a man the police say is a key suspect in the paris attacks is arrested in belgium. i have the world news from al jazeera. saudi arabia's planning to build a bridge across the red sea to egypt to boost trade. u.k. prime minister could have handled the row better saying it has not been a great week. djibouti's president of 17 years wins yet another term.

one of europe's most wanted men is now in custody. he is the suspected of taking part in last year's paris attacks and the belgium prosecutor involved is investigating whether he is also connected to the brussels bottom bombings in which 32 people were killed. >> reporter: belgian police arrest a man on the street in central brussels. one of five suspects rounded up on friday. part of the investigation into the resent attacks in paris and brussels. among them this man on the run for five months he was wanted in connection with the paris plot. >> translation: this afternoon he was also arrested plus albay as well aas him two other people. their digital prints and their d.n.a. was identified in the car that was used during the paris

attacks. >> reporter: he was last seen in this cctv footage at a petrol station in northern france just two days before the november attacks in paris. he was with his childhood friend paris suspect salah abdeslam also arrested in brussels last month. they were driving an renault used by at tackers. the prosecutors say it is too early to say whether he was the man in the hat just before the blasts. what is clear is catching him is being seen as a major break through for belgian authorities. >> it is better to have them alive than dead because you can get intelligence from them. that's with one thing that the belgians pride themselves on. in the raid in paris where they were able to get the paris attack ring leader, everyone in the cell in that raid was killed. the belgians say they take longer but they're capturing them alive.

>> reporter: also arrested is a man believed to have helped the bomber at the metro station. as the investigation continues, these latest arrests reveal the links between the paris and brussels attackers in yemen al-qaeda fighters have kidnapped and executed 20 government soldiers. local officials and residents said the soldiers were aligned with the president. they were travelling from the south port of aden to another province in the east. their path takes them through the province where al-qaeda's has tightened its control in recent months saudi arabia plans to build a bridge over the read sea to egypt. it is promising fundings despite low oil prices. the bridge would boost trade

among the two countries. >> reporter: historic was the word most used by both the saudi king and egypt's president. there was an historic announcement too. a plan to build a brother-in-law linking egypt and saudi arabia-- bridge linking egypt and saudi arabia >> translation: this historic step is a transformation that will increase trade between the two continue incidents to unprecedented levels >> reporter: he made the announcement during the second day of his visit to cairo. a physical link between the to countries would be a powerful symbol of mutual solidarity and arab unity. >> translation: the unique quality of the relations between egypt and saudi arabia, the extent to which the strong and deep rooted would allow us to face mutual challenges. our cooperation will certainly allow us to resolve all of our regional cris es, such as in palestine, yemen, libya and syria. >> reporter: it was a visit about politics and economics.

from the king a warning that saudi arabia and egypt would stand together against outside infer feerns by which they mean iran and its ambition in the reap john. for egyptians, much more. the two nations are signing agreements including a multi million dollar deal where saudi arabia will supply egypt's oil needs for the next five years. also the bridge of 3 to four billion dollars. vaesh and our gulf nations have provided president sisi with support since he came into power. this package from vaesh to egypt dwarfs all previous agreements it larks y has recalled its ambassador from egypt. rome is not satisfied with how the egyptian authorities are investigating the murder of an italian student. you will remember the body of the student was found in cairo in february showing signs of tortu torture.

>> reporter: it was supposed to resolve tensions over the murder of the student, but after two days of meetings, egyptian delegation had little to offer italian prosecutors. nowity lee says it is recalling its ambassador for consultations. on social media the prime minister said italy will not stop until the truth was uncovered. egypt's response, they had no idea why the ambassador was being recalled. his body was discovered in a ditch in the outstirts of cairo on february 3. nine days after he went missing. his body bore signs of torture. his mother said that he was only able to recognise him by the tip of his nose. human rights groups have said that egyptian security forces were behind the killing. an allegation cairo has repeatedly denied.

>> translation: the egyptian authorities have been utterly unable to collaborate in an effective manner. what they have done all this time is to give very often non-credible versions of events. it's offensive to the memory of j eurekas lio. >> reporter: for his family, frustration is mounting. two weeks ago his mother threatened to publish a photo of her dead son's body if there was no progress in the case. the murder has affected many here in italy. looking at the media here the message is that it needs to do more to yield answers after who was behind the killing of this italian student people returning to palmyra which was understand i.s.i.l. control was recaptured after fighting with pifl which took over the area nearly a year ago. a russian army team has been working to remove land mines

planted all over the historic site. i.s.i.l. has released nearly 300 factory workers kidnapped in syria. elders in the area negotiated the agreement. the group says in effect some 170 has freed as others had managed to escaped. they were taken after an i.s.i.l. offensive on monday. the syrian opposition has taken another area in aleppo countryside after intense clashes with pro-government fighters. russian air strikes targeted at the time opposition and al-nusra front positions in the southern aleppo country sides. a syrian academic and writer at the doha institute has been following developments on the ground in syria and he said the opposition is making grounds in the fight against i.s.i.l. >> it seems to me that there is a race on the ground between government forces and their allies and opposition forces and their allies to gain as much territory from i.s.i.l. as

possible. i think every party is trying to present themselves as a force to defeat d.a.e.s.h. the syrian regime and russian forces over the past two weeks have been trying to make a big deal out of the palmyra defeat of d.a.e.s.h. by saying the syrian forces, the syrian army is the force that can really eradicate d.a.e.s.h. and that is the duty of the international community, mainly the western powers, to support the sish regime in this-- syrian regime in this fight against d.a.e.s.h. they manage to gain a lot from d.a.e.s.h. over the past few weeks because if you have been following the news, the regime forces took palmyra and others, also another important outpost in the syrian desert from d.a.e.s.h. in the north we have the opposition forces that have

taken a town from d.a.e.s.h. which was an important crossing point between syria and turkey. the two parties are making gains against d.a.e.s.h. in different fronts police in el salvador have raided the local office of the law firm at the center of the panama papers data leak. they have seized papers and computers. this report from our correspondent. >> reporter: el salvador is the latest country t launch an investigation into the murky world of offshore finance as a result of the panama papers leak. this office was raided by police after they suspected it was about to be closed down. the attorney-general's office said it took action after the firm's sign was removed on thursday night and an employee said the company was moving. attorney-general oversaw the raid.

>> translation: at this moment we are unable to speak of a crime. we have to do our job and find information and investigate it from a financial, legal and economic point of view. >> reporter: the papers were released into the public eye last week. they show how wealthy people, including politician and heads of state, use offshore companies to avoid paying tax. the law firm is based in central america. it set up nearly a quarter of a million companies for its clients over the past 40 years. the firm insists it has broken no laws. meanwhile, panama's embattled government is seeking a solution after being put on a financial black list. >> translation: i want to make it clear that the mesh taken today is wrong and unnecessary. instead, there is communication between heads of stay and multilateral communication between all countries to face

global problems, the unilateral decision like the one taken doesn't contribute to anything. >> reporter: prosecutors in el salvador say they want to interview lawyers from firms that worked with the company. they're warning potential witnesses not to try to conceal data relating to the case the british prime minister has admitted to handling the revelation of his connection to the panama papers badly. he was addressing the u.k. conservative party spring forum in london. his father's name had been leaked in the papers to have observed some of the firms involved. >> it's not been a great week. [ laughter ] >> i know that i should have handled this better. i could have handled this better. i know there are lessons to learn and i will learn them. don't blame number 10 downing street or nameless advisers.

blame me. i will learn the lessons in the news ahead on al jazeera, farmers turn to new technology to stave off the devastating effects of drought. a break through in space science as a rocket booster lands by itself for the first time. we will tell you why that is important. important.

top stories. a suspect has been arrested in

belgium saudi arabia plans to build a bridge over the red sea as a road link with egypt. the king made that announcement while on a visit to cairo. egypt's president says it will be named after the saudi king. police in el salvador have raided the offices of the panama law firm at the center of a data leak known as the panama papers. british prime minister has said he could have handled the fallout from the leak better after his family was linked to tax avoidance. going back to an earlier story where al-qaeda fighters kidnapped and executed 15 government soldiers in yemen. we've got our correspondent with us on skype. editor in chief of the yemen post. thank you for that. sounds quite significant when you're talking about 15 government soldiers in al-qaeda - sorry, 20 soldiers.

tell us about this. >> it's not only those who were killed. there are also those injured in the attacks. this shows a lot of messages to equal. it happens one day before the ceasefire. it is a political message, those in power saying that, yes, [indistinct] al-qaeda today is very influential in yemen and honestly controls more territory than even the houthis in yemen. they do have influence and existence and today five days stronger than what they were five years ago. just lack of government or absence of government been a very powerful recruiting tool and not to mention the high poverty rate.

ask the strength of al-qaeda will be a big factor because they're not involved in any ceasefire. they want to go from strength to strength while others will want to talk about a ceasefire. >> exactly. it's known that even if the war ends in yemen, the peace deal will not be complete until months from now. the longer this peace deal is delayed or is reached, when the talks come to an end, they will have to face a new power in yemen, the al-qaeda, who have nows of new fighters to control more territory than they do right now thank you for that djibouti's president has been reelected for another five years. he has ruled the east african nation for nearly two decades

already. the leading opposition parties had also boycotted the vote. >> reporter: it was an election rife with tension in claims of foul play. with the benefit of incouple ban s see, he he had the benefit of victory >> translation: topt the people have decided to entrust me with the highest authority again. i thank the almighty along the election campaign which took place in calm and serinity. >> reporter: he is only the second president the country has had since becoming independent from france in 19 p #. the former chief of intelligence ran for a fourth term after amending the constitution in 2010 to remove time limits. voting took off first thinking on friday, it was slow but picked up. the electoral commission was forced to add an hour more to

voting time to accommodate voters waiting to cast their ballots. the opposition parties are angry. they were not allowed a say in the appointment of the commission. even before the vote was held, they considered elections fait accompli. >> it's it is over, it is already - how do you say - the winner. everything is done. it's decided, it's already decided. >> reporter: the election was monitored by local and international observers. >> i think it's high time that they adopted the area and establish a commission to manage all the elections and the results and allow for elections dispute resolution mechanism which is important. >> reporter: the president has always been a front runner in these elections. attempts by the weak and fail opposition to fill that single candidate against him failed earlier on in the year w a fresh

five-year term, he joins the league of longest serving african leaders drought and conflict in dafur are expected to create too food short ages in the coming months. the famine early warning system says four million people are likely to face food insecurity between now and september. >> reporter: these 20 hectares are being cultivated with grit and devotion, passed from father to sun. following the previous generation's way of farming is no longer an option. a cycle of drought disappointing harvests and infestation of insects has forced adam to adapt. >> translation: we worked hard. we do our best. the new techniques have changed some of us and that's why we have managed to cope.

>> reporter: recognising the threat facing farmers due to drought and conflict the group practical action is assisting. he has learned the importance of diversifying the variety of crops he grows and planting in rows. he has also lenders how to make a more effective fertilizer. this water spreading dam has helped farmers like him enormously. since 2004, 11 dams have been built to help cope with the chronic drought and to control the flow of rain when it does come. farms in the area have doubled their agricultural output. one of the flash points of the conflict in the area is the tension between farmers and those rearing animals. this man tells us that with no rain it's getting harder for him to find pasture for his goats to graez. he says we need more routes for our livestock to pass through. when herders can't find them,

they allow their animals to graze on farm land. this often triggers violence. that's why practical action is bringing the two communities together to resolve differences and negotiate routes for livestock. >> the capacity with living together, they're sharing the natural resources. so i wants aim here to bring the people together to improve the situation. >> reporter: despite the lack of rain, he is ending this year's harvest with a better outlook because of the dam and the new techniques he has implemented. with the changing climate, he now know if miss 12 children continue farming, they too will have to evolve. their livelihoods will depend on it north korea's state media has record a successful test of a new engine for an inter continental ballistic missile.

this video shows the leader supervising a military test and military drill, so it doesn't specify the date. it was conducted at the north korea west coast. south korea is saying the north is actually years away from developing such a missile. 13 north koreans have defected to south korea. they were working all of them at the same restaurant. women in india have gained access to a shrine for the first time in four centuries. women were allowed to offer prayers at the temple on friday following a court ruling last month. in november activists started a movement to demand entry for women into the temple, but several other temples still ban women from entering. poetry slam is the act of reciting and enacting poems to an audience.

a report on two young using it to fight sexual abuse >> last night you came home to me drunk and said baby where have i hit you? >> reporter: a poem about domestic violence performed by this poet. >> you said you would do me no harm >> you said you would do me no harm. >> reporter: her friend joins in. >> is it that easy to forget what you said last night. >> reporter: by know the two have been known for their bold poems which makes people squirm on their seats. >> we started in 2010 when there was a spoken word workshop. >> we were writing poetry before that workshop as well, but seeing the performance affect, the words were like it became alive and when on i was first on stage i remember being nervous

as well but also feeling very liberated sort of and then it was like a hook. >> reporter: since then the two got together with other participants and started word warriors. now it has spread across the country among young people and they're involved in training more people in spoken word poetry. it has really captured the imagination of young people here several hundreds, thousands watch them online and can even mime the words. hundreds more have followed the lead to become warriors themselves. >> reporter: trainings like this one are being held all over the country. they get more requests for training. >> i call it being poetry struck. we see that happen to people, to younger kids than up, just eyes light up and it's like we've seen people who were like really shy or are not kind of awkward, but they go on stage and it's

sort of like a validation that you get when you're telling your own story on stage that empowers you in a certain sense. >> reporter: that sense of empowerment can be seen in the poems of the slam poets. they raise the issue of women's right to pass on citizenship to their children. they ask if mother's nep's charn then are they nepali and the crowd cheer on a report from our science editor on spacex launching a rocket. >> two, one. >> reporter: the launch of the spaceex rocket has become a regular occurrence. this time an unusual cargo is on board. once docked with the international space station, annex pannedable space habitat known as beam will be removed from the visiting craft and attached to a port on the

station. >> once that operation is complete, n.a.s.a. astronauts will initiate the deployment of the beam, it will expand out to its fully deployed structure and at that point astronaut will enter the beam >> reporter: normally they're made out of sealed aluminium shells packed with insulation and shielding. their size is limited by the type of rocket they're launched on. to get about this, they have developed annex pannedable craft that provides a habitat four times its back town size >> this type of technology can be a complete game changer in terms of making deep space missions to as troyeds, the moon, mars, more economical. they allow you to have more volume for smaller amount of mass >> reporter: the walls are made out of 16 layers of high-tech materials, pressure seals,

radiation and heat protection and a layer of material that is similar to that used in bullet proof vests. >> if you're going to get shot, would you rather have aluminium in front of you or kevlar like weave which is a similar technology. i would vote for the kevlar. it is a much safer system when it comes to both radiation and physical debris which is why these will keep them safe far into the future >> reporter: the company behind beam has plans for a bigger model. it says it will make long duration space travel cheaper and more comfortable. >> as you spend more time in an extreme remote environment, psychologically it is more comforting for you if you have more volume. it is the difference between staying in a youth hostel and staying in the penthouse sweet of a five star hotel. you're going to stay somewhere for many months to years, you want to live in that penthouse swoout. you want more volume >> reporter: the expandible

space habitat will spend two years attached to the international space station undergoing tests. if it's road accidents durable and cost effective as the company believes, it could change the way humans live and travel in space >> it's christmas eve and u.s. soldiers are preparing for their last month in afghanistan. about 40,000 are still here. by the end of the year there will be just 8,000. we traveled to afghanistan in