u.n. peace keeping chief in central african republic is forced to quit after troops are accused of rape and murder. ♪ hello, i'm lauren taylor this is al jazeera live from london. also coming up, this important city has been held by houthi rebels for months, now rival pro-government fighters are closing in. an important friend visits syria's president in damascus, and rebel jets pound

neighborhoods. plus -- ♪ >> why this band will soon become the first western rock group to perform in north korea. ♪ hello, united nations secretary general ban ki-moon has forced his special representative in the central african republic to resign following allegations that u.n. peace keepers have committed rape and murder in the country. amnesty international says troops have been linked to the alleged rape of a 12-year-old girl, and the killing of a 16-year-old boy and his father early this week. ban ki-moon has this to say a short time ago. >> enough is enough. today i have accepted resignation of my special representative, head of the

united nations multi-dimensional integrated stabilization mission in the central african republic. >> let's go live to gabriel who is live at the united nations in new york. tell us more about the investigations and how this all came to light. >> reporter: very strong words from ban ki-moon he said he was anguished, angered and ashamed by these allegations. they date back to august 2nd, the early morning hours when allegedly u.n. peace keeping forces that were in some sort of conflict or clashes in the pk-5, mostly muslim enclave in the capitol, came in to contact with some residents there, and there was fighting and clashes back and forth, and that's when this alleged rape of this 12 year old girl happened. the next day was the alleged killing of a man and his teenage son in the same community.

ban ki-moon announcing just a few minutes ago not only that he was basically firing the head of the u.n. peace keeping mission there, but also saying that he is going to call a special session of the u.n. security council tomorrow or thursday, here to discuss this matter. ban ki-moon also saying he will hold an emergency video conference call with all of his force commanders from all 16 piece-keeping missions arrange the world to discuss what is going on and get better informed about all of this. clearly taking it very seriously. this is not the first time allegations of misconduct have been lodged against u.n. peace keeping forces in the central african republic. it started last year, and there have been numerous allegations this year as well. this peace-keeping force has only been around about a year and five months. it is one of the more troubled

systems right now, and clearly ban ki-moon felt he needed to step in to make changes. >> is this a suggestion that actually the abuse or allegations of abuse are more widespread than we're getting at the moment? >> reporter: well, the u.n. does have a high-level panel investigating all of these allegations from the central african republic right now. the results of that investigation have not been made public yet, but ban ki-moon said he hopes he will get that report soon. the allegations date back to last year when there were allegations lodged against french troops in the central african republic of sexual misconduct there. they were not peace-keeping troops, nevertheless that started this u.n. investigation. since then there have been numerous allegations of sexual misconduct and overuse of force by piece-keeping soldiers,

working on behalf of the u.n. in the central african republic, so it's not the first time. clearly it's a very troubled situation, but the fact remains that in some ways there's very little that the u.n. can do about it, because according to international law, any u.n. peace keepers that are found guilty of misconduct are just simply sent back to their home countries to face justice or not. so in some ways the undercan respond to this. they investigate it, but ultimately what they can really only do is send these peace keepers back to their home country. this particular mission has troops or personnel from other 45 different countries. >> okay. gabriel thank you very much indeed. houthi rebels are strengthening defenses in the yemeni capitol sana'a after suffering more losses to the

south. rebels loyal to the exiled government are now in the strategic city of ibb. >> reporter: in the early hours fighters take up positions in the mountains. the winding roads lead to the city of ibb. an important flash point as pro-government troops advance to the north. in recent weeks they have made sweeping gains in the south. >> translator: we say to the popular resistance, go on, the people are behind you and victory is coming. >> reporter: the fighters supporting president hadi who remains in exile in saudi arabia have been able to seize control from the houthis with the help of their allies. saudi arabia, and the uae are supplying weapons, vehicles and advisors which seems to be changing the fighting on the ground. anti-houthi tribes in ma'rib are

reportedly being supported by the saudi-lead coalition. if they manage to take ibb completely they will face desist importance in da mar. the other approach is from bada, where there is also heavy fighting. >> the introduction of the grand modern armor tanks, and the trained yemeni by saudi, make the shifts, and i think after the fall of ta'izz and ibb, sana'a will be surrounded sort of. that's the aim of the coalition. i think they want to surround sana'a, and especially the troops coming from ma'rib. >> reporter: but the houthis also have support, hundreds of protesters gathered in the capitol and condemned the saudi-lead air strikes. >> our presence here is

confirmation that we remain steadfast and will never retreat, and we will stand against this new colonialism. >> reporter: there are reports of talks to try to find a solution, brokered by yemen's neighbor. so far the u.n. hasn't been able to help negotiate a ceasefire in a war that has claimed hundreds of lives and put millions more at risk because of lack of basic supplies. pro-government fighters see themselves in a position to defeat them. al jazeera's hashem ahelbarra has reported exensively in yemen. and joins us live now from doha. give us the latest on that fighting in ibb. >> reporter: i was talking to sources on the ground, and they said the fighting has been flaring up over the last few hours, particularly in the center of ibb. pro-government forces are

confident that the recapture of the city is just a matter of time. they in fact think that they will be able to retake it tonight. very crucial, because ibb is a crucial supply route for government forces in their push to seize the capitol, sana'a. there's also fighting underway in ta'izz and al-bida. this is a province that neighborhoods, seven provinces, and then you can easily have reinforcements from ma'rib. >> will it get more difficult once they get beyond a certain point? >> reporter: in a way we can say that pro-government forces are turning the tide in one way or another. we have seen them make significant gains in the southern part of the country. most of southern yemeni is under

their control except in the province of shabwah. they are launching an offensive in ta'izz and they still have the backing of the elite republican guard which is loyal to the former president saleh. they are stationed in various places, and also they have strong presence in the capitol sana'a, and this is where we expect the decisive battle to take place. so we're now in a position where we can see the government forces are confident. it's time for them to make that significant military gain on the ground for them to be able to move forward and say now we are ready to negotiate a settlement with the houthis, that the houthis have been defeated. >> there are talks in ammon between the u.n. and the houthis. >> the houthis told the united nations they are now in favor of

a political settlement. they are pretty much concerned about losses they have suffered over the last few days. united nations envoy traveled to meet with president hadi, but for the time being, it doesn't -- the yemeni president doesn't seem to be in a hurry to negotiate a political settlement, particularly that his forces are making these significant gains on the ground. it seems that hadi and his allies are waiting -- wants to have some time, see his fighters gain more territory, particularly around the capitol, sana'a, at that particular moment, i think ho might step in and say, we need the houthis to talk, but the government still has a set of conditions. they say we will only talk to the houthis if the houthis pull out of the areas they control and recognize hadi as the

legitimate president. >> thank you very much indeed. ♪ iran's foreign minister has met the syrian president in damascus. he is likely to discuss a four-point proposal. iran wants to offer the u.n. to end syria's civil war. the plan reportedly includes a ceasefire and a national unity government. iran is one of assad's strongest supporters. thousands of fighters have been sent to syria to support government forces. the visit comes after rebel fighters shelled central damascus. at least five people have been killed. and government forces are targeting rebels on the out skirts of the city where at least 40 have been killed. a 48-hour ceasefire is underway close to the lebanon border. they agreed to the pause after several days of fighting. the ceasefire will allow food and medical supplies to be

brought in. from neighboring lebanon, zana hoda has more. >> reporter: the foreign minister held talks here in beirut before traveling to damascus to -- to -- to meet with the syrian president, bashar al-assad. iran has said that it has a peace plan. it has a plan to solve the war in syria. the foreign minister did not divulge any details, but what we understand from iranian state media, is that it involves a ceasefire, the creasation of a national unity government, maineding the constitution, as well as holding elections under international supervision. no menning of the fate and future of bashar al-assad. the opposition is unlikely to accept any deal that would see the syrian president stay in power. in fact saudi arabia, which supports the opposition, made its position very clear after talks in russia, saying that we

consider assad as part of the problem and not a solution. an isil-linking group in egypt says it has killed a croatian man it has held by houthi hostage. the announcement of his death was made by a social media account belonging to isil supporters. the group had tlented to kill him, unless muslim women prisoners were released from jails. rumblings in global markets as china devalues its currency again. and how a rise in sexual violence has left the women of south sudan too afraid to work. ♪

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♪ hello again, a reminder of the top stories here on al jazeera. the united nations secretary general ban ki-moon has forced the head of the u.n. peace keeping forces to resign amid allegations of rape and murder. the pro-government fighters in yemen has gained control of the city of ibb. and iran's foreign minister has met the syrian president, bashar al-assad in damascus. libya's prime minister has threatened to resign. the leader of the country's government in tobruk made the

announcement during a television interview. at least six people have been killed in a suspected boko haram attack in northwest nigeria. the blast took place on tuesday at lunchtime when the market was at its busy itself. aid workers in south sudan says sexual violence against women have increased since the civil war began two years ago. natasha ghoneim reports. >> reporter: each day the displaced women here walk into the bush to collect firewood. they'll spend half a day trying to collect enough to sell. some say they are returning beaten and raped. >> translator: they pointed a gun at us, and told us to drop the firewood and follow them. >> reporter: this woman we'll call mary to protect her

identity says she and a group of women were gang raped by south sudanese soldiers at gunpoint. >> translator: after they do a bad deed and they leave you like that, you are almost as good as dead. you are useless. all that is left is that they shoot us. >> reporter: these women are faced with a choice, trying to earn money when food is scarce, or staying inside this camp where they are protected by u.n. peace workers. the u.n. international committee says it has helped thousands of women here who have been victims of sexual violence. women told us they were beaten and raped by government soldiers. but aid groups say all parties in this conflict are guilty of sexually assaulting women. the government launched a campaign to encourage more women to report rape and seek treatment. but some are accusing it of doing nothing to stop soldiers

from using rape as a weapon of war, an accusation the government denies. >> we will not allow them to do that, if, you know, we have now actually dispatched a team to investigate, you will find, you know, things that, you know, will shocked you, simply because the people whom you are actually interviewing don't want to say the truth. it's a mere complaint against the government. >> reporter: mary now worries that she has contracted a disease. she says she is too terrified to return to the bush. other women we spoke to say they are afraid of being attacked too, but they are still collecting firewood and taking the risk to survive. natasha ghoneim, al jazeera, south sudan. italian navy has rescued a boat carrying more migrants off of the coast of libya.

they say 50 people were aboard the rubber dingy when it was rescued, but 50 others are feared missing. 201 other migrants have arrived at a sicilian port. refugees in northern france say they are using people smugglers to get to the u.k. because they can't get there legally. the build up of migrants is causing a major problem for authorities in both france and england. lawrence lee has been speaking to some of the refugees in dun kirk. the governments have a new front line, here, not in calais, but down the coast near dunkirk. the cars belong to sm smog -- smugglers who for a fee offer to transport the people.

>> 90% are responsible for what happened to. so now they have to get these people, and let them lie -- let them live here -- here in europe, better, and because we have no choices. >> reporter: doctors of the world are here handing out blankets and tents despairing at a system that forces the vulnerable to pay people who have sometimes been known to harm them. >> last time i met a young afghan man with a bandaged forearm, he unravelled the bandage and there was an enormous bash on his forearm, and he said he was pulled off of a truck by a people smuggler and attacked. it has to stop. >> reporter: no sign of the police, and the conditions are absolutely desperate. everyone said they wanted to get to the u.k. legally, but had no choice than to break the law. i they were all from the middle east, clawing at the one meal a day the local volunteers could

offer. it's really hardly surprising they want to get out of here. immigration isn't a new thing. the problem is that we have let this situation deteriorate, and some people are profiting from it. back at the other camp, the smugglers were on their way again, and the refugees demanded we stop filming the car. they have decided that paying is probably a better option than risking the railway line in calais. the people smug smuggling operations have become the latest target of the british media. but you have to ask yourself what choice do that have. this offers them a better chance of getting on a lori. all of the authorities told us there was nothing new in what was happening, though in the u.k. it has suddenly become the perfect vehicle to whip both the european union and these communities at once, and of course avoids any discussion about where the asylum policy has disappeared to.

u.s. presidential hopeful, hillary clinton is handing her private email service to the country's justice department. her political opponents have accused her of side stepping record-keeping laws. let's go to our correspondent in washington, d.c. now. patty culhane. >> reporter: this has been going on for months. first we learned months ago that secretary of state hillary clinton while she was secretary of state didn't use a government email. she used a private server that she kept at her home in new york. now what that meant is that any sort of government records and laws that say that you have to provide emails if congress asks for them, or the public does, that meant they didn't have access to be handed over. so in response the clinton campaign handed over more than 30,000 emails they said they were going to go through them and make them public. this whole time, the secretary insisted that the server was

safe and that she never used classified information on that server. there was none of that information, she insisted over and over. now the inspector general was given access to just 40 of the 30,000 emails and he found two that were listed as top secret, that is the highest classification, for any record of the government. so this is bringing all sorts of new questions into this. now the campaign the secretary had said all along that she was not going to hand over her server, now that this has come out, she has handed over her server to the fbi. she has already admitted that not only did she decide which were private and public, she deleted the ones that she said were private the ones that were public. >> briefly how is this impacting on her white house campaign? >> it's having a huge impact. she has been thought of the whole time of of course she's the front runner kind of

candidate. listen to this, new hampshire, that's the first state that actually votes in the primary, this candidate that everybody wrote off as fringe, bernie sanders a center from vermont, a self declared socialist, he is now beating hillary clinton in new hampshire 44 to 37% an absolutely huge development especially if you think about this. if you look at poles in all of the important states the ones that platter, overwhelmingly people say clinton, they just don't trust here. >> thank you very much indeed. global prices for nickel, cooper and [ inaudible ] have hit new lows as china devalued its currency for the second time. china's economy is slowing, and the cheaper currency, makes its

exports cheaper. this expert explains the central banks move. >> number one they are looking at hopefully strengthening exports throughout the rest of the year, a weaker currency will make their goods more competitive around the world. the currency has essentially pegged the u.s. dollar, so as the dollar as strengthened, it put a lot of pressure on chinese manufacturers. that's reason number 1. reason number 2 is the chines are looking at how they can make their r&d more part of international currency and adjust to what other countrisies are doing around the world. a rock band has been invited to perform in north korea.

the band has often courted controversy, wearing military uniforms, and they have been accused of being ultra nationalists. >> reporter: they have rocked london. they have toured the united states six times, and packed out stadiums from mexico city to moscow. next they'll perform in north korea. the reclusive communist country known for its military marches, mass gymnastics, and resistance to western pop culture. its citizens have no rock bands and no idea what to expect from the group. >> translator: we love to play for people who have no idea who we are. because of the reaction of the audience is much better. more honest, as they are not overloaded with information. ♪ >> reporter: the band have always courted controversy with

their videos and live performs often wearing costumes that invote toal tearism. but for them, when it comes to the north korean ray sheem they say everything is relative. >> translator: they do have a total tearism system. >> reporter: crowds will be treated to a mix of songs, including the sound of music, a favorite in their country. >> translator: we will play three of their songs, and do our classics, including life is life. >> reporter: considering this is a popular song in north korea -- ♪ >> reporter: the nation might be in for a bit of a surprise on august 19th and 20th. as to the performers who have their passports and mobile phones confiscated when they

land, they have promised to behave. >> you can also catch up on the latest by going to our website, aljazeera.com. and you can watch us live by clicking on the watch live eye done. aljazeera.com. ♪ the government's environmental watchdog is in colorado today after the huge toxic spill that contaminated rivers in the southwest. hillary clinton volunteers to hand over her personal email server. and newly released video of a violent night in ferguson. police say a suspect can be seen pulling a gun on officers. ♪