half hour. the news continues right now from doha. >> announcer: this is al jazeera. ♪ hello and welcome to the news hour. this is al jazeera live from doha. here is what is coming up in the next 60 minutes. >> we have to accept these people on the european territory. [ applause ] >> the european commission president proposes a mandatory process system for 160,000 refugees. rebels in syria seize an air base in idlib province from the assad government after a two-year battle. >> translator: how will people

vote? >> as violence spreads, there are questions over turkey's november elections. move over digital technology. traditional cameras are making a comeback. find out where and why. ♪ hello we begin with the latest on europe's worsening refugee crisis. under the new proposal, 160,000 asylum seekers will the distributed among e.u. member countries with binding quotas. the number of refugees to be resettled in one country, depends on that nation's wealth, population, unemployment rate, and the number of applicants already processed. countries refusing could face

penalties. germany, has already backed the idea. it's welcomed syrian refugees, waving e.u. rules and saying it expects to deal with more than 800,000 this year line. sweden is also in favor. it has taken the high number of refugees in relation to his population. but others oppose the idea of mandatory quotas, including hungary, which is building a fence to keep people out. let's listen to what the european commission president said earlier. >> it's 160,000. that's the number europeans have to take in charge and have to take in their arms, and i really hope that this time everyone will be on board.

no opponents, no rhetoric, action is what is needed for the time being. [ applause ] >> our correspondent jacky rowland spoke to a british independent who says the refugee crisis is the responsibility of the arab league. >> it started at 40,000, and now it has gone up to 160,000. we know at the moment we have 500,000 on the border. actually africa is poised for one to two million people coming. it undermines our identity, our culture. we can't take anymore. it has to be sorted out within the arab states. i think the arab league should be stepping up to the plate. >> reporter: but lebanon, 25% of the population of lebanon are syrian refugees, jordan, turkey,

egypt, i mean they are taking their share. >> they are absolutely. but the uae isn't, qatar isn't, saudi arabia, kuwait, they haven't taken a single refugee. the united kingdom has promised $900 million. there is another $100 million coming. why are the arab states not stepping up. culturally, ethically, this is their problem. the interference if you take the situation in syria, you have the factions fighting, the arab spring. and in this place they talk about getting people around the table. there has been a 1400 year's world. how do they think they can get around the table and sort this out? we can't. and that's why the arab league and the nations have to step up and take responsibility. >> reporter: but we heard from marine le pen saying, in fact

acknowledging that france and other european countries, other nato countries have a big responsibility to pay baring in mind their action in libya, and maybe their inaction in syria, so is it not a european responsibility? >> what we said today, and i support marine, and i think david cameron has said this, we should provide camps and humanitarian relief in the arab states, in those countries around the edge. we know what blare did, and we're feeling that with terrorism in our own country. >> let's find out what is happening on the ground on the hungarian serbian border. and mohammed, you have seen thousands of people that have in fact been kept from traveling on. what is the situation like now? >> well, dareen, a lot of the folks that were here in the last

two hours, there were hundreds of refugees out here lined up in this area behind us. most have been taken away. the buses have come in, they have been taken to a refugee camp a few miles down the road. there are dozens that have crossed over to this area since then. they are waiting for buss to take them. what is unclear right now is where exactly they will go from those camps. there is quite a bit of fear amongst the refugees i have been speaking with about whether or not they are going to have to be processed or finger printed here in hungary, or if they can just get to the border with austria. they hope to get to the border with austria, but there's so much chaos, confusion and lack of clarity, that it is just not clear at this hour how long they are going to have to stay here, when they will have to be taken to the border with austria, and

when they can leave. >> and there certainly are reactions coming in from european countries when it comes to the proposal that has been put forward to take in refugees. what are authorities there saying? >> reporter: well, we haven't heard yet from any of the authorities here in hungary. we no the parliament has been debating what measurements they will be taking. they are trying to enact laws. one of the things they are trying to do is complete work on this fence a couple of kilometers from where we are now. we were seeing families cross over the railroad tracks from serbia into hungary. but they are so concerned that a few refugees actually turned back and went back into serbia, because of the uncertainty they feel they might face here. a lot of confusion about what exactly it is that the hungarian

government is going to do from here on out. we have heard repeatedly from the prime minister they don't want to continue to take in refugees. they are trying to sale -- seal up their boarders. at one point we heard they were going to deploy military units to the border as well. we know they don't want to have the refugees in here, but at the same time we don't know what the next measure they are going to take and how they react to the proposal today. thousands of people are making the dangerous crossing from turkey to the greek islands in a desperate attempt to reach europe. bernard smith met some trying to make the attempt. >> reporter: it is a deeply affecting sight. a family prepared to risk everything to make it to europe. children far too young to be doing something like this.

a baby who will never remember this night if he or she makes it. we counted 17 people from one afghan family. all to be squeezed into this dingy. they are on turkey's aegean coast about 12 kilometers from the greek island of kos. >> translator: we're afraid of dying of course this woman says. some died recently, but dying is much better than starving here. but there's a problem. their motor won't start. they begin packing up in the family tells us they are shia muslims, a minority targeted by afghanistan's taliban. they have tried making a life in turkey for the last three years, they say, but apart from syrians, turkey does not accept refugees, there is no way for them to settle legally here. >> translator: even if i'm in

the usa or england, or elsewhere, i will go back to afghanistan if there's no war. i promise you. i love my country too much. in europe they know about humanity. they will help us. so we'll try again and again. if they catch us a hundred times, we will try a hundred times. >> reporter: the family is desperate to leave, and decides to try to fix the engine. they are making their own way to avoid being ripped off by smugglers. but the engine won't start. the family will sleep here tonight. then a few minute's drive along the coast we find another group. they are wet. clearly the trip hasn't gone well, and they are frustrated. they are syrians. they salvaged their life vests,

but their boat is left to drift off. to see what these people go through to try to make it to kos, well, it's impossible not to be moved, really. and you know that now that they have been forced to come back to turkey, because they didn't make it this time, they will risk it again. they will risk their lives again to try to make it to europe. with dawn, we see another boat. it's packed and low in the water. it's passengers are paddling furiously. some are bailing out water with shoes. kos is in the distance. it seems tantalizingly close. maybe these people will make it. but then the turkish coast guard appears, and the refugees are taking on board. their dreams of a new life in europe are frustrated for now. bernard smith, al jazeera, on turkey's aegean coast. well, a camera woman in

hungary has been fired after being caught on camera, tripping refugees as they fled. she was among several journalists filming as hundreds of refugees broke away from police. videos posted on social media show her sticking her leg out as people rushed passed her. a separate video shows her kicking a girl. well, you can find out much more on the refugee situation on our refugee spotlight page on our website. there you'll find arms, opinion pieces, photo galleries and much more all on our website, aljazeera.com. here is what is coming up, rwanda says it will hear a case that will effect the president's political future. and singapore's opposition, mounts a stiff challenge. and serena williams beats older sister venus in a

star-studded night at the u.s. open. ♪ but first, syrian troops have pulled out of the air base in northwestern syria. the fall of the base is likely to increase pressure on the government forces. >> reporter: these are pictures of the military base in idlib after al-nusra front fighters took it over. it was one of the last remaining strong holds in idlib province and had been under siege for two years. another base is under attack. the fall of the base means that the northwestern idlib is under control of rebel fighters.

as the war in syria continues in its fifth year, the death as destruction has been staggering. an estimated 220,000 people have now been killed and life expectancy has dropped to 55 years. 3.9 million have fled, and a further 7.6 million have been internally displaced. syria's economy has collapsed and 80% of the population lives in poverty. the country has gone dark with 83% of electricity supplies now cut. it looks like syrians are running out of options. a former u.s. department of defense analyst says the loss of the air base is a major blow to the assad regime. >> the rebel strategy seems to be encircle the regime's forces

and force him to withdraw. one the capitol was lost, and syria was also liberated by rebel forces, you saw a renewed push by rebel forces to enter the gateway of the heartland where a significant portion of the regime's constituency lie. so this is a political and militarily embarrassing loss. this is a wide spectrum of rebel forces. these are the same groups that are fighting daesh or isil. the other day we saw series of

international coalition air strikes in an area where the rebel forces are fighting isil, that has absolutely had an impact, because rebels will tell you they are squeezed between isil on one hand, and the regime on the other hand. so relieving that pressure allows them to concentrate more of their resources and personnel in the fight against the assad regime and his militias. senior politicians did meet to try to address the issues that lead to the you stink movement only to meet again. our correspondent joins us from beirut and from the looks of what is going on behind you, jamal, protesters unhappy with the results of that meeting today. >> reporter: indeed, despite the sand storm which has essentially

closed down many government institutions in and around beirut, several thousand of people have decided to descend here in central beirut. i'm going to allow the viewers to take a look at the size of the crowd and the makeup of it. people frustrated, angry at the lack of progress made by the government, but to be honest, speaking to a lot of these protesters and the activists before meeting, very few had any hope that anything tangible was going to come out of it. because they say the initial problem isn't necessarily lack of policy or inability to come up with something new political politically, but the problem is at the core of lebanese politics and the political system which governs the country, and they put blame and responsibility on those who have been in power, many either directly or indirectly controlling the country for several decades.

so they are continuing their momentum that has been growing over the past two weeks, particularly that it is spanning across all of the different sects that make up lebanon, and based on that and the continued large numbers that come out on to the streets, they believe they have the momentum to find some sort of solution. however, takenably speaking, we haven't still seen anything. they have demanded the resignation of the environment minister, and demanded new parliamentary elections, none of those demands have been met yet, but they are still taking to the streets. >> it's very interesting when you mention the sects, because lebanon has a history of sectarianism as we know. who are coming out and are they really all speaking in one voice and one message? >> reporter: mainly they are young people, maybe 35 year olds

and below. there are all generations here as well, but they are mainly young people, and they are being mobilized through social media, and local television, when they see these protests they are encouraged to take to the streets. and some of them all they need to do is open the door to their apartment or house, and they see the rubbish in the streets and smell the stench, and that's enough to get them to take part in these protests. here today there was also a meeting of the different political parties, chaired by the head of parliament who is from the shia sect, and they have been trying to meet to try to agree on choosing a new president. lebanon has been without a president for over a year. in that president has to be from the marinite sect, and until now

they haven't been able to agree on it. and that standoff continues. so you have a political paralysis where the president of the state is vacant, because they are incapable of coming to a compromise. and that affects the presidency, all the way down to things like electricity and rubbish. and that's what these people are saying they are fed up with. >> thank you for that update. . in nepal, five people have been shot dead by police as fresh protests broke out over a new draft constitution. hundreds surrounded beheadquarters in the southeast. our correspondent joins us on the telephone to tell us what the situation is in kathmandu right now. >> reporter: yeah, it's nighttime now. there's a curfew that in the

last 34 days, 33 people have been killed in the protests. [ inaudible ] agitating parties and in some areas it has been going on for almost a month. so the frustration is really high, and there has been a lot of dissolutionment in those areas as well. and just today [ inaudible ] supreme court against the use of excessive force by the police. [ inaudible ] and leaders from the [ inaudible ] have asked the government to halt the constitution-writing process for a few days. >> okay. thank you for that update from kathmandu. rwanda supreme court says it will hear a case that challenges plans to allow the president to

run for a third term. parliament has voted to change the constitution, extending a two-term limit to three. but there's stiff opposition to the move. catherine soi reports from the capitol. >> reporter: it's hard to imagine rwanda without this president. he seems to have brought stability and government in a country that was in turmoil following a genocide just over two decades ago. he is winding up what is meant to be his last term in office. the election is in 2017, but the debate to have him stay on is dominating politics. >> translator: we respect the constitution, but if it is changed to allow him to run again, we'll agree with that. >> translator: it's for us to decide, and we are happy to change it. >> translator: i don't see why the constitution needs to be changed. >> reporter: parliament is not in session now, but it has started a process that could see a section of the constitution that limits a presidential

mandate to two terms amended. members of parliament say that 3.8 million rwandas signed a petition asking for the change. parliament is the start of a long process. there is going to be a commission set up to look into parts of the constitution that deal with presidential term limits and there must be a referendum where rwandans get to decide for themselves. critics say the president is trying to hold on to power using parliament. this mp insists it's the people who want him. >> elsewhere, we get the pressure to remove you. for him the pressure is for him to stay. so he would have to measure the pressures of the international community with what his people want. >> reporter: but some don't agree. the opposition democratic green party has asked the supreme court to block the process that has been started by parliament.

the petition reads that the constitution only allows a referendum to change the duration of a presidential term, not the number of terms. >> this was submitted by the people. a process -- there's clear evidence it was started by people within the government. [ inaudible ] parliament and from the senate, they are the ones who have been behind this move. >> reporter: the move is not openly or widely supported here, and chances of a victory are slim, but they say despite their few numbers, they won't give up. malaysia is cracking down on illegal workers, still ahead that story of those who come with dreams and hopes of a better life only to be exploited and abused. plus fears of religious polarization in bangladesh following the recent killing of bloggers and activists.

and you'll find out why darting across a bunch of swedish islands is becoming one of the biggest draws in endurance racing. ♪ the only way to get better is to challenge yourself,

and that's what we're doing at xfinity. we are challenging ourselves to improve every aspect of your experience. and this includes our commitment to being on time. every time. that's why if we're ever late for an appointment, we'll credit your account $20. it's our promise to you. we're doing everything we can to give you the best experience possible. because we should fit into your life. not the other way around. >> i've been asked to keep my voice down cause we are so close to the isil position

>> who is in charge, and are they going to be held to accout? >> but know we're following the research team into the fire >> they're learning how to practice democracy... >> ...just seen tear gas being thrown... >> ...glad sombody care about us man... >> several human workers were kidnapped... >> this is what's left of the hospital >> is a crime that's under reported... >> what do you think... >> we're making history right now... >> al jazeera america >> "america tonight" brought you the story that shocked the nation. >> i remember waking up and he was trying to have sex with me. >> now we go back inside the colleges in crisis. >> the vast majority of sexual assaults on campus are being perpetrated by serial offenders. >> revealing accusations, cover-ups and the shocking failures. >> before he raped me, he had already been sanctioned by the college. >> is enough being done to protect our children?

♪ the top stories on the al jazeera news hour. the european commission president has announced a plan to vettel -- resettle 160,000 refugees. a syrian air base has fallen to rebels. the al-nusra front captured the airport after a two-year battle with forces loyal to president bashar al-assad. rwanda's supreme court says it will hear a case that would allow the president to run for a third term. countries in asia also facing a refugee crisis. 60 illegal workers from indonesia died last week after

their boat sanks en route to malaysia. the accident has highlighted the plight of millions of desperate people who come to malaysia in search of work. our correspondent spoke to one migrant who made the journey but wants out. >> reporter: this 28 year old says he is haunted man. he left his village in naesh shoo four years ago to work in malaysia's booming construction industry, paying someone he thought was an agent almost $2,000 to secure an employment visa. >> translator: the agent came and showed us examples of document, ensuring us that we would be travelling to malaysia legally, with a work permit and contract. it wasn't until i arrived in malaysia, that i realized we were hear illegally. >> reporter: he asked us to hide his face because he is terrified of being arrested and

imprisoned. he is trying to earn enough to return home, but takes just $10 a day, and most of that is spent in rent and bribes for the police. activists say there are more than 2 million undocumented workers like him in malaysia. their plight made international headlines last week, when a boat carrying migrants capsized, killing more than 60 people. smugglers are known to use this route to transfer migrants. the few who survived were handcuffed and chained. >> they are human beings. they are people. they have left their families, their home, their comfort, and they have come here with dreams and hopes that they would work. >> reporter: social activists say migrant workers are routinely exploited here. they are often tricked,

underpaid, and abused by employers. increasingly after few want malaysians are no longer willing to do blue collar jobs as in construction work, but if the country is to continue to grow, it needs migrants to fill in the gap. >> we're talking about potential collapse in some sectors of the economy because there will simply be no workers there. construction industry will suffer greatly. plantation industry will suffer greatly. but the government has vowed to crack down on illegal workers even though some of their own staff are believed to be involved in people smuggling. >> i do not deny the possibility of corruption. and if it is found to be true that those inside the agencies are involved, legal action will be taken.

>> reporter: he says he is not a criminal, he simply worked hard to support his family, but now he wants to go home. he says living in poverty is still better than living in here. the leader of turkey's prokurdish people's democratic party says it is becoming impossible to hold elections due in november. the remarks also follow a turkish nationalist attack on the party's headquarters. they were protesting against recent attacks on security forces by the pkk. demonstrators accuse the party of being the political wing of the pkk. the deputy general coordinator for [ inaudible ] that's a turkish foundation for political economic and social research joining us. is there the political will to contain the violence on either

side? >> yes, you know, unfortunately we are observing the resurgence of violence in the eastern part of turkey. there are several significant reasons for this resurgence. the first one is the developments in the region, the -- in northern syria. this contributes to the legit ma sization of pyd, and [ inaudible ] pyd at the end they thought it's the right time to challenge the -- the security forces of turkey. this is one of the reasons. the second reason is through this -- the latest developments, they begin to change. their ultimate goal from a

democratic republicanism into an independent statehood. unfortunately, this lead to the -- the government side to end the resolution process for -- for one significant point. >> right, so how can the violence be contained? >> yeah, there is another significant reason. you know, everything going on in the region for all those developme developments only the ruling party and the [ inaudible ] party or the personality of erdogan is being blamed in the turkish politics. unfortunately, hiding at this -- losing the reaction against the pkk activities. >> what does this mean for elections in november? since you bring up the parties, what does this mean for elections? >> yeah, for sure it will -- it

will affect the elections, but i do not expect that it will be impossible for turkey to hold elections. the pkk will try to distort elections, since it is expected that at the same time it will somehow lose some of its vote percentage. if the threshold problem occur if they anticipate that they will be unable to pass the national threshold which is 10%, they will try to prevent any elections in the kurdish regions. >> thank you very much for joining us. >> thank you. 800 egyptian solders have arrived inmen. gulf forces have promised to avenge its heaviest-ever

military loss in a missile attack on friday. thousands of troops from saudi arabia, qatar, the uae and bahrain have now moves in to yemen. they are set to retake two cities. the capitol is their main target which rebels have held for a year. [ inaudible ] is a consultant fellow at the royal united services for defense and security studies. he says the coalition has launched a new reaction phase in retaliation to the deaths of their soldiers. >> the houthis have fought many battles over the last half a century or so, and of course they will be more capable and more prepared to put up resistance the further back they are pushed. their heartland is the sort of

highlands, where it's very hard for them to be pursued on the ground and even by air, so the more that they are pushed back, the harder will be their resistance. it almost certainly will not be won militarily, and the political solution has to be in the cards, but the more you take military action, the harder it is to impose a military solution which will be acceptable to all of the players, including the houthis. the big problem of course is this conflict has been simplified in the minds of the people involved, particularly the gulf coalition, they are attacking who they regard as iranian-backed rebels. but of course the houthis were inspired by a sunni leader, saleh, and there is a component that is being neglected, and that's the extremist, al-qaeda and daesh who are operating in the area, and have gained ground

for the first time in al-qaeda's history. so we have a very complex solution. politically the solution is quite a complex one. there doesn't appear to be a political solution. the iranian nuclear deal is the focus of a debate in washington lawmakers prepare for a crucial vote. on tuesday, president barack obama got the support that he needed to overcome republican opposition to that deal. the united nations is wrapping up a visit to bangladesh. the u.n. envoy was there to look into the recent murders of four writers who had been labeled

atheisted by radical groups. >> reporter: normal is no longer a word that this woman says she can use to describe her life. the 22 year old travels everywhere with a policest court because she has received death threats for her writings. >> translator: these two men were following me on the street, at first i thought, okay, they are just guys stalking a girl. that's pretty normal in bangladesh. then i saw they were taking mottoes and taking down notes and texting. that's when i became really scared. >> reporter: four so-called atheist bloggers have been killed in bangladesh this year, a hit list of 80 more bloggers is said to be widely circulating online among armed groups. activists have criticized police for what they say is the slow

handling of the murder investigations. >> translator: we have already filed charges in two of the murder cases, and in two others we have suspects in questioning, and expect to file charges soon. >> reporter: atheists are not the only ones needing police protection here. a 120 year old temple was burned down on this site. >> translator: the hindu population is now only 9%. >> reporter: several other hindu and buddhist houses of worship have been attacked in the last few years. many say they are proud of their secular constitution, but the international community community believes that secularism is under threat here. so much so the envoy has decided to visit. 12 atheist writers have already

fled. 70 more are seeking asylum. >> any society should be free to express their views. and obviously that is not without danger in bangladesh since atheism is perceived by many people as insulting islam and other religions. >> reporter: she says she is sure about one thing, that she wishes the policeess court wasn't necessary. just a moment ago we were telling you about the iranian nuclear deal that is a focus in washington. so it is a big day on capitol hill. >> reporter: what we're going to see is at lot of back and forth

and bickering on capitol hill. the debate as you point out is underway in both the house and the senate on an agreement that was painstakingly negotiated between six world powers. there is a lot of legislative procedure that is making this slow moving. having said that there was a victory on tuesday for the white house of sorts, because it secured more than 40 senators who are now supportive of this agreement to limit iran's nuclear program in exchange for a lifting of sanctions, so this is a pretty big deal because the white house was hopeful these senators could use their clout to prevent a vote from

occurring. and the reason the white house wants that is because they don't want to see this resolution passed in the congress, because the president would be forced to veto it. and they are trying to avoid that. it looks like the debate is going to continue. >> how likely is that it obama might actually have to use that executive veto? because there are senators that are remaining tight lipped about how they are going to vote. >> reporter: you are exactly right, it's really difficult to see how this is going to go. and that's why neither side is taking any chances. john kerry as ernest moniz is up here lobbying. they are saying, look, this is

the way to prevent iran to get a nuclear weapon. i should know i used to run the physics department, i have a doctorate in the subject. we have a rally happening on the hill just outside the u.s. congress building, ted cruz the reality tv star, donald trump who is also very well-known and successful businessman also rallying against this agreement, so there's a pretty intense back and forth going on, a lot of debate before that event occurs. >> okay. thank you kimberly. campaigning is underway in singapore ahead of the 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 serious challenge from opposition groups. >> reporter: at a rally for the

worker's party, many candidates are newcomers into politics. the party has become the major opposition voice in a system where there was little descent, still the best they can hope for is unsettling rather than unseating the ruling party. >> we hope to have more mp elected into parliament in this election, and hopefully in the coming years, so the workers party can provide an alternative. >> reporter: in 2011, they managed to unseat two cabinet ministers. the ruling people's action party got 60% of the vote in that poll, their lowest ever. while the prime minister, the son of singapore's founder, it has at least made the opposition groups something he needs to

take aim at. >> and you should make no mistake about it, they aspire to be the government of singapore. they are entitled to. but we are entitled to ask them what are you capable of doing? what do you intend to do? show you are fit to be the government of singapore. >> reporter: adding to his confidence is the fact this has been a mow men -- momentous year. in the year of his father's death there could be some sympathy vote. it's a timely reminder for though voters of how far singapore has come under the hand of the ruling party. with no opinion polls, headcounts at rallies matter. and the crowds turning out for the ruling people's action party have been good.

>> i agree with their pollties. >> they are doing an awesome job. so it's only right to support. >> reporter: the question is not whether the ruling party wins, but how big their winning margin is. here with the news hour, here is what is coming up in sports. floyd mayweather, jr. hits back at criticism over his choice of opponent for his final fight. ♪

♪ digital technology has

squeaked out the traditional film camera from our lives, but even in southeast asia, known for its love of cutting-edge devices, there's still interest in taking pictures the traditional way. sarah clark reports from hong kong. >> reporter: hidden behind the flashing lights of the big electronic stores what some may consider a rarity. there's not a smartphone in sight. instead there are traditional cameras. >> translator: they are timeless and will last forever. >> reporter: david chan opened his first camera store 45 years ago. since then he has seen some dramatic changes in the market. these days it's dominated by digital technology and smartphones, but he say interests in vintage cameras and film photography is coming back and growing steadily. >> translator: the new iphone

and new camera is a different culture. it's like instant noodles. but it can't compare to fresh homemade noodles. >> reporter: this man is now hooked on film photography. he collects and has tapped into the growing retail vintage market. >> translator: classical cameras have such a long history, and they are all different design. >> reporter: the younger generation may be experimenting with older models, but the market is still saturated with digital technology. china is the engine of global growth, it still accounts for 30% of the global market. apple will be opening its new and updated devices can hold on to its market share. >> reporter: i would not line up at the store, but i will buy the new iphone. >> translator: i'm excited

everyone is talking about the i-6. i want one. >> reporter: she won't have to wait long with the next generation set to hit retail stores around the world within months. now it's time for sports. the prince of jordan has confirmed his intention to stand for the fifa presidency. prince ali was beaten by blatter by a vote in may. but blatter had decided to step down next year. >> friends i stand here in this ancient place in the timeless heart to once again launch my candidacy for the presidency of fifa. [ applause ]

>> let me be clear, i want to finish what we started. croatia national coach has been sacked after the country's hopes suffered. croatia only picked up one point in their last two games leaving them third in game h. he also fell without with the captain. he steered croatia to the 2014 world cup, spent nearly two years on the job. serena williams has stayed on course to winning a calendar grand slam after beating big sister venus. a crowd of a-listers came out to watch. it was the top seed winner of 21 grand slam singles titles that took control of the first set. venus, though, the winner of two u.s. open titles, came back in the second set, sending the match into a tie-breaking third.

serena took charge early on, and after 98 minutes, took the match, and is now just two wins away from making history. >> yeah, 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. but once the match is over, the second it's done, you know, we're sisters, we're roommates and we're all that. >> the fifth seed is currently facing his opponent from italy, later victoria takes on second seed from romania. roger federer and [ inaudible ] will also be in quarter final action on wednesday. djokovic fought off a tough challenge to took his spot in the semifinals.

floyd mayweather, jr. has responded to criticism over his choice of opponent for what he says will be his final fight this saturday. he arrived at the mgm grand in las vegas on tuesday where he'll take on andre burto, the 38 year old handpicked his opponent who lost three of his last six fights. >> andre, he is very, very tough, very tough competitor, and that's why we chose that fight. it really doesn't matter who you fight. we're going to win. but i want to be the best i can

be, stay focused and stick to the game. when we think of endurance sports we might think of iron mans or triathlons, but there's a new competition in sweden. paul rees explains. >> reporter: crossing this finish line could soon become one of the biggest prizes in endurance racing. it's the world championships for the new sport of swim run. teams of two swim between and run over 26 islands for a total of 75 kilometers. in just its tenth year the sport is rapidly becoming a craze. >> it's so amazing, and so beautiful, but it's also so tough. >> it's love hate. >> and so long, yeah. >> i mean that swimming today was just so brutal, the water got so cold and was so wavy, and just never ended. >> reporter: swim runners reckon

this to be much tougher than the ikes of an iron man or ultra marathon. just the running part of the race is 65 kilometers, that's 1.5 marathons in a wetsuit over slippery rocks. when you look at the distance between just two islands, you can see why this is considered one of the most extreme races in the world. now there are 240 people competing, a waiting list of more than a thousand. final preparations are just before dawn so that the athletes have a chance to reach the finish line before night fall, even if some of the 26 nationalities aren't used to the conditions. >> i'm really happy just to finish. >> yeah. >> people when we are training back home, hopping from lagoon to another -- to another island, the fishermen just say what are these guys doing swimming in

their shoes and running in a wetsuit. >> reporter: it began as a drunken bet between four swedish friends. a decade or so later, more and more people are jumping on board. >> we have seen a big change in the last three years, where it became a sport in the last three years, before that it was just a race. >> reporter: the new swedish canadian world champions completing their island hopping in just shy of 18.5 hours, but there's a price to pay in pain. and there's more sport on our website, check out aljazeera.com/sport. we have got blogs and videos from our correspondents around the world. thank you for that update. and thanks for watching the news hour on al jazeera. that's it from doha, but we do hand you over to our london broadcast center.

they'll have much more news for you in just a minute. stay with al jazeera.

new plans to provide homes for more than 100,000 people. i'm lauren taylor. rebels in syria capture a key military base, after a two-year long battle. a bad deal, u.s. politicians attack president obama's nuclear deal agreement, during a marathon session in congress.