this is al jazeera. welcome to the news hour. coming up in the next 60 minutes. an explosion innise tap bull's-- in istanbul's shopping district. investigate yofrs work to determine what caused a plane going down in russia killing everyone on board. extradition proceedings again after the arrest of salah abdeslam.

>> reporter: i will be here with all the day's sport including one of the biggest rivalr ironings es of the ries in cricket a bomb has exploded in a major shopping and business district. at least five people including the suicide bomber have been killed and 36 have been injured in the suicide bombing. officials suspect the p.k.k. or an affiliate carried out the attack. our correspondent is live for us. tell us more about the situation there. >> reporter: we are waiting for the official statement on the details of the explosion. the journalists and people are

not allowed to enter the explosion scene and we are waiting for the official statement, but we have someone who witnessed or was just after the explosion was in the place. freelance journalist, we have thomas torrent. you were in the explosion scene just after the explosion or, like, 30 minutes after that. can you tell us what did you see in that specific point? >> when i came to the scene on the side street where the explosion apparently happened, the police had cordoned off, so i couldn't go to the scene, but i could see some of the building next to the place and i talk to shopkeepers and people at the street and they all described how people were running away,

panicked, some of them injured with bloodstains and that ambulances and police came to the police a couple of minutes after the explosion. >> reporter: you live in thor area and you're a journalist. can you tell us about the expectation in the area for such an attack? >> in general, in turkey, there has definitely been a rise of fear and awareness of this kind of attacks. we have seen a wave of violence, violent attacks, suicide attacks in the last year and since the last attack that specifically targeted civilians, people have been very aware to avoid crowds, shopping malls and there was also an alarm from the turkish embassy that made many people, at least in my surroundings, very cautious to be out in crowds in central istanbul. >> reporter: it happened, or

where it happened does it have any meaning of the target? >> it is a very busy shopping district. foreigners come here, most people will end up to visit this street. thousands, maybe tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands visit this street on an every day basis, the street of boutiques, shopping malls, is an mas, bars - cinemas bars and restaurants. this is a really busy street and the heart of istanbul. >> reporter: thank you very much. we are now waiting for the fish statement for any further details about the explosion and

now to you thanks for you. we will be back with you just as soon as you get for months. going to south-east turkey, lawrence lee is there for us. what are you hearing in that region about what has happened today? >> reporter: clearly it is becoming very serious now. the second suicide bombing in the space of a week, both of them in turkey's most important cities, both very high profile targets and certainly in terms of this, pursuing the - well, so many different places, people coming from various areas all injured in this. in terms of turkey being able to get on top of this, it doesn't look good. officials assume it was the

p.k.k. a subsequent report says it might have been i.s.i.l. who did this, but either way, it lends to the suggestion of turkey increasingly living in fear and officials had also said that they were extremely concerned that if the p.k.k. were to do this, it would be coinciding with kurdish new year. consequently and subsequently from that, many turkish people say that they are very worried already about what might happen during kurdish new year. some colleagues have talked about shopping centers become sderd, some keeping their kids out of school and some saying they will stay indoors until the new year is different what can you tell us about the government's likely response to this? >> reporter: in terms of the

response to do with kurdish new year, this is the first kurdish new year since the ceasefire collapsed last july. because of that people have been expecting trouble in istanbul where this happened. the authorities had already said that there would be no new celebrations allowed because of security concerns. here, the turkish authorities had said that they would let it go ahead. they said they won't allow it to happen inside the city. they will move the celebration out into a feel outside the city boundaries for the secure reasons. on friday the police managed to dismantle a car outside the governor's office which had 150 kilograms of explosives in it. since december, the military have been conducting operations against the p.k.k. street by street. since then those operations are continuing. they say more than 300 p.k.k.

fighters have been killed and many have been displaced because their homes have been destroyed. in the same way as kurds feel here under siege by the turkish military, turks feeling under siege by the p.k.k. a lot of tension in the air. thank you very much. as we've been saying, the blast in istanbul is the latest in attacks that have rocked turkey in the past few months. in january last one incident and last month another one when 29 people were killed. last sunday 37 people were killed when a car bomb struck a busy part of the capital. we have the director of the

botchess center for security studies from istanbul. welcome to the program. what is your sense of the government's reaction to what is happening here and the potential criticism that will be fired their way, that they're not doing enough to try and stop these attacks? >> actually, the authorities did make an announcement that they thwarted about 24 suicide bombing attacks in the last week alone. it is wrong to say that there's not enough security to take care of this. everyone is vigilant at the moment because with the p.k.k. now sort of emerging under these new tactics, there's new off shoots coming out which have been active on the scene for about 10 years. they're using more violent methods which they haven't used before, targeting civilian areas, largely pop laid civilian areas where at certain times it's likely to be more pop laid.

this is a new tactic for p.k.k. and off shoots who have just traditionally targeted the milita military. initially they targeted military targets with the ankara explosion, but then the ankara explosion last week was a new tactic for them directly targeting civilians. it was expected that they made announcements to this effect as well, that they would continue these attacks. this was to be expected, but to some extent, but it's also very physical, no matter how much intelligence and preparation to thwart suicide attacks of this sort there is no responsibility. no responsibility has been claimed, but it looks as if the p.k.k. could be responsible, but as far as the p.k.k. are concerned and their so-called affiliates or off shoots, tell us more about that and who it might be, the p.k.k. or the

affiliates >> again, it's difficult to say because as you say no-one has claimed anything. last week, for example, and the attack was claimed by an offshoot called t a.k. which people hadn't heard a lot about. recently they've been criticizing the p.k.k. for not being forceful enough. it's a bit like recommend necessary interest of the-- reminiscent of the ira. they're feeling that they're not being represented in the violence by the organization. whatever the acronym is, the p.k.k. or affiliates, they're using the war in syria as a desperate last measure attempt because on the ground, they think this is the last push to get some kind of autonomy for the region in which they're

inciting this violence in the south-east. that's their grand plan, unfortunately. by carrying this attack in the city, this is what terrorists do. they try to intimidate the government and the government have said they're not going to be - that's not going to happen. they're going to continue with the counter terror operation in the south-east. i think people are just going to be more and more vigilant and the authorities are going to continue with their security measures against this. like i said it's very difficult when you do have suicide attempts, suicide bombing attempts like this one to actually one of them slips through the net unfortunately thank you very much. investigators are trying to work out what caused a passenger jet to crash killing everyone on

board. it crashed early on friday morning. the ceo has expressed his devastation at the news of the crash >> we do not know all the details of the incident, but we're working close with the authorities to establish precisely what happened. we are making every effort to care for those affected and will provide assistance to the families and friends of those who were on board let's get the latest from our correspondent. that press conference was held a few hours ago. bring us up-to-date with what else we know. >> reporter: the russian investigators said that they found both black boxes and the data recorder, voice and data

error recorders. it is ruling out any wrongdoing at the air traffic controllers. there are a lot of questions about what happened and why did the pilot under such bad whether conditions decide to stay in a holding pattern mid-aair for about two and a half hours before attempting the second time to land. that's when the fatal crash happened. it happened, he didn't manage to reach the runway. the plane crashed 50 to 100 metres to the left of the run way. there was very strong wind at the time, very bad weather conditions. sometimes peeking at 19 metres per second. so certainly gusting wind and very difficult for a plan to land under those conditions. all other airliners who were supposed to land there decided to go to a nearby airport that

is only half an hour flight from there. a lot of questions on why did the pilot to decide to stay there. it appears he was the only plane at that time trying to do that landing under those conditions, something the relatives will know about very quickly. investigators will say it will take at least a month to sift through the boxes. was there any kind of communication that led the pilot to continue on his course or was he advised to change the course and he decided to stay there. certainly a lot of questions for the relatives of those 55 passengers who were on that flight and the seven crew members thanks very much, indeed. coming up in this news hour,

brazil's political crisis deepens. what will obama get to see during his landmark visit to cuba. sport coming up too. the new formula one season begins. the authorities in france will start the process of extraditing the main suspect in last november's attacks in paris which killed 130 people. salah abdeslam was wounded and arrested in brussels after four months on the run. the mayor of brussels says he is not in hospital but there is no word on where he has been taken.

>> translation: long with four other-- along with four other individuals, salah abdeslam must face french justice. this is what all families of the victims want and the citizens want. the government wants to shine a lot on exactly what happened. it is to fight the terrorist organization of i.s.i.l. in europe going to jacky rowland where the arrest has taken place. this is a very important arrest, not only for france but also for the victims' families. >> reporter: it is very important and significantly when news broke that salah abdeslam had, in fact, been arrested we heard from a lawyer representing families of the victims of those attacks and she said it was absolutely crucial that salah abdeslam should be returned to french soil to face justice for crimes, the killing of 130 people that actually took place in paris four months ago.

however, we've been hearing already from the belgian prime minister who indicated that annex tradition is not automatic, there are legal procedures to be followed. he warned that it could take several months. in the last few minutes we've also heard from the defense lawyer who has been appointed here in belgium to represent salah abdeslam and he has indicated that they could well contest any french extradition request. let's listen to what he has been saying. >> translation: i can tell you he is corroborating with belgian-- collaborating with the authorities. he will be sent to a prison. there will be a second interrogation in the extrags warrant proceedings how many have been arrested on those tacks? where does the investigation go from here?

>> reporter: the investigation continues very much. there may be this feeling or this idea that since the prime suspect in the attacks has now been captured that to some extent the main work is over. far from it. it's a message that we're getting from the french foreign minister and belgian officials speaking on saturday. they have been giving details of the dozens of arrests and searchs that have been carried out in and around paris and brussels, and also the number of people who are still being held. we are talking about literally dozens of people who have passed under the police radar. information has been collected and it has been made very clear by, as i said, officials and leaders in both countries that as they gather more intelligence they will try to join the dots and find out if there are more people who need to be

investigated, both to finds out who ordered the paris attacks, how the network operated, which other sympathizers and supporters may have been involved to ensure that if there are people out there who are like minded and they share some ideology of the paris attackers that they can be found and neutralized, if you like, for potentially trying to carry out any similar attack in the futurfuture a 17-year-old palestinian has been shot dead. he was killed near the mosque in hebron. police say the man tried to stab an israeli soldier. there has been continuing violence in the region since october. 204 palestinians and 29 israelis have been killed. a dark day for humanity. that's how amnesty international has described the deal between

the european union and turkey to reduce the number of refugees coming to europe. anybody who doesn't qualify for asylum as from sunday are to be sent back. >> reporter: it is a deal that will affect the lives of hundreds of thousands of stranded refugees and migrants. a game changer in a crisis that has shaken the very foundations of the european union. turkey has agreed to play a crucial part of stemming the flow of refugees into europe >> turkey will get all those who are crossing to aegean islands illegally, but european countries will receive the same number of legal migrants from turkey. it is a fair and encouraging steps for refugees as well, those who are looking for their

future >> some believe this argument is a silver bullet. it is more complex. it is just one pillar of the comprehensive strategy and can work only if the other pillars are also implemented. >> reporter: they've asked for aid to be increased to $6.7 million. they also want visa free travel and this could happen as early as june. the agreement will come into force at midnight on sunday. all migrants and refugees arriving in the e.u. after that will be processioned and returned to turkey. under the agreement as many as 72,000 refugees could be eligible for resettlement, but there are concerns that there could be a sudden surge of people trying to reach the e.u. before the sunday deadline. worries about the legality of the deal, there is some discomfort amongst e.u. states

about returning refugees back to a country that they say has questionable attitudes to civil liberties and human rights >> it will violate treaty on human rights. from a moral and political perspective, you cannot exchange money with people to control the refugees flows without providing a problem medical assistant, proper training and access to the labor market, it will be nothing. >> reporter: when it comes to reducing the number of people arriving in europe, the e.u. needs turkey on side. turkey knows it has a powerful role to play nigeria's oil rich river state is holding elections. the election highlights the two most significant issues in the largest oil producing nation and those are security and the

economy. we have the minister of information. welcome to al jazeera. >> thank you very much the presidency, one year old now. we have discontent growing, the costs of everything is rocketing, big, big security issues. nigeria is in trouble, isn't it? >> not quite. i want to believe that the government is on top of the situation. in terms of security, and i think nigeria has done very w l well. boko haram has been massively broken up. to carry out the kinds of attacks that it used to do there are attacks happening all the time. we hear regular attacks >> there is a different been

attacks, suicide bombs and insurgency. there is a difference between insurgency and violence. about a year ago-- that difference doesn't make any difference to the villagers who are involved and who lose their lives >> that's right. the obviously obviously-- obviously aenls were under the control - villages were under boko haram. they were dislodged. what you have today is attacks on soft targets. at this point in time it is to increase surveillance, intelligence gathering how can an that tack like what happened on the 16th, two female suicide bombers killed 22

people. >> there's nowhere in the world that soft targets can than represented 100%. like we saw in paris. soft targets anywhere in the world, markets, churches are difficult to protect it's only made worse by the state of economy. you have big problems there with oil prices. how are you dealing with it? >> yes, it is quite painful because the future is bright. what we've done is to try and take opportunity of this down slide in the price of crude. what we are doing is spending at least 100% of our budge on infrastructure. investing in railroads and power, you're going to strengthen that will take a long time to kick in. what we're talking about items

going up. inflation ask 11.5%. >> i agree with you. between now and later there will be the railway and the reforms braulgt in has been able to block loopholes. we're going to reduce costs and maximise revenue. there will be more spending for the economy coming to the meeting of opec and others who will meet here on april 17 to discuss potential plans for freeze in oil out put, do you think that's the way forward? >> produce less for more, rather

than produce more for less do you think a decrease in output will happen? >> i think the price of oil, i don't know, if it goes down, i'm not allowed all the people to see the agenda for them thank you. we appreciate your time >> thank you. >> thank you very much, sir still ahead on the program, fill peep owes-- as filipinos prepare to elect a new prime minister next month, fishermen are hoping for a better future. and all the sport coming up.

welcome back. our top story t at least five people have been killed in an explosion in istanbul. at least 35 people have been injured. all 62 passengers on board a plane to russia are confirmed dead. investigators are working on what caused the accident. france will start the process of extraditing salah abdeslam who was wounded and arrested after

four months on the run it may take weeks for salah abdeslam to be taken back to france. for now all we know is that he has left hospital and the belgian media are reporting that he is in police custody. >> reporter: salah abdeslam left hospital in brussels in a police convoy driven away to be questioned and eventually extradited to france. europe's most wanted man was arrested on friday in brussels. gunfire had rocked the street. the 26 year old accused in the paris attacks was finally cornered. his fingerprints had been found at an apartment raided on tuesday. it is thought that along with a mobile phone call had led the police to him

>> translation: we realized yesterday we might have won an important battle for democracy, freedom, respect, tolerance, values and probably for justice. we realized that we have not won the war. we know very well that there is still a lot more work to do. >> reporter: belgium has warned that it could take several weeks to extradite him, a french national. 130 people were killed in paris in november when attackers linked to i.s.i.l. stormed cafés, a rock concert and a stadium. salah abdeslam's brother blew himself up and salah abdeslam was driven whack to brussels hours later. in paris ministers have been holding an emergency security meeting. >> translation: currently under arrest with four other individuals, salah abdeslam will have to answer for his actions in a french court. the need for justice is what all the relatives of the 130 victims are demanding as well as the

french people. the government is determined to shed loo light on the attack. it is an important blow against d.a.e.s.h. in europe. this week's operations have put out of action many individuals who have demonstrated their extreme dangerousness and their total determination. >> reporter: salah abdeslam's arrest brings to an end a four-month search for him. the police operations are trying to establish his alleged role in the attacks in paris and the extent of the network involved is still very much ongoing let's return to our top story, the explosion in istanbul that killed at least five people. >> reporter: another bomb goes off in turkey. this time in the heart of istanbul in the middle of the city's busiest shopping district. it is a major tourist designation. this street would have been packed with shoppers and visitors. this

this is the governor was at the scene shortly after the blast. >> translation: a suicide bomber blew himself up around nooned killed three people and wounded 21 others. three of them are in a critical condition. one has just died in hospital. a detailed vogues is being carried out by our colleagues. -- detailed investigation. >> reporter: although no-one has claimed responsibility, two government officials have implicated separatists linked to the p.k.k. which has been at war with the turkish states for a long time. >> p.k.k. will be spread all over turkey. they have had enough against the

possible terrorist attacks in turkey all over the country. >> reporter: since talks between the government and the p.k.k. broke down last year, there have been several bomb attacks across the country. three loan in the capital. in total thai killed almost 300 people. the most recent was less than a week okay. the kurdish freedom hopes group which is linked to the p.k.k. claimed responsibility for that attack which also targeted a bus shopping street. days later germany announced it was closing its consulate in istanbul citing credible information that another round of violence was imminent. the german consulate is a few metres walk away from the latest blast. the increased number of attacks could threaten the tourist economy. the government insists that

turkey is safe but will have to to do more to secure the safety of its citizens and tourists in relation to the plane, the weather. >> reporter: if we look at the satellite picture. i've wound it back 24 hours so you can see the cloud getting going. the severe weather was over the region. at the time of the accident, the visibility wasn't too bad. it was around 5 kilometers. we had light rain. it wasn't particularly heavy, but the problem was with the wind. sustained winds around 50 km/h. it's always the gusts that cause more of an issue. they were fwufting up to 80 kilometer her hour. i have reports of 90 but i've seen gusts of 80. that's what was happening. clearly there were issues and it is linked to what else going on

further north. you can see this huge area of cloud here that dips down into that region and that's what is linked to the same system. to the north of that it's very, very cold and to the south it's really quite mild. where those two different air masses reach other other that's where we get the destructive weather. it's an area in the north-eastern parts of europe is going to stay very cold over the next few days. still more snow here. the temperatures are well below average. it milder up towards the best west of europe thank you for that. the u.s. secretary of state will visit russia next week for two days of talks. john kerry will arrive in moscow on wednesday. the main focus of his trip will be to discuss how to resolve the syrian conflict.

russia says his visit will contribute to the normalization of relationships with the u.s. 39 people have been killed and many more injured in raqqa. p women and children were among the dead. however, it is unclear whether the syrian or russian air force conducted the strikes on the i.s.i.l. stronghold. a brazilian judge has blocked the appointment of lula da silva to the cabinet of dilma rousseff. our correspondent has more on what's happening. a judge made this decision on the case over night in brazil. what are the new developments? >> reporter: that's right. it happened late last night.

a supreme court justice issued a blocking of lula da silva to his cabinet position. he has already assumed the position or at least took over the position lately last week, but this means that he will be blocked from stuming that job. this throws the country into much more deeper turmoil politically than it already is. the interesting part about this is it is really going to freeze the government in many ways because already dilma rousseff's government says she will appeal this ruling. they have to do so in front of the entire supreme court and they don't meet until march 30. it means that dilma rousseff will not have her chief minister. that was the job that lula da silva was put in, at least for the next few weeks. it puts everything on hold here with the government on where we move forward. it puts the situation that much more critical and puts the situation that much more uncertain on where this country

goes and how dilma rousseff or even if she can get out of this crisis we know all about what the protesters are saying. what about the supporters of lula da silva and the president? >> reporter: we saw anti-government protesters out on the streets, historic numbers last week. last night pro-government supporters were on the streets and they had a huge, huge rally in more than 30 cities all over the country. we saw hear with several thousand people. there was an estimated 95,000 people in sao aaolo. you're seeing the pro-government movers, the pro dilma rousseff supporters taking to the streets last night pushing back. their message was they see this as a power grab by the opposition and saying they will

not have a coup. the opposition also inverying rated as well - invigorated as well. this country is divide politically and on both sides the supporters are coming out on the streets in force thank you for that. voters in the republic of congo is heading to the polls. >> reporter: the president has been so for a long time. from 1979 to 1992 and after a brief civil war he rae gained power in 1997. heap went on to win disputed

elections in 202 and 2009. last year he secured the right to seek a third consecutive term in a constitutional referendum. he seems confident he will win the polls. >> we will win this election. we have a lot of of supporters >> reporter: eight opponents are running in the first round, but former army chief is his main challenger. he used to be the president security adviser before retiring last year. opposition leader says various issues make it an unfair election and it may be flawed. >> translation: it is not possible for the president to win this election. on it would mean that the people's vote has been stolen. we will reject the result >> reporter: last year several opposition supporters who were against a third term was shot and killed.

>> right to you there are people running, going to the village, it is like a bad movement. >> reporter: some fear there could be violence after the election. the european union hasn't sent election observers. it says the election won't be credible. the international community has been relatively silent on him extending his term in office. political analysts say it may have something to do with the economic issues here. the african union has sent observers, but it didn't do the same in burundi when the president ran and won what some have called an unconstitutional third term. congo's controversial election is another test for the west and the african union which could show entrenched economic interests and perhaps double standards

al-qaeda's north africa faction has claimed responsibility for a mortar attack on a gas plant in the saharan desert the u.s. and the philippines have agreed on five locations for american forces under a new defense pact. one is in the south china sea. it was approved by the philippine supreme court in january two years after it was signed. local groups were opposing the presence of u.s. military in the country. the philippines is among the countries most exposed to natural disasters in the world. as the country prepares for the presidential elections this may, candidates will focus on climate change and a television debate on sunday.

>> reporter: fishing villages like this one have been hit hard. this man says he catches less now. two and a half years ago the typhoon struck the area devastating marine life here. he relies on charity and he and his community continue to rebuild their fishing industry. >> translation: for nearly two and a half years the authorities wasted time. now national agencies and politicians are fighting over who is to blame for the lack of action. i want to hear about what the presidential candidates are going to do with the situation >> reporter: the effects of the fight off and on with were catastrophic. the ka agree five form had wind up to 285 kilometers per four. as many as 7,500 were killed or still missing. thousands more were displaced. in this village a thousand were killed, 900 of them fishermen.

last year francois hollande came to see the effects climate change has had on the philippines at a time france was preparing to host the u.n. summit on climate change. many of the schools and churches destroyed by the typhoon were used as storm shelters. reconstruction continues and housing here is being built to potentially withstand any future natural disasters. the government has allocated 3.6 billion dollars to all storm-affected areas. aid workers say this is a step in the right direction, but more needs to be done to ensure that people's livelihoods are also protected and that leads to investment. people need to be supported to change how they're earning an income and there needs to be the necessary infrastructure around centers to make sure that the current jobs people have are not put further at risk when typhoons come. >> reporter: as filipinos prepare to go to the polls to

elect a knew leader, hope the new president will do more to help them the u.s. and chooip have opened a joint nuclear safety facility on the outskirts of beijing. the project has been in the work since 2013. the aim is to comploef nuclear security - complete nuclear security. obama is about to embark on an historic trip to cuba, the first by a sitting american pet in nearly 90 years. gentleman it's still looks like the havana of the pre--cold war era when havana was the play grond of the u.s. like many visitors will feel

thrust pack into the 1950s when he sees the architecture and the old american cars from before the 1959 revolution still working against all odds: he will be able to admire the center when he tours old havana. perhaps stop here. or eat in one of the scores of new privately owned restaurants, test meants to a limited expansion of the non-state section. >> part of this magic and this moment is precisely because we have accumulated so many layers of history and beautiful architect technical ur and design-- architecture and design. >> reporter: it also has decades of deck a. he won't see ways on the inside. some of these have deteriorated because of lack of maintenance and repairs. this one has collapsed.

it has been condemned and yet there are still families living inside. 74-year-old has been living here since he was 12. he says he is finally about to be moved by the government. >> translation: there is no pluming. so at night i bring water from the assuming tank of the building next-door only for the toilet and to bathe because it's too contaminated. >> reporter: cuban torts will likely tell obama that the crumbling buildings are the fault of u.s. economic sanctions. although many here say the government neglect is mostly to blame. still the city is a metaphor of a cold war bilateral relationship that ask falling apart. a relationship that was kept frozen in time and which with obama's visit appears to be taking a giant step into the 21

st century still to come we've got all the sports. serena williams reaching the final for the first time in 15 years. years.

again, welcome back. an american astronaut and russian cosmonauts arrived on the spags station. it will replace a crew that ended a year long flight.

the space station took six out. it will spend the next six months living and working aboard the 100 billion dollar research facility that it flies 400 kilometers above the planet. sport now. >> reporter: lewis hamilton has clinched poll position for the formula one opening race. drivers now have to line-up and are eliminated one-by-one at 90-second intervals instead of at the end of each stint. that has brought criticism from fans, drivers and team bosses who describe it as pretty boring. in fact most teams didn't bother running in the last session opting instead to save their tours for sunday's race. hamilton clocked the fastest time ahead of his team mate who was second fastest >> i really have to just not

take my hat off, but take my hat off to this team to raise the bar once more in a third year to be here. it inspires me, motivates me and i really just enjoy driving the car today. >> surely we're not on the front row, but we still have high hopes for the race and it is going to be a long year. we know that this car has a lot of potential. i think as a starting point third and fourth. so looking out the second row is a good achievement. the team has been pushing very hard. as i said, we have a long year healed of us >> reporter: one of the biggest rivalries in the cricket world will be renewed in the next few minutes. rain has delayed the toss. a surprise loss to new zealand on tuesday.

pakistan won their opening match against bangladesh by a big margin. >> we're going to take this as a positive sign. the pitch is really good. yes, we have got a good attack. we need runs on the board. >> as far as indians go and the pakistanis go, i don't think they watch the game as a game of cricket. they want to get one up on each other. there is much more to the particular game rather than the game taking center stage. as far as people are concerned, they put their emotions into the game. it is for the players it's trying to keep the emotions aside and playing the game the best way we can >> reporter: english premier league leaders leicester city will seek to extend their lead when they travel to chris alpal's. this has been a terrible week for the gunners who were kicked out of two competitions. the fa cup and champions lead.

they're leading two million at the moment defending nba champions beat the maverics 130 to 112. the rockets beat the minnesota team 116 to 111. houston have won ten of their last 11 games against minnesota. serena williams has become the oldest ever fiblist in the masters turn meant. she over came a slow start to beat her opponent in straits sets. the american is through to the final of this event for the first time in 15 years. she will now face her opponent on sunday. at 34 years remand six months, she is a month older than

martina was in 1991. novak djokovic set up a semifinal voluntary down against -- show down against nadal. he is going for a fifth title. the last time novak djokovic played nadal was in january where the serb one six one six two. nadal is looking good. he closed out the match six four six three. the world number five is looking to lift the trophy for the fourth time. >> the first event of the year was not fish, but it was the

best performance of the year. i'm happy for the way that i completed the whole week and today i played today good. 13 under, the australian is a seven time winner on the pga tour. it has been a thrilling finish to the 60 metre race at the world indoor championship in oregon. bromell was fastest in a photo fish. -- finish. that's all your sport for now thanks very much. that is it for this news hour. i will be back in a couple of minutes with a full bulletin of

news. i will see you then. ll see you then.

>> hello, i'm nick clark. you're watching al jazeera live from doha. also coming up on the program. a jet crashes killing all on board. france looks for extradition