a plan to send thousands of african troops to keep the peace is rejected outright by the government in burundi. ♪ >> hemo. you are watching al jazeera live from london. also coming up: are a warwanda celebrates. 98% voted to lift presidential term limits. >> fierce fighting has killed 75 rebels and pro-government forces. ♪ why the force is clearly with

anti-austerity. voters prepare to cast their ballot in spain's general elections. we begin in burundi where the president says he won't accept plans by the african union to deploy peacekeepers. the au wants to send 5 troops to stop escalating violence but the government said it will ve any troop deployments as an attack. burundi appears to be on the verge of civil war. violence has been escalating. at least 400 people have been killed in protests and hundreds of thousands have fled the country. mohammed adow has the latest from the capitol. scenes like this have prompted the african union to act. the killing of 87 people, most of them civilians last week in the capitol raised fears burundi

is sliding to a civil war. the u.n. warns its on the brink. nodine said no one was safe. all we want is peace. we are against the killing of civilians. our president should say to target only those involved in fighting them. they should leave us out of this. >> 7 two hours to respond to the african union over it's plan to send peacekeepers. mps in bush underi are expected to debate the matter on monday. >> we believe in our security forces, and we don't need other forces to come to help them because so far, they have proved that they are able to secure the country. this isn't why i find it ridiculous -- this is why i find it ridiculous to send 5 troops in burundi when the army and police are able to secure it. >> it's the feeling of the african union that the violence

must be stopped at all cost. thet the decision to send troops to burundi sends the message it won't allow another genocide to happen on african soil. the government insists there is no threat of genocide and that it's merely fighting an insurgency. the african union can deploy troops to burundi on with or without government consent. article 4 of the constitution allows the union to intervene in a state if civilians are threatened. >> they cannot by force because burundi is a involveren country and the population of bur underi, is a population that has suffered for many years. it's not going to allow that. >> thousands of burundi peacekeepers are serving in african union peacekeeping missions, in some alia and the central african republic. their continued stay there is in doubt as a showdown now looms

between their government and the african union. mohammed adow, al jazeera,. rwanda's electoral commission says 98% of rwandans are in favor of their president running for further terms in. it paves a way for president ghame to run for a third term in 2017. in addition to that 7-year term, he would be eligible to serve two further five-year terms meaning he could stay in power until 2034. our reporter, malcolm web sent this update from the capitol. >> reporter: the electoral commission said 98.3% of voters voted yacht questi voted yes toe the president were term limits. they said in what must be an unusual co ince depositions that the voter turnout was 98.3%. critics, of which there are few here there are very few who

criticize officials. but knows in other countries from opposition is a rwanda's figures aren't credible people are vote nag climate of intimidation and sphere. the electoral commissioner in a press conference hear short while ago was questioned about that. he denied it and said it was free and fair and it was a reflex of the will of the random people because they want to keep the president in power after 2017. the u.n. special envoy to syria says he will send out invitations to talks in january on the u.n.-backed police plan for the country. on friday, the united nations security council unanimously backed a plan for talks between the syrian government and the opposition with a cease-fire due to start in january. but questions remain over who will be taking part in those talks and over the future of

syria's president bashar al-assad. a special representative to the u.n. for the special coalition. >> the face of assad is going to be one of the most controversial issue in the negotiations, but in the geneva convention and for us, our position is very clear. it's also about the creation of a transitional governing body made up of of both sides giving each side the right to veto the other side, and to us, assad is not an acceptable figure. he has committed crimes against humanity and he has not been useful in ending the conflict. >> for the millions of sirrians displaced by the sist war, the u.n. resolution brings some hope they can return home. bernard smith has been talking to refugees living on the turkibish side of the border with syria to find out what they think of the peace plan. >> more than 30,000 syrians live

in and around the ancient city of marden across the border in turkey. they are escaping the civil war but staying close enough that, if peace comes, they can quickly get home. hamad mojadame is from alleppo. he thinks there will be no problem forming a trilingsal government that represents all syrians. >> syrians are one people. there are there are no problems between us. we lived together for hundreds of years. when the revolution came, everyone joined it. the people rose up was the assad family. >> cassim said if the price for peace is let can bashar al-assad stay in power for now, then so be it. >> let him stay if it means peace. we just need to go back to our country, our schools, our homes. we are so tired of living in exile. we have had enough. >> reporter: homed alsofi from hasiq hasiqua thinks assad should go.

>> if assad is allowed to stay in the country, so what will be left? every family in syria has been split up because of him, and now, we are expected to let him and his ugly regime stay? >> all of them want the fighting to end t. >> the roof of our home has fallen in on us. can it get any worse? we are so scared for our children. >> isil controlled the territory on the other side of the border from marden. and no one here is thinking of going home until they have been cleared out. bernard smith, al jazeera, marcheden. >> 69 prospective members of the kurdistan workers party known as the pkk and two turkish soldiers have been killed in the fighting in southeast turkey. hundreds of people have been protesting against the government's latest operation against the pkk in the region. police fired water canon and

tear gas. the pkk is fighting for more autonomy from turkey. talks collapsed in july bringing a two-year cease-fire to an end. more than 75 troops have been killed in fighting near yemen's border with saudi arabia in the last three days in spite of a cease-fire and peace talks that began on tuesday. yemeni secured forces say 40 rebels and 35 government troops were killed in the northwestern hija province. the capitol has, amalu has more. >> reporter: the cease-fire lasted all but a few days if it even began at all. here, an army of sorts made up of yemeni 10e8ds and trillion leaders are claiming a rare victory. >> we have taken control of the military base that we have been surrounding, and which was under the control of the houthis and their alleys. thank god, we have now taken it over, and we are advancing

towards sanaa. >> they have been fighting to restore to power the internationally recognized president hadi, making it this far is a milestone. the houthis have controlled this region for months. and it is a main route to yemen's capital, sanaa. >> we will progress and liberate all yesmeni cities and those wh want to hurt our religion, land and dignity. >> the war is happen while sides are meant to be talking peace in switzerland. the ] is meeti -- leading the meeting >> we have submitted a letter of protest to the united nations against the violations that amounted to a military attack and we are keen to put an end to the war and not only post upon it. >> what has been achieved so far

is an agreement to let aid in for civilians. >> that's one step towards progress in a war that's killed more than 5,000 yemenis. al jazeera. >> iraq has opened an investigation into u.s.-led coalition airstrike on fallujah which killed at least nine iraqi soldiers. they were targeting isil fighters in the city of the city on friday. iraqi ground forces were advancing on isil targets when an airstrike thought to have been carried out by a u.s. plane hit both sides were in close combat. >> air forces were not able to fly due to the bad weather. the coalition air forces were covering our troops as they advanced. there was an airstrike which killed them. investigations are ongoing by the iraqi and the american sides. >> the united nations sizf sizphysical and sexual abuse against women and children in south africa are often regarded as normal.

a special racatuer is urging the government to help those trying to end it. some parts are some dangerous here the police refuse to go in. >> candy was raped by a healer who said she needed to be cleansed of an evil spirit and that was the way to do it. she is 13. in a sprawling township, the green door center is one of the few places rape victims can go for counseling. >> he helped me by giving me clothes and soaps and by introducing me to other victims for support. we share experiences, which stops me from getting depressed. >> it is one of the places the u.n. special rapature went to on a recent fact-finding mission to south africa. it was found that physical and sexual abuse is often accepted as a fact of life. she said the government must do more. >> does the government need to

put its money where its mouth is? >> yes. this is very important. and understanding that adoption of the law, the difference services, is recognition of governmental responsibilities to provide such services. and if they are not there, then there is human rights violations. >> brown lakikila keeps the green door open despite a lack of support from the government. private donors bring food, care, healthcare products for him to d distribute. >> you do so much b, but there is no support that is given to you. >> most of the residents live in poverty. there is so much crime, there are parts of the township so dangerous, the police refuse to patrol. >> ends to a sense of lawlessness and impunity for the perpetrators of rape and other violence. >> minister of women says it

isn't as simple as throwing money at the problem which the government is working on? >> we have competing challenges. in my own views, it's that the issues of violence against women cannot just be addressed on the baetsz of reaction. it's also developing programs which will make sure that women can empower themselves. >> likakala wants to offer sewing classes for women to help learn skills to support themselves but he it's like he l have to rely on private donors rather than the government. more to come for you on al jazeera. relations with the muslim population have been dominating the republican race. how are democrat con tend it will reacting? >> the cal igraphy left the 40 closure of schools in the u.s. state of virginia.

arch. well, back. you are watching al jazeera. let's take you through the stop stories. >>. a spokesman for burundi's president told al jazeera he doesn't want troops deployed to the country. the au says the nation is on the brink of civil war and plans to send 5,000 peacekeepers with or without burundi's consent. during the past three days, 75 rebels and troops have been killed in fight with saudi arabia. that's despite plans for peace talks that are to start on tuesday. a united nations special envoy to certain syria says he will send out invitassess to talks in

january after al backed peace plan for the country. >> now, in the coming hours, democratic presidential hopefuls will come together in the u.s. state of new hampshire for a third debate. many voters will be looking at what distinguishes them on issues like security and religion, particularly after the recent controversial comments from dodged trump about banning all muslims from entering the u.s. kimberly halkett reports. >> we send in food that gets made into food baskets and d distributed. >> for three years, nadia has made it her mission to support victims of conflict in syria collecting tons of donated clothe eg and medical supplies from this warehouse until it is time to ship. >> we are got to let hateful rhetoric be our mantra. we want to make a difference. we have se we have seen a spike. >> she is talking about comments from donald trump, the republican presidential

candidate who has suggested banning muslims from the united states is necessary for its security. >> total and complete shutdown of muslims entering the united states until other country's representatives can figure out what the hell is going on. >> candidates have been working to distance himself from the rhetoric. bernie sanders participated in an inter faith roundtable in washington to speak directly with muslim leaders. the controversy ask expected to be -- is expected to be a key issue saturday for the third democratic debate. >> all of the democratic candidates will criticize donald trump for his comments about security and radio lunch on. >> will give an opportunity for the democratic candidates to show they are not donald trump and friend a more nuanced picture. >> voters of all face are

watching especially in light of reports from advocacy groups ska citing vandalism in mosques in the u.s. have risen. >> the democrats have not made clear all muslim americans are our fellow americans and we have to honor that and make sure they feel safe she is leading by example, collecting more than a million dollars in goods for victims in syria determined to demonstrate a spirit of unity and generosity she expects from the next u.s. president. >> spain heads to the polls on sunday in a contest likely to bring an end to the traditional two-party system. the peoples' part and the socialists have a lot alternated but support stands at just over 27 and 20% respectively.

that's not much more than the party with an avenue of 19%. just two points behind is another newcomer, a close ally of greece's ruling party that has 17%. david chaser reports now from madrid on what's at stake. the force they think is with them, smashing all records at the box. they hope to do the same. yes, we can is the message of the young left-wing leader, a university lecturer whose party is less than two years old, but ache to go break the back of lacosta, spain's political establishment. the prime minister looks set to lose his absolutely majority but the center right people's party will have the highest number of seats in the spanish parliament.

>> i wid spain has the fastest economic -- he boasts spain has the most. he says close your eyes and dream of what kind of spain you want. his nightmare has been stealing some of the key support in the electorate led by a charismatic 36-year-old from catalonia who used his opposition to the index movement there to launch a career in national politics. our time has come, a time of hope. struggling against the new tide in spanish politicians is the once dominant socialist party and it's leader pedro sanchez. he images a time they look back with pride. the message: build a future for the majority. a new generation of political

leaders will join the congress of deputies to challenge the old two-party system. what will impact will the young lions have on the political system here. >> these new parties have no past. they are trying to solve political corruption. we have never seen so many young people in politics. the prime primary shared a christmas dinner with the people's party activists. >> if the polls go badly for him, it could prove to be his last supper. david chater, al jazeera, madrid. >> thousands of people have taken to the streets of po lands accusing the country's conservative government of undermining democracy. the law and justice party has

been criticized after attempting to make numerous changeses to the constitutional courts which help run the country. thousands insist they would defend democracy at any cost. fire fighters are battling blazes in victoryia. strong winds made it difficult for fire fighters to tackle more than 300 blazes. cooler temperatures are expected on sunday. rivers are a crucial component of life on earth. international rivers says two-thirds have been damaged from dams built over the past century. the endis river or the colorado river which runs through the u.s.'s mexico no longer reach the ocean. it means wetlands have been turned into dead zones.

over the past 40 years, fresh water ecosystems have lost 50% of their population. more than a third of the remaining fresh water fish species are threatened with extinction. over the next three days, we will look at how people's health be and livelihoods are being affected by the decline of imagine rivers. we go first to kirkuk in iraq. a direct impact on its economy. imran reports. in the field should be full of crops. as far as the eye can see, nothing. the rivers that fill these fields have dried up. nothing can grow here. >> this landowner and environmental accident blames dam building until neighboring turkey for causing this crisis and siziraq is powerless to stop the turks after more than a decade of war following the fall of saddam hussein and know the rise of isil. >> these dams in turkey and the lack of response from the government affected our crop. i will give you an example.

when we had water, 30 acres of lapped would produce a ton of barley a year. now, that same 30 acres produces a kilo. farmers have had to resort to digging large wells for their fields but it isn't enough and they only have enough to irrigate 1/3 of this land. farmers are building wells like this. this is costly and time connell assuming. they need to dig between 30 to 50 meettories get the kind of water they need to irrigate these lands. that's having an environmental and economic impact. >> thousands worked here. now, a handful are employed. across this region, unemployment has risen dramatically. all of the farmers are desperate. now, our markets are flooded with foreign products iraq is

importing wheat and rice to the from the country that build the dams that caused the rivers to dry up. turkish products are common in food markets. the clamps of iraq's farming industry is concerning to many here but given the other challenges iraq faces, fixing the farming industry and negotiating international water treaties doesn't seem to be a priority. imran khan, al jazeera, kirkuk. >> a few days after schools in los angeles were closed by a bomb hoax, classes in virginia why cancelled because of calligraphy, a teacher who introduced it caused anger among some parents. a report. the halls of riverhead's high schools were empty. more than 10,000 units were told to start their christmas breaks early. school heads say they were threatened via social media because of an arabic cal igraphy

assignment. as part of the established world lesson curriculum they were asked to copy the muslim statement of faith that provefesses the acceptance as mohammed as god's prophet. some parents said the assignment was trying to convert stewarted events to islam. others said the school closure and threats are symptoms of wider anti-muslim sentiment being fueled by compliccampaigns. >> when we are being fed fear day-in and day-out, we act out of that fear and act irrationally. >> reaction has varied on social media. ganushi wrote, don't worry, it won't turn you muslim. neither would drawing a cross make me christian. ammy meck said these teachers are sick. protect your kids. jacobi treated, they are forcing kids to say it in class. we don't want this garbage.

varney a& company tweeted those school students are all muslim now as far as islam is concerned. >> during the last debate by republicans hoping to replace president barack obama, candidates refer to islamic terrorism, isil, and terrorism hundreds of times. health experts say americans are 40,000 times more likely to die of heart disease and obesity and cancer than from terrorism. right now in america, we have 30% of republican primary voters saying they want to bomb agrob a, a ficticious country where aal add inand jasmine road on a magic carpet. people are so fearful that they are responding in this way. on the day of the republican debate, 640,000 students in los

angeles returned to class on wednesday after investigators said the bomb and gun threat received via e-mail were a hoax. more on everything we are covering right here. the address is right there: aljazeera.com. incredible beauty but a world in transition. ironically this piece of coral, delicate as fine china, is also a sign of trouble. >> today, we are facing the potential loss or massive degradation of all of our reefs. >>