a front opens up in syria's war as turkey shells kurdish fighters in the north for a second day. ♪ >> hello. you are watching al jazeera live from london. also coming up: the polls close in a presidential run-off election seen as vital to central african republic's hope for peace. why the death of a u.s. supreme court judge has led to political disagreements over his replacement. pope francis prepares to speak in one of mexico city's toughest naindz promising to address

corruption and crime. the stand-off between turkey and kurdish fighters is intensifying as the turkish army continues to shell positions occupied by kurdish fighters for the second day running. turkey wants syrian kurdish ypg fighters to withdraw. the ypg who have the support of united states are refusing to give up their gains and say they will push bad any advance from isil. the syrian government has called on the u.n. execute council to intervene and stop turkey's shelling in northern syria a report from the turkey/syria border. >> the battle for syria's northern corridor. opposition groups are holding out the russian government ground forces are a few kilometers away. the kurdish arm group, the ypg

is approaching from the east. turkey stepped in. for a second day, it shelled positions of the ypg and its alleys causing casualties. the art i willery bombardment is not just a message to a group turkey calls a tear ri69 organization. it's to force it to retreat from territories close to the border. >> the ypg will immediately withdraw from azez and the surrounding area and will not go close to it again. it will not attempt to shut the corridor ever again. it will not have delusions of using a base to attack the opposition. >> over recent days, the ypg and its alleys captured ground. the kurdish group is taking advantage of the push backed up by russian jets against those same opposition groups across aleppo province. the u.s. allied to the ypg has

called on the kurds to stop taking ground. the group says it doesn't plan to retreat. >> we recently captured the air base and are close to capturing the other area. we want to fight this terrorist group. turkey wants us to return. this won't happen. we are advancing. we won't retreat. >> the advances by the government and the ypg are putting pressure on the opposition. many observers believe the ypg, which is drawn from syrian kurds, is linked to the pkk, the kurdistan worker's party in turkey. syrian opposition fighters know that alliances could be shifting. >> we are being stabbed in the back in the northern countryside where the pkk and it's allies took advantage of the fact we were fighting to two fronts. >> a new front has been opened in an already complicated war. >> turkey's policy in syria has been clear from the beginning. it want regime change in syria and to present a kurdish state from being created along its

border. it wants a safe zone along the syrian side of the border to serve as a before to protect the interests. so far, the international community has not accepted that demand. turkey's latest actions serve as a message that it will stand by its red line. >> for the government, one of the lines is azez, a rebel-controlled town a few kilometers from the border. it is home to tens of thousands of displaced syrians. apart from shelling ypg positions, arrangearar has few positions because russia controls the skies. southern turkey. >> it is said the latest shelling will open up a new front in fighting. >> it's like the turks have thrown a hand grenade into some russian american complicity in supporting the kurds in the north. the configuration in syria are changing so rapidly it's no

longer clear who stands with whom and who stands against whom. so much so that you have this force now that for once, the russians and the americans agree that they will be fighting isil but now the kurd -- the turks are saying these are the enem s enemies, terrorists and started shelling them. so in so many ways now, we have 10, 12, 15 various foreign forces now fighting over syria or fighting in syria, and it's not clear to me any more or it's definitely not clear to the syrians how these various military forces are aligned with one another or against each other. so, it's definitely complicate indicated situation. >> polls have closed in the central african republic following a presidential run-off 2010 two former prime ministers. it is seen as a crucial step to restoring democracy after more than two years of fighting between muslim and christian communities. bernard smith reports. >> reporter: there was frustration with delays and long

lines of voters in the presidential run-off election in central african republic where polling stations did open on time, they were busy in the first round, in december, turnout had been strong with nearly 80%. >> was seen as a rejection by voters violence that has split the country on religious grounds. sunday's vote was a rerun of the parliamentair election in december. it's results were an you willed due to irregularities. >> i hope we will finish. nulle to irregularities. >> i hope we will finish. >> in 20s 13, france sentence troops to try to restore order to car after mainly muss let me fight materials toppled francois bezize. theyt thousands of people have been killed, one in five has fled. two christians are facing off as candidates in the run-off

ballot. one has promised to stack he will corruption. the other says he will bring in investment both are former prime ministers. whoever ones will have the challenge of extending state authority beyond the capitol. muslim fighters control the northeast while christians hold sway in the southwest. weapons are easy to get ahold of. according to human rights watch in the capitol, a grenade is cheaper than a can of coke. bernard smith, al jazeera. hundreds of palestinians have traveled to the gaza border with egypt, opened for the first time this year for just three days. more than 25,000 hope to use the crossing. some require urgent medical care. only a fraction of that number have been given permission to cross. a report. >> they have been waiting for days, some even for years to get out of gaza. now, some palestinians have been able to leave the gaza strip that many more are still waiting

and hoping. he script rarely opens its border crossing with gaza. it was sealed after the egyptian military to control in 2013. >> we have over 25,000 registered humanitarian cases in the gaza strip. our best estimate is that 1,000 would get to travel during these two days which means there will be 24,000 people in need of help still suffering. >> this teenager is in need of medical attention. at the lost both legs during the conflict in gaza in 2014. more than 2,200 palestinians were killed in the 51 day war. thousands more were injured during the war. >> i needs surgeries and therapy. we have been trying to get help more than a year. we have been applying for permits and renewing them. >> nearly half ofganses are unemployed. they rely on humanitarian help to get by. for some, their only hope is to leave. >> um a student and today, my

visa ends. i used to have a residency permit in turkey. it expired. i renewed my visa. all of this because of the rafa crossing closing. what can i do? >> gaza has been under an economic blockade by egypt and israel since 2007. that's when hamas took control from the rival faction. he script and israel regard hamas as a terrorist organization. tens of thousands are caught in the middle of the political wrangling. >> i have been trying to travel since last year, for eight months. i lost my job because i haven't been able to go back. >> those who don't get out of gaza have to face the reality their freedom movement is decided by others. >> in the occupied west bank, three pal stinzians have been killed in two incidents. two 15-year-old boys were shot in janine after allegedly

opening fire at israeli soldiers. and a 17-year-old was killed at a checkpoint near bethlehem. 176 palestinians have died since october following a spike in violence in israel and the occupied teartors. 27 israelis have died. airstrikes by the saudi-led coalition in yemen have left a number of people dead. a warehouse and a nearby factory in the capitol hit overnight. a coalition is fighting to restore the government in yemen over thrown by houthi rebels marking the 5th anniversary of the protests there, protesters shouting anti-government slogans were met by police who fired tear gas. there has been a defendant heavy police presence to mark the anniversary which caused a political change in the kingdom. the question of who will no, ma'am nature the next justice of the supreme court is occupying both democrats and republicans after the death of antonin sc

scalia. he was 79 and sat on the most powerful bench in american law making for 30 years. he was a consistent conservative voice pushing in favor of the death penaldp and the individual right to bear arms. president obama said there is ample time left during his appointment -- during his time in office to appoint a replacement. republican candidates think that task should fall on the next person to occupy the oval. justice scalia's death was one of the talking points during a particularly recallus debate between presidential hopefuls. alan fisher was at the debate greenville, south carolina and sent this report. >> a moment's silence to mark the death of a supreme court justice announced just before the republican debate and the question of a replacement for antonin scalia dominated exchanges: shouldpom pom appoint a new justice? the republican consensus: not in an election year. >> i think it's going to do with

it. i think it's up to mitch mcconnell and everybody else to stop it. it's called delay, delay, delay. >> i think that we ought to let the next president of the united states decide who is going to run that supreme court with a vote by the people of the united states of america. >> ted cruz highlighted the political signifcancer of the supreme court which decides on imports questions. >> the senate needs to stand strong and say we are not going to give up the u.s. supreme court for a generation by allowing barack obama to make one more liberal appointee. >> there was a bitter exchange on the role the last president played. jeb bush defended his brother from donald trump. >> jeb is so wrong. so wrong. >> i get his foreign policies from the shows. hillary clinton was a great negotiator in iran. we are living in dangerous times. this is a man who insults his way to the nomination. >> marco rubio had an awful

debate in new hampshire but he seemed to get in the groove on the subject of immigration. >> this is a disturbing pattern now. for a number of weeks, ted cruz has been telling lies, lied about ben carson in iowa. he lies about marriage. he is lying about all sorts of things. now, he makes things up. >> this was a bad night for donald trump, his most insendary attack. here in south carolina, he leads the polls by more than 20 points. >> south carolina senator cylinder sac gram makes the supreme court nomination huge. >> if you don't win, you can't .a supreme court justice. i hope conservatives will look at this as an opportunities to make sure we nominate somebody that can win the white house. >> this is by far the loudest, angriest debate, how important south carolina will be and how the stakes for the man who want to be president are getting

higher. alan fisher, al jazeera at the republican debate greenville, south carolina. >> still to come for you this half hour, facing a hash reality in finlands. the government announces it will deport 20,000 refugees. will it be a fight of a competition? will it be able to fight off the competition? all eyes are on the revenant in london.

welcome back. you are watching al jazeera. receipts take you through the top stories. turkey has shelled kurdish

fighters for a second day. the turkish government wants fighters from the ypg armed group to withdraw from areas near syria's border with turkey. polls have closed in the central african republic. it comes after more than two years of fighting between muslim and christian communities. hundreds of palestinians have traveled to the gaza border with egypt opened for the first time this year for just three days. now, a united nations report says more than 11,000 civilians were killed or injured in afghanistan in go 015, an increase on the year before. most deaths were caused by groups opposed to the governments including the taliban. a report from kabul. >> more civilians were killed or injured in fighting in afghanistan last year than at any time since u.s. and international forces invaded in 2001. the bleak statistic in the

u.n.'s latest report on civilian casualties in afghanistan. according to the report, more than 11,000 civilians were killed or injured in 2015. among those casualties, more than 3,500 died. the u.n. report blamed the taliban and other anti-government forces for 62% of the casualties. 17% of the death did and injuries were caused by afghan and international forces. nicholas hasom, the head of u.s.s. assistance mission in afghanistan told a news conference here that he wants all parties to the fighting to make an effort not to harm civilians. >> until we have a piece agreement, we must call on all of those parties engaged in the conflict who have it within their power to reduce the number of civilian casualties to commit to taking every step that will avoid harm and injure to civilians. >> the report comes as the afghan government is pushing to

negotiate with taliban faxes who want peace while promising to fight those who don't. the record number of civilians casualties that coincides with an increase in afghan troop casualties injects another element of uncertainty as the afghan security forces' capacity to fight off the insurgency. al jazeera kabul. >> pope francis will soon deliver sunday mass inwin of the mexico's most violent districts. these are live pictures from there now. the pontiff is on a 5-day visit to mexico and in his address is expected to raise the issues of corruption and crime. on saturday, he told secular and religious leaders alike they had to stand up to drug trafficking gangs. joining me from the area in mexico and adam, how significant is the location of this mass in really one of the most violent

towns in mexico? >> it is extremely significant. you may see on some pictures there that pope francis has literally just entered this field here so the crowd is getting quite loud. the significance is very big. people here understand it well. when pope benedict came to mexico in 20012, he didn't lead a mass, say a mass in any place like this. he said it in a conservative hardland, catholic part of the country, but not a part of the country known for violence, known for violent action corrupt gangs of police who extort innocent people buyer coming here on sunday to lead mass for hundreds of thousands of people here, the message is clear, and that message is pope francis wants to show that he supports and stands in solidarity with these people who live in some of these communities, most touched by violence, most touched by the corruption that is frankly plaguing this country. >> as you say, the pope just coming through on his way to

give the mass now. we can see many thousands of people waving flags. a lot of excitement. what does his visit really mean to people there? what do they expect to hear from him? >> when we were out in the crowd a few moments ago speaking to many people who spent the night here camped out on peoples and rocks here in this field in nearly freezing cold temperatures, they said they want to hear about peace and love from him. >> might sound like a pretty basic thing. we can grow cynical but when you push them a bet further, what they are saying is one man said, we want him to send a loud and clear message to our politicians and put them in line. that's the way this man said it. we need to have a more security mexico. this man who i was speaking to comes from the state of vera cruz. one of the most violent states in the country. where criminal gangs carry out violent work with impunity at

times and a state where more than a dozen journalists have been killed in recent years. they people know what this means. they have high hopes and goals for what the pope's message can accomplish. they are not naive to think overnight the country will change. but they want pope francis to keep putting on pressure on politicians here in mexico and these individual states fthat h is visiting. >> how influential is the catholic church in mexico? >> i'm sorry. what was that? >> i was asking you about how influential the catholic church is in, in mexico. a large contacts lick population, the world's second largest? >> it's extremely influential, kind of in the stance people take and perhaps kind of their outlook. 85%, roughly, of mexicans, perhaps allegation lower are roman catholic. some normally, but mexico's state that is the government of mexico and the catholic church

have had tense relations for more than a century. there has been an anti-clearcal period. it's not as if the church says something and the government acts. the church has this power of persuasion and enough people are convinced pope francis is going to convince the bishops here to keep the pressure up and that will keep the pressure up on the politicians. it might start to push plics to not look the other way when so much corruption continues to take place on their watch. this is a big, big task. the church is all powerful here politics is a very corrupt business here. it shows no sign of changing any time soon. >> thanks very much. live for us there in mexico where the pope is about to deliver his mass in one of the country's most violent towns. finland's government announced it will department around 20,000 refugees, an comic down turn coupled with a small population means finland is struggling to deal with the volume of asigh

lum seekers. for those making the journey, prospects are looking grim. as jonah hull reports from northern finland, the influx is causing uneasy among some locals. >> named after a norris god of war, the soldiers of odin take their mission seriously patrolling the streets of a number of finish towns keeping women and children safe from refugees. >> about 80% of the refugees are men of fighting age. to me, it doesn't look like they need help. >> back in their club house in the woods, they insist they are just concerned citizens, though the nazi type paraphernalia suggests otherwise. >> we only use violence to defend ourselves. if somebody attacks, of course a person has the right to defend himself. if we see a crime taking place, then we intervene.

>> finland is in economic trouble and the soup kitchens are busy, a cautious welcome in the summer has turned frosty. it's far more likely than not that asylum seekers will be turned down. >> the main thing is to make good picture for refugees. we are good, helping and good people. >> tarnala helped hundreds who crowded into this concert hall before formal reception center were established. he regrets the change in mood. i have heard hundreds of stories of why they come. some are true. some are lies who has the right to decide? that makes me sad, especially as a christian. we should help all people. >> as the public mood seems to be hardening here in finland toward the refugees, it seems the prime minister, himself, has

been forced into his own about-turn having said that refugees were wedged to come and stay here in his country house in the north of the country, he has now said, they can't. os 10 responsibley for security reasonstens responsibley for sey reaso reasons. the tightening controls are sinking in. >> there are some good people even refugees, there are good people and bad people. >> will you respect if it comes to it, a decision to send you home? >> they send us back, i will respect that, but, you know, we will face death there. yes. >> you have to wonder why they would wanted to live in the freezing cold anyway. such is the desire for safety. jonah hull, al jazeera, finland. >> now, moving into the movie award season and british stars

will be hoping to shine at the annual awards in london later. phil lavell looks at the actors, act tresses and movies hoping to scoop an award. >> there are 24 categories. let's face it, these are the ones most will be talking about: best director, actor, actress and film or best picture as some would call it. let's start with best director. alejandro is no stranger. he was in town for bird man. he lost out there but stands a chance here for the revenant. todd haynes for "carol" adam mckay for "the big short." ridley scop is directing royalty up for "the martian" and steven spielberg, his "bridge of spies," a hoot favorite to do well here. >> our guy, our spy pilot. their guy. we want you to negotiate the swap. are you good with what you do?

>> this will be a first for the both of us. >> you should be careful. >> then there is best actor, for portrayal of the late apple founder, "steve jobs." the "martian" matt damon survived being stranded on marches. often against two very strong contendsers. leon and 0 dicaprio, his role seen as the one to beat. the man of 2015, redmain won for the three of everything. will "the danish girl" bring him a second year of success. >> it's my only hope. this is not my body. i have to let it go. >> so the best actress, maggie smith may be in her 80s but she will be battling with her role in the lady in the van.

eddie red main. two awards here larson up for her role in "room" and herald in brooklyn" the critics will tell you to watch kate blanchet, and this is "carol". >> would you like to come visit me this sunday? >> yes. >> and then there is best film, this is the big one, a pattern here, the damage issue girl, carol, bridge of spies, sp spotlig spotlight. seen that before. the big short as well it is the revena in. it. leonardo di caprio help this film take an award. >> remember, this is a wide open competition. previous years have given us

lots of surprises at the awards. it is going to to be a very exciting night there is not long to go now. >> should be good. our website. find everything, all of the stories we are covering right here, aljazeera.com. i'm richard gizbert, and you're at "the listening post." >> we are breaking with our usual form at to dig into a media story in syria. >> the date line that is mon op liesing the coverage is aleppo. half the city is in government forms. government forces are advancing.