behind other countries on this. >> now a revolution in workers' rights... >> my story is so many peoples' story. >> that could decide the election. >> it can be different. >> escalating dispute. >> we decided to cut off all diplomatic relations with iran. >> saudi arabia i kicks out iranian diplomats after protesters attacked the saudi embassy in iran, angry over the saudi execution of a prominent shia cleric. attacks, taliban storm northern afghanistan. >> our special commandos have

been deployed in the area. >> and more than a dozen people are injured in bombings near kabul's airport. and power shift, national assembly tomorrow -- >> there are fears of violence as government supporters vow to save the legacy of the late hugo chavez. and financial crisis. >> we'll have to sacrifice essential services for the people of puerto rico. >> puerto rico defaults on a $1 billion debt payment and lawsuits loom because it paid some creditors at the expense of others. >> good evening i'm antonio mora, this is al jazeera's international news hour and we begin this evening with the diplomatic crisis involving saudi arabia and iran. u.n. security council has just

condemned the attack on the saudi embassy in tehran and a number of nations are siding with the saudis. bahrain, sudan and the united arab emirates has either cut ties with iran or have substantially reduced them. there are fears growing over the future of the syrian peace negotiations. the u.n. special envoy for syria, staffan de mistura is in iran for talks. calls for calm, at the same time is distancing itself from the dispute. al jazeera's andrew simmons has the story. >> saudi diplomats on their way home with their families, transiting here at the dubai airport. allied neighboring bahrain , after two days of protests from

shia muslim majority. accused iran of blatant and dangerous interference and support for terrorism. the actions followed the arson attack at the saudi arabia embassy in tehran. a war of words is escalating. >> we decided to cut off all diplomatic relations with iran, we will be cutting off all air traffic to and from iran we will cut off all commercial relations with iran and have a travel ban against people traveling to iran. >> unfortunately, the government of saudi arabia sees interest in creating clashes and escalating tensions in the region. in recent times it has enforced policies to that. >> after the execution of nimr al-nimr he and 46 others

including preacher al zarani were charged with preaching and targeting civilians and security forces. saudi arabia is adamant he got a fair trial. it is not first time diplomatic relations have been cut but there are fears it could cause more violence. in an incident in a village in eastern saudi where people are mourning nimr al-nimr's death, press reported that one man had been killed and a child injured. nimr's brother was told the cleric will be buried in an undisclosed location, a move that will possibly cause more protests. andrew simmons, al jazeera. country's ambassador to the u.n. promised action to prevent future attacks against embassies. he also wrote that, quote, iran expresses its regret over the referred to incidents and will spare no efforts in arresting

and prosecuting those who brought them about. al jazeera's james bays is at the u.n. with more. >> heavy weight nation of the middle east which have always had strained relations and now they're at a new low. having said that i suspect they will have been slightly heartened by the words of the saudi ambassador who said there will be no effect in his country's view about peace efforts with regard to syria and yemen. >> from you're side it should have no effect because we will continue to work very hard towards supporting the peace efforts in syria and yemen whenever there might be a need for that. how is that going to affect the behavior of iran? we do not know. you would need to ask the iranians on that. but the iranians even before the break of diplomatic relations have not been very supportive, have not been very positive in

these peace efforts. they have been taking provocative and negative positions and lies, as such i don't think the break in relations is going to dissuade them from such behavior. >> despite those comments, the united nations knows that both iran and saudi arabia are key players in both these conflicts and that's why the u.n. envoy for syria is now in riyadh, he will be going on to tehran and in the next few days the u.n. envoy for yemen will also be in the riyadh. >> the u.n. secretary-general had questioned the fairness of the trials that led to the executions. the u.s. was among those nations urging saudi arabia and iran from taking their escalations

further. refused to condemn the execution of nimr al-nimr. >> action he like this certainly don't do anything to help with stability. in the region. and again we have and will continue to express our concerns about the legal process in saudi arabia. that said, saudi arabia is, as i said earlier, an important friend in the region, an important partner in the region. they are a member of the 65 member coalition against i.s.i.l. >> we're joined now by richard murphy, former u.s. ambassador to saudi arabia and to syria. ambassador always good to have you with us. >> thank you. >> the saudis had to know that executing the shia cleric was going to inflame tensions, both sectarian tension he inside the kingdom and tensions with iran.

so why do it? >> i think you can only understand it against the background of this conviction that the iranians will spare no energy to make trouble for saudi arabia, and up to and including the overthrow of the a&m. regime. >> wouldn't this encourage the iranians to do so with even more intensity? >> i think they were determined to send the message, we're in charge and we will do what is necessary for our national security, directing the comment at the local saudi shia population as well as tehran. >> isn't it also about the saudis trying to distract from some of the issues that are big there right now? one, oil prices of course have gone down so their welfare payments have been cut back significantly. there are serious economic woes and they are also heavily involved in the war in yemen

which has not been going terribly well. >> i think if it's any other reasons than the conviction that the iranians need to be countered, it's the war in yemen which the saudis reacted to with violence, attacking yemen with their air force. the sense of being encircled by iranian maneuvers, first in iraq, then syria, constant with hezbollah in lebanon and then sort of closing the sirnlg as cs saudis see it in yemen. >> major in the peace talks involving syria if they are at odds with each other even more so than now, would that be a problem? >> before this it was to get something going, even now more,

if the saudis and the iranians are not at the table things aren't going too move towards a solution. >> what does this say between u.s. and saudi relations? ever since king salman took power last year, it does seem that he and the crown prince have wanted to have more concerted action against iran. is that because of the issues in the u.s.-saudi relations and maybe a lack of confidence that the saudis have in their american ally? >> i think we're seeing a government which is determined to show it will pursue its own security interest no matter who else may dislike it, may oppose it and i'm sure that there have been words exchanged between the americans and the saudis over the war in yemen for instance. although we are supporting them, it's with a sense that the sooner this is over the better, and get down to issues like

syria. >> what do you read into the iranian letter to the united nations and the apology in saying that they will prosecute anyone who was involved in attacking the saudi diplomatic facilities? >> well, they are behaving responsibly correctly after the fact in terms of observing international practice. this is a basic violation of international practice. >> iranians have violated that before and not made a peep. it's certainly interesting that they've done it this time. do you think -- a time questionn for you. will this help i.s.i.l? it does seem that i.s.i.l. thrives on creating sectarian tensions. >> yes. until the moment comes when the saudis and the iranians accept that i.s.i.l. is the problem in the area, as certainly we see it, i think as the russians see

it and many other powers see it, they have to focus, we would like them to focus on that. they are focused on the regime in syria, supporting the regime or opposing the regime, but not on i.s.i.l. so this does give a certain freedom of movement to i.s.i.l. >> ambassador richard murphy, always a pleasure to have you with us. >> thank you. >> in syria the opposition is making demands ahead of peace talks with the government. demands that could derail the talks before they begin. political and military opponents of bashar al-assad want him to release prisoners and halt the bombardment of rebel held areas. that would indicate his willingness to negotiate in good faith. opposition representatives will present their demands whether they meet in saudi arabia tomorrow. yemen is under curfew, after the government and rebel force he killed at least 10 people.

gunmen stormed the facility sunday, the gunmen were trying to seize container cargo. >> we are willing to sacrifice ourselves for sake of safety and security, even if we don't get a cent for it. we are ready to sacrifice ourselves for free for sake of our country with our souls our blood and our money until the last plan standing. >> there have been several attacks in yemen since july including one that killed aden's governor and six members of his entour an last month. iraq is blaming i.s.i.l. for bombing of sunni mosques just outside of baghdad. witnesses say they saw men wearing military uniforms detonating bombs inside the mosques. right after saudi arabia severed talks with iran. to stir up sectarian violence

and undermine unity. in libya today, i.s.i.l. forces tried to take command of a major export terminal. second time a major facility has been hit since october. the terminal has been shut down for a year now, it was damaged severely last january. i.s.i.l. has gained ground as two rival governments have fought for control of the country. two masked people with british accents one was a young boy. the video appears to show the execution of five men accused of spying for west. >> it is a desperate staff from an organization that does the most utterly despicable and dastardly acts. it is losing ground, increasingly losing anybody sympathy and this again shows what an appalling organization

we're up against. >> after the killings, a young boy wearing a black bandanna and military fatigues, said in english go kill the unbelievers. the taliban is claiming responsibility for killings in afghanistan today, authorities say it was directed at a compound for civilian contractors. it came hours after a suicide bombing of a police checkpoint also in the capital. there were no immediate reports of casualties. gunmen attacked an indian consul aconsulate in the north. victoria gatenby has more. >> indian consulate near thing city of maza al sharif. fighters are now hiding in a house in a nearby street and at least one civilian has been wounded. >> translator: our special

forces and commandos have been deployed in the area and i assure our countrymen that they will eliminate all insurgents. >> reporter: india has long supported afghanistan in its struggle to become a democracy. since then india has given more than $300 million in aid. its support of afghanistan has made it a target of the taliban. in may of 2014, the taliban attacked the military city of harat. nine civilians died when the indian embassy in georgia lal bs

attacked. the head of pakistan's army was in kabul for a meeting with afghan president ashraf ghani. victoria gatenby, al jazeera. >> coming up the fight the opposition faces from president maduro's socialist administration to his supporters on the streets. and tensions between hezbollah and israel turn into cross-border fire. minus one. >> the city is a powder keg at the moment. >> you see transactional sex and no one is held to account for that. >> the united nations has never accepted responsibility for this. >> an ali velshi on target special:

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judge the first opposition controlled national assembly in venezuela in 16 years is about to be sworn in. because of its two-thirds supermajority, the opposition could have expanded powers, including the abilities to fire cabinet ministers, and recall the president. bit as virginia lopez reports, onot all opposition legislators are expected to be seated. >> helped lift venezuelans out of ports. conttreras accepts defeat. but he says the march will be peaceful but the opposition has often claimed that groups like his function as arms militia

like groups that attack their detractors. >> translator: the social movements are gr to show their support of the revolutionary government and not wirlg t willo lose the social and political cheexghts of the past 17 years. >> hugo chavez vowed to transform the oil rich nation into what he called a socialist paradise. contributed to his unchallenged popularity. but his successor newark last maduro lacks his charisma. venezuela now faces chronic food shortages and the world's highest inflation rate. neighbors of the community have traditionally supported the late hugo chavez and his revolution but election shows that the government has lost all suppor

support.discontent asupport.dis, its newly elected president henry ramos aloup. >> we will not be a counter-power. we will be an autonomous solution. we will exercise a power which the previous assembly never played. >> blocking three opposition legislators. >> they claim no votes but this is speculative, because i haven't even been presented with a formal indictment. what i know is from local media and social networks. >> fears are growing that power sharing in this polarized country will fail. and that there could be a repeat of the political street clashes

that in 2014 left 43 venezuelans dead. virginia lopez, al jazeera, caracas. >> for flit's in context segment we are joined by eric farnsworth, the vice president of the american society and the council of the americas. good to see you eric. let's start where virginia lopez ended. opposition, supporting their new majority in the national assembly but government supporters are going to march as well. is this a tinder box that could explode? >> any time you have two large groups of people on die metrically opposed sides of the same issue, with nothing but the national legislature and the direction of the country at stake i think you can suggest the potential for some sort of spark that lights a fuse of violence is certainly possible. one certainly hopes that that isn't the case. both sides i think need to call

for their supporter to maintain nonviolence but the potential is certainly there no question about it. >> in our report we heard a former government deputy calling for protests to send a message to the far right. are some of these government supporters still deluded after being crushed in that land slield in september thalandslidn is just the far right? >> i think there is certainly some misinformation no question about it and some is at the sft of the government, if you are not part of the chavista movement, you are part of the oligarchic movement. but the opposition is really a coalition of parties many of them are folks who are really not rightist at all. they are fairly leftist, they are just not chavesta, now that nicholas maduro has taken the country, the economy is doing quite poorly, inflation is the

one of the highest if not the highest in the world. the opposition was an whelmin overwhelming opposition to the government. >> the world was in shock when it saw the magnitude of the electoral defeat. now the government doesn't want to seat some of the opposition deputies. that could take the supermajority away from the opposition. so what then could the opposition really do? >> well, the government strategy is to confuse the legislature which is supposed to be seated tomorrow, into a constant state

of anxiety, by questioning who's seated and what the results are and keeping constant conflict in the legislature itself. the second tack is to take the authority and the duties of the did youly elected legislature, and challenge that the chavista government controls. just today, president maduro signed a decree to allow the central bank to keep many of its accounts private, to have spending on certain issues that won't have to be appropriated by the legislature, so he's taking the duties of the legislature and transferring them to other institutions. what can the elected legislature do i think that's question. >> as all that happens, this is a presidential system where the presidency has accrued even more powers since chavez became

president, will there be any power in that assembly and if there is not, if the government does not respect the democratic process, do you expect the una sur to get involved? >> respect is too much of a word but hope, one can hope that oas or the you u.s. would get involved, una sur, that's not its mandate. but luis el magro has spoken out and taken a courageous role. that's a possibility. there needs to be some support from the united states from other democracies in the latin american area, perhaps from argentina, i think what happens tomorrow if there is violence if there is social breakdown, if there is a true political crisis, i think the united

states is going to being forced to take a more political stand. >> always good to have you with us, thank you. denmark and sweden have tightened border controls on people crossing from germany. how the fallout is impacting a 20 year agreement on travel in europe. and a plunge around the world. how markets are faring on the second day of trading in asia in the second day business day of 2016.

>> new moms forced to choose. >> the united states does lag behind other countries on this. >> now a revolution in workers' rights... >> my story is so many peoples' story. >> that could decide the election. >> it can be different.

>> welcome back to al jazeera america, i'm antonio mora. coming up in this half hour of international news japan seeks a long overdue peace with russia 70 years after the end of world war ii. but first a look at the stories making headlines across the u.s. in our american minute. armed antigovernment protestors have now occupied federal property in rural oregon for three days. the demonstrators took over a federal wildlife refuge. they say they want an investigation into whether the government is forcing ranchers off their land. the federal government is moving ahead with economics, several steps of what the president plans to announce tomorrow in an effort to curb gun violence.

oklahoma energy regulators, have ordered energy companies to reduce the amount of waste water going into injection wells. oklahoma has become one of the motion earthquake-prone areas in the world, it is believed because of waste water pumped into the ground. european nation are tightening border controls, as refugee crisis shows no signs of slowing down. hours after sweden implemented identity checks for travelers coming from denmark. al jazeera aps dominic kane has more. >> monday morning in the castrop train station. accept that according to the rules of the schengen zone they shouldn't be acknowledge for decades passengers traveling to sweden or germany through denmark has been able to use the eu's borderless system.

now swedish government has imposed these passport checks. the only way to reduce the number migrants and refugees trying to enter their territory. a move that divided feelings among passengers. >> id needs to be very smooth the commuting back and forth. >> translator: if the trains run on time your trabl time is doubled. but already this morning there have been some who have had their travel time tripled. >> in response, denmark has introduced similar checks to people crossing its border to germany. this is a step backwards for europe the foreign minister says. >> the european union can't protect the external borders. you will see more and more countries which will be forced into introducing temporary

internal border control. this is something we need to take very seriously. >> 2015 was a watershed year for migration to the eu. official figures show more than 1 million people entered the continent by land or sea. a clear majority came to germany. encouraged by the welcoming attitude of its government. ministers say that migrants represent both a challenge and an opportunity for europe. here at the german foreign ministry the message is clear. the mass movement of refugees and migrants is a european problem that requires a european solution. but officials in the building behind me say the unprecedented number of people coming may mean the schengen zone is in danger. dominic kane, al jazeera, berlin. the united kingdom has granted asylum to a sudanees

refugee, charged under a 19th century law on instructing a rail line. the first asylum seeker who is known to maybe it to britain by foot via the railway tunnel. hezbollah says it set off a large explosive device that destroyed a humvee, israel responded by shelling the area, no word on casualties from the shelling. puerto rico is struggling to reduce its crippling debt but for the second time in five months the island defaulted on payments on debt it owes. unless something changes more defaults are like in the future. >> reporter: the island of puerto rico is kicking off the

new year defaulting on debt payment. >> the debt is unpayable. >> local senator ramon nueve says puerto rico cannot stop the crisis until washington helps. >> in order for us to pay for the debt service we will have to sacrifice essential services for the people of puerto rico. >> trying to pay down debt the island has slashed health care and public transportation services. they've let go 30,000 public sector workers, closed over 100 schools and increased the sales tax by more than 50%. no matter which side of the aisle a politician is on here in puerto rico, if you talk to them and ask them that was reason for recession and the massive debt almost all of them will point to a 1996 act of congress that cut corporate tax incentives an 50 time 2006 came along most of those big companies left the island.

puerto rico's governor alejandro garcia padilla speak exclusively to al jazeera describes what happened next. >> there was a tool that puerto rico had to bring investors to the island, to bring factories, plferg to thmanufacturing to th. they shut down that with a phase out period in 2006. what happened in 2006? we get into recession. >> puerto rico's jobless rate is 12.5% more than double the national average of 5%. last year 84,000 people left the island and 1,000 more join them each week most headed to the u.s. mainland. then there is the 45% poverty rate clouding the future of the working class. >> so a crisis that developed, that took decades to develop, will not be solved from one day to the next one. so for them, i know what they

are feeling. i'm with them. and it is because of them that i'm trying too hard to fix these crises. >> the debt load is increasing, the only hope say officials if congress allows the island to restructure the money owed and start from scratch. robert ray, al jazeera, san juan, puerto rico. the u.s. government filed a lawsuit against volkswagen tod today, over emissions cheating software. the civil complaint from the justice department and the epa said the german manufacturer installed software to overcome emissions test. russian fighter jet, sanctions include a ban on

certainly agriculture products from turkey. al jazeera's peter sharp reports from moscow on what that will mean to russia. >> the sanction he were imposed on turkey following the shooting down of russian aircraft that was alleged to have gone into turkish air space. the sanctions will cost turkey well over $700 million. turkey supplies 20% of moscow's fresh 42nd, tomatoes, apples, oranges. that will have to be replaced and if that wasn't enough, russia's now engaged in a total trade war with ukraine. this is in retaliation for kiev backing western sanctions against russia. russia's now scrapped the fair trade agreement with ukraine and that's pushed the prices of its imports up by 6%. bilateral trade has fallen from 50 billion just to 12.5 billion.

there have been 23 separate rounds of trilateral talks between russia, ukraine and brussels, still as far away as ever in reaching any sort of compromise or agreement. >> peter sharp reporting from moscow. japan's prime minister shinzo abe is calling for peace talks between the countries of japan and russia. russia seized ielts in 1945. abe last discussed with russian president vladimir putin in 2013. markets plunged in the first trading day in china. stocks tumbled so far trading was stopped for the day to prevent a total market crash. the shanghai market plunged 7%. disappointing manufacturing data

from china released earlier in the day. markets from europe and u.s. followed suit with some indices falling more than 6%. let's go to beijing and al jazeera's senior china twont adrian brown. so far the markets do seem more stable today. >> reporter: yes, a bit more stable. i think too soon to say whether this is going to represent any long term stability. the morning trade just closed a short time ago. with shanghai up zero.4%. shenzhen down 0.2%. certainly things a lot more stable than they were this time yesterday. on monday this automatic shutdown mechanism which was supposed to contain the sort of market turmoil in summer came into operation, in fact it was activated on the very first day it came into effect.

this was because trading in the morning was pretty bad. the index dropped by 5%. that meant that the stock market in shanghai and shenzhen had to close temporarily for 50 minutes. the markets then reopened and the index fell by another 7%. the circuit breaker mechanism kicked in shutting down the market for the rest of the day. as you rightly point out antonio, the market was responding to that data showing the 10th consecutive month of contraction in china's output. that tells us that the world is buying less of what china produce he and one of the reasons for that of course is that many of the economies in which china is reliant, europe and brazil are itself having economies that are slowing at the moment. why are they slowing, china is slowing. it is in many ways antonio a vicious circle right now.

>> it is a visual circle because wvicious circlebecause we have o interdependent. how reliable that the numbers that are being put out are not nearly representing just how bad the chinese economy is? >> yeah, i think look, i think you're right. the stock market, the index here, is an indicator of confidence in china's economy but it is not necessarily the indicator. we also have to remember that at the moment the chinese government is involved in embarking on this vast experiment to try to transition its economy away from the heavy industries in which it's been so reliant for so long in the past towards an economy that is more service-led. on new year's eve, china's president xi jinping addressed the nation. and he said these words, he said

that fruitful gains come with persistent efforts, with that, i think he was saying before there's more gain there has to be a lot more pain in china's economy. but let's not forget that economic growth is just under 7%, still better than many other countries in the world and china is still investing in a lot of countries around the world. there is still planned of chinese investment money out there. >> adrian brown in beijing, always good to have you join us thank you. in england more than 50,000 junior doctors are set to strike next week. the walkout will affect hospital visits and felon emergency visits starting tomorrow. the government explains the changes are meant to improve weekend services. the junior doctor title refers to doctors just out of medical school and lasts roughly ten years. a growing problem in africa. coming up, the list of leaders

refusing to give up power until they die. the issues that's causing across the continent. plus the giant puppets of jakarta, the tradition to ward off evil spirits has turned into something new.

guatemala's fuego volcano erupted last nigh. spewing ash thousands of feet into the night sky. explosions rattled windows as far as 18 miles away. no elevations were ordered. at least eight people are dead after a powerful earthquake hit india today, near the border with myanmar. fez jamil is in new delhi with the story. the quake struck about 30 miles from nepal. people running out of hair homes, screaming, crying, one person we even spoke to this morning said a heavy bell at a temple nearby started ringing because of the sheer amount of shaking going on. there hasn't been a lot of reports of damage however the rural parts of the state have poor connectivity to begin with even before the earthquake

happened. so getting information from those areas is still only now trickling in. the state capital has reported at least one of building collapse. there may be workers underneath, the local teams are checking that now and rescuers are still checking and on their way to the area. >> fez jamil from new delhi, india. archarlie hebdo the attackers st dead by police a few days lairlt. yolater.

now to our global view segment with a look at how news outlets across the world are reacting to various events. the kiev post, vladimir putin is using fake enemies abroad to silence perceived enemies at home. the jerusalem post says, america is being hypocritical, it says the u.s. is being silent on mahmoud abbas, over donald trump's muslim ban pap trump's proposal however excessive, has some grounding in reality, refugees are a security threat. it ss behalf' says abbas's ban n reality. ignore including food

exports to russia and the construction of a chinese air base in argentina. elected cleared who want to stay in power until they die is a lingering problem and a growing one in many african nation and the frustration from citizens is palpable. in tonight's off the radar report we look to the palace to the grave phenomenon that is dpreating. mohammad adow has the story. >> celebration in ouagadougo, elected burkina faso's first civilian leader in almost five decades. and crisis wary citizens broke into song and dance to celebrate not just a new president but the hard won victory against what they say as dictatorship. in october 2014 when blaise compaore the man who had ruled

burkina faso, decided to change the constitution to remain in power even longer. one of the leaders of a civil society organization that planned the uprising that toppled compaore, we met him outside the country's parliament that was burned down during the protests. >> 37 years were enough. we knew if we let this guy change the constitution, that's forever. and maybe after him, his son, his little brother, all the family is going to be in the power in this country. >> presidents tinkering with the constitution for their own purposes is nothing new in africa. shortly after taking power in 1986, uganda's president wrote the problem in africa in general and uganda in particular is not about the people but the ones

who want to stay in power. i met him in 2011. >> do you ever see yourself retiring any time soon? >> well certain i will retire. i will retire, i wouldn't say sooner but i'm looking forward to retirement. >> reporter: at the age of 72, musevene is campaigning for the fifth time in power. over stayed in power, in 2011 he told al jazeera he would not seek reelection in 2015. >> translator: i am currently serving an office term and will not step down before it comes to an end. at that point, i would have completed 26 years in office. >> reporter: is that not enough? >> translator: more than enough. more than enough. >> reporter: but it wasn't to be. in 2015, ran and earned another five years in office, a

questionable track record. cameroon's president, have both been in power since 1982. the people of zimbabwe have not known another president other than robert mugabe since 1970. even paul kagame but it's in burundi that the fallout from the third term dilemma has been most pronounced. at least fowrd have been killed and 220,000 people displaced when pierre nkurunziza announced he would seek a third term in office. indication that burundians and africans at large want a change in leadership.

mohammad adow, al jazeera, ouagadougo burkina faso. element on a periodic table. team met the criteria for naming the 113th element on the table. 12 years ago, japanese researchers successfully synthesized the element. it's not yet known what name they will choose. many cultures pay close attention to warding off bad luck for the new year. in indonesia, giant puppets called andel andel have been used to ward of a evil spirits. in these days thousands of people flock to jakarta's old colonial district to watch the puppets dazzle locals and tourists the like.

florence looi reports. >> it's a tradition known to the batawi people on java island. the frame is made of bamboo and hollow. allowing the puppet master to crawl inside and bring his puppet to life. andel andel were originally made to ward off evil spirits. but they are still extremely popular and sought after at weddings, circumcision ceremonies, even for inauguration of buildings. children get a kick out of seeing the puppets walking around the streets. >> it's more fun and there is a lot of laughter. it's entertaining. >> reporter: but on weekends and public holidays, his andel andel are usually at the square,

where families come from a bit of street entertainment. a slice of color. an alternative to a day out at the mall. there are at least another five pair of andel andel in the square. but there is enough curiosity for the puppet owners to make a living. people pay to pose for photos with the puppets. he says he can earn up to $20 a day. his ambition is to one day make enough money to own at least ten puppets. >> andel andel is a jakarta tradition so i want to take a picture with them. as a batawi myself i think it's important that we preserve our culture. >> reporter: it's the pride people have for these icons of jakarta that will ensure the andel andel keep dancing, entertaining generations to

come. florence looi, al jazeera, jakarta. >> that's its for this international news hour on al jazeera america. next hour, reducing gun violence in the u.s. we'll without help from congress, president obama says. i'll be back in two minutes.

good evening. i'm antonio mora. this is al jazeera america. angry protests over the execution of a shia cleric in saudi arabia has middle eastern countries taking sides. >> this is not a violent or hostile situation occupation