that's what they were talking about. for. themselves and their other countries have managed to solve this problem but you worry that this conflict could erupt into an outright open war in that sense of security people who pay the price clearly there writeup and prejudice setting the stage for serious debate up front at this time on al-jazeera. zero. when entering. the united nations reveals that a new report that many children are the victims in conflicts all around the world

on what it says is a shocking scale. i'm richelle carey this is al jazeera live from doha also coming up i know is not there is no treatment available for me i have nothing no medicine no money. on the medical evacuations underway from war torn syria or too little too late. women are a results expected on thursday in liberia's presidential election runoff between soccer legend george way to and vice president joseph. hundreds of prisoners exchange in ukraine and one of the biggest swaps agreed to between moscow and kiev . the u.n. is warning that children in conflict zones all around the world are under attack on what it calls a shocking scale and a unicef report says children have become front line targets and are often used as

human shields as mayor recruited to fight and enslavement have become standard tactics the conflict in yemen was one of the worst for children in two thousand and seventeen with five thousand killed or injured your agency is calling on all sides in conflicts highlighted in this report to abide by international law and stop targeting children schools and hospitals and reports. when you're in the moderate refugee camp in lebanon's eastern because valley is not easy. last year for several months shelters which are made out of bits of wood and plastic sheeting were blanketed in snow warm clothes are often in short supply and fuel can be expensive or hard to find. really to help vulnerable refugees prepare for the cold temperatures the u.s. refugee agency offers cash and other assistance to those who most need it so far around six hundred fifty thousand refugees have received some form of help but many others are still doing without they need more c one in winter to keep warm the

blankets they need more food they need medicine because of the diseases that spread more easily in the winter season. according to the u.n. h.c.r. more than three point eight million refugees and internally displaced people in syria lebanon iraq turkey jordan and egypt need winter assistance a cold weather program which began last month is aimed at helping the most vulnerable families they receive a mixture of cash assistance building materials to repair and weatherproof shelters and winter items including thermal blankets gas heaters and warm clothes but of the two hundred twenty eight million dollars needed to finance this year's winter program so far only one hundred forty three million dollars has been received a shortfall of nearly forty percent today we are facing funding shortfalls which forces you and other aid agencies to target the assistance that we are able to deliver to the families who are most in need the poorest of the poor unfortunately

we know that many other families who are also in need do not have access to this assistance today and while syrian refugees and internally displaced children face another winter away from their homes according to unicef children have been used as human shields trapped under siege targeted by snipers and lived through intense bombardment and violence unicef is demanding all parties involved in the fighting abide by international laws so that children like bees don't have to suffer in. zero. there's a fourth i think forsyth is the deputy executive director of unicef he says children are increasingly being fran into conflict what we've seen in recent years and even more so in twenty seven is children being deliberately targeted i mean we've heard stories from our staff on the ground in bangladesh but also in mean maurice south about wrecking the children who've stood by us soldiers of right on

their mothers have shot their father even brutalized those children the cells and they're saying to those children they're deliberately doing this we have stories from within syria and from a school that we worked in with snipers deliberately targeting the children in the playground i was in northern nigeria recently and i met children who would who had to talk to me about being forced to be on human bombs for boquete her arms and this deliberately targeting of children to make them part of the conflict to brutalize army is a is a is a new development yes it's always happened in part but it seems to be growing and growing is normal now that you can target a hospital a group of doctors in syria told me recently when i was in northern turkey how the armed groups wouldn't even come near the hospital because the hospital was more of a target than the armed groups so hospitals and schools are being deliberately attacked children are being brutalized and it feels like all the rules in war as

you say that used to at least protect civilians and children in particular in these terrible wars have all disappeared and feels like there are no rules to protect the most vulnerable children in these conflicts and our appeal is unicef is to all the warring parties whether their governments or rebel groups is it surely we can all agree that we need to protect the children. aid workers have begun evacuating critically ill patients from eastern go into the rebel held area under siege in syria's capital damascus for some including children treatments come too late. holder has this report which includes some pictures viewers may find distressing it's a start but it's not enough only a handful of east scooters critically ill are being allowed to leave to hospitals in damascus which is less than an hour's drive away twenty nine patients the majority of them women and children a six month old baby was on that list but when the aide workers reached those house

they found out she died weeks ago the syrian government is allowing them to be treated outside the besieged opposition stronghold after the armed group. agreed to release some government prisoners it's not clear if new deals will be reached it has been four years since east hooter was besieged by the syrian army the siege has tightened in recent months there are according to the united nations almost five hundred urgent medical cases. man has brain cancer she says her condition is only deteriorating the u.n. says more than a dozen people have already died while waiting to be evacuated for treatment i know there is no treatment available for me here i have nothing no medicine no money i'm just waiting for god's mercy it's not just the lack of medical supplies there is a lack of food the united nations says the area is experiencing the worst case of child malnutrition since the start of the conflict and. the lack of medical

equipment of vaccines have affected children also they are malnourished and this has that to a number of diseases unfortunately that children are facing in dire conditions. there have been three reported deaths because of malnutrition in the past two months. well not even two months old when they died the u.n. says more than one thousand five hundred children are at risk among them two hundred thirty two who are acutely malnourished more than four hundred thousand people. are believed to be children just under siege. despite the russian guaranteed deescalation that was supposed to have. in september aid reached the area for the first time in months but it was only enough for forty thousand people there is suffering in this region and the fear is that the worst is yet to come the government is using this siege and starvation

tactic as a military strategy and as the situation worsens the likelihood of a surrender becomes more real. syrian. government forces supplies are running short with the access to international. more. it's under siege the basic necessities of life here are in short supply through the hardships locals are learning to improvise with what little they have. here at this makeshift tailor shop blankets and old clothes are given new life. over the years of war life is getting tougher and harsher residents come to me with the blankets handed out to them by the relief agencies to tailor them. to be made out of the blankets others ask for jackets or even pajamas. but it's still not enough the u.n.

has struggled to get aid into besieged areas but agencies complaining of overwhelming challenges to access after five years under siege locals are getting desperate. these blankets are handed out to us to use to keep warm but residents here cannot afford to buy fuel or a daily meal they are forced to make out of blankets and they wear them day and night in this cold winter people here are fed up. it's just one of many besieged areas in syria where tens of thousands of people are struggling to survive and with little help coming from the outside world the people of all will have to continue to find ways to fend for themselves into monohan al-jazeera by various election commission it's expected to announce official pulmonary results on the presidential runoff on thursday former soccer star george away it claims he's on track for victory but as opponent president joseph says it's

too close to call. reports in the capital monrovia. liberia unsweet for the outcome of tuesday's runoff election many place what they call a peaceful vote vote counting is underway and the process of telling results trickling in from all them five thousand polling stations across liberia why the national may show up early has been. there were. very small number of incidents to report where the incident occurred and i should mention they have been dealt with on his part in most of these cases if not all the contest pits fifty one year old former football star where against seventy three year old joseph walk i who has been the country's vice president for the last twelve years but falling coincided with christmas and many chose to stay home observers say the tunnel close much lower than the fuss round held in october

delatour commission says it will announce the results in four days it's what happens often whether the losing side will accept defeat that has most liberians concerned. liberia is one when it's willing to destroy the women and that will mean for us to go back to war for anybody to be president of this country and we will not do it we are going to have peace is children of this country need peace and they also want peace and we're going to call for whom ever we decide is president of liberia international observers to a calling for calm so one person was with that person. because we all knew this. so the issue is now when you know. if you when you celebrate is celebrating or should be because you go to the president of everybody if you lose you also. for the first time in more than seventy years this was founded by freed american slaves

will see one democratically elected government power to another whoever wins will inherit tonic or me but by forming prices of liberia's main exports of rabat and i don't want to force depreciating currency in the past twelve years ellen johnson sirleaf has guided this country through the process of recovery from civil war on the horrors of a bull outbreak but you too has been criticized for not doing much to talk all poverty and corruption in hog government have it all does it or monrovia liberia still ahead on al-jazeera i'll tell you why more and more people in argentina are relying on food donations just to survive plus. i'm wayne hay reporting from thailand where the military government says democracy will return at the end of two thousand and eighteen but we'll tell you why many believe it won't happen.

hell i would chain of weather systems will start to march through the levant now i suspect you see some cloudy in coming through on this satellite picture looks fairly benign i think it probably will be develop a few showers with no more than mostly just high in the sky twenty in beirut six in aleppo still above where it might be expected to be terror and about right for average and it's bit warmer maybe than you might expect in baghdad in kuwait but not very much we've seen higher temperatures not recently if anything there might be creeping up an indication once again of feeding the wind up from the sas still seventy in jerusalem twenty one in beirut in the sunshine most likely otherwise not much going on here to be honest dropping sas on the fairly stiff breeze is going to die down i think going to the gulf twenty three or twenty four seems likely in doha clear blue skies the most part of it dusty every now and again warm on the western

side which is fairly normal for any time they had to be honest but notable now to south africa the weather is fairly benign there are showers at the eastern cape and beyond durban because you could be caught by some warm sunny johannesburg and also in most of botswana the big pall of cloud to the south of that from angola through zambia toward southern towns near this is the line where showers could be persistent pretty heavy. witness documentaries that open your eyes at this time on al-jazeera.

rushing out to syria let's take a look at the top stories right now a new report by unicef warns that children in conflict zones all around the world are under attack on a shocking scale the report highlights the deaths of children over the past year in afghanistan child suicide bombers linked to boko rom and at least five thousand killed or injured in the war in yemen aid workers have started vaccinating critically ill patients from eastern. in syria's capital damascus last month the u.n. call for five hundred people in need of urgent medical care be allowed to leave only twenty nine cases have been given approval and at least eighteen people died while

waiting. results in liberia's presidential runoff are expected on thursday former football star george way it says he's on track to be the successor to outgoing president ellen johnson sirleaf the vice president joseph camp says it's still too close to call. the cranium government rebels have completed a swap of hundreds of prisoners of war torn eastern ukraine the exchange took place near the city of go which is mainly controlled by separatists the swap is said to be the biggest since the conflict began in two thousand and fourteen or a challenge has more from moscow. but both sides are now confirmed that this prisoner swap has concluded with people being handed in both directions across the front lines in eastern ukraine the numbers that actually did see the lines a big difference from the earlier advertize figures of three hundred six people going from kiev territory but to the east and seventy four people going from the

eastern regions back into kiev territory the reasons why the numbers are different is because some people were transferred earlier some people on both sides it seems didn't actually get want to go back to where they come from this is. and events that has been quite a long time in the making the final impetus though came as a recent meeting in moscow that was attended by the heads of the two separatist regions in eastern ukraine by the head of the russian orthodox church patrick carroll and by representatives from kiev but the the real political will it seems has come from both kiev and also from moscow with vladimir putin saying that he was going to use his influence with the with the separatist regions to make it happen it's a breakthrough undeniably a step in the right direction and the sides now we're talking about keeping this going they're doing more prisoner swaps but while people are still dying while

moscow is still supplying the rebel regions with weapons and hardware etc and while there doesn't seem to be a final drive for peace this is just a step in that direction we haven't got to the destination that we want to get yet which is a final political solution the outbreak at the sick a virus two years ago now caused a global health emergency many cases were in the northeast of brazil where the illness was linked to an increase in babies born with a condition that severely limited their development now those children are toddlers in the extent of their health problems it's becoming painfully clear that if john heilemann reports from received a parent say they are getting a little help from the government. two years after the see care but there mick brazil and the world has moved on but niger and elise a still here. is one of almost three thousand babies who were born with microcephaly and underdeveloped head and brain cools. the majority likely say

we're in the north east of the country now we're now just zero first visited receive thing in two thousand and sixteen and i just said the government was yet for them let's what's changed ali as you know the government. assistance for a few families i know some of them in my case i've never received anything it's been more than two years and we haven't got a thing. he leases medicine is so expensive the family's income can't cover it they have to rely on donations from friends nigerian nurses have around the clock but her conditions getting worse i've seen the mill caught up in the morning i don't have too much hope from the bottom of my heart is hard for a mother to say that but i can imagine allison ten years time in fifteen years time i don't dream about it that is why i like to make things happen today. as it is. elise a and others ecosoc to children and receive faith receive free rehabilitation

from a foundation partly funded by the government but it's overwhelmed one hundred fifty is stuck on the waiting list all the time getting deeper amazed in the semi blindness and muscle stiffness that typifies the condition was to me live in two to says they need more funds we try not to let people forget about seeka and because you know we still have all these children and we still have a burden and it's and it's involves the government but also a public health. issue that has to be addressed and never forgotten the government says that it hasn't forgotten as well as engaging in a massive campaign to eradicate the mosquito which carries you seek a virus it since we're invested about fifty million dollars in rehabilitation centers like this one and next year it's promised eight million dollars more.

at a christmas party for children with red diseases we met not a gain of the mothers who say they haven't seen enough money they feel they're struggling alone enjoying small moments in the midst of a lifelong battle for them and their children. john homan i would desire to receive brazil. argentina as president rates or mockery as pressing on with the reform agenda that he says all modernize the country but as traceable reports and us are as there is plenty of opposition to the plans. free vegetables in front of congress in one aside as well senators gather to vote inside in the last session this year farmers brought twenty thousand kilos of their produce to give away to those in need of us all like we are here so that senators know the what they vote for has an impact on people's lives costs have gone up for everyone inflation transport energy but we want to share and draw attention to the demands that this government needs

to do a lot more. was elected two years ago with a mandate to rein in government spending and rejuvenate argentina's lagging economy after years of the center left precedence of cristina fernandez the commissioner of the government of mali so mike lee has pushed to have a series of laws that it says will make argentina's economy more competitive like reforming the pension and tax system but there are many here who disagree they say that the government's reforms are benefiting corporations and north the country's most vulnerable. among them i people. she's retired and says she couldn't miss the opportunity of getting some free food for us you know you find the pension i get is not enough and what i'm buying now would cost me a lot i worked all my life and now i can barely survive. despite scoring a resounding victory in october's congressional elections makea spent reform

sparked a violent protest last week in one of scientists that left dozens of people injured and new legislation changed the way pension increases are calculated which could end up hurting the elderly and those who depend on social security. the government said they were for him to restore order to argentina's chronically. count. the path of the argentinean economy is very tight with the possibility of crises along the way but for now i believe the government has a clear idea of what it wants to do it's trying to open up the economy to the world after years of financial isolation. argentina has a history of economic crises that have left millions living in poverty even though the government insists economic reforms will lead to a brighter future there are many who doubt that the government's plans will turn

out well. and an asian volcano mount sinabung has erupted spewing ash more than four kilometers into the sky it's on the western island of sumatra and is one of one hundred thirty active volcanoes and indonesia lasser up to two years ago killing six people and forcing tens of thousands from their homes two thousand and eighteen is shaping up to be a landmark year for thailand a new king will be crowned the military government is planning to hold elections signaling a return to democracy after a coup three years ago and the first of our series looking ahead to some of the big stories of next year when he reports from the northeast of the country where many are doubtful that it will go ahead. a long dusty dry season is well underway on the plains of northeast thailand by the time this crop of kosov is harvested in about a year thailand should be a democracy again most ties here back to the government ousted in the military coup three years ago including parrot on a torn a coordinator for

a pro-democracy group called the red shirts she says people in the northeast dump the military will honor its pledge to hold an election in november. i would say seventy percent of the people here don't believe the election really happened and there's. percent it might happen even if the election is held the type of democracy will be different to what thais had before the coup the military and the establishment in the capital bangkok know that it's very difficult for them to win support in parts of thailand like this that's partly why they've designed a system that will result in weakened political parties after the next election the military will hand pick senators to sit in the upper house of parliament who will also have the power to install an unelected prime minister the plans are being criticised by the major political parties i think everybody will recognise that the bust for short of the kind of standards that we would like to return to the leaders

of the coup in two thousand and fourteen are also drafting a twenty year strategic plan that future governments must follow everything is is planned on the site so and that the military military can hold on to power with the. plans and strategy that he had earlier formulated. a good time i was the party ousted from power by that coup former prime minister yingluck shinawatra who's in exile avoiding a five year jail sentence for negligence related to a failed rice subsidies scheme says her trial was politically motivated as in rural communities in the north and northeast where farm incomes a falling her party's popularity seems to be intact but while political gatherings remain banned campaigners such as parrot porn have no choice but to get their hands dirty networking in the fields wayne hay al jazeera made on tiny thailand i

am part two of our look ahead series will report from the us on what midterm elections could mean for donald trump's presidency that's on friday here on al-jazeera. dancers in colombia star largest city cali have celebrated christmas with their annual parade to represent the spirit of the city and residents have come together to dance through the night. reports on the festival work and colombia's salsa capital. it might have been born in new york to be a cuban where that's latin america's most famous rhythm is truly at home in colombia spared city the self-titled capital where the dance is celebrated with a huge hurry them christmas day. this time under a heavy rain that's about a continuous flow salsa for the counting noses everything look at us totally drenched we love we are showing it once more today. we live and it's all

idiosyncrasy fifteen hundred then cers parade through the south saw that there must rating cali's unique acrobatics. feat move an extreme pace to the frantic beat as dancers skip and turn. kylie both over one hundred south schools attracting an increasing number of foreign aficionado's still going to look at what makes kelly special is its people's unique passion for dance salsa dance almost everywhere in the world but only here people with such little means do so much to get here dancers train all year to be chosen for the parade and dream of one day reaching the world also championship sixteen year old nothing says that for many poor becoming a dancer is a way to make a living and change stereotypes i know that. this is where we become more than kids from the ghettos we get associated with drug trafficking and prostitution but

that's not who we are we dance for ourselves and for our image we work long hours stay out from the streets take care of our wellbeing all our free time all our effort is for to dance this. in this part of the cali fear for stevie he's celebrating its sixtieth anniversary it's the one time of the year when all calais new is deeply divided between rich and poor come together to celebrate and then through the night. it started with will be raising a way out for your report that we'll talk with you at the end of the show the commander never lets stop. trying to make a. world south second capital my sound like a bold claim but seeing a news dance you can't help but think it's true i listened to just.

take out the headlines for you right now a new report by unicef warns that children in conflict zones all around the world are under attack on a shocking scale the report highlights the deaths of children over the past year in afghanistan tell suicide bombers link to boko haram and at least five thousand killed or injured in the war in yemen so hospitals' and schools are being deliberately attacked children are being brutalized and it feels like all the rules in war as you say that used to at least protect civilians and children in particular in these terrible war was all disappeared and feels like there are no rules to protect the most vulnerable children in these conflicts and all repeat as unicef is to all the warring parties whether their governments or rebel groups is it surely we can all agree that we need to protect the children and workers have started evacuating critically ill patients from eastern canada or rebel held on klav of syria's capital to mask this last month the u.n. call for five hundred people in need of urgent medical care be allowed to lean but

only twenty nine cases have been given approval and at least eighteen people have died while waiting. the korean government imposed russia rebels have completed a large scale prisoner swap war torn eastern part of ukraine it took place near the city. which is a mainly controlled by separatists exchange is said to be the biggest since the conflict began in two thousand and fourteen seventy cranium prisoners have been speaking about their release. i'm very happy that i'm going back to ukraine and i thank everyone for the work that's been done to be able to help me see my loved ones again we. spent a year and a half in a cell one by one and a half meters without anything no deliveries nothing they treated us as if we were dogs pulmonary results in liberia's presidential runoff are expected on thursday former football star short says he's on track to be the successor to outgoing president ellen johnson sirleaf but his opponent the vice president joseph says

it's still too close to call argentina's senate has approved a major government tax reform program as well as next year's budget plan it's part of president push to cut costs and bring in investment last week a pension reform bill prompted widespread protests as are the headlines keep it here witness this next. one term begins right now but it does not in there no terrorist state poses a greater or more immediate threat than the regime of saddam hussein this is a regime that has something to hide they have here a significant propaganda. and guess what not one w m d shite was found in iraq since the one nine hundred ninety one iraq a deadly deception at this time on al jazeera.