pro-independent candidate tsai ing-wen claims a victory in taiwan's election setting an uncertain course of relations with china. welcome. you're watching al jazeera. coming to you live from our headquarters in doha. also ahead at least 23 people are killed in burkina faso's capital after gunmen linked to al-qaeda attacked a hotel and café. top diplomats are said to be lifting billions of dollars worth of sanctions in iran.

women in latin america are urge to delay pregnancy because of a virus that causes birth defects. history is in the making in taiwan as the ireland is set for its first female president. tsai ing-wen has claimed victory. the candidate from the ruling national party conceded defeat with his party losing the presidency the prime minister has stepped down. the relations with china has been the main issues in these elections. tsai ing-wen says the presidential polls are proof of taiwan's democratic nature. >> translation: this is the first step of reform. you are my backing of this reform. on 20 may the new government will treat this as the most important task. reform will take a long time. it will not happen overnight. i will redo the wrong of the previous government so that we

form a firm foundation for taiwan's development. we have told the international community that the spirit of democracy is part of the lives of taiwan's people adrian brown is live for us also listening to that speech. other than her stress on how important this is for democracy, what else? >> reporter: i think she wanted to appear to be both firm and humble in her address. her voice was very, very hoarse after days of campaigning. she wanted to ensure that the relations sustainable and she wanted mutual respect to ensure that there were no provocations or surprises. she appealed to china not to suppress taiwan's nation identity. i think the key part of the speech was when the results showed that the taiwanese people

wish for a government steadfast in protecting the nation. you can be sure that china's government will be applying forensic scrutiny to these words as it weighs up what its response will be which could come days weeks or even months from now. how china responds to the election of tsai ing-wen and the fact that her party now has a parliamentary majority for the first time is really going to define the future of china-taiwan relations, but those relations are potentially on a very uncertain course. remember, just two months ago president xi jinping shook hands with the outgoing president. tonight i realise that, you know what, the chances of him shaking hands with tsai ing-wen in time soon are pretty remote how do you think they will respond to this election victory for her, considering everything you've just said?

>> reporter: they could respond in a number of ways. they could apply diplomatic or tried pressure. for instance, there are some 22 nations in the world that recognise taiwan. perhaps a year from now that could drop to, say, 15 or 12. there is a lot of taiwanese investment on the mainland. they could start to restrict some of that investment, but that is all speculation at the moment. what we do know is that the leadership in beijing regards the dpp with a lot of suspicion because of its pro-independent stance. tonight tsai ing-wen referred to the fact that she wants to maintain the status quo which is de facto independence for taiwan while at the same time agreeing to disagree with beijing over exactly what taiwan's ambiguous status is. so in a way nothing has really changed, but what will, i think,

decide matters is if she decides to push the independence agenda even by a little amount. that could be enough to cause real friction with beijing thanks for that. iran says its confident international sanctions will be lifted this weekend as top diplomats gather in vienna to discuss implementation of last year's nuclear deal. in july tehran agreed to curb its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. the watchdog is due to deliver the report on whether iran has honoured that agreement. iran's foreign minister says he believes sanctions will be removed after the report is published. >> today is a day when we prove to the world that threats, sanctions, intimidation and pressure don't work. respect works. through respect, through negotiations we can, in fact, reach mutually acceptable

solutions, implement the solutions, and therefore move towards a world in which diplomacy, not force, not pressure, will prevail al jazeera's jacky rowland is in vienna. she says the impact of lifting sanctions could be felt around the world >> reporter: well, at the moment approximately one hundred billion dollars worth of iranian assets overseas are frozen. the implementation of this deal will mean that iran will get access to 30 billion dollars of those assets quickly, but the potential for trade is enormous, the potential for investment, it's not only iran that would stand to gain but also western companies that would like to do business, particularly companies involved in the energy sector. iran after all is the - has the fourth largest oil reserves, the second largest gas reserves. clearly the fact that iran could

now be injecting about half a million additional barrels of oil onto the world markets every day will have an impact on the oil price, which we've already seen falling. some analysts think it could go down to as low as $20 a barrel. of course, still, there are the countries like israel and also saudi arabia who are very concerned about what they see as the growing influence now of iran not only in the region, but also in the whole world as mm-hmm as 150 hostages have been freed from a hotel in burkina faso's capital after an attack by al-qaeda-linked fighters. mostly foreignersss were killed. >> reporter: the splendid hotel under siege. gunfire rang out overnight as explosions were heard from

inside. masked gunmen stormed the hotel popular with foreigners and diplomats on friday evening. they set cars on fire and also attacked a café across the street. >> translation: it was horrible because everyone was panicking. people were lying on the ground and there was blood everywhere. they were shooting people at point blank range. the noise of the explosion was really loud. it was traumatizing. i think these people are really wicked. >> reporter: french troops were called in to help security forces retake the hotel. they rescued dozens of people. many were shot and are receiving treatment at hospital. >> translation: we did our best to try and get out. they shot me in the arm and i have aaron open fracture. they destroyed my vehicle as well. >> reporter: al-qaeda's regional affiliate says it is behind this assault. the armed group has attacked similar targets in west africa in the past.

the most was a hotel in mali's capital in november. this is the first here. the president was elected two months ago as burkina faso's first new leader in decades. how he deals with this crisis is being seen as his first big test in office. >> translation: we would like to salute the response of the security forces, all the doctors, the red cross who have participated in this situation, and to salute the military cooperation that we have received from the french and the americans. therefore, it is important that we can share information with our neighboring countries and share military means to fight against the scourge. >> reporter: the challenge for him now will be to come up with a long-term plan to tackle the armed groups security forces in iraq are getting ready to enter a neighborhood they say is the last i.s.i.l. strong hold in the city of ramadi. our correspondent has the latest from ramadi. >> reporter: in its battle to

retake control of the city of ramadi from i.s.i.l. fighters, iraqi security forces now advancing towards the eastern part of the city, a neighborhood which is being described by the government as the last stronghold of i.s.i.l. fighters in ramadi. now, in the past few weeks iraqi security forces we able to retake the center of the city. now they're trying to encircle this part of the city. we're told that they're shelling the area, there are air raids going on and that they are also attempting to ferry residents and families that are stuck in that area to safety. if in part of the city is, indeed, cleared of i.s.i.l. fighters it will have been a significant development for iraqi security. they say they are confident they will be able to do so, to retake control of the entirety of ramadi very soon. it remains to be seen how soon that will be, but it is worth noting that even if ramadi is fully once again under the

control of iraqi security, there still are other parts of the province in which i.s.i.l. fighters are still there still ahead here on al jazeera. >> reporter: i'm in lebanon with a story of syrian students trying to get an education here and why they nearly outnumber the lebanese students an economic emergency is announced in venezuela. the president faces up to a hostile congress. ongress. the only way to get better is to challenge yourself,

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jazeera. taiwan's pro-democracy candidate tsai ing-wen has claimed victim in the election. iran says it is confident international sanctions will be lifted this weekend. the foreign minister has met u.s. and european diplomats in vienna as they wait for the u.n. atomic agency to confirm that iran is complying with the nuclear deal. as many as 150 hostages have been released from a hotel in burkina faso's capital. 23 people were killed. a boat load of refugees have been rescued. volunteers picked up about 40 people who were attempting the crossing crowded into a rubber dinghy. on average more than a thousand people are arriving every day in greece despite cold winter weather and high seas.

there are more than 4000,000 syrian refugees children rej sterpd in lebanon, but getting them into schools is a major challenge-- registered. >> reporter: this public school once catered to students but the size has doubled. it has introduced a second school shift. children with at least one lebanese parent are taught in the morning and syrians in the afternoon. >> translation: at first it was a shock moving here around leaving my country. everything was in arabic but here they learn english >> reporter: it is a challenge for many syrians who studied only arabic back matrimonial home. the teachers have to adjust as well >> we are used to focus on the reports, explaining and

introducing, analysing. they do not know how to speak english. >> reporter: there are more than 4000,000 syrians of-- 400,000 syrians of school age in lebanon. in public school classrooms like this one there are nearly as many syrian students as lebanese, but there are many other syrians who are not getting an education putting an already uncertain future in jeopardy there are still thousands of refugee children who were not in school. some of the syrians registered here don't turn up because they can't afford to pay for the school bus. >> translation: education is the key to a better life. it is our duty to keep them in schools and add another shift. the education ministry helped in making this process easier for them. our duty is also to treat each lebanese and syrian equally.

>> reporter: the students may be treated equally, but the staff have noticed how hard the syrian students study. >> translation: yes. i am first in my class. i had to study really hard. the teachers are really good here. they help me get there. as you know, it's a public school and in lebanon it's mostly private schools. anyone who wants to study, whether public or private, will make it. >> reporter: she is one of the many syrian refugee students who realise they have an opportunity to help themselves. while many others like her struggle to get to school we've got breaking news from tehran. prisoners have been freed according to the news agency. he has been in jail for over 14 months on unspecified charges, but he has been freed with three others according to the faz news

agency. venezuela's president say the economic emergency is justified. more powers to enact reforms, but they say it is maduro's own policies that have caused the crisis. >> reporter: friday was a day of unusual announcement in venezuela. while the president delivered his state of the union address, venezuelans grappled with the implications of an economy they now know to be collapsing. for the first time in 17 years since his predecessor rose to power, he is faced with great political and economic pressure. >> translation: informed we are arriving at a parliament whereby virtue of the constitution in the middle of a democracy of full liberties, the opposition to the revolution has conquered the majority and is here today. >> reporter: hours before the

oil-dependent country had declared itself to be in crisis. >> translation: i decree article 1, an economic state of emergency in conformity to the constitution of venezuela and its judicial order. >> reporter: with the world's cheapest petrol and the three-ttier currency exchange system, the steps the government see many see say has failed. the venezuela's inflation rate is 141% which to many here drove just how much the economy is hurting. but just exactly what a state of economic emergency means is still unclear. the government has said it will take measures that help and not hinder people, but many living in the country with the world's highest inflation are afraid that no measure will be enough to recover the economy. in the living room of this middle-class family, his words

are met with disbelief by a viewer who says he has seen it all before. >> translation: it has become really bad and it is only going to get worse. his speeches in congress and he doesn't offer anything concrete. >> reporter: because of an economy relying almost entirely on oil, the recent drop to a little less than $30 a barrel tightens the noose around the nation. if crude prices continue to drop, the president might be faced with a year of frequent and less well-received announcements women in brazil are being urged to postpone pregnancy as a virus spread by mosquito is

epidemic. >> reporter: the corridors of this public hospital in north-eastern brazil are full of distraught mothers, holding babies with one thing in common. they were born with noticeably smaller than normal heads. it is a condition that severely limits a child's intellectual and physical development and which in less than four months has reached epidemic proportions in brazil. researchers say they believe the cause is a virus new to brazil called zika, spread by the same mosquito that carries dengue fever. >> translation: i was shocked when i found out. she is my first baby and this wasn't heard of in brazil until now. doctors here believe the virus is promoting severe scarring of the retina in up to 40% of the new born babies. >> in december we had about one

thousand cases, suspect cases. now we've heard last week it is three thousand reports. >> reporter: that's just in this state where a state of emergency has been declared and where the army has been called out to combat disease-carrying mosquitoes. they thrive in rainy season and breed in even the smallest amount of still, clean water. but despite all these efforts, the virus is spreading not just through brazil but throughout south and central america. the disease control experts predict that within three months it will have reached texas. there is no cure for the virus terrifying pregnant women like this woman. >> translation: i asked the doctor if what i heard was true. since then i've been taking special precaution like using insect repellant. >> reporter: but for three and a half month old david precautions

are too late. his sister dotes on him while his mother waerz about how she will take care of a child who will be seriously handicapped. -- worries. >> translation: my main concern is to go back to work but the child care centers refuse to take him because it is too much responsibility. >> reporter: a tragic phenomena that has prompted health officials to warn brazilian women to refrain from getting pregnant while they struggle to deal with an epidemic that appears to be just beginning u.s. president obama has called mexican leader to congratulate him on last week's arrest of the drug lord joaquin guzman. he had been on the run since last july. he is now back in the same maximum security prison that he escaped from through a mile-long

tunnel from his cell. the u.s. coast guard is conducting a massive search for 12 march leans missing at sea-- march ians missing at sea on friday. they colonel aided in helicopters. its operation is being hampered by high surf and poor visibility from rain storms. the obama administration, democrats has called to an end to raids on homes. >> reporter: at a quickly organized meeting in a suburb, immigrants turned up to learn their rights. fear was spreading along with the word that federal officials have been conducting deportation raids across the country forcing advocates for the undocumented

to act. >> my phone started going off. it has been nonstop. our social media. the organization has been nonstop. i think the fear has grown. >> reporter: this wram doesn't want to show her face. she and her three children watched her husband get arrested by immigration officials last summer as he left for work. he is still in detention. sympathy worries that sympathy will be next. >> translation: i've told the kids to stay calm, that everything will be okay, but now they're afraid, they're afraid to open the door if someone shows up >> reporter: according to the obama administration, the raids are aimed at the wave of people who cross the south west border into the u.s. illegally in 2014 and 15. many after fleeing violence in central america. >> we are seeking to deport felons, not break apart families. >> reporter: the admission says it is rounding up people who have already been processed by immigration court and found ineligible to stay. it points out the president took

executive action to saich people from immigration. >> reporter: the obama administration has faced criticism from the republican party for being too easy on illegal immigration. now they're getting it from democrats as well who call him the importer in chief. the mayor has announced that the city will no longer cooperate with federal enforcement imprisonment aggravation officials. the mayor says the raids are counterproductive because they make the undocumented afraid to report crimes. >> we are not safe in any city when the people who live here, whether they're documented or not, are fearful of the police. >> reporter: immigration advocates are now lobbying democratic members of congress and the presidentialed candidates who-- presidential candidates who have also criticized the rates >> i think they have lost faith from the latino community when they're going after women and

children and say they're for immigration. it doesn't make sense >> reporter: appeared voluntary indicates continue to call for immigration reform and warn the undocumented not to answer the door 12 people suspected of links with thursday's i.s.i.l. attack in indonesia's capital have been arrested. police say the gunmen had planned to attack other indonesian cities. seven people, including five of the gunmen, were killed in the attack at a star buck's coffee house in the main business district. it is called start-up india, a program to encourage young entrepreneurs to build new businesses. the initiative aims to support those young people who are shunning traditional jobs, but as our correspondent reports, obstacles remain. >> reporter: this story is a start-up success story. it has more than a dozen locations in and around india's two largest cities, but as with

any new venture, it wasn't easy. it is especially difficult in india where slow bureaucracy can stop new ventures before they start >> because in any start up the kind of resources you have are limited. up want those resources to be used in productive work as opposed to an atmosphere of bureau accuratic dust. >> reporter: it is used to create more business. something entrepreneurs say they have been waiting for. tax incentives and less-- sin sentives-- incentives will be used. simply encouraging and promoting starts in india may be enough in itself to give the sector a boost. entrepreneurs like this man say people's mindsets about start

ups are changing, adding it is a different environment now than it was when he set up his first business 12 years ago >> the biggest difference i've seen is where people are accepting it more, not just from the point where i started out, so even on the suppliers and no-one would take me seriously, but now not just then but customers also expect a lot from start ups. >> reporter: analysts say promoting start ups over large scale businesses may be of national importance because india will need an estimated 140 million new jobs in the next decade. >> we know the sectors is not going to do that. this gap has got to have start ups in the next 10 years. >> reporter: back at the shop, this man hopes the new program will make it easier for his business to grow. for the government, it hopes these small companies will encourage investment and drive

growth if you want to find out more about this, programs in ind independeindia or elsewhere, you should go to our website at aljazeera.com. a wildfire. >> we're going to explore the intersection of hardware and humanity, but we're doing it in a unique way. this is a show about science... >> oh! >> oh my god! >> by scientists. >> tonight, saving the macaw. >> i'm in the peruvian amazon and we're on the search for endangered macaws. >> now techknow is on a one of a kind mission. >> look at those wings. >> the macaw; graceful, elegant,