. >> [ singing ] celebrating a day of democracy, confidence among aung san suy kyi's supporters after polling closes in myanmar's first free election for 25 years. hello, i'm barbara sara, you're watching al jazeera live from london. also coming up a palestinian woman is stopped after stabbing an israeli security guard as violence continues in the occupied west bank russia remembers the 224 victims of the sinai plane crash

at an emotional memorial in st. petersburg money in misery - the greek's reluctantly benefitting from europe's refugee crisis hello, thank you for joining us. myanmar is the biggest move from dictatorship to democracy appears to have gone smoothly. the election billed as the freest is thought to have achieved a turn out of 80%, with many voting for the first time in their lives. the outcome will not be clear and could be followed with weeks of political wrangling. aung san suy kyi's lead for democracy is expected to win the most votes. it needs 67% of seats to take control of the parliament and choose the president - a role she herself is not allowed to hold. the army dominates politics

after decades in power. the union backed solidarity party needs 35% of seats to form a majority because 25% of seats are reserved for the military. activists say up to 4 million people may have been unable to vote, including the minority rohingya muslims. al jazeera spent the day at a polling center in yangon. >> the end of historic day in myanmar, the end of polling for this general election. it seems to have gone smoothly. there has been no reports of any violence or reports today on polling day or accusation of inconsistencies. election monitors from local and international organizations fanned out across the country. so far there has been no mention of wrongdoing or suspicious activities at the 40,000 polling

centers across the country. the n.l.d., the opposition party headquarters here in yangon. people gathered after the sun set, a couple of hours after polling closed to show support for aung san suy kyi. they gathered out the front of headquarters and were told to go home and await resources. florence louie looks at how the day unfolded. >> reporter: before daybreak, before the polling stations opened. voters in myanmar waited their turn for a chance to vote for the government they want. >> for the next generation, for real changes. that's what we are hoping from for . hopefully there'll be change. >> this day, that we can make a change for the future, a brighter future for our country >> reporter: for nearly 50 years a military government ruled the country until handing over power four years ago, since then. the ruling party, mostly

consisting of former military officers, have been in charge. the woman seen by many to bring change is opposition leader aung san suy kyi. she was under house arrest when the last general election was held. a process largely considered fraudulent by the international community. this election is different the the national league of democracy is taking part. >> it's the first to invite international missions. it is positive. it is increasing the transparency of the process. our observeser are doing the work. it's hoped the transparency will be displayed throughout the counting and the announcement of the result. >> reporter: there are allegations of errors in the voter list and irregulations in advance voting. and there'll be no voting in several townships and villages because of security concerns,

following fighting between the armies and government soldiers. holders of identity cards that voted in last elections will not be allowed to this time. the move affects more than 1 million rohingya, the muslim minority in the west, that is discriminated against and unrecognized by the government. and whatever the outcome of sunday's vote, the military will play a part in government. because the constitution guarantees it a quarter of seats in parliament. that didn't seem to matter. not on this day, and not to those that voted. polling closed after an eagerly anticipated election, the first held by a semi-civilian government. despite its flaws, the election is seen as a step forward for the fledgeling democracy in myanmar many of the human rights issue in myanmar relate to minorities. some have not been able to vote. wayne hay is at a camp for displaced people. >> reporter: there's no celebration of myanmar's

developing democracy here. in the camps around the state capital there's around 100,000 people, most rohingya muslim, viewed as illegal immigrants in myanmar, despite the fact that most of them have been here for generations. their rights have been stripped away. they used to vote in elections. not this time. that right has been taken away by the government. >> i was hoping to be able to vote. now i can't. our lives are so give right now. >> i'm sad that i can't vote. i hope that after the election the rohingya people will be recognised. that is my one wish. >> a few kilometres outside the camp people vote as normal. one of the main leading candidates for the buddhist party doesn't offer much hope for the people here. >> translation: there's citizenship law, we can live

with that, but not newcomers. >> reporter: the people have some hope in the form of aung san suy kyi, but so far she has refused to speak out in support of them. there have been three separatist attacks on israelis in the occupied west bank. one is dead, a palestinian shot by israeli police after driving into a group of people. a palestinian woman was shot and wounded by a security guard after she tried to stab him. she was captured on c c.t.v. pulling a knife from her handbag and lunging at the guard. the latest in a wave of attacks an israeli soldiers injured in a car-ramming attack died. 77 palestinians and 9 israelis have died in the violence. stephanie dekker reports. >> reporter: two of the incidents took place around the northern city of nablus in the

occupied west bank. one caught on camera, the woman that tried to stab an israeli security officer - that was in bethlehem. this was the change to a pattern seen over the last few weeks, that most of the incidents, some disputed, palestinian witness, cases say it's not as the israeli narrative goes. they have not taken place around hebron, where most of the attacks took place. it shows how unpredictable the attacks are. difficult to prevent. and the tension on the ground, and it comes as the israeli prime minister on his way to washington to meet with president obama. we know they'll be discussing tensions here on the ground, and the israeli prime minister, according to israeli media, will try to ease tensions in the west bank and gaza, lifting checkpoints and easing the restrictions on movement. i think very difficult to see how that will translate to the

tensions on the ground that remain real. many people will tell you, palestinians, that it stems from many factors, partially a hopelessness in to see the end of the occupation. we have heard from the white house in the last few days that that 2-state solution, a solution to the tensions, to the long ongoing crisis in the occupation will not happen under the presidency of president obama well, stephanie dekker mentioned the israeli prime minister binyamin netanyahu is on his way to the united states where he'll hold talks with the u.s. president obama. it will be their first meeting for 13 months. binyamin netanyahu hopes to make progress in securing a military aid package for his country. >> translation: the conversation with the president will center on recent events in the middle east, including in syria; possible progress with the palestinians or stabilizing the situation with them, and

strengthening the security of the state of israel, something the united states is committed to with the state of israel's quality being preserved in the face of a changing middle east and a changing balance of forces al jazeera's tom ackerman is in washington d.c. for us. tom, after losing the fight against the iran nuclear deal, israel says it's seeking an increase in the military aid package, i guess as a compensation. do we know what that would entail? >> well, first of all, the - before we get to the military aid package, the president will hear from binyamin netanyahu on what further assurances the u.s. will give to israel about the follow-through on the deal, to what extent the inspections and other regime surveillance will be enforced. that is something the israelis have not given up on. as far as the military aid package, the foremost thing is a

squadron of f-15 stealth fighter jets, also some advanced short takeoff to landing helicopters or v-23-osprey, and a supply of arrow iii antiballistic missiles to combat a threat from iran. what is conspicuously missing from the shopping list that the israelis talk about is what some called the bunker buster, a massive ordnance device intended or capable of hitting deep underground installations such as what the israelis fear the iranians might attempt to reinstall as part of their nuclear establishment and, tom, we were hearing before about the continuing violence in the occupied west bank, and east jerusalem.

do you think the u.s. will put pressure on israel to restart negotiations with palestinians. president obama has a year to go, and nothing is expect to move on that front well, the u.s. ambassador to israel, daniel shapiro today pretty much said what other officials here in washington said earlier in the week or last week, that there's no prospect, really, of a comprehensive deal with the palestinians, but they do hope that there can be - to hear from some measures that binyamin netanyahu is willing to put forward that would be regarded as confidence-building. in other words, to assuage the desperation of the palestinians, and this is something that the americans are most fearful of, that this would only lead to palestinian declaration that they have given up totally the oslo accords, that they will cede to israel full occupation

and leave it in the lap of israelis, of course, that full occupation, also means that the israeli would have a difficult problem in actually enforcing its rule on the west bank tom ackerman with the latest from washington. thank you gunmen killed nine people in a bar in the burundi capital bujumbura. 7 bodies were on the floor in the venue. two others that escaped died in hospital. violence escalated in recent months in the country after a contested election result forcing tens of thousands to flee. security forces have been carrying out searches after a presidential deadline to hand in illegal weapons ran out. burundi's security minister says in spite of the new measure on weapons, normal life in the country can go on. >> translation: there's a matter that will support the process of

enforced disarmament of civilians. it enables us to get hold of weapons gained illegally whether held by others or stored elsewhere. the operation will take as long as it takes. there were rumours it made civilians flee you're watching al jazeera. still to come - from the economy it the refugee crisis. and voters in the country have their say on whether the country failed since joining the e.u. >> and i'm at the olympic robot in qatar, where more than 3,000 of the smartest young finds come together to battle for robot supremacy. supremacy.

time for a reminder of the top stories on al jazeera. voting has gone smoothly in what is billed as myanmar's freest election ever. aung san suy kyi's national league for democracy is expected to win most of the votes. >> a palestinian woman has been shot by security guards as she tried to stab a guard. nine killed after an attack in a bar in the capital of burundi, bujumbura results coming through after elections in croatia. the croatian democratic union is provisionally ahead, winning 63 seats in the 151-seat parliament. the state election commission says the democratic election

party of the outgoing prime minister is second with 52 seats. it's the first election since croatia joined the european union. al jazeera's correspondent is there with the latest. >> it's a neck and neck election race in croatia. the electoral commission counting preliminary results. it shows the seats by the center ruling coalition and the center right. the 3-year-old political party, bridge of independence became the first political strength in croatia. they signed a statement saying they will not form a post-election coalition with the two biggest coalitions, but will support a minority government if they accept the reforms in the public sector. >> it's a long night ahead of the political parties yet to

agree on election coalitions, who will win the left or right - it's still unknown a member of the team investigating the metro jet plane crash in egypt told the reuters newsagency they were 90% sure it was caused by a bomb. sunday, during a news conference, the man in charge of the investigation said that a loud noise was heard in the last second of the cockpit recording. the flight from sharm el sheikh to st. petersburg came down in the sinai peninsula killing 224 on board. a group affiliated with i.s.i.l. said it caused the crash a memorial service has been held in st. petersburg, where most of the victims of the crash were from. rory challands reports. 224 chimes for 224 lives ended suddenly and violencely. the sombre sound of a tolling bell, the culmination of a

service held and a christian world's largest cathedrals since isaac. according to russian orthodox tradition a memorial to the dead is hold on the ninth day. it's more than a week since the metro jet plane was destroyed. and we are waiting for a conclusive explanation as to how and why. western governments thing it was a bomb. >> translation: i think it's a plane to blame, it's a technical error. there has been many versions. i'm inclined to thing it was a wom. >> reporter: the kremlin says we

shouldn't jump to conclusions. all russian flights were suspended on friday. a precaution, tourists started to arrive back in their home country this weekend. if an i.s.i.l. bomb is proven to be what destroyed the jet. don't expect a backlash against russia's foreign policies, vladimir putin's power has been marked by several attacks and tragedies. the response is to grieve and move on. if anything, look for a hardening of attitudes. more support for the bombing in syria. sorrow is often followed by anger. modern governments can be good at shaping public opinion for their own uses - and the kremlin is better than most fierce fighting in yemen left more than 50 dead over a weekend of violence. 29 people, including 8 civilians were killed in heavy shelling in the city of tiaz.

30 others were killed in fighting houthi rebels launched an offensive in the south of yemen. pro-government troops warned they may lose ground but support from the saudi-led coalition. a leading figure in the general people's congress died after a stroke. he was considered one of the country's most experienced politicians, and served as prime minister first in the yemen arab republic during the '80s, and in the unified state from 1998 to 2001. the 81-year-old was flown to germany from saudi arabia to continue medical treatment, but died in hospital wind and rain, meanwhile, is battering the island off the coast of yemen, a week after cyclone chapala caused damage, killing eight. cyclone meg is travelling west to the mainland, bringing threats of flooding and

landslides. serbia says two staff from its embassy in libya have been kidnapped in an attack on the serbian's ambassador's convoy. the ambush took place in a coastal city, and the hostages have been named as a communications officer and a driver another 12 people have died from their injuries over the weekend following a fire at the bucharest nightclub more than a week ago. 44 people died in total. the romanian health minister says the next week will be difficult, because more than a dozen are in hospital suffering severe burns. the fire broke out after fireworks were left off during a rock concert greek fishermen help to rescue stranded refugees off the island of lesbos. they were brought to the island after their boat's engine

scaled. on land they were helped by vol tires. hundreds of thousands that observed on the greek islands in change how the islands in look and are doing business. shops and restaurants are popping up to cater for the refugees needs. mohammed jamjoom on the island of lesbos. and from there he sends this report. >> reporter: a scene full of contradictions. juxtaposing money against misery as it showcases profit and poverty. >> yes, 51. >> many businesses on lesbos, about to close down, are kept alive. >> reporter: refugees line up to pay what little money they have to local businessmen and women, who learned to act limbate. -- acclimate. the sandwich may be simply, but menus are in many languages. catering to crisis left a bad

taste in the mouths of some benefitting from it. like maria. happy to be making extra cash from selling sim cards, she feels conflicted. >> translation: everybody takes advantage of them. the poor people. i don't think there is one single business that doesn't benefit. in the past there was nothing here, it was just an empty street. that sums it up. now it's like a street party. >> reporter: in the capital one restaurant is not having arabic menus, it has other restaurants, a taste of the homeland that syrians fled. the owner insists his endeavour is good for residents and refugees. >> translation: we should adopt and accept the people and support them in any way.

there's a difference between profiting from doing honest and hard work and exploit takes. >> reporter: a shot walk down the street. comfort is in a short supply. >> the price of the shops are very high. when you go to the shops you find that it is crowded. >> reporter: he feels that some local businesses are trading off their suffering. most of the refugees we spoke with, sleeping in the parking lot, told us that prices are not an issue, they don't have enough money, or eat at a restaurant. many say the money brought with them is close to running out. sting, even at this our. surely one of their darkest they choose to see some light. >> we find difficulties in the island. but we find kindness in the people. that is what makes us feel

happy. because we - we cannot find the kindness and - in our countries. i don't know what to say. i don't know. >> reporter: as the economy on lesbos changes, people change with it. this may look like simple supply and demand, but for now the only thing you can see clearly is a surplus of despair the world robot olympiad is showcasing the best and brightest mines from across the world. the annual event started in 2004, and brought together 3,000 people in qatar, hoping to show off robotic creations. terence baisley has been to meet them. >> reporter: with 2.5 hours to finalise and build their robot, the machines must deliver the correct blocks to the top of the mountain, no easy feat when it

has to operate without human intervention. this event brings together more than 3,000 young robot enthusiasts from more than 45 countries, intent on learning and showing off their skills. >> we have different advantage and can talk to each other. and they know about the advantages, and we have known from that. >> it makes our brain more advanced. no matter how big or small the robot is, you have to manage it. talking about interesting things with the people, and you learn about it. >> reporter: one competition - teams designed robots to extract resources from potentially dangerous places - from water on mars to volcanic ash mining. each team was judged on creativity and ingenuity. >> we have seen something way out of the box, and in the

theme, but something we have not seen or expected whatsoever. that is cool to see. like someone who found micro-organisms and which you can say is a natural resource. >> reporter: then there's football. two robots a side with thousands man hours behind the design and build of each robot player. classic lego building blocks led to the imagination of generations. add to it robotics, and some of the smartest mines and you have a spectacle of a serious global sporting event. >> when you look at what they are able to do and programme the robots to do, it's incredible. obviously that gets people interested. science is fun, if education is fun, people will be interested, and be interested in becoming the scientist or engineers of the future. >> a malaysian team takes the title, but the consensus is that

bringing young people from around the world together in the way of technology is a winning formula and more on the website, the address on the screen now aljazeera.com. you can see the top stories there, the historic election in myanmar. myanmar. tonight a fight over oil could break up iraq. i ask a governor if his allegiance lies with his country or a kurdish state should teenage girls be forced to share a bathroom with a transgender girl if it makes them uncomfortable. and