a u.n. backed deal could see syrian rebels and i.s.i.l. fighters given safe passage out of a camp. you're watching al jazeera live from doha. also on the program, civilians are killed in fighting between the afghan army and the taliban in biharman province. the challenge affecting refugees who are attempting to move north it greece. homeless, an issue in relation

to peopling camping out in the u.s. capital. hundreds of family of i.s.i.l. fighters and some injured fighters themselves are to be given safe passage out of the refugee camp in the syrian capital damascus. the u.n. backed deal is to make it possible to deliver aids to thousands of people trapped in the area by fighting. syrian government forces have been blockading that area since 2012. fighters from other rebel groups may also be evacuated understand a disagreement with the syrian authorities. about 18 thousand people are trapped in that camp south of damascus. most of them palestinian refugees. activists say buses have started arriving to transport fighters and the families out of the area. many i.s.i.l. are expected to head to rack six hours away. >> reporter: a u.n. confirming

that the united nations is involved in this deal in syria but backing away from reports that it is a u.n. broke-- brokered deal. the u.n. is an observer, but not part of it. this deal, the details of which are still very vague, potentially could involve i.s.i.l. fighters given safe passage out of the refugee camp and into the i.s.i.l. stronghold of rack. this would be-- raqqa. it would be important because it is very dangerous place now. ban ki-moon has said it is in the deepest circle of hell. that's because there is not only i.s.i.l. fighters there that infiltrated the camp in april, but there is al-qaeda al-nusra front fighters as well and pro and anti-government fighting militias. if this deal with be brokered

and some of these armed fighters, especially the i.s.i.l. fighters will be able to leave, that will allow the u.n. to get in there and deliver aid to the people who need it the most. this is not a done deal yet, but we're told if it does get done, it could happen as early as saturday we have an eye to moscow. we just wanted to let you know that. shortly we're expecting to have a joint press conference from the foreign minister of qatar and also russia. as soon as that happens we will take you there live to moscow. so do keep it here on al jazeera. in the meantime continuing with the days news. 20 people have been killed in overnight clashes with the taliban in helmand province. for days the army has been trying to push the armed group out of the district. the u.s. is helping afghan troops with air strikes. our correspondent is in the

helmand province close to the fighting. he told us afghan forces are struggling because of lack of support from their own government. >> reporter: afghan army and afghan police always complain about lack of air force and for the fight in afghanistan, it is very important support for the troops here, for the afghan troops because taliban are - before they were not able to attack any location with a big number because when naturive forces were involved in fighting, especially in helmand province, they always had air support and it was very effective against taliban. now that afghan forces are suffering from a lack of air force, they're complaining and they're saying that the reason they're losing so many lives because they don't have air support. it is still difficult for them to low jack advertise supply to-- logistic supply to the

bases because afghan forces, they don't have the forces the prime minister and minister have been having visits. four attack helicopters are expected to be provided. dozens of people have died in nigeria in an explosion at i gas plant. many people are said to have been trapped and burnt to death. this happened at the intercorp oil and gas site in the industrial city of nueyen. it is thought that a truck carrying butane gas exploded. air strikes by the u.s. and allies have targeted i.s.i.l. position new zealand ramadi. they're helping iraqi forces to recapture the city. it began on tuesday. the military says only a few hundred i.s.i.l. fighters are left in ramadi but it has been

advancing slowly because the group has left explosives and booby traps. the air league has asked turkey to withdraw its soldiers from iraq immediately. the foreign minister has requested by iraq. protecting their own military perp el who are training iraqis to fight i.s.i.l. last week i.s.i.l. attacked the training camp wounding a number of turkish soldiers. a harsh winter conditions in europe had not stopped the flow of refugees. thousands are still arriving every day despite the bad weather many are determined to reach germany and austria. a report from the border of greece and macedonia. >> reporter: tired but determined to carry on. heading into the unknown to start a new life. the border here has been tightened with new restrictions.

only iraqis, syrians and afghans are allowed in. macedonia ask next but-- is next but reaching northern europe is not easy. many here have escaped wars. this iraqi has left a town that was under i.s.i.l.'s control until recently. >> translation: sinjar was cleared. we decided either we live in peace or try together trying. >> reporter: the journey remains long and hard. their next goal is to cross over macedonia and then serbia and beyond. so far over 2 crossed over. some of them are subjected to ill treatment and bush backs by the macedonian border police

police. volunteers and aid groups are doing what they can to help. >> reporter: i have a camp with medical services, we have shelter, which is covered and heated >> some greek charitys are also cooperating. a group of chefs and volunteers are preparing hot meals. >> translation: if we are not given food at the time we need it, we're nothing for us. >> reporter: about 20 minutes drive from the border this gas station became a waiting point. families rest and wait to be allowed to continue their journey. some of them have arrived the night before. some greek and american groups felt it is time to breach. >> we are giving people some magazines. >> reporter: handing copies of the bible bible. dozens of people have stories to tell. a pharmacist from syria says the

treatment he has got here is rough. >> translation: we slept on a bus, no toilets, no food. we want to live in dignity and have a better life for my children. >> reporter: for many here the risk is worth it. there is hope for a better and a safer future despite the hurdles on the way still ahead on al jazeera, low tech in a high tech world. we explain why you can still send a telegram in china. a mass in bethlehem and how people are celebrating christmas around the world.

thanks for watching. a reminder of the top stories here. a deal with the syrian government could see some i.s.i.l. fighters and their families given safe passage out of the refugee camp in damascus. details of the deal is to be finalised. afghan security officials say 20 people have been killed in overnight fighting with the taliban in helmand province. the army has been trying to push the armed troops out of the district. fightings has spread it to other parts. thousands of refugees continue to reach europe by sea every day despite tougher and tighter controls on some european countries. only iraqis, syrians and afghans are being allowed across. in-depth reporting, our

correspondent at the border of greece and macedonia. i will pick up on your reporting. tell us more about what some of the conditions are like there for people that really are clearly desperate to get to a better life? >> reporter: the conditions are quite touch. some of the families we've been speaking to have been stuck here for about two nights. the camera will plan now, please. i have counted over 20 buses here. each bus contains between 50 to 60 people. some of them are actually staying inside the buses because it is very cold, about 2 degrees celsius. it gets colder in the early hours of the morning and also during the night. there are not enough toilets. people are hungry and running out of money. some people came to us asking when they expect some food from

charities or if we know any charities who are delivering food. we've seen a lot of children, perhaps dozens, i've counted over 20/30, some of them were very sick. their parents told us they were very tired, so the situation is really grim. they are stuck here. it's 20 minutes drive to the border of macedonia. we understand from the greek the reason they are stuck here is to prevent any chi on theic scenes at the border which would lead the macedonian authorities closing the border. that's why they're waiting to go to the border what is being done to stop this huge flow of humanity? >> reporter: there is some criticism aimed at greece from european countries, mainly germany and france, and they say that greece is not doing enough

to stem the flow of refugees. as you know, over a million refugees passed through greece this year. when it comes to the greek authorities, they deny all of that. they're saying they're doing their best and they're saying there is a blame game going on with the other european countries. they've asked for help from the european border agency. they want more officers to come and help them. they want more vessels to come and help. only half of it came. i've met some greek officials, including the greek minister of migration and he told me this is not a greek problem, this is the not only a problem for greece, it is a global and international and european problem and, therefore, everybody needs to help greece to deal with this crisis which europe hasn't witnessed since world war ii thank you for that. the central african republic's

election has been delayed again. the vote was scheduled for this coming saturday but it has been postponed to december 30. the polls are meant to be a fresh start. tania page reports from bongee. >> reporter: boxes of ballot papers destined for the provinces, but time has run out for these materials to get to all of central african republic's polling stations so for the fifth time the vote has been declared. in the hangar it is clear why. tons of material is still sitting here. >> it is a big job. very big job. we cannot sleep until we have it done. >> reporter: each flight that lives brings a country devastated by violence a step closer to a chance of a fresh start. supporters of the most prominent muslim candidate circle a market where christmas trees and tinsel

are for sale. there has been fighting since 2014. these check points are meant to keep the muslim community safe. those who dare to leave this zone risk their lives. some feel the elections have been rushed and risk excluding people like this man. >> translation: this election has been badly prepared. there hasn't been enough time. the international community has pushed us towards these elections. we have said they should happen, but they must be good elections so we don't have people contesting the result afterwards. >> reporter: one of the leading candidates has won the backing of ousteked president's apparent. he said the former leader should be allowed to come back and now is as good a time as any for the election. >> translation: the area will

not be ready. we have put in place the authority who has an aim to recreate the states. >> reporter: it is a hard time for the people here who have witnessed more coups than elections. no-one thinks this vote will be perfect, but it is the best that can be hoped for right now tania page is live for us in bongee. why the continued delayed with these elections? >> reporter: exactly. it's quite extraordinary. five times in one year this vote has been delayed now. as well as that mounting of voting material still to be taken out into the provinces on helicopter, they need to organise four by four vehicles and motorcycles to get it to all the polling stations. on top of that, we're followed the polling station staff haven't been properly trained

and the third reason given is that once the election is over and the ballot boxes have been closed, they don't have all the systems in place. the logistics lined up in order to get those ballot boxes back to the provincial headquarters where all the votes can be tabulated. so some pretty fundamental issues and that has increased the ... over this vote. nobody is going to think it is going to be great, all inclusive, going to go completely smoothly as one would hope, but many people believe that it has to happen, it is essential. in fact, the presidential candidates asked for an extra week but they have been told it is the deadline of the 30th, the hard deadline we are told now ahead of the election, tell us more about the security and humanitarian situation on the ground. >> reporter: the security

situation remains volatile and unpredictable. the mostly muslim groups and mostly christian groups have been engaged in some ongoing fighting that flares up and then calls down in pockets throughout the year. the disarmament program is ineffectual. some groups control large swathes of the country which is lawless zones. since september things have been relatively calm, but a muslim man was killed here at the end of that month. since then about 100 people have been killed across the country. in most recent weeks the u.n. peace keeping force has come under new command. the people have been more active in coming outside their basis to respond to trouble and also we've seen a reemergencience back on the street of the

central african army starting to be rearmed. they're making a difference. they can recognise the trouble makers in the street and also a lot of central africans feel distrust towards the u.n. peacekeepers. having someone they trust on the street trying to protect them and keep them safe is enabling a more peaceful and secure situation. on the humanitarian side, still about 4560,000-- 450,000 and 470 people are displaced india's prime minister modi has made a surprise visit to pakistan. me is in lahore to meet the prime minister on his way back to afghanistan. our correspondent joins us with some perspective on this development. tell us more. >> reporter: yes. mr modi's aircraft has touched

down at the airport, lahore, where the mm is present. he will be receiving mr modi on the tarmac. we are told that mr modi had (audio indistinct) the relations between the two countries are at an all time low. mr modi has been invited back to the negotiating table. the last time these two met were on the sidelines of the world climate conference and that was an ice breaker thank you on the surprise

visit by india's prime minister to pakistan. it remains to be seen what this means, but a big development nonetheless. thank you very much. people are celebrating christmas around the world. activities in bethlehem have been subdued this year. there have been almost daily attacks between israelis and palestinians in the past few weeks. >> reporter: palestinian scouts marching through the streets of bethlehem playing old and new songs. leading the annual crimea christmas parade. israeli government began construction on the wall more than 10 years ago. they say it is meant to stop violence. the palestinians say it is nothing more than a land grab that has strangled bethlehem's

tourism. thousands of palestinians have all came to the square to celebrate the birth of jesus christ alongside christian pilgrims around the world >> it is very important festivity because it is the birth of christ, the birth of hope, the birth of resilience, the birth of love. so this is what people are celebrating. >> reporter: palestinian leaders scaled back christmas celebrations across the occupied west bank after months of violence that has left around 20 israelis and more than 130 palestinians dead. bethlehem has seen some intense protests. after nearly 50 years of israeli occupation, what the people want is peace. >> translation: today bethlehem lives in a state of sadness. people have been under siege and people have been killed. it has turned from a city that

carries a message of peace from 2,000-- message of peace from 2,000 years ago to a city of tortured. >> reporter: people seem to want to be able to celebrate christmas in the holiday. the background of celebrations is more violence and more loss of life. in separate incidents across the occupied west bank, israeli forces killed at least four palestinians on christmas eve despite the heavy crack down by israel's military, the anger that has fuelled the months of violence only seems to be growing, even on day which celebrates hope and peace don't be intoxicated by consumerism and extrove against. -- extravagence. that is what the pope said in his annual address. the leader of the roman catholic

church was leading catholics in a midnight mass. people had to pass through metal detectors. kilometres away from the front line where rebels and the syrian army are fighting, hundreds of syrian christians at a christmas tree in damascus hoping that the conflict will be ended. australians were among the first to ring in christmas and being summer it is a sandy one rather than a snowy christmas down under. it appears zanta has a rather different mode of transport. 100 thousand people from their homes in paraguay. rivers have reached their highest levels in more than 30

years. the government has declared a state of emergency. to moscow now to the foreign ministers of russia and qatar are holding a joint press conference. >> translation: ladies and gentlemen, we are with my qatar colleag colleague. we support regular political dialogue with a hope to develop

our countries' cooperation. we have a common opinion that there are good opportunities to grow economic ties to increase trade and it is important that for this dpoel was created in the governmental commission on the economic cooperation which was conducted in march in dohar.

we also agreed to be more active in encouraging the work concerning trade of commerces into circles, ties between the representatives of two countries and we welcomed the recent cooperations of council.

we support the connections between the agencies which last year concluded the agreement. the prospect will make the efforts in energy area, in the gas sphere first of all is the priority area and