this is al jazeera. ♪ hello, welcome to the news hour. i'm jane dutton, live from our headquarters in doha. the u.n. raises the alarm about civilian deaths in iraq. saying the level of violence has been staggering. libya's rival political factions announce the arrival of a long-awaited unity government. and what new growth numbers mean for china and its global business partners. and boycotting the oscars,

spike lee says he won't attend what he calls a all white awards show. ♪ the united nations is describing the level of violence against civilians in iraq as staggering. a new report is based on first-hand testimony from victims. it says at least 18,000 civilians have lost their lives in the conflict from the start of 2014 to 2015. the report details how at least 3.2 million people have been displaced in the past two years, and an estimated 3.5 thousand civilians are being held as slaves by isil. mohammed jamjoom joins us live from baghdad. you have traveled the country extensively. how widespread is the violence?

>> reporter: jane, we're having some audio problems here. i believe you asked me how widespread the problem is. we have seen on an up close and personal level how this is playing out throughout the country. now in the past week we were in erbil, and while we were there, we met with yazidis who cannot go back to sinjar, because not only is mosul, which is next door to sinjar, still a strong hold of isil, but also because in sinjar there is no infrastructure, because houses and buildings are still razed, because the town is still abandoned. those are some of the complaints you hear from the 3.2 million internally displaced. but in areas cleared of isil

fighters there are sunnis that are afraid to go back to their town, because they are afraid of being targeted by sunny militia. and you have had sectarian reprisal attacks all week, and the sunni families fear they are going to have to flee. so it's the civilian population here in iraq that is suffering the most, and this report by the u.n. shows how dire the situation remains, how much worse it's getting. every aid worker that i have spoken with since i got here in the last couple of weeks have said they believe iraq has really been forgotten by the international community that the civilians are taking the worst hit of all, so many have been killed because of the conflict, but also the internally displaced aren't getting the resources they need.

it's a terrible situation, and it is only getting worse and there are fears that the government isn't strong enough to deal with it effectively. >> a spokeswoman for the u.n. high commission for human rights, she says more needs to be done by the international community. >> reporter: the people -- and we're talking about 3.2 million people who have become internally displaced including one million children of school-going age, they are in a very difficult situation. sometimes when they do manage to flee isil-controlled areas, they can be caught by isil, taken back and executed for attempting to flee, and then made a public spectacle, and sometimes when they flee, they are expected of

having an isil connection. and it's a very untenable aspect for them. people are -- have been fleeing iraq. iraqi refugees have been trying to come to europe, but there's really no coverage of what exactly it is that they are fleeing. these are the kinds of horrors that they are fleeing. it's very important for the international community to understand in great detail and depth the kind of situations that they are fleeing. they need to insist an in addition human rights law in addition humanitarian law, and they need to get involved to ensure this is justice. libya has announced a unity government. they have named a government of

32 ministers. hashem ahelbarra has more. >> reporter: the announcement of the national unity government in libya is seen as a significant step forward, because we're talking about a country that has been struggling to put in an end to the police call impasse. there have been marathon talks in morocco which lead to the announcement of the presidential council. now there is a national unity government. this is a government that will have to convince the different factions to join the national army. it will have to take on isil which has expanded in a coastal area, a major concern for europe because they think -- they are worried isil could use that area as a platform to launch attacks against europe. but we're talking about a libya that has been divided since 2011, and i think this

government needs to reach out to different factions in libya to convince them to work in a spirit of consensus, but we're seeing some signs in libya in the east, also in tripoli of discontent over this national unity government. it has been rejected by some, and the parliament is divided over this government. so it's going to be a mammoth task facing this government has it aims to bring peace and stability to libya. much more ahead on al jazeera, we'll be live in the u.s. where low oil prices are making wells unprofitable. and we'll report from what was the biggest u.s. military base in afghan's capitol, now the home to rehabilitated drug

addicts. and we'll have the results of the u.s. open. jo will have the details. china's economy is growing at its slowest rate in 25 years according to official data that many analysts say could be overly optimistic. growth was 6.9% last year, broadly in line with the government's target, florence looi has more. >> reporter: for years, china has been the world's factory, relying on low manufacturing costs to make goods sold worldwide. more than 20 years of record-breaking growth has propelled china from communism to consumerism. now the chinese economy is stalling, and the slowdown is hurting other economies worldwide. analysts say a slow down is

inevitable given how much the chinese economy has grown in recent years. they say high-speed growth is unsustainable and a reset a needed. >> translator: china is transferring from old to new. traditional industries are big in size, while these emerging industries smaller. emerging industries cannot make up for traditional industry slowdown, so the overall economy is facing downward pressure. >> reporter: slower growth is expected to be the new normal for china. already analysts are predicting the economy to cool further this year, and even government measures such as increasing spending and cutting interest rates aren't expected to help much. chinese government leaders are encouraging everyone to spend more, hoping to shift the economy from export-dependent to a more sustainable consumer driven model. some encouraging data emerged.

retail spending still grew by double digits. and the automotive industry is forecasts to grow. >> translator: auto sales growth is lower than gdp growth, but the industry as a whole is doing all right, because consumers are willing to upgrade their cars. the whole market is developing pretty fast. >> reporter: the government is already undertaking structural reforms, slowly changing from a centrally planned economy to a market-driven one. that will take time, for now china and the counts they are depend on chinese demand for exports will have to put up with slower chinese growth. an emerging market economy specialists joins us now via scope from nairobi. you really have your finger on the pulse of africa. how do you think china's woes

will impact the continent. >> reporter: african has already had an impact. our currencies have been routed, copper is dependant down 22%. south african rand down 20 to 30%. so we will already feeling it. we'll feeling the heat across the continent. we're looking at a major slowdown in the big elephants of the economy, nigeria, and if they delay any longer, it will be disorderly, angola slowdown, and south africa, i don't think will register positive growth over the next few month. and this is largely because of the chinese slowdown. >> china, when it moves into a country, it brings its own work force. what sort of impact will it have on the infrastructure of africa?

>> well, you know, i think the chinese remain committed to the african continent, and one way of showing that commitment is by infrastructure spending, but remember, jane, a lot of the loans for this infrastructure spending was based on commodity prices which was much higher. it was our commodities that was used to lateralize these chinese loans. now you have had over a 50% drop on these prices, those loans are now looking very good. but i think strategically, they will remain committed to the kobt -- continent, but with a lot less bullishness. >> where do you think gold fits in all of this? >> well, gold is a typical geopolitical reach. when things become uncertain,

people reach for gold. so i'm confident that gold will stay around these levels, but i think it will be the best performer in the entire complex. but jane, everything has changed. those who are making money from commodities are now looking at the reverse scenario. everything has changed. i don't see a quick recovery, i don't see a hail mary pass, i think it is going to be a hard grind, and currencies will be routed more. i think there will have to be austerity to balance the books. so many countries unable to access the financial markets. it doesn't look good. policy makers can't afford mistakes, and they have been making plenty, but they are going to be punished very, very badly when they make those mistakes. >> thank you. >> pleasure, jane. one of the countries feeling

the effects of falling commodity prices zambia. it is going through one of the toughest periods in recent history. thousands of people have lost their jobs as our correspondent reports. >> reporter: this wasn't the dream home that these children's parents had pictured a few years ago. they thought that life couldn't get any better when the bank agreed to lend them enough money to buy this land, but then she lost her job. she was one of 5,000 people liedoff from the mining company. >> we were thinking when we get these loans we'll try to do one or two issues to like settle ourselves and live a comfortable life, but it all came like a bang. >> reporter: not only does she not have enough money to complete the house, she is worried that unless she finds a

job soon, it will be difficult to put food on the table for her children. >> they don't understand, i don't have a table. all they know is that mommy and daddy should put food on the table. >> reporter: despite her hardship she considers herselves lucky. there are thoses like this 34-year-old father of three who also has to provide for his two sisters and his wife's family. he too lost his job in september. he had to pull his daughter out of school because he couldn't afford the fees. copper is one of the main sources of foreign currency in zambia, any decline in the price of the commodity has an impact on the country's economy. that's why the government is grateful that some companies such as the one that owns this mine are trying their best not to cut jobs. >> our strategy was we're going to beat this by pushing volume

as opposed to closing down. and that has worked quite well. >> reporter: one of the ways mining companies are trying to survive is by increasing productivity in open-pit mines which are much cheaper to operate. this is one of the largest open-pit mines in zambia, more than 7 million tons of copper ore have been extracted here. and while work here continues, for now the price of copper has meant that other companies have been forced to shut down. >> reporter: there was a time when mines like these were buzzing with activity. but the industry is going through one of the toughest periods in recent history, meaning zambia can no longer depend on it to drive its economy forward, but that's a problem for the politicians and economists to solve. in the meantime for familiar

list like these, the question they need an answer to is how are they going to feed their children? despite the slowdown in china and the impact it is having, the latest outlook from the international monetary fund saying global economic growth is expected to rise slightly this year. it's forecast to be 3.4%. advanced economies will see what the imf calls a continued modest and even recovery, and drive global growth. they forecast a generalized slowdown in china and other emerging markets economies. the deputy director general for research at the imf says a slowdown in the chinese economy will have a knock-on effect across the world. >> china represents at purchasing power better than 16% of world gdp. and clearly what is happening

there has repercussions on the rest of the world. and a slowdown in china, which implies, you know, less chinese imports and less buoyant financial market is going to have ripples that are felt all across the world, particularly in countries that produce goods for which china is a prime purchaser. think of commodity exporters for instance. so we watch, of course what is happening there very carefully, but the statistics that we have seen, for instance, today, are very much in line with our forecast. low oil prices have negative effects for countries that are oil producers, but at the same time, they have positive effects for consumers and for countries that are oil importers. so while this is not good news for saudi arabia, for russia, for angola, for nigeria, which of course rely on oil for a

substantial part of their exports and revenues, it is good news for advanced economies or emerging economies like india, or even china that are net importers of oil. low oil prices are hitting u.s. production the organization of petroleum exporting countries say output will fall by nearly 400,000 barrels a day. the price drop is making north american wells unprofitable. what does the drop in output mean, john? >> reporter: the consensus seems to be not enough. those 400,000 barrels of oil will barely compensate for the amount of oil that iran is putting back into the market. iran says now that sanctions have been lifted it will be adding another 500,000 barrels of oil a day. that is going to increase production at a time when there

is already a glut. here in chicago at the mercantile exchange, oil is below $30 a barrel. at this time last year, it was above $50 a barrel, and that was a concern at the time. so opec itself is calling this a year of rebalancing. prices are still dropping. some analysts believe that the price could go down as low as the mid-20s per barrel. so it's a slow market, and it's likely to go a bit lower. the winners in all of this will be countries that are importers. countries like japan and china, and the losers are countries that are big exporters, iran, russia, nigeria, and venezuela, and for countries like the u.s. it's likely to be a mixed bag. there could be lower prices for consumer product because oil is used to make and transport those things, but oil has been one of the big growth industries for jobs here in the u.s., so a bit of a mixed bag, and the

production and supply is likely to have an impact on the market. >> john thank you. a suicide bomb in pakistan has killed 10 people and injured at least 20. taliban fighters are suspected of the attack at a police check point near the afghan border. witnesses say the explosives were attached to a motorbike. pakistan's president has met the president in tehran. the trip was part of an effort by pakistan to immediate between rifles, iran and saudi arabia. tensions erupted after saudi arabia executed a prominent shiite muslim cleric earlier this month. the chinese president has landed in riyadh for the start of his middle eastern tour.

she was welcomed by the saudi king in his first presidential trip to the region. the tour is part of a plan to raise china's profile. afghanistan is the bigger supplier of heroin to users around the world. large numbers of afghans need help to try to kick their habit. as our correspondent reports from kabul. >> reporter: it was the biggest u.s. military camp in kabul. now it is the largest treatment stern for drug addicts in afghanistan. most of these men are homeless. scarred by long years of addiction. they received three meals a day, new training suits and a haircut. around 600 men are living here. each has his story? >> translator: i have been using drugs for 22 years. i'm tired of this dark life. i want to start a new one. >> translator: when i compare my previous life with the current

one, i feel i'm human. >> reporter: many praise the treatment center, but some complain about the quality of food and lack of proper medical services. outside the addicts get fresh air every day, and the chance to exercise. keeping fit and busy is important for their recovery. they are not allowed to leave. visitors come twice a week. the government plans to host more than 10,000 patients every year. government leaders have yet to approve a budget of approximately $4 million a year. this is one step on a long road. doctors here say the program starts with the 45 days detoxification and rehabilitation process. >> they will do the physical activity, and we will learn them -- teach them physical -- we will teach them carrier. for example, they will learn carpentry, painting and [ inaudible ] works. now it's six months a long period of time. so after that we teach them

their career. of course the government had decided to just send them to other ministries for their jobs. >> reporter: afghanistan is the world's biggest producer of opium. last year it produced 3,300 tons. opium poppies are turned into heroin which is sold worldwide. illegal drugs in afghanistan are cheap and available. these men remain vulnerable. addicts can easily return to their old habits. the number of drug addicts in afghanistan is quite alarming, the minister says there are about 2.4 million adult drug users, and there are only 123 treatment centers across the country. ♪ >> reporter: in this center a moment of joy for the addicts temporarily forgetting their battle which they could win or lose. much more ahead on al jazeera.

2.6 million babies are still born every year, but a new report says half could be prevented if better quality care is available. plus thousands of argentinians demand answers over the mysterious death of a prosecutor. and cyclists take on the opening stage of the tour down under. jo will have those details in sport. ♪

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>> exclusive conversations you won't find anywhere else. >> these are very vivid, human stories. >> if you have an agenda with people, you sometimes don't see the truth. >> "talk to al jazeera". monday, 6:00 eastern. only on al jazeera america. ♪ hello again. the headlines the u.n. has described the levels of violence against civilians in iraq as staggering. it says at least 18,000 civilians have lost their lives between the start of 2014 and october 2015. libya's rival political factions have announced the formation of a new unity government. the two sides signed a u.n.-backed deal in morocco last month. 32 ministers have been named. the chinese economy is growing at its slowest rate in

25 years. but the imf says global economic growth is still expected to rise slightly this year. the u.n. special envoy for syria has briefed the security council ahead of proposed talks on syria, but delays look likely. there's still no agreement on who will be invited to take part in the discussions in geneva next week. james bayes reports. >> reporter: the u.n. envoy who is supposed to immediate talks between the syrian government and opposition in a week's time. but it's touch and go whether they will now go ahead, according to the french foreign minister. >> obviously, we hope that the negotiation will take place, but there are some questions, which have to be dealt with. >> the u.n. in new york, ambassadors arrived to hear a briefing from the special envoy

by video conference from his office in geneva, all still expressing determination that these talks will start on time. >> what we'll hear now is what progress he has made on this. >> reporter: doesn't look like the talks on the 25th are going to take place. >> i hope so. they must. >> reporter: but the russian ambassador knows his own government has problems with the current plan. president vladimir putin was meeting the emir of qatar in moscow. the russian leader will have made it clear he believes the list of the opposition delegation should have more secular figures, and representation from kurdish groups. there is another problem, even those currently on the list are not yet committed to attend geneva. they want reassurances that what happened last time there were syrian negotiations two years ago won't be repeated.

they claim the syrian government was deliberately obstructive, and detailed those talks. they want to guarantee if that happens again, the u.s. and its allies have a plan b. it is thought this time around the format will begin with days of what are known as proximity talks in the u.n. headquarters in geneva, the two sides will be accept in separate peoples with the special envoy shuffling between them. i am told that anyone that takes part in the delegations will not be allowed to be part of the transitional government that the talks are supposed to create. so there are rules in place, but for talks that for now look far from certain. james bayes, al jazeera. winter might have slowed the influx of refugees to europe, but it certainly not stopped it. greece has reported 100,000 new arrivals in december alone.

and further north refugees are crossing the balkans. >> reporter: many people thought they would stop coming once winter arrived, but they haven't. a steady slow of refugees make their way across the border into southern serbia. snow and ice have not stopped them. >> i have lost my father and also my young sister. >> reporter: in southern serbia, the police register the arrivals. not the long lines we saw in the summer, but there are 1,500 people in this camp. it is funded by the e.u., but aid groups say european governments are most concerned with deterring people from coming. >> different actions from european member states to suddenly close borders, force

people towards more dangerous routes. we are seeing more and more people resorting to smuggling routes to cross the balkans. and stranding people behind borders without any assistance. >> reporter: ina veriably they say they want to go to germany, and they are in a hurry because they fear more borders will soon be closed to them. european leaders must know if people are still coming, it is likely this year will be every bit as momentous for the continent as the one that just passed. the mayor of the u.s. city where drinking water supplies have been contaminated is flying to washington for help. supplies were poisoned with lead when the local government tried to save money by taking water from a local river.

andy roesgen joins me now. andy, what is happening today? >> reporter: jane, just every single day thousands of cases of bottled water are going out to the residents in this city of about a hundred thousand people. over 36,000 cases of bottled water have gone out to the rest dents in the past week. one of the goals they are trying to reach is get a clean water filter, at least one, into every single home in the city, so there is at least one spigot that is doling out clean water, but it is a mess. >> now michigan's governor is expected to deliver his annual state of the speech later on tuesday. what do we expect to hear from him? >> reporter: well, heel get an earful that's for sure. he is the one who indirectly or directly lead to all of this by hiring a city manager here in

flint who has absolute powers because of how financial strapped the city is. it was that city manager who made the decision to change the water supply. the governor has apologized for this mess, but there will be protesters demanding his resignation, and some have demanded that he be criminally charged with this whole mess. so we'll find out. >> thank you, andy. the u.s. supreme court has agreed to hear president barack obama's bid to revive his plan to protect more than 4 million illegal immigrants from deportation and allow them to work legally in the u.s. this dispute will be heard in court in the next few months with a ruling due at the end of june. obama's 2014 executive action was stopped by lower courts after texas and 25 other republican governed states sued

to stop it. argentina's new president is promising justice will be done over the suspicious death of a former state prosecutor. his bodz -- body was found in his apartment over a year ago. daniel reports from the argentine capitol. >> reporter: a year on and there are more questions than answers. these people are still asking how alberto nuzman died. >> translator: they are trying to cover the sun with their hands, but the hands they are using to block out the sun are covered with gun powder and blood. >> reporter: alberto nuzman was

due to present his findings. there are those who say because this case is so important and complicated, it needs to be done properly. others say it is highlighted from the inefficiencies in argentine systems. whatever the reason, one year on, these people are asking what happened to alberto nuzman. >> translator: we're looking for justice. >> translator: we all felt his death. it wasn't just him dying. it was the death of all of argentine. i'm confident we'll see change and honor him as he deserved. >> reporter: a month after his death, these crowds filled the streets calling for justice. they believe he was killed to

silence his investigation. oirs say he had no case against the president and killed himself. >> translator: his daughters should be the first to benefit from this investigation, but in second place should be the country, because we all need to know what happened to the investigator who denounced the president of the nation. >> reporter: many hope the change of government will bring fresh impetus to the investigation. an investigation that from the beginning has divided argentina along political lines. one year on those ties are as strong as ever. the bodies of some of the kenyan troops who died in an al-shabab attack have arrived home. kenyan officials have not yet confirmed the final death toll.

[ inaudible ]'s president has vowed to support [ inaudible ] at least 29 people died when fighters stormed a hotel and capitol in the capitol. our correspondent has more from the capitol. >> reporter: the president of burkina faso sees firsthand the damage done in an attack in the capitol that killed at least 29 people, most foreigners. he is accompanied by the president of bahneen. the leaders were shown the entrance to the hotel, a ruined cafe across the street, and banned out shells of cars and motorcycles in between. >> translator: all the terrorists want is to sew terror in people's hearts, and scare away those willing to invest in our country. our responsibility is to ensure the people are safe and continue to have confidence in burr kimo

a few sew. >> reporter: he is the second president to visit the region. he received his counterpart. their visit aligned the realization that african countries need to work together to stem the threats from armed groups. this marked a new chapter for burkina faso. the country has gone through significant political difficulties in the last few years. >> it's clear that none of us was expecting this thing of this magnitude to happen, so you can imagine the level of shock that is embedded in the population and citizens to see now that burr kimo a few sew is also on the list of countries that are

under attack bier terrorist jihadists. >> reporter: french and american forensic teams are helping in the investigations. the local police say there were gaps in how the security forces responded during the attack. >> translator: we weren't totally prepared for this event. our forces aren't trained in combatting terrorism, and we also received information about the attack very late. under the circumstances, though, we tried our best. >> reporter: an al-qaeda affiliate claimed responsibility for the attack. in a statement the group revealed the identities of the three gunmen. they are two malian nationals and an algerian. the group celebrated the attack on the hotel that it called a den for spies. it's been called a silent epidemic on a global scale, but

new research suggests that little progress has been made to stem the number of stillbirths. a report published says 2.6 million babies are stillborn every year, 98% of those occur in low and middle-income countries, but the report says that half f them could be prevented if better-quality care was available. we are joined from one of the authors of the report. she says the problem of stillbirths has been largely ignored. >> over the last ten years or so, towards the end of the millennium development goal era, we have halved maternal death and more than halved child death, but still borns weren't part of that dialogue. they weren't a target. better care during delivery,

mid-wives, appropriate, timely emergency care if it's needed, but also there are about 200,000 stillbirths happening from syphilous. this is something we have antibiotics and testing for. and prevention of malaria in pregnancy could have a massive effect. so there are solutions both in these settings in africa and asia, but also here in the u.k. for example, where more than half of stillbirths still have a health system avoidable solution. much more ahead on al jazeera, including he may be banned from football, but we'll tell you why sepp blatter is still getting paid by fifa.

♪ filmmaker spike leader, and actress, jada pinkett smith are leading a boycott for the oscars. for the second year running, all nominees are white. >> reporter: it's the annual award season when stars of the silver screen walk the red carpet in hopes of going home with a trophy. but this year the build up is tinged with controversy. spike lee is calling for a boycott for what he calls a lilly white lineup of nominees.

>> begging for acknowledgment or even asking diminishes dignity, and diminishes power, and we are a dignyfied people. >> reporter: that message appears to be gaining traction. the hashtag oscars so white has been quickly resurrected. here is every actor nominated this year in four major film awards. there are 35 in total. take a closer look. just two of them are black. will smith for his performance in concussion, and [ inaudible ] for supporting role of beasts of no nation. both of these faces disappear when it comes to the oscars.

it has an all-white roster of nominees for the second year in a row. while some argue that black actors simply didn't play a prominent role this year, others say it goes deeper. >> it like so many other institutions are slow to change. you have a situation where essentially white males are dominating the -- the industry. >> reporter: oscar nominees and winners are determined by roughly 6,000 members of the academy. they have issued a statement saying: that diversity is long time coming. some in the industry comment it's easier for a black person to become president of the united states than head of

hollywood movie studio. the british actor famous for his role in mandela says the problem of diversity in film is not just a u.s. problem. >> i realize that i could only play so many best friends or gang leaders, all right? i knew i wasn't going to land a leading role. i knew there wasn't enough imagination for the industry to be seeing me as a lead. i didn't go to america because i couldn't get parts. i went to america because i was running out of parts. >> now to sport. >> day two of the australian open saw two big names, none bigger than 14-time grand slam champion, rafael nadal. >> reporter: 2014 was the worst season on record for rafael

nadal, the new year has failed to bring a change in fortunes. nadal dropped the set, but showed glimpses of his best. the game went the distance, but nadal exiting in the opening round for the first time at the australian open and just the second time at a grand slam. >> the game is changing a little bit, you know? everybody now tries to hit all of the balls. there is no balls that you can prepare the point [ inaudible ] so hard and go for the winners. >> reporter: a big shock in the women's draw as well. world number 133, hadn't won a grand slam match in 14 previous attempts, but she ended her drought by knocking off number

2. 8 seed venus williams also made a first draft exit. andy mur ri's supporters were in full force, dropping just six games on his way to a straight set victory over his teenage opponent. while tennis officials had hoped this would move on from a day of match fixing accusations. >> i'm not really proud of that, i don't think. i think it's a little bit hypocritical, really. because i don't belief the players are allowed to be sponsored by betting companies, but [ inaudible ].

>> reporter: the day finished on a high note for local fans. leighton huet playing in last-ever australian open, advanced to the second round. good news for hue w -- huet but let's take a look at the other results: football governing body fifa has admitted that sepp blatter is still being paid his presidential salary despite being banned. he was given an 8-year suspension in september. fifa has ordered and compliance commission say until a new president is elected at the end

of february, blatter is entitled to receive his undisclosed pay. one of the candidates to replace blatter has suggested the world cup should be spread over several countries. he is the general secretary of uefa, set out his manifester on tuesday. and wants to expand the tournament from 32 to 40 teams so more countries can share the honor and benefit of playing in the tournament. sri lanka's cricket captain has been questioned in regards to match-fixing accusations. he was given a two-month ban after complaints from two players who were asked to fix a test match in october. matthews was asked about the approach to his teammates, but he is not under investigation. >> the cricketers felt really

uncomfortable in the last few days because they are the ones who came forward and reported this to the authorities. and this has been some media and some websites have, you know, taken it against the players and -- and -- and sent the message as if we have done something wrong. and this is not about the investigation, this is about the player approach, so they are carrying out an an investigation. the count down is now 200 days to go until the first games in south america get underway. on april 21st, the olympic flame will be lit at its spiritual home. it marks the start of a six-day tour through greece. the relay will start in brasilia

on may 3rdrd. and then there will be a 95-day tour covering towns and cities. the final test event will be at the athletics on may 13th. the games themselves get underway, and we can hardly wait at the stadium on august 5th. the games will spread across four zones across the city. the main olympic park is 95% ready, but there are still some delays. road cycling is one of the gold medals on offer in rio, and the 2016 season finally got underway on tuesday in south australia. competitors had to contend with temperatures reaching 40 degrees at the tour down under. the first stage of the race took riders 400 kilometers.

the australian won the stage with a sprint finish. and that is all the sport for now. >> thanks for that, jo. scientists in the u.s. and europe are working on ways to save the earth from asteroids. they already have two in their sites, and they are looking for ways to change their flight path. gr gabby giffords has more. >> reporter: february 2013, an asteroid cuts the sky -- executive action ex >> reporter: terrifying local residents and reminds the rest of us that eventually one with our name on it could be coming our way. with that in mind these two scientists are putting their considerable brains together. their humble mission, to save the planet from a potentially

cats -- catastrophic direct impact. they have their sights on two asteroids. neither is expected to hit earth, but they will be used as target practice. nasa's craft aims to crash into the asteroid, and like a giant game, push it in another direction. >> an asteroid is almost the side of a mountain, and we hit it with a spacecraft, we only make a tiny change in the velocity, but over time that's the difference between hitting the earth and not hitting the earth. >> reporter: a separate spacecraft will gather the data. a meteor this size striking the earth would cause about the same

amount of energy and damage as dozens of atomic bombs. but currently scientists don't see any asteroids heading our way for another dozen centuries. >> we know these things are out there, but to find all of the things that are potential threats a very big goal, but now this particular mission is to go the next step, which is something, very, very important which is what are you going to do about it, if something actually has your name on it. >> reporter: for now the project is still in the theoretical phases, with approval for the launch still waiting to get the green line to prevent us from going the route of the dinosaurs. that's all for me, and the rest of the news hour team. thank you very much for watching. barbara sarah is in london. she'll be taking over. ♪

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