test will be the olympic torch relay which is coming up on thursday starting in fukushima 10000 runners will crisscross japan over the next 4 months to reach the opening ceremony on july 23rd local crowds just like their foreign counterparts are being asked to stay away. david stokes out 00 the eruption of a long dormant volcano in iceland is still putting on quite the display so you can see basts of lava shooting into the air are forming streams flowing across a valley in the southwest i don't say it poses no risk to people. that this is al jazeera and these are the headlines protests have been held across europe calling for covert 1000 restrictions to be lifted as the continent struggles to cope with another rise in infections many countries are going back into lockdown and police and brazil's largest city south palo are breaking up illegal parties to

slow the advance of private 19 curfews have been imposed in several major cities to curb the spread of a local variants that's helping drive a surgeon infection was beaches have also been closed in rio de janeiro. has more from one of their. these measures by the author it is in rio de janeiro to close the b. is there also stopping buses coming into the city bringing 2 routes to those beaches they've done that before the question now is whether they will police it whether they will stop people massing on the beaches they also have to put up with the president of the country job also about all encouraging people to go to the beaches and take in the song that he's saying that's a good idea so they can focus to mean we should allow them to fight the covert 19 virus the leading opposition candidate in republic of congo's election has been admitted to hospital with covert 19 just ahead of the presidential election he's appealed to supporters to end the rule of president an assassin aggressor who is widely expected to extend his 36 years in power parts of the australian state of

new south wales are experiencing some of their worst flooding for 100 years house was seen floating down a river near the northern coast many people in that region fled their homes on saturday security forces in thailand have fought with protesters who broke through barriers around the king ceremonial residence police pushed back about 1500 demonstrators tens of thousands of people mostly youths have been protesting since last year to demand a new constitution and reforms to the monarchy. tens of thousands of demonstrators have gathered outside israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu has residents again calling for his resignation similar rallies have been held every weekend over the past 9 months this one comes just days ahead of israel's general election its 4th in 2 years. well those are the headlines i'll have more news for you here after front stay with us. see there will be no closure until

justice is served and the identities of those behind the bombings are revealed with detailed coverage there's something else significant about this it represents and then there's a real dividing line between the wealthy who are from around the world the man who knelt on his neck you his friends the weekend a minneapolis courtroom with a court selecting jurors to decide if he should be convicted of murder as prime minister narendra modi's government cracks down on dissent in india still call itself the largest democracy on earth. mark lamont hill also on the show anger and desperation is mounting in lebanon over a financial and political meltdown the country is hurtling toward collapse what can

be done to stop it that's our debate but 1st india's growing crackdown on dissent including farmers' protests internet shutdowns online censorship and the jailing of activists is ringing authoritarian alarm bells is the mark received being dismantled and the ranger modi's india last this week headliner national spokesperson for the ruling by the tea party. thank you so much for joining me on upfront. thank you very much. india has long been touted as the world's largest democracy but in recent years under prime minister narendra modi. india has been seeing its democratic credentials called into question just this month the democracy watchdog freedom house has downgraded india from free to partly free and soon after the v. dem institute in sweden reclassified india no longer as the world's biggest democracy but as an electoral autocracy and these institutions gotten it right is

it time to recalibrate whether india is a democracy anymore well let me tell you that it is not only largest democracy but it's the mother of all. because we have. just been back to student. of history and you will find that democratic process is followed in this country but it. relations something we inherited. and it is an obgyn to follow. follow democratic process let's talk about some of those democratic processes you you're right i mean the thing that makes a nation a democracy is its democratic processes and practices but what we've seen in the last few months alone is a series of things that some have considered to be anti democratic. the cracking down on dissent in recent months in light of the agricultural reforms that have

taken place in the form of protests that have ensued since the reforms your government ordered twitter to block more than 1200 accounts including journalists and media organizations deemed to be sharing content or views on the protests that the government didn't like this doesn't seem like a democratic process or practice it seems dictatorial. not a not at all a completely disagree with people who have this kind of began to disappear going to because safety and security of citizen is that is the paramount importance for every every government and the response of looking up this government fog and it is important that some but somebody who is trying to use the social media to propagate something which is secular and own little sense and necessarily. get the information we need to friction within the society it is important for the government to ensure that those. which can create tricks in particular collection

should be. done if you're saying that if there is something that is dangerous and in correct in unfactual and causing some kind of public crisis so public damage is up there then yes i can understand the conversation about potentially taking it down but 1st of all according to human rights watch just to give one example they're saying that this is a kind of attack against journalists and media authorities oppose bail for the journalists to decompile and after he was arrested on his way to report on the gang rape of a dallas woman in a dish also all sharma as a journalist who was charged with spreading false information disobeying the order of a public servant and acting negligently to spread infection of a dangerous disease what did on sharma do it was the posting of a facebook a live report that showed stranded workers in need of food during a lockdown what did they do that warranted these charges do you even in retrospect believe that this was appropriate. well you have to understand. the sensitiveness

of your particular sure and how it will impact the society and if if in the heat of the moment if you. want something want to go out on a little make sure we can really get into a lot of. security issues then it is it is the authority which is asking you cannot go on because of the way that in every every every. day we chose and the government can you can you comment on those 2 cases because i don't i don't i don't want to see. you in a big country you cannot just because i'm not. going to conjure up passages i could put hundreds are you can you courts and my dear pradesh denied let's there's another court in my department pradesh denied bail to a muslim stand up comic know what a photo who was arrested under section $295.00 for jokes that apparently hurt hindu

sentiments even the police admit they have no evidence that he even had a performance and basically didn't make the jokes so i get it seems like time after time which in crackdowns on dissent you could you acknowledge that at least appears to be a threat to democracy to you. no let me get a few clinical information and get it you'll be the it one being followed in the country see you're talking about the muslim community and i come from the muslim community and i said with conviction that no government in the past has to be overly concerned about disposal of community because this government will actually do all the interests of the government is reaching out to muslims who have been left the standard by the previous governments that successive governments that's fine but it doesn't that doesn't that you have yet to answer any of the question about how the media government transept treats journalism that i gave 3 specific cases of crackdowns on dissent whether it's from a comedian whether some journalist do you have any interest in greece writing to those specific cases and i'm happy to move on but can you sir address those cases

not absolutely no distinction only for the government is not about a dozen list not about anybody with that it's you know do you let anybody on that list who are who at them to create some kind of friction through their life being on their performance or their statement other one will be there. that will be under the law that let me if i if i move on people protesting the citizenship amendment act last year which was seen by many to be unfair and discriminatory against muslims were beaten arrested and killed in subsequent crackdowns during those citizenship protests copula mishra a member of the b j p in delhi used inflammatory rhetoric against protesters including the slogan shoot the traitors shoot the traitors he also issued a fiery speech declaring that a police didn't clear the streets he and his supporters would the violence that

ensued ended up killing 53 people most of whom were muslim why is capital misha still a member of the b j p s. he he was he was a member of another political party ignore his part of the b. dip b. and the us political party had been damaged he was indicted the political party was making noise no extremely happy and comfortable with this kind of hypocrisy is wrong but if somebody i'm dealing with conviction and i'm telling you that let everyone must know that if anybody makes that i'm going to speculate that it's from the but they don't but by pure the ruling party or from them i think that by the end this it is that it will commit crime and constriction unless specter of that affair i don't get b s l c h one of the political party they will not be spent it will not work in their favor because a lot of the land is absolutely let go it's good fiction must be punished so you've said. that now minister of home affairs describing migrants from bangladesh as

termites you've had to janet the chief minister of the country's most populous state say that there is nothing wrong with india becoming a hindu state and referred to muslims as quote a crop of 2 legged animals that have to be stopped i would ask a very simple question that i'd love to get an answer to do you condemn this language well it has been spoken in very different perspective and it should africa does go in. one of the chips when it's done it's going to stop this clear country you have to see how many statement is given for the community and to simply add the this time in writing do you couldn't do this laying a works or do you condemn this intimidating language. no it isn't this. they're not going to for the committed this must seem that there's less spoken of would be

the. people who are coming to india and getting just a disruption suddenly and people refer to muslims as a crop of 2 legged animals who have to understand that it's not. i completely disagree with this the kind of. statement you're making and that was not bent then and then it just saying it is already there you are picking what that sentence and you are making that kind of. your analysis but fact that it must be spoken in a very different perspective and people who are or know yes he called them a crop of 2 legged animals would you say under what circumstances an is it is it proper to use a sling which i don't eat my green bangladesh as termites i mean would you look at let's let's let's focus on that for a moment sir just so that i can get a clear response and let a little is there ever a time what's ok to call migrants from bangladesh that termites know anybody was

enduring into our country illegally they're coming illegally in our country not through a legal process the out of their made what does that make go would be the basic approach might. it may consider though they read about it they're going to become the system and that's what they were doing in many parts of the country illegally come into our country and what do what is sources available for our country many of us because of us live secret say. they just love that people of this country are not for the people who are coming illegally so it has so you're saying so you're going to take it from cite please continue let me let me let let me tell you you're talking about. you know that they're not who is the couldn't. define a set of the largest in a state and let me tell you you're talking what he said he said something about the

muslim community but i am dealing with that in perspective but when you see his militants martin you see that are tough supples that people who need to change that 22000 homes which i don't want to have been given to citizen wouldn't have changed it in or that but i hate that i have ties muslim community it can cause and of the 22 was given to muslim women to lead that electricity connection to the which was left in darkness by the u.s. government all the electricity connection with it had been given. the gas connection the water connection everything had been provided by the state and. so he's very clear calling for him to supremacy in fact he said there's nothing wrong with india becoming a hindu state let me let me ask you very directly do you agree with the idea of india becoming a hindu state would that be proper. so. this state which is as i said it's the mother of all democrats but that's not my that's not my question my

question is if you have said there's nothing wrong with telling a hindu state do you agree with this statement so literally you must understand when you became a center there must understand what exactly it means it does not. and in this case he said he's ready for a religious war he said we're all preparing for a religious war he said that muslims were a crop of 2 legged animals that had to be stopped he said he's from a temple that is known for hindu supremacy and then he said there is nothing wrong with the hindu state that is not a single sentence that is a body of works are in my question for you is do you agree with this would you prefer india become a hindu state yes or no i have all this. country and i'm going to something that every. being it's good as it is a good thing unlike many many places in the world including. very differently than my and. so permissive.

nationals that other faiths have been created. in this great country no other country probably gives the kind of freedom which we. will have to leave it there sides for islam thank you so much for joining me. a dying economy a pandemic that has crippled the health care system a currency in freefall and more than half the population living below the poverty line add to that a government stalemate and one of the biggest non-nuclear explosions in modern times lebanon is suffering on an unprecedented scale since 21000 protesters have been on the streets calling for change they say the political elite beset by corruption and mismanagement is to blame but they will not relinquish power is lebanon hurdling towards total collapse. joining me to answer that question from beirut is camelot the she is nonresident fellow at carnegie endowment and the

author of the book black wave and dana ash cultural and social activist and executive director of haven for artists thank you both for joining me in the arena dana i want to start with you last august nearly 3000 tons of ammonium nitrate exploded in the port of beirut that killed more than 200 people and injured thousands of others between that and the country's financial crisis many were hopeful that lebanon would finally see. genuine reform nadeem who are a lebanese citizen and director of the average farm initiative called it quote a once in a lifetime battle for the soul of lebanon but today people are still in the grips of a mounting crisis why did all of these catastrophic events happen and yet they didn't become the tipping point for the kind of change that many thought we'd see. when it comes to the tipping point i think that 1st you have to assume that the situation was deteriorating was to average a pretty 2nd that it was at any point stable or efficient and that was never the

case it was never stable that was never a question we had protests every couple of years we've had occupations from 2 different regimes that have found what i love and not so the premise of it being it's open what was always something that we were negotiating with on an everyday basis because it wasn't just the blast it was the way that we were able to even live in this country was practically impossible prior to it but the problem i think of it isn't whether we like it or not there is too many persons in power when it comes down to it we're not fighting one lesion we're fighting 8 different persons that are in control of one regime so it's not like you can go after one of them and be able to remove that person from their chair all in a way protecting one another because they know that their interests are extremely interconnected and that if one of them falls all of them do and we're waiting for lab i don't moment i don't think activists have ever relinquished the streets and i don't think they ever will and can do with that assessment yes i do agree with some

of the points that just made we're still in the process of bringing down what is essentially a system a political establishment of former warlords for the large part you know mafia lords in some ways a political cartels and malicious you know who we should not forget to mention hezbollah as the militant shop political group not to iran as one of the main key players in this equation which is not the only problem but is the most powerful group armed to the chiefs which helps to uphold the system because it too benefits from the corruption and it feeds into that system but i would add one thing to what do you know i said i think we're going to continue to see. tests on the street i think we're going to continue to see popular pressure against the political establishment. and we're going to see also regional movement because

unfortunately for another not one we're at this sort of crossroad of geopolitics where everyone is involved the russians that rowing against the americans the french and what we really need here is international pressure as well as vocal pressure it is also up to people here for us in lebanon to push for true reforms can you brought up hezbollah of course the shia political party and militia which has dominated the country's politics for decades for some they are the problem and same time hezbollah provide social services schools health care we could go down to youth programs etc is hezbollah's popularity a roadblock or should we incorporate that into whatever salute whatever political solutions we develop or imagine hezbollah is a state within a state they are free to provide social services to their community but there is no reason for them to remain aren't and there is no reason for them to use lebanon as

a base for their regional 'd military adventures in syria and iraq in yemen they are a paramilitary expeditionary force that is royal to iran they did play a great role in helping to liberate southern lebanon from israeli occupation but that was then and today the lebanese want i think in the majority of them want to build a state they need governance they need rule of law and so you have a lot of charities organizations that are politically if you do that to provide social services and hezbollah's social services are great and they can continue to do that. the shia community in lebanon on should be free to choose and should be provided with other opportunities beyond boy don't you trust fund and i think what

we're seeing is the shia community making very clear that as well as not even providing enough for them anymore they are 2 going hungry and that's why you are seeing people crow test in areas where hezbollah has a strong presence there to help me think through this has below question because this is one of the most contentious issues some countries designated as a terrorist group others see it as a legitimate social political force now of course we know in 2009 the lebanese parliament overwhelmingly approved hezbollah to have weapons the only militia to do so after the civil war this creates a very unique dynamic for hezbollah in terms of its power in the region in the country specifically the question though is do we disarm what do you say is that the only way out to have to have this kind of coexistence. i think we cannot eliminate the pressure of the presence of people that supports hezbollah or support the m. other movement because there are shihad that do not follow has by that problem either there are other shows that are independent so the shock of unity and of

itself has multiple leaders but the premise of it is if we want an actor with an acrostic weapons out of state we all need to come to the table coming to the table with a gun no matter who it is is a problem including when it's somebody like the lebanese forces who say they don't have crowds but one can't push comes to shove there are. all ready to go out to the streets because everyone personally under god doesn't need to be the militias because i also think that this is a very different understanding we always assume that the militia itself is the only one that has a gun but there's also people that we the people that don't consider themselves with guns like el appen f.m.p. which is a prepaid riyadh equipment were one of the largest blocs currently with hezbollah the last time we had a protest they went down with guns and they were shooting up and you know they were shooting in the air trying to shoot at protesters so you do have different different elements of it and 1st of all before we even get to the point of this arming hezbollah we need to sit at the same table i don't think we've even gotten to a point where we truly and for me there's always been what it was this was just what

the sitting at the same table looked like as a practical matter in the current context. i think well 1st of all iraqis are coming on and we're extremely excited to finally present ourselves with independent candidates and especially women candidates as we know we only have 4.5 percent of our entire parliament that is represented by women. of course of the many laws that are all entailed into that so firstly we have to just get to the elections in a promise the people understand there is an alternative because the state media is owned by the same you know militias that are running the country and like him said hezbollah does offer social services and so do all of the militias and their own way whether it be the dollars in the short or when it be how do you pay and problems will suffer the so all of them do this thing the promise and it is that he made the government so in fact so incapable that you must follow them as a militia all of these militias are doing the same thing all of them the difference is hezbollah is not of course that is easily negotiated with because they are so

much controlled by external process but also let's not forget that the saudis are not easy and the saudis are also and are and how do you think so you have multiple elements of geopolitics playing here and the 1st premise of it is understanding that these politicians in about one in of themselves are the problem not just the people that they're leading another big geo political question in the middle east and certainly in lebanon is the question of the refugee there are 7000000 people in lebanon and in that country there is an extraordinary responsibility to house refugees to host 1500000 syrian refugees that's a proportion of refugees higher than any other country in the world. lebanese people right now are finding it more difficult to feed themselves for a living on less than $14.00 a day we've seen food prices skyrocket as this goes on what future is there for the families who have fled neighboring countries to lebanon what's the future the

refugee when it comes to the refugees it's all up to allow. us to decide when they should go home to a country that still at war it is a very large burden for 11 on and the international community has not done enough to help lebanon on and syrian refugees in general my great hope for for love or not as we go forward begin up with some of the things that day that's it is that activism is going to turn into political work i see a lot of the groups that have been that have taken to the streets over the last 18 months really understand that activism on its own charity work n.-g. o. were is not enough and that they need to get involved in the politics they need to run for elections elections will take place we hope in 2022 sometime in may or in the sprint we hope they will indeed take place and the establishment will not try to cancel them because i see

a lot of really excellent work game changing approach to how you run elections and how you run for elections and you know i don't want to put up my hopes too much but i think we could be looking at a new political leader political leaders coming onto the scene that's all we have time for chemical at this dana bash thank you both so much for joining me in the arena. that is our show up front will be back next week. frank assessments the world is on the brink of a catastrophic moral failure is that a fair assessment it would be a catastrophic failure to twice a valuable back saying informed opinions should we be buying bit coy ultimately it

will be sovereigns and governments who are buying this that is the direction this is all headed in-depth analysis of the day's global headlines the inside story. in colombia in the mid ninety's coca fields covered homes stretches of land far from the cities which were now on the high surveillance the end of the ninety's people were talking about the potential for it becoming an august with the guerrillas to help drug traffickers sought refuge in the jungles of mountains when out of the state's reach. a farm right militia of 20000 men the united self defenders of colombia to fight the guerrillas. meanwhile colombia's legitimate military suffered ambushes by the font the soldiers were abducted in the hundreds the systematic killing led to the displacement of millions of people the paramilitaries dictated than those in the zones they took over the areas the state

could never reach under pressure from the d.n.a. the criminals who came after pablo escobar hunted down their shell companies were dismantled under arrest increased. roof. coronavirus restrictions trigger resistance across europe as countries brace for another wave of infection. one of brazil's biggest city police are breaking up policies to try to contain private 1000 outbreaks. hello there i must tell you this is al jazeera live from doha also coming up a plea from an opposition leader infected with private 19 as people go to the polls .