hello, this is the news hour live from london, coming up in the next 60 minutes, thousands of syrians head for the turkish borders as government forces move closer to encircling aleppo. >> burundian refugees say agents are being sent into camps to hunt down opponents. this is a victory that cannot be denied. wick key likes founder julian assange say he has been

vindicated bay radioing that he has been illegally detained at an embassy in london. in california, a state that's suffered a punishing drought, will el niño solve california's water problems? i'll have all the day's sport, including african football backing just weeks before the fifa presidential elections. syria's government and its allies are intensifying their offensive around the countries largest city, aleppo. government forces recaptured a village as they tighten their grip on rebel supply lines to and from the area. tens of thousands of people are fleeing aleppo and amassing on the turkish border. >> the syrian government and its

allies have managed to capture another town in the northern aleppo countryside but the opposition is putting up a fight. there was fierce resistance. we still do not know if the opposition will prevent the government from achieving its objective to encircle the city of aleppo. that is what the government has been trying to do, army command saying they are close to achieving this but haven't been able to do so. the fighting is on going, civilians trapped in the conflict and many of them trying to find a safe place. >> the suffering is growing, tens of thousands of syrians are again on the move. those who have arrived to the turkish border are not being allowed in. they are from the northern so you wantyside of aleppo. many arrived on foot, many came with nothing. there is no safe area for these people as the government pushes ahead with a major offensive in

the province. >> we left our homes because of the bombings by the russians, the iranians, russia and shia army. we want president erdogan to let us in. >> there is no indication that the gates will be opened. >> officially, turkey has an open door policy for syrian refugees but over the past few months, strict restrictions have been put in place. that is because of security concerns and also turkey has been under a lot of pressure dealing with the 2.5 million syrians in this country. >> those trapped in the battleground are also under pressure. villages and towns in the aleppo countryside have become waste lands. there have been hundreds of russian airstrikes since the government's ground assault began earlier this week. there have been dozen was civilian casualties. the airstrikes are not just targeting the front lines. neighborhoods have been hit.

people have abandoned their homes, their livelihood. the on going government offensive has cut through the heart of rebel controlled territory in northern syria, serving the opposition fighters supply lines, but they are still fighting back. a number of factions have created a joint command and are calling on all men in the area to take up arms. the opposition is fighting for its survival in this corner of syria, the last remaining stronghold in the north of groups described as the motte red rebels and this his the one remaining road that supplies the eastern districts of aleppo city. the road is still open. keeping it that way is invital a keeping 300 people supplied with basic necessities. it is the only way in and out. the syrian military has said that it is just a matter of time before its troops and their allies reach this junction, allowing them to close the circle around the city and yet

another opposition controlled area in syria would find itself under siege. >> aleppo is not the only battleground. there are many front lines in syria and the government is on the offensive, especially in the southern province. the government and its allies have managed to capture a town in that province, which really brings it closer to the provincial capitol. it is now under threat and this is in the south of the country. many syrians we speak to now are frustrated. they feel that there was the birth place of their revolution and they risk losing that stronghold. a few years back, they lost the capital of the revolution, the city of homs and now they are putting up a fight to protect the heart of the revolution, the province of aleppo and the northern syria is really strategic for the opposition because it lice on the turkey border and that has been the

lifeline of the opposition for years. >> let's go live to the united nations where the security council has been holding a closed session on syria. al jazeera's green real elizondo joins us live. agreeing fear over the humanitarian situation as the bombing of aleppo continues. what do we know about u.n. discussions there today? >> united nations security council as you mentioned did hold these closed private meetings and they heard directly from the man that was really in charge of this, the director of the office for coordination of humanitarian affairs briefed the council and gave them a very grim assessment of deteriorating human situation. it seems to be getting worse by the day, particularly as you mentioned around aleppo, as the syrian army continues their offensive there, backed primarily with russian

airstrikes that have actually picked up during the geneva peace talks, those couple days that they were going on. so the situation is getting very bad, as we heard syrians particularly from aleppo trying to push their way towards the turkish border. that's what john was updating the security council about, number one. they also heard from staffan de mistura, the u.n. special envoy to syria. he updated the council on the -- how the geneva talks, why they were put on hold. he told them the background of that, gave them a very frank assessment of what was going on and you really got a sense here at the security council of the deep divisions on one side, russia and their ally syria, on the other side, the u.s., u.k. and france, who clearly all want peace in syria, but have very different opinions on how to reach the peace and also who was responsible for the geneva talks

having to be postponed. let's listen to what a few of the diplomats had to say. >> the syrian regime and its allies have made no concession. quite the contrary, on the one hand, the syrian regime claims to discuss peace in geneva and on the other hand, it intensifies its military offensive against position groups with which it is supposed to discuss, and imposes on the city of aleppo an unprecedented torrent of fire. all of this with russia's military support within the framework of a military campaign that can only be to torpedo any hope for these. >> in response to that criticism is all those things need to be addressed during those talks, so those people who have encouraged

the opposition to essentially walk out of the talks, who have been refusing our continued offers for them to arrange really practical cooperation between us and them in the situation of syria, they do not really have much of a ground to criticize us. >> now this is important and this is new, the russian ambassador said that his country hopes to come to the table with a new proposal involving a ceasefire in syria. this is important, and this is new. he would not go into details about this, but we can imagine that this will be discussed next thursday in mine nick where there's a meeting of the international syria support group, a loose knit group of more than 12 countries and alliances all with a stake in syria's future. they're going to be meeting, trying to get the peace talks

back on track, peace talks that now are pretty much frozen. >> thank you very much, live for us at the united nations in new york. meanwhile, the u.s. secretary of state john kerry criticized russia's intervention in syria. he says the kremlin's alliance with president assad is damages efforts to find peace. >> when i was in russia, i said very directly to president putin, in the next month or two, you and others who support mr. assad are going to have to make some very fundamental decisions about the way forward because if all you're trying to do is leave assad in place, the war will not end and there will be more terrorists created, more violence, and it will be even harder to hold syria whole and united as a single country. so that's our mission. that's the purpose of these talks, and as i say, we will have a much better sense in the

next few days of how serious each party is. >> joining me now is andrew tabla, expert in middle east affairs at the washington institute. thank you for speaking to us. for the past three years, opposition forces have managed to maintain a significant balance in aleppo. how serious a blow with the -- would the loss for aleppo be for the fight against assad. >> it would be a extremely important blow to the opposition, especially its morale. large parts of aleppo have been destroyed mostly by government bombardment anyway, but symbolically, it would certainly cause the opposition to lose support especially in the northwestern part of the country. >> what would the in circlement of aleppo mean for opposition fighters on a practice alex?

>> we have 21 century means to carry out a mid evil type siege. most of the sieges that have occurred in syria and you've suffered on this network very well involve starvation, denial of water, and other basic necessities to the people that live inside of those areas. i expect in the case of aleppo, we are going to see more of the same if that indeed happens. >> how have opposition fighters been responding to these developments over the past few days and which groups have been most vocal amidst this escalation in aleppo? >> there is -- there have been a number of movements, one is you've seen the number of different opposition groups try to close ranks and form more coherent formations, never their strong suit, of course, the opposition -- moderate opposition groups are divided. al-nusra, the al-qaeda affiliate

have attempted to fill part of the vacuum, but it's unclear how much. it will be interesting to see if in the face of this russian and iranian offensive, if the rebels come together and do they come together around extremists. that's a real worry, i think, and we'll have to watch that very closely in the days and weeks ahead. >> what might the regime do next? it looks as though the encirclement of aleppo is looking all but certain. would there be a siege, in effect a freeze on the front lines? would they then use resources to fight battles elsewhere or just retake the whole territory straight away? >> no, i think they would probably wait and squeeze them out. the regime does not have a tremendous amount of deplorable forces, that's the reason why so many hezbollah and shia militia

and irgc formations and forces are fighting alongside what's left of the syrian arab army and national defense forces. i think the progress can be steady. the question is however can it go, can it be a solution for all of the syrian territory and that's something we're not sure of at the moment. >> saudi arabia indicated it's prepared to send in troops to fight isil in syria. is that likely to happen? >> i don't know. it would be hard, i think the tweet that came out yesterday was backed up by another statement, if they were asked to do so, they would send troops, you know, saudi arabia right now has a tremendous amount going on in yemen. we'd have to see who would lead that effort, the united states, i think would be reticent to get involved in anything west of the euphrates, which unfortunately leaves the opposition there to

their own devices, absent a change intactics by turkey or the regional backers of the syrian moderate opposition. >> thank you very much for sharing your thoughts and nationals with us. >> more than 200,000 people are estimated to have fled burundi since violent political rest broke out last april. half found themselves in neighboring east african nation of tanzania. as malcolm webb reports, ref fees inside the camp say they are being attacked by government militia. >> the camp in tanzania is home to more than 40,000 refugees who fled ongoing violence in neighboring burundi. when we visited, we were only allowed to interview ref fees screened by officials from the u.n. refugee agency. the u.n. says it was for refugee

protection. several other people wanted to speak to us about security in the camp, but were not allowed. we contacted them by phone after we left. >> the camp is currently not safe. we live in fear of burundi government militia, who are in the camp. >> we've spoken to many refugees by telephone who say similar things. many name particular individuals who they say are agents sent by the burundian government to the camps to track members of the opposition. they say those agents have attempted abductions and killings and say these incidents have been reported to camp officials, but many of the agents are still at large. several more said a group of dozens left the camp in november, believing they were joining an armed group in burundi. they later learned it was a trap set by government militia and people told them most in that group were killed. one man told us he was among them. he gave a detailed account and says he escaped.

>> some of our group are tied up. we were loaded on to a truck and driven away. my friend and i jumped off and ran to the tanzanian border where we met for government militia that killed my friend. i escaped over the border. >> the burundian foreign minister told us on the phone that the allegations are baseless. in the capital, the u.n. said any of the refugees should have been allowed to speak to us, and that senior u.n. officials were not aware of these particular cases. >> because if we had solid evidence, of course, it would be our duty to try to do something bit, but through the government, we are not responsible for security and safety. >> screening the constant flow of no arrivals in the camp is not easy. here cans knee i can'ten police searched their baggage for weapons. the government said it is not aware of the allegations but doing all it can to make the camp secure. >> the government has been very

strict. whenever we have spotted any kinds of activity that are recruitment, only last week some refugees were actually apprehended and taken before the court and charged. >> meanwhile, a leaked u.n. report accuses the rwanda government of training burundian refugees to fight against the that burundi government. rwanda denies it. the refugees say they just want the place to be safe. malcolm webb, al jazeera, tanzania. later we spoke to burundi said foreign minister again, this time via skype where he once again denied the government is sending militia into camps. >> i believe that if there should be some activities of that nature, it would be the

responsibility of the authorities in tanzania and of the u.n. to address those facts, so i only heard from, you know, of those allegations from that you, i never heard those allegations before. anything that happens or takes place beyond the borders of burundi is not the responsibility of the government of burundi. still ahead for you on the al jazeera news hour, an emergency situation in new york after a crane collapsed in the city. >> health authorities try to break an outbreak of fever leaving more than 80 dead in nigeria. the decision to swap munich for manchester city. the founder of wikileaks

julian assange avoided being extra dated to sweden, a u.n. panel said he is entitled to compensation for arbitrary detention. he saw the asylum in the ecuador embassy in london in 2012 and he hasn't left the building since. barnaby phillips reports. >> the sweet sensation of victory, that's how julian assange described this moment. after years of frustration and linealliness, he savored the decision. >> what right does this government or the u.s. government or the swedish government have to deny my children their father for five and a half years? >> in geneva, a spokesman for

the u.n. panel said its decision was in part based on the fact that assange has never formally been charged with the rape investigation the swedish authorities wish to investigate. >> five years, no charges have been filed against him, but still he is deprived of his liberty. >> the swedish and british governments insist assange is on the run from justice, hiding in the ecuador embassy. they were scornful of the u.n. panel's findings. >> i reject the finding of this working group. it's a group made up of lay people, not lawyers and he should not be able to escape justice. this is frankly a ridiculous finding by the working group, and we reject it. >> julian assange's wick lee

leaks reveals flagsified and often embarrassing details of u.s. and international diplomacy. he says he fears that if he's sent to sweden, he'll be handed forever oh the americans. >> julian assange is back in the news but it's not clear how much else has changed. the u.n. panel findings are awkward for the british and swiss governments but the british police are animate that if he steps down from the ecuador embassy on to the streets of london, he will be arrested straight away. >> perhaps the british, swedish and ecuadorian governments will now try behind the scenes to reach some sort of diplomatic compromise. otherwise, it's difficult to see how this will come to an end. one person has been killed after a crane collapsed in new

york. the victim was sitting in a parked car in lower manhattan when the crane boom broke and landed across vehicles, smashing their roofs. an investigation is underway to determine what caused texas. turkey's prime minister understands the peace process with the kurds cannot resume until the p.k.k. rebels lay down their arms. a master plan to rebuild the country's mostly kurdish region was unveiled. he promised to invest the equivalent of $9 billion to help restore security. >> we've seen that many social -- as a result of terrorist attacks and on going operations against p.k.k. and islamic state, we are announcing a social mobilization. all wounds will be bandaged. >> the p.k.k. has demanded an independent state, but since september narrowed demands top

greater autonomy and cultural rights. both sides agreeing to a ceasefire in 2012 and hopes were high to an end for the conflict which has killed 40,000 people. that collapsed after a suicide bomber linked to isil killed 32 youth activists during a peaceful protest. the p.k.k. then attacked police, accusing the government of not doing enough to stop isil. since then, the violence has escalated and turkey launch add major crackdown on the p.k.k. the human rights foundation of turkey said the army has killed hundreds of p.k.k. fighters and at least 160 civilians in towns and cities around the southeast. >> turkish security analyst said the plan doesn't go far enough. >> this was a speech designed to inspire people, particularly this was a speech to inspire those culturally and politically awakened kurds in southeastern

turkey, to separate them from p.k.k., and right now, i think ankara has a clear region of separation of the local kurds from p.k.k. i think ankara has sort of strategy confusion about the end state, end of this campaign. nearly a p.k.k. with all it's social, cultural and economic affiliates, or to deter p.k.k. from applying some forms of armed violence. i think this is the strategy confusion ankara has been trying to take up. >> three people are trapped underground after a gold mine collapsed in south africa. eighty anyone other workers have been brought to the surface following the safe-in at mine east of johannesburg. africa's mines are the deepest

and among the most dangerous in the world. we have the latest from johannesburg. >> rescue operations are continuing at the mine, which is 400 kilometers from the commercial capital johannesburg. emergency services say about 125 miners were trapped initially. they've so far rescued about 49 of them, and they say that they are unsure of how long these rescue operations will crib. those rescued ever come out with minor injuries and the area remains unstale. it is a shallow mine. emergency services say they have to be as careful as possible to assure they rescue many miners safely. south africa has had a fairly decent mining safety record in recent years. the country's tried to reduce the number of miners' deaths by 20% over the last 10 years. we've seen a reduction between

2003 and 2010 in terms of how many miners have been killed underground. emergency services are fairly optimistic about the rest of the rescue operations which at this point continue. more than 80 people in nigeria have died in a new outbreak of lasa fever, transmitted in food and drink contaminated by rat waste. we have this report. >> this is the infectious diseases unit at the mainland hospital in lagos. several patients are suspected of carrying the disease which is spread through ingestion that rat waste. this man does not want his identity revealed because of the stigma attached of the virus. his daughter died from the fever. he's been under observation for 11 days.

>> she started with symptoms of malaria which i never experienced in my whole life. it was like a disaster. i was told that it was lassa fever. i went. >> he is not sure how the food was contaminated that led to his fiancee's death. those who experience vomiting, backache, bleeding, severe swelling. there is a massive increase in demand for rat products. more than 50% of those who contract the disease die. >> the government breaks the lassa outbroke on a food often stored outdoors in markets and in unhygienic conditions where rats roam freely. >> they got in sacks laying

waste and it spreads in particles through rat fees and urine. they say they are not to blame. >> because they were sun dried. >> the government said it's doing all it can to stop the virus but is having trouble getting the anti viral drug that stops it. >> we have all our response teams, the case management. i do not think we have enough public laboratories. we might need assistance. >> those suspected of carrying the disease hope the outbreak will end soon. good sanitation, hygiene and fumigating rat infestation locations should see it come to an end soon. more to come for you on the al jazeera news hour. we'll tell you how the fight against india's air pollution is having an effect on the

country's biggest auto show. could falling oil prices mean the u.k. art bubble is about to burst? in sport, six months before the rio olympics, organizers insist sleets will be protected from the zika virus.

>>. tens of thousands of syrians amass at turkey's border as they flee the on going fighting in aleppo. burundian refugees in tanzania are targeted by agents from their government who have infiltrated here camps. >> julian assange feelings vindicated after the u.n. panel said he has been arbitrarily detained. el niño originates in the

pacific and brings drought to regions usually wet, and rain and snow to areas normally dry. rob reynolds in is california where it is hoped el niño can help with a long standing water shortage. >> the last few years have been tough for california farmer jordan parsons. >> since 2011, we've had complete cop failures the last four games in a row. we've seen acreage drop because our wells can't hold up. >> for the first time in a long time, his fields are green, thanks to the el niño global weather system bringing water to calle. scientists measuring the snow pack in the sierra nevada mountains say it's well above average for this time of year. near san diego where surfers catch pacific waves, technician from the institution of oceanography take readings of ocean temperatures at the end of a peer.

aisle rain and snow increased, el niño won't wipe out the effect of years of drought. >> even if we had a normal strong el niño, we would be unlikely to erase our way out of so many years of drought we've had at this point. >> no one knows how strong it will be, so the 38 million californians need to keep conserving water. >> we can't say that the drought is over yet. we're still in the rainy season. we don't know how much we will end up with, so basically, the message has been, you know, people have really stepped up to the plate and tried to conserve in the urban sector and we want them to keep doing so. >> farmers complain about water set aside for the environment and salmon. >> we're going to pay for a fish over farmers in the valley? as a farmer, it's hard to be satisfied. >> officials say they're following the law. >> the law requires that the

water be provided for them. >> more rain would be good news for california, but there's bad news, as well. el niño downpours could cause flash floods and mudslides and already some areas see severe coastal erosion. >> heavy january storms swamped parts of southern california, and in pacifica, south of san francisco, high tides and battering waves have left these residential buildings teetering on the edge. >> all the storms started hitting the places, literally fall off the cliff. >> authorities ordered residents to leave before el niño tumbles their homes into the sea. rob reynolds, al jazeera, lahoya, california. >> let's get analysis on the story with the director of international government relations at the nature

conservance. more rain could be good news for california, but also the increased risk from flooding and mudslide. what is your overall assessment of the benefits versus the risks of the el niño weather pattern? >> well, the long term trend for california for most of the american west and southwest where it's probably going to get increasingly dry. at the same time, the american northeast is probably going to get wetter. this is one of the principle way that is society is going to experience climate change is through water. some places will have too much, some too little. the key message for california is while the ski season is doing well and we're getting more rain and snow this year, that probably won't last so we need to get more efficient on how we store water in california. >> what challenges does this bring about for how we manage and consume water? >> one of the major issues that

we're going to see in a climate changing world are is some places are going to be much drier and more drought stricken and we're seeing those impacts play out quite significantly in ethiopia right now. we've seen that in the middle east in air i can't and the implications that's had. california is not out of the long drought necessarily and there are a whole series of compounding effects that can happen. you get a combination of human caused impacts and climate induced impacts, so probably a drier climate in california. at the same time, we've had some bad fire management practices over the last century increasing the fuel leads. that means you can get increased potential for forest fires. we have very significant fire season last year. that in turn can reduce the ability of soils to retain water which means if you do get rain, it's hard toritain the water and instead, you get mudslides. there are a lot of things we can do to improve our water use

finishes, water management and revert reaction of the forest echo systems going forward. >> in the state, we see the microcosm of how vast areas of the glob are being affected. in some african countries, bringing about dry conditions, others bringing wet conditions. what are the general implications for farmlands, crops, feud security, could this cause major problems down the line? >> well, i think food supreme court is going to be a tough issue to reconcile right now. the food and agriculture organization at the u.n. says that we need to increase agriculture productivity. the word is going to grow to 9.5, 10 billion people. scientists project that climate change could have a very necessarily active impact on agricultural productivity around the world, particularly in some of the dryest and poorest places in the world. we're going to have to get

smarter about agriculture in terms of investing in soil health and soil productivity and in managing water to ensure that we're getting the most crop per drop and in developing new crops that can be both water resistant or grow better with less water and in. some places like bangladesh and south asia with a risk of sea level flooding, crops that can grow that are more salt tall rant. there's a challenge but an opportunity to invest in our eco testimonies to improve water productivity around the world. >> thank you for giving us the domino effect on all this. >> the second major event of the u.s. presidential campaign, the new hampshire primary takes place on tuesday. bernie sanders and hillary clinton have been squaring off in their first one-on-one t.v. debate. with no other candidates as a

distraction, this was their host heated meeting yet. >> outside the debate hall in durham, not a hillary clinton sign in sight. new hampshire is bernie sanders' territory. among young voters here, he enjoys 85% support especially when it comes to. of income inequality. >> the rich are getting richer. i would absolutely like to see a candidate who supports radical changes in the structure to create more equality and justice. >> i just honestly don't trust hillary. i think she's been very flippy floppy on a lot of issues. bernie has been very consistent. >> the issue of reforming america's economic structure is where the two democratic presidential hopefuls argued most. sanders criticized clinton for receiving $675,000 from making paid speeches to at least one investment bank on wall street, suggesting her corporate funded political campaign makes her ill

suited for the reform he promises. >> one of the things we had do is not only talk the talk, but walk the walk. i am very proud to be the only candidate up here who does not have a super pac, who is not raising huge amounts of money from wall street for special interests. >> there is this attack that he is put forth, which really comes down to, you know, anybody who ever took donation or speaking fees from any interest group has to be bought, and i just absolutely reject that, senator. >> when pushed for transparency to reveal whether promises had been made to corporate america, clinton dodged the issue. >> are you willing to release the transcripts of your speeches? >> i don't know the stat cuss, but i will certainly look into it. >> clinton's defiance may not be enough to convince new hampshire

voters. >> she has to prove she is as progressive as better than sapped is and he has a lot of arguments to say no, you're not and one is taking money from major corporations, banks and financial institutions at a time when many in the democratic party especially the progressive leftwing is really angry about that. >> clinton has little time to change the minds of new hampshire voters. it's primary is days away, and clinton trails her opponent in some polls by as much as 30 points. al jazeera, durham, new hampshire. the global art market is worth an estimated $70 billion. after the economic crisis, few sectors bounced back quicker. some art doubled in value. the art bubble may be about to burst in concerns over fall oil

prices. >> it's auction day at christie's. works by modern masters fetch millions of dollars appease. many works snapped up by rich chinese buyers to ensure prices remain high. >> this estimated seven to 10 million pounds, 11 to $50 million. >> last year, this picasso broke auction records, bought by a mystery dyer. >> $160 million, it's yours, sold, sold. >> art is an asset to be traded, but experts warn the market may be ready for a slump. researchers have analyzed the results of millions of sales over 30 years, finding that art sales fluctuate like gold, real estate and now we're heading for a big dip. >> a lot of people who are specialists in the art market have been expecting the market

to cool down, and i think we're seeing it this year. i think we saw its top in may last year, and since then have seen a bit of a cooling. will it collapse? i don't think so. will it hit a downward trajectory? i think we're seeing that this year. >> christie sold $7.4 billion in art last year, a billion less than a year earlier. falling oil prices and concerns about a slowdown in the chinese economy are worrying the world's wealthy. it's these smaller commercial galleries gathered here at the london art fair feeling the squeeze. >> the problem is there is now too much art and not enough buyers willing to hedge their bets on new or lesser known talent, forcing many galleries to reduce prices and some to close their doors altogether. >> it's really difficult, because obviously in london, property prices so enormous, so

it's hard for small galleries to maintain a central london presence these days, that's the biggest threat to young galleries. i think it's really sad. there's no way they can sustain their presence and support younger artists if they can't afford their overhead. >> art and money have historically gone hand-in-hand, but as the wealthy tighten their purse strings, the entire art market could suffer. sometime ahead, why people in bangladesh won't be able to watch the highlighting of their own indigenous communities in film. tae kwon do team with high hopes ahead of the rio olympics.

>> welcome back. time for sport. a big boost is given in an effort to become the next fifa president. african football bosses behave the bahrainen their support. the sheik signed a memorandum of understanding with his african counter parts. the vast majority of likely to vote for him at the fifa election. the decision is a blow to south african candidate who was hoping to get the support of his own

continent. nick manager claims he has not been distracted by his position to move for the upcoming season, the switch to the english premier league. he still has a chance of winning three trophies including the champions league. i know that the situation is new, never in the history has a coach left. it's a new situation. boys, it's four months. i can live with the situation without problem. newspapers can attack me every day. believe me, it's no problem. i will focus on my team like i did on the day i arrived. >> another chinese football team flexed its financial power with the $55 million signing of striker alex teixeira.

one english premier manager should worry about china's new footballing ambition. >> china looks to have the power to move the whole league to china. we are long enough to know that is a consequence of economic power. >> six months from the rio lip picks organizers say they have an adequate plan in place to protect athletes from the zika virus. the world health organization declared a global public health emergency. the australian olympic committee said it would totally understand if female athletes decided not to compete. there is no vaccination for the virus which is carried by the mosquitoes and linked to babies born with underdeveloped brains.

>> nothing has changed beyond the fact that we have worked with local authorities to increase inspections and oversee all the venues in search for stagnant waters and possible presence of the mosquito. we have sufficient funds to perform this work. nepal won its only olympic medal in 1988 and it came in tae kwon do. still one of the country's most popular sports with more than 65,000 nepalese regularly involved. the international team has high hopes ahead of the rio games. we have this report. >> every morning, sports enthusiasts come to nepal's national stadium in kathmandu, toy was not dough players practicing moves. children and duties and some of the students have won international championships.

at 11, he is full of dreams. >> i want to play tae kwon do and win gold medals. >> the championship was her first game and she won a gold medal. she's made a name in the voluntarily championships. >> they poll doesn't have much presence in international sports but since winning in tie wondo in 1988, this sport is an exception, gaining recognition at international championships. >> with limited facilities, nepal players have an advantage. >> from the beginning, nepali players have to face difficulties. it's worst for girls as the families and even the society to obstacles. our training is poor. players abroad have better equipment in their training fashion sits. we just play rough and tough but still compete internationally and we never compromise.

>> the world tie condo federation has taken interest in helping the players. they want to coach children in areas like this one. nepal government has plans to make it into a national sport. >> once they put tie wondo in national sports, then they have very good chance to win some medals in championships and also the big games. i believe we can give them a dream and also the top level of athletes, we can have it them to korea to learn more in skills. this is really enhancing the development of tae kwon do in this country. >> the immediate goal for now is to win the south asian games which are about to start in india. >> good job, good job, good job. all of you should win gold medals. >> the next goal, the olympics.

al jazeera, kathmandu. >> athletics world govern body iaff is checking charges of doping. a letter written is central to the allegations, claiming the former word and olympic champion sent a letter to a journalist in 1995 but only just published. it indicates how she and her teammates were forced to take illegal drugs. a one shot lead at the halfway point in the desert classic. rory mcelroy had a mixed day, including four goingies in the outward nine. just about staying in contention six shots behind. >> the middle was tough for me. i struggled on those. i persevered and got something at the end.

it never looked like i was going to shoot better over par, but to shoot par is not bad. i just need to make sure i get off to a fast start tomorrow. >> back to you. >> a new bangladesh film highlighting the nation's indigenous communities is beginning to attract international attention. it should be a welcome boost to the country's flagging film industry. nobody in bangladesh itself is likely to be watching it anytime soon. >> film test values are a rare occasion to promote movies not just for a global audience, but for bangladesh itself. crowds have been dwindling since the 1990's. >> the old cinema hauls are dying and the new theaters have not replaced them in that way that. this is one crisis that you cannot show the film to the

larger audience. >> at the same time, local movies have been receiving more recognition abroad. the film from bangladesh with the most national attention this year won't be screened soon. my bicycle, about the indigenous communities is having trouble getting clearance from the sensors. the director is from the rohing community. >> we are asking around, my wife and friends gave money. the crew worked for free so that was the financing. it was sort of a crowd funding model. >> a letter from the sensor saying his movie isn't getting clearance because of concerns that it pour trays the military in a negative way. a large running rebellion, the all the way presence remains heavy in indigenous areas and communal rights are common. >> it's pretty difficult for any

kind of independent filmmaker in bangladesh to get their movies screened in theaters like this one, but the stakes are particularly high with my bicycle. it's a rare glimpse into the lives of the countries indigenous minorities who are usually ignored in mainstream media. >> their culture is in danger of disappearing. >> a language survives through its use. we can't afford to print books in our language the way that it is spreading, we can't keep up with it. >> it is hold the film will help change it. he needs a board of sensors who are a little less sensitive. al jazeera. that's it for this news hour. i will be back in a few moments time with a full bulletin of news for you, a full round of your top stories coming up very shortly. stay with us.

>> the only live national news show at 11:00 eastern. >> we start with breaking news. >> let's take a closer look.

>> this is al jazeera america live from new york. >> at 7:00 - "news roundup". tony harris gives you a fast-paced recap of the day's events. >> this is the first line of defense. >> we have an exclusive story tonight. >> then at 8:00 - john seigenthaler brings you the top stories from across america. >> the question is, will these dams hold? >> and at 9:00 - >> i'm ali velshi, on target tonight... >> ali velshi on target. digging deeper into the issues that matter. >> i'm trying to get a sense for what iranians are feeling. >> welcome to al jazeera america. more reporters, more stories, more perspective. >> from our award-winning news teams across america and beyond. >> we've got global news covered.

>> thousands of syrians flee for the turkish border as government forces encircle rebel forces in aleppo. >> i'm maryam nemazee, you're watching al jazeera live from london. also coming up, burundien refugees say the government is sending agents into camps to hunt down its opponents. >> this is is a victory that cannot be denied. >> julian assange said