been proven 180 degrees wrong. we'll see how that turns out. on the democratic side, i thought it was i am plausible a syrian with links with kurdish rebels was behind the attack in ankara. the world news from al jazeera. also ahead. polls open in uganda as the president museveni seeks to extend his 30-year rule. venezuelans rush to buy cheap petrol as the government cuts the sub-sydney key and-- subsidy to cut petrol raise the petrol

price. also the pope at the end of his trip the turkey's prime minister said kurdish were behind the attack in ankara. the suicide bomber has been confirmed as a syrian national. the blast on wednesday targeted military buses. turkey has launched air strikes against kurdish positions in northern iraq. >> translation: the investigation into the attack continues. so far nine people linked to the ankara bombing have been taken into custody. others have been identified. there will be other arrests in due course. that's all the information i can give in detail right now let's go live to our correspondent in ankara. we can get more information. it was said this was a syrian national who was responsible for the suicide car bombing and he was linked to the y.p.g.

>> reporter: indeed. the information now that we are getting, as you say, is that the finger is being pointed firmly in the direction of the y.p.g. they are kurdish militia forces who are fighting in syria, but also have linked to the p.k.k. which is the kurdistan workers party. that's the party or a group that the turkish government considers a terrorist organization. their concern who has been responsible for the attacks over the years in turkey. in fact, one of the top leaders of the p.k.k. came to say they had nothing to do with it but he could understand why an attack would happen saying this was some sort of a retall yags. the p.k.k. claims are crimes committed in kurdish areas. as you mentioned, 28 people killed. out of those 27 are understood to be military personal and one civilian last their lives.

we had now understanding that it is, as you say acres suicide bomber - dash a suicide bomber. he was roughly 22 years old. he drove a vietnam detonating his explosives maybe about 300 metres behind me. interestingly, also developments in the past few hours. another attack in the kurdish region of turkey fear the main city killed five security personnel there as well. so as far as the turk-- turkish government is saying their country is under attack from terrorist organizations and they say this will not weaken their resolve and it will further determine them to continue more strikes and more attacks, not only on kurdish positions in syria but also in iraq is that a position that is supported by the turkish people because, of course, more

strikes, more attacks against kurds inside syria means the potential for more violence inside turkey and what are people there feeling about that? >> reporter: generally speaking the turkish population, regardless of how polarized it might be in relation to different principal parties, but when it comes to the kurdish issue there is generally more of a common agreement that what they perceive to be turkish terrorists - kurdish terrorists or what they claim to be kurdish terrorists, that they should be dealt with, with force. that has been the general consensus over the past few years, if not even more. the proof of that, the ruling party, when it lost its parliamentary majority in august this year, when kurdish attacks started increasing and the

government under the premiership of the presidency of erdogan increased their attacks with the border with syria, pair popularity increased as well. if we're going to use the barometer of the polls there is a general consensus to that. however there is concern because nobody wants to see bombs going off. turkey has suffered an increase of attacks that have been taking place. ankara, there was that twin bomb attack near the railway station. there was a few weeks ago another attack in istanbul near a tourist site. there is concern. nobody wants to see that violence increase, but as far as they're concerned, there is a general consensus that these attacks are unwarranted and the government has to do what it can to ensure that those militants are not giving a foot hold

inside the country thank you for that. our to our correspondent. the authorities seem to ratchet up against the kurds and we're seeing that in northern iraq. >> reporter: yes. the turkish prime minister saying that we will deal a heavy blow to these terrorists. the turkish government has been at war with the p.k.k. since july. they have been targeting their positions in northern iraq since, and the bombardment has resumed over night. but at the end of the day it is linking the p.k.k. with the y.p.g. and turkey's hands to a certain extent is tied in syria. yes, turkish atillery close to the border, but can it invade at the end of the day russia controls the skies are. the turkish prime minister also criticizing moscow for allowing

the y.p.g. to open an office in russia and appealing to the international community to see that turkey is facing a threat because the turkish authorities have been criticizing the obama administration telling them that how can you put us in the same basket as the y.p.g. why do you consider the p.k.k. a terrorist organization when it is link to the y.p.g. turkey telling its international partners that they need to stand by turkey, turkey saying it is going to take measures even inside syria, but on the ground the y.p.g. has undoubtedly made advances over the past few days, taking advantage of the government offensive. they have pushed in opposition controlled territory and they are at the doorstep of azzaz. they are now at the doorsteps there, they have made it very clear that they want to take this town. turkey promising measures we're going to have to wait to see what, indeed, letter going to do inside syria

indeed we will. thank you for that. moving on to slightly different news. the u.n. says aid trucks have reached several besieged towns and villages in syria. the deliver is part of an agreement with the syrian government to allow aid into areas where people are trapped. rob matheson has this report. >> reporter: a ray of hope in the middle of war. 100 trucks carrying humanitarian aid spreading out towards syria's besieged towns. in madaya near the lebanese border they're bringing medical applies and a mobile clinical as well as food. thousands are trapped here which include hezbollah fighters of the aid workers say at least 40 people have died of malnutrition in the town since october >> we have people not only bringing the support kits but make the necessary arrangements

for the people in short supplies. >> reporter: around 20,000 people here have been cut off by armed rebel groups. heavy gunfire rattles near close to damascus. rebels guard the entrance to this city where trucks line-up carrying supplies for at least 30,000 people trapped here. more aid is expected to arrive in the east, parts of which are held by i.s.i.l. the convoys are part of an agreement reached last week in munich but over a dozen countries including the u.s. and russia. there's no deal to make sure that the supplies keep coming and not all the towns under siege can be reached. >> translation: why doesn't the northern countryside of homs get aid? u.n. resolutions call for raid to each-- aid to reach all areas. do they want all ceasefires before aid can enter? >> reporter: the northern

countryside of homs has been a battleground for months. local supply routes have been cut off by a syrian government offensive. the u.n. says foot shortages can could get worse. the laid convoy to reach this part of the countryside was in october. now east of aleppo city where tens of thousands of people live is close to being besieged. a pause in the fighting has been agreed for the end of this week, but there's still no sign it will happen. international task force will hold its first meeting on friday to discuss the practicalities of ending hostilities in syria. first, they need to agree on who they regard as syria's legit hate opposition and who is on the international list of so-called terrorist groups united nations special envoy for yemen says talks to end the war must happen by march. negotiations were put on hold last month after renewed fighting and air strikes. >> translation: deep divisions

persist which prevent me from calling talks. the parties rely divided over whether a new round of talks should be convened with or without an end to the hostilities. i have not unfortunately received sufficient assurances that a new ceasefire should i call for one would be respected voting is underway in uganda for the presidential and parliamentary elections. president museveni is seeking another term to extend his 30-year rule. >> reporter: the opposition alleged vote rigging. the party and the electoral commission denied it. they say names have been added to the voters registered here. they say when they raised this, agents from the party marched them out the station and they were taken by police and

detained at the police station. now they're not allowed back in to check that list. we spoke to the nr m, the ruling party's agent here. she said she denies any irregularities and that anyone interfering with the process and stirring up trouble will be dealt with by the law. across the board mbabazi said there will be corruption, but they said to wait until counting begins. the u.n. says they urged people to vote peacefully. everyone would be able to vote by the end of the day still to come here on al jazeera >> reporter: i'm in singapore. coming up we will tell you how territorial disputes in the south china sea are prompting a rapid military build up. il

welcome back. the top stories here on al jazeera. turkey's prime minister says a national was behind the attack. he was a syrian national. the united nation said aid is being distributed in some besieged areas in syria. trucks carrying food, water and medicine to nearly 100,000 people reached villages and towns with wednesday. ugandans are at the polling

booths to cast their votes venezuelan has raised petrol prices from the equivalent of 2 u.s. cents to around 94 u.s. cents a litre. it is the first rise in 20 years. the president says the hike is needed to balance the economy. he hasalso devalued the dollar. >> reporter: people here are expecting that these measures will help ease the tension that has been building up for the last couple of years. it is common to see people lining up for hours outside food shops and even then going to find that shelves are bare. it is expected that by freeing up some of these strict price

controls food would again start appearing in market shelves. perhaps the most meaningful decision that the president took was to raise the price of gas or gasoline. this was the first time in 20 years that the government decides to raise the price of petrol. in 1989 a similar decision meant that people took to the streets and rioted for three days or more. this was the first time in venezuelan which was considered to be the longest standing democracy that an event of this nature occurred. the whole idea of raising the price of petrol here has become taboo. it is still unclear whether it will have a similar effect. the president has urged people to remain calm. as soon as he announced that this increase of as much as 6000% was to take place, people

started rushing to petrol stations to fill up their gas tanks. it's unclear whether people were trying to take advantage of a one last tank of the cheapest gas in the world or they were afraid of a repeat of the events 27 years ago of looting and invoice light protest in the-- violent process in the streets john kerry sees militarization in the south china sea is of concern. kerry says there will be more talks with china in the coming days. several countries lay claim to the country of the resource rich region. the regional tension is part of the reason for a spending spree at asia's largest defense air show in singapore. our correspondent has this report. >> reporter: the sky over the south china sea is becoming crowded. several nations, including

vietnam, philippines and malaysia are accusing china of moving in on their sovereign territory. china refutes this saying 90% of the south china sea is theirs. what is undeniable is that the steadily increasing tension has led to a military buying spree >> i think china's military expansion, its increases and defense spending, and its actions in the maritime area have, in fact, triggered something of an arms race. >> reporter: a united states footprint in the region is not new. but it has been steadily growing over the last several years. >> militarization of the south china sea and particularly the artificial islands that will be used for military purposes by china is a concern for the united states, but it doesn't pose an existential threat >> reporter: the u.s. wants its

presence felt. general robinson commands all u.s. air forces in the region greeting staff at the singapore air show >> i can't tell you how much it means to me to see all this joint air power and being what we're doing as team america and being out here to show our commitment. >> reporter: part of that show of strength in the region is this jet, one of the most sophisticated aircrafts in the states. >> whether it's singapore, the philippines all over the asia-pacific we're able to pretty easily within a short amount of time put one of our jets there and operate out of that region and support our regional allies. >> reporter: the philippines is a long time u.s. ally has taken its territorial dispute with china to the hague. it has announced it will be buying nearly 100 million dollars of equipment to boost

maritime security. if the situation in the south china sea continues on this track of heightened tension, the region could remain one of the defense industries dream markets for years to come thousands of people have gathered in kosovo's capital asking for the governor to resign. it marked eight years from independence of serbia. the opposition has been blocking all parliamentary activities from october with a series of protests. government has accused the opposition to come to power through violence. the british prime minister will try and relink the communication of e.u. and the country. our correspondent reports and looks at what is at stake >> reporter: this people work here together like a family.

they've been making conveyer belts sundays the 60s. they also paracel inside the e.u. what roll britain plays within a future europe is important here. >> if we could remain as members, but with less off the red tape, more flexibility to do some of our own legislation and not be controlled by brussels. i think that would be an ideal scenario. >> reporter: david cameron wants to say inside the e.u. family but is looking to over haul britain's relationship. his proposed reforms include restricting benefits for up to four years for e.u. my grants arriving in britain and to be able to opt out of the e.u.'s drive to pursue an ever closer union across europe, plus he wants to put a stop to the financial regulation which some

believe is strangling business in britain. david cameron goes to brussels already under pressure. with his critics saying he is asking for too little, in prufls they may say he is asking for too much. afterwards he will face the challenge of trying to paracel the deal to the british public. many of who are still undecided about which way they will vote in an in or an out referendum. the idea of one the europe's biggest economies potentially going it alone has prompted questions about what an e.u. without britain or a britain without the e.u. might look like. >> really what is at stake, i suppose, is this sovereignty issue, the clash of individual nations' interests and that of the wider european union. that is where cam ran is coming up against resistance because there are countries that are saying we don't want to water down the rights of our citizens who, perhaps, are migrating to

praises like britain. >> reporter: these talks will undoubtedly be tense and could help pave the future direction of the entire e.u. back at new lands they're getting ready to send stock apraud, not knowing if the path ahead will run quite so smoothly if britain is taken down a different track the white house is trying to calm people's concerns about security after an f.b.i. request to apple to access the phone of one of the attackers of san bernadino. they say it risks the privacy of all customers. >> reporter: a late ad to a schedule. obama announcing a task force to improve the government's cyber security >> there was a poll showing that the american people understand that this is a problem. >> reporter: there is one area that his government says data is

too secure. they're trying to force apple to create software to disable a security feature on the iphone. investigators want to put unlimited passwords in one of the attacker's phone >> they are not asking apple to redesign its product or to create a new back door to one of their products. they're simply asking for something that would have an impact on this one device dwoois. >> reporter: critics say that is misleading >> they say it is only for one phone. it is not possible to create software that applies to one phone. if apple were to create this software and give it to the f.b.i. to put it on the phone, that would be a master key that could then be applied to millions of i phones around the world >> reporter: they have built a system of encryption that they can't hack. >> if apple could provide the data then it would be lawfully

obligated to comply and that could be an order from the u.s. or any country in which apple does business, including countries that might not be favorable to the u.s. u.s. >> reporter: this case has the potential to impact cell phone users across the globe >> it is the same technology deployed all over the world. apple is very reluctant to provide that back door into their devices. we see the same pressure coming around the world, but it is escalating it to what may be the supreme court in the u.s. to make a final decision about what is required it comply with u.s. law. >> reporter: the basic question should the government be able to get information off your smart phone. the answer in the u.s. could have an impact worldwide the boxer's contract has been cancelled. they oppose any kind of

discrimination. eight time world champion later apologised for his comments. he is due to fight in april appeared is running for a seat in the senate in may's elections pope francis has finished his five-day trip to mexico. he says the power must do more to help people living amid corruption and violence. our correspondent reports. >> reporter: a prayer for thousands of migrants who have died trying to reach the u.s. pope francis finished his visit to mexico with a mass just metres away from the u.s. he has long been a supporter of migrants and admonished rich countries to do more. >> translation: the human tragedy that has forced migration is a global phenomenon

today. this crisis which could be measured in numbers and statistics, we want instead to measure with names, stories and families. >> reporter: hundreds of thousands attended the ceremony. thousands watched on cctv over the border. this was one the most violent city in mexico. people were touched by his visit here. >> translation: we're hurting as a city with so much violence, so much fallout from the violence, so many children and youth, so many who have lost their way and many families that fled. we're still here giving it our all. >> translation: we're hoping for peace to arrive because of all the violence we've had. we ask him to bless our city and the whole world, but especially here so there won't be so much

violence. >> reporter: earlier in the day pope francis visited the prison that was once run by drug gangs and was the scene of deadly prison riots in 2009. by visiting this area he was able to show he want to reach out to those discarded by society, prisoners and migrants, people that politicians and church leaders often want to overlook. this was the final stop on a five-day visit that took him from the southern tip of mexico to the northern border. along the way he criticized politicians and governments that allowed criminal gangs to flourish. he also slammed bishops for hiding behind their comfortable posts and not standing more with their flock. he criticized some more not meeting with the families of disappeared or the victims of clernlg ee sexual abuse. millions of the mexicans felt he

stood with them there is plenty more to be found on our website. it's being updated 24 hours a day. all the very latest news and in-depth nams on our top stores. aljazeera.com genetic modification, incredible science in the lab usually means this. it can be controversial, it can also be extremely beneficial. >> just like that, i'm genetically modified the mosquitos that carry two