one of us have got a responsibility to change outraced based fighting for their suburban dream on al-jazeera. be the hero the world needs right now. washington. al jazeera. you're watching the news hour live from headquarters and. coming up in the next 60 minutes no one is above the law not even the president of the. charge for inciting an insurrection donald trump becomes the 1st u.s. president to be impeached twice turkey rolls out coronavirus vaccinations with

dozens of centers set up across the country. begins an all day curfew expanding the scale of the nationwide lockdown to contain a virus search voting is underway in uganda general election and made an internet blackout and reports of violence. killed my political opinions. expressed my. like spreading my. master trial on treason charges cambodian opposition members back in court accuse the government of political persecution. of the. champion swimmer. in the siege of the u.s. capitol building.

welcome to the news hour donald trump has become the 1st president in the history of the united states to be impeached a 2nd time with just a week before he leaves office the house of representatives has now formally charged him with inciting an insurrection all 10 republicans broke ranks and joined democrats in. vote in favor of and preachments it's a rebuke of trump's repeated questioning of her lecture results which included a speech she gave to supporters before they overran the capitol building is oh castro begins our coverage from washington d.c. . the arguments came down to what's more dangerous impeach donald trump again and risk further dividing the country or allow him to remain in office even if it's just for a few days he is capable of starting a civil war he must be impeached he must be stopped now on this though the final vote was 232 to 197 in favor of impeachment and took place in what

a week ago was a crime scene that's when a pro trump mob occupied congress in an effort to overturn the presidential election leading to 5 deaths democrats argued this was the shattering of trump's glass house of lies built upon 4 years of racist fear mongering every one of us in this room right now could have died as senator lindsey graham said the mob could have blown the building up they could have killed all and now the far right is calling for returning gauge mut from january 17th to generate 20 if they're asking the president to pardon the conspirators in last week's rian page as they prepare for a race war. republicans defending the president called the rioters a lunatic fringe rejecting the claim that trump had incited them during a speech moments earlier he was wrong to set such a confrontational tone in

a politically tense situation but what did he actually survey his exact words were quote i know that everyone here will soon be marching over to the capitol building to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard unquote. that's impeachable but trump also called upon the crowd to march on the capitol to fight for him then silently watch the riot unfold despite pleas to intervene only later recording a message telling the crowd to go home but that he loved them we love you you're very special a year ago trump was impeached with no republican support this time 10 republicans joined democrats in the vote to impeach last week there was a domestic threat at the door of the capitol and he did nothing to stop it that is why with a heavy heart and clear resolve i will vote yes on these articles of impeachment.

a few hours later house speaker nancy pelosi signed the impeachment article today in a bipartisan way the house demonstrated that no one is above the law not even the president of the united states that donald trump is a clear and present danger to our country and that once again we are over the office to protect and defend the constitution of the united states in a late video message from the oval office trump did not address his 2nd impeachment and instead asked the country for unity what is needed now is for us to listen to one another not to silence one another all of us can choose by our actions to rise above the rancor and find common ground and shared

purpose. today i am calling on all americans to overcome the passions of the moment and join together as one american people trumps message it will not stop this impeachment though from heading to the senate for trial mitch mcconnell the senate majority leader says that will not happen though until after trump leaves office on january 20th mcconnell is among the senate republicans who've indicated they may be open to convicting trump with the potential consequence of barring him from returning to office. castro al-jazeera washington well the political divisions in washington have reached every corner of the u.s. and some of donald trump supporters say his incitements of the capitol hill storming was a step too far but others argue impeaching the president creates more the vision for that that has made reports in the heavily pro trump states of west virginia the

debate is consuming the country americans wondering how to bridge deep divisions that are tearing apart their communities a conversation that morgan confiscate even with the customers definitely i just said to brian earlier that you know 67 years ago i wouldn't be in my business talking about politics you know they're just behind the chair speaking about it but i don't want to sound extreme i don't trust my government. to be able to do just the past 4 years it's just been trauma for me so what i think biden can do as far as healing i think it just runs so much deeper. i'm just thankful he's in office like maybe you can stop some of the bleeding we are in west virginia a rural state known for its small towns and country roads people here voted overwhelmingly for president donald trump in the november election but mistrust is

running deep and after the riots last week on capitol hill many didn't want to talk to us shop owners in several towns said that these days voicing their opinion could affect business so i just don't remember anything like this in my life you know not even close and city gillespie voted twice for trying a man he admired i do believe he don't want a good bank to lower the unemployment rate goes down a lot of things was good and i believe it's the best 4 years we had for a long time. he was well. i remember the obama times when i believe it was a lot of talk. for the poor people but lately his opinion has shifted was really let me down there was you know you. feel that a little bit you know and it made people do things it was pretty stupid you know and i think he was behind it somewhat he should step down yeah nothing no no.

i never thought i'd say that. but that's what i think. trump is very popular among many here who like derek hill believe the president should finish his term. but you're really going to go through all that trouble all the time all the energy all that effort all that money to impeach a president who at this point of time it goes through a process that you have maybe a day left what's the point besides just saying that you impeach president donald trump stood as an change my opinion as it doesn't change many other red blooded american opinions but this is a country in shock exhausted by the continuous political bickering and some are anxious that it could unravel further if it's not tamp down everybody in this country will be sanj by this fire this fire is coming the question is do we put it out of the political divisions in

washington d.c. have reach every corner of the united states president elect joe biden said that he will be a priority but in a country increasingly divided among partisan lines finding common ground would be the real challenge put up that hamid in west virginia let's go to joseph or a who's a professor of political science at texas a and m. university he's joining us from doha thanks for your time with us on the al-jazeera news hour so now that the president has been impeached in the house the trial goes to the senate and we understand that the trial won't start until after joe biden becomes press it president and seeing as there is no precedence for this at all how do you see this playing out. well i've been surprised to see the extent to which there are public comments or at least 2nd and comments from senators voting up majority leader mitch mcconnell who suggests that they're not only open to. holding an impeachment trial for dollars from but but in

fact inclined to convict him based on the evidence they were able to see just in terms of the president's conduct i think that the republican members of congress and particularly the senators who are in effect under siege directly and personally by the mob that attacked the capitol you very acutely feel the consequences of the president's actions and see if the direct connection between the things he said to that crowd the things he said in advance of the rally to undermine the counting of the electoral votes and dark crimes packed in and for bed him from continuing to run for president in the future or to get the benefits that are given to x. presidents yet is that an appealing option for the republicans i mean if the senate were to convict him then another vote will have to be held to bar donald trump from holding office ever again do you think republicans now see him more as

a liability for the party. i mean i think the republican party is deeply splintered between. the faction that remains loyal to the president and that you're continues to see him as a vehicle for their own electoral success and those who realize that either he is you know electoral always in at this point for the for the party on the national level or you know or in addition to that being someone who's just not committed to the basic democratic institutions of the country and regardless of the politics just shouldn't be tolerated so does there need to be a sort of deeper conversation going ahead about the future of the republican party itself. yet there is going to be a lot of conversations that a lot of soul searching and a lot of i mean frankly conflict within the republican party and around the republican party about its future you know trying to figure out where the party goes from here what role donald trump will play whether or not he's part of seeking

the presidency you know there's been. speculation that his children might run for office that members of his cabinet might be you know interested in pursuing the presidency backs the party is going to need to decide whether they continue to pursue your donald trump is a legacy of the party as a symbol of the party or whether they're going to reject him and the politics that he's brought to the office and finally let me just ask you about the. video that donald trump did release after the impeachment i mean he he did condemn the attacks that took place on the capitol hill but quite notably he didn't take responsibility for the events. i mean distancing yourself after the fact is is literally the absolute minimum acceptable thing for a political figure to do donald trump was it was there in washington during

a rally he remained silent during the attacks even watching them on the news and the fact not only that he doesn't mitt any culpability in that but that you know he he's unwilling to really muster a substitute defense of his actions it is telling by itself that in fact i think it shows that there is not a reasonable defense of that under under the kind of long standing traditions of democracy in the united states just for a thank you so much for speaking to us from qatar. more head on the al-jazeera news hour including this granted access. to study the origins of a virus that turned into a global pandemic a violent attack on the central african republic. to overturn. in sports with. take control of the.

first scientists from the world health organization have arrived in the chinese city of han more than a year after the 1st corona virus cases were reported there the group has finally been allowed access to investigate the origins of the pandemic it comes as the country's north is battling resurgent cases reported the 1st death from the virus and. katrina you reports from beijing. after months of negotiation with the chinese government members of the world health organization team have arrived in hot on a mission to trace the origins of carbon 19 we'd be. looking at the. cases human cases that were detected in december 1 didn't look ing at the markets the famous one market and see. what happened there the team also investigate the

theory that the virus 1st came from an animal and hopes to gain access to hans institute of role in the trumpet ministration has claimed without evidence that the pandemic was caused by a leak from this laboratory we need u.s. secretary of state mike from peo has accused the chinese government of a cover up and on tuesday tweeted that the show was corrupted by beijing the un agency has denied claims and says its focus is not about assigning blame but uncovering facts to fight the pandemic beijing has so far tightly controlled any investigation into the outbreaks origin the mission comes as china is struggling to contain an outbreak in the country's north with more than 700 cases discovered in a week in the 1st corona virus death recorded in 8 months discovering the origins of president clinton has become highly politicized many governments around the world have been pulled for an independent inquiry the last skeptical chinese government to provide for access to the communist was

a presence so closer to its own narrative about the outbreak sputters us chinese state media have been pushing reports that the corona virus was 1st discovered in europe in late 29000. beijing has been stoking the theory by pointing to traces of the virus on imported frozen food but says this is highly speculative but many residents in ruhani convinced me why you. want to look for the origin because i don't believe china is where it started. we were set up didn't originated not even in china health experts say it's unlikely the. discover the source of carbon 19 any time soon an additional missions may be needed. it took them some 10 years to find. a long way to take. maybe less time because we have. easily more complicated it would take time to find definitive. a team of experts

from around the world the chinese scientists and but 1st the 14 days of quarantine katrina you beating. a vaccine developed by china's pharmaceutical firm sue nowak is coming under scrutiny from regulators after the latest data from brazil shows it's only 50 percent effective just last week resilient researchers had said it was 78 percent effective against the virus they've now revised that figure saying it did not include all the data from the clinical trials the beijing based pharmaceutical company has defended the vaccine saying it is still safe for use while mass distribution of that same chinese man vaccine has just begun in turkey where health care workers at high risk groups are being prioritized in a mass inoculation dr health minister says doses have already been delivered to 81 sites across the country turkey to a delivery of 3000000 doses back in december so because of all who is joining us

from one such hospital involved in the rollout of the vaccine cinema tell us what you've been seeing. well yes as you said the health workers are prioritize and they are they have been they have they have started receiving the vaccine since early morning again today just right behind me you are seeing one of the nurses working at the state hospital of course when we speak to them they are happy to be able to receive the vaccine as they say they are highly exposed to the core of the virus stress and their families also have been on the risk within those 10 months that the country has been dealing with color on the virus and at the death toll actually reached 23004 the last couple of months especially the last 2 months have been a very critical inter kid that's why this is the hope for everyone of course it's

also the seniors that both 65 years old who are impatient waiting for the vaccine because they were mostly limited segment of the society they were they were stuck at their homes for. for many months and now everybody's waiting to see because. as the vaccine it came to turkey late december there was a 14 days of clinical trial period and now this is the 1st work seen after 2 weeks the cells worker is going to be receiving her 2nd vaccine of course the clinical results that brazil have has revealed so far which is barely a ball 50 percent is a little bit of concern among the public but they were paul's conductor's here and according to the polls at least 41 percent of the turkish people are willing to have the vaccine now turkey is planning to have $50000000.00 of chinese work

seen and $500000.00 those as of the pfizer everyone take work seen and also is negotiating with pfizer to have $25000000.00 of course all this means money and the target is that everybody gets vaccinated by by summer rights and of course all good thank you for that update from istanbul. now around the cause curfew has come into force in lebannon to combat a dramatic surge in corona virus infections on wednesday there were long queues outside food stores as beirut residents stocked up the lockdown will be imposed for 11 days and is the country's toughest response to the pandemic so far it comes amid growing criticism but coordinated policies helped fuel the spread of the coronavirus let's get an update from is enough with their joining us from lebanon's capital beirut so are people hearing these new measures in the curfew in place.

well there appears to be compliance as you can see behind me a little traffic you did mention the 24 hour curfew for the next 11 days but there are a few exceptions of course medical workers people who work in pharmacies the food sector they're allowed to venture out for the 1st time really the government is requesting people apply online or call a hotline to get permission to venture outside for and for any emergency authorities really had little choice you mention the dramatic surge in cases from january 3 to 1030000 new cases were detected and this is a small nation of 6 to 7000000 people so a 70 percent increase in sections but a lot of blame is being pointed at the government for its policies a lack of strategy that has been mitigating the crisis not containing the crisis health experts are saying that these on and off lock downs are not going to do much

what is the strategy after 11 days what are you planning to do hospitals are overwhelmed they managed to add a few beds yesterday to help deal with this crisis but the medical staff there they are tired they're understaffed in fact and many will say that they that they just can't continue so a lack of strategy and when you. impose a lockdown really this is the last resort when you lose control and levanon has lost control and the biggest question is will people comply for the next 11 days especially the vulnerable families many people rely on daily wages in order to survive what happens to them this is a cash strapped government was unable to help people a government which open the country which chose the economy over the health over over health because they wanted to lure in dollars from abroad $80000.00 people entered lebanon in december and there were no strict rules in place at the airport ok's anna has

a thank you for that update from beirut voting is underway in uganda as general election long queues formed before polling stations opened at 7 in the morning after 35 years in power president yarima 70 is seeking a 6th term but he's facing a serious challenge from the opposition leader bobby wine the run up to the vote has been plagued by violence. social media was. blacked out this is one of many gentlemen. doing make sure that. we vote to make sure that uganda. about uganda let's find out more with catherine sources joining us from a polling station in rocky so district near the capital kampala what do you sing where you are and how is the voting going conference. while voicing is going on well and well the wind voted here about 2 hours ago and after the vote he held that

press conference when he also called upon the people who were voicing telling them once you finish voting do not go home a stay by where you'll mosman painful actually do something but stay at the polling stations and got your vote this is a problem because electoral commission i say that everyone must vote everyone should both and must go home after voting this still waiting for presidential where it was 70 to cast his ballot in western uganda and these elections have been marred by violence people here i've spoken to are doubting the credibility questioning the credibility of the election because of that the post-election violence we have witnessed we think to see forces targeting some opposition leaders targeting desa forces as well we've also spoken to government officials who are just define the crackdown by security forces saying that some of this individuals some of these

opposition candidates have been flouting college 1000 regulations but then some human rights experts and people here we've been talking to are saying that yes there is a condemn make yes everybody should be extremely careful but it appears that the government he's taking advantage of the situation and using this pandemic to stifle opponents of president with 7 a right catherine thank you for that update from a polling station in uganda let's bring in a nicolas singo but who is a political commentator a daily monitor newspaper he's joining us from kampala as well just give me your overall view of how you see the election and in which spirit isn't being held. you know very very unique circumstances right in the middle of a pandemic. and contradict everything that. you would

require to have a proper. democratic campaign we should be. no gathering that is one of the main or the tradition that is the traditional way in which people get their message. to get their message across to people that are. getting together is very very important but it has been held in understandably in circumstances where. to protect the lives of the people you would not be required to look to congregate and do things in the traditional way and we also know that the government and the opposition as catherine was was outlining both the government and the opposition they're accusing each other of intimidation and violence and then lead to the likes and so how high is the potential for instability in the aftermath the results.

in the optimal complete result you are likely to out of. crime in. violence. you know very well if you look you look at the history of elections. in africa with it in burundi in kenya and all these places usually this to us to be important it is the only one that has that capacity to create. because they have the control of. history ments of course show these other people on this. very minute people who are worried about that but the history of uganda does not sure that you are likely to have. and there are by the people but i can see that really put you know if you want to clamp down very high handed and they have exhibited the election and the campaigns and i don't

think there are very many people. but they're able to clamp down on them actually trying to challenge myself any say saying from bobby wind you think. this time around you have a candidate who is really within the age range of the majority of the electorate in uganda almost 80 percent of the people. and all of those you have another. who are below that. were. very very charismatic and very motivation and i get on the other time where prisons are in. the history he brought you. these people are speaking to. those if they don't seem to get

his message in that in that light this time around that i don't think. the problems that most of these young people do not really have what to do with employment. employment the due north. god. so anybody with a message that talks about change is listened to and that's what bobby when he's on about ok. thank you so much for speaking to us from kampala. still ahead on al-jazeera italy targets one of its most powerful crime syndicates and the country's largest mobster on trial in decades and the sports news peter will be here with the actions of the opening night of the new n.h.l. ice hockey season back in a moment. but

. the latest country to get a real dump of snow has been sweden these are the pictures now expect sweden to get snow obviously and it is meat winter but even so it's quite a big fall still being cleared up their precious now high over sweden the snow has stopped falling but the air is over it is cold that's feeding down into the rest of eastern europe as dotted loads all over the place and it's cold it's going to be snowy not excessively so don't think unless you bring a frontal system into it then it may well snow across significantly particularly over the alps outbreaks of like the snow for most places not cold part of eastern europe until the cold gets down to the warmish waters of the man's writing we always tended to something rather more substantial space in those still covered in snow is now enjoying sunshine for a couple of days that the action is going to be most definitely further east you go

across the bed of the north coast of africa as well so that's a look at that this is the picture then for saturday stormy weather seems like if the g. and as the east medical cyprus into the levant that is cold enough over turkey to produce an awful lot more snow high temperature in istanbul only about 4 degrees and that drops and this is all going to be rain of course except in the bekaa valley for example for a snow seems likely. underside of a stall. they once prosperous fishing village sinks beneath the mud. parliamentary elections ignite fierce rivalry that will determine the future of this defeated and politically divided community. a microcosm reflecting the plight of a nation witness venezuela a sinking revolution on

a. al-jazeera as investigative unit obtained censored and unseen video from will harm filmed as the coronavirus are great is just beginning to live on all those years that the us is only in the dark more exposing the secrecy and censorship by chinese authorities. up on a clock and a health system struggling to cope al-jazeera investigation is 3 dates that still the world. well again the top stories on the al-jazeera this hour donald trump has become the

1st us president to be impeached twice the house of representatives has charged him with inciting an insurrection over his repeated questioning a fellow actually results which included a speech he gave to supporters before they over around the capitol building a round the clock curfew has come into force in lebanon to combat a dramatic surge in corona virus infections on wednesday there were long queues outside food stores is beirut president stocked up for lockdown will be imposed for 11 days voters are heading to the polls and ugandans general election president there in 70 is seeking a 6th term but he's facing a serious challenge from opposition leader but the line in the run up to the vote has been plagued by violence. the u.s. capitol looks very different than it did a week ago now fences are going up and thousands of soldiers are being cold joe biden's inauguration moves closer to the f.b.i. but i urge police chiefs to be on high alert for extremist activity and reports in

the capital. many of the people that did this by lightly storming the u.s. capitol terrorizing the people inside say this was just the beginning social media post suggesting in the coming days as the presidential inauguration gets closer there will be a repeat in washington d.c. and in state capitals across the country this threat is real it's present and the american public should know that law enforcement is working around the clock to make sure. this threat. but if they come this is what they will find as many as 20000 national guard soldiers some armed surrounding federal buildings sleeping in the hallways between shifts a heavy police presence and heavy equipment the top leadership of the military taking the unprecedented step of sending out this letter to the entire military reminding them they're bound to support and defend the constitution and that joe biden will be the 46th commander in chief and there are renewed calls for people to

stay away from the inauguration. taking the unusual step of canceling all d.c. rentals for the event we have asked americans not to come to the washington d.c. event but instead to participate virtually inside the capitol members now ask to pass through metal detectors to enter the chamber several republicans refusing democrats are making serious allegations that some of their political opponents even colluded with the rioters as numbers of congress are coming through the capitol that i saw ashen right there. are condescends the next day as members of congress that cited the silent crowd the leader of one of the groups that was at the capitol says he has been coordinating with at least 3 members of congress allegations they all deny but in a sign of how polarized this institution has become some members like democrat alexandria ocasio cortez now say they were afraid to shelter with others afraid

they would tell the mob where they were i can tell you that i had a very close encounter where i thought i was going to die. i did not know if i was going to make it to the end of that game life across the country police are being deployed capital buildings boarded up but former cia agent glenn karl says the u.s. capitol could still be at risk the center of everything is washington. so if you want to make a statement or if you're really angry you want to strike where things are most important going to be your remarks on january 20th this is where joe biden is expected to take the oath of office surrounded by images of a country at war with itself. how does era washington. according cambodia has resumed demands trial of more than 60 opponents of the government most have been charged with treason for taking part in nonviolent

political activities the trials were heavily criticized by rights groups and described as a sham by the opposition florence the reports. theory saying a cambodian american human rights activist and lawyer is facing charges of conspiracy to commit treason and incitement to create social disorder she's described the charges as absurd but at the same time hasn't ruled out the possibility that she could be found guilty and sentenced to prison but the political theater of the decision will be made by politicians not judges so this is why we know that it's not a genuine trial i'm being persecuted for my political opinion nearly 130 people mostly former supporters and members of the disbanded opposition party the cambodian national rescue party all see an r.p. have been charged with similar crimes their trial was due to begin last november but the court split the cases into 2 with one hearing due to start on thursday in

march the un has voiced concerns the charges appear to be politically motivated many defendants are accused of being involved with organizing a failed trip by former opposition leaders sam rainsy to return to cambodia from self-imposed exile brains he had been prime minister who is biggest political rival for years in 2017 a year before the last general election who launched a sweeping crackdown on his opponents. the c. an r.p. was forced by the court to disband its leader kemp soca arrested ahead of the election rights activists say the upcoming trial will help in sen who's been prime minister for 36 years to strengthen his grip on power what we're seeing in cambodia today is the consolidation of dictatorship we're seeing the last vestiges of political opposition swept away that means local and provincial councillors of the

sea and r.p. . various political activists civil society people are all being swept up in these mass trials the government says the charges are the timid and that the trial will proceed like any other florence li al jazeera and you heard the florence that we mentioned sam rainsy in her report we can now speak to him is the i think president of the banned opposition party the cambodian national rescue party his joining us from paris that's where he lives in exile thanks for your time with us on the al-jazeera news hour so this case this trial that we're seeing right now in cambodia is directly linked to your attempts to return to cambodia and 2019 from france where you currently live 1st what is your reaction to all the charges on the trial anybody who does not agree with the. government is accused of treason so i want to

go back. 2090 but i was prevented to the government as so big or i am my own company and me and what you are and now. my entry into our kind of yeah actually. very asked renda. represented at the. rate and he excused you at the time off and attempted coups effectively so will you try to return to cambodia and defend yourself. i really look back as soon as i can now my colleague vice president who are. back in to do so but. not be allowed to do sol so it's a very strange under one buttons and use of process.

after many many ludicrous. but only are there when we are not. what you think the purpose of this trial is. just. of justice. in giving the population because the leaders of europe will jump all of the day one prosecutor but only on one. end of country because it used to be not what you. mean ocean dollar rise up there because they prevent us from going back and. try not to rag on the date it population but your party of course is bad and so what impact is that having on the state of the opposition in

cambodia and those in exile like yourself. opposition which is the only created by law will usually be the only one that was there to present that. this has been barrier but the. only action how do you know why group in the hearts of. all us or taught. because the majority of the people are what. change in the border do you base that on you're sitting in paris or forgive me but you're in paris and saying the majority of the people support the opposition what evidence do you have of that or what are you basing that on at the last election. when we were allowed. in we collect the nearly ha you popular culture and at least. a massive 1 fraud or head election will be

honest we would have a wonderful already. got lots of plot has. a nice explain why it is so i have read of but only out of the floor following the election they knew that we were going to we knew reason why they banned us just before the election and now of the. leaders of europe and. why are persecuting them. now the. very upset of the with actually. how that. just briefly are now what you mentioned a moment ago about going back you said as soon as you can. labrat on that and tell us what exactly your plans are. well the little sand i live.

probably shouldn't fly and i. don't i you know the next oh. yeah but now the government has. told me so not. all right sam rainsy we thank you so much for speaking to us from paris. well the u.n. peacekeeping mission in the central african republic says a soldier has been killed in an attack by armed groups in the capital bangui rebels have been trying to overturn december's election results which saw president far star shans to walk away reelected nicolas hack reports the capital of the central african republic under attack above the sound of russian helicopters interrupted by explosions and gunfire when rwandan u.n. peacekeeper was killed dozens of rebel fighters died in combat. one of the rebels

is captured alive but security forces save him from a mob who wants him dead later he's paraded on state t.v. by the country's security minister. these are foreign fighters this one doesn't even speak french or the local language he is now in our hands thanks to the slower peroration of the people of the central african republic on tuesday prime minister with the u.n. and russian escorts visited the neighboring town while the to boost the troops' morale. dozens of government forces are deserving the frontline too scared to fight against what appears to be a well equipped and well organized rebel force using girl or warfare tactics the rebels have taken control of more than 2 thirds of the country. ecowas in the enemy is composed of rebels from all over the central the republic coming from the borders of cameroon chad sudan the full army in the in terror of the country the n.t. pollak on the good by

a majority military including gendarme and police all in this coalition the size is about $9000.00 men the intention is to overthrow the government in place and force the population into submission in 3 days the offensive comes days before the constitutional court is to confirm president. victory in december's presidential election the government accuses former president of what was easy a fomenting unrest russian fighters are patrolling the capital securing strategic positions including the presidential palace much to the relief of people living in benghazi so nothing to do with it as long as the russians are here i feel safe their presence with the u.n. forces. but even still the future remains uncertain. and they request a friend the former colonial power in the central african republic the un security council is discussing the presence of russian fighters in a country where it had a stronghold french troops left in 2016 after soldiers that were accused of rape

and sexual violence against young girls in their absence russian fighters are now more visible in a country on the brink of civil war nicholas hawke al-jazeera. hundreds of suspected members of and and our gets a crime syndicate are on trial in italy their charges include murder extortion money laundering and drug trafficking stephanie decker has more from rome. under heavy security in the heartland where the indicted to hold power the trial of more than 350 suspected members and associates of the calabrian mafia got underway most of the accused appearing on video link from their jail cells no small achievement for prosecutor and he call it that terry who's been working against the powerful group for decades and as a result has lived under police protection for the past 30 years the chimney fire but a lot of the course on all stockades ago people would tremble when talking about the

cosa nostra when using the word and drunk it or something they would do only in it in rooms whispering today we're speaking out in the open sunlight in the last 2 years we've been seeing a spike in complaints by people bullied by the drunk. almost is an age old mafia code of silence applied through fear instilled by violence in a population so as not to tell not to testify to the authorities but around 100 witnesses are expected to be called in this trial backed up by thousands of hours of wiretaps to help the case against the accused who include politicians police chiefs and lawyers most were arrested in a raid in 2019 that spanned italy germany switzerland and bulgaria in the words of the chief prosecutor this is a mafia that looks like us and is everywhere one in 3 restaurants in rome one in milan is operated by the drunk by much organization called ragged i look around and one in 10 bank deposits is operated by them over the administer public

administration it spans over 5 continents from germany to colombia from usa to australia with powerful ties with the chinese mafia as and many many south american cartels then during that time is said to be the most powerful of the italian mafia is running most of europe's cocaine trade with close ties to the latin american drug cartels it's believed to be involved in the trafficking of weapons in people as well as narcotics when estimated turnover of more than $60000000000.00 a year this trial focuses on one specific families whose those but there are others . is made up of different family dynasties blood ties that experts say make it far more difficult to infiltrate or recruit informants the general consensus here is that regardless of the outcome of the trial it's not going to affect the day to day operations of the group but the fact that the trial is taking place at all we're told sends a strong message to what is one of the most powerful violent and richest criminal

organizations in the world the prosecutors on their case and are determined to do everything possible to bring them to justice stephanie decker al-jazeera. in an unprecedented move the hong kong government has used a controversial national security law to restrict internet access and website hong kong chronicles is being blocked in person or tiriel related to the mass pro-democracy protests seen in the city throughout 21000 internet access is widely censored in mainland china but had been mostly free in hong kong time for an update on the sports news where peter during thank you very much u.s. olympic swimming champion cleat killer has been charged for taking part in last week's riots in washington d.c. this video allegedly shows the 6 foot 6 feet inside the capitol building wearing a u.s. olympic team jacket it's not clear whether he's been taken into custody but he has resigned from his real estate job in colorado springs colo won 5000000000 pick

medals including 2 relay gold alongside michael phelps sarah hirshman the c.e.o. of the u.s. olympic and paralympic committee said i strongly condemn the actions of the rioters at the u.s. capitol they do not represent the values of the united states of america or of team usa to south america and pele's former club sent to us set up an all brazilian final in the cup a limited orders they were up against to argentina's barca juniors in the semi's end of the school its 1st leg sent us made home advantage count in game 2 winning 3 mill they'll play polaris in the final on january 30th of the matter konar in rio which could hold nearly $80000.00 fans but they will be known both year because of covert 19 percent of coach dedicated to winter pele he gave a speech to the players before kick off. the minutes the only pride that we have today to say i'm brazilian is because of pele there's no the reason is because of

pele and having him being part of this accomplishment with the speech that he gave to the players even in his weakened condition thank you king this one is for you. with 190 days to go until the tokyo lympics covert 19 continues to disrupt sports in japan the start of the rugby season there has been delayed because of the arc breaks at several teens with 67 positive tests some top international stars like new zealand's bode and berets have joined the league this year as were due to begin this weekend but they are now aiming for a mid february start it comes as public support for the olympics continues to fall in japan with one survey suggesting only 16 percent are in favor of the games taking place in july. covert restrictions are in place of the 1st cricket test between sri lanka and india and no fans are allowed in to watch in goal england are well on top in this match which was postponed from march last year because of the

pandemic sri lanka won the toss and chose to bat 1st but it's not working out for them they were all out for 135 in a 59 for 2 in response. over in brisbane australia and india are getting ready for their 4th test before match series is currently level at one each india won the series the last time they visited australia but the hosts have not lost at the gabba since 1988 captain some pain remains under scrutiny of the sledging of india's ravichandran ashwin in the previous test match. my mate gets me which is a very rare thing. to have a blip on the right there's a sort of cop out on the chain are all up to coming out this weekend i comparative test cricket as i always do and there's a bit of banter to be said when you are normal when it's not. as for india they have complained about the quality of the facilities that they hotel in brisbane even so the team's batting coach says it is unlikely to affect them when they take

to the field. we're playing australia in australia is one of the better acts in the world so i think what you wish is that you don't need to. be in our room so as to motivate us of course these were the concerns are still going to be scary and i think this is a case and i should have been trying to read it all these things the new n.h.l. ice hockey season started behind closed doors on a wednesday with the defending champions tampa bay lightning looking a strong as ever the reigning stanley cup champions were on before they began the action on home ice against the chicago blackhawks there were no fans inside the arena of the league attempts to play the season outside of a bubble the last campaign was disrupted by the coronavirus to the point where the playoffs were staged in 2 bubbles in canada tampa bay winning this game 51. to the n.b.a. in the us the rockets traded their unhappy star james harden for the brooklyn nets

out and made it very clear that he wanted to leave ever since pre-season and the situation was amplified this week when he ripped into his teammates during a press conference of the back to back to feet to the l.a. lakers some of those teammates are happy to see him go in addition. start away before you know any energy. just approach to training camp. shaun of the way d. the answer is at the core i mean in this respect starting with before. damian lillard it was in fine form for the portland trail blazers as they fall from 20 points down to beat the sacramento kings school 40 points to help portland rack up a 4th straight win they also tied a franchise record to 233 pointers but missed 4 attempts at breaking the mark. and the daughter of n.b.a. legend dennis rodman has followed him into professional sports rodman won 5 n.b.a. titles including 3 at the chicago bulls alongside michael jordan and scottie pippen

he's daughter trinity rodman is a footballer and at 18 years old has become the youngest ever player 'd to be drafted into the top women's league in the united states the washington spirit select trinity ride men from washington state university obviously this is my dream for playing soccer since i was 4 years old and in every school paper everything i wrote i want to be fatuous like i want to be national soccer player and i think right now just covering everything i think honestly like you can see it's not the right time right now i think it's a perfect time to get in and learn and become a better player. and we're just getting news that the former tennis number one andy murray has tested positive for corona virus the british player was planning to compete at the australian open next month but this may put his participation in doubt so updates on that as we get them. ok we'll leave it there for now i'll be here again later with more sports news peter keep us posted if you can thanks very

much for the time being and thanks for watching the news hour on al-jazeera that's it from myself and peter and that is our team but folly about to both of you in just a moment you'll have much more of the day's news coming your way thanks for watching . frank assessments go colleagues on the ground in the canaries what is the situation there's only one doctor and one nurse or $1.00 to $200.00 people informed opinions how big does foreign policy figure in the early stages of a bind in this race he comes into office with a huge amount of foreign policy experience in-depth analysis of the day global

headlines how will a place like you live get the vaccine when there's no money and all the rest of rich countries are fighting for it inside story on al jazeera setting the discussions millions of americans feel disaffected fivefold political party examining the headlines this group of activists and relatives are marxists and clinton right now where they're calling for morning edition and also explore an abundance of world class programming designed to inform why is child the only solution for a child as young as 10 months of 8 am to inspire you see the world from a different perspective on al-jazeera. the 2nd episode of the series exposed the rise of the major drug cartels and their reign of terror in the 19 sentence a mexican government little told the traffickers we have to produce the body because they knew it was good. america's public enemy number one is drug abuse

and the moon should the international war on drugs drug trafficking politics and power. and drug lords on al-jazeera. cuts to the. storytelling are the biggest issues but they have to do it in. 'd the end. no one is a fall of the law not even the president of the free charge for inciting an insurrection donald trump becomes the 1st us president to be impeached twice. you're watching al-jazeera live from doha with me fully back t. ball also coming up turkey rolls out coronavirus vaccinations with dozens of

centers set up across the country. lebanon begins an all day curfew expanding the scale of the nation.