on the rich and powerful the world news from al jazeera. also ahead, greece begins to deporting refugees to turkey as part of a controversial e.u. deal. surprise sacking yemen's president removes his prime minister weeks before u.n.-backed talks. plus, celebrations as the west indies beat england to be the only team to win the world

twenty20 title twice it is being called the wikileaks of the mega rich. an investigation into the hidden wealth of some world leaders and celebritiess. they're a leak from the fourth largest law firm. more from our correspondent. >> reporter: panama city has been a booming financial hub. it has a representation for money laundering for the world's rich. there has been release of documents from this company. hundreds of journalists from more than 70 countries have analyseds files from database. it shows links to 143 politicians. among the leaders named are the

president of argentina, iceland's counsellor and this one. an than unprecedented leak of documents shows how voot vladimir putin inner circle became very wealthy. his best friend is at the center of a scheme in which money from russia state banks is hidden offshore. other relatives and associates of those implicated in the leaks include the son of malaysia's prime minister >> it raises further questions for the political class as a whole because european countries, u.s. have been talking about greater transparency. switzerland has cleaned up its banking, but it turns out that offshore companies are popular still >> reporter: investigators in the u.s. believes one company in the documents supplied fall for

war planes that the syrian government used to bomb and kill tens of thousands of citizens. lps revealed in at documents was a shelf company in panama owned by this football star and his father. spanish investigators are investigating him for tax evasion. here in latin america several countries have been linked to that firm, including mexico, argentina and brazil. mexico has received hundreds of millions of dollars in contracts. in argentina the president failed to disclose the fact that he is a director along with his father and brother on a company based in the baham as and in brazil an investigation into billions of dollars paid in bribes, five members of that law firm have been charged in that ongoing investigation our correspondent sent us this update from beijing. >> reporter: the documents

reveal that the brother-in-law of chinese president xi jinping became the sole owner of two offshore companies in 209. by the time she became president in 2013 these companies were dormant. ownership of offshore companies is not a crime per se, but it will invite questions such as the purposes for which these companies were incorporated, whose its real beneficiaries are and how much money has been funnelled through these companies. there is nothing to implicate president xi jinping of wrongdoing but it is a major cause of embarrassment because in is a man who has made anti corruption one of the hallmarks of his leadership, yet here are his sister and brother-in-law caught up in this revelation. it is not the first time their wementdz was in the new zealand. in 2012 bloomberg reported that they had hundreds of millions of dollars in assets. it comes at a particular bad time for the president when there have murder four--

murmurings over him. the question is what impact will it have on him and the government. there is very little mention on this on social media sites andrew thomas are has more from sydney. >> reporter: already tax avoidance and tax evasion, some of it legal, some of it illegal, is a hot political topic in australia. people do not like the idea that the richest people in this country are skwirling away money in offshore bank accounts, not declaring the income they earn on those assets for tax purposes while everybody else halls to pay towards school and hospitals. the revelations in these documents that there are a thousand or more taxpayers who are using this company in panam a to do that. the australian tax office that regulates all of these things

say they've had an early heads up and they've been looking through the documents. they've already identified 800 australian taxpayers. they're looking into their records to see if what they've been told by those individuals as to how much money they earn in any one year and how much tax they pay now tallies through this great cache of documents. it will take an awful lot of time and, obviously, they're not just look at individuals but companies too. just one brief example, one big banks here and p anz that has branches right across the pacific island countries as well as australia, it has been mentioned 700,000 times. it shows the complex web that is now being revealed by this great cache of documents. it will take a long time to go through them to find out who in this country and other countries around the world has done what and whether any of it is wrong, legal or illegal

a look at the scale of the papers. over 200,000 companies incorporated by the law firm have had their details leaked to journalists. more than 11 million files have been shared via an aanonymous source. 370 reporters from 100 media outlets spent a year annual loo liesing and verifying the documents. 140 offshore firms named in the documents are linked to politicians and officials and are families. it says it has acted beyond reproach and procedures an expert in offshore banking. he says the issue is far greater than the panama papers reveal >> they have an easy job of finding these places to hide money because panama is know

tour yous, it is a small country, but it is one country in one through one law firm. multiply that by 60, including others, you're talking about a massive number of people who are hiding money of one type or another, and it's usually dirty money, from drug traffic itting, corruption or fraud a second vote has now left-- boat has left greece carrying refugees back to turkey. 750 people are expected to leave lesbos on three different vessels. for many the deportation has taken a step back from the long journey they hope to make to europe. >> reporter: these are the people who face deportation if they're -- their request for

asylum is rejected. it is in line with a deal with turkey and e.u. to stop the illegal flow of migrants. a young syrian inside sent this video to us because journalists are barred from entering. we managed to speak to him from behind the fence, but he had more questions than answers. he told us there's a lot of anxiety and uncertainty. >> translation: i defected from the syrian army and i can't be sent back, he explained. what will happen to those who are sent back to turkey? do syrians qualify as refugees or just? some it is a concern expressed by the u.n. which fears that asylum applications are not being properly processed and safeguards are not in place pichlt we feel that there are still deficiencies and gaps in both countries that need to be addressed. we're not opposed to returns as long as people are not in need

of international protection. they have not for asylum and pupil rights are adhered to >> reporter: the e.u. insists there will be no mass deportations and international law won't be violated. it's helping greece do prepare for the deportations. the ships are waiting at the port and dozens of guards have been deployed to accompany them back. they have been informed about their choices. to apply for asylum, not to apply or voluntarily return to turkey. choices most don't want to make. some have families that have reached northern europe before it shut its doors >> reporter: the deal and the tighter border restrictions have not stopped the rivals. it may have-- arrivals. it may have slowed, but in the last few days 2,000 people have

landed on their shoress. the deportations may send a message that the doors are closed at least through illegal channels meanwhile turkey is building reception centers for migrants and refugees who will be returned from greece. tents are being prepared at the western port of sesmay. turkish authorities have not disclosed how many refugees they will accept or how their asylum will be processed. pro-refugee demonstrators have clashed with security. they're angry with the new e.u. deal restricting refugees and migrants from coming into europe. yemen's president has sacked his prime minister and vice president replacing him with two loyalists. he said in a statement that the removal was due to government failures. the move comes just a week before a ceasefire kicks in. our correspondent has more.

>> reporter: he was once promoted as the man to bring the warring factions together, known for his consensus politics, a require figure that seemed to get on with deeply divided groups. a year after his appointment, his vice president and prime minister is gone. a casualty of his deputy's failure to deliver the governments that yemen needs. in a statement heed: >> reporter: he has appointed two men to replace him, both of them supporters of the president. he does a long-term politician. he will take up the role as prime minister and then there's this man. a senior army commander who is well-known but not always well liked amongst the varies communitying groups in yemen's

conflict. he is to become the new vice president >> we're looking at this decision coming just two weeks before peace talks in kuwait are set to start, a week before ceasefires is said to start and we're seeing the replacement of him and he is being replaced by a former military right-hand man of his adversary. he is in a country of controversial politicians. he is one of the most controversial ones >> reporter: despite the talk of peace, fighting on the ground continues. at a heavy human cost. the u.n. says more than 6,000 people have been killed since the saudi-led coalition air strikes in march last year. around half of them were civilians lchl a thousand of those were children. people were starving well before houthi rebels sweat - swept in

2014. more than 24 million people need humanitarian aid. backed by forces loyal to former president houthi rebels still hold the capital and eight of yemen allegation 22 provinces. a year of air strikes have not managed to break their hold. the differences between these two were no secret, but he insists he won't be gone completely saying his former deputy will remain as a presidential adviser lots more still to come here on al jazeera. how laos is dealing with a tourist boom. the show goes on for a popular musical festival in pakistan despite an attack in a park. k in a park.

welcome back. a quick recap of the stories here on al jazeera. a leak of more than 11 million documents from a panama-based law firm have revealed how the rich and powerful hide their wealth. it shows links to 143 politicians, companies connected to president xi jinping also. a deal to send refugees back to turkey from greece. at least 750 people are expected to be returned to turkey on three different vessels in the coming hours. yemen's president has sacked his

prime minister and vice president replacing him with two loyalists. he says his removal was due to government failures. syrian state media says government troops have taken over a town 100 kilometers west of palmyra. it felt to i.s.i.l. last year and considered to be a stronghold in the homs province. government forces were backed by russian air pour. it was said the capture of the town would secure oil routes between damascus and syria. the armed syrian group al-nusra leader has been killed. he was killed with his son and 20 fighters in northern syria near idlib. he was known as the media spokesman for the group. clashes between azerbaijani and armenian forces continue. it's the worst outlake of

violence in more than 20 years over the disputed nagorno-karabakh region. our correspondent reports >> reporter: despite claims of a ceasefire by azerbaijan, armenian forces report that there have been more attacks by azerbaijan's military. both sides are accusing each other of firing the first shots on saturday. they blame each other for violating a 1994 ceasefire that ended a six-year war. >> it was a dire violation of the ceasefire regime, international law, international humanitarian law and geneva convention >> reporter: some have called it the frozen conflict. it began with a decision soviet leader joseph stahlin made in 1922. he placed the enclave of the area inside the newly created azerbaijan.

christian armenians and muslim azerris lived in peace. then in the 80s, armenians held a national referendum for independence from azerbaijan and self-rule. azerbaijan says p said the region did not have the legal right and sent in its military to retake the area. thousands of muslim people from the area were forced to flee and after years of fighting and more than 30,000 deaths the region, armenia and azerbaijan reached a truce in 1994. >> translation: we are fighting on our own territory. if a soldier doesn't want to die, then let them get off azerbaijan territory. >> reporter: the republic is not recognised by the u.n. analysts believe the renewed skirmishes could lead to a greater regional war

>> the big question mark worried about is that it wouldn't stay confined to those two countries. there is a good possibility of turkish intervention and a possibility of russian intervention if the fighting becomes an all-out war >> reporter: the ose group chaired by ambassadors from the u.s., russia and france has been trying to negotiate a peace deal for years now. the group will meet again on tuesday in vienna more details are emerging about the insured palestinian man who was killed by an israeli soldier in the occupied west bank. israeli media says his autopsy confirmed his death was caused by a shot to the head. indian prime minister modri has been awarded the highest honor when he met with the king in

riyadh. saudi arabia is the largest supply of crude oil to india. 19 journalists have been arrested during a demonstration over press freedom in the maldives. police used pepper spray to break up the protests. the demonstration was against the government's move to have a law for dech medication. the hong kong movie 10 years has won an award. the portrayal has riled china but it has been a box office success. broadcast of the awards have been pulled on the chinese mainland and it is believed that 10 years could be the reason. >> translation: today i feel hopeful because a lot of film makers use 10 years to express their point of view. if 10 years ask not a best film based on the artistic merit, then it must be best film

because of its social significance. the reality of hong kong, the problems that we face. at this moment, i want to say that 10 years has shown that the hong kong people are fearless, that we're fearless when it comes to our creativity a world heritage tag is bringing more visits to lao; than it can handle. the government is taking steps to protect areas because of growing tourists. >> reporter: this is a former kingdom rich in history and culture. it has been protected under the united nations world heritage program. this man has lived here all his life and he says the results in tourism has been great for the local people. >> translation: since it became world heritage listed, it has been easier for local people to earn money through taking tours

or making products. >> reporter: people come here partly for the unique combination of laos and french architecture which was one of the reasons it was given protection by the u.n. the former capital remains the center of laos bud him which is also an attraction. it is said there is a negative side because too many people are coming and the small town people can't cope. this year more than half a million people are expected to come here, a number that is likely to grow particularly when a high speed train line is finished in about five years. along the way it will stop in the area. it is acknowledged that there are challenges facing the town. the cultural agency has placed it under an annual reporting psych embut the critics may need to consider what it would have become without protection >> the buildings were falling

apart, nobody had the money to maintain them, proper inventory had not been done. there were no staff that why qualified on site to take care of these places >> reporter: the local government is the main protector of the area. it is developing a new site to take some of the new pressure off the old town. it believes it is doing a good job of handling the tourism boom. >> translation: the number of tourists is increasing. we have strict regulations to protect the town so that the area will continue to be well-known. >> reporter: the communist country only started opening up to tourism about 27 years ago. it remains a poor nation and needs the tourist dollar which puts pressure on this historic town. so far the government seems to have managed the problem, but with numbers set to grow, that pressure will increase some sport now and the west in tishgs es have become the first every two-time winner of

world t20 final. there was four sixes in the last over. our correspondent reports. >> reporter: england and the west indies faced off in what was to be one of the most dramatic finals. england down to 23 for three inside five overs. the recovery for 54. 40 in the last five overs helped england reach 155. the west indies chase started badly. two wickets in the second over, including that of chris gayle. it was now their turn to fight back. samuels had a century and he an chored this time with an

unbeaten 85. they needed 19 to win in an epic final over. ben stokes, one of the consistent bowlers at the tournament watts blown away. the all rounder smashed three sixes in the row to get the scores level. with one needed from three balled he sealed the win with another six. history for the west indies. heart break for ben stokes and england >> the will be devastating. we share everything >> it was just a joy. we needed this. we've been through so much and to come out here and win this tournament, it was just amazing. >> reporter: much has been said about the decline of the westindies as ace test force. in twenty20 they are setting the standards a music show is playing on in the pakistani city of lahore despite the recent bombing that

killed at least 70 people. >> reporter: the music plays on in a fitting tribute to a city globally reknowned for its art and culture. part workshop and part concert, the concert 2016 almost didn't happen after last week's attack just a few kilometers from here. organisers were going to cancel it. >> it took us time to sort out exactly what we wanted to do once the attacks happened. the only thing we needed to figure out watts whether it was all right to be able to do this. [ ♪ ] >> reporter: the musicians say it is a blessing it has gone. he is happy to showcase his art.

>> i just wanted to do something fresh with punjabi because it is my mother tongue. >> reporter: experimentation is one of the things of this festival as is going digital. aside from the bands there are a number of workshops and stalls that address the future of pakistani future and the music in the industry. it is the country's first streaming service and in a few short mass has a back lag of 20,000 songs and 200,000 users. despite that, it has faced teething problems, something it says is being addressed. >> usually we have a couple of problems but they're resolved. the problem is that there is no licensing body to get the rights from. so we have a thousand artists. we have to go to almost every one of them and get the rights

individually. >> reporter: the future seems bright for pakistani music because of the fans who have come to hear the music that they love all the news, of course, on our website. there it is on your screen. the address, aljazeera.com. eera.com. >> s i was the first to have my identity. >> i never felt a connection to anything or anyone. and i was constantly just trying