this is al jazeera. hello and welcome i'm peter w. watching the news live from our headquarters here in doha coming up in the next sixty minutes. the aftermath of

what experts say was a chemical attack a syrian government forces step up their assault on eastern ghouta. the u.s. secretary of state visits ethiopia hoping to improve relations after donald trump's reportedly derogatory remarks about some african countries. china promises to respond to any potential trade war as the u.s. president plans to impose steep tariffs on steel and the minium imports. and the u.k. police officer apparently poisoned by a nerve agent used to attack a former russian spy shows signs of improvement. in the world of football has been remembering the life and career day a story the funeral for the italian international is taking place in florence he died on sunday just.

our top story france warning of action if reports of another chemical attack in syria are proven to be true video showing what looks like phosphorus bombs being dropped on eastern ghouta has been released by activists they say it happened in a residential area in the town of her morea pictures emerged after eighty eight people were killed in another aerial assault on the rebel held enclave that's one of the highest number of casualties in a period of twenty four hours since russia. announced a daily five hour pause in the fighting there meanwhile an aid convoy heading for eastern ghouta has been pursued and the international committee of the red cross says it's been grounded in damascus and stripped of medical supplies by the regime on tuesday a convoy was forced to turn back because of the fighting let's get you a live update on that joining us is our correspondents in a harder you know how much pressure the rebels under right now. well they're finding it quite difficult to defend their territory the pro-government alliance

really they have been advancing inside this besieged enclave in recent days according to the syrian observatory for human rights the rebels lost fifty percent of the enclave a lot of territory particularly in the east and the pro-government alliance using extreme shelling intense bombardment to help these ground forces push into the enclave and civilians are not spared almost nine hundred people killed in the three weeks really of this bombing campaign and now we are hearing from sources that the russian government and the rebel factions. are talking they are negotiating a possible withdrawal and it includes one of the rebel factions is leaving to the southern province. controlled territory in that region and the other group. to the north of the country to areas under the control of turkish backed rebels we also understand that some aid organizations are holding meetings to prepare some sort of

an evacuation plan a mass evacuation of course this is not what the people of eastern want they want to be able to stay in their homes they do not want to be forcibly displaced but the pro-government alliance making it very clear this is the only deal on the table otherwise they will push ahead with this military campaign and push for an all out military victory. thanks very much let's stay with this story. is a political analyst on the affairs of the middle east he joins us on skype from me what's your reading of these reports of chemical weapons being used in this conflict again. say again this is nothing new unfortunately in the syrian government has gotten away literally with murder very innocent people civilians caught in the it's ongoing nothing is there's no sight and then susan called for international groups to intervene and says really spinning wheels does want this international who isn't actually. to the united nations or to new bodies the

security council and the general assembly general assembly is the ones that security council and russia has a veto which will it will use to lead. in anything concrete on the ground france and scornful or says stop it on the front end. to help the people it will not continue to do that if it's going to be militarily russians are . the ones who are calling the shots these days they control assad they control they have troops on the ground the planes in the air so it's quite hopeless situation on the theory if they're saying clave is not already split into two or it's just about in effect to be split into two is this the beginning of the and again from eastern guta. i'm afraid it would be yes because they are

outnumbered by the government troops who are not on on the highway haven't been to various last few needs they're now pushing forward the way they see the end in sight for them so. they have russian out there even any help. from the others that the opposition now is facing now facing an onslaught from the government and from the turks as well. did not want to see them succeed so this wouldn't just interrupt you for a second close oh honey this would surely be the worst defeat for the anti asset forces since well late twenty sixteen when we were then talking about what happened in aleppo assuming that assets forces are just about to take east and what do they do with it well that's what's left of. the shelling as they learned this only do they know it will go around resting and the opposition

fighters as they have in the past the more. deaths or destruction in the really right to. rebuild. one of the way it's it's been a very dismal situation really ok we'll leave it there claude. allen thank you very much. the u.s. secretary of state's in ethiopia rex tillerson we're talking about now as part of his first official visit to africa mr tillerson is hoping to improve relations after the us president donald trump reportedly used foul language to describe some african countries earlier this year now ahead of the trip to listen and a five hundred thirty three million dollar humanitarian aid plan for africa he's also criticized china's economic engagement on the continent saying beijing encourages corruption. we are not in any way attempting to keep chinese investment dollars out of africa they're badly needed however we think it's

important that african countries carefully consider the terms of those investments and we witness the model that the chinese follow follow. their they do not bring significant job creation locally they don't bring significant training programs that enable african citizens to participate more fully in the future and often times the financing models are structured in a way that the country when it gets into trouble financially loses control of its own infrastructure or its own resources through default. well the u.s. isn't the only country courting closer relations with the african continent the russian foreign minister sergei lavrov says in zimbabwe as part of a fight nation tool like the u.s. moscow is also looking to forge closer economic and security ties on the continent and particularly with the african union shortly we'll take you live to harare for

more on the battle for influence across africa but first let's get the latest on mr to listens visits to ethiopia stuffed following that one for us what's he trying to address with this trip stephanie. i think there is one main issue really concern for the political situation in this country peter it's a very very sensitive time here in ethiopia there's a gauge of emergency in place that will instill the day after the prime minister has said he was going to stand down for the good of the country for the security council because you've seen this rising protest movement in various states in a room you know hard and others over the last two and a half years or so now this second this state of emergency the americans have already made it very clear in this way through a statement from their embassy here in added after the that they are not in agreement with this state of emergency they say that it. goes against some of the positive things that this government has done which is already really think

thousands of political prisoners it says that people should be given more right and of course that this will be something that's going to be addressed he's meeting with the foreign minister as we speak now is also going to be meeting with the prime minister the outgoing one a little later today of course security and stability of this country is very important to the americans it is going to their best allies the best ally perhaps in the region the horn of africa the community is going to have tens of thousands of troops involved in peace keeping mission but can't really in somalia of course a country that borders it also south sudan because the americans will not want to see this country go into instability chaos because. they will see that in. further take allies in the horn of africa so i think terrorism will have a strong message to. present a sort of maneuver go through this political sensitive time very very carefully in that particular has to do with also who will be a point is the next prime minister i guess is well it's

a very delicate conversation a delicate path but it's got strategy because as you're saying there are challenges ahead it's a sensitive time and you can't be seen to criticize surely the chinese model of investment because that's been going on for a good ten or fifteen years now and african countries have signed up to that investment model they are content with it so they may not want to hear a u.s. secretary of state saying this is not the best way to do it when those deals are up and running. yes i mean everyone has investment in africa the american do as well but those words certainly interesting i don't know how they're going to go down in beijing it's no secret that china has heavily invested in this continent over time also here in ethiopia his comments really urging caution. to african leaders saying that they were by no means trying to. sort of a chinese investment in the continent but that rulers here should be careful as to what they were finding there not to infringe on the country sovereignty i don't

know i think the instinct is to beijing is going to respond to that the americans also did say in the past china has a very good role here of rebuilding of building because they're good at building infrastructure and things like that but during the opening that also was not like there's been a bit of a can of worms there future but i think certainly for now the focus will be on the king to ethiopia is leaders on trying to see if they can agree on a way forward that will sort of have to find a street here because there is still rumblings of unrest even outside the capital last couple of days with iranian state because people cannot assemble because of the stages of emergency. some of the leaders are organizing the strike three quiet shops quiet so i think everyone really waiting to see who this prime minister will be we are expecting a meeting of the ruling party to take place on sunday to discuss attentional candidate dark tractions within that that that third party it is

a very sensitive time i think very interesting to see who they're going to appoint and when that is going to happen stephanie thank you. well china is promising what is calling a justified and necessary response if there is a trade war with the united states the foreign minister one uses china has no intention of displacing the u.s. in such a war would only harm old sides president trump is expected to impose big tariffs on steel and the minium imports he says cheap imports from china and other countries are undermining american jobs china correspondent from beijing. this is one of those rare occasions when china's foreign minister faces both the international as well as the chinese media the news conference happened on the sidelines of the national people's congress to avoid embarrassment questions are submitted and screened in advance but clearly the foreign minister had expected to be asked questions about the prospect of a trade war with the united states he said the china wanted to avoid that but if

one happened the response from china would be both necessary and justified he said that in a trade war it's not just the target country that gets hurt but also the initiator and he also said that china and the united states have to be wary of the impact a trade war would have on other countries his language was measured but the warning was implicit lucia cheer. history tells us that a treat or is never the correct solution which is specially in the era of globalization choosing a treat war is definitely a wrong remedy the result will hurt yourself which and others and china would take the necessary response for sure. the foreign minister spoke a lot about china's role in the world he said china had no intention of displacing united states as the world's number one economy but he also said that china's rejuvenation was unstoppable but that its rise would be peaceful and throughout the

news conference there were repeated references to xi jinping thought it is a reminder the chinese foreign policy is also very much she jingping policy. the white house says mexico canada and other countries could be spared from those proposed u.s. steel and aluminum tariffs canada the largest steel exports the u.s. has been lobbying hard for an exemption kristen salumi has more now from hamilton ontario. at the nikkei in metal processing plant owner bruce timm adel relies on the steel industry to make his living just as his father did before him his workers processed steel coils from nearby plants for sale to manufacturers many in the united states or more customers could lose business as a result of a twenty five percent there are quite likely. a lot of the stuff we supply here is automotive. furniture construction tiptoe has just

seven employees but they're among the forty thousand who work directly or indirectly for the steel industry just in the city of hamilton alone ninety percent of canadian steel and forty one percent of its aluminum is sold to the united states so it's not surprising that canadians are resisting trump's plan to impose tariffs because of the threat to business and jobs hamilton chamber of commerce argues the cost of the tariffs will get passed on to american consumers were highly specialized and so it's going to take a long time for any u.s. company to below its find domestic steel that will compete against the steel that we produce right now. china may be the target of president trumps tariffs but canada is the number one supplier of steel and aluminum to the united states and the amount it comes in the midst of efforts to renegotiate nafta the north american free trade agreement which governs trade between the two nations and backs a path we've had

a very bad deal with mexico very big deal with canada gone nafta after announcing the tariffs trump suggested canada could get a waiver in exchange for concessions on nafta but canada has threatened to retaliate sparking fears of a trade war the threat is well maybe we'll negotiate an exemption if you give us everything we you want on the nafta agreement but mexico was and can are serious they might walk away well that leaves steel in a black hole steel processor tiptoe doesn't know what to expect you want to be a win win situation and right now it looks like it's. us looks like they want to win and anybody else has cost and without a waiver the cost of tariffs could be steep for canadians kristen salumi al jazeera hamilton ontario lots more still to come here on the news hour for you including a daylong response from a curfew in central sri lanka but the situation is tense after

a wave of violence against muslims. in the u.s. state of florida approves controversial gun reform in response to last month's school shooting. and in sports success for match the city in the champions league despite them suffering the first home loss in two years. the u.k.'s home secretary says a police officer harmed by a nerve agent is now able to talk the officer was her trying to help a former russian spies and his daughter u.k. investigators have confirmed a rare poison was used to try and murder them they remain critically ill in hospital song vehicle reports now from the city of souls break. away in a small city thrust into the global spotlight no one could have guessed that salzburg in southern england would be at the center of the attempted assassination

of a former russian spy and his daughter anything unusual is treated with caution as investigators trace all known movements of the victims those probably at least forty people firemen stood outside of cordoned off the the front of the. doors where the i believe it's come out from the door to go in not sure they would get out but they were had all these like buckets they were see those four guards is dressed up in hazmat go inside retrieving stuff in these boxes and put them outside in the cold area. yeah and that's all that they didn't tell us anything these images show the former russian military intelligence colonel just days ago buying so. that is and lottery scratchcards from a shop close to his home investigators are also looking into the deaths of scrip owl's family members his wife passed away in two thousand and twelve of cancer his son alexander died while on the trip in st petersburg last year a stent simply of liver failure the fast moving investigation has indicated that by

a set of a ski pole and his daughter you you know were attacked with a nerve agent no detail as to which one but they are highly toxic in summary this is being treated as a major incident involving attempted murder by administration of a nerve agents. as you know these three people remain critically ill in hospital. sadly in addition i police officer he was one of the first to attend the scene to respond to the incident he's now serving a serious condition in hospital investigators have for an open mind as to who was behind this attack in seoul sprit but already there have been murmuring accusations pointed towards moscow and if indeed it is proven that this was a state sponsored attack and that would have deep diplomatic consequences the russian government has denied any involvement but the incident bez striking similarities to the two thousand and six death of russian dissident alexander

litvinenko who was poisoned by radioactive material police are refusing to reveal further details in this case but suspicions persist as to who's to blame sonny there you go out jazeera. ok let's get more on this joining us here on the news of muscle softies a former russian diplomat join us live from moscow mr myself this is the central suspicion goes. the work of a sloppy russian who doesn't mind isn't ball that it looks like what happened to live in young co on the member the first two thousand and six or is somebody who wants it to look like that who is not a russian in your mind which might be. well izing that this case is not similar to an end. that one of going to be an in-car because this person was a breeze and to solve them for fourteen years ago all fall.

of two thousand and six he was in josh for thirteen years. i mean till two thousand and seventeen and he was freed thousand ten after free or he was convicted in spying in favor of the great britain. and he was not. a call i know of intelligence military intelligence that time he was retired call him l. and work in depth as a definite goal chief of. nicola satirises in foreign ministry. and you how. left moscow result in you blondish meant and the gate came to london ok this was wrong just to interrupt you there just to be quietly in that room though just to be clear what you're seeing is live in you and who was f.s.b.

that's an established fact but there is another common link between these two men the central suspicion again is that at the highest level in the kremlin there is a desire to get back at people who have damaged russia and the there was a public inquiry in the u.k. that said what happened to was probably greenlit at the highest level within the kremlin and there are similarities with how these people in the case met his end and how this person was on the receiving end of a quote age we don't know the name of the nerve agent yes yet will know that later on today. the beginning was escapee but the script was freed and said so why does this is a difference he was a hero when leave this fourteen years and nobody was persecuting him and now

when there is this case is used on the political base mainly and that investigation going on and russia suggested they're held for investigation in britain great britain don't find that because it is not that again is that the russian government would be responsible for that ok all blair is that they are here is there room for in the what we really said here is an idea i've got i literally want to end for which i apologize because we're just about to lose the satellite one final point amber rudd to the u.k. foreign secretary cannot be seen to let this drift we're talking in effect about a chemical weapons incident on the streets of a small sleepy english town if there's a public inquiry or a government inquiry that points the finger at moscow what happens at that point. well i think it absolutely agree with this gun collusions that it is not auditor is

saying that small town in great britain is. affected by this poison. so i think it is absolutely just a judgment and a russian suggestion to help in this but as we heard from ford in their office in the great but in london bodies johnson said about the conviction before investigation it was surprising and we got down to the conclusion that this case where trying to use on political purpose protests russia on grain on. good good and many cases it is not acceptable absolutely it is rejected by the foreign ministry. basically but. i don't think that it really be as some conviction against this russian state i don't exclude

that some people who are couple are aware his friends. destroyed him but not state it stake now is not interested in increasing tension with the west it is not in the interested in increasing pressure on russia ok in on the other places in the syria grain and the players and so i see most of them not in iran to interrupt you one more time for which i guess and apologize but thank you so much for joining us here on the news a good to talk to you again thank you. a curfew on sri lanka's central district of candy has been temporarily lifted after the police managed to contain anti muslim violence the government declared a nationwide state of emergency earlier this week and blocks several social media sites buddhist groups whipped through towns and villages targeting muslim homes and businesses burned smith has more now from candy. with the early lifting of the

curfew in kandy business life is beginning to return to normal but what should be a very very busy time of the day is still much quieter many of the shops were closed since four o'clock last night still shuttered but it was we understand a relatively peaceful night two muslim homes were a time when compared with the previous nights this curfew has been much more rigorously and heavily enforced by a strong police and military presence so they are keeping a lid for now on the trouble have also slowed down whatsapp they've also closed access to facebook and nationwide and the curfew will return at six o'clock am indeed receiving the underlying challenges this area faces the simmering resentment that some sinhalese groups have to what they perceive to be the muslim

minority that owns too many businesses of a lot of businesses very powerful those simmering resentment fueled by nationalist sinhalese those issues remain to be resolved. politicians in florida have passed new laws raising the minimum age for buying rifles from eighteen to twenty one now that comes after seventeen people were killed in a school shooting in the u.s. state last month and gallacher has more now from tallahassee. in florida state capitol building students staged a die in this was a last ditch effort to persuade florida's politicians to ban assault rifles and not on school staff on the chamber floor emotions run high representative jarrett moskovitz is from parkland where seventeen people were killed you don't need to stand with me i don't need you to stand with me. i need you to stand with the families push the green button the bill bans bump stocks raises the minimum age to buy rifle to twenty one and imposes

a three day waiting period for all gun sales such measures were unthinkable in the republican controlled legislature before the park and school shooting controversially the bill proposes that some teachers and school staff who carry out the required training can now carry firearms the concept is to for those schools and those communities that opt to do this as they have in texas and have the as they haven't pulled county in other places around the country to have people who are expert in being able to defend and having lots and lots of training in order to do so in part when students return for their first full day since their classmates and teachers were killed the alleged shooter nicholas cruz was formally charged with seventeen murders but for many the proposals don't go far enough we wait to see what happens and angie gallo is the legislative chair for florida's parents teachers association and says the bill potentially puts children's lives at risk if

we lost you know seventeen and parkland seventeen people wish never last we lost forty nine impulse that we shouldn't have lost and we didn't act after that we've had that nashua thing in las vegas where we've seen too much carnage and i think we'll continue to see unless we come up with some common sense gun laws the bill also provides almost four hundred million dollars in funding for increased security in schools mental health counseling and child welfare investigations the bill will now go to florida's governor rick scott if he signs it the proposals will become law within fifteen days for the survivors of the park one school shooting there's a grudging acceptance that this is a step in the right direction but ultimately they're disappointed that assault rifles went by and and some teachers will be armed and you go across tallahassee florida. ok there we are here we go in a few minutes we'll have the world weather with world but also still ahead here on the news of. the. huge

numbers the president preparing to hand over power but it may be some time before his successor is picked. and a fourteen hundred year old tradition gets a modern make over in taiwan. and sports another setback in the area shut up of the season and you see it with that story. from cool brisk nose in few weeks. to the warm tranquil waters of southeast asia. for the second time in a week a nor'easter is blowing off the northeast coast of the u.s. that brings in big seas place that massive juices but rather more already spreads its snow the snow comes in because it's still cold bit late winter as you might be surprised to hear this for example is massachusetts that's a coast that's just

a bit inland now this is not a bit of light dusting so this is a heavy fall a wet stuff there you r.c.c. philadelphia just look how it falls in front of the camera you can imagine it comes down that is slush that actually lands on the electricity was for example on the power outage affected commuters coming out of new york penn station for example in the whole place was a little bit difficult to get around but the trains are down and it wasn't just in new york just across the border in new jersey newark airport was also down for a while and you can see why that amount of snow fell in what may be three hours now it is almost over now these things come and go but this is the second quite significant event they say in a week and that's where it was at its worst since then and that's about nine twelve hours ago the whole thing's moved up the coast so the forecast is an improving one for this part of the world cause it may not be the last storm on the stone hasn't yet finished further north. the weather sponsored by the time place.

a shining city strout ing from the rubble of a devastating. chechen president while to the kremlin. on the walls and all the straight off the wall. in the dark anyone who dares to remember. an intimate tale of oppression chechnya war without trace at this time on al-jazeera. when the news breaks when people need to be heard in the stock market a good thing is. a hybrid and this story needs to be turned a just largest catholic country is witnessing a dramatic rise in teenage pregnancy al-jazeera has teams on the ground to bring a mood winning documentaries. and live news on air and on.

you're watching al-jazeera welcome if you're just joining us the reminder of the top stories so far syrian opposition activists have released video of the sanctions phosphorus bombs being dropped on a rebel held enclave france is promising to respond if there was proof that chemical weapons were used a second aid convoy with desperately required supplies has been postponed because of the fighting. the chairman of the african union says a visit by the secretary of state is proof of close ties between the u.s. and africa was a fucking hell talks with rex tillerson in fact he dismissed donald trump's reported use of bad language to describe some african countries as quote

a thing of the past. britain's home secretary on the road says a police officer who was harmed by a nerve agent is still in a serious condition but he is now able to talk to the officer who was first of the scene when former russian double agents and his daughter were found unconscious on sunday. let's get more now on top story for you reports of another chemical attack in syria. as a volunteer with the white helmets he joins us on skype from it live in syria. just take us through what you think is going on there right now today and our chemical weapons being used once more. thank you for. there is no difference between the final solution. adults and here is. what the assad regime and the government that. what the.

syrian is them going on there are like a massive stimulation can we sieging four hundred thousand civilian the right only their basic human needs and them all kind of coupons yesterday and i was the. most horrific night ever they used. not just the bombs and. i want to. situation because it's it's like two thousand and thirteen when the assad regime used chemical bonds on the border. with what was a thing we don't know where to where to take them because there's a lot of you have. medical centers may become possible and. when it comes to civilian and uses force whereas the cluster bombs and learning

yes when it comes to our house because you use their home which is more expensive ok there seems to be a consensus that eastern is no either split or is just imminently about to be split and the rebels are about to be utterly defeated they're about to be crushed everyone seems to be saying the same thing when that happens is there a sense in which perhaps that might actually be good news because if this is the use of chemical weapons presumably then the use of chemical weapons would stop. yes this is the one time in two thousand and eighteen he was is the once and didn't go far as it's been seen since five years so. with all these history and good all these able to see and the russia community just coverage in the last expedition we don't really need something to stop this gruesome act machine

because there are four hundred thousand civilian in the arrangement and of there in the living. hell we want this stuff that have been used. was more efficient effective on the civilian because this is really an art and and the basement even after the you and resolution civilian didn't secure ourselves because the woman couldn't do yours ok we have to leave it there. thank you very much. votes are being counted in sierra leone's presidential election sixteen candidates vying for the top job hoping to lead the country out of the economic crisis that now the results won't be known for days but a runoff is widely expected and addressed now from the capital freetown and. the president and asked by court arrives a polling station to vote. after ten years in power he is quitting the

political stage like three million other senate leoni and has chosen his successor i am happy i have looked at i am happy that's the lunes of what's in civilian hands of turn out in huge numbers and the process is this one and the end of it the best man will emerge and civilian will continue supporting the new president there's been much enthusiasm for this election voters started curing accent just before dawn to choose a new president legislators and municipal officials. is ninety four years old and was among the early voters. many of my contemporaries on to lives i voted for everything to be as they used to paste in people to afford the basic things of life vote organizers say the election was largely peaceful except for a few hitches in some constituencies the ballot box meal. kind electrons did not come with

a hug him and really you know not the stock on the run all of the problems by. the election results are expected within the next week. let's take you live now to free time mid so when are we expecting those results and how do we think it will play out. well basically of the results i suspect to the coming days probably on the week some people wasn't just on but it could happen in the next two or three days as a provisional results will start coming from independent observers but a lot of senate bill you'll be sitting here looking for what all bracing for the possibility of a runoff between the two main long term is the ordeal was peaceful in fort boncelles utterly insane except in two cases where the house of one of the candidates had been paraded over allegations that his high tea team probably trying

to hike into the election results and even read the letter and then there was a case of the wording i can get it in one forty eight when he went back to vote so it's coming just here and there but it is generally a likes it was peaceful be to atlanta thanks very much. the saudi crown prince is meeting business leaders in london today on day two of his visit to the u.k. on whedon's day mohamed bin selma on met the queen and the u.k. prime minister his visit is aimed at developing economic ties but critics say the british government is ignoring human rights abuses in saudi arabia shortly we'll get latest with jamaal a child in london the first his his report. mohamed bin some man started off his u.k. trip with a visit to the queen who hosted the young prince at buckingham palace a sign of just how eager the u.k. is to bolster its ties with the saudi kingdom children from the saudi owned king crab academy work busking to cheer on the palm prince

a continuation of the massive p.r. campaign that's included huge adverts across london announcing been ten months visits human rights groups however chose to focus on children by highlighting the killing of thousands in yemen by the saudi military an army under that the. rect command of m.p.'s as he's known but eleven million children in yemen who are dependent on humanitarian aid that's the entire population of belgium this is the world's worst humanitarian disaster so the trade deals for the niceties we have to remember that saudi arabia is a key player in this conflict the crown prince's visit is a very controversial one in parliament the leader of the main opposition party germany corben question the prime minister and what message she would be conveying to muhammad and some man it's morrow is international women's day a chance to vote celebrate how far we've come on equality for women but also to reflect on how far we have to go not just in this country but around the world later today mr speaker the prime minister is due to meet crown prince mohammed bin

salman as she makes her arm sales pitch will she also call on the crown prince to hold the shocking abuse of human rights in saudi arabia her response the link that we have with saudi arabia is historic it is an important one and it's saved it has saved the lives of potentially hundreds of people. and i will be raising concerns about human rights with the crown prince when i meet him can i just say is the right honorable gentleman started on the issue of international women's day i welcome the fact that the crown prince will be sitting down with as the guest of a female prime minister to build on that relationship the prime minister left parliament to meet with m.p.'s at downing street prince my mouth when will you stop bombing innocent civilians in yemen when will you stop killing innocent civilians in your members imo. as you can see this trip is not just

a high profile one but also very controlled trade with the both the british government and the saudis not wanting to have clear access there is no press conference that took place this is the closest. we've had true access to the crown prince and the big reason behind that is the widespread opposition and criticism that has been accompanying this trip. part of the opposition was demonstrated in this protest outside downing street organizers here say the u.k. government should not be turning a blind eye to saudi human rights abuses no matter how much the crown prince pledges to invest they want their politicians to demand real change and reform in saudi arabia and not to cheer on what they consider to be propaganda aimed at punishing the image of a man who's knocked up many of his political opponents. so jamal clearly this is about opportunities on both sides will they actually sign any paperwork during the

three day trip. well the belief is that there will be several business deals that are made in terms of exactly which sectors they will be made in and for how much each one we're still waiting for specific announcements but we do know that the saudis have announced ahead of this trip that they would be increasing their investments within the u.k. economy across all sectors by twenty percent that's an extra two billion dollars a year princeton man brother prince mohammed bin some men will be meeting aside from business leaders inside the country he will be also meeting the head of the bank of england and one of the things that the u.k. is very keen on trying to convince the young saudi royal of is to use its stock exchange when he decides to float the aramco oil company which is one of the largest in the world so today there is this meeting of business leaders that will be taking place over several hours in the center of the capital but also after that

he will be having a second meeting with the prime ministers at checkers which is just outside of london another sign of just how important as far as the reason is concerned this relationship is with saudi arabia and maybe just how badly her government needs saudi money may be in or could one for some reason make at some point after the visit presumably somebody will ask what did you say to the crown prince about human rights and what was his response because so her it's difficult to think of another international relationship with a multi billion dollar defense contracts come together at a nexus point with the issue of human rights. indeed and peter i mean those questions are already being asked and they are actually being also beyond the realm of activists an antiwar coalitions and so forth they are being asked by significant a significant number of parliamentarians within the house of common and the more

and more the war in yemen continues and the more and more this crackdown in saudi arabia continues with no real change in terms of freedom and reform inside the country the more and more difficult it is but the way i guess she's balanced it out politically speaking is that what's more pressing for her is the imminence need to find more jobs in the newquay market the imminent need to increase confidence in the u.k. economy and brags it as far as the british public is a much more pressing concern than the ideals of human rights albeit important ideals far as the majority of which the society is concerned but in the end of the day people are looking to put food on the table so to speak before they are going to look into standing in solidarity with their fellow humans in foreign lands jamal thank you. still to come here. defending women's football. trophies.

we always make space for andy with sports news thank you so much based on the world of football has been remembering the life and career of its halle and plaid have a day a story before and see the caps and died on sunday at the age of just thirty one. was taking place in florence right now capped fourteen times by his country a story died of a suspected cardiac arrest just hours before his team if you're insane with stats by a league match against it in a.z. talent international's judge actually engines you can find among the mourners that the. same events

a certain stage last state of the champions league the two some champions came from behind and knock out angry sides dva winning this last sixteen tie fall three on aggregate tottenham had a one nil made after time at wembley but see those in three minutes from gonzalo higuaín and powers of allah secured the win for you that's why lurk you serve us and not it of course we can dream we have qualified for the quarterfinals and we have to wait and see which team the draw will bring us we're playing in this competition with ambitions the same as always since i arrived to the team our idea is to go as long as possible knowing there are very important teams. when you show a similar quality and you compete in the same level of to the team in the us to see a play to find us in this competition only you can feel. proud. manchester city ole so in for last night as expected they did those two one

of the nights against boston still progressing on aggregate city boss pep guardiola less than pleased with his side's first home defeat since twenty six thing. even with the first good. food forgot to tag who forgot to play just to pass the ball that was the bullet means to buzz the world to move the openings to attack he just to bust a bus for itself is nothing so and the second home was really really poor defending women's world champions the usa have beaten england in the final game of the she believes cup the full team tournament also included france and germany this match in orlando decided by a goal from england's really bright. it's the second time the u.s. has won this title overside said building up to next year's world cup. serena williams makes her return to competitive singles action lights around six months on from giving birth the former world number one is taking part in the indian wells tournament in california maria sharapova already out of the event here

in straight sets by only our stock of japan cheryl carver was also based in the first round of her last tournament appearance and i former u.s. open champion sam styles it is three greats of the australian three sets and more than two hours to beat an american law and its. beginning with. the biggest ever winter paralympics gets underway in south korea on friday and almost six hundred athletes from forty nine nations will be taking part but it's the participation of a handful of north koreans that's dominated the build up to the chang games robert

mcbride reports. a build up event to boost support for the paralympics games that often struggle in the shadow of the more popular olympics they. follow but amid the olympic goodwill generated between north and south korea these winter paralympics have an added political dimension. to the north and south the one nation and we should be united one day i see it as a positive move as a korean national. just as he saw a very successful winter olympics i believe we will see another equally successful paralympics. on. south korea's paralympians are being joined by a small team from north korea. a chance to help closer relations while supporting the development of schools for athletes with disabilities. the conditions for paralympics in the north is hard we want to help develop the sports and we hope

that these paralympics can play a positive role in reunification with the men's pair ice hockey team is one of south korea's medal hopes the subject of a feature length documentary released to coincide with the games. of the nativity lots of people look at us with pity but we hope they just see us as athletes. and also inspirational role models overcoming challenges and adversity. one of the team members is a defector from north korea now wearing south korean colors choi one calc how does leg amputated when he fell from the train he'd been clinging to. puddles are. there some people who wish for geisha and some who don't i personally want i wish all those who were hurt because of the division can be healed thought out. the games organizers say ticket sales are beating expectations pointing to increased

interest in spite of the hype it took time for south koreans to get behind their winter olympics for once they no one it seems was. i hope that same action will now carry through to support the paralympics. and if they help north-south relations say the games supporters koreans will be the winners even before the first medals have been awarded rob mcbride al-jazeera showing chan south korea. and the new orleans pelicans will be hoping that stamina anthony davis isn't set for a lengthy injury lay off on wednesday davis was in action against the sacramento kings and helped his team tire franchise record with its head straight when the twenty three year old holding his ankle in the third quarter there wasn't able to return to make it. ok most of the day but that is it for now peyton and he thanks very much either six asian cities are displaying their creations at this year's sky lantern festival in taiwan the event does attract millions of visitors from around

the world this year celebrations are a mix of traditions and technology and showers are good for now explains why zing up the night sky this year's sky lantern festival theme is a celebration of the chinese zodiac year of the dark the main display lanterns a child from the local soup tribe with a taiwanese dog to wish everyone a prosperous year ahead at home hung the festival dates back to tenderness to fourteen hundred years ago back in the tradition marked the end of the lunar new year break when students return to school with lanterns to be let out by the teaches as a symbol of oppression future. the festival features tech inspired elements that allow for more visitor interaction the smartphone app helps with festival navigation and provides display information along with the details of their design concept. digital temple lanterns can be lit for good fortune or digital lanterns

can be released into a virtual sky. but the traditional style lantern is still being kept alive first invented by a military strategist in china around eight hundred years ago it was brought to taiwan by immigrants and at one time mine is in ping c. use the lanterns to warn of bandits seventy one year old lingual he wants to attract tourists with his craft following in his father's footsteps he's been making sky lanterns the old fashioned way for almost thirty years tells law if we don't pass on our traditions many of those cultural heritage and doubts will be forgotten this is what keeps me going. lynches historical stories and shows visitors how to float the creations written hocussed how well love and success slowly rise of. the kerosene so rice paper is expected

to last a year but as technology changes lin hopes his ancient craft last a lifetime. got for al-jazeera. sami's here at eleven g. i will see you very soon thanks accompanied by.

the sam's in archaeology graduate from iraq he's also a part time going to pergamon museum which includes a reconstruction of the famous ishtar gate in most of the people he's showing around came to germany as refugees this is just one of several billion museums taking part in the project called meeting point and as well as bringing people together one of its aims is to emphasise the contribution of migrants right up to the present day to western culture. because i've been here for some time i can help them with lots of things that mrs ford to me the great thing is it's not just about museums about forming a new life here and part of life it's culture. they watch us. they gather evidence but so can we. an american cyber activist develops and used in brazil to monitor police. we have more cameras than they do because we're the people. we go to.

travel beaks. this time just to get on the continent of antarctica is facing multiple threats from climate change over fishing and tourism but now a campaign is underway to create the largest protected area on the remote borders but what about sea stay with us for a series of special reports from the greenpeace expedition in antarctica. the aftermath of what i say was a chemical attack syrian government forces that.