>> hello and welcome to the news hour. at the top stories on al jazeera. this agreement and division as european governments struggle to respond to the refugee crisis. police in protests in the east. why president obama is accused of sending mixed messages as he heads to alaska as he talks

about climate change. plus... [ gunfire ] tracking down the drug traffickers in peru the police who have been given license to shoot down smuggling planes. >> european governments are scrambling to come up with a response to growing numbers of refugees issue is calling disagreement and even hostility. in hungary where the government is hitting back over criticism of its policies, some people have been allowed on trains towards austria and germany. others have been trying to get across by car. but austria is stepping up checks. in macedonia, which is isn't in the e.u. where the police are firing stun grenades, people have been getting on trains north. and in increase they've been arriving on ferries from the

island of lesbos. processing over to austria, what is happening on austria's border, rob? >> there is a train now heading towards the austrian hungarian border, and it is believed that there are large number of refugees packed is one word used by witnesses who are on that train. it's not clear what the austrian authorities will be doing. but they began at the train station in budapest. a lot of refugees have been camped out there over the last several days. they apparently decided to try to get on this train without the proper papers, tickets and so forth and many did so. there were hundreds on board

this train when at the reached the border, austrian authorities stopped it and said that it was overcrowded, dangerously so and they took some of the refugees off and said that the refugee previously applied for refugee status and asylum would be sent back to hungary while those who had not applied for apply sum status will be allowed. a lot of these refugees have been chanting their desire to go to germany. as their ultimate destination. meanwhile. in the wake of that horrific discovery of 71 suffocated human beings in a truck parked on the side of the road in use tre use trein austria. authorities have begun to step up some checks of advance,

lorries and trucks along the border. they found 200 refugees in the vehicles, and they've arrested five suspected human traffickers. but all that is causing a huge back up along the border. this is a major highway and artery between budapest and austria, and the traffic scans are now up to 30 kilometers long. >> rob, thank you for that update from vienna. well, hungary's government has been hitting back in some particularly harsh criticisms from france saying that the areas are not even fit for animals. >> the hungarian government is defending its action saying it's merely complying with e.u. law it says team without visas can't leave the country. this is what the government spokesperson had to say.

>> it's not about asylum but the illegal board crossing. it's unacceptable that over 150,000 people come through the green borders without any kind of discipline, order or law. so what they're trying to establish in the borders of hungary and serbia, which is the border to put some kind of discipline in this huge innews. >> discipline, order and law for refugees who are escaping from an absolutely appalling law in syria. is that the best approach? >> it is the best because they have no way of proving their identities. it is only through rules that hungary and the european ruin would be able to handle the influx. >> ban ki-moon, the international office of migration, an abundance of human rights groups are asking for

more coordinated approach. they're asking for hungary to be more logical and careful and coordinated in its approach rather than building up 175 kilometers fence. aren't you at least considering being more careful with these refugees, and want to go actually give them sanctuary in the rest of europe rather than turning them around and sending them away. >> you use a word that should be corrected. up until we establish identity we don't know if they're refugees or if they're not. these people who are coming from four, five, seven countries, and they should be put under some kind of discipline to establish their identities. >> the government here said that it's actively seeking clarification from germany on what it means by referring to syrian refugees as being able to seek asylum in germany itself. there are unconfirmed reports that there could be moves for

germany to start taking in refugees on hungary directly on trains. but they have not been confir confirmed. it isn't a clear situation as to what is happening next for the refugees who have been stuck at these rail ray separations. separation. >> europe must work together on the issue said chancellor angela merkel. >> we have a humanitarian responsibility. we need to establish registration centers and talk to african nations, talk to countries that are in civil war and insure that there is a fair distribution of refugees across europe. not what is currently aning across serbia, macedonia and hungary. >> well, merkel said that the refugee crisis the u.s. and the

republic of ireland has opted out of the agreement. earlier this month, germany's interior minister warned that it's membership may be unsustainable unless other countries share the burden of accepting refugees. last week belgium prime minister called for a review of the rules to allow more checks from passengers identity and luggage and reinstating border control. thanks for being with us on al jazeera. the current policy, if you can call it a policy that exists to accommodate this issue of refugees and migrant has been described as incoherent, how should the policy be amended in order to find a solution? >> well, i think we have to

think more comprehensively about the issue at stake. first of all, the e.u. should be much more proactive in the crisis areas in trying to prevent crisis from happening in the first place. second, we need to bear in mind that 98% of refugee in neighboring countries, lebanon and turkey, the e.u. should have a bigger program or strategy in helping these countries cope with refugees. third, we should clamp down on the illegal smugglers. this is a group of people who try to make money on the plight of refugees, this is not be the case. and the e.u. needs a better strategy across the e.u. and internationally to deal with the much more integrated system of asylum seekers and also having an integrated system of immigration. >> a lot of people say that the wealthier e.u. countries have a responsibility to assist the

poorer countries with this. >> we need sharing across the european union. you can take different considerations, the size of the country, the wealth of the countries, so on and so forth. but a lot of countries simply do not play ball to be quite frank. we need to reinstate the principle of solidarity among the member states. >> this principle that you outline going to be reinstated in the september 14th meetings, this emergency meeting that e.u. countries are holding to talk about the refugee crisis? what is going to come out of that? >> well, i think the best we can hope for is there is now a fundamental agreement that this is not a problem for the entrance point, but there is a much wider responsibility across all of the member states. we can't just allow italy, greece and othe to take the

border of this influx on its own. we clearly need to have a system across the european union. this may take in september really should trade its foundation that this it is an european problem rather than just a national problem for some individual members states. >> it should do that, as you say, but will it? do you expect a collective solution? something concrete? are you hopeful? >> i am hopeful. the alternative is further disintegration. in your report it already mentioned some of the opinions of border control and things like that. it's a crisis that is not addressed in a comprehensive way. either we face up to the situation in a spirit of solidarity across europe or we fight further disintegration in europe. >> thank you for taking time with us on al jazeera. >> thank you. >> well, still to come on the news hour, tv confessions in

china as the government cracks down on people that are accused of causing the problems on the stock market. coming up in sports, kicking off the final grand slam. we'll have the latest on the u.s. open coming up a little later. later. >> first, an ukrainian police officer has been killed during protests outside of parliament in kiev. up to 100 others were hurt. fighting erupted during a demonstration over plans to give special status to separatist regions in the east. >> the moment when anger turned to bloodshed. these pictures filmed inside the ukraine parliament building showed the bloody scene after protesters threw a a scene many

were attack away by ambulance. a crowd had gathered ahead of the parliamentary vote on giving special status to parts of the donetsk and luhansk regions. there are angry scenes as some politicians tried to stop proceedings. but the new bill backed by presiden president poroshenko. it was supposed to end the fighting between ukraine's army and russian-backed separatists. since then there has been sporadic and deadly violence in the east. the new law has to pass a final vote later this year, but these scenes in the capital is a reminder of how controversial it is. >> well, let's speak with the professor of government politics at george mason university, rand

a specialty on russian foreign policy. pushing through greater autonomy in those rebel-held areas, the key part of that deal going back to february, are you surprised at the violence that occurred outside of parliament? >> i'm not surprised at the opposition to it. there are demands for similar agreements. >> quite controversial is what you're saying. how do you see it playing out? will it pass with the second reading later this year? >> i suspect that unless the president and his allies that it will pass. but i think that what the

devastation shows it is fragile a lot of very negative feelings about what has happened russian policies. >> what does this mean for poroshenko passing through other parts of the peace agreement. how much public support does he have? >> that's the type of thing where a lot of the public have real questions about it, but i think that the biggest issue is what is the alternative? if they don't support these agreements, i don't know that they have the alternative.

>> damagethanks very much for your time. >> police are looking for two new suspects. they issued arrest warrants after searching a suburban apartment where they uncovered fertilizer, digital watches and explosive detonator. they arrested a foreign man on saturday. 20 people were killed in the bombing at the bangkok shrine two weeks ago. two hundred people had been punished for spreading rumors of a stock market crash and chemical crash. >> on state tv journalists confesses guilt. his crime, to report that the government was planning to end its efforts to ask the market.

on the day that the article was published the shanghai share index suffered one of its bigger ever falls. he apologized to all those who lost money. >> that kind of information can have a big impact whether it's correct or incorrect, because we're going to be in an extremely volatile market. >> equally publicly disgraced, the senior stock market official accused of insider trading. he reportedly made a profit. in total, 197 people have reportedly been punished for spreading rumors about the recent stock market falls china's devaluing currency as well as the fatal explosions in tianjin. but criticisms over the government's handling of all this have not been featured in

china state media. instead it has been focusing on thursday's big military parade commemorating the 70th anniversary of japan's surrender. preparations for that event has coincided with restricted internet. two sister sites to al jazeera arabic have been blocked. the authorities won't say why. the laws are very vague and during troubled times like these those regulations are often used by authorities to block new stories that they say expose state secrets or endanger the country. in short they say that the government fears free media because it would undermine its authority. this economy relies on the web for growth. but the rising demand for infinite freedom is now testing the government's control. adrian brown, al jazeera.

beijing. >> failures from isil have reportedly blown up yet more ruins in the ancient city of palmyra. they are iowa cued of using 30 tons of explosives to destroy the city. well, isil was cleared from iraq's eastern province of diyala last month. >> these people are demanding to go home. their town was cleared of isil ten months ago. officials from the iraqi government tell them to wait for the roads and facilities to be rebuilt. they believe that the forces want to make sure that the region they governor in the north.

>> the curdkurds are destroying our homes. >> the arabs are seeking help from the head of diyala's provincial council. but they say that the authorities in baghdad are not addressing the issue with the kurdish regional government, and they say that they do not have much power. >> the parties who are now in control operate outside of the state. we hope this will change as part of the reforms promised by the government. >> there has long been an uneasy relationship between the communities. >> the sectarian fault lines have one through this province for years. the war has brought a new reality. one that has created a new authority on the ground.

>> they have been the real power here they led the fight against isil. but were accused of reprisal killings against sunnies. many feel that the actions of these groups are from years of policy from the shia-let government. >> this is why where many move to where the communities are. the aim are to attack else. >> more than 100 people were killed in a recent suicide truck bombing an attack that isil says it carried out has not help reconcile communities. >> our community has been targeted. why are they killing us? now we're suspicious of everyone. those responsible want to prevent co-skis tense. >> sunnies and shia once lived together in this town. the sectarian violence over the years changed that. now the divide has grown deeper,

and it is tearing diyala society apart. al jazeera, diyala. >> well, the u.s. president is set to make a historic visit to alaska. obama plans to highlight how alaska's stunning scenery has been damaged by increasing global temperatures. >> this week president obama will see for himself the glorious landscape of alaska. and how it's being devastated by climate change. glaciers perma frost and sea ice are all melting and coastal corrosions are washing away communities. >> iclimate change poses a threat right now. >> environmentalists agree but they don't like his decision to approve off-shore drilling.

protesters, some in kayaks, tried to slow it down making their feelings known. the president says one thing on climate change and does another. >> he's going to alaska to discuss the urgency of climate change while approving arctic drilling. the oil, hundreds of barrels of oil that must stay in the ground if we're going to stop the worst inimpact of climate change. >> yet, hydrocarbons drive the jobs in alaska. low oil prices are raising fears of cut backs of state services. state officials will tell the president not to take steps that could hurt their most important industry. >> what i think we need to do is to find that middle ground where we can bring sustainable development or we can responsebly draw on those

resources to meet not just our needs and the needs of that community but the world needs for fossil fuels that keep going forward, and to bear in mind there is an environmental cost to this. we need to ball of a that. >> here is proof. melting sea ice is behind this gathering of walruses. thousands of them facing starvation and unable to stay in normally ice-bound ocean hunting grounds. alaska's wildlife and it's people face the dangerous of climate change like no other on earth. >> al jazeera, washington. >> obama's visit comes with climate change as they enter into the final phase of talks in december. thgreenpeace martin kaiser said

that they must do more. >> so far it's clear that the contributions of the united states, china, the european union and other countries don't head up joint efforts to limit global warming that is niece to head often can catastrophes from global warning. the ambitious targets would be the way that paris agreement could really come up to a better future. i mean, it's a double-sided message president obama currently gives. on the one hand his leadership towards agreement on climate in paris. on the other hand his permission for oil drilling in the arctic. i think president obama needs to

revisit his approach in the arctic. a lot of diplomatic effort is going on at a very high level. president obama from the united states, but also president xi from china, and the french diplomacy is highly engaged in the paris agreement. there is no question that there will be an agreement in paris. but where this agreement will help the ongoing campaigns against coal powered power plants, coal mining and drilling for oil in the atlantic will remain the issue. >> refugee who is are hoping for a higher education. and earning their stripes, but are they under threat of extinction? we meet the tiger dancers. and th we'll have the latest from major league soccer coming

up in sports.

>> top architect david adjaye. >> for architecture to be emotionally relevant, there has to be a connection. >> talks about the pressures of his biggest projects... >> everything i was passionate about was about to be tested. >> and improving the world through buildings. >> architecture does inspire social change. >> every tuesday night. >> i lived that character. >> go one on one with america's movers and shakers. >> we will be able to see change. >> gripping. inspiring. entertaining. talk to al jazeera.

>> checking whether those on board have applied for asylum and searching trucks an and vans smuggling in refugees. chinese state media said that around 200 people have been punished for spreading rumors over the stock market crash and the chemical blasts. the report did not specify a punishment but a reporter and a senior stock market official has been among those responsible.

the french prime minister visited a makeshift camp in calais, it houses a few thousand people in unsanitary conditions. what proposals were put forth by the french ministers and european commissioners? >> yes, as you mentioned the announcement to devote about $5.5 million describing a humanitarian cast to help with the situation here. and if my camera shows you now just a few of the tents behind me, you'll get an idea of the kind of conditions people are living in here. we don't know how many people here, maybe 2,000-3,000 people who stay at a few months at a time. they do manage to get across the channel. in some cases they give up. but as you can see, and it's not even the end of august there has been heavy rain and it's pretty

cold here, pretty windy, and people living under not even canvas but plastic sheeting in some cases. you can get a clear idea of the kinds of situations that people are facing here and exactly why the french and european authorities have decided to intervene. up until now, up until recently the french authorities have taken really a pretty hard line on illegal immigration, as they would called it. cracking down really on situations like this. the fact now that we're hearing a far more compassionate, if you would like, tone, the fact that politicians are reeling that public opinion across europe is actually beginning to feel more concern now after seeing images of children drowned at sea, people suffocated to death in the back of a truck. and i think in many ways that

compassion is reflected in comments made here in calais earlier by the french prime minister. >> our responsibility is to ensure that the right to asylum, a fundamental right to which europe is attached is respected everywhere. we can't get out of it with barbed wire fences. those persecuted are exposed to torture, oppressed, and must be welcomed. welcomed in europe. >> yes, and talking now about some kind of campaign to house 1500 people. it is in many ways an u-turn, if you recall 13 years ago a camp near here was closed down. the french authorities at the time said it was attracting illegal immigrants and

encouraging disorder and rioting. the fact that they're now talking about opening this kind of camp again shows that, in fact, it's not the existence of a camp that attracts people to calais, but rather this dream of traveling in many cases to the united kingdom. >> all right, jackie, thank you for that upgrade from calais. well, many of the people facing the reality of border fences and reception centers are not economic migrants but refugees from war and conflict. we spoke to one man who fled him home. >> my country has been destroyed. my wife is dead. the aircraft struck my residents. my car was burnt. my wife died inside the house. the whole building collapsed because of the assad airstrike. we got out through turkey hoping to make it to europe. they placed us in a boat in the

middle of the sea. three times we almost drowned in the middle of the sea. the whole family was about to die, but i kept praying to got, dear god, we are your servants, spare us and protect us. thanks to god and by the grace of god we managed to make it safe. in greece they put us in a boat. they robbed me. they took 1,000 euros, $200, 200 turkish liras along with my personal syrian identification card. they left me with nothing. no sion documents, nothing to identify me, not a single penny. for five days it was yo humiliating in athens. some young men helped me to see my own children. it's been 20 days and i have not washed my clothes. what can i do. what can i do with these young people? what can i do to help them? there is no water to wash them

with, no food, no decent water to drink. there is nothing for them at all. look at this. this is their meal. this is what we're supposed to speed our children with. what can keep them alive? is this a meal? is this food? in 24 hours one sandwich. you can eat it all in one bite. that won't satisfy their hunger. this is unfair. very unfair. wear is humanity in all this? we fled a war, now we're stuck here in a prison. i'm stuck here. what can i do? what do they want us to do? why can't they free us? why? are we hear as prisoners? what are we? tell us. yes, you're convicts sentenced to death. why are we detained in lock up? why? what is the reason behind all this? my god, if we knew that this is the way they would treat us as prisoners in europe, we would not have left our homeland. the homeland is precious. quite precious. everything there is dear to us.

>> for many people like mohammed, the first country they see in europe is greece, and it's been under fire for not doing more to register refugees before moving on. >> another group of syrian refugees arrives from the greek islands in th in the port. among them many young men esca escaping subscription in the islamic state in iraq and the levant. mohammed is a 25-year-old economics student. he said his family disliked president bashar al-assad, but he does not want to die fighting him. he wants to finish his studies. >> the situation in syria is very, very bad. because the war is big, and there are may be groups in syria. >> what is happening now on the streets? >> the people killed. the people killed in any place

in syria. >> these numbers monitored by the united nations overwhelm not only the greek authorities, they have cut through the established border controls and forced germany to declare it will ignore a rule to return asylum applicants to greece and process syrians directly. 300,000 refugees have crossed into europe this year. and the number rises by thousands daily. almost all qualified for asylum. officially they must remain here and apply from greece. in practice, they are walking across european borders. the sheer size of the phenomen phenomenon has issued the rules. >> practically speaking when thousands of refugees are on the move you can't close your borders and pretend that you have treaties and conventions

that will enable you to ignore the flow of this enormous migration. >> they want europe to sort out who is a refugee in middle eastern consolate. >> the idea is to use humanitarian sees an is as through which europe ensures three things: safe passages for refugees, neutralize the smugglers who private fro profit from refugees, an. >> the pressure is increasing. asylum placings reached 133,000 in july, an all-time high. policy follows facts. the question is how far behind them it will be. al jazeera, athens. >> al jazeera journalists mohamed fahmy, baher mohammed are spending their third day in

jail since beans sentenced on saturday. the judge gave them and peter greste a three-year prison term. peter greste was sentenced in abstentia after being deported to australia. >> peru is the world's biggest producer of cocaine. it has allowed its military to chute down drug-smuggling planes that pass over it. the world's largest cocaine ar from peru. >> after a tip from an in thi informant, commander sánchez led the team as they set out to destroy a coca processing lab.

they fired shots to warn the traffickers, security forces actually prefer letting them go to avoid retaliation from the local community where police say most people are involved with in the drug trade. arriving the traffickers fled. they left behind bread, boots, these sacks of coca leaves were about possible thrown in the pool to make the coca paste from which cocaine is made. authorities say that this lab is big enough to produce $50,000 worth of coca paste each day. >> the size and location of the lab tells us that they were professionals. >> the stench of toxic chemical like acid and gasoline is overpowering. this substance is turned into the cocaine powder. the residues are thrown away, contaminating land and rivers.

this is the valley, the center of the world's leading coca paste producer. this 100-man contingent is on the front lines on the war on drugs in peru. the colonel said that they have a big mandate but not enough resources. >> the complexity of this is to reach the labs. they're in remote, inaccessible areas. we need to walk for four or five hours in the jungle. we need air support to move faster. >> peru's anti-drug policy in the region is mainly focused on destroying labs and landing strips. they destroyed more than 120 airfields and two to three labs are dismantled every week. and still 300 tons of drugs are transported out the country each year. the united nations latest drug report said that peru has

reduced the amount of coca fields in the last two years, but traffickers are making the land more productive with better fert lieders and they're transporting more coca paste an cocaine than ever. unless something changes it seems that the battle that for now can't be won. peru. >> the dance tigers is an event synonymous with a festival, the festival in which men are intricately painted are at the heart of celebrations. but the 200-year-old tradition is at risk of extinction. >> these groups, the dancing the music, the size of their bellies and their costumes. each group has their own tiger design, it's a closely-guarded secret until the time of

performance. they hire local artists to paint the patterns on them. each group can have up to 51 tigers and musicians. they've had to use cost-cutting decision like using house paint instead of dyes to paint the tigers on their bodies. many have pulled outputting this 200-year-old festival at risk of extinction. >> still ahead on the al jazeera news hour. >> i'm reporting from north ethiopia deep inside a mine shaft hunting for a precious stone that is hoped will bring this country great wasn't. >> we'll tell i couldn't this tennis star won't be playing. playing.

>> welcome back. we've been hearing about the thousands of refugees making the perilous journey to europe. millions more have found refugee in neighboring countries. jordan is home to 80,000. it's tough conditions don't stop student from graduating with top marks. but that does not guarantee them a place in university. >> these refugees in syrian's factory camp have finished high school. they have passed examines with

good grades, but they cannot afford university education. many have been waiting for scholarships since last year. >> i used to study outside because i had no privacy or space in my family shelter. we needed somewhere to quiet to study. we would sit on the streets in the scorching heat or in the freezing cold. some passersby thought it strange but we did not care. we had a goal and we achieved it. >> when this woman did not have enough candles so study at night she would start studying at sunrise. >> we should not give up on our dreams because syria relies on us to rebuild it after the conflict ends. we are needed teachers, doctors and students to return.

>> there are fears that younger students in the camp will turn to work instead of graduating from school. with the lack of university scholarships, there are fears that some who are adamant about getting an university degree will flee to europe for a better opportunity. many hearsay that this means that they'll never come back to rebuild syria in the future. >> these two syrian teachers in the camp work tylerlessly to try to secure scholarships for students through charities and private donors. they say a recent study concluded that there are 1,000 hundred residents in the camp who are qualified to enroll in universities or were never able to complete their higher education in syria because of the conflict. >> we don't want the lack of university scholarships to force our students to endure more displacement. we don't want to encourage

migration to the west for education. >> 4,000 applied for scholarships last year but only 100 opportunities were provided. many are worried that with every passing year they're becoming less able to achieve their dreams and have a say in their future. al jazeera. >> now to sport. >> we start where action is underway at the final tennis grand slam of the year. last year's runner up is on court. the number four seed is looking to win his first-ever grand slam title. djokovic is going for his third. the world number one will be in match a little later. >> the pressure is always present, but it's part of what we do, and it's a privilege in a way. it means that you're doing something that is important. i just have to i am brace that. i'll go out and do my best.

>> raphael in nadal struggled with injuries this year and has not reached a grand slam i since 201 2013. >> this is a moment to be impacinged. >> serena williams will begin her efforts to begin a grand slam of major titles. a player who won't be in action is maria sharapova. she pulled out because of injury. the russian world number three who has not placed in wimbledon said that she has a knee injury and needs more time to recover. she wait's the second time in three years the 2006 champion has withdrawn. >> an u.s. judge said he will

issue a ruling this week over th the deflate gate dispute between the nfl and patriots quarterback tom brady. they presented their final arguments on monday having failed to reach a settlement. the judge will decide whether brady will serve a four-game suspension imposed by the league for his role in a conspiracy to under inflate football during a game last season. political party in the country, the agency for new agenda is taking legal action accusing them of racial exclusion in player selection. they're seeking a occurred order to stop the spring springboks from leaving the country. the team coach insists that the 30% quota has been met naming

eight non-white players in their world cup squad. a new zealand born player is struggling with an ankle injury. >> we're entrusted to make what we believe are the right calls. i always said that i don't always get it right, and there is debate about that. we've seen in the last few weeks we've seen 24-25 players where they're making that call on half dozen players. >> jason day has moved to the top of the fedex top standings. the current pga champion had shooting 8 under, 62.

>> i think i have the opportunity to get to number one if i play some good golf over the next three or four weeks. but it has been a goal of mine, but it's going to be tough to catch. right now i'm trying to focus on getting some rest and going into next week and trying to play that golf course which i absolutely love. >> brian harmon pulled off a rarity at the barclays event. he made two holes in one in his final round. world number 78 is only the third pga tour player in history to accomplish this feat. cricket now in india have put themselves in a strong position to win the third and deciding test against sri lanka in colombo. they have lost three wickets for 67 runs. the winner of this test will

take the three-match series. over to the mls where the new york red bulls beat dc united thanks to stand out performance from bradley wright-phillips. the former manchester city with a stunner. he would score his second securing the 3-0 win for new york. and there is much more sport on our website. for all the latest check out www.aljazeera.com/sport. we've got blogs and video clips from our correspondents from around the world. that's all your sport for now. back to you. >> thank you very much. well, ethiopia has one of the fastest growing economies in africa. part of that is down t because of the expanding mining industry. mining opals is a growing trade.

>> the ethiopian highlands is often called the roof of africa. it's a rugged and breathtakingly beautiful landscape and in recent years it has gem experts around the world very excited. opal, and of exceptionally high quality. the work is very, very hard, this man tells me. look at the blue in that. he has been mining for two years. he and 12 other men work in this 40-meter long tunnel. the group earn up to $2,500 a week for the stones they find. he has been digging here for about 20 minutes now. and he's just hacked into a piece of rock. and you can see here this is the opal, and the guys who work this

mine say on a good week they can pull out 50 kilos of these stones. there is nothing to support the roof of the tunnel. he said that the last time a miner was killed here was 3 years ago. >> landslides happens when it rains. it's frightening when you're inside the tunnel, but i don't want to stop this work until i'm successful. >> the government has supplied the miners with basic tools and said that it wants to improve health and safety standards. it's encouraged them to form corporatives. they sell most of the raw owe palopals for processing abroad. >> we've been able to save money. some are buying cars. others are buying houses. >> this is one of only two gem stone workshops. ethiopia's opal industry

generates $25 million a year, a long way behind australia, which produces more than 90% of the world's opals. this stone on the left is worth around $5 per carat. they increase in value as you move along the line. this last stone is around $150 per car at and is valued over $3,000. >> we're now inviting investors mining companies with experience to come to ethiopia. >> the opal is known as the queen of gems. so men continue digging despite the risks involved. charles stratford, al jazeera. northern ethiopia. >> thanks for watching the news hour on al jazeera. we hand you over to lauren tailor in london in a moment.

>> confusion and chaos in europe's approach to handling the crisis. >> i'm lauren taylor. this is al jazeera live from london. also coming up, one policeman is killed, dozens more injured as nationalist protest in ukraine turns violent. televised confessions in china as the government crackdowcracks down on those accused of starting