announcer: this is al jazeera. hello, welcome to the al jazeera newshour, coming up in the next 60 minutes... >> we have to accept these people the european commission president imposes a mandatory commission for 160,000 refugees. >> rebels in syria capture a north-western air base from the government after a 2-year battle

rwanda's supreme court says it will hear a case that will affect the president's political future. >> and i'll have all the sport including serena williams. a star-spangled ninth at the us open we start the newshour with the latest on the europe eeng refugee crisis. they announced plans to tackle the matter. 160,000 asylum seekers will be distributed among e.u. member countries with binding quotas, the number of refugees to be resettled depends on the nations wealth, unemployment rate and asylum applicants processed.

countries refusing to take in refugees could face penalties. germany welcomed syrian refugees waving e.u. rules saying it expects to deal with 800,000 asylum seekers this year alone. sweden is also in favour. it's taken the highest number of refugees in relation to its population. the czech republic, poland and romania opposed the idea of mandatory quotas, so has hungary. the check prime minister responded saying europe does not need a new plan to deal with migration. >> now w we have correspondents across the continent covering the crisis, we have mohammed jamjoom on the hungarian serbian border. first to jacky. where the e.u. parliament was meeting. >> and, jacky, we are talking

about 160,000 people. are these people who are already in transit in european countries, dotted around the continent. >> that's right, yes. and a large proportion of those people are in greece, italy and hungary. those are the entrance points to the e.u., where we have been witnessing chaotic scenes of refugees arriving. greece, in particular struggling with huge numbers of asylum seekers, and, in fact, it's largely from those countries that there's a proposal to relocate people. we are talking about 160,000 in the e.u., apart from that, there are individual countries preferring the policy of resettling refugees camps, in

countries neighbouring syria. the u.k. say it will take 20,000 from camps in the middle east. there are different groups of asylum seekers, different groups of refugees that we are talking about, some that made the journey to europe, while others are languishing in camps over the border from syria. >> it's 160,000 - that's the number of europeans have to take in charge and have to take in and i hope that this time everyone will be on board. no heroics. action is what is needed for the time being. >> it was a really interesting speech coming from mr juncker,

in which he emphasised the essence of europe, european principles and values. >> yes, he said it's really a time for europe to stand up and be counted and to demonstrate what does europe mean. he spoke about historic examples of refugees welcomed in different parts of europe. and made the point in recent history, in the last decade we have seen a refugee asylum seekers who came from eastern block countries like czech republic, slovakia and poland that were persecuted. who sought asylum in the west. he's making the point that those countries are the most resistant to the idea of taking the new refugees from the middle east. well, just a day ago i was in brussels, in belgium, and i found an example of how many

people are welcoming refugees with actions by ordinary people, rather than the authorities. >> reporter: among the trees a village of tents have sprung up. the first refugees arrived weeks ago and the people of brussels rushed to help. vanessa has been here since day one. she and the other volunteers set up a range of services for the refugees. >> reporter: to hear you have the kitchen with a lot of volunteers. >> reporter: they offer the refugees hot meals throughout the day. the food is donated by local people and charities. there are about 1,000 people in the camp. as it's grown, there has been complaints from some quarters. >> really, we don't listen to the complaints, we don't. we are sure that what we are doing is good. we keep on going the good work without listening to people.

more volunteers are arriving all the time. different people are offering different skills. this spontaneous action caught the belgium authorities offguard. they have opened up an overnight shelter across the road. very few refugees have chosen to sleep there. across the road people are lining up to register for asylum. they are not using the official night shelter. you have to get out at eight every morning, and you can't leave your stuff there. >> it's the decision of the organizers, no more other provisions. there is a shelter. that's it. >> this person is from iraq. he travelled across europe and arrived four days ago. he has an apaintment to regs store -- appointment to register for asylum on thursday.

i sleep here. we have food and drink here. everything is here. >> the plight of the refugees harnessed the goodwill. they want to act as an example of people elsewhere in europe, where refugees have been less welcome. the situation has been entirely different in hungary. very different experience for people who have been coming in to that country. mohammed jamjoom is our correspondent there. he is on the border with serbia. and where you are now, i think i can just about see the train track that's the major thorough fair for the people through greece, serbia and into hungary, hoping to get further into western europe. >> that's right, and on both sides of the track is where they

are building - continuing to build the razor wire fence. you can see it beyond my left shoulder, many workers there, many prisoners, are the ones that continue to build this fence. it's a marked contrast as far as the reception that the refugees are getting here, versus what you saw that they got in jacky's package, or yesterday we were in austria and saw how the refugees were treated. it's so different that several iraqi and syrian refugees got to the border and decided to turn back. they are not able to get answers to whether they'll be held in hungary, leaf a detention facility, whether they'll end up or seek asylum. the folks are desperate to get to austria, germany and some to get to other countries. we spoke to a man that wanted to get to sweden.

that fear is palpable. to see people walking all day, many carrying little children on the showers. they have bags of earthy possessions. they give here and decide to turn back because they are worried about what will happen in hungary. it will be a heart-breaking site. we'll follow the developments. we know that policemen are fanned out across the area, trying to collect the refugees breaking away from the main route taking them to a holding facility a few kilometres down the road. >> it's early days, because jonker made his speech a couple of hours ago. i'm wondering whether you are getting any sense of response from the hungarian authorities as to how they'll proceed, given that it's likely that they'll be required to house a certain number of refugees.

>> as of yet, no, we are not getting response to the authorities, what is interesting, yesterday we spoke to austrian authorities, and they tell us a factor complicating their response is that they are not getting responses from the neighbours here in hungary. they are not getting communiques. the hungarian government has effectively stopped communicating with them. it has exacerbated a crisis. it's interesting, because this government is under so much mounting grid six. as you heard and defines is what you are seeing. it's interesting to see how it unfolds. we are told there could be thousands of refugees crossing, and we, like them are trying to

get an answer as to what exactly is happening next. >> thank you very much. >> where mohammed is in hungary, can expect to see a lot more people. the greek government has been ferrying thousands of refugees from the island. bringing them to the mainland. tuesday, a second ship carrying around 1600, syrian refugees. that's the main port of athens. the island of lesbos is under growing pressure with 18,000 people waiting to travel onwards. hoda abdel-hamid sent this report from lesbos. >> tensions have ease the up because the registration process has improved. most teems arrived to the island and the operation has been moved to a stadium. thousands of refugees were able to get the registration paper

allowing them to board the ferry and continue the journey. the first stop is athens, and across several ball can countries. it's estimated between 8,000 to 10,000 left this island. many more are still waiting here. living conditions are very poor. >> you can see there's garbage everywhere. kids are playing and many people sleep on the pavement. those that have a little more money can buy tents at inflated price sis. apart from that, there is nothing else. many come and ask you where is the toilet. we have seen kids having showers here on the pavement just with bottles of water. it's been extremely difficult, but now that it's some sort of a process, so the refugees do know at least what is going to happen to them in the coming days.

these young men are actually landed here last night. we have met them along the coast. when they first arrived. they walked 70km to reach the point. now although they have the registration paper, they'll have to join a long queue. this is a cue to get the ticket to board the ferry, it's been a long queue and slow moving. tensions are not as much as before. there are scuffles that erupt defence the refugees themselves. they are exhausted and dehydrated. >> the australian prime minister joined the debate. saying they'd resettle 12,000 refugees. tony abbott said they wanted to provide protection. they confirmed that australia will extend the air strike from

iraq into syria. this is part of the u.s.-led coalition against i.s.i.l. we have a lot more to come. including residents in beirut, throwing the garbage bag into the office to protest against corruption and political incompetence. >> u.s. democrats gain more support to block the opposition. >> in sport, why bouncing across an island is a big score in endurance racing now to syria where an air base in the north-west of the country, the province of idlib fall to the rebels. the al nusra front captured the airport after a 2-year battle.

al qaeda's syrian affiliate capture most of the province. some soldiers are at the airport turkish nationalists attacked the headquarters of the pro-kurdish people's party in ankara. the crowd protested against attacks. demonstrators accused the party of being the political wing. daily fighting between the kurdish separatists and security forces is raising concerns over elections scheduled for november. >> rwanda's supreme court ruled that it can hear a case on whether the president should be allowed to run without a third term. parliament voted to change the constitution, extending a 2-term limit to three. there's opposition to the move.

>> it's hard to imagine rwanda without the president. he seemed so have brought stability and development in a country that was in turmoil over two decades ago. he is winding up what is meant to be his last time in office. the election is 2017. the debate to stay is dominating politics. >> we report the constitution. if it changed allowing him to run, we'll agree with that. >> it's for us to decide. we are happy to change it. >> i don't see why the son state use needs to be changed. >> parliament is not in session. it started a process that could see a section. constitution limiting a mandate to two terms. residents say 2.8 million signed a petition asking for the

change. it is the start of a long process. there'll be a commission set up to look into parts frt constitution dealing with the time limits. >> critics, most of them outside rwanda seek a hand in all this. they say he's trying to hang on to power. the president publicly declared his intention, they insist it's the people that want him. elsewhere. they get the pressure to remove you. for him to get the pressure. they would have to measure the pressures of the international community with what the people want. >> reporter: some don't agree. the opposition democratic party asked supreme court to block the process that has been started by parliament. it reads that the constitution allowed the referendum to change

the registration over presidential term. not the number. >> the process - there's clear evidence settled by people from the government, within the cabinet. even from the parliament, and from the senate. they were the ones behind the move. >> reporter: the move to court is not openly or widely supported and chances of a victory are slim. they say despite the few numbers, they will not give up let's talk now to andrew wallace, a central east african specialist who wrote a book. he joins us now live from leeds in the u.k. the prospect of a third term in office raises eyebrows doesn't it. yet, on the face of it the democratic process is adhered to, and there's legal oversight.

what is wrong with the possibility of a third term in this case? >> well, it depends who you talk to though, really. from the rwandan point of view, the vast majority, there's nothing wrong. democracy there is taking its course. the people do want him to stay on. he achieved a lot. millennium development goals being adhered to, being a successful country in terms of cutting corruption in business and moving the country forward. there is security, which is the one thing all africans especially look for their government to provide. so in some terms certainly a very popular decision if they decide they'll go ahead. in terms of international actors, especially in the west, they are more unsettled by this.

their idea is that if there's fixed terms, there's fixed terms, nothing can change them. america is putting on pressure, and so is the e.u., that the rpf party should adhere to two terms, and he should step aside. >> i suppose the supporters of the president say they've been formulaic, and how can you impose formulas from outside if this is driven by popular opinion, that is what is right for a country. the problem is - sorry, i wanted to get to the point - he is accused of running an authoritarian government in which no dissent is broached. one would question the credibility of this exercise then. >> i think you need to travel into the country itself. a lot of western and international actors who are putting that point you brought up there, really a lot have not

been to rwanda, and having travelled to the country many times in the last few years a few weeks ago, talking to the people. it is generally a popular individual, and popular for a reason. is what he's achieved. the country is growing at 9%. it's why change a successful formula, and they'd look at the outside world and say what do they know about rwanda? there's two sides to the argument. >> okay. i was going do raise uncomfortable echos of burundi. it's rwanda's neighbour. they went for a third term. there were ugly scenes, weren't there? >> there were very ugly scenes. continuing today, you know, burundi is pretty much destabilized. there's a violent opposition. the difference there is very much they were not seen

certainly in the capital as having delivered on promises of growing corruption and endemic problems of corruption throughout the government. he didn't have the popularity which is across the border, and pushing for a new term for many people. you are cementing something that is not works, rather than cementing something that is working. there were big differences between the two. >> thank you so much. nice to talk to you iran's supreme leader ayatollah khamenei says his country will not hold talks with the u.s. ynd the issue of its nuclear programme. president obama got the support he needed to overcome the republican opposition to the iran nuclear deal. senator have been hoping to block the agreement lifting sanctions in return for oversight of the nuclear

programme. kimberley halkett explains. >> reporter: after a 5 week recess the u.s. senate was back in session and almost immediately began to debate the merits of the agreement with iran to restrain the nuclear programme. >> this agreement allows the industrialization of the programme of the world's leading state sponsor of terror and does so with our approval. most republicans were opposed with the deal, opposed to the deal with iran and six world powers. it promises to release the assets. it doesn't do enough to stop iran developing a nuclear weapon. determinates argue it is the best option. >> this is a peace treaty, a gift out of the goodness of our hearts. if we trust iran we wouldn't need the cameras and inspectors and technology to make sure iran

complies. we are not asking iran to promise anything and taking it at its words and demand that they prove to us that they are complying with every last agreement. >> it resonated with more than 40 senators. it could potentially block the vote on the agreement. something the white house is strongly urging. >> we certainly would spect the members of congress, who support the agreement and take the necessary steps to prevent it, congress. from undermining the agreement. that's because if the resolution to rejected the agreement passes the senate and the house of representatives, president obama would be in the uncomfortable position of vetoing the legislation. it's an issue of appearances. and rejection of the agreement will undermine the long term acceptance of the deal.

>> there are some senators that believe congress should have a say. that's why it's expected the legislative group should play out. and whether or not to reject it. >> time for the weather now. an update on the dust storm that is affecting lebanon. >> it's the second bad day. >> there's a white spread storm. the satellite picked it up. this is sand. via nasza, and where we picked it up. it comes down to northern equipment. at its worse a little further in. this was taken this morning. fairs pictures. 10 are dead in lebanon, because of breathing difficulties, several thousand, and it's the second day at this sort of level.

to give you an idea, a comparison of what things are like. i've given you visibility. normally you expect to see 10km, 10,000 meter. we are down to 1,000 meters in tripoli, 200 in aman. the line from lebanon through jordan and southern israel. this is the heart of the worst of it. second day in a row. and up in the south-east of turkey, we are down. dusty if nothing else. what we need to wait is the windows change. while it's hot and dusty, the chillier weather, the cooler weather is blowing in. i think tomorrow will be the day we see things thin out for the worst affected places, if not everywhere thank up let's return to an earlier story, that of the fall of an air base in north-western syria, in idlib. two al nusra front.

we san talk to -- can talk to a strat eejing communications director and former u.s. department of state analyst. he joins us from dubai via skype. how scant is it that this air base has fallen to al nusra front after two years of government forces trying to take it? >> well, this is another major blow to the regime. bashar al-assad's forces in the strategic location of idlib just lost the capital, idlib city, earlier, the summer as a rebel coalition, the conquest army made a series of gains and advances against the bashar al-assad regime and forces. the loss of the air base is a major blow to the bashar al-assad regime and caps a summer of losses by bashar al-assad's forces in northern

syria. >> what about the province, that borders the nikoloz basilashvili heart land. >> it absolutely does. the rebel - the rebel strategy seems to be to encircle the forces and force him to withdraw. once the capital was lost, and the area in north-west syria was liberated by rebel forces, you saw a push, a renewed pushily the rebel forces to enter the gateway of the coastal heartland where a significant portion of the regime's constituency lies. this is certainly a military and politically embarrassing laws for bashar al-assad. >> what do you make then of the renewed focus from outside players, from the australians, for instance, from france.

who are now determined to up their attacks on i.s.i.l., and now in syria, they have confined their operations to attacks on i.s.i.l. and iraq. will this affect the balance of the war on the ground? >> well, it could. to clarify, the rebel coalition that tweeted the bashar al-assad's forces in this air base, in the air base is not just elnews ra but is a wide spectrum of forces. these are the same groups. the same groups fighting i.s.i.l., known as daesh, in northern syria, in the aleppo countryside. the other day we saw a series of international coalition air strikes in an area where the rebel forces are fighting i.s.i.l., that has had an impact because when you talk to rebels. they are squeezed i.s.i.s. on

one hand and the regime. relieving the pressure on the rebels forces allows them to concentrate resources and personal in the fight against the bashar al-assad regime. >> talking to us live from dube eye. thank you -- dubai. thank you very much malaysia is cracking down on illegal workers - coming up, the story of those that come with dreams and the hope of a better life, only to be exploited and used. singapore's opposition mounts a challenge to the ruling party's 50-year-old electoral dominance. >> in sport. find out if there's any topping n.b.a. star pal gaffol at the european basket bag championships. -- basketball championships. bsh

hello again. these are the top stories here at al jazeera. the european commission president announced a mandatory plan to resettle 120,000 refugees in addition to an existing scope for 40,000 in greece a syrian government air base in idlib fell to rebels. the al nusra front said it captured the military airport after a 2-year battle with forces loyal to president khalifa haftar the rwandan supreme court says it can hear a debate about

the president running for a third term back to the main story of the day. the main story of the past few weeks, and that is the ongoing refugee situation in europe. and martyr is from the hungarian helsinki commission. she joins us via skype. thank you for talking to us. we heard from mr juncker, talking about the mandatory quotas imposed possibly with punitive measures if they are not adhered to. how do you think your government will respond. they are widely gown for being anti-immigrant. >> yes, hello. the hungarian government has so far been very reluctant. had a strong opposing position to the quota idea. now that the commission's plan

has been unveiled, resulting in 54,000 asylum seekers being relocated from hungary, we are keen to here what the perform will say. this is absolutely putting some of the pressure off. it would make a sensible proposition, it will need to be accompanied bay variety of measures, and strong political messages that would emphasise that the hungarian government needs though private protection, it does need to live up to the obligation under international law, and that flow from e.u. membership. >> i know you are not a government representative, but i wonder if you can explain why the hungarian authorities took a harsh position in terms. way the asylum seekers or refugees have been treated. >> yes, as a human rights

organization we are witnessing the harsh treatment. the hungarian government made it clear it does not want to see a refugee government come to hungary, and the current wave portrayed by the government would threaten the european identity, turning europe into something it doesn't want to see. mr orban said several times that hungary should be for the hungarians, and be a hungarian country and opposed to immigration and discuss the benefits of what migrants could bring to hungary or europe as a society. >> there's a string political angle with the far right gaining ground. the ar ban government needs to show trength, that it can come up with a solution that it can

implement. so far what we have seen from the solutions is this has led to chaos and suffering. >> the hungarian helsinki committee - thank you very much indeed. >> thank you now, malaysian maritime officials say more than 60 workers died after their boats sank in the strait. it highlighted the plight of millions who come to malaysia in search of work. we spoke to one migrant who made the journey, but now wants out. >> 28-year-old man says he's a hunted man. he left his impoverished village in indonesia four years ago to work in malaysia said booming construction industry, paying someone he thought was an agent almost 2,000 to secure an employment visa. >> the agent came and showed us

examples of documents, assuring us that we'd travel to malaysia legally with a work permit and contract. it wasn't until i arrived in malaysia that i realized we were here illegally. >> he asked us to hide his face. he is terrified of being arrested and imprisoned. this person is trying to earn enough to return home. he makes $10 a day. most of that is spent in rent and bribes for the police. activists say there are more than 2 million documented workers. their plight made international headlines last week, when a boat carrying migrants inton eesh capsized. killing more than $60 million. smugglers are known to use the route to transfer migrants. the few who survived were

handcrafted and chained. >> they are human being, they are people. they have left the families. their home, their comfort. and they have come here with dreams and hopes that they would work. >> social activists say migrant workers are exploited, and are often tricked by agents and underpaid and abused by employers. the irony is that malaysia needs the foreign labour. >> affluent malaysians are no longer hope to do blue collar lions. -- jobs. >> analysts say migrants are propping up important industries. >> we are talking about potential collapse in some sectors of the economy. there'll be no workers there.

such an industry suffers greatly. >> the government vowed to crack down on the illegal workers. even though some of the staff are believed to be involved in people smuggling. >> translation: i do not deny the possibility of corruption. if it's pound to be true, those inside the agencies are involved. legal action will be taken. >> reporter: he says he's not a cm. he worked hard to support his family. now he wants to go home. living in poverty is better than living in fear. >> to lebanon, where protesters are demonstrating outside the parliament. the m.p.s are meeting to address the issue that led to a protest movement called you stink. that has been campaigning over piles of rubbish. as reported, it's a growing movement against corruption.

like thousands of young lebanese. yousef is unemployed. he's not enrolled in a school or college, blaming the government, afusing officials of trying to get rich. yousef is one of several activists. they have been camped outside the ministry of environment. they are part of a movement demanding the resignation of the minister. now, with wider themes of corruption and incompetence. six days into the hunger strike. yousef was in hospital. >> police paid him a visit. >> translation: i lost consciousness. i got to the hospital, they put me on a drip. the police came and questioned me, telling me i should end it because it's a waste of time. >> reporter: this was the first hunger striker. he has one basic demand.

>> i want the ministry to sign. i want to start the principle of accountability. i don't have a plan b. when my voice is lower physically. maybe it will become louder. >> aside from the crisis, lebanon has been caught in a political paralysis. the country has been without a president for over a year. that and the failure of the government to provide services like electricity is what pushed so many people to take to the streets. on wednesday, the speaker of parliament will chair a meeting of leaders to resolve some of the issues, analysts say lebanon's history those it's unlikely things will change. >> there's no solution. the primary reason is because there's no accountability in the system. as i said. every time they get together, they collude against the citizens. we need a third force that could break this and hold them

accountable. >> reporter: at the prime minister's office. what has become a daily event. people bringing the rubbish bags and dumping them on the prime minister's doorstep. as we have been explaining, it's not just the rubbish crisis, here outside the electricity company, protesters gathered as well. power cuts can last up to 12 hours a day. more have had enough of the political system and the fail tour to comply with them. back at the hunger strikers' camp yousef tries to keep his colleagues entertained. he wraps in freestyle hoping words and guestsures send a clear message now, campaigning is under way in singapore ahead of a general election on friday. more than 2.5 million are expected to vote, and the domination of the long ruling

people's action party faces a challenge from opposition groups. rob mcbride reports. >> reporter: at an evening rally for the workers party, many of the candidates are newcomers into politics. the party has become the major opposition voice in a system where once there was little dissent. still, the best they can hope for is unsettling, rather than unseating the ruling party. >> we think that it is necessary to entrench the party. and this election and in the coming years. so that in the years to come, the workers party is able to provide an alternative. the party is trying to build on the best showing yet. they managed to unseat two cabinet ministers. the ruling people's action party got 60% of the vote in that

poll, the lowest ever. for the prime minister, the son of singapore's founder, it has at least made the opposition groups something that he needs to take aim at. >> you should make no mistake about it. they aspire to be the government of singapore. why should they not. they are entitled to. they are entitled to ask them what are you capable of doing. what do you intend to do. >> reporter: are you confident, prime minister? >> yes, of course. >> reporter: adding to the confidence is the fact that has been a momentous year for singapore. in the year of his father's death, the sympathy factor could play an important part. combined with nostalgia. it is a timely reminder to the voters of how far singapore has come under the guiding hands of the one party that has been in charge from the start.

with no opinion polls during the election period, head counts at rallies matter. the crowds turning out for the ruling people's action party has been good. >> i believe in the direction it's take, and i agree the policies. >> we are doing an awesome job. the question is not whether the ruling party win, but how big the margin is. >> still to come on the al jazeera newshour. move over digital technology, traditional cameras are making a comeback. find out where and why. lloyd mayweather junior hits back at criticism over his choice of opponent in his final fight.

hello again. apple is set to unveil its latest of gadgets later, the kind of digital technology that squeezed out the traditional film camera. in south-east asia, known for a cutting edge of devices, they are interested in taking pictures the traditional way. sarah clarke reports from hong kong. >> reporter: hidden behind the flashing lights of the big electronic stalls is what some consider a rarity. there's not a smartphone, instead there are cameras, from floor to ceiling.

david opened his first store 34 years ago. he has seen dramatic changes in the market. >> i think in the 1960s... >> it's dominated by digital technology and smartphones. interest in vintage cameras and film photography is coming back and growing steadily. >> more of them - the new iphone and camera sa different culture. it's like significant noodles. you poor water on it. it can't compare to fresh noodles. >> it began with a digital camera. not only does he collects, he's tapped into the growing retail vintage market. >> translation: cam rails have a long -- cameras have a long history, every brand has a personal touch. >> reporter: the market is saturated with digital technology. china is the engine of global

growth. there has been a fall in sales, it accounts for 30% of the market. apple will hope the new and updated devices can hold on to the market share. >> i would not line up at the store. i will buy the new iphone. i'm excited everyone is talking about the new store. the next generation of devices set to hit the retail thefls around the world. >> time for the sports news. here is farah. thank you. >> serena williams stayed on course to win a calendar grand slam. after beating big sister venus, a crowd of a lift rers coming out to -- a listers coming to watch. including donald trump.

serena williams took control of the first set. venus williams was the opener of the first two, sending the match into a tie-breaking third. serena williams took charge early on in the decider and after 98 minutes took the match 6-2, 1-6, 6-3, and is two wins away of making history i think i'll look back on it fondly. it means a lot to me. obviously we are very, very tough competitors on the court. once the match is over, the second it's done, you know, we're sisters, we're room-mates and all that men's top seed novak djokovic fought off a tough challenge to book a spot in the semis, taken to four sets by felisy arounda lopez. novak djokovic reaches the semifinal for a ninth year in a row defending us open champion

marion cilic has just about stayed alive. beating jo-wilfried tsonga to win into the semifinal, stretching cilic's winning streak to 12 matches defending european champion spain all but guaranteed their place in the finals in france. beating macedonia to consolidate. spain managed the one goal. a cross finding its way into the net. ahead of the opposition keeper. spain is not there yet, but a win will put them through. >> wayne rooney became englands all-time scorer, scoring a fifth international goal to move past bobby charlton's mark. england qualified for the finals. >> it was a great moment, obviously. at home, at wembley, it was a proud moment

women's marathon world record holder paula ratcliffe deknifed ever cheating. coming after a member of the british parliament raised suspicions that she was guilty of doping. last month the sunday times revealed that a prominent athlete was suspected of doping. during parliament it was suggested that a british winner of a marathon was implicated. the retired radcliff responded. no athlete was intended to be implicated former group spain went down in the euro clashes. they lofted despite a performance. chigago bulls doubled with 34 points. the italians have n.b.a. stars of their own, they proved the difference. marco belaneli hit 27 points,

netting 29, final score 105 to 98 in italy. >> floyd mayweather junior responded to criticism over his choice of opponent in what he says is a final fight on saturday. he arrived at the m.g.m. ground in las vegas, taking on andrei berto. he handpicked berto, who lost three of the last six, two coming against men floyd mayweather beat. should floyd mayweather win he'll have 49 and 0 wins. equalling a past mark. >> andre is rough, tough, very tough competitor. it doesn't matter who he fights. the job is to go out and be the best. >> now, when we think of

endurance sports. we may think of ultra marathons tore iron man triathlons. there's a new discipline gaining a reputation as one of the toughest in the world. crossing this finish line could become one of the biggest prizes. ursula - swedish for island to island is a new championship. teams of two swim between. 26 islands in, a total of 75km. in its 10th year. the sport is becoming a craze. >> it's amazing and beautiful. it's also tough. it's so long. swimming today was brutal. but the water was so cold and wavy and never ended. >> with 10km of choppy waters,

swim runners reckon this to be tougher. now the running part of the race is 65km. 1.5 marathons in a wetsuit. in terms of the swimming, when you look at the distance between the two of the 26 islands in, you see where ursula is considered an extreme race in the world. >> the first ursula had nine teams, now there's 240 peep competing with -- people competing with a waiting list of more than 1,000. final preparations are before dawn so the athletes have a chance to reach the finish line before nightfall, even if the nationalities are not used to the conditions. >> people have been training. hopping from one to another to another island. the fibber men - it's what are these guys doing, swimming in their shoes, running in a

wetsuit. >> swim run began as a drunken bet to see if they could get around the archipelago without a vote. a decade or so later more are jumping on board. >> we see a big change where it became a sport in the last three years. before that it was just race. >> the new swedish canadian world champions completing the island hopping in 8.5 hours. like in every endurance sport, there's a price to pay in pain now, there's more sport on the website. for the latest check out aljazeera.com/sport. we have blogs and video clips from correspondents around the world. that's if for me. back to you for now. >> thank you. stay with us at al jazeera, more news coming up in a minute or so. the latest on the refugee quotas coming out of the european

commission. coming out of the european

we have to accept these people the european commission president proposes a mandatory quota system for 160,000 refugees. hello, i'm martine dennis in doha. also to come on the programme... ..rebels in syria capture a north-western airbase from the bashar al-assad government after a 2-year battle rwanda's supreme court says it will hear a case that will ef