this is al jazeera. hello. welcome to the news hour. our top stories. saudi arabia executes 47 people convicted of terrorist attacks, including a sympathy acleric. iran warns it will pay a high price. an attack on an indian air base. the battle for ramadi. i.s.i.l. fighters attack the city on multiple fronts days after victory was celebrated.

quality education for all came into effect on 1 january. we have a special report from nigeria. we start this news hour in saudi arabia with a new round of executions. 47 people in all for the so-called terrorist offences. one of which is prompting strong reaction in the reading. leading shia cleric nimr al-nimr was one of the shia muslim minority. faris al-zahrani was also one executed. he had been in custody from 2004 while in possession of weapons. >> translation: our message is clear. the kingdom condemns terrorism and considers it to be a corruption on earth. therefore, we rely on the

islamic judiciary to deal with these kinds of cases. the offenders are condemned to death. the kingdom did not spare any effort to bring terrorists to justice and we ask saudi youth to be aware of any plots to be hatched to undermine our security reaction in the uranium government was swift. the foreign ministry says saudi arabia will pay a high price for executing nimr al-nimr. it says the saw deexecutes the owe payments of terrorism. protests have been made from condemnation of political figures. the execution was political. the saudis deny this is a they were based on facts and followed a judicial process. >> translation: the judiciary is objective and we deal object jively with the cases on merit.

we deal with facts and criminal intent. once we have the criminal intent and the actual act, then if the person is convicted, the judgment would be in accordance with the case and that would be based on the evidence and what has been proved by the evidence joining us now is a middle east analyst live from beirut. you have the iranians saying that saudi arabia will pay a high price. what are likely to be the represent cushions of these execution-- repercussions of these executions in your opinion? >> a good deal of huffing and puffing, unfortunately. i think the iranians have said in the past that they will retaliate for the execution of nimr al-nimr, but i doubt very much that this will be really taken out of proportion. i think that the terrorist convictions will stand. these came about last november and everyone expected that there

would be executions, perhaps the timing was not right, but nevertheless they carried out what they promised they would do and the repercussions, as i said, will be for the next new cycle, not more than that you don't think there will be catastrophic regional issues then. you said earlier that this execution of nimr al-nimr, in particular, will be a source of tensions between sunni and shias. >> obviously, we all know that there is a sunni/shia clash throughout the region. if this is blown out of proportion, there will be severe consequences, but of the 47 people that were executed, 45 were saw decitizens and many of them were sunnis who had placed bombs last may in a shia mosque and killing a lot of innocent

bystanders. not all of the executees were, in fact, shia. many of them were sunni as well. in iraq last week, if i'm not mistaken, the ewe janeians executed an iraqi-- uraniums executed a poet for publishing a poem. there is a divide, but i don't think it will lead to the catastrophic consequences that people are afraid of one of the people executed is faris al-zahrani. his execution is being explained as saudi arabia's war on terror. how is that resonating internally in saudi arabia? >> well, saudi arabia has a legal procedure in place. all of these individuals have, in fact, been submitted to it. one of the executees was an individual that was arrested in 2004. he had been condemned for

execution and went through a variety of appeals through various trials. last november when these essentially verdicts came down, the judiciary had gone through 13 different phases and 13 different judges have signed on to this. i think inside saudi arabia a lot of people are going to accept this as a verdict against terrorists and not more than that thank you for that. an indian air force base is under attack near the border with pakistan. four attackers and three indian soldiers are confirmed death at the base. police are investigating whether the gunmen have links to pakistan. >> translation: pakistan is our neighbour and we want peaceful relations. not just with pakistan but with all our neighbors. any attack on india will get a

befitting response from india more now from al jazeera's correspondent in new delicatessen lee with the-- delhi with the details. >> reporter: the initial attack took place at 3.30 this morning when several gunmen entered a base in an official vehicle, wearing military uniforms. that lasted several hours. four gunmen had been killed and they began searching the surrounding area. after a lull of several hours, more shots were heard from the inside, the outer section of the base, and two indian air force attack helicopters were seen firing into the same location. officials are not saying how many more gunmen are in the base, but shots have clearly been heard by people standing outside. ever since prime minister narenda modi made a surprise visit to the pakistan city to

meet their prime minister, they have been on alert expecting an attack. armed groups in pakistan have routinely threatened indian targets and security in punjab and in new delhi have been stepped up why is this so strategically. it is 50 kilometres from the border of pakistan. it is on the main highway linking the rest of india to indian administered kashmir. attack follows one in july on a neighbouring police station. the air base in pathankot is home to mig 21 fighter jets and m i35 attack helicopters. the saudi led coalition in yemen is ending a ceasefire according to the media. it was agreed upon at peace talks in geneva last month. the truce was repeatedly violated. talks are due to resume in two

weeks. in somalia a suicide bomber has killed at least three people. the attacker targeted a restaurant which is often used by journalists. there has been no claim of responsibility, but al-shabab has attacked the same restaurant in past. an explosion in ramadi has killed 17 members of iraq's counter terrorism forces. that is in addition to the 60 soldiers and tribes men who have been killed by i.s.i.l. north of the city in recent days. on monday they took the city center back from i.s.i.l. >> reporter: the iraqi army has been celebrating their victory in retaking ramadi, but it looks like their fight isn't over. nearly a week after the government claimed control of the city center. iraqi troops are suffering new setbacks with multiple coordinated attacks on i.s.i.l. on various army positions around the city. in a recently released i.s.i.l. video one of their fighters says

they're still battling the army in the center of ramadi. these pictures appear to show the anbar police headquarters in the center of the city. al jazeera has been told there was an i.s.i.l. suicide car bomb attack and intense shelling on iraqi forces in a compound in the city. i.s.i.l. fighters are still in control of buildings nearby. >> translation: there might be some surprises on the ground through the use of suicide bomb attacks, but that doesn't mean they are regaining territories or changing the balance of power there. the only thing that changes the number of victims, which is increasing. >> reporter: i.s.i.l. used another 10 suicide bombers and attacks on the army north of the city destroying army vehicles and taking control of the division headquarters. the army has made big advances into and around ramadi in recent weeks. that progress helped them free 100 families who had been trapped by the fighting. i.s.i.l. fighters are also

accused of using people as human shields. >> translation: may god punish them. they shot people in the head who refused to go with them. bodies are still there. you can go and see them. >> reporter: retaking the ramadi was the first big victory are for the army since i.s.i.l. seized around a third of iraq in mid 2014, but it seems the army is still battling for both control of the city center and wider area and remain under tleth from traps and bombs left by i.s.i.l. fighters -- threat two rival taliban factions have agreed to a ceasefire. this disrupted peace talks in july. al jazeera's correspondent is monitoring developments. he says the deal strengthens the taliban military, but he agrees the agreement makes it easier for the government to negotiate. >> it is very important for

afghanistan, agreement or disagree. both is important for the future of afghanistan and for the future. if we take it on the peace talk level. afghan government always said that which faction of taliban they should talk with. they were talking about the split. if these two groups gets together, it will make it easier for afghan government to continue - to do with peace with one joint group. with the upcoming fighting season, afghanistan is well-known on taliban offensive, which is starts mainly in spring in march. if these two groups agree with each other and final agreement, if they fight against afghan government, then the afghan government will face a stronger taliban than they are now. if they disagree with each other, they will be two fighting each other and it would make it

easier for afghan government to fight them. it is important news and disagreement doesn't mean that they have reached a final agreement with each other lots more ahead on the news hour. we will stay in afghanistan and look at why so many of these people are fleeing to europe. also ahead donald trump becomes the latest target of an al-shabab video. in sport, a team carrying their form into the new year one of taiwan's presidential candidates says the island needs to stop living in fear of confrontation with china. tsai ing-wen faced off with the other two candidates. the relationship with china was major focus of the debate.

>> translation: taiwanese people need a government that is on their side so they can live without fear of confrontation. they need a government that can help them to solve their problem. in the past eight years people have lost their faith in government. they have also lost their trust in politicians. >> translation: here i am appealing to the people in taiwan. don't vent your angry on taiwan by voting for him. it is a closed door policy. >> translation: if i'm elected president of the republic of china, i will be the leader to bring the people of taiwan out of the shadows and give them hope once again let's take a closer look at the candidates. eric chu is a member of the k m t party. he is the mayor of the city and supports the outgoing president.

tsai ing-wen is the ddp presidential candidate. she has the sizeable lead in the polls. she will become the first female president if elected. the final candidate for president is the people's first party james soong. al jazeera's adrian brown has been watching the degate from beijing. >> reporter: the reason why i think there's so much interest in these elections is for the first time in aan election a woman is the clear front runner. tsai ing-wen, 59 years old, single, and leader of the democratic progressive party which is why communities watching-- china is watching so

closely. she will become the first female president if elected. she has said she wants good relations with china, but worries that taiwan is becoming too economically dependent on beijing. in saturday's debate one of her rivals said she was becoming an isolationist and was taking the country down the road to uncertainty. most people believe that sympathy won saturday's debate. she has a lead over her two main rival candidates, but 25% of voters remain undecided, which means the election could still be a very close one russia's ban on turkish goods has come into effect. it was imposed after turkey shot down a russian jet. fruit, vegetables and poultry are involved in the ban. with a suspension of the visa free agreement between the two

countries, turkish citizens are now banned from working in russia. our correspondent looks at what the sanctions will mean for the economy. >> reporter: this man owns this farm in the southern turkish city. he grows a variety of fruits, such as lemon, lime and mandarines which he exports to russian consumers. a few months ago he grew more plants in the hope of doubling his profits. recently russia imposed economic sanctions against turkey for shooting down one of its fighter jets near the syrian border. he is now worried about what this means for his business. >> translation: sanctions will be harmful for us farmers and businessmen, but people like me will be happy. we are hearing that citrus prices are declining because of russia banning our products. all involved in the business feels the impact.

>> reporter: this is a wholesale market. local produce from here are shipped to all over the world. citrus is one of turkey's main exports. a business worth almost one billion dollars. a third of these exports go to russia. it is the farmer whose are likely to suffer because of the economic sanctions. they are all worried that they may no longer be able to sell their goods if the political crisis is russia continues. they all say that the government has to take action or there will be big losses. the farmers are under pressure to finish harvesting say citrus fruits before it gets cold. this region produces 75% of turkey's citrus products. these are seasonal workers mostly syrian and local villagers whose future is also uncertain. >> translation: the situation is bad.

it is not good. our daily wage is very little and we come here very early. 3 o'clock in the morning until the evening. most of us are in debt and life is very expensive. >> reporter: this man was hoping to sell this year's harvest to iraq, but with instability in kurdish areas, the border crossings have been closed. he is now looking for buyers in istanbul >> translation: it is moot annoy job to find alternative markets. it is the government's or traders. this product cannot wait forever in the depots and we have commitments to workers. >> reporter: the turkish government has promised to compensate those affected by the russian sanctions. adding that it will also impose restrictions on russian goods. but until in dispute comes to an end, citrus farmers like this

man will continue to worry about their future the somali armed group al-shabab has used donald trump's remarks as evidence of racial injustice in the united states. the democratic presidential hopeful hillary clinton had warned that his comments could be used by armed groups. while donald trump has made many comments about muslims over the last few weeks, the clip in the al-shabab video is from december when he called for "a total and complete shut down of muslims entering the united states", and said he would consider implementing a monitoring database system to keep track of them in the country. he would be in favor of a program to monitor mosques around the ewe mighted states where he said bad things are

happening. talking to an international security analyst and author from london. good to have you with us. hillary clinton has basically warned about this. what is the significance of al-shabab featuring donald trump in this latest video? >> i think it is very significant in the sense that donald trump is now turned out to be the poster boy for al-shabab's latest recruitment efforts to bring muslims around the world to support in jihadist cause. this is significant because it speaks to something that critics have been saying for a while, people who have been observing donald trump's campaign, that this kind of far right extremist sympathising, this kind of very exclusionary politics which does registrationalize politics and demonise a particular religious group falls directly into the strategies that jihadists are precisely hoping to kind of accelerate.

they want to see more division between non-muslims and muslims you've written about this. you talked about a grey zone. talk to us more about this and what it means for the strategy of groups like i.s.i.l. and al-shabab. >> so the islamic state or d.a.e.s.h. or whatever you want to call it, in various bits of literature they've referred to this either the grey zone which is this arena of co-existence between two different communities, mainly muslims and non-muslims. they say one of the strategies that they're trying to do with varies kind of things with propaganda, whether it's actually jihad or various types of divisions, they want to breakdown this grey zone. they want to see muslims and non-muslims basically fighting each other in some way, but specifically in the western world they want to see a situation where they create a climate where muslims are being increasingly persecuted.

the reason they want to do this is they want to cullty vat, obviously-- cultivate, obviously, hostility and migrate to the islamic state and to take up the cause of the jihad donald trump's views may seem outlandish, but do you find today these are the kinds of policies that are becoming common in mainstream u.s. plightics in america and elsewhere in the west? >> the fact that someone like donald trump is leading the polls at the moment and he is a leading republican candidate, this is one of the most prominent political party, a mainstream party, not a fringe party. that is significant. this is becoming more mainstream. what concerns me is that groups like the henry jackson society in london, for instance, which have come to extremist

organizations, have direct links to the people that inspired donald trump and they work with organizations like the clarion project, and frank gaffney was one of the people quoted by donald trump. he quoted a bogus survey by him saying we need to be suspicion of the majority of muslim people. even though they promote ideas of liberalism, whether or not that's intentional and what is behind it, at the end of the day that's mainstreaming these kinds of groups and these kinds of far right sentiment. that is a real problem thank you for that. the new year has started with a resolution from the united nations aiming to improve the lives of millions of children. more than half of all kids who

are not enrolled in school live in south africa. from nigeria our correspondent reports. >> reporter: this man struggles to keep his seven children in school because of continued strikes and important facilities. he cannot afford private tutors, so he makes time to help them with extra lessons and homework. that is taking a lot of his time and energy. >> if i have the money, i get them to a private school, if i have the money. >> reporter: this woman sends her children to the private school. >> i can take care of my business, knowing that the school are looking after my children. >> reporter: children like hers have access to better learning facilities as they grow up, something that private schools are providing as long as parents

are willing to pay. >> when the child comes to the preschool before entering the primary section, the child gets prepared in writing, reading, before they enter the basic school. >> reporter: the united nations wants to close this gap by ensuring the children all over the world has access to quality early stage child care and preschool education. the new sustainable development goals want to achieve this by 2030. that will be difficult. in nigeria, there are more than 11 million kids out of school. >> reporter: most preschool education is one by private institutions in nigeria. the regional governments are already struggling to pay teachers have little or no interest in running it >> no. i think really governments should be doing less not more.

>> reporter: what that means, children of the rich will have an edge over the poor in africa time now for a check on the world weather are richard. the rains are easing in the u.s. but rivers rising now. >> reporter: yes. it is a problem for the people. if you look at the imagery, we have this one water front, but across the united states and through up into canada, the cold air is the main feature. that across the lakes. we've had some lake effect snow, but the cold air is digging south now. if you look on the temperature chart you can see there is some warm here, florida 28 degrees, but across the rest of the

country it is looking on the chilly side at the moment. as we come back and look at some of the snow, this is around buffalo, and the potential is there for more snow. you've got cold air across warm lake water and buffalo bore the brunt of the snow. we are seeing a lot of flooding as the rains work their way further south down through the river system. so the situation is going to get worse before it gets better in some areas, but the actual weather is going better. it is clearing away. i think we should see the front system leaving altogether. in rain in california has to be good news thank you for that. coming up on the news hour, senegal tightens its borders with mali making it even more difficult for people dependent on the crossing.

two days in the new year, but a first trophy is picked up. .

welcome back. you're watching the news hour on al jazeera. a reminder of the top stories. shia muslims have protested against the execution of nimr al-nimr who was put to together

with 46 others. mr gun fire has been heard in india. four attackers and three indian soldiers are confirmed killed so far. two rival factions within the afghan taliban have agreed on a ceasefire and a prisoner exchange. afghans fleeing the war against the taliban make up a large part of the people seeking a new life in europe. let's take a closer look at the scale of the problem. border control data says more than a million refugees and migrants arrived in europe last year. the international organization for migration says more than a third of all rivals were from syria. the second largest group, around 11%, were from afghanistan. joining us now is the regional director for refugee council. for three decades afghanistan was the world's largest producer

of refugees but it has been over taken by syria. does it mean that afghan refugees are being forgotten about? >> well, afghan refugees, the crisis has been going on for over three decades now. we are seeing a situation where there is a number of people who are now leaving the country. i think the issue is that it is now becoming largely a forgotten crisis because of the huge emphasis in syria and other areas, the situation in afghanistan is not seeing the same kind of attention that it should the afghan government said it not only wants the afghans to stay but for those who have fled to return. can they? are the conditions right in the country for people to return? what are people facing right now? why are they still fleeing today? >> i think the conditions are continuing to be very difficult.

the economic situation, the security situation, and there is a sense of hopelessness that we are seeing. particularly in 2015 the situation has been quite challenging. so at this point there is a very difficult scenario if you talk about returns to the country what about those in europe. taking in refugees has become a divisive issue now. those in europe who manage to make it to places like germany, what sort of situation are they in? >> i think the situation, of course, is not easy for those who are also leaving. we don't have statistics on what the numbers are and how they are handling the situation in europe, but from the feedback that we get from our colleagues and the people on ground, we are hearing that, of course, it's a challenged journey, but because

of the sense of hopelessness is in the country, the risks people are taking, they are going. this will only continue to increase as we go into this year, 2016 i want to talk about pakistan a bit because recent reports by human rights watch says that the afghans who live in pakistan, who have lived there for decades, are facing terrible conditions, arbitrary arrest and destruction of property. can you tell us more about that, the situation of the afghans who are just living, you know, next-door: have in pakistan. >> the situation in pakistan, the government has continued to hold them for a number of decades now, and there are spontaneous returns that are happening to afghanistan for sure. i would not be in a position to comment on anything else because i don't have the facts there, but there are returns happening and in 2015 the largest number of people have gone back to afghanistan. if you look at the statistics,

there were 90,000 people that returned. so, yes, there are concerns. of course, the pakistan government wants to do whatever it can to facilitate a voluntary and smooth return. i think over the coming years if it is going to be a priority and we need to work together to ensure that it happens in a voluntary matter very good to hear your thoughts. thank you so much for talking to us about the situation of afghanistan's refugees around the world. with wars in afghanistan, syria, eye rake and yemen continue unabated, the refugee crisis is expected to continue as well. our correspondent looks at whether europe will be able to better manage the influx this year. >> reporter: when historians commit to paper the event of 2015 they won't be short to write about. hundreds of thousands running away from the horrors of syria and elsewhere. thousands drowned in the sea in

overcrowded, terrifying crossings. the european union at odds with itself and human rights groups as to whether these people are refugees at all, let alone whether they should be helped to build new lives. increasingly, kneer members of the etched u which argued that the refugees and migrant should be kept out to defend europe's christian traditions, successfully shouted down germany and sweden which wanted europe to offer a lead on human rights. so is the year ended, the best clue came as to what 2016 might have in store. turkey suddenly being groomed for a quicker entry into the european union in return for a plan to hold refugees inside its borders before they come to greece. in the same way the european union tried to convince african leader that they could work together to create the conditions which would stem the flow of human traffic across the mediterranean. >> over time the situation has

changed. we are now looking at a framework in which refugees are not only looking for immediate shelter, but after two to four years in refugee camps, they look fundamentally for perspective for their lives and the lives of their children. so to open up opportunity for education, schooling and participation in economy, for working for the time that they are staying in turkey is an important element as well. >> reporter: yet security experts are already warning that blocking some routes will only lead to others openlying. perhaps north from the black sea coast and into romania and even ukraine. turkey can't police all of its area. not only with the e.u. plans not works, they're immoral. >> in turkey, the refugees don't enjoy human rights at all. syrians enjoy some sort of protection, but 80% of all syrian kids in turkey don't go

to school. syrians are not allowed to work legally and when we talk about people from iraq, afghanistan, iran, they're not allowed to get any protection in turkey, so that would be a huge point of concern for us. >> reporter: of course, the paris attacks changed european thinking enormously. another one like it would make things even harder for the refugees. equally, any sort of agreement between the west, russia and turkey on what to do about syria hardly looks likely. so as hard as 2015 was for all of these people, there's every suggestion 2016 could be even harder. lawrence lee in other news from around the world, investigators in france are investigating the

aattack on a mosque. tens of thousands of people have descended on a palace to hear the japanese prime minister to hear the speech. the frin says made a rare appearance. in algeria thousands of mourners have attended the funeral of opposition leader. the 89-year-old was one of the founding members of the resistance to french colonial rule in the 1950s. he a country is tightening security at its border with mali. it follows november's deadly attack in mali. the president wants border control reinstated in all west

african countries to prevent further attacks. >> reporter: along the 500 k land border with mali there are only two roads listening the countries. this one is used by truck drivers carrying goods descend for the malian capital. migrants travel through here too. security agencies fear the route is used by armed groups planning attacks in the region. the guards don't want to be filmed on the post. they fear it would compromise their safety such is the level of concern. west africans can normally travel freely throughout the region as long as they have a valid pass part. security controls are now tight year. some-- tighter. some have been waiting for days to get into mali. >> translation: i take this road all the time. now there are so many checks.

this is slowing down our business. i've never seen anything like this. >> reporter: increased security checks were introduced after an attack on the hotel in mali's capital bamako. the president suggested reinstating border controls throughout west africa. he is also proposing on banning the full burka. authorities say the measures are justified so they can identify individuals more easily to prevent suicide attacks. the suggested measures haven't made it to parliament yet, but they're already a source of heated debate. islam plays a key role in this country. the president says these measures are necessary because the threat of attacks on senegal are real. the police made several arrests recently including the imam of this mosque.

he is accused of having links with nigeria's boko haram. worshippers say the state want to destroyise limb. >> translation: they are making an about big mistake. we do not accept this law of the state. we only accept the rule of god. >> reporter: the country has so far prevented any attacks the. the government says it will take whatever steps necessary to protect its citizens, even if it causes inconvenience for some. nicholas hawke u.s. president obama has made a new push for gun control in his first weekly address of the new year. he accused ondegrees of failing to act. >> we can't stop every act of violence but what if we tried to stop one? what if congress did anything to

protect children. i looked into new actions. on monday, i will meet with our attorney-general to discuss our options. because i get too many letters from parents and teachers and kids to sit around and do nothing. i get letters from responsible gun owners who grieve with us every time these tragedies happen. who share my relief that they have a right to bear arms gun supporters in texas are backing a new law lowing handguns to be carried openly. new licences can be obtained by over 21-year-olds if they pass background checks. critics are concerned. >> it allows me to leave the house dressed as i want to

dress. i don't have to worry about if i'm hiding anything. it allows access to my arm if i need it. >> i stopped on my way here this morning at many places. people seem to than okay with it millions will have a rise beginning this year. more from new york. >> reporter: this man lives with his parents and relies on government food assistance. even though he has held down a full-time job at mcdonald's for three years. his pay is going up, more than a dollar than hour this year to $10.50. thanks to a nationwide campaign to raise the minimum wage. >> basically, you know, me and my workers, we got fed up and an organiser came to me and said enough is enough, don't you think and i said yeah. >> reporter: new york fast food workers started a fight for $15

an hour two years ago. they walked off the job and protested. some were arrested. many joined the campaign, highlighting the struggle of all low wage earners. they have convinceed some cities to adopt a $15 minimum wage over time with small raises starting this year. mcdonald's is the world's largest fast food ham burringer restaurants. which economymists say profits have been rising. >> taxpayers through the public benefit programs are basically

subsidising the low wage cost model, low wage model of operating a business. >> reporter: cheese he is happy to have more money to spend in 2016, even though it will take two more years to reach $15 an hour >> if you work a full-time job, you should have better rates coming up after the break on al jazeera, we will have the very latest from the first english match of the new year. west ham takes on liverpool. details with jo. o.

welcome back. fireworks are a traditional finale to many celebrations around the world. on mexico lighting up the skies are is common, but the industry has recently come under threat. our correspondent has more. >> reporter: the danger lurks in the back of this woman's mind. for 12 years making handmade fireworks has helped support her family. >> translation: we put all our heart in our jobs. this is something i like to do. we leave our families at home because we want to come here to make money for them. so i would like people to buy our products. >> reporter: 2015 was not a

booming year of sales of fireworks in mexico. she was asked to stay home twice. nowhere is the downturn in fireworks sales felt more than here, just outside makes co city. these hand crafted fireworks are big business. more than 80% of these fireworks in mexico were made here. the owners won't give precise figures about their earnings. in 2014 a colleague was kidnapped. they are quick to give the exact reasons for the drop in sales. >> translation: mexican economy is one of the reasons why people are not buying fireworks. there is high demand for the products, but nobody has any money. >> reporter: business owners also blame comp. petition from cheaper chinese made products. safety is another concern.

no-one doubts that fire warnings will will continue to be part of celebrations in mexico. >> translation: i feel good. happy to see if it works, that i cover with paper. >> reporter: in the fireworks capital of mexico, this tradition has sustained generation after generation of families. despite her reservations, her 17-year-old son is now working in the business time for the sports. >> reporter: thank you. liverpool have kicked off the new year in the english premier league as they look to move up from 7th in the table. it is 8th place west ham who have taken the lead in just the tenth minute of the game. they're about to begin the second half. arsenal's manager has rejected doubts over his team's ability

to win the title. they begin at the top of the table. they have been in the same position three times in the last 14 years but have failed to go ahead and win the crown. >> for me, the most important thing is to feel at the end that we have given everything to be successful after. if somebody has been better than us, we will accept it, but we want to fight to show that we have a chance. >> reporter: second place leicester city just behind arsenal. man city, who are third, play wattford in the late game. spain's top team returned to action later including, of course, leaders bars lone i can't. they take-- barcelona. a win is a must to help them pull away from their rivals.

the men are hoping to carry their 2015 form into the new year having won five titles last year. they also set a new goal scoring record with 180. >> translation: the competition will remain like this practically until the end of the season. no doubt about it. we can already see the very high level displayed by madrid. they are at the same level that barco and real madrid are. >> reporter: while barcelona have a game on hand, they are at 38 points and can't afford to falter. third place real madrid plays on sunday. south africa's cricketers are fighting back. england were making steady progress with ale ex-hales having made 60.

two wickets were taken in succession. it has left england on 176 for four. one up in the best of four series after winning the first test in durbin by 241 runs. a first title of the year can be picked up only having played two matches. he received a bi into the federal championship. despite being given a rather than stern test, nadal came through winning this one, six three, seven six seven three. his opponent for saturday's final will be the canadian. ice hockey has held a tradition,

the annual outdoor winter classic. the stadium is usually the home of the pay tree on thes-- patriots. the first goal came after 74 seconds and he went on to win five one. it is largest victory in the vent of the the event of the sport. >> it is going to be tight. >> we just had a tough night there. it is unfortunate that i think we played one of our worst game at the worst time. it just seemed like we couldn't get anything going. >> reporter: that's all for now thank you very much, indeed. the historic grand theatre in

havana has opened. it had recently been closed down for renovations. an outdated copyright law has issues with a country's music. >> reporter: the sound of widely acclaimed singer, it won top honor you'res at a comp. petition-- honors at a competition. a law is preventing artists from gaining income. >> it becomes difficult for creativity and that of your artist to really blossom.

>> reporter: the laws are said to have resulted in a perfect breeding ground for piracy. it is so rampant here that roving kiosks like these blast pirated music in the streets. >> we are part of the problem. it is not a matter of choice. if you had to choose and there was a right and wrong, then i think people would go for the right. the system is such that it is the norm. >> reporter: it is a situation that is said to be also preventing local talent from emerging. an original cd by a local artist costs five times more than a world renowned artist. they have no chance of succeeding in their own country. boot legers are not the only one to blame. a fingerer has been pointed at its politicians. >> we will create more momentums, but they will be

stopped at the doors of parliament or stopped at the doors of the political directate >> reporter: that state of affairs leaves musicians feeling very discouraged. >> i do feel that sometimes we should be better off because being performers for so long and getting the recognition and people hold you at a high place, but yet you don't get the money that you deserve or whatever it is for the work that you do. >> reporter: elsewhere, music is central in promoting tourism and strengthing national identity. a you simple change in a copyright law here could mean the same could happen here there's plenty more news on our website, of course, al jazeera.com. our top story the executions in saudi arabia. plenty more on that in a few minutes. just stay with us. with us.

saudi arabia executes 47 people convicted the terrorist attacks including a shia cleric. iran warns the kingdom will pay a high price. you're with al jazeera. an indian air base near the pakistani border is attacked just days after p.m. visits to lahore. quality