4 a m unanimous nous agreement the u.n. endorses a peace plan for syria which includes a ceasefire and talks between the government and the opposition. this is al jazeera live from doha. also ahead the african union proposes to send five thousand peacekeepers to burundi which it says is on the brink of civil war. hundreds of south koreans are protesting the arrest of a labor union leader. work electron trove see, some schools shut down in virginia

over an arabic writing assignment. the u.n. have agreed on a road map for peace in syria. the security council unanimously backed a plan for talks between the syrian government and the opposition along with the ceasefire. questions remain over who will be taking part in those talks as well as the future of syria's president. >> reporter: a unanimous vote by the u.n. security council endorsing a clear and ambitious time line for political transition in syria with face-to-face talks and possibly a ceasefire in just a matter of weeks. this resolution was the result of very last minute negotiations. it's a demonstration of the difficulty of the task ahead that ministers were arriving in new york, talks with still underway. diplomats ultimately reporting to the foreign mine sister were

fight withing the corn parts over many of the words and details of resolution. when it was finally passed it was praised by the current president of the security council, the united states >> after four and a half years of war, this is the first time we have been able to come together at the united nations in the security council to embrace a road forward. during that time one syrian in 20 has been killed or wounded. one in five is a refugee. one in two has been displaced. the average life expectancy in syria has during that period by-- dropped by 20 years. >> reporter: here in the corridors and officers of the united nations they face a tough challenge, convening peace talks between the syrian government and the syrian opposition in january. there are still many unresolved issues. who should be in that opposition delegation and which groups should not be allowed to go to those peace talks or even take part in the future of syria

because they're designated as terrorist groups. despite this, the man charged with leading the peace efforts says it is now doable. >> do you remember the name of mission impossible? well, mission impossible is becoming potentially possible thanks to what we saw today. >> reporter: the hardest issue of all, the future of president bashar al-assad, is still in dispute. the russian foreign minister again stressing it was not for the international community to decide his fate. >> bashar al-assad's fate, we talked about that, repeatedly just recently president faith addressed-- putin addressed the nation in his annual speech, no nation should be given vision of

what its leadership should look like. >> reporter: at one point as he spoke in russian, secretary kerry wasn't getting the translation on his headset. this on the day the two men, as well as the rest of the security council finally negotiated the exact language of the resolution, but will those carefully agreed words still make sense to both men when they're put to the test in the coming months let's take a look at this. the syrian civil war has been raging for nearly five years now, and over 250,000 people have been killed and over a million injured, most of them civilians. at least 6.5 million syrians are internally displaced and an estimated four out of every five syrians are living in poverty and two million children are out of school because of the

conflict. to a middle east analyst live from beirut. the grid lock is broken, but with all these differences still remaining, it makes you wonder just how successful this could be. >> >> could you please repeat? yes. i'm just wondering what your reaction is to this. >> the very good thing about the resolution that passed is that for the first time we are witnessing after four years the international community ask altogether united behind taking a decision in relation to the syrian conflict and trying to push for political resolution. however, there are two disadvantages of this resolution. first, there is no agreement about what are the terrorists group that should not be included in the opposition or how to deal even.

there is no clear strategy how to deal with these organizations, particularly those islamist organizations. the criteria through which they could make a difference between what is acceptable and not acceptable. second of all, the role of president bashar al-assad himself, the russian federation is completely against the removal of asad during the transitional phase. the first six months would create a new so-called government that could preside over the new transition, political transition. however, nothing is going to be guaranteed because all is going to be set upon the implementation of the deal given the problems that you're outlining, are we being optimistic in hopes of success of this deal? >> well, since the vienna talks

over syria and the recent riyadh conference, everyone is being positive about the crisis itself. however, there are initial variables that need to be taken into account in order to reach a solution. these variables are not set yet and are not ready to be dealt with. specifically, with the continuous battles that are taking place on the ground and as we have seen in the last month, instead of the degrading the state, witnessing the expansion, particularly the aleppo and idlib province. we are not providing the tools to allow this conflict to be resolved in a peaceful manner. we are having wishful thinking from the part of the international community as well as the general powers who are included in these talks and

backing the resolution are the goals too ambitious do you think? >> yes. it's an important objective to be reached to maintain the unity of the syrian territory and to maintain the nature of the regime of having a secular regime rather than a multi ethnic or a sectarian divide within the syrian community. the problem doesn't rely on the objectives and the goals that we are looking to achieve, but there is a huge lack of strategies to implement in order to reach such a positive and things that they are aiming for.

in terms of the tools, no new tools have emerged even yesterday with the security council. the only positive thing about this resolution is that for the first time since four years, we are seeing that the international community is all united towards having a clear goal and resolution of the syrian conflict we will leave it there. we have to move on. we do appreciate your perspective and your point of view. thank you. the african union is proposing to send five thousand peacekeepers to burundi which it says is on the brink of civil war. now to our correspondent in bujumbura. the position has got more and more serious, hasn't it. >> reporter: indeed. international community wants the african union to support and

deploy 5,000 troops and policemen with the mandate of protecting civilians. burundi has 96 hours to respond to the african union's position to deploy these troops. government officials have been reacting and they say they do not want foreign forces on burundi's soil. we spoke to the spokesman for the president and he said that the government of burundi was not consulted. he said that the government in power was a democratically and legally elected government that needed to be consulted on matters of burundi's sovereignty. he said that wasn't done and he said they were not in need of peacekeepers saying that burundi is contributing troops to a number of peace keeping issues. if the african union felt that burundi had problems tackling their problems, they should return their own troops instead

of bringing foreign forces here. when i reminded him that the au could inter phene in a member country, he said let's see where the forces will lands. the violence that has been going on in burundi since april has affected every aspect of life with economic being the main casualty. burundi is at a critical jumping tour. the fallout from the political - juncture. unemployment is on the rise and so are the prices of basic goods. traders in the capital bujumbura say business is bad. >> translation: there is no business to talk about. we rarely get customers. the prices of goods have gone up and most people cannot afford them any more. >> reporter: supermarkets where wealthy people and foreign worker once shopped are empty. at least 220,000 people have fled burundi since the conflict began in april.

this is one of the if you foreign businessmen brave enough to stay on in bujumbura. he runs this mobile phone shop in the city center. >> translation: these are tough times for everyone. we hardly make any sales. i would say i'm doing much better than most traders. we are hopeful of better times ahead >> reporter: for the first time since the end of burundi's civil war a decade ago, the economy is said to contract from months of political political upheavel. the economy will shrink by 7.2% this year it is thought. the mayor of bujumbura say all is not well. >> translation: it is difficult for hungry people to listen to the words of their leaders. we are meeting resistance from the people when we ask them to pay taxes or take part in

community development matters. >> reporter: more than half the population suffers from malnutrition. rising food prices are adding to the pressure on them. diplomatic efforts are being made by the international community to stop burundi from sliding back into civil war. for most people here the end of fighting here may not equal the end of their economic crisis. >> reporter: now, in the past few months burundians have witnessed targeted killings, detentions and mass arrests of people and one of the things that the african union thinks that with the deployment of the peace-keeping force would come is peace talks between the president and those opposed to him serving a third term in office. however, the ruling elite in bujumbura feel that any peace talks could shove aside some of

the major players in government right now and this is one of the key reasons they are refusing the deployment of these peace keeping troops thank you very much indeed. rwanda's electoral commission said voters have backed a referendum that will allow the president to stay in office longer. it means the current president could remain in power until 2034. malcolm webb reports now from the capital. >> reporter: the results of the controversial referendum were exactly as expected. people at this preplanned event in the capital celebrated the total from each district was announced by the commission. in all districts it is said nearly 100% of people voted in favor of changing the constitution and its presidential term limits. he has been president since 200 but effectively in power since his rebel group ended the gen tied and took control in 1994. the changes mean he can run

again in luxs in 2017 and could stay in power until 2034. >> you want to be president for longer and they will be a disaster. >> i don't want. what is happening is people's choice. is the people why they want. >> reporter: since the referendum was announced just ten days ago, politicians have been urging support for the changes. we've been told that people were pressured into attending rallies but it is said they came freely. >> translation: we asked our members of parliament to change the term limits because they were an obstacle to us re-electing the president. >> reporter: both the e.u. and u.s. spoke out against changing the constitution, but voting went ahead anyway. voting was in a quiet and ordinarily manner. it is an expression of the people's will because they want to keep him in power, but very few have been openly critical

about it. some opposition figures are imprisoned accused of inciting ethnic conflict. others have been killed or disappeared. government denies it is responsible. it is easy to find people critic in other countries. this man says he received regular threats for his voicing. >> it is a shock that the referendum that has been arranged in one week to see or allow the president being president for life essentially. we any it's illegitimate. >> reporter: the president's supporters say he is loved for bringing stability and development to a country that has suffered so much violence. they say the referendum results reflect that. it is not possible to tell how popular he really is hundreds of south koreans are protesting against the arrest of a labor union leader. he may face charges over

violence at an anti-government protest. the demonstration is a series of demonstration against the current president who has been criticised of her treatment of union members and dissidents. in india the youngest convict in a gang rape case will soon walk free. a court said it was unable to stop the release of the attacker as he has served the maximum sentence for a juvenile. he raped and murder a medical student. india tried amending the juvenile just act, but the bill is yet to be passed. >> whthere is nothing we could have done. the existing law cannot deal with it. there is a second session and the parliament will deal with it. what could i have done, tell me another week another smog alert in beijing.

four days beginning on saturday. this has prompted beijing to issue the second red alert. this means around half of the vehicles are off the roads, schools are closed and construction is banned. still to come two decades after her death, mother teresa is to become a saint. guatemala's child brides activists say many challenges lay ahead to despite the raising of the legal age for marriage.

welcome back.

top stories. world powers agree on a road map for peace in syria. the u.n. security council unanimously backed a plan for talks between the syrian governments and opposition, but there's no mention of bashar al-assad as issues remain over his future. burundi has told al jazeera that the government does not want african union troops in the government. the african union says it is on the brink of civil war and is proposing to send five thousand peacekeepers there. hundreds of people demonstrate against the south korean president against the arrest of union leader in the clamp down on dissidents. this is the latest in a series of anti-government protests in south korea. united nations says physical and sexual abuse against women and children in south africa are often regarded as normal. a special group on violence against women is urging the government to fight.

some parts are dangerous that police roof to go in >> reporter: candiesy was raped by a traditional healer who said she needed to be klenzd of an evil spirit. she was only 13. in the small town the green door center is one of the few places rape victims can go for counselling. >> translation: he helped me by giving me clothes and soap says and introducing me to other victims for support. we share experiences which stops me from getting depressed. >> reporter: this is one of the places that the special group on violence against women went to a recent fact-finding mission to south africa. they found that sexual abuse is accepted as a fact of life. she says the government must have do more. >> the government needs to put money where it's mouth is. this is very important. understanding that adoption of the law, the different services

is recognition of governmental responsibilities to provide such services. if they're not there, then there is human rights relations. >> reporter: this green door is kept open despite a lack of support from government which helped set it up. private donors bring food, clothes and health care products for him to distribute. >> you do so much, but there is no support that is given to you. >> reporter: most of his residents live in poverty. there's so much crime there are parts of thes township so dangerous the police refuse to control. aadds to a sense of lawlessness and rape and other violence. it isn't as simple as throwing the money at the problem which government is working on. >> as government we have competing challenges. in my own view, the issues of violence against women cannot be addressed on the basis of

reaction. it's also developing programs which will make sure that women can empower themselves. >> reporter: they want to start sewing classes to get women to support themselves. it is likely that he will have to rely on private donors rather than government to make it happen an arabic lesson that one u.s. school has sparked unroar and threats of violence. classes were cancelled for about 10,000 students. they say they have received thousands of calls and emails and threats of violence. >> reporter: the halls here were empty on friday. more than ten thousand students at 23 public schools were told to stay home until monday. they were taking measures after receiving tens of thousands of hostile emails over an arabic

writing assignment. some phone calls were threatening and abusive. this is the sheet of paper that they were asked to copy for their world religions homework. it says god as moham ed is god's prophet. the symptoms are wider anti muslim sentiment being in political campaigns >> when we are being fed fear day in and day out, we act as human beings, we act out of that fear and we account irrationally. that's a symptom of a bigger problem because we're getting ready to choose the next president. this is an important policy decision that we are making and when we are literally judgment is impaired by this fear rhetoric, we are not going to be making a rational decidings. >> reporter: during the tuesday night republican debate candidates referred to islamic terrorism more than a dozen

times, mentioning i.s.i.l. nearly 90 times and terrorism more than 70 times. the center for disease control in the u.s. are more likely to die of heart disease and others than from an act of terror >> the reality on the ground is right now in america we have 30% of republican primary voters saying that they want to bomb agoraba which is a fictitious country where two fell in love and rode on a magic carpet. we are dealing with a situation where people are so fearful that they are responding in this way. >> reporter: that fear is what is attributed to the closure of the second largest school district in the u.s. on the day of the last republican debate. 640,000 students in l.a. returned to class on wednesday after investigators said the bomb and gun threats received via email were a hoax

girls as young as 14 can no longer get married in guatemala. the legal age of consent has been raised to 18. activists say there are still plenty of challenges to reduce the risk of domestic violence, pregnancy and poverty. across to david mercer found that breaking traditions is difficult. >> reporter: it is not the kind of life this lady wanted. the 17-year-old had plans to finish high school and find a good job, but that changed after she got stuck over night in a nearby town. her father accused her of being with her boyfriend and demanded she marry him to save the family's reputation. a month later she was married. she was just 15 years old. >> translation: it is draining to have to stay and work in the house all the time. if i hadn't got married, i'd be

studying. it's difficult to have the obligations of an adult when you're so young. >> reporter: all of her friends are married and some as young as 15 have babies of their own. across the country the situation is all too common. in guatemala a third of girls are married by 18 and 7% are wed by the time they're 15 years old, by years of pressure by nongovernmental groups to protect the rights of girls is paying off. in late november the government raised the legal age of marriage of girls to 18 years old. previously girls could be legally wed as young as 14. activist says the big challenge now is defeating attitudes that see girls as male possessions. >> translation: the approval of this law is an important step, but more important is applying the law and raising awareness at the community level amongst

mayors and community leaders so that they understand that girls have rights. >> reporter: jennifer hopes the new law will help her 7-year-old sister had the opportunity she never had, the right to go to school and to choose her own future free from the bonds of child marriage. david mercer missionaries in india are celebrating the sainting of mother teresa. an announcement was made after pope francis recognised her secretary miracle. the first was recognised 12 years ago by john palm. >> i feel it is a wonderful thing, especially as she is always a good example to the world, especially the world that is fuelled with so much. she has left us an example of taking care of one another

more on that story and indeed on other stories on our website al jazeera.com. plenty of comment and opinion and analysis there too. al jazeera.com for all the very latest. >> this week on talk to al jazeera, director and producer spike lee. >> oh snap! >> we gonna make sure these fools put down these guns. >> lee's new film "chi-raq" tacklesgang warfare in chicago - and the idea that a "sex strike" could help quell it. while it's a satire based in one inner city, gun violence is an epidemic. >> how long will be... will we... will we bow down before th