>> greek voters go to the polls again to decide which party will lead them through their economic strulings. struggling. struggles. this is al jazeera, i'm adrian finighan. who will grant the refugees entry? russia's involvement in syria's war. >> and japan beat two time winner sowrveg in rugby.

s hungary, slovenia and croatia are at loggerheads. why croatia has become the latessest refugee bottleneck. thousands have had to cross there from serbia because the route they intended to take through hungary has been blocked by a razor wire fence. to neighboring slovenia. headed to germany where they believe they'll have more of a chance of granted asylum. al jazeera's lawrence lee is there. lawrence what's the situation on that border now? is it as chaotic as it was when

we last spoke 24 hours ago? >> reporter: yes, i think it did, it rained heavily, adrian and there's nothing like it for a number of people. it's been a dismal night for many, many people. what happened was the slovenians separated the men and the women out, and it's almost entirely men here. but the thing that's most striking is the appalling lack of organization on any level from the croatian side. you would assume perhaps, even though they don't want to stay in our country we'll take them to the border, they might be domdoing something like organizg a queuing line. as a consequence of that these

absolutely miserable story, for example, an iraqi man, stuck in slovenia, he doesn't know when he might be able to get on a bus. a group of syrian men who were charged 500 euros from a man, he would drop them by the border, he dropped them 500 kilometers away. to at least organize some sense of structure here, that clearly is too difficult for croatian government. >> so some refugees a few number are managing to get across that border into slovenia. what happens to them then, where do they go? >> well, austria is the next stop and yes it is true, refugees are getting through, despite rather than because of the efforts of these countries.

the problem for refugees they actually don't know where they're going. as you said, hungary has made it virtually impossible to use that group. the austrian border yesterday, the hungarian left them from that border. more and more of them to this border as well. the consequence of all that, and we've heard this over and over again from refugees is they don't even know which country they're in. that is i think measure of the chaos in this part of europe at the moment. >> lawrence lee on the border between croatia and slovenia. it has been just nine months since the left wing syriza party swept to victory in greece on a platform to fight austerity.

the snap vote was called after syriza lost its parliamentary majority in august. let's take you live to greece's second city, thes lon cee thes . >> the greeks were voting in a referendum whether to step a bailout or not. they had said no, the prime

minister had gone to brussels and accepted it. now people say what's the point of voting anyway, our opinion doesn't matter. others say they're going to vote but they don't know for who they're going to vote. they say at the end of the day it all amounts to the same thing. either we put the old establishment to come back they are responsible for what happens in this country or we give another chance to the care taker prime minister, alexis tsipras,. >> what do they say, is there any front runner? >> well, the opinion polls d, the latest one shows alexis tsipras might have a slight margin to win this election but when i say slight we're talking about a difference of maybe 1% with his main contenter which is

memorakis from the new democracy party. whatever tells you here, no matter who wins he will not have an outright majority. a coalition would have to be formed. and then a lot of people are sort of skeptical of a coalition. it will be difficult to go through all these reform bills that have to be passed by the end of the year for the third bailout to come true. they are a bit worried about what will happen. i was actually talking to someone here just waiting to go on air and he said i remember seeing you at the referendum on this spot, i think you will be back in a few months. that's how confident greeks will bring them the political stability they actually need at this point.

hoda abdelham i.d., in greece. john kerry's comments conas concerns grow of russia's military presence inside syria. >> reporter: a crackling radio transmission in russian intercemented by syrian rebels in homs. belonging to the pilot of an antonov cargo plane. the voice asks for permission to decrease altitude and land. >> there was a cargo plane in the sky accompanied by military jets going from the southeast to northwest. >> reporter: thee are exclusive al jazeera pictures of what is believed to be the russian cargo plane, the airport

in the coastal city 20 kilometers south of of latakia city, to help syrian president bashar al-assad in the fight against i.s.i.l. but u.s. secretary of state john kerry says there are air to air weapons which have little use against i.s.i.l. or rebels. >> currently the presence of aircraft with air to air capability as well as surface to air missiles raise serious questions and that is precisely why we are engaged in further conversation about answering those questions and about deconflicting the russian activities from ours. >> reporter: analyst joshua landis says russia is building up a stronghold in syria. >> syria is the only ally in the center of the arab world. if syria should fall, it wouldn't have a port city

tartus. >> meanwhile at home, rebels are keeping an eye on what way russian military will go next. paul tradergian. al jazeera. the area unesco world heritage site, a ahea head of ae campaign to retake by houthi rebels. in the southwestern city of ta'izz. there was intense shelling in the area, 37 rebel fighters were reportedly killed and dozens were wounded. human rights watch says that shia militias in iraq are out of control. accuses the government backed fighters of causing wide backed

destruction in the city of tikrit. broke the laws of war when they deliberate illy attacked. music with a message, performers in sierra leone come up with interesting ways of education. and pope francis touches down in havana, we'll be right back. >> he was so ahead of his time. >> father junipero serra was so devastating to native american cultures. >> we have suffered greatly, what kind of saint would allow that? >> and you're gonna let the pope know?

>> absolutely.

>> as the global refugee crisis intensifies... >> they have travelled for weeks, sometimes months. >> and the e.u. struggles to cope... >> we don't know, they stop us here. >> what's being done while lives hang in the balance? >> we need help now.

>> hello again, the top stories here on al jazeera. greeks are voting to elect a new government. after the left wing syriza party lost its parliamentary majority in august. thousands slept outside on the slovenia-croatia border. groups cannot agree on how to handle the groups of refugees. witnesses say eight children died when a bomb struck their home in the old city in the in e early hours ever saturday. large campaign to retake the city from the houthi fighters. pope francis has called improving relations between cuba and the ufs a u.s. as a sign of

reconciliation in the world. two nation tour that will also take him to the united states. the first latin american pope is credited with restoring diplomatic relations between the u.s. and cuba. pope francis will be meeting president raul castro and his ailing brother fidel in the next few hours. lucia newman has a report on the country's complicated relationship with the catholic church. >> reporter: raul castro shocked his country by visiting the vatican. >> all i can do is refer you to his upbringing.

>> reporter: raul castro and his older brother fidel were brought up catholic. no sooner than their revolution try upped that thetry umpled thd priests and churches. one of three new churches authorized by the government since the 1959 revolution will be build next to this half finished house. >> i think cuba wants to be seen as part of the world and in the world.

the catholic church has an influence and the pope visits the country. >> reporter: the pope for his part will want to reap the benefits to help in the normalizing u.s. cuban ties. that means extracting concessions from cuba's leaders to allow the catholic church to have a bigger influence and play a bigger role in cuban society. that is something like easier access to the state controlled media. >> if we only had a few hours a week in one of the radio stations that would be wonderful. >> the catholic church is often a short leash. bit the communist president is eager to embrace this latin american pope who like himself condemns the ills of modern capitalism. lucia newman, al jazeera, havana.

>> thousands have protested the jailing of leopoldo lopez. sentenced to 14 years in prison for e enciting violence. virginia lopez reports. >> one of the government's fiercest critics has been sent to jail. opposition fire brand leopoldo lopez has been citizensed for almost 14 years, convicted of violence in last yore's street protests. few in the crowds seem surprised at the judge's decision. >> translator: surprise me? no because where this regime anything is possible. but the truth is this trial has been very unfair. be. >> reporter: lopez, who never hid his presidential aspiratio

aspirations, led a protest against nicholas maduro that left 43 people dead. but his trial has drawn a sentence that has drawn international condemnation. >> we're going to continue to underscore our adherence to human rights and individual freedoms. >> little resemblance to individual reality. >> we need to be in the streets to fight for our rights. >> reporter: lopez represents the a more radical faction in a divided opposition, and now it could determine their rallying around his cause. if the opposition wins the

parliamentary is election, could get lopez freed. however the same law would need to be approved virginia lopez, al jazeera, caracas, venezuela. 1500 people placed under quarantine in searnl sierra leo. but two recent deaths have been a set back. >> reporter: with the beat of a drum these local performers make their way into this village. they are here to entertain but also come with a strong message. if you are sick or know someone who is, call for help and stop the spread of ebola. when this man understood how

serious this was he wanted to produce a comedy routine. >> i do this for my people, the people in my country. i'm a canadian. i'm not sitting to do nothing, i'm going to help educate my people. >> avoiding body contact are part of the act. the virus is spread with bodily fluids of an infected person. about 30 people have been trained to perform in villages across this direct district. it seems to make an effect. almost 1500 cases to date, one of the highest in the country. there hasn't been one in over a month. unicef who initiated the need for these performances. >> the performance, the laugh, you know that is part of trauma healing.

>> healing that is helping adama corona, she lost 18 of her family members to the virus. >> translator: i believe the message is getting through to people. i really hope it will continue. >> reporter: especially as more cases are likely to surface because of the latest case last weekend. >> you have to keep their mind on the ebola, understand we still have ebola and still poses a high risk. >> reporter: it's clear the country may still have a long way to go before ebola is eliminated but at least there is a creative way to keep the messages coming out loud and clear. al jazeera, sierra leone. tunnels used to smu smuggle basic going. marga ortigas reports.

>> reporter: watching powerlessly, the egyptian military says it is building fish farms along the buffer zone. this will put an end to a network of cross-border tunnels. egyptians began flooding the tunnels late friday. it is the last thing she needs. she has already lost two homes in gaza's long history of conflict. with her husband and daughter now ill, she says she just can't lose another one. >> translator: i'm very much scared. i already listen to shooting day or night. now i live in fear of flooding. it can happen any time. that's why i'm tense and scared, we can't sleep like other people. >> the tunnels were used to

smuggle goods into a blockaded gaza. and also illegal trade in guns and people. a trade residents want stopped. 1200 such nonetheless this area and this is just one of them behind me. the people that live in raffa fear that continued flooding could destabilize the ground and cause landslides but also fear it would contaminate the water source. there is very little drinking water for the people here as it is. they struggling to get food, petrol and they worry about water for their croches too. >> we hope the city of raffa could help egypt, we were surprised that instead the egyptians are pumping water

along the border which makes the existing siege even more difficult. >> reporter: people in this border town say they long for a day when there won't be a need for underground life lines. but many have lost hope that it would happen in their lifetime. lifetime. she says she feels helpless and more alone. marga ortigas, al jazeera, gaza. the historic step following years of political dead lack and protest. a new constitution was the demand of maoists, ending a monarchy, the ceremony in kathmandu will mark the situation. a new law in myanmar,

fearing that the law will be used to undermine rather to discriminate against minorities. florence looi reports. muslim and she converted to islam from buddhism. nine years ago they married and moved to the thai border town where they say they face less discrimination as a mixed faith custom. now with a new law in myanmar that regulates, mohammed fears myanmar will become increasingly less tolerant. >> this is the family's business. why do we have to ask permission from the government? if in the future we have problems in our family do we have to report every conflict to them? >> under the law, interfaith couples have to notify the local government and post a public thowment of their intention to marry. they will be allowed to wed if

there is no objection. the law is put forward by a hard line buddhist group. critics fear the new law will be used to discriminate against minorities here. mabata insists the law is not discriminatory. >> translator: the other three religions, christianity hinduism and buddhism don't have laws to protect them. >> more than 140,000 people mostly muslim are still displaitsed. displaced. a former political prisoner leads a movement that works for better ties between muslims and buddhists. the government has pandered to the nationalist group for its own gains. >> translator: whether the

government thinks they did the right or wrong thing they just want to maintain their power to control the country. that's why they created this problem and want to don't use their power. >> that power will mean that interfaith couples such as mohammed and selena will find it more difficult to stay together. florence looi, al jazeera, langon. >> two time winner south africa in an overtime win. >> fans showed what this meant to japan. south africa scored the first try, crossing the line in the 18th minute. but japan showed they weren't intimidated by the world's third ranked team and muscled up. adding their weight to this

drive, captain reduced the score after 30 minutes. the spring box showed just four minutes into the second half with bursting through to extend south africa's lead but japan stayed in touch and tied up the match with 22-all with 20 minutes left. south africa inched ahead again only minutes later though when substitute hooker adrian strauss broke away. but moments later, replacement khan scored for japan in overtime. >> we stuck at it, kept penalty goals, the odd try here or there and when we could have taifn 3 antaken 3and got a draw but to e win is just a fantastic result. >> the 34-32 win in brighton is

a significant victory. preparing to host the next world cup in 2019. >> there's plenty more news at our website aljazeera.com. capitalist in russia turned human rights activist - bill browder. >> i had more than $1 billion, which was a huge amount of money-- in any circumstance, but certainly back then, and in russia. >> the financier had a spectacular rise with his investments quadrupling - but then browder began calling attention to corruption and crossed the wrong people. >> i was locked up overnight. and then i was deported the next day and declared a threat to national security, never to be allowed back into russia again.