le p syrian opposition groups prepare to hold a crucial meeting in riyhad ahead of potential talks with bashar al-assad's government. welcome. you're watching al jazeera. live from our headquarters in doha. also coming up on the program. china issues its first red alert for air pollution with more severe smog forecast for beijing over the next three days. venezuela's opposition calls for unity after winning control of the national assembly by a land

slide. a difficult road ahead as png fights to contain a tb epidemic. syria's opposition groups are due to need in saudi arabia's capital on tuesday. they will be discussing ways to over come their differences and unite ahead of any talks on a transitional government. iran, rival of saudi arabia has criticised the meeting saying it will hurt the peace process. under the plan agreed by 17 countries last month, by sides of the syrian conflict are under pressure to hold negotiations by 1 january. the deal states that they should be followed by elections in 18 months, but it doesn't specify the role of the syrian president bashar al-assad. his future is one of the main issues that divides the opposition.

>> reporter: they are fought together on the front lines. apart from that, the political and armed opposition lack a unified command and have different visions for the future of syria. now they need to come together as international peace efforts gain momentum. saudi arabia is hosting a gathering to unite the opposition ahead of possible talks with the syrian government. world and regional powers who recently met in vienna agreed that peace talks and the political process should begin but there was no agreement on bashar al-assad's role in that process and that is one of the issues dividing the opposition >> the majority in the open sayings have make-up obtained that as add is part of the problem and there would be no change or solution until he gets out. there are some members of the opposition who are based in damascus and they are under the - you know, in many way under

the influence of the regime. >> reporter: on the ground armed groups don't share similar ideologies and one of the most powerful forces, al-nusra front, won't be attending. it has been designated by the u.s. and u.n. as a terrorist organization. syrian opposition politicians have urged al-nusra to sdoeshtd itself with al-qaeda. so far it hasn't. its allies on the battle field will be attending the meetings in saudi arabia. >> everything is going to be all right in the meeting. some of the groups are going to try to distance themselves from al-nusra. that won't be easy. that will affect al-nusra in the sense that there might be a split within the group. >> reporter: even if saudi arabia gets the opposition to speak in one voice, some in the delegation may not be acceptable to russia. russia doesn't want to negotiate with various groups.

it wants them added on the terrorist list. for the opposition backers, they are the backbone of the armed rebellion and there are realities on the ground that could cause further conflict while the kurds could be represented, the largest group the democratic and ypg haven't been invited. turkey a backer of the opposition considers them terrorists. the alliances in this conflict are a complicated maze. there is no clear way through as this attempt gets underway in saudi arabia a senior resident scholar says the syrian opposition must unite to get the support of the u.s. >> i think the most important thing is that it's going to be an early test and it is fairly early in the international negotiating process. it came together in vienna a couple of weeks ago, of whether the opposition and their

backers, regional backers, saudi arabia, turkey, can come together and create a coherent seam eye unified or unified enough political front to participate in the negotiations without lose forces on the ground. that's really the question, is can they come together and can they find a way to bring the party in that is acceptable to the united states. it's not russia and iran. they will have to deal with people they don't like, but it's the u.s. a that is going to have to be convinced. it has either moved on with al-nusra or al-nusra has moved on. smei or other that is resolved because if it isn't, there is going to be a big hole in the coalition representation or the united states is not going to work for this group. the big problem is the participation of groups too

closely associated with i.s.i.l. that's a huge issue. i think the kurdish problem is a big one, but what it really does it compromises the american position because the united states doesn't want to have anything to do with anyone associated with al-qaeda, but it is associating with kurdish groups that are associated with the pkk which is on the american terrorism list. so it complicates the american position a little bit, but the role of these al-qaeda linked groups is crucial. if the fighters on the ground can't distance themselves from it, it's going to be a real problem for the political wing of the opposition the syrian government has released 35 opposition activists in the city of homs. it's part of a cease fire deal which will lead to the withdrawal of up to two thousand rebels. it's the last stronghold in the city which has been unsiege the u.s. led coalition

denies that it targeted. three soldiers were filled. damascus has called it an act of aggression and sent a letter to the united nations. yemen's president has asked the saudi- led military alliance to begin a seven day cease fire. in a letter to the u.n. the president says he wants the truth to start on 15 december. that's the same day when peace talks will begin. it is optimistic a cease fire will be owned >>. there are a number of goods-- observed. >> there are a number of good signs, from my discussions, and everybody seems to be welcoming the idea to have a cease fire. we know that a long time cease fire will provide long time to put in place, but i'm sure we

will have a cease fire. almost sure, very optimistic for the first time the chinese capital has issued a red alert for air pollution. that's the highest possible warning level. schools in beijing have been advised to stay closed and some forms of construction and industry has to stop until noon on thursday. adrian brown our correspondent reports now from beijing. >> reporter: beijing really feels very much like a city under siege and the men me, if you like, is all around you, as you can see, another very bad pollution day here in beijing. so bad that the government felt compelled to introduce a red alert. the first time they have ever done this. this time a week ago the second highest tier was in force, an orange alert, yet the pollution then was twice as bad as it is today, which has led many people to question why this red alert has now been in forced. -- enforced. i think one reason is that the

government wants to be seen to be doing something. it wants to be proactive. what that means is this, kinder garthens and middle schools have been closed, work on construction sites have come to a halt. traffic is being restricted to alternate days, depending on odd or even number plates and the government says these restrictions will stay in force for at least another three days when strong winds, it is hoped, will blow all this smog away a professor at the school of management at peking university joining us live. adrian says this red alert is a sign that the government has been stung into action. is it a sign too that the government is taking the environmental pollution seriously?

ignore it, but in more recent years i think they've started to take much more active steps and i don't think it is quite fair to say that they're trying to ignore it and they've been forced into doing something about it. i think they are trying to do something about it, but it's a multi-tier problem what else do they need to do because what they're doing already is not enough, clearly. >> no. i think you've got to baird in mind that in the 50s, a friend of mine grew up in l.a. and he didn't know when he was growing up there that it was surrounded with mountains because he couldn't see them. i remember growing up in london in the 50s as well, the very bad pollution. there was one week when london buses had to drive with somebody in front of them with a torch, and also the u.s. had very bad

pollution until the 1970s. it takes a long time to address and solve these issues and it takes a lot of money. the beijing government power supply at the moment is fuelled with coal. by 1917 it will be entirely fuelled by natural gas. steps are being taken, but it can't be done in a short time no. of course china does have to juggle the environment against the economy and especially job creations. can it satisfy both?

ability to take drastic action. i wouldn't be surprised if we see major action on that front. the pollution is going to take time to sort out. i think in 10 years we might start to see a significant improvement in beijing, but probably not for the next two years let's hope so. thanks for taking the time to speak to us there. still ahead here on the show chennai one of india's most developed you cities struggles to deal with heavy rainfall which has caught authorities unaware and unprepared. sure, tv has evolved over the years.

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the top stories this hour on al jazeera. syria's opposition groups are due to meet later on tuesday in the capital. they will be discussing ways to over come their differences and presented a united front. u.s. led coalition has denied accusations that it targeted a syrian army camp. three soldiers were killed after four coalition jets bombed its base. for the first time ever beijing has issued a read alert for air pollution. the highest possible warning level. schools have been advised to stay closed and some forms of construction and industry have to stop until 12 noon on thursday. donald trump has called for a total and complete shut down of muslims entering the white house.

the u.s. correspondent reports. >> reporter: the u.s. secretary of homeland security jay johnson at this mosque to send the message to the muslim community they're not an enemy. he admits islam aphobia is on the rise in the u.s. and there is growing concern about the potential for a violent back lash >> we've seen incidents already. i heard about incidents in the meeting i just had here that were just horrible. so i am concerned. >> reporter: one reason comments from those like donald trump who is called for a ban on muslims to be band from the united states. islam ma phobia is worse than it has ever been, worse than after the 911 attacks. he says it is muslim children paying the price because they're

being bullied. >> what i'm worried about, this kind of talk is impacting the innocent children. >> reporter: another presidential candidate is push the to stop immigration from 34 countries, all muslim majority countries, except one. the spokesman says it isn't profiling. >> it may not fit your logic, but my logic is if you have a country on there in which there are no muslims, it is not just based on muslims. >> reporter: at the mosque where they've increased security, there is growing concern but also hope. >> people say the same thing about jewish community before. some people have said the same thing about president kennedy. can he be trusted? where is his loyalties?

america went through that before. america is going through this now. we shall over come. >> reporter: a hope to the end of the politics of fear, but one that apparently won't be realized in this election cycle the investigation into last week's mass shooting in california will now focus on the suspects' contacts inside america. the f.b.i. says syed farook and his wife tashfeen malik went for target practice just days before the attack. 14 people were killed on wednesday at a center for disabled people in san bernardino. >> as the investigation has progressed, we have learned and believe that both subjects were radicalized and have been for quite some time. how did that happen? the question we're trying to get at is how did that happen and by whom and where did that happen, and i will tell you right now we don't know those answers at this point. we do have evidence that both of

the subjects did some target - participated in target practice in some ranges within the metro area or within the l.a. area. that target practice on one occasion was done within days of this event eagles of death metal have made an emotional appearance at a u 2 concert. some fans were draped in french flags at monday's concert. security was beefed up. the attacks killed 130 people in france, most of them at the bataclan concert haul where the rock band were performing. >> reporter: venezuela will say they will use their new majority to release political prisoners.

the president has conceded defeat in the country. >> reporter: the people of venezuela woke to calm after an electoral storm that has profoundly changed this oil rich nation. it is the change that many in this poor neighborhood say they are betting on. >> translation: with the national aseam plea in the hands of the opposition, if the president was still in power things wouldn't have deteriorated like this. i don't have running water in my house, no money for food or for clothes for the children. >> reporter: 24 hours after the poll, the electoral council had still not confirmed the final tally. an impatient opposition announced it had won a stunning two-thirds majority in the

legislature. the wave of against expressed in the poll has been huge. people are now telling us the real issue is how all this will impact their daily lives and what will it take to reverse this country's economic meltdown. newly elected opposition deep tease say the economy and an amnesty for jailed politicians who they regard as political prisoner will be their first priority when the assembly convenes on january 5. >> translation: the disaster of these people is that we have to start working right now that we will present to the nation. >> reporter: whatever their plans, they will meet resistance. the president insists that what he calls the counter revolution has only won a temporary battle. back in this rubbish infested neighborhood, people are more interested in the pace of economic recovery. >> translation: we all know

venezuela is dependent on oil and that the price is still dropping. >> reporter: nevertheless, he says giving the opposition a vote of confidence is at least a start an independent venezuelan journalist and political analyst, she says the government still faces major challenges. >> both sides are looking into the presidential elections in four years. so both sides are trying to recover the trust of the people, especially the government who seems to lost the trust of not only of the opposition, but also the other side. so that's why the government has a challenge right now to convene people that they have to support them. the people see madura that he is

not really a leader of venezuela and he doesn't carry on the legacy. that's why we see results such as that on sunday, and that was actually a big win for the opposition. so it remains to be seen what the opposition is going to do with this victory. they have to work especially on the economy, try to restore the economy and the confidence of the venezuelans rescuers in the u.k. are trying to reach people trapped in flooded homes after a severe storm that killed at least two people. days of heavy rains hit the northern english of combria the hardest. schools are shut and close to 60,000 people are without electricity. prime minister david cameron said some of the affects he visited on monday.

as the city of chennai emerges from its worst flooding for more than 100 years, attention is turning to why it caused so much destruction. crith particulars and environmentalists say the damage was worse than it should have been because of poor planning. >> reporter: this woman has lived here for as long as she can remember. there's not much left of the place she calls home, but like many of her neighbors, she is not surprised. the neighborhood is in a low-lying area. it was right in the path of last week's floods. >> translation: why did the government build us a house here just to give one who didn't have a house, they built houses in the river bed and we came here. if it is opened, we will be flooded. >> reporter: as she picks

through the remains of her home, across her neighborhood there are signs of why it wasn't able to cope. like many indian cities, chennai doesn't have the capacity to deal with a crisis of this magnitude. >> there are two waters and bad waters that are mixed, and ready for this, we could have planned for less damage. >> reporter: last week there were still areas of the area which received a month's worth of rain in just a few days. experts say this devastation is not only the result of unexpectedly heavy rainfall, but also poor city planning. >> if you go and study the flooded areas of the city, you will see most of them are either low-lying area, near a lake or mash wetland. most of these areas are affected only because of this.

the chennai authority should have taken enormous caution before giving them licence and approvals for construction of buildings. we see in most of these places, the areas just mentioned, and all buildings have come up >> reporter: it is one of the country's most developed cities, but this flood caught authorities unaware and unprepared. these scenes of chaos and destruction are a timely reminder to the rest of india of the need to do more to prevent such disasters. so millions of people of this family can live without fear their homes will be flooded png has the highest rate of tb in the pacific region. that's according to the world health organisation. the disease has been eau road accidented indicated in much--

eeradicated in much of the world, but they are struggling from a particular strain of the disease. >> reporter: initial diagnosis takes place on the river bank. this man is too ill to-- woman is too ill to walk 200 metres from the shore. >> the family have tb, so it is possible she has also tb. >> reporter: it was later confirmed she has become the latest victim of a tb epidemic sweeping across png. these two people are others. matthew knew he was ill but didn't make the long journey to the hospital until his son started showing symptoms too. >> when he cough, the blood comes with the cough. >> reporter: this is the only hospital for hundreds of kilometres and it's struggling

to cope. >> we have a medical crisis. it's getting bigger and bigger, the number of cases. >> reporter: most worrying is that an increasing number of people have drug-resistant strains of tb >> if you don't follow-up on your tb treatment, if you don't take it for six months, all the right dozes of drugs and all at the same time, it can create resistance to antibiotics. >> reporter: it takes years to treat and is often fatal. a few doctors, some with the charity doctors without borders, now take treatment on the road to the villages. the trouble with even an outreach clinic like this is it's still hours if not days of travel away from where patients with tb live. there is just one road through this part of png west of the capital, very few have cars anyway. sick patients often walk hours

for treatment. some paddle down rivers for days. >> the access for patient is very complicated because of the geography and the condition, because of the weather >> reporter: earlier this year, the charity tested delivering drones by medicine. last year millions of dollars was donated to an emergency response but not much of the monday has materialised and what has, has ended up in officials' pockets. >> corruption is affecting people. >> tb control program, certainly corruption is one area that you don't want to see in any department and in the health department definitely not

>> reporter: in the hospital the wards are fill and many more are ill in the forest to go to our website for more on the day's news. you will find lots from our correspondents and another chance to watch our program. all that and more at aljazeera.com. >> on "america tonight": a good trip. from party drug to a way out of the darkness? >> i was very skeptical, i just thought it was ecstasy, this party drug and something that people take and get messed up but i was going down a very bad road and didn't feel i had anything to lose at that point. >> "america tonight's" christof putzel, the use of ecstasy, can