from doha, coming up in this news hour: fighting rages on in the iraqi city of ramadi as government forces try to recapture it from isil. christmas celebrations in the west bank with no let up in the sporadic violence. storms sweep through the u.s. causing several deaths and travel chaos. ♪ we meet the refugees trying

to rebuild their lives in europe one song at a time. welcome to the program, the iraqi army says it's liberated large parts of ramadi from isil. the military backed by tribal fighters began a push to recapture the city tuesday, but says the advance is slowed by explosive devices left behind. gerald tan has more. >> as the days wear on, iraqi forces trying to retake ramadi have made a sobering admission, it will take time. the military's trying to overpower isil fighters who have been in control of the city since may. backed by airstrikes, ground troops are edging forward street by street towards the center. >> morale is high and god willing, quell keep advancing to retake the whole of the ramadi

city. we are now at the main district and god willing, we will liberate the remaining part of ramadi. >> iraqi intelligence said there are just a few hundred isil fighters left within the city parameters. they are proving a difficult foe. they have planted booby traps capable of damaging 25-ton vehicles. this will slow advancing troops but hasn't stopped them. >> following the liberation of the area, the division started work to remove and diffuse bombs planted on the roads and in houses. all the bombs have been diffused. >> the iraqi government is confident that its security forces are in the final stages of this operation. >> there was a plan counter terrorism forces, isil has lost the balance of power and it doesn't know which direction they are being attacked by iraqi forces.

>> ramadi is littered with rubble and shrapnel. up to 10,000 civilians are thought to be trapped inside the city. the hope that is victory will come swiftly and with no further loss of life, but both seem unlikely. gerald tan, al jazeera. as we mentioned, ramadi is the capital of anbar, that's iraq's largest province. the capture of the city was crucial for isil which needed to set up supply lines from syria into iraq. it allowed the group to bring fighters from its syrian stronghold of raqqa across the border towards ramadi. ramadi is an important link to fallujah. less than 70 kilometers away to the west where isil also has control. both cities have strategic importance as they're on the steps of the capital baghdad.

he says even if iraqi forces push isil out of ramadi, they face resistance elsewhere. >> one of the factors they learned want lesson once they liberated with the shia mobilization force over and they're actually in direct to tikrit, they learned this lesson. however, among the sunni tribesman, there are still squabble and fighting, who will crop it. they are against the governor, against the council. who will control it. this we haven't decided yet. >> in addition to that, there is a bigger problem, because most in isil fighting them are part of the same tribes in anbar. they they rock sensile between these two within the party, how we will deal with them. in addition to all this, what is

the general vision, political approach to the whole problem. if this will end in anbar, how about mosul, how about the rest? no doubt, this is tactical victory for the government, succeeding in regraining ramadi, but it should not be considered as a changing the game in iraq. it is only a mild score. the taliban fighting for control today. there was heavy fighting over the past few days. the key battleground has british soldiers working as advisors. we are live in the afghan city. what's the latest on the fighting? >> what we are hearing from afghan security forces here,

security officials, they are telling us that off began special forces have been deployed to sangin and fighting in the bazaar. afghan security claims they have control. we are talking about a very small area. it is about 2,000 square meters where fighting is still going on. afghan officials also claim that the taliban have big casualty last night and fighting is still going on and they have sent reinforcement by road. we believe these reinforcement have reached the area. in this province, hellman, it's

hard to say any place or any district fully under control of taliban. even here last year, the capital of the province in district four of the capital, the fighting is going on and taliban are present strongly there. >> what kind of support is there for the taliban? >> well, for the taliban, remember, element is very strategic location and also for the drug dealers, so it is -- it has a large number of poppy production and is a route from souther having a to pakistani border, sials there has been away very stronghold, stronghold area, province for long time now, and that's why it looks now the fighting is very -- the fighting has been here for many

many months. the people were witnessing heavy fighting and they all moved to here. now what we know that the taliban are trying to move toward the capital of the province. people are afraid that the same thing that happened in kunduz province could happen here in hellman province. the u.n. hopes talks will lead to the formation of a national unity government. last friday, the u.n. security council unanimously approved a resolution endorsing an international roadmap for piecee in syria. >> syria are ready to -- in the

syrian dialogue in geneva without any foreign interference and our delegation will be ready as soon as we receive word of the opposition delegation. >> we should stick to a supposeful resolution on the syrian issue. the people should decide the fate of syria. the u.n. plays a key role. we believe these three principles should be uphead throughout the peace process of syria. >> china has good relations with almost all these major players who have one set of vested

interests or another in syria. china can apply a higher level of objectivity and i am partiality to the situation in syria. china can play a very important and indispensable role as a go between or good officers provider and china may eventually win the trust and confidence of not only the syrian government right now, but also rebels in syria, but also more importantly, other major players who are now fighting their way out in the situation in syria. one thing is simple, that is peace should prevail in syria, rather than war and destruction. if peace will prevail, this will not only set a good example for people in syria, but it can also set a good example for other burning conflicts in that part of the world. security's been tightened around beijing after warnings of a possible threat against westerners. dozens of police are on guard around bars and shopping areas

popular with foreigners. british embassy as well has received information of threats an or around christmas day. a security threat has been issued, the lowest on a three tier scale. we are regular americans, we are not white trash. >> the american dream turns into a nightmare. some mobile homeowners in the u.s. want better legal protection. conservationists in hong kong say they are fighting a losing battle to save the rare pink dolphins. enjoy the wine and pie. goodbye. >> in sport, there's little festive cheer from the manchester manager. there are rumors he is about to be sacked. one person killed after

israel forces fired shots at a refugee camp between occupied east jerusalem and rala. piece shot a palestinian after an attempted car ramming. in another incident, israeli police shot a man dead in hebron after they say he tried to stab a soldier with a screwdriver. police say another man stabbed two security guards at the entrance of an industrial area. 135 palestinians and 20 israelis are now dead. the town of bethlehem in the occupied west bank is gearing up for christmas day. marching bands received tourists and pilgrims, but palestinian

political leaders decided to tone down festives in other parts of the west bank as that wave of violence in the area continues. we are joined live now from bethlehem. another 24 hours and so many people losing their lives. >> quite a number of people have lost their lives in the past 24 hours. at least two israelis and several palestinians back in the last hour or so, one palestinian was shot dead after a group of israeli forces entered the refugee camp, opening live fire and injuring five others. that of course comes in the backdrop of a number of other incidents, which you mentioned in your introduction and it really underscores how despite the fact that it is christmas eve, normally a festive time in cities like bethlehem and across the occupied west bank, still an awesome lot of tension, tension we've been seeing for months. >> manger square is a global focal point for the next couple

days, but one would assume that it's subdued, rather muted this year. >> indeed. we've been speaking with palestinian leaders over the past few days. they say they've toned done some celebrations across the occupied west bank. it was important for them to celebrate here in bethlehem. we've seen the parade, the patriarch has come from jerusalem amounted no doubt midnight mass will take place in the coming hours. it still feels somewhat subdued compared to past years at least. with me now from the palestinian liberation organization, as a christian, as a palestinian, it of course is a very important day for you are, a day of celebration, but this christmas is notably hard four and other palestinians. >> it's been a very dark christmas for many years, not only about what's happening now. four palestinians in the past 24 hours shooting to kill people, but that's what the occupation

is about, it's about controlling our lives and denying our rights. they want to deny our right not only to live, but to celebrate, something very simple like christmas. that's why it's important to show despite all of this, we are here to celebrate the birth and peace and justice. we are at the birth place of series christ trying to seek rightness and of course justice. >> obviously still a lot of anger on the streets and some people also have a sense of hopelessness at a time and a season where many people have a lot of home. what's the solution? >> i think we are marking this year 20 years since the first year that the palestinian authority entered bethlehem. twenty years ago here for the first time. at that time, it was full of hope. we had projects of investments, of tourism and a time frame of five years to end the israeli occupation. it's been 20 years. we are surrounded by 18 israeli

settlements. the solution i also for the occupation to end. the solution is for palestinians to be treated just like any other people around the world. once again, christmas is a message of hope. we will keep carrying this mental despite all the problems enforced by the israeli occupation. >> as he's been saying, this isn't just year that we've seen a subdued and somber christmas in the holy land, here in bethlehem. it's something that's been going on for many years now. >> thanks very much. processions taking operation across the world to celebrate the birth of prophet mohammed. muslims in the libyan city are marking the anniversary by chanting hymns and playing traditional music. the festivities are taking place despite on going fighting in the country. planned celebrations were

canceled by the government due to fears of attacks. the united nations security council has given its full support to the planned unity government in libya. it is hoped it will curb mass migration to europe. the u.n. security council threw support behind libya's fledgling government of national accord. four years after the death of muammar gaddafi helped plunge the country into chaos. the move was welcomed by that the ambassador to the u.n. saying the new government was a necessary compromise. >> it cannot achieve the aspirations of all parties, but it best represents what we can potentially achieve and it is the highest common denominate. >> members of two rival governments, political parties and civil society groups reached agreement on a new government last week, but some key players

have yet to endorse the deal. the security council and the u.n. special representative for libya encouraged other libyans to come onboard for the good of the libyan people. >> schools have to be opened. the life has to start again, the hospitals have to work again and peace and security should really be established over time. this is the task of the government of national unity. >> warring factions in the country led to instability and the presence of isil making libya a hub for the human trafficking of migrants seek to go cross the mediterranean to europe. >> the security council warned that instability in libya is a threat to international peace and security. the resolution calls on countries to respond urgently when the new government requests security help in particular in dealing with isil, but the government has to ask first. >> the united kingdom, which drafted the resolution says it is ready to help.

>> we are awaiting with impatient and a lot of interest the creation of this government of national accord and then once created, we will talk to them about what is required in terms of the fight against daish in libya. >> libya has 30 days to form its government and a plan for national security. al jazeera, the united nations. a huge fire killed at least 25 people in saudi arabia. the blaze broke out in the intensive care unit and maternity department of a hospital. more than 100 people were injured. it's taken 21 civil defense teams to battle the fire on the first floor of the building. an investigation is now underway. a doctor is an emergency doctor at a hospital nearby. >> the source of the fire was an electrical spark and most of the dead are patients in the

intensive care unit, adult intensive care unit and a few numbers from the pedestrian at rick unit. one patient just died from the fire. others are moved to nearby hospitals and governmental hospitals. they announced the disaster code and started evacuating the patients and tried to evacuate intensive care unit, too. storms sweeping across the u.s. have killed six people. dozens were injured as tornadoes destroyed and damaged homes. in several states, people traveling home for the holiday had to deal with flight delays. we have this report. >> it's a bleak mid winter in mississippi. >> oh! >> this towering funnel cloud is one of several tornadoes that that have hit the state since the start of the week.

the youngest person to die was a 7-year-old boy. he was in a car, which like this truck was picked up and thrown by the wind. >> we are looking still at that risk of tornado activity, especially across parts of tennessee and mississippi. keep in mind, there are 72 million people that will still see the chance of some sort of severe weather overnight. >> this is what some of them will be waking up to. >> houses are totally gone. they're totally gone. >> every so often, nature likes to remind us that it wields the real power. 2015 has been one of those years. it's an el niño year, a phenomenon in which the warmest ocean waters move from the pacific around the philippines. >> they bank up against the americas. north america's offshore temperatures are two or three degrees above what they should be. that cold air sweeps across the plain states meeting up with the

warmth of the gulf of mexico. were this to happen in the spring or autumn, you'd expect tornadoes, fine, but in december, it's a rare event. >> this time, the earth currents are making they are presence felt, regardless of the holiday season. al jazeera. of course the key thing about that story, steph is that so many people, 90 million people are expected to take to the roads today christmas eve in the u.s. and canada. >> it's still messy weather, but unfortunately looks like the worst i also over. if we take a look at satellite picture, we can see this little area of clouds here doesn't look particularly different from the area ahead. if we look at where we saw the worst of the weather, the dark blue colors here, with their winds, very strong gust of wind and larning winds, very large male storms. they're in lines really, and it's in southern areas where we saw the tornadoes. some of these were run of the

mill ones which are dangerous enough, but one of them was particularly dramatic. it was on the ground for over 160 kilometers. now that is a staggering distance. normally, they wouldn't be on the ground for more than 25 kilometers, so 160, that is a dangerous beast. now fortunately, it does look like the worst is over. that's not to say we're not going to get anymore severe weather out of it, though. it's not southeast again where we've got the worst of the weather during the day today. then on friday again, it's the southeast. that's where the worst of the weather is, the heaviest of the rain and risk of things, more damaging weather. further south we've seen damaging weather, as well. this is paraguay where 100,000 people had to evacuate their homes thanks to the heavy downpours. more wet weather still to come over the next few days here. thanks very much. doctors in south africa developed a breast cancer screening machine they say saves

time and money. the disease is the leading caused of cancer related deaths among women worldwide. we have a report on how there is hope this innovation will also save lives. >> this is the latest innovation in breast cancer technology being tested. usually, the disease is diagnosed using a mammogram or x-ray of the breast. >> the problem with digital x-rays is that when the lady has dense breast tissue, and that happens in almost half of women, particularly those aged between 40-50, that density can mask the cancer. >> this can x-ray and ultrasound at the same time, penetrating dense breast tissue to identify cancer. >> this in corps rates both technologies into a single platform. the idea would be that you can watch that breast cab as her early in one go, rather than having to ask the woman to come back repeatedly for more studies

in the future. >> lenore discovered a mass in her breast which turned out to be benign. she volunteered to help developers with testing. >> the machine compared to other digital machines they have worked with before, it's good to see there is so much progress being made especially when you think of the time that you need to have the mammogram and have an ultrasound afterwards. >> early test results showed the machine to be safe and effective. development began six years ago and it's cost about $3 million. >> studies by doctors around the world suggest that around five of every thousand women tested with a ma'am grom x-ray has a tumor detected. that total arises to around 12 of every thousand tested with an ultrasound. now the developers of say its technology will provide women with access to better quality

cancer testing without having to undergo two separate tests. both the developers and the government say the machine which costs $350,000 can be used to reach a large number of people. >> we would like to see greater development in our country and market it to the united states and throughout the african continent and through this development, make a difference to the health status of women. >> women will save time and money, developers say the greater benefit will be the quicker detection of cancer to save lives. al jazeera, cape pawn. still to come here on the news hour: >> democracy delayed in haiti. we'll tell you why a presidential runoff has been put on hold indefinitely. >> christmas time in mexico means pin nat at a time.

the artisans behind a dying craft. >> having served time in prison, he still faces obstacles in his bid to play for his country once again.

welcome back. you're watching the news hour coming to you live from doha. top stories. the iraqi military said it's liberated big parts of ramadi. backed by tribal fighters, it began a push to recapture the

city on tuesday. syria and china agreed on key principles required for next month's peace talks. the u.n. hopes talks in january will lead to the formation of a national unity government. bethlehem's manger square, political leaders decided to tone down festivities in other parts of the west bank as the violence in the area shows no sign of abating. at least 18 refugees have drowned after their boat sank off the turkish coast. six victims were children. rescuers managed to save 21 people, but one is still missing in the aegean. the group was headed for the greek island of lesbos. the italian navy rescued 100 migrants off the libyan coast.

italian navy is seen here approaching the dingy loaded with people. more than 200 refugees have been rescued from similar craft in this area of the mediterranean in recent days. >> the exodus to europe hasn't stopped in spite of the winter weather. more than 3.5 million refugees sheltering in countries which neighbor syria. hundreds of thousands more have made the journey to europe and then applied for asylum. most take the west balkans route traveling through greece and macedonia on to syria. hungary was the preferred route but when they built a razor wire fence, refugees were diverted through croatia and slovenia. the slovenian government said it was temporary and designed to steer refugees toward controlled

entry points. since the refugee crisis began many have tried to help them rebuild their lives. one refugee is doing it for themselves. musicians, busy recording a c.d. to help others. we dropped in on a recording session in brussels. ♪ >> a few days ago, they hadn't met, yet now these men from syria and iraq are kicking and playing traditional songs from their home lands in far away belgium. on the bored every with macedonia, he told us he had to leave his lute behind. some kind europeans raise the money for a new one and now he awaits his eye slum hearing, he uses his music to help forget the journey he has had to make. >> when i touch the instrument,

there's a lot of things go away. music means everything for me. ♪ >> he was a t.v. star in his native pakistan, playing classical music. when he tried to set up a music school in his home, the taliban came and told him it was forbidden and they wouldn't tell him twice. >> a lot of musicians has been threatened and has been injured, and they try to kill them, also. you can see all those, most of them leave the country, most of them could not continue singing, they stopped playing music.

>> on guitar is basil from damascus. he carried his guitar with him all the way, singing for the other refugees. ♪ >> we play music our feelings, what happened with us or how we live in damascus. that's all. >> the people helping otherwise this are close to their target of $13,000 to print the c.d.s. concerts are also planned. in a europe increasingly hostile to all refugees, it is perhaps a reminder of how war affects all of us, even the most talented. >> not bad. >> lawrence lee, al jazeera, brussels. the u.k. prime minister david cameron is investigating

why a british muslim family was stopped from traveling to disney land in the u.s. presidential hopeful donald trump recently called for muslims to be banned from entering the country. a spokesman says region is not a determining factor when deciding whether someone can travel. the family is now demanding an explanation. >> i planned this trip for like two months, kids are excited and all of a sudden, some person tells you you are not allowed to board a plane with no explanation given. we were just taken out of the room. >> at least 15 have been arrested after black lives matter protest in the u.s. state of minnesota. the demonstrations started at one of the busiest shopping malls in the city of minneapolis applies. the protestors then moved to an airport. demonstrators want to draw attention to the recent shooting

of a black man in the city. >> there is such racial disparity in our state and metro area and i'm here to stand in solidarity with my black and brown brothers and sisters to fight for racial equity and to stand for justice for jamar clark and his family. >> the georgian prime minister has resigned. he's been prime minister of the former soviet nation since 2013. he gave no reason for his decision. the president now has seven days to name a new candidate. >> positions are temporary, while mother land and god are eternal. that's why i decided to today to resign as prime minister. now when our home and foreign policies and our countries development are assured, i'd like to wish our future prime minister the best. >> the haitian president has defended his country's election process. voting in the presidential runoff scheduled for sunday was canceled after allegations of

fraud, but he says the opposition its making allegations to help strengthen their position. adam rainy has more now from port-au-prince. >> not good enough, that's the response from a leading haitian opposition party to the formation of a commission to investigate claims of fraud in the october presidential election. >> the members of the commission were hand-picked by president and his prime minister. this commission has nothing to do with what we recommended, therefore we don't recognize it. >> the critique followed the prime minister said announcement of the five member commission on tuesday. >> the government guarantees the commission's complete independence in carrying out duties to make all the necessary troops come out to restore the credibility of the electoral process. >> there's been growing anger and protests over the first round results. opposition groups say some people voted multiple times while intimidation kept many from casting ballots.

that in a race with dozens of candidates vying for presidency. >> these are just some of the faces of the 54 original presidential candidates here in haiti. the runoff has been postponed indefinitely but people say no matter when that vote takes place, they have little faith in the democratic process. >> i've totally lost confidence in the system, because they stole our votes. it's a very dirty game. >> during the election, the people are just pawns. even if you vote, the results never show who really won. >> suspicion also fuels apathy. only 26% of registered voters cast ballots in the first round. although the government has not set a new date, there's growing international concern that the second round should be held soon. in a statement on wednesday, the u.n. security council called on all candidates, political parties and political actors to publicly commit to the electoral process, and timely government

formation in accordance with the constitutional time frame, including the inauguration of a new president by the seventh of february of next year. those in charge of the election are trying to win back the confidence of voters. >> the electoral council is doing everything it can to gain the trust of the people. we fire people we suspect of fraud. >> that might not be enough to convict haitians that the runoff, whenever held, will reflect the true will of the people. adam rainy, al jazeera, port-au-prince. >> human rights watch accused the nigeria army of killing more than 300 civilians. the army says members of a shia group set up a road block and tried to assassinate the army's chief of staff earlier this month. receipt searchers found no credible evidence of attack. witnesses say the army fired on a mosque at least an hour before the incident at the road block. others were killed later when the shia leader was arrested. the report concludes that the

killings were at best an overreaction to a road block protest and at worse, a planned attack by the government. >> nigeria's captaining a is a city under construction. hundreds of new homes are built every month, but often priced beyond the reach of the average resident. we have this report. >> it's 5:00 in the morning when douglas james says goodbye to his family before heading off to work. by the time he comes back at night, his children will be asleep. >> when they wake up and see me like a stranger, i feel bad, but i praying to that one day we will overcome all this situation, so really, it's not helpful for you to continue without your children all the time. >> the civil servant is one of the hundreds of thousands who work in the city but have to live far from their work simply

because they can't afford the rent. every month, hundreds was new homes are built here, but most of them are empty. june the question you need to ask yourself is how many people can afford to buy a house in nigeria. it's less than 2% of the population and unfortunately, every developer -- >> which means many people here won't be able to afford these new homes. away house in this estate costs about $500,000 to buy. renting one is at much as $25,000 a year. developers put the blame on expensive land and infrastructure and pass the burden to tenants. for many nigeria cities, it's not about a shortage of housing. it's about affordability. people like douglas are pushed to the slums on the outskirts of the city, areas with poor roads

and poor security. a lack of regulation means many are relegated to the slums that encircle the city. more than 20 million people in the u.s. live in mobile homes. most of them do not own the lands their home sits on and have few rights as tenants. we have been talking to those who want more legal protection. >> heather has lived in her mobile home with her husband 13 years. she liked it so much, she was planning to buy another nearby for her children. >> we were in the process of looking when we got the notice. >> that notice from her mobile home park informed her it would close to build million dollar homes in its place.

then her husband lost his job. now they're both out of work. the home is not movable and they owe $17,000 on it. >> it will go back at the bank and they'll have to figure out what to do with it. we are not children, home makers, school teachers, we're just dollar signs, just because we live in a mobile home and not in a stick built house. we wanted to live a nice life and have nice things for our kids. >> for the homeowners of the trailer park, it is the indignity suffered over and over. >> trailer trash! >> if you're richest relative bias new house and you have to help take the wheels off of it, you may be a redneck. >> when trailer park owners sell the land, those with homes on it, people like joe get nothing. >> we're regular americans,

we're not white trash. we have chosen to own our own home and a lot of people work all their lives. what is happening in society is people in a lower bracket are excluded from i think having their own american dream, which is very sad. >> for-profit mobile home park owners didn't agree to talk to us. they have the reason to. in most u.s. states there are no protections, the landowner can sell at will, raise the rent and even dictate how a tenant's garden should look. mobile homes are not mobile. >> they are not mobile. they are mobile getting from the factory to the site, but not intended to move again and there is nowhere to move to, so they're losing everything, all they are equity and may still have a mortgage on that home. i call them prisoners in their own homes. >> these homeowners were notified that this park is about to close next spring, so by then, all 32 homes will have to

either be torn down or moved at the owner's expense. one homeowner had just bought two weeks before the notice. the park owner didn't mention that when they moved in. al jazeera, seattle. in part three of that series we'll move from mobile homes to vans. it's often a lack of retirement savings that leaves aiminging americans no alternative but to live in their vehicles. some congregate if the arizona desert for the winter. >> 10 cities have issued their own first red alerts for bad levels of pollution. the warnings followed beijing's decision early this month to issue the highest level pollution warning for the first time. parents of the country are enveloped in thick fog. people have been forced to stay indoors. the use of vehicles has been restrict. >> cop servationists in hong kong are fighting a losing battle to save rare pink dolphins. only 61 are thought to remain as

development hits their natural environment. we have more. >> it's turned out to be a good day for visitors. >> we were lucky to see two pink dolphins. it was so fantastic, so beautiful. >> i was so surprised when i saw them jumping from the water. >> it's a surprise for everyone on the boat, even the tour guide. >> nowadays, dolphins are quite scared of traffic. >> pink dolphin numbers have dropped more than 60% in the last decade. conservationists say it's mostly due to major building projects in hong kong waters. they point out the 50-kilometer

bridge which cuts into the highest density of dolphins. they fear plans to expand hong kong airport would drive away what's left of the population. >> this is known as a dolphin corridor. they travel through to feeding spots and cleaner waters. this is also the proposed site for the airports third runway. construction would involve dumping thousands of tons of sand to reclaim 3.6 kilometers of the sea area. >> the conservation society have consulted the government on the airport plans, but their proposals have been ignored. they are considering legal action, despite the government's promise to build a marine sanctuary after the runway's finished in 2023. >> can they survive for the seven years of construction period and come back later, i think is a huge question mark and i think it's very unlikely that the dolphin will be able to

hang on for that long. >> the dolphins have been swimming in these waters for centuries. on the sidelines as hong kong transformed from a fishing village to one of asia's biggest commercial hubs, they have paid the price for the city growth with less and less space to call home. al jazeera, hong kong. still to come on the al jazeera news hour, their record breaking winning streak might be coming to an end, but the golden state warriors are still in a league of their own. details are next.

>> we have a report from mexico city on how artisans have been making colorful craft items for january reactions. >> if you're a piñata artisan, this his the season of achy hands and ripped nails. he keeps designing be a glueing and wrapping. >> i like the colors of the piñatas. you don't need a lot of money to make them. this has given jobs to me and my family. >> he is also a dentist. he admits the piñata trade isn't as lucrative as it used to be, because there's competition.

christmas is the busiest time of the year. he and family members will make four to 5,000 a month and charge $2 for these stars. they represent the christmas star. in the bible, the star revealed jesus to the three wise men and led them to bethlehem. >> artisans say that machines are now changing what was once a strictly handmaid craft. machines are now cutting the paper and making the bodies of piñatas. >> i feel melancholy because this tradition is coming to an end. our parents taught us there for two or three generations. >> elena says the tradition will endure. she said they are not only termly rooted in clickism, they're an expression of the music and spirit of mexico. they're an extension of the

person who made them. >> at this time of the year, people are always looking for the a addition alpine i can't t. >> i like them because i can hit them. the united captain has given his backing to his under manager. they are determined to get their season back on track start,

their game on saturday. united has not been doing well under the dutchman. they haven't won in six games. he was required to face the media as per premier league rules, but as you're about to see, this was no ordinary press conference. >> as anybody in this room, not a feeling to apologize to me, nobody has that feeling? i'm here only because of the premier league rule. i have to talk with you. i can only see when i say something when i use my words in your context. i wish you a merry christmas and

maybe also a happy new year when i see you, and enjoy the wine and the minutes pie. goodbye. >> with that, he walked out refusing to answer any questions. more entertaining than miss matches. >> chelsea, following the dismassal of jose murina, they held talks with the plant trial impact over former striker. according to montreal, they claim that chelsea are interested in bringing the player back to england as hitting assistant. the canadian side said they wanted to have the 30-year-old back for the season but understand his emotional attachment to the champions. >> mosque, i shouldn't be here,

halfway to the season. it means things aren't going well. i'm glad to be back. it's a few years ago that i was here in a similar situation. >> representing pakistan, the 23-year-old fastballer spent three years in prison. his ban ended earlier this year, meaning he was eligible to play for pakistan and is likely to be picked for the january tour of new zealand. immigration rules say people with criminal convictions can't be issued visas. they have south legal advice

over the case. >> taking the nba scoring tally to 28,000 points. in doing so, he became the sixta history. the defending champions, the golden state warriors remain unbeaten. the warriors went on to win extending their home winning streak for 31. >> the nfl upheld its one game suspension on new york giants receiver following this helmet to helmet hit. the league said he was guilty of multiple violations of safety

related playing rules. beckham will now miss sunday's vital game at minnesota. the nfl announced they would fund research into a treatment that could improve how head injuries are diagnosed. the treatment is a blood test and been developed by a company. the c.e.o. suggests it could be a real game changer. >> our technology is so sensitive, it can see bio markers in the blood and tell you whether or not you've had a concussion and how severe it is. most importantly, it can give a sense of when it's going to be safe to return to play. a lot of deaths occur if you have a second impact while having a concussion, so being able to detect it objectively instead of someone asking you to count backwards and determine whether or not you've got a cognitive deficiency can lead to big issues on the sideline and has proven to be a big issue for sports, whether it be rugby, soccer, contradict, as well as football. this is a major breakthrough

that could change the culture of the game. >> that is all your sport for now. >> the beatles are giving fans a reasons to yeah yeah yeah. after years of holding out, the two surviving members of the beatles have added their music to on line streaming services. ♪ >> more than 200 beatle songs from the original 13 albums are available to stream free of charge now. the entire catalog is on all the major services, including spotify and apple music. paul and ringo wished their fans a happy christmas as the announcement was made. >> more on the website at aljazeera.com. i'll have 30 minutes of news for you at the top of the hour.

see you then.

>> the iraqi army tries to recapture ramadi from isil but says it will take time. >> welcome, you're watching al jazeera live from doha. syria agrees on key points for peace talks as its foreign minister meets his chinese counterpart. a violent christmas eve across the west bank, four palestinians are killed after several attacks. storms sweep through the u.s. causing self