this is al-jazeera. stan grant this is the news hour live from doha in the next 60 minutes iran's revolutionary guard admits it shot down the ukrainian airliner killing all 176 people on board. a long time ruler known for promoting peace in an unstable region. the transition of power has been swift and promises to continue he's like thousands path of peace and taiwan's president looks set to win

a 2nd term in a followed closely watched by beijing. with the sport sets up an a.t.p. cup clash with rafael nadal said the plane i'm. in a dramatic about turn iran has now admitted shooting down a ukrainian airliner describing it as a disastrous mistake 176 people were killed when the plane crashed on wednesday a commander with the revolutionary guard a morale the houses. of the nation had accepted full responsibility he says the plane was brought down by a short range missile soon enough to take off from tehran it was the same not iran launched missiles that iraqi bases housing u.s. troops. as a lot of. those in our aviation services who were denying responsibility they were

saying this based on their findings and i repeat they are not to blame it is us who are to blame the plane was on its way it did not have any error or mistake everyone worked very well efficiently it was us who made a mistake and we are responsible we should accept responsibility and accountability this was a very small missile and that's why the plane had the time to sort of land and to crash it did not explode straight away so they were not aware i do not know to defend them so our military forces neither the i was aware about it but we are regretful and we also are in pain and we share the pain of those families who lost their loved ones so basically this happened due to the heinous activities of americans that night we were ready to confront in any way there was a prediction that anything could have happened because there were so many airplanes in the air some aircraft and fighter jets there was

a possibility for missiles to fire at us so we were ready unfortunately because of a very small decision made by an individual this tragedy happened. now in a few moments mike hanna will be telling us how that uses likely to go down in washington 1st we go to dorset jabari who is live for us in tehran and also there's an admission of responsibility and acceptance of accountability in what more did we hear. well we heard from the brigadier general there who is the head of the revolutionary guards aerospace division. he said that he was very very sad that you wished he had died and didn't have to hear this news he said that evening of tuesday evening and wednesday morning when this incident occurred he was in the west of the country launching those missiles into iraq he was with that group of the revolutionary guard

commanders who carried out that attack on u.s. interests in iraq he said when he heard this news he wished he had died he says he was it's a very difficult position for him to be in to come in front of the cameras to having to explain how this tragedy took place he said basically the operator of the missiles that were in that area near among. got in contact with this flight but didn't get a response and within 10 seconds he had to make a very quick decision whether or not to launch a missile at this plane which he believed to be a cruise missile coming towards tehran that is when this error occurred and he said it's very very regrettable and if the revolutionary guard is taking full responsibility and they will respect whatever decision the authorities come out with in terms of what to do next door so what about the reaction from the iranian public to this to understand there's been some anger that they weren't told early

enough and some suspicions as to why there were these early denials of one of the happen. i've been speaking to one of the family victims' families and they are just in shock and grief overcome with grief as one can understand they say that their they had a their son and their daughter in law on a 5 year old child were visiting iran from canada they were here on a break and the family was heading back to toronto and the mother i spoke to she said that she's not receiving any visitors she believes her son will be calling her shortly that they have gone back to toronto she's in complete denial about the events have unfolded she is received no visitors who want to pass on their condolences she says that nothing has happened and everything is fine there is a sense here i've spoken to a few of the families of the victims here that they just can't seem to process what

has taken place not only they didn't what the actual event itself but also what came 48 hours following the accident the fact that the iranian government was adamant that they did not hit this plane and that there was some kind of malfunction by the boeing plane that they were on so there is a lot of anger there is a lot of frustration at this government in the way they've handled this and there is a demand now to know why the iranian officials took this long to admit that they had made this mistake to say thank you for joining us live there from montana she joins us now from washington d.c. how will the admission from the revolution. both responsible and accountable be received in washington. well there has been in recent days a degree of restraint in terms of reports emanating concerning that shut down airliner within a few hours of the shooting down defense department officials were saying that it

had been a missile and then subsequently it pentagon officials confirmed in their view that they saw a very clearly the signature of 2 heat seeking missile striking that aircraft but despite all of this the trumpet ministration has kept somewhat muted in terms of its response that reactions likely to continue when the administration formally does respond to iran's admission yeah and my general zod a was also making very clear that there was a context to this that essentially iran was on a war footing that the actions of the united states had precipitated this situation how is the u.s. going to respond to that the implication here that the u.s. is somehow complicit in the events that led up to the accident. well i can't speak for the u.s. administration and i'm sure there will be a statement coming in future hours however the u.s.

has been particularly hot in terms of the greater cons takes theories that various have given for example russia and china in the united nations security council refused to issue a statement condemning the demonstrations outside the u.s. embassy in baghdad for example arguing very strongly that this says a consequence of u.n. action striking at targets within iraq but the u.s. rejected that at the time it's likely to continue to reject the iranian contention that its activities had anything to do with the shooting down of the airliner that it could not be blamed to fold the consequences off to rein in action so certainly this is something that the administration is likely to respond fairly strongly to but the tone very much at present is one of deescalation it seems president trump appears to have found his off ramp continuing to walk down it and is likely to continue doing so despite the iranian acknowledgement mark thank you mark hanna

joining us from washington d.c. let's talk now to our senior political analyst moma shower he joins us now on the set. just picking up what mike hanna had to say the language coming out of the united states has been about deescalation do you see this admission now from republican god in the context in which they placed this that it was sitting against a war footing is going to have any impact on the well clearly in us foreigners the downing of the plane is concerned if there's. smart i would say even wise of the iranian leadership to admit. of the mistake and to apologize for what happened i honestly would expect something similar should come out of washington because after all the trump and mistress did contribute to the very conditions in which this plane was down if it wasn't for the continuous escalation if it wasn't for even walking away from the nuclear did we wouldn't be having this

tension that we have in the region now but clearly that from administration is doubling down on its policies prior to last week's escalation it's doubling down on the sanctions it's doubling down on the pursuit of iran and it's doubling down and pressures on anyone who would trades or deals with iran. how does this impact on the regime itself the government in iran given that events have been moving so quickly over the past week we've seen the people turning out on the streets missing the talk of revenge but then we see this and the anger amongst iranians now that might be the one being told the truth the denials and now the admission of guilt how is all of that going to play out to be honest with you we could we could divide the influences and. the best relation if you will to short term and long

term public and strategic the short term the conservatives in iran felt certain things him our ventral. there somehow or suddenly if the flood the streets after the assassination of silly money they felt strengthened by the attack by that attack on an american a airbase usually no other country can get away with an attack on an american base also if there are lies in iraq were strengthened so subtly. and terms at the perception terms will short term your since that the iranians were really breathing a sigh of relief that they're breaking out especially is laid a people protesting on the straights not that long ago absolute at it now with the admission of response a dhoni guilt acceptance of accountability and the fact that they was these denial for 40 odd hours get a whole we've seen into i would see our i mean i would go further on say strategically speak a dog while they did get imp empowered wild they did have

a sigh of relief but in fact just as the throne but ministration doubled down of the sanctions and just as the popular opposition iraq is already back in the street asking all are foreigners to get out of iraq clearly eyes the sanctions by and the iranian economy shrinks by 1015 percent in 2020 and the embarrassment of the flights being down than song so forth the iranians are back on the pressure and that's why i think we're back to the same conditions that led to the escalation of the last few days meaning the same could be repeated iran just like it didn't before it's not going to again be subjected to hurtful american sanctions primary and secondary sanctions and lay low at the same time arenas have every vested interest to continue to

a submitter clee attack the united states it is not just the know now about the united states and iran clearly ukraine has been very strong in saying it wants to see full guilt and accountability canada has a vested interest in this to see innocent people shot down as much is the riverboat republican guard explain this away as a horrible accident scenes and people shot down in this way what is expected of iran in terms of that accountability well clearly the admission of guilt is important at least to give the victims' families some closure that's was important . but clearly there's going to be need it is going to need for compensations us and so forth but also a judiciary investigation within iran itself and clearly there's a political and method of sponsibility in the in the issued on of powers in iran there are some rumors even about certain iranians one thing to resign because

of that we don't know how serious these are but clearly the buck does not stop with the person who triggered the actual downing of the plane clearly there's something goes up and clearly iran now is going to have to somehow clean its house or put it in order because the whole bit between the revolutionary guard and the 3rd visual army between both and the civilian administration and all 3 with a political. you know authority within the country all of that needs to be worked out so. question when the country's on the pressure and all of this while it is under intense scrutiny and intense pressure it's remarkable confluence of events my own thank you for that moment michel. well it's probably more i hate all the news hour including that sinking feeling the countdown is on the side of indonesia's capital for being stupid plus. i'm going to be a law enforcement agency described as africa's 1st narco state joins us next as we

follow an anti narcotic operation inside the capital international airports and in sport the brooklyn nets catch miami to win their losing streak joe will have more on the life. well a man has declared 3 days of mourning after the death of its leader. outside the region's longest ruling monarch died after a long illness at the age of $79.00 his cousin. side has been sworn in as the successor. has more. this is new sultan haitham been. sworn in a few hours after the death of his predecessor. the oldest ruling monarch in

the region and the founding father of modern day oman. sultan haitham made it clear in his 1st speech to the public that he will follow in the footsteps of the late sultan. we remain guided by the late sultans wisdom going forward we will preserve and embark on the achievements he made this is what we are adamant to do to follow in his footsteps with respect to international relations we will follow in the same course set out by the late sultan we will embrace foreign policies based on peaceful coexistence without any interference in domestic affairs of other states the succession ceremony was swift and smooth dispelling any concerns about uncertainty and instability in one of the oldest dynasties in the gulf region. the new sultan would have several roles he's the prime minister controls the government the armed forces finance and foreign affairs his biggest challenge is balancing

a budget that relies on revenues from dwindling gas and oil resources. the death of comes at a critical moment tension has grown in the region after the us assassination of iranian military command some say money is killing has shattered any hopes of a diplomatic solution. oh man has in the past played a crucial role in narrowing differences between the 2 rivals it has a longstanding neutral approach to the problems of the region in 2017 when saudi arabia the u.a.e. egypt and bahrain imposed a blockade on qatar oman refused to take sides calling instead for dialogue. it also plays a central role in the international 1st and the war in yemen. the new sultan has insisted he will maintain his nation's neutrality and honor the legacy of salt.

the later came to power in 1970 at a time when our man was underdeveloped divided and facing a rebellion in the south but managed to overcome those obstacles and turn it into a modern state. faced another challenge in 2011 when thousands of people protested demanding better wages and more jobs as the arab spring was spreading sultan qaboos fired members of his government gave more powers to the consultative council and began reforming the public sector in the late one arc will be remembered by his people as a unifying figure and by the world as a shrewd politician for turned a small nation into a regional player. well let's go to stephanie dechen now who joins us live from moscow and stephanie for monies this is the only leader they have known how is this

news being received. certainly for the vast majority of this country yes you're right the only man who ruled this country as far as they can remember and the man who really ruled entirely there's been a lot of speculation about the health of the sultan for years now he really did retreat from public life if you will the last couple of years been the last couple of weeks speculation increase he'd gone to belgium for for checkups and he came back very shortly after supposed to be there for a long period of time and that's when the room is really kicked about the concerns about his condition and how perhaps sick he really was while there's been some a lot of worry here on the people about what happens next well you heard there and how she's packaged the session happened very quickly i think very seamlessly you could say they opened the traditional letter that the sultan had left naming his successor he's been sworn in but there are challenging times ahead as you heard him

say there are couples with unique in how he really managed to mediate in what is an incredible fist sile and volatile region for so long he managed to stay neutral between countries who really wanted him on their side i think these are just some of the challenges moving ahead these are different times and there are different players involved also very different countries into the country that the soldier in actually took all those years ago he is completely transformed the country but it's a bit of an inflection point right now economically it's having to diversify it's looking at opening up to war tourism what are the the economic challenges there in a country that's also dealing with high levels of of unemployment. yes there are many challenges moving ahead for the new sultan yes helton cup was built this country into what it is today but it is a country that is facing economic dept it is a country with a growing young population who want jobs unemployment it is an issue it's

a country that needs to move away from relying on money from oil it is simply not enough it is a country that is as you mentioned also when you look at foreign policy now you have its neighbors wanting to get whoever runs this country on board and also many of monies are wondering is it going to change and how this is country is wrong the sultan was in charge of everything he was the prime minister he was the secretary of defense he was in charge of the armed forces he ruled this country as a single man many people are also being is it now going to change into a constitutional monarchy perhaps there are major questions moving forward and yes i think people welcoming people have been a piece i think here somewhat the i'm on is most of the population that someone has been appointed so soon we were talking to people just coming in from the airport a couple of hours ago saying well this is what the sultan wanted he's been at the helm for 50 years we agree with you he has appointed this is a western educated the sultan hype them been taught at the new sultan western educated he's been in the public realm he's been in the foreign realm so he's been

around he knows what he has to deal with but certainly again massive challenges why because this country's been run for by one man v 50 years and also i think just briefly the geopolitical situation when it comes to the situation between us and iran it was sultan qaboos and his team that were instrumental in trying to bring people to the table so i think very interesting times here and i think we're going to have to wait and see you know how the new sultan is going to deal with all of these challenges and. joining us live there from moscow. independence president signing when victory in the soft governing of a general and presidential elections trying when. the russian tanks show of the off to the opposition counted it conceded defeat the election has been seen as a choice between moving closer to china will continuing to resist late. for reunification it's called hodler is live outside the democratic progressive party's headquarters in time this wasn't

a surprise call the opinion polls were telling us this is going this was going to happen give us a sense of what's happening there around you right now. right now there's a press conference going on the big screen behind me and we're outside hundreds thousands have gathered out here supporters of sign one and the d.p.p. ruling party and they've been out there for hours what we're seeing now is a press conference that's being held inside the party headquarters and then later she'll come out and address the crowd herself now obviously a lot of the themes that are coming out in this press conference yes exactly was expected that she was she and the party the d.p.p. were going to win this election but they won handedly in fact they broke a record she broke a record of the most votes ever for president so really kind of resoundingly message coming from the people of taiwan on this election day and she reiterated some of the main points some of the feelings as to why they supported her and this is supported the d.p.p. she said that they are reject this election is

a rejection of china's one country 2 systems policy that is the main message that really kind of has come across and obviously the people of taiwan the majority of people of taiwan that picture as the president to lead that initiative and scott while a time when talks about repudiation of one country 2 systems and talks about independence she knows full well where the line is drawn she knows the importance of the status quo she knows she has to deal with the reality of beijing how does she manage that politically right now particularly against the backdrop of what's been happening in hong kong. yes we definitely know one thing that really inspired and shifted feelings toward the d.p.p. toward her remaining as president happened since really july when those protests those pro-democracy protests in hong kong took place know one thing we really need to focus on you know the economy here is it reliant on mainland china but what

people became very concerned about is when they saw how china was implementing the one country 2 systems and their iron fist and how the pro-democracy protesters were treated in hong kong so there was a very very touch tone to the voters here and that's why you saw a big shift because just a year ago the political party that the d.p.p. the ruling party and simon were on the ropes the political ropes they were not doing so well that they didn't fare well in a regional election in 2018 and there was even talk about senior members encouraging her not to run for reelection what a difference just a couple of months have made and now squarely behind where the people of taiwan and squarely behind the idea that they want to reject one country 2 systems and that intimidation as as she has said from mainland china scott thank you scott hard the joining us there from taipei tunisia is facing further the political instability off to parliament rejected a new cabinet proposed by prime minister designate happened jemele of the president

has 10 days to choose a new prime minister the governing and hotpot he was forced into months of negotiations with all the parties offered to win enough seats to form a majority in elections you know talk about bulges governing party is voting to choose a new leader to replace promise to just moscow he had bounced his resignation last month after his chief of staff was implicated in the murder of journalist definitely kyra wanna go they've bought a reports from the capitol hill that. it is forever somber in baltar but a shadow looms over the mediterranean island allegations of crime and corruption in big business and high office and now people want change. journalist a blogger daphne care either delved deep and then did up dead killed by a car bomb in 2017 near her home her son matthew heard the blast when my mother

live there our side of human see it i heard them last i knew straight away that it was of on so i ran out of the. i saw the fire i saw the smoke bar there was absolutely nothing else with it on. this criminal organization has thinking gone through a single lever of the state and this is using it to fire up my mother as they will she wear our country's greet us the enemy. 3 men arrested in connection with the murder awaiting trial last november 1 of multis richest businessman you can fenech was arrested and charged with being an accomplice to the killing he denies involvement fenech implicated the multis prime minister's chief of staff keith schembri as a coconspirator schembri was interrogated by police and released without charge he later resigned. revelations led to rare protests demanding prime minister joseph muskrat's immediate resignation many think his office had

a hand in the journalist death. prime minister bowed to public pressure and step down kick starting a race to replace him former health minister chris furness the clear favorite for a few expect he'll be able to cure bolter of its political ills i don't think there will be overnight change with regards to all structural issues i think the new leader which will be eventually been your prime minister of more than. a loner will not be able and i don't i don't think there is even the will to change all this. in a final address to supporters on friday joseph muscat says he took the decision to resign for unity to win over hate recent scandals have led to a political awakening here and also the more protests against the labor party yes sure it remains to lose and enthusiastic but you know it may suppose there is a myth that most i have something like the image crisis on a global stage the question is the other change of leader will really make

a difference in the european union's watching the crisis in its smallest member state closely it's accused baltar of allowing dirty money to flow into europe using the island as a backdoor multitude lose a huge voting rights if it's next leader doesn't bring crime under control we've park al-jazeera the letter. well still ahead on al-jazeera from prayers to protests demonstrators a go to citizenship. visit. with only 4 percent of its widest. mexico's biggest city introduces a new ban on plastics and a high profile kenyan athlete force file with doping rules that's coming up the sport with joe. we live in

a digital world where even the remotest communities have access to mobile phones. but look in this technology bring to a nomadic existence life apps travels to the media and gives the software designer the ultimate challenge design an app to help him the tribe in their daily lives can you really be done. life facts one from moment announces even. when the news breaks today the current government has lost trust the people to anything because the protestors are against it when people are to be counted places like work you represent the law of faults for opponents of brecht's it's wrong for the conservatives al-jazeera has teams on the ground right now hopes the meeting in paris will push politicians to create a competent and credible government to bring the moon documentaries and light moves on air and online.

you're watching al-jazeera here's a reminder of our top stories this hour iran has admitted shooting down a ukrainian a lot of describing it as a disastrous mistake 176 people were killed when the plane crashed on wednesday a revolutionary guard has apologized to the nation. has declared 3 days of mourning after the death of its ruler salt on to boost be inside outside the 79 year old died after a long illness his cousins being sworn in as the country's new leader. taiwan's probably dependents president saying when has to clear victory in the self-governing islands general and presidential elections the decorrelation shortly

after the opposition candidate conceded defeat votes are still being counted and official results is yet to be announced let's get more now on those tensions between the u.s. and iran and their regional impact in iraq the rising doubts over the presence of foreign troops and now the kids like a prime minister is in the kurdish regional capital bill to discuss they withdraw. is holding talks with members of the regional government at the presidential palace iraq's parliament held a non-binding vote to expel all foreign forces after the assassination of iranian military commander got some sort of money in baghdad last week. well the kurdish regional government is supposed to draw u.s. troops. explains why. well these talks are underway but certainly they are quite important and yeah after remember that this is the 1st time. comes to the kurdish region he's coming now in the capacity of a caretaker prime minister not

a prime minister but these are difficult times and you do need the kurds on board you are mentioning this known by the vote taken by the iraqi parliament well the kurds have completely abstained of that and they made it very clear that they are against any withdrawal of the coalition troops from this country they say that at the moment there is a resurgence of says they have noticed that the borders of their region and certainly now that custom silly money has gone who and he played a big role certainly at the beginning when they will when isis sort of stormed central iraq he is tactics made a difference on the ground with the help of the. coalition forces from the sky and according to the kurds from their point of view well if you remove all of that then iraq will be very vulnerable to every surges from eisel and that's a big concern for the kurds here. well. is also

a bill to discuss the formation of the new iraqi government body has been prime minister indicated capacity since resigning last year for widespread anti-government demonstrations but it wasn't enough to satisfy protesters they calling for a complete overhaul of the political class job had reports from baghdad. was a chorus against those who follow the united states or iran its day 100 put iraq's pro-democracy demonstrators who've been camping out in multiple cities they say their demands are simple give us rulers who have ana and corruption and foreign influence and hold early elections. iraq is no single crown and we want the government to leave we want harms we want dignity we wanted an independent iraq with no external influence. there pressure has forced out prime minister i've been

up to matty but weeks after his resignation he still in charge will be it in a caretaker capacity and iraqis are still no closer to an interim government acceptable to all parties that's not read what i believe we want to live in dignity we need a united country with sovereignty we do not want others to interfere this interference happened because of the weak leadership with head since 2003 this is by far the largest crowd that meets in fact i didn't recent weeks people have been coming here from all morning the country they're saying that they're against the influence of the united states as well as iran in their country in. the festive atmosphere here makes it difficult to imagine that it's the same city which was on edge just 48 hours ago missile warnings helicopters in the air and threats of a major conflict between iran and the us but but it's still a pressing issue in baghdad's corridors of power the iraqi p.m.'s request for the us to send a mission to discuss foreign forces the drawer has been all but ignored by the

united states. we are happy to continue the conversation with the iraqis about what the right structure is our mission set there is very clear we've been there to perform a training mission to help the iraqi security forces be successful and to continue the campaign against isis we also have today nato team that's here at the state department working to develop a plan which will get burden sharing right in the region as well. but since the assassination of. hundreds and i still operational have been suspended and some coalition troops have been relocated for their safety and the government here is questioning when foreign troops are hunkering down to protect themselves what's the point in keeping them in iraq. down to the area baghdad at least 12 people have been killed and dozens wounded in syrian government is strikes in and around the city of in the russian backed forces of stepped up their campaign in the lead province in recent weeks it's the last remaining rebel stronghold in syria the new

strikes come a day off the roster announced the turkish broadwood ceasefire coming into effect at midnight on saturday the u.k.'s ambassador to the united nations has warned a new delivery programme for aid to syria is inadequate it follows a un security council vote to renew operations the number of border crossings involved and the generation of the operations have been hogged to avoid a vetoed by russia moscow which backs the syrian government's offensive on the province had been pushing for a reduction in. the indian city of kolkata has been brought to a standstill by days of protests ahead of prime minister narendra modi's arrival opposition politicians have refused to meet modi over a new controversy 0 citizenship law which thousands of indians believe is discriminatory towards muslims so how robin is in kolkata and has this report. they prayed 1st but their intent to protest was at that and. it wasn't long before

they marched and denounced the imminent visit of the prime minister narendra modi. led by some of calcutta's leading activists and religious leaders the general public poured onto the streets in the thousands. winding their way through calcutta as busy shopping district the ruling party's chief minister and peace and civil society have not confirmed whether that meeting the prime minister as he comes to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the deep sea port they're all objecting to the citizenship law which was passed in december seen as unjust and divisive the government is completely that good that you can see because there is no and there is no leadership no central leadership people are calling that all but in every single one of them you'll see hindus and muslims together leaving the national flag demanding that you would allow us to be divided so it's a very particular guy named all of a woman as i said i have not seen such

a movement since the gandhi get. but it doesn't end there this park is hosting one of the many peaceful but noisy protests that have been continuing through the week and in different parts of calcutta on his day turns to night the voices of protesters continue to be heard loud and strong across the city this particular gathering at step 100 has been ongoing for 4 consecutive nights and the numbers are growing. they've come from all sections of society many of them women recovering from surgery was much a meal a housewife feel strongly about the government's moves to alienate muslims and other minorities and asked her friends and neighbors to join her in this local park to demonstrate before modi arrives each evening this week it's grown involved into a major focal point for anti-government sentiment and the much yeah not he said. i hope the government understands reject the citizenship will never submit our paperwork and we look forward to the supreme court hearing because every indian is

focused on that date and our hope is that those laws will be thrown and. across india people have taken to the streets the parks and universities to voice their discontent with laws they perceive as unjust and racist here in calcutta they are being led on the chilly winter evening by 1st time activist all small rally to the cause with no other rain but to face an unjust law could determine her very existence and that of millions of others across india the hill robin al-jazeera calcutta north korea says a strong personal relationship between its leader and the u.s. president not enough for it to return to talks the north korean foreign ministry says donald trump sent greetings to kim jong un for his birthday thought to be on january 8th but an advisor says more than warm words and needed in washington must make substantial concessions before any more negotiations i hope were china has

announced the 1st death from an outbreak of new motier caused by an unidentified virus 41 people have been diagnosed several are critically ill the world health organization says it's a new type of coronavirus it's been linked to the sudden acute respiratory syndrome or stars epidemic which killed 775 people in china in 2003 a verdict is being delivered in guinea bissau in the trial of 12 people charged with smuggling 2 tons of cotai in last year the biggest haul in the nation's history the cases highlighted how the tiny west african country has become an international hub for drug trafficking jointed narcotics operation of the airport in the capital of south. acting on a tip off from brazil's anti narcotics officers going to be sales police believe passengers on board this flight from lisbon are smuggling cocaine detectives

believe are calm and his team are looking for 3 individuals one of them is this man wearing a yellow jersey again in national from this hour who lives in the brazilian city of south paulo he doesn't know it yet but he's about to be pulled aside for questioning. where you coming from are you carrying anything illicit drugs who are you visiting here where are you staying detective is already building his case guess who's going to sell these are the folks that i've been with because the people who smuggle drugs are often vulnerable and from paul backgrounds but they're not stupid they know it's illegal and there are consequences to their actions but only the amount of food and as you take sarah lives in são paulo working in maintenance and earning $256.00 a month he says he's here to visit his family but the police believes he's hiding something so they ousted check his luggage. this is where most seizures take place at the airport but it's often over small quantities just a few grams of cocaine could lead the person that's being stopped 10 to 15

years in prison but most cases go unprosecuted. the united states drugs in foresman agency says guinea-bissau is turning into what it calls a narco state the qs is latin american drug traffickers of bribing state officials to let cocaine destined to europe transit through the country and into the saheli region where armed groups use the drugs to fund their fighting $75000000.00 worth of cocaine was seized last year some of it hidden in cat food the fast this is a war it's a threat to our country and to the region the traffickers a well organized and well financed it's difficult to fight them as investigators go through takes there was bag a bundle of drugs is found after urine test pick sarah admits to having swallowed 18 packets of drugs $5000.00 worth of cocaine lays in his stomach not the slightest

doubt will be for the i'm not skeared i'm doing this for my family i'll be freed. taken into detention at the police station take sarah stripped and searched now under arrest he risks decades in prison yet he seems calm he says this is not his 1st offense has been set free before. the powerful drug cartels are looking after him nicholas hawk al jazeera. in australia 3 bushfires afford to create a large inferno in the southeast or thor has a calling it a beggar it's in the area of the state border between new south wales and victoria 27 people have been killed since september and more than 2000 houses have been destroyed the danger is far from over and the fire has a lot to go on for weeks mexico's capital has banned the use of plastic bags it's the latest city trying to cut back on single use plastics

. as. residents of mexico city are looking toward a plastic free future. the city has announced a ban on single use plastic bags the new law is largely seen as an important step to curb back pollution businesses that don't comply with the mandate could face fines or other penalties. leaders within the plastic industry however say the new measure is too extreme and could result in tens of thousands of jobs lost. but. the fine is absurd there are serious crimes that one could commit that carry a lesser penalty than having a plastic bag because that back cost you more than $8800.00 also the city doesn't even have the infrastructure to enforce this. plastic manufacturers are the only voice criticism against the new law. environmental scientists like the sea authorities rushed the initiative without properly consulting experts as well as

important. this is a political decision and dare i say the wrong decision because it is not founded in science or technical ability what i would suggest is that this be studied instead of simply following trends taking place in the rest of the world the 12000000 residents of the mexican capital produce some 13000 metric tons of waste every day . and much of that waste comes in the form of single use plastics which often end up in rivers lakes and the ocean mexico city officials say the ban on plastic bags is only a 1st step there are plans to prohibit the sale and distribution of a wide range of a single use plastics by january of 2021. critics of the legislation say the government lacks the necessary enforcement mechanisms to make the initiatives successful city officials however say this is a necessary measures one that requires everyone's commitment the but i must address as we import then they must pass that. instead of inspecting stores and placing

we're putting our trust in consumers we believe the primary watchdog for this regulation should be consumers consume issued under no circumstances allow plastics to continue to be distributed. there are exceptions to the rule although the law remains vague on exactly what bags are or are not allowed. the challenge now is the city seeks a future with 0 plastic waste will be developing an innovative and sustainable alternative when measured up a little and jersey to mexico city. to large apartment blocks have been demolished in india after developers were accused of not following building regulations. controlled explosions happened in the southern state of carola people who'd just toads in the blogs now face a lengthy legal fight to recover their investments and one of the effects of climate change is rising sea levels which scientists say will displace millions of

people but indonesia's capital jakarta rees facing another problem it is sinking at an alarming rise expose war 90 percent of the city could be submerged by 2050. the courts from jakarta. around 4000000 people live in water on the north coast of jakarta many stay in unsafe buildings and partially submerged streets like this is the water has had to raise the foundation of her home because of the high tides and rain that of course flooding in the area and that's because parts of indonesia's capital are sinking of our own land and sea used to be the same level unlike now then they started building hotels and that's led to flooding we keep trying to raise our land higher but water keeps coming in. under water digging and growing development is causing the land to sink in jakarta bay as water is pumped out the ground gradually subsides only 60 percent of jakarta's population has

access to a piped water service which means many have to use wells flooding is also common especially during the rainy season some of the rivers that run through the city are unable to drain water in 2017 a powerful deluge hit more about or destroying hundreds of homes. when the wall broke i heard a noise like an explosion water came in like a little tonight my husband was pushed by the watch and broke his collarbone we had to rebuild everything. parts of north dakota have sunk by up to 20 centimeters a year and several areas along the coast all below sea level this mosque couldn't be salvaged now left lying hof submerged the government has since built defenses to protect the city's coastline but they're also sinking into the mud. this is done. by the government to prevent the sinking with sea water is still seeping through

the cracks and many here say that without a long term plan to cause a could be lost in the coming years and parts of a sea wall collapsed last month adding further pressure. authorities have also tried to enforce restrictions on extra. water and new pumping systems experts say it's not enough to save parts of jakarta from going underwater fast response. against the sinking and of flooding and then but it is like a pen killer only so we need to find a cure for real which is. a subsidy to run what i. saw we asked for what that a bit there what the management of the government all the while sea levels are still rising because of climate change and many here in jakarta say they have nowhere else to go. from here mohammed al jazeera jakarta. were

still ahead in sport we're going to show you how to tell us why this team torment is proving a smash hit. across europe immigration is high on the agenda and in hungary it's presented as a pressing issue we didn't have immigrants' at all 0 immigration but this is the one political topic anybody and everybody is discussing the far right is preparing for battle and their opponents or anyone who is different. prejudice some pride in hungary on al-jazeera.

mum. was a. mum. well let's get all the sports news now with john fan thank you very much for the world's top tennis players talk to tennis players and set up their 1st title clash of the new year and we haven't even got to the australian open yet world number one rafael nadal and his spanish team beat australia at the a.t.p.

cup to reach the final where they'll take on serbia and novak djokovic which the world number 2 had to work hard in his semifinal he was up against russia's dunelm medvedev it was decided that had already put serbia one no up joke which found itself a breakdown in the 2nd set and that was the only thing to get broken the serb taking out his frustration yes on his racket. but boy by a boisterous pro serbia crowd in sydney back in the 3rd set is just one of many brilliant rallies that we want to thank. clinch the decider and with it a place in the inaugural final of this competition and consider us the mission of another team event the serb seems to be enjoying himself that is. to get to share this kind of quality moments on and off the court with them it feels like you're travelling with a family and and. that that that gives you even more. reason to

keep on playing and so that's that's why i wouldn't say that i'm really fully focused on melbourne of course that's where i want to play my best but i this this time is different because a.t.p. cup is really. is more special. they are misaki as preparations for the australian open have hit something of a bump the grand slam champion was knocked out of the brisbane open by title holder carolyn uplifts cover the czech saved match point in the 2nd set and came back to beat a sucker and 3 els the japanese players biggest career winning streak at 14 victory . over new zealand top seed serena williams has reached the final of the a.s.b. classic in clint she took just 45 minutes to beat 18 year old amanda and it's demoed was even born when williams won the 1st of her 23 grand slam titles so

really we're just a couple. of the time. lebron james helped the l.a. lakers to their 7th straight win on friday as they sit pretty at the top of the n.b.a.'s western conference is not looking so good though for the brooklyn nets they'd lost 7 straight as they took on leave miami heat for a 2nd in the east miami were leading in the 3rd when spencer didn't when he began to get brooklyn on a roll the andre jordan finishing his only you in which he had their best 16 the says to help his team out of their rot nets winning 117230. that result means that miami fall further behind the milwaukee bucks in the eastern standings bit of a stroll this one at 1st as the bucs took an 18 point lead against the sacramento kings the kings did fight back to within a point but it was in vain bucks when 127 to 106. kenyan athletics has been hit by more doping allegations former american record

holder wilson kipsang has been suspended from all competitions for breaking doping rules the athletics integrity unit has charged the 2 time london marathon champion with tampering with his samples and failing to tell thought authorities his whereabouts keep saying is the latest high profile athlete from his country to. fall foul of doping rules last month kenya said it's considering imposing criminal penalties on athletes caught doping. there are 3 matches in the italian setting out on saturday's into man try to extend their lead over the champions event to the top as your rivals ac milan are hoping for a 1st goal from swedish veteran slots an improvement which on his return to the club ac haven't scored in 3 games and will try to move out of 12 places when they travel to carry the 38 year old in for him which helps man to their last title all way back in 2011 the world's oldest professional

footballer has just extended his contract for a 35th season because a yoshimi euro has to who will turn 53 in february signed a new contract with yokohama f.c. on saturday after the team secured promotion to the top flight king cancer as he's known played in just 3 matches last season but he still ready to play for the team when they call him up and a wild encounter between the pittsburgh penguins in the colorado avalanche was decided in overtime in defeat denver colorado were celebrating a freak moment on friday when gabriel landis called love to the park goal woods hole payments go only matt mari flat footed he wanted hole or rather this point it was 33 after regulation before jared mccann took a more direct route to go for pittsburgh the 2nd in the metropolitan division all right that's only a sport for now it is back to stan thank you joe that's it for me for this news out of baghdad a moment you. don't. january

on out you see the. president don't know trump is that the president in history to be impeached what does this mean for the future of the u.s. media on the brink of an election before much chilian presidential candidate explores the defeat of left wing political parties a close match in america and look at how this year's world economic forum to focus on ways to tackle the impact of climate change an explanation of family links to the city's regime examines it it's early may now be embracing fascist ideologies most believed gone forever with the general election out of the way breaks it is now certain how to move the u.k. proceeds with the transition in the coming months january on al-jazeera. the big stories generated thousands of lives may be angles in this story are too

numerous for comfort with different angles from different perspectives things never really being believed the prey muddying the water with even separate the spin from the facts the misinformation from the journalists on this set is clear and it sounds to. hear people's think with the listening post on al-jazeera. almost counting the cost while the u.s. spends billions on boards a men's heading military bases across the world plus the reshaping of the meat industry has offered them swine flu decimates finest pork industry and the 1st is a tax that could escalate a tribal council the pulse on al-jazeera. al-jazeera

where every. iran's revolutionary guard admits it shot down a ukrainian ala killing all 176 people on board. grant this is al jazeera live also coming up. a long time rule well known for promoting peace in an unstable breach the transition of power has been swift a new rule promises to continue these like thousands path peace. and taiwan's president looks to sit to win.