wednesday's ship wreck in the mediterranean were brought ashore. an irish navy ship carrying the migrants docked in the italian port of palermo. more than 200 may have drowned when their boat overturned. >> >> hundreds of refugees rescued from a boat that sank off the libyan coast on wednesday arrive in sicily.

thursday, 367 migrants from all across africa and the middle east arrived safely here. they were given first aid food, water, shoes anything they needed before they are taken to a number of reception centers. six other people rescued yesterday on wednesday were airlifted to a nearby hospital on the nearby island of lampedusa because of their serious conditions. 25 people whom drowned were recovered from the sea who were on the same ship were taken away, but the death toll is still unclear. according to survivors, the boat was carrying 600 migrants and if that is true and there is no way to as i remember it, of course as the ship has sunk and many bodies may be lost at sea, the death toll may be as high as 200. this is once again a tragedy. it is understood that once again

when they saw this ship approaching in the distance, all or most of the migrants moved to one side of the boat, causing it to capsize and causing so many people to lose their lives. >> learning the language is a big obstacle. there is a school set up to teach french in calais. >> this tiny shelter may be the beginning of a brighter future for some of the desperate people who come here. the makeshift school was set up last month in the so-called jungle camp in calais. the majority of people in this class have given up risking their lives hiding in the back of trucks or clinging on to trains to try to get to the u.k. many have applied for asylum in france. arriving in the camp four months ago, he has a wife and four children in sudan.

>> all the teachers here have volunteered. >> in general, they come with no french at all and some only basic english. some can't speak english at all. that's very difficult for us. >> most don't intend to stay in france. >> the majority of people in

this camp are still determined to get on trains and get to the u.k. >> riot police blocked people trying to climb onto trucks headed to the tunnel. their journey to a better life isn't over yet. >> up to 500 afghan migrants have been living in a makeshift camp in central athens. we have this update. >> look what has happened to the biggest park in central athens. it's become a refugee camp. hundreds of people from afghanistan above all of here. we understand that there have also been some syrians, as well. it's a graphic illustration of the greek state's failure.

there are many women and children here around this is not a comfortable place to be in the middle of summer in which temperatures in central athens can reach close to 40 degrees celsius. there's little running water available and few toilet facilities. although the camp has been here for about a month there's a constant change over, a turnover in terms of who's actually sleeping here. typically, groups of migrants come in, they've come from turkey and then through the greek islands they arrive in central athens and only stay here for two or three days and then they make their way north heading towards serbia, hungary into the e.u., and then more people come to take their place. well what is the greek state doing to provide any humanitarian assistance to these people to regulate them, work out who they are what their

needs are? the answer is very little. what help is available here is coming from local non-governmental organizations and from activists in the city of athens, including amicus groups. first the municipality of athens the city authorities have said this situation is unacceptable and in the coming days they intend to move hundreds of people from here to temporary housing that will be made available by the greek army on the edge on the western edge of the city of athens. >> the u.s. penalty delivered a scathing attack on burundi's leader for defying his countries constitution and running for a third term in offers. the controversial decision prompted months of violence and forced hundreds of thousands to three to neighbors countries. i asked whether the u.s. would

now consider downgrading its relationship with the african nation. >> well, we've already pursued some forms of sanctions and all policy options are on the table but the primary issue right now given the level of the political and humanitarian crise is for all leaders in burundi to call for calm and to have an immediate resumption of a political dialogue to find a path forward for a country that's already seen 200,000 refugees flee. >> the reality is, isn't it that the president didn't listen to the international committee about postponing the elections. why is he going to listen now when there is so much pressure on him to have some sort of power sharing government? >> i'm just back from burundi and the feeling there is incredibly tense. we've seen a series of high profile assassination and assassination attempts, including one of the leading human rights act visits in the country, as well as a former

general. these are issues that could heighten tension there. i think that any responsible leader needs to call for calm and the president to his credit did so after those killings. we need that kind of leadership from all sides to assure people are not using violent means to solve this but going back to the table for political dialogue with that leadership. >> south sudans education system is in crise. only 10% of children will complete primary school. the civil war is making it harder to get education, they have few classes and few teachers. girls suffer the most. we have this report. >> a pair of socks and shoes might be her most precious possessions. when they fall apart and she can't replace them, she can't walk the four hours to and from

her primary school. >> when i can't come to school, i get very upset. i cry for days for my mom to get me socks and shoes. >> at 17, she is older than most of her classmates do to all the interruptions in her schooling but she's determined to keep learning and her mother is supportive. she works selling if if a laugh fell in the market in the morning. >> sometimes we going to sleep without food in our stam macies. >> unicef says less than 10% have all children will complete primary school. getting families to simply enroll their girls also remains an obstacle. only 35% of students in the country are girls.

>> they look at that as money. it is more or less useless to educate them. >> the head master said after south sudan seceded the government made promises to improve the educational system. there were hopes of a new curriculum more schools and supplies and better teacher training. instead, he says his students have no textbooks and teachers struggle with dilapidated schools and overcrowded classrooms. the civil war has erased the small gains made. for poni, each school day she's fighting to get an education. al jazeera south sudan. >> russia is cracking down on food importers who have been ignoring a year long embargo on

western produce. imports were banned in retaliation for sanctions imposed after russia annexed crimea. some imports have been sneaking through. >> these young women are on a mission to protect russia's unsuspecting shoppers. a year on from the embargo on western tuesday's it's still possible to find banned products in the shops. an offending packet of nuts is discovered and the manager is given a lecture on correct patriotic retail efforts. >> this item is banned both by origin and production. >> reprimand finished, the nuts are tagged. selling them is not a crime only importing them is. they can only warn shoppers of such goods. this has a picture of the stars and stripes of the united

states the golden stars of the european union and standing in front of them, a russian bear. >> they promote the consumption of dom foreclosure produce. critics say such organizations are carefully nurtured by the kremlin. >> we presented this project at the youth forum. it's important that people and customers are behind us. >> raised an russian supermarkets have coincided with a move by the government to get tough on embargo busting. putin's presidential decree orders the destruction of all seized contraband food. this was filmed by russia's federal custom service and shows some of the 550 tons of banned food seized seized across crossing

the border this year. dimitri is a food industry entrepreneur who knows the loopholes and tricks that have allowed embargoed products to get in. >> there are three ways to bring embargoed food. first food is repacked. second goods through other countries get lost en route third, the come toes are fake. >> finding embargoed goods in russian shops is the exception rather than the rule. banned products have been replaced with russian food or imports from non-embargoed countries. for in our at least the dramatic price increases triggered by that process appear to be tailing off, a little consolation for any russian still mourning the limited choice the cheese counter currently offers. al jazeera moscow. >> >> the first ship passed through

the newly widened suez canal with egypt marking the occasion with a lavish ceremony. they were attend by a high profile delegation, including the presidents have france, russia and palestinian territories. we have followed the day's events. >> the great egyptian dream kings and presidentses gathered for an inauguration rich in pomp and patriotism. leaders from across the arab world attended and the french president, francois hollande. the suez expansion is designed to double the number of ships sailing between europe and asia. it has great political significance for egyptian president al sisi, who after years of unrest says he now wants to unite the nation. >> the new suez canal is not

just an engineering achievement. there's a great dimension to what's been done. we've given egyptians confidence more peace of mind and less worry about the future. >> earlier in the day he traveledual the widened canal by presidential yacht. flanked by the egyptian navy, the $8 billion project created a bypass along the original route and deepens and widens the waterways. it took 10 years to build. the new channels have taken only 12 months to dig employing more than 40,000 workers and soldiers laboring around the clack. the egyptian government heavily promoted the new look canal describing it as a channel of prosperity. on the streets of cairo some of publicly celebrated its opening.

they expect to see a share in its profits. it could be many years before ordinary egyptians feel any benefits. the government hopes the channel will double toll revenues within eight years and help refloat egyptian's ailing economy. while deep, social and political divisions remain in the country, the so-called great egyptian dream may be wishful thinking. al jazeera. >> there's plenty more to come from london, including calls for peace in a city that suffered massive destruction in war. japan remembers hiroshima. >> breaking down footballing barriers gaza welcomes a west bank team for the first time in more than a decade.

>> five maidens, eight wicket for 15 runs. the 29-year-old took five wickets for six runs of his 19 balls, 8-15 included two kicks in his first over. the first was 300. he's now on 307 making

england's highest test wicket taken. >> it was just one of those days that you dream of, really, home ground to pick up 300 test wickets and then get a career best. i mean, my previous best ever bowling was 7-12 in 15, so it's nice to get that against australia. >> >> tougher days as a player and captain. knowing before the test match it was our grand final but also as captain, you need to be as positive as you can be and understand it's day one down to the test matches. >> a palestinian team is hosting a team from the west bank, the first leg of a cup match.

we have this report. >> a simple handshake sealing a significant step towards unity a moment 15 years in the making for the thousands of fans at the stadium. welcoming west bank opposition to gaza for the first time since 2000. >> this is a step forward, but no matter who wins this match palestinian is the winner. >> we hope that such a match helps in achieving unity. we came from the extreme north of the gaza strip to watch. we wished to go to the west bank to watch those matches. >> the arrival in gaza brings those hopes closer. the meeting between the two cup holder is more than a match a memorable move towards a single palestinian lead. while both sides had their chances, the game ended 0-0 for once the results have little relevance. >> it was a great experience.

it is so important for our teams to move between gaza and the west bank. >> this is an important experience to break the siege imposed on gaza. we want them to come to the west bank to play. it is an indescribable feeling. >> the palestinian football association accused israel of restricting the movement of players, even calling for israel's suspension from world football a motion dropped at fifa's congress in may. despite the delayed arrival due to travel permit problems, israel have given the green light for the return leg as both teams travel back to the west bank on friday, fans have been given hope for the future. al jazeera. >> the fifa presidential ambitions appear to be over for the liberian football president. he failed to obtain support at a confederation meeting. the 54 member nations are considering who they will support in february's election

with a man they have favored seth blatter having stepped down. >> finally an official player, having signed a four year deal with the french champion, they signed him last summer, but he had a disappointing season, costing them a report $90 million, but has been reportedly sold for just under $70 million. >> i want to win every competition we enter to win the champion league. we will do everything we can to bring europe's biggest trophy to france. >> the host of the basketball world cup will be announced on friday. either the philippines or china will be chosen. the philippine bid rests on the fact that they have the largest indoor stadium in the world with a seating capacity of 55,000, and on their passion for the sport, as we report from manila.

>> for the villagers, nothing gets in the way of basketball. it's the most popular sport in the country, and the it's said that there's a hoop and a game being played around every street corner in every village across the philippines. these young boys say there's nothing like it and many dream of making a career in the sport someday. >> i want to be famous. it's the only thing i like to play. >> professional basketball players are national superstars. they are the highest paid athletes, earning up to 30 times the minimum wage. with the sport a national obsession, basketball games are broadcast live and among the most watched programs on t.v. it dates back to the early 1900s when it was first introduced by

american colonizers. the professional league here is the oldest in the world outside of the united states. >> many commentators have tried to explain why basketball is so popular in the philippines where people's smaller stature might be considered detrimental to the sport, but the game is seen as a great equalizer, bringing people across owl social backgrounds together, rich or poor can play or watch side by side. >> the philippines was a leading player in international basketball during the sport's first 50 years, but has lagged behind since the 1960's when countries with bigger players and more money for training came in. despite that, no other asian country has been more successful in either the olympics or world cups. >> it's a religion. you know, if you are, you know ask anybody any questions about basketball, if it's local, or an nba, everybody's drown to it.

it's just the biggest thing here. >> it's that passion and deep relationship with the sport that filipinos hope will win them the honor of hosting the 2019 basketball world cup. the national team's fortune coach agrees. >> it can generate huge crowds and they will be unlike any in the world. they'll be gigantic and passionate. there's noplace else in the world to recreate that. it can't be done. >> filipinos have never let the image of being the underdog stop them. through victory or defeat on this or any other court, they are buoyed by passion determination and heart. >> we await that decision with baited breath. thanks very much indeed. >> you can always find out much more on our website news and sport of course, at aljazeera.com. that is just about it from me. please don't go away, i'm back with more in a couple of

minutes. see you then, bye-bye.

>> isil said it's carried out a suicide bombing at a mosque in saudi arabia, killing 15 soldiers. hello, this is al jazeera live from london. also coming up, no closure relatives of the mh370 passengers protest in china. many don't believe part of the missing plane has been found. >> hundreds of reef gees rescued from a bolt that sank off the libyan coast wednesday arrive in