russia suspends all flights to egypt as suspicion grows that a bomb caused saturday's plane crash in sinai. hello. you're watching al jazeera live from london. also coming up. end of the line. barack obama rejects plans to build a huge pipeline between canada and the u.s. israeli security forces shoot an elderly palestinian woman at a petro station in the west bank. and swallowed by mud and water. a dam bursts in brazil flooding

a village. russia has suspended passenger flights to egypt in response to fears that a bomb may have brought down the metro jet plane that crashed out of sharm shake on saturday. president putin made the anunsment and recommended flights be grounded until the causes of the crash is known. it will increase pressure on egyptian authorities, which were struggling to cope with an exodus of british tourists. paul brennan reports. >> reporter: there is a major exodus under way from sharm el shei sheikh. 20,000 will be joined by 40,000 russian tourists. russia and egypt described it as premature. what changed the kremlin's mind? the british it issed their decision was based on intelligence, which made it more

likely than not that a bomb of responsible. the head of russia's fsb gave no details saying only it was expedient to suspend flights until the real reasons for the crash are known. >> translator: until we determine the actual causes of what happened, it's reasonable to suspend flights to egypt and it applies first of all to a tourist channel on the one hand. on the other hand we believe it necessary to actively cooperate with the egyptian authorities to continue joint work on investigating the reasons for that air crash. >> a visual examination gives intriguing clues. it's suggested that these pox marks on the inside of rear door could be the result of shrapnel originating within the aircraft, and tlir similar photos, too. on this one the metal hull appears to have peeled outwards, again, perhaps indicating that the force came from inside the plane. the only way to put the pieces together again. the good news is it's not

underwater, so you have all the pieces. you take them from the desert and put them in a big hangar and put the jigsaw back together. that will tell you whether the explosion was outside or inside the fuselage and that means it's a missile or bomb inside. >> reporter: they're egyptian security concerns particularly over baggage handling. the italians is advising airlines flying from sharm el sheikh to care out their own security checks in addition to those done by the airport. british are only allowed to bring essential hand luggage with them. >> we're working to put additional security measures in place, and we're moving up the number of flights that are normally expected in this busy airport on a day like that by quite a lot. our aspiration is to get as many home as soon as possible. >> reporter: that is a

significant challenge. the u.k. airlines monarch and easy jet hoped to operate 15 repatriation flights out of the sharm el sheikh on friday. in reality only five planes departed and only eight aircraft from sharm el sheikh in total. egypt said it simply couldn't cope with any more than that. >> egypt will cooperate fully with the u.k. authorities to bring back those tourists, but we want to make sure that they come back safely and that the planes are dealt with in a professional way. >> reporter: the search of the sinai desert is continuing. scattered on the ground the debris of lives cut tragically short. children's books, a jewelry chain. what isn't found yet is definitive blame for the crash, but the range of possible options is narrowing. paul brennan, al jazeera. the u.s. says it's tightening security on flights from some overseas airports. tom ackerman joins us live from

washington, d.c. what do you know about further measures the u.s. is taking to safeguard its flights? >> reporter: the announcement by the secretary for homeland security mentioned that there was no outcome of any kind of investigation, so they were making no conclusions about the actual cause of the explosion, but out of an abundance of caution they did announce unspecified enhancements of certain security measures at foreign airports that had already begun last summer, and this is how the white house press secretary explained it. >> the united states still has not made our own determine about the cause of the incident. while we can't rule anything in and out, we have to consider the possibility that a potential terrorist involvement here.

out of an abundance of caution now and mindful of that possibility, secretary johnson earlier today announced a series of interim precautionary measures that would be taken at a handful of airports in the region to further secure the aviation system for american travelers. >> so, tom, the u.s. at the moment, the white house saying that they can't rule anything or out, but they're worried enough to put extra measures in place to protect flights into the u.s. how seriously at this point is the white house taking the possibility of this being an isis/isil orchestrated plot? >> reporter: certainly they're operating on the theory. actual intelligence we have had no indication from any direct sources that there was any

specific indication of an attempt on an airliner. also, in terms of gauging the actual danger or risk to americans in the region, you should mention -- we should note that there are no -- the only airline that actually serves the united states is egypt air, and no u.s. airlines serve egypt right now. so in this announcement today about certain precautions at last point of departure airports, we should note that it's those -- it's those destinations in the middle east and possibly elsewhere that they're focusing their attention. the u.s. transportation security administration does have standing operations in many of those airports already. so you can depend on them having changed or toughened up their procedures and they improvised day-to-day. even if they did have any

specific procedures to toughen up right now, we wouldn't know from day to day, and it really would be up to the passengers to notice any kinds of changes, if at all. >> tom ackerman in washington, d.c. thank you. now, the u.s. has rejected a contentious $8 billion oil pipeline project from canada to the gulf coast. president obama said the keystone pipeline would not make a meaningful long-term contribution to the u.s. economy. it would have carried 830,000 barrels of oil a day from alberta to texas. the move is a victory for environmentalists that campaigned against the pipeline for more than seven years. >> america's now a global leader when it comes to taking serious action to fight climate change. frankly, approving this project would have undercut that global leadership, and that's the

biggest risk we face. not acting. today we're continuing to lead by example. >> let's get the latest on this now from daniel lack live for us in toronto. daniel, opposition to the keystone pipeline has been building for years. it's perhaps come as no surprise that president obama rejected the project, but what's the view over there in canada? >> reporter: i think on a political level the reaction has been quite mild. the newly sworn in prime minister justin trudeau released a statement he was disappointed but it wouldn't affect u.s.-canada relations. he did support the pipeline when he was campaigning for the office. he said that there are many thing that the united states and canada agree on, not least the importance of battling climate change. he said it's too bad it was turned down. the company that was trying to build this pipeline, trans

canada, they have invested $3 billion in the project. they've said they're very disappointed. it's not going to die for them. they're going to apply again perhaps, or perhaps take the u.s. government to court. they haven't made that clear. they used a very strong phase. they said that symbolism won out. an indication that they think the pipeline made good sense for canada and the u.s. for the economic and for getting oil from canada south to america. >> all right. daniel lack is live for us in toronto. thank you very much. israeli police reporting another shooting incident in the occupied west bank. earlier two israelis were shot in hebron. they had been taken to hospital as authorities searched the area. hebron is also where israeli police shot an elderly palestinian woman at a petrol station on friday. she died in a jerusalem hospital and was merely trying to fill up her car. israeli police say she was

trying to run over soldiers. a 22-year-old palestinian man has been killed in fighting with israeli troops along the gaza border. he died from a single shot to the head. 30 other palestinian protesters were injured by live bullet rounds and tear gas. stephanie dekker has this update now from west jerusalem. >> reporter: there have been two separate incidents of shooting in and around the hebron area on friday night. the first one was sniper fire targeting jewish visitors to the cave of the mate i can't recollect. the army is looking for whoever carried that out. about an hour, hour and a half later, a drive-by shooting, one israeli seriously injured on the outskirts of hebron. this is an escalation. we don't often see incidents of shootings in the hebron area, palestinians shooting at israelis. however, the other way, again, another incident. a 72-year-old grandmother shot dead by the israeli security

forces at a gas station just on the outskirts of hebron. we spoke to her family, and they say she was simply trying to fill up her car with gas, but the israeli army maintains she tried to ram her car into a group of soldiers. incredibly difficult situation on the ground. another incident on friday. an israeli man stabbed. the attackers managed to get away. the israeli security forces are looking for them. certainly an incredibly tense day. even though we had the last few days and somedays without incident at all, we see an escalation on this friday. very unpredictable, difficult to catch certainly the street. interestingly we heard from the israeli chief of military intelligence when he bleached the cabinet earlier this week. he told them that basically there are three reasons why we had this tension amongst palestinians. one is the recent encitement and the compound and the temple

mount known to jews. second this family whose home was tov torched in the settleme killing an 18-month-old baby and his parents. no justice has come out of that. thirdly, the complete hopelessness of palestinians who believe this occupation will never end. >> there's more to come for you on al jazeera. i'm aboard hms ocean with nato conducting it's most extensive exercises in years. coming up, taking the long way around, the desperate journey to europe by the arctic circle.

welcome back. let's go through the top stories now. russia success spened all flights to egypt almost a week after a passenger plane crashed in the sinai peninsula killing all 224 people on board. plans to build a pipeline between canada and the united states have been dropped. president obama said the keystone pipeline wouldn't have served national interests. and a 72-year-old woman has dpieed in the latest violence in the occupied west bank after being shot by israeli security forces. the security forces say she tried to run over forgss, but her family said she was filling up her car with petrol. roy sent us the latest from moscow on this story. >> reporter: the question of what has changed the minds of the russian leadership is one

that doesn't have a definitive answer yet, but clearly their minds have been changed because it was as recently as thursday that russian politicians were very publicly saying that the british decision to suspend flights to sinai were police l politically motivated and premature. they suspended flights not just to sinai but to the whole of egypt. we know that the russian investigators have access to the black boxes and also samples from the crash site are currently being analyzed in moscow looking for traces of explosives. whether that influenced this decision we don't know quite yet, but the russians now have a headache of large portions on their hands because by some estimates there were about 45,000 at least russians stranded in egypt who have to be brought home. that is a process that the

tourism union here in russia says could take as long as a whole month. >> russia continues to target sites in syria with air strikes. these pictures show russian su-24 jets taking off in syria. while video uploaded to social media is said to show destruction from the air strikes in the east of syria. syrian observatory for human rights says at least 19 civilians and two fighters have been killed in the strike. now, the nato secretary-general told al jazeera he welcomes moscow's role in finding a political solution in syria, but he says nato is concerned about russia's military buildup. we have more from portugal where nato forces are involved in a major exercise. >> reporter: the weary march of those fleeing the fighting has convinced them something must be done about the war in syria, but

the battle field is more complex with the arrival of russia testing the borders of turkey while supporting the assad government. >> we are concerned about the russian military buildup and also about the violations of turkish air space we have seen. >> reporter: what are you prepared to do about it? >> as a general message, nato is always ready to protect all allies against any threat, and that's, of course, valid for turkey. >> reporter: nato used the most extensive war games in year to demonstrate the strenlt and willingness to protect one of its own. for nato, this is an exercise in deterrence, but russia isn't playing games anymore. it's engaged in syria, and as the secretary-general noted, building up forces from the black sea to the mediterranean. with the military capabilities of both nato and russia separately on this plane now, the possibility looms of a

catastrophic confrontation, but is it possible they could become partners working together to end the war in syria? >> the important thing now is that there's a renewed effort to find a political solution to the crisis to the war in syria. russia's part of these talks. i welcome that, because all the country's which are in war with one another have to sit down and finds a political, peaceful settlement. >> reporter: that prospect made all the more difficult by a nato/russia rivalry nearing cold war levels. jonah hall, al jazeera off the coast of portugal. refugees from couldn'ts like syria and afghanistan are finding new ways to reach europe. some even braving the cold of the arctic circle. this remote region might be freezing, but it's seen as safer than barbed wire fences and

strict borders that hundreds of thousands face in other routes. some have cycled from russia norway often on bikes meant for children. >> translator: there is no other option for you in afghanistan. we have to go through norway. i don't know any other way. there isn't one. in moscow also they don't provide us with documents. they say go away from here. they don't give us documents or work. there's nothing good left for us in afghanistan. there are many taliban there that mess with us every day. rescuers in brazil are still searching for survives after a dam burst in the southeast of the country swamping a mining village. two people are confirmed dead, and 30 are injured. officials warn that that's almost certain to rise. we have the latest. >> reporter: rescuers in brazil has been struggling to dig out survivors after a dam holding wastewater from an iron ore mine burst. families spend the night in structures still standing.

there was a search in the morning. this didn't stand a chance through a thick torrent of mud through it. a thick mud stretched over 2 kilometers from the dam to the village. almost 600 people live here, and most of them are miners. >> translator: i heard something like an earthquake. it seemed like a steamroller was passing by me. everything was shaking, and when i looked down the ground was cracked. >> reporter: firefighters say the number of missing arrived and it's unlikely to find surviving under the toxic mission mixture and most roads are blocked. some homes have been fill to the roof with mud. there was no power as electricity lines were brought down by the strong current. the company running the site is trying to figure out what happened. >> translator: at the moment we've not confirmed the cause and extent of what happened or

the number of victims. i repeat, our focus at this critical moment is to preserve the well-being and the environment. >> reporter: the site is operated by mining companies that are originaled by larger companies. they say they're doing all they can to help people, and the centuries old mining hub looks like it will need all the help it can get. the prime minister is due to hold a rally in india in kashmir on saturday amid tight security and calls for protests. he's expected to announce a large aid package of victims from the flood. they report that the calls for the large scale demonstration lead to extreme security measures. >> reporter: some neighborhoods still look like this more than a year after being hit by floods, but it's actually an improvement. this is how it looked a year ago. locals clearing away rubble

salvaging what they can. that's when we met tara emmet who lost everything in the flood. >> translator: now he has rebuilt part of his house. >> translator: all the money we got in compensation for the government went to just cleaning up the rubble. i had to take a bank loan and borrow money from my friends to rebuild. we keep waiting for help but never get it. >> reporter: parts of this area are empty as rebuilding is slow and some are still out of their homes. one of the expectations of the prime minister's rally on saturday is the announcement of a large aid package to help with flood damage and bring development to the region. some believe it's not the answer to the problems. they say their demands are more political. they have been shut down as more roadblocks are set up and security is increased. that's in response to a rally being planned by groups known as kashmiri separatists who leaders are put under arrest.

>> translator: we tried to speak to one of the protest leaders, but were denied entry by police. >> reporter: this independent politician is planning another protest on saturday saying offering aid pass canallings is not enough for india and kashmir. >> peace can't be cleared by. the relevant issues can never be taken. >> reporter: his arrive here is gifrn an official welcome by the state government, which shares power with the same party as the prime minister. almost not winning any seats in the muslim majority areas here, they say having the party in power in the local and central governments means greater benefits for locals. >> translator: separatists don't care about ordinary people. they don't want peace and development. regular people and the youth want jobs, peace and development. they want to follow modi's

far-sighted vision. >> reporter: back in this neighborhood all they see is a start of another winter without a proper home hoping someone in the government finally fulfills their promise of helping them rebuild. the death toll from the factory collapse in pakistan on wednesday has risen to 38. dozens of people are still missing in the rubble, and rescue crews say that hope is fading for more survivors to be found. witnesses at the site say the industrial building was under construction and had been poorly built. campaigning ended in myanmar's historical election which take place on sunday. european election observers inspected polling stations and ballot boxes. the opposition party is the front-runner in the vote, which is billed as myanmar's first free and fair vote in 25 years. thousands of air passengers are still stranded due to volcanic ash grounding many

flights out of indonesia. the airport is the latest shut down as since ash began to into last week. flights from bali resumed on thursday as winds began to clear the skies. nearly 700 flights were canceled this week because of the ash in indonesia. now, the united nations says it's alarmed by the ongoing escalation of violence in burindi and called on all parties to find a political settlement. they fear it might spark fresh violence. they set a saturday deadline for people to voluntarily give up guns or risk being dealt with as enemies of the nation. rob matheson reporting. >> reporter: people in the capital run from their homes taking with them only what they can care in their arms or what they can stuff into a cot. >> translator: we are fleeing because we have heard about the president's directive, and i'm scared that they're going to

call us fighters. >> translator: this fear is caused by the what the leadership said. we are very scared and worried because they might come down on us with all the military might. that's why people are running away. >> reporter: the president issue an ultimatum all weapons should be handed in by friday, but many fear it will push them closer to civil war and rights group warned against hard line language coming from officials. >> when senior government officials use terms like exterminate and pulverize those not worthy to live and when they're throwing grenades at police officers, that brings us to the brink. with he need to pull back from that. >> the president won the controversial third term in july. his opponent said it was against the constitution, but a special court supported him because he was picked by par la the for the first term, not voted in by the

people. protest and fighting followed and got worse over the following months. now the united nations said the situation in burundi is deteriorating. they say the army has the potential to stop the fighting, but it warns the military is fractured and near the breaking point. some say the future may lie with countries close-by. >> we think those neighbors have to be a crucial part of sending immediate signals to both sides in the next 48 hours to pull back from the brink so we don't see this weekend as a trigger to go to mass violence. >> reporter: the united nations security council whim meet on monday to discuss the situation. as the president's deadline approaches, many people are packing what they can and leaving. rob matheson, al jazeera. and two u.s. astronauts began a risky spacewalk to complete the repair of a cooling system for the international space station. they will repair an ammonia leak

in what is expected to be a six and a half hour job. they aim to complete the final rye pairs to assist them that broke down three years ago. it's 190th spacewalk outside of the iss. go to our wks, and -- website shgs and the address is aljazeera.com. jazeera.com. >> this is "techknow". a show about innovations that can change lives. >> the science of fighting a wildfire. >> we're going to explore the intersection of hardware and humanity, but we're doing it in a unique way. this is a show about science... >> oh! >> oh my god! >> by scientists. >> tonight, saving the macaw. >> i'm in the peruvian amazon and we're on the search for endangered macaws. >> now techknow is on a one of a kind mission. >> look at those wings. >> the macaw; graceful, elegant,