this is al jazeera hello. this is the news hour live from london. coming up in the next 60 minutes. guilty of genocide, a u.n. court sentencing former war was to 40 years in prison. pushing back, i.s.i.l., syrian forces fight their way to the gates of the ancient city of palmyra. belgium police are seeking a second suspect in the metro

bombing. a race against time to indonesia's orangutans. >> reporter: sports remembers kruyff who died at the age of 68 the former bosnian serb leader says he will appeal a 40-year jail sentence after being found guilty of genocide do you agree the balkans war. he was acquitted against one count in 1992. he was convicted on another for the srebrenica massacre in 1995 in which 8,000 men and boys were killed. he was also found guilty of crimes against humanitarian during the siege of sarajevo. the judge says he was responsible for murder,

persecution and hostage that taking. also of holding thousands of irprisoner in detention camps. >> reporter: he showed no emotion as he was found guilty. the judge described how he was responsible for the siege of sarajevo where civilians were shot at by snipers and he was responsible for massacre and genocide. >> we found he had reason to know about these activities and he failed in his duty to take necessary and reasonable measures to punish the commission of genocide, murder, extermination and killings as an underlying act of the

persecution. >> reporter: many of the victims' family had travelled from the hague. the more errors of the war still etched on the faces of those who survived it. >> translation: every time i see this picture it's not easy for me because the picture remind me of the crime made by the people lead by him who killed what they could in that moment. >> reporter: he was also commander of the forces. after the war ended, he disappeared. nato forces looked for him all over bosnia. but he was in neighboring serbia, disguided as an mysing tic healer. many at the time turned leader said it was a hue mail yags. the 40 year sentence falls short

for some. there is a sense of frustration here that he was only convicted of 10 of the 11 counts against him. there is anger at the length of his sentence with some people saying it's too short. >> translation: outside the court his legal adviser was confronted by relatives of the victims. >> he was disappointed and heap was astonished by the verdict and he has asked us to appeal. >> reporter: his conviction closes one chapter, but in a society still divided on ethnic lines, reconciliation is still a distant hope joining me now is a bo bosnian muslim whose family was

involved. can you tell me how you felt? >> i was following on my phone because i was at work. it was a different kind of moment, i felt emotions ranging between sad and happy. finally, some of it is over. i always think of the women who are still looking for their loved ones, the remains of their loved ones. they will have some satisfaction, but you can't say we're happy, we're excited about it, but it is another step to hopefully bigger change your emotions are clearly mixed over this verdict. what would you like to have seen? >> i think it's about time to start discussing what has been

created by people like him. it's fair to say now genocide has happened, the world has to start the issue and it goes into the books, children should start learning about it. i want the next step to see what has been created. he has been found guilty of these. it is based on concentration camps and raping, massive killings. are we going to say that this so-called islamic state should stay what happens to those people, then, that, obviously,

an agreement was made after the war and divisions and emotions over what happened clearly run deep, memories are still fresh, but do you also feel a sense that we have to move on, perhaps? there has to be some kind of reconciliation going forward? >> there has to be. the only way it will happen is it people allowed to have that what does that mean in practical terms? >> weave three presidents. the country is divide in two or three, we're not sure. there are three presidents. it is a mess. it makes no sense. it didn't work for 21 years. it's never going to work. given a chance, given 21 years from now to live together, remove all the nationalists people around, like dude karngsd others, and i-- dudek and others, i guarantee it, people will live together. there are a few examples where

the church, catholic church and a mosque is right next to each other. it is a predominantly muslim area. people rebuilt the churches and they want to live together. it's the politicians that won't allow it thank you for coming in and giving us your reaction, obviously, very significant day for you given the experiences of your family during the balkans war. thank you >> thank you the u.n. special envoip to syria has wrapped up the latest round of talks. the next round will be focus on the political process said staffan de mistura. >> first of all, i have a feeling that we have been able to overcome this two week

results. and a paper that that has not been refused on either side which could be an understanding of principles which means next time we take the principle aside and we look now on political process syrian government forces have entered palmyra in an event to take it from i.s.i.l. the city fell to i.s.i.l. in may last year. its recapture would be a victory for bashar al-assad's forces. >> reporter: the pictures broadcast on syrian state television are said to show a significant advance. syrian government troops fighting to retake historic palmyra from i.s.i.l. stat media showed war planes and helicopters flying over ahead as soldiers approached on the ground. while there has been no independent confirmation, the syrian council for rights reported fighting outside the

city on thursday after the syrian army moved to the city outskirts on wednesday. they captured the city last may and began a campaign of mass executions and destroying an shenlt sites. strategically situated between damn as casino as derazor it makes it a strategic place. forces were withdrawn after six months of aerial bombardment, the army of bashar al-assad has made advances in rebel held territory. it coincides twm peace talks for a solution to the kril war. a ceasefire between government forces and opposition rebel factions has significantly reduced violence, the cessation of hostilities agreement exclude

al-nusra and i.s.i.l. they find themselves under increasing attack as both countries commit more troops to a fight each has vowed to win i.s.i.l. has released video showing its fighters in palmyra. they're seen driving around parts of the city that they claim to still control. the syrian council for human rights said many fled them after i.s.i.l. told them that the fighting was drawing closer. meanwhile, dozens of people have been killed in fighting in another province after two i.s.i.l.-affiliated groups launched an offensive there. fighters belonging to groups are trying to push out other armed out fits from the area. they're targeting al-nusra as well as the free syrian army,

among others. events in syria as that continues to go on, i.s.i.l. coming under pressure in that country over the border in iraq the military there says its troops have started their long awaited offensive against i.s.i.l. in the crucial city of mosul. this is part of a wider plan to retake the government many of nine strshgs ah. many groups are gathered tom take i.s.i.l. more on this now joining us live via skype is a security analyst

and professor at the university of bradford. i ask you about recent developments in syria, the forces of president bashar al-assad along with russian military forces are now targeting the city of palmyra. how constant would it be if they managed to retake it from i.s.i.l.? >> it would be quite significant, but in two different ways. one is that it would represent some degree of achievement for the syrian government, almost the first time that it has retaken territory from i.s.i.l. it has taken territory with russian support with other groups in north-west syria but this would be the first time so far as i.s.i.l. is concerned. we must be concerned that this offensive is very much backed by the russian air force. we have all these reports of russian withdrawing its forces from syria. the information has came out today that only about a third of the aircraft has gone back to russia. russia is involved in supporting

the syrians in taking palmyra you've got those two elements that would be significant, but it does not like something that the syrian government can do on its own. if it could, of course, it would be difficult for the west because the west, while it pivots to i.s.i.l., is also to the bashar al-assad regime i.s.i.l. could be on the verge of losing palmyra, after that raqqa could be targeted, the de facto capital, at the same time iraqi forces are saying that they are launching an offensive to retake the strategic city of mosul in that country. as a group loses ground does it become more dangerous for europe? >> it does. one has to be very cautious listening to what is coming out.

they have controlled areas since december. we have learnt that i.s.i.l. actually has units in and around ramadi. i think the idea that mosul will be taken easily in the coming weeks and raqqa is under threat is basically just not true. i think one has to be careful about that we have to treat those reports with caution and certainly the offensive to retake mosul is going to be a big job and many say it won't happen this year. nevertheless, what we're hearing from u.s. government forces and others that i.s.i.l. are losing territory in both iraq and sir yap combined and losing more and more fighters. as they come under pressure in those countries, do they become more desperate to essentially show that they are still relevant by staging attacks in europe? >> i think you're right there. what has happened is the air war started in august 2014. it has been running for 20

months. in that time the pentagon believes it has killed around 22,000 i.s.i.s. supporters, para militaries and others. that coincided with kay change of policy. it's looking to attack overseas. it started with the attack on the [technical difficulties] and then attacks in paris and the terrible attack in brussels it this week. there has been a change of policy. europol says i.s.i.l. has a long-term aid to get military inside europe to stage these attacks. you have a question why. one is to demonstrate it is still there in response to the attacks it's receiving. secondly, to stir up more anti muslim bigotry in western europe. thirdly, in a way, as a kind of

retaliation for the losses it is suffering. the reality we have to face it is that i.s.i.l. is losing about 30 or so fighters every day. that is roughly equivalent to the terrible death toll in brussels on one single day. it presents itself as being able to target back, to attack back against the west. it is a direct change of policy, more akin to al-qaeda 15 years ago. i think it represents a way in which the war is expanding. i'm afraid to say i think they're going to be more attacks in europe, at least on the scale of brussels and paris thank you for sharing your analysis with us. there is more to come for you on this hour of news. video emerges which appears to show an israeli soldier shooting down an incapacitated palestinian attacker. >> reporter: in california with

a report on how the el nino weather system is putting both humans and animals at risk and in sport south korea stay on course for world cup qualification. qualification. belgium police may be hunting not one but two fugitives they believe are connected to tuesday's bomb attacks in brussels. that comes as a number of senior minister officers offer their res ignore neighing over perceived failing in their service. >> reporter: how many were involved? three are shown at the airport. two are known to be dead. one on the run. belgium state media say there may have been to twelved at the

metro station, a suicide bomber and another man still at large. serious questions are being asked of the intelligence services. the background of brahim el-bakraoui should, perhaps, have rung alarm bells. in january 120 he was involved in a violent armed robbery at a money exchange office if brussels shooting at police. in september 120 he was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison. in october 2014 he was released on parole and absconded. the first indication of i.s.i.l. affiliation came in june 2015 when he was arrested in turkey apparently en route to syria. a month later he agreed to be voluntariliy deported back to the netherlands. turkey warned the authorities that he posed a serious danger. >> what seems to appear from the

investigation, from what has happened, is that we have underestimated the role or the intentions of a number of individuals. that's one thing. the other thing is we have probably underestimated the scope of the cell that was involved in the paris attacks in the first place and then subsequently in the brussels attacks. >> reporter: more survivors are starting to speak. many suffered severe burns. this woman was at the airport when her world your honoured upside down >> there was an enormous sound. i was on the floor. i found myself covered in brown stuff. it stank of burning flesh. i got up and left as quickly as i could >> reporter: her experience is that of dozens of others also caught up the have in the explosions.

in another strand of this investigation, salah abdeslam's lawyer ran a gauntlet of cameras. the 10th bomber from the paris attacks did not appear in person but notified the court he won't oppose extradition to paris. >> i think the most important part of the file and i think the explanation has to be given there not in belgium >> reporter: there have been more memorial ceremonies. the country's king and with queen paid their respects and presented a wreetdz of flowers. -- wreath of flowers. a moment's silence was observed. it has developed into more than five minutes of silent reflection now. the public opinion here in brussels is also changing from the initial grief and shock to anger at the parent failings of

the police and the intelligence services. the interior minister and justice minister have both offered to resign their positions. their resignations were refused by the prime minister, but the core as of criticism-- core us of criticism - shall chorus of criticism is not going away vogues into brussels and paris attacks have been centred on the suburb of molembeek. jacky rowland travelled there. >> reporter: it has gained a certain reputation. yes, there are challenges, poverty, unemployment, a young population, but it was by no means inevitable that salah abdeslam and some of miss friends would be tempted by a message of mass violence. there are more than 20 mosques and informal prayer rooms here. that is quite a concentration in one neighborhood, but it doesn't provide many clues as to why young people are being

radicalized. >> translation: the recruiters have known for a long time that they're not welcome in the mosques. no-one is listening to them. if someone says we want dwrur son to go to jihad, we tell them to go away >> reporter: these days young people are more likely to be prechd away from the mosque, maybe on the football pitch or in a café. this lady runs a youth program at the town hall. she says young people are most vulnerable to i.s.i.l. messaging when they're in their early 20s and trying to find their way in life. >> translation: recruiters move under the radar, usually they're not from here, but they come into the area where young people hang out. they spot the ones who look the most angry and fragile and they approach them casually, predenieding to be friendly and eventually they start talking to them about syria and draw them

in. >> reporter: the revelation that some of the bombers lived here is hurting the whole community. the negative stereotypes of people have about the area is part of the problem. imagine you're a young person, finished school, you've got good grades, but ten an employer sees the word molembeek on your cv and that's the end of your chances. here is one local man who decided to go against that trend. he has opened an organic café with a difference, offering halal salam i to his clientele. >> translation: one of my priorities is to help people work their way out of poverty. that will help them get ahead and improve their lives. >> reporter: it's an alternative vision to the one pushed by i.s.i.l. recruiters. the idea that you can be a full european citizen whilst still being proud of your own culture and heritage.

jacky rowland violence has erupted between police and students in france over proposed labor reforms. protesters threw rocks and police responded with tear gas over possible changes to working hours, pay and new rules that would make it easier to hire and fire staff. the government says the change is needed to help lour unemployment which is currently above 10%. authorities in greece say no migrants have arrived on the islands in the last 24 hours. it is the first day with no new rivals since a deal between the e.u. and turkey came into force at the weekend. it's thought the halt in boat rivals may be connected with bad weather. the news comes as france's defense minister said hundreds of thousands of migrants were hoping to cross from europe to libya. john kerry has been discussing the situation in syria with his

russian counterpart lavrov. our correspondent has been following the talks in moscow. she joins us live now. what do we know about these talks? >> reporter: it is ways a very long meeting-- it was a very long meeting. it lasted about four hours. they're coming out of that, john kerry said that they discussed ways to make sure that the ceasefire tholdz. he said that they had decided that a new constitution should be written by next august. he said the issue of detainees is one that is important and should be resolved as soon as possible. that is something that the opposition has been asking for, for a while. kerry also said that he found

that putin was committed to the political process and he wanted to know how he pulled his weight on bashar al-assad to make him stick to his part of the deal. we got an answer from that from the words of lavrov. he said that now tackling the very difficult issue of the political transition, a transitional government should be the immediate priority aimed at geneva talks. he also said that interest in syrian dialogue is important at this stage too t so far there hasn't been any direct talks between the government delegation and the opposition. now it seems that russia does agree that that has to happen as soon as possible and it does agree also that discussing the entering government, discussing the transitional government that would then lead to elections in 2017 should be the priority at the geneva talks, something that

staffan de mistura, the u.n. envoy staffan de mistura for syria, had been calling for and had expressed some level of frustration at the fact that maybe the syrian government delegation was not tackling that issue. it was more talking about modalities and principles rather than really tackling the core issue about how to bring about this transition thank you for that. israeli soldiers say they've shot and killed two palestinians who tried to stab them at a check point in hebron. footage has emerged of one of the palestinians being shot as he lay incapacitated to the ground. our correspondent has more. >> reporter: the 21-year-old man has been shot and lies injured on the ground. the israeli army says he and

another attempted to stab a soldier who is likely injured. other soldiers stand around and then suddenly one takes aim and and to shoot the palestinian in the head, videorecorded by the human rights group said it will probably do little to calm an already intense situation. this is a microcosm where a thousand israelis living around 100 thousand palestinians. they explain of harassment: many incidents have taken place in hebron. around 40 palestinians have been shot dead after allegedly trying to stab israelis. palestinians dispute the stabbings happen at all. this will only strengthen the belief that israeli soldiers shoot to kill, no questions asked. in a statement, the army says it views this incident as a grave

breach of army values, conduct and military operations. the soldier involved has been detained and a military investigation is underway there is more to come for you this hour. obama offers to shed more light on the fate of 10,000 victims of argentina's dirty war who are still unaccounted for. also. >> reporter: i'm in northern kenyan camp. these refugees will be going back home. i'm talking to them about their fierce and hope as they start a new journey to restart their lives a champion is set to lose his title. his title.

>> the only live national news show at 11:00 eastern. >> we start with breaking news. >> let's take a closer look. welcome back. you're watching the news hour. a retap of the top stories. the war criminal karadzic said he will be appealing his 40 year

jail sentence. government forces have advanced to palmyra taking control of two i.s.i.l. positions in the city. the month-long cessation of hostilities has saved 3,000 lives. belgium police may be hunting not one but two fugitives in connection with tuesday's bomb attacks in the metro in brussels u.s. president obama has offered to declassify more documents on the u.s. involvement with argentina's former military. he made the promise after laying white roses at a memorial for victims at what is called the dirty war. it is the 40th anniversary of the coup that brought a military regime to power and led to the death uz of up to 30,000 people >> told in response to a request from the president and to continue helping the families of the victims find some of the truth and justice they deserve, i can announce that the u.s.

government declassify more duments from that period including for the first time military an intelligence records because i believe we have a responsibilities to confront the past with honesty and transparency activists in argentina are calling for obama to declassify all files which are believed to show u.s. involvement in the dirty war. our correspondent has been meeting some people for whom the files might have spared them years of pain. >> reporter: it has been 40 years since the country was ruled by a military rule. a time when those poor opposed the regime were systemically disappeared. the u.s. is promising documents about their role >> translation: my husband was kidnapped and i was pregnant. my marth started to participate in a really ee to release them. she was taken too. i never saw her again

>> reporter: she is trying to find what has happened to her husband and mother for decades. she says the u.s. has information that would have saved her years of pain >> translation: we know that the u.s. government knew about what was happening. some bodies were found in 1978. they had been kidnapped with my mother. it would have saved me a lot of time if i had known back then that she was dead. >> reporter: this is the navy mechanic a.m. school. it used to be a clandestine detention center. this says the united states was also part of the dictatorship. human rights organizations are saying obama is not welcome here because they're not willing to forgive or forget the role that the u.s. played at the time. >> reporter: many of those killed in the 70s and 80s were victims of the condor plan where latin american dictatorship persecuted opponents around the

world. this man has been investigating the plan for years and he is impressed by the amount of knowledge the u.s. had about what was happening. >> translation: henry kissinger said if you have something to do, do it fast. it is impressive how much knowledge they had >> reporter: the human rights secretary says that finding out the truth will help the country move forward. >> translation: opening the archives will help us. more we know about what happened will help. hiding the truth generates more pain >> reporter: she is was able to find the remains of her mother in a mass dpraif in 2005. -- grave. the hope is that the release of documents will help find them the el nino weather phenomenon is causing heavy rains along the u.s. west coast

raising concerns for the safety of society's most vulnerable and the welfare of local wildlife. rob enolds reports now. >> reporter: the l.a. river is usually a trickle in a concrete ditch, but when el nino brings its rains, it's a dangerous place for the homeless people who camp here. income, who didn't want his last name used tore face shown, says the river becomes a beast. >> translation: i live there. many of my friends drowned down there. it is very bad. >> we would like you to be out of the water. would you come on up for me? >> reporter: police officers practice trolley the river trying to convince homeless people to move to shelters. >> we don't want people to camp near theways the waterways.

shelters have been set up >> we have set them up to protect as many homeless persons as possible during the el nino rains and the unpredictable winter season >> reporter: it has space for 3100 people but more than 40,000 people are homeless in the l.a. county. a government over sight body called the count ees efforts grossly inadequate. this is a shelter of aaron entirely different kind. pacific marine mam mal center. staff here attending to seal and sea lion pups found ban doned and starving. the warmer water out there have forced fish into the colder parts of the pacific and that means it is tough for marine mam mals to feed themselves let alone yourish their young >> reporter: there have been thousands of animals rescued but

thousands more died at sea >> you can see them coming in under weight in record numbers. >> reporter: it is heart breaking. they are skin and bones. they're extreme lethargic. we create fish smoothies that have medications and electrlytes in it to bring them back. >> reporter: an animals and humans at the mercy of el nino the president has been sworn in for another five year term in zansibar. our correspondent reports from the ceremony. >> reporter: the president has been sworn in for another five-year term. >> translation: a free and fair election is the only way to get the leaders we deserve in

accordance with our laws >> reporter: the opposition leaders say his re-election is illegal and a fraud. they told their supporters not to vote in last week's rerun. polling stations in opposition areas were empty. it it was a predictable victory for the ruling party. both the ruling party and main opposition party are strong. supporters tend to support the union with mainland tanzania that has been in place since independence from british rule in the 1960s. the opposition says it should have more autonomy. they believe it is their leader who should have been sworn in. in past elections the tensions have led to violence. this time opposition supporters frortd attacks and intimidation by police and soldiers, but the streets have been calm. in 2012 there was violence. these protesters were followers of a religious group.

the leader called for independence from tanzania and for their interpretation of islamic law to be applied. two churches had been burnt. the leader was sent to prilz. opposition leader was cleared. he is worried some people could be pushed towards radicalism. >> this exercise of nigh jacking democracy may lead some people to say that we have to resort to other means. that's my fear. >> reporter: most people are muslim here. mainland tanzania has a mix of muslims and christians. almost everyone here supports the opposition. >> translation: it is better country that brought democracy here. if they don't defend it, then we will have to find our own means and defend ourselves against

those intimidating us. >> reporter: the groups close to the african continent but previously it was ruled by aman. the political divide reflects the two influences. the two factions have just about got along to a succession of agreements and power sharing government. now the main opposition party has withdrawn from what it skez it is now-- says is now an illegal government. people hope that won't jeopardize the peace plans are underway to repatriate around 50,000 somali refugees who have been living in kenya. since a voluntary program began two years ago, thousands of returned home. many thousands still remain in a camp. >> reporter: under the mid-morning sun 249 somalis collect what may be their last

aid package as refugees in north-east yern camp. they receive money to start them up. they give up their refugee status. they get to go home. this woman and herp husband are taking their six children back to southern somalia. they have lived here for the last eight years. she says it was a tough choice but it had to be made >> translation: i'm going back to my home to become self-sufficient. i'm concerned about our security but i'm told the neighborhood is safe. >> reporter: there is excitement in this bus. refugees are anxious, also cautious at the same time. they've been given their nonfood items like blankets and $1250 each to re-- $120 to restart

their lives. they don't know what to expect but it is hope. some have come back to the camp. this woman went to mogadishu with her eight children in august last year. they returned earlier this month. she says a mortar hit her home and killed a domestic workers and she was badly injured by the shrapnel and debris. >> translation: my children were traumatised. they couldn't sleep at night because of the constant gunfire and bombs. they kept saying they wanted to go back to the camp. >> reporter: roughly 12,000 people have been repatriated since the program started a little over a year ago. this is a small number, but u.n. officials say the number of refugees registering to go home is increasing. only a few are reappearing as refugees in kenya. >> in three months we repa tree

eightd the same number that was in 12 months. people continue to register to go. around 20,000 have approached the help desks. >> reporter: there is still a lot of uncertainty and violence in many parts of somalia and those going back are worried about their safety, but they're proud to be goek home to rebuild their livelies in dig admit-- going home to rebuild their lives in dignity coming up in all of sport, we will have reaction to the news that dutch fool great cruyff has passed away. passed away.

indonesia's orangutans are on the brink of extinction as their forests are rapidly being torn dpoun. >> reporter: across indonesia forests are being razed to make way for palm oil and rubber plantations. niece are the creatures paying the price. >> one of the mistakes people make when trying to connect with creatures such as the orangutan is that it's not just a mindless animals, but it's a person. >> reporter: he is on a mission. he is one of the first people to reintroduced a rescued orangutan into the wild. after failing to convince authorities to protect the

forests he has taken matters into his own hands. using donations leasing large tracts of land from the government to ensure the forests are not bulldozed. >> we've got control on a lease of everything north of here. this is the front line to have a functioning ecosystem in this area. >> reporter: he and his too team have trance forked these 34,000 hectares from a former logging station into a reserve for endangered animals. after training them to fend for themselves in the wild, this is where they release the orangutan who have been orphaned or kept illegally as pets. >> all up 178 orangutans have gone back into the forest and are inhabiting this ecosystem at the moment. we're hoping to keep reintroducing to keep a base of minimum minimum 200 of them and to 500. ultimately we hope the population expands so there's

2,000 orangutans living in a sustainable population here forever. >> reporter: now free to roam through the jungle, this population has already started breeding independently. >> an orangutan living wild is one thing, but reproducing and producing is the ultimate goal for conservation. >> reporter: on the other side they believe they have made a startling discovery. a new species of orangutan. it was previously thought that there were only two species. they believe on the one is here. >> this species is in a different environment and will move in a different direction to the population.

evolution will dictate that it will be a new species. >> reporter: he works with indonesian forest rangers to help keep illegal loggers and poachers out of the forest. but in a country where countless acres have already been destroyed and palm oil is a lieu kative money earner, making the forest safe is a never-ending battle you can see more of that report on 101 east, the orangutan whisperer at 230 g.m. t on thursday - time now for your sport with andy. >> reporter: thank you so much. one of football's greatest ever players has died at the age of 68. he was a brilliant forward and pioneer thinker. a look at the life and career of a man who turned football on its head. >> reporter: it was the move

that changed football. a group game between netherlands and sweden in the 1974 cup, a turn and cru yrngs ff turn. he was noun instantly across the world. his skills minimum seismiced. he was loved in the netherlands well before that turn meant. he made his nahum at a club that he joined on his 10th birthday. from 1971 to 1973 he led the club to three consecutive cup titles and formed part of the golden era for football. he would lead his team to the 1974 cup. total football had been born. a dynamic style of play synonymous with the dutch that involves players with interchanging roles. after the tournment he moved to bars lone for a record fee of

two million dollars. a club he would become a treasured player for and later managed. he led them to four titles in the early 1990s as well as their first european cup triumph in 1992. on thursday flags were lowered outside the new camp stadium. >> he was the most important person in the history of football worldwide, but also in barce. he was important for his job that he did not only as a player but also as a coach. >> translation: it's a very sad day for everyone not only for the barce family but also for the world of soccer and anyone who has seen his influence on the game >> reporter: his health also suffered. he was a heavy smoker before undergoing heart surgery in 1991 and he revealed last year that he was suffering from lung cancer. his family say he passed away peacefully at his home in

barcelona. he was 68. his influence on football will live on for some time to come. >> reporter: of course, football's biggest names have been quick to pay their respects. this one. another: >> reporter: the most capped player in history says he will be remembered for more than just his efforts on the pitch. >> he knew all the goals, the actions that he had, the things that he did for the national team as a coach and a manager, also barcelona with the first

championship that he won, what he did for the whole football world and not only football, but as a foundation he was doing good things for underprivilege children and people with handicap and young speakers who wanted to do combined study and sport. i think he touched a tremendous amount of people and it's an incredible loss for everybody in football and the world. they have a memory of him, many memories, yeah. it's a sad loss. >> reporter: champions are one step closer to the 2018 world cup in russia. they opened the scoring after a few minutes here. they went on to win by seven goals to nil in adelaide. the win means australia need just a draw against jordan on

tuesday to clinch group b and appeal book a place in the final round of asian qualification. syria are still in with a chance of reaching the next phase. the country can't play games in home. they were one point behind japan. the next game will decide who gets the spot into the final round of qualifiers. lebanon's hopes of reaching russia has ended. they were beaten one nil by south korea. lebanon can't progress to the next stage where south korea goes through with seven wins from seven games. russian athlete will be stripped of his 50 kilometer walk gold metal he won at 2012. a total of three russian athletes are set to lose medals. the court decided their result should be annulled nulled due to

irregularities in their passports. n.f.l. commissioner said team owners have agreed to give more cash to research head trauma injuries. jeff miller says there's a connection between the brain disease cte and football. no official had been so definitive on the subjects. >> we think the statements that have been made to jeff miller and others have been consistent with our position over the years. we've actually funded those studies, so we are not only aware of them, we recognise them and we support those studs studies studies. we're trying to find ways to accelerate the research. >> reporter: that's your sport thanks very much. that's it from me, but remember you can get much more on our website, all your latests news, sport, analysis, video on demand. it's all there. aljazeera.com is where you need to go. we will have a full bulletin

after the break. i will see you then. will see you then. >> our american story is written everyday. it's not always pretty, but it's real... and we show you like no-one else can. this is our american story. this is america tonight.

>> al jazeera america - proud of telling your stories. >> somebody to care about us man... >> we're live in ferguson, missouri. >> brick by brick, i will open it. it will take more than a few rocks to stop me from doin' what i have to do. >> suddenly heroin seems to be everywhere. >> there's no way i am willing to give up my family for a drug ever again. >> getting to the heart of the matter. proud to tell your stories. al jazeera america. >> singer / songwriter natalie merchant. >> i became fully human when i became a mother. >> devoted community activist. >> people become victimized by their circumstances. >> revelations about her new solo album. >> i was just trying to make music that transferred what was in my heart to other people. >> i lived that character. >> we will be able to see change.

firefighters in the u.s. are more liabilities to die by suicide than by fighting fires. in 2015 alone more than 80 firefighters killed themselves. but the numbers could be higher because most fire departments to not track suicides. it is a subject that's rarely talked about in the fire service. >> the average person can't imagine the crap that we see out there. we take care of everybody but we also see the worst of the worst out there in the world and you do that day innd