games in recent weeks now he's also saying that there's not a forgotten collect conclusion that the taliban will take control of the country. but he says it's one of the possibilities. he says there's still the possibility of a negotiated settlement between the government and the taliban. but they're all sorts of other bad scenarios where the country could face with breakdowns across the country, different fighting, taking place in different places, and the return of warlords. so very worrying picture you will reporting a little earlier, james, that it's been kind of quiet over the past few days. partly, i guess because of the ead religious holiday. but what do we think could happen next? when we talk about the military operation? eve certainly has cotton things down. that's been a slight law, but the law already appears to be ending. it may well be that the african military are trying to get the offensive. now we know that president johnny has made a visit down to 90. ha, in the east of the country to rally the troops. we also getting

a report from the taliban, claiming that 6 children have been killed by government artillery tillery in 9. good ha. we're also hearing over renewed military operation in the south, around the key spin bolduc border crossing. remember that was taken by the taliban just about a week ago. is the government now trying to regain control? that's what the african governments been up to in terms of the taliban. what are they going to do in the coming days? are they going to try and take some of those provincial capitals? the 17 provincial capitals, whether round the edges of the city. what was that then next, move be, and what will the next move be diplomatically with regard to the talks that have been adjourned in doha. and unlike these take place, again in the coming weeks, these next coming weeks and months are going to be crucial for i've got to stop, they could be decisive for the future of the country. james, thank you very much. james bass out to get it to the in cobble thousands of people

who rallied in addis ababa to show their support for e. c. o. p, and federal troops fighting in the northern region to cry. speakers called on ethiopians to be unified against the rebels, into gray. the accused them of using child soldiers. it comes with the conflicts has widened to include fighters from neighboring hara and afar regions to growing groups. claim thousands of people have been killed in the conflict. catherine soil choices life now from addis ababa. catherine. is it possible for us to gauge what the atmosphere was like there at that rally? while that was very much a government trial, it was organized by the mayor. demands of here in t cry, thousands of people. why they're the one woman was crying up, you know, people are very emotional people who turned up saying that they are there to support the government and the national army in this conflict in te gray this

because a q 2 grand defense forces of using children and soldiers and shield, and now you know that if your p n, federal troops have already withdrawn from t drive, but they have been accused numerous times by human rights. organizations accuse alongside troops from every track and special forces from neighboring. i'm higher regions accuse of community meeting atrocities in the last 8 months or so of the conflict. they have been, the government has been accused of using hunger as a war, a weapon of war by blockading to try not the situation in to grow right now is very tends to be these fighting going on in some parts. human rights organizations are very worried about it's the un has said it's convoy was on sunday, blah, attacked in the other on the border areas between afar redone and

a t gray where fighting has been going on. this is devastating because that's the only humanitarian corridor that has been left and the un un, and other agencies seeing that aid work is having a really difficult time getting to the people who desperately need help. but at this wiley, the 1000 people who witness who, who came to attend the riley say that they support the government and what the government is doing. but in t, right, they'll tell you a different story. they'll say that the government has been, you know, committing human rights atrocities against them. catherine, thank you very much, catherine. so talking tuesday from addis ababa, let's bring in william davidson. he's the senior ethiopia analyst with the international crisis group. he joins us on skype from cambridge in the u. k. well, you're welcome back to the news. so the ad is government forces. are they on the back foot inside the region of to grow? and yes, absolutely. i mean, at the end of june, we saw an almost complete cycle withdrawal from gray areas

where the federal government still has a presence inside gray in the west of the region where i'm hora region has, has taken over. busy chunks of what used to be administered by, by to great government, but generally off the battlefield. not since and a failure to achieve the federal objectives integrate. they have completely withdrawn, and now we are seeing a new phase in the war and a new federal strategy is the government looking increasingly isolated in as much as inside its own country. it seems to be staging rallies to make it look good to rally support, and it's also coming on the international pressure over the accusations of human rights abuses within the region. yes, that's right. there's been a huge amount of international pressure concern about the trajectory of this conflict which looked unwinnable because of the mainly because it's

a great support for the leadership that there is some support and the rest of ethiopia. that is what the government is trying to rally. but ultimately, there was a problem in terms of the gap between the reality of the situation and to great, where the federal government has failed to achieve its objectives. and the perception that it is trying to create amongst the public that it has achieved the objectives. and that it is still in control. and really that is a dangerous gap because without acknowledging the reality that can be very hard to prime minister government to address the situation. and potentially the ingredients that may be lurking around quite a dangerous corner. could it be possibly 2 of them, primarily sudan might get sucked into this, which nobody in the region really, really wants to see. and we seem to be talking about a prime minister who's not prepared to make any concessions at all. so the

international concern, hey, partly about potential regionalization. it's obviously a complex picture, but essentially the 2 great forces are looking to take back all of to gray from the region in particular that's in the west of to grey that borders saddam. now, if that's a grand for the successful and they will then try to establish a corridor into saddam, at that point, sit on goblin will be perceived in ethiopia as supporting that's a grand with distance. and that could exacerbate these or the very serious tension between food on an e p over that own border dispute. and that is grand if you have been released. so really is a very dangerous and volatile situation. is anyone in the region or outside the region trying to come the stone? yes, i mean bright from the start of this conflict of the many regional continental international actors expressing concern. the problem is that it's political disputes and thought

to the stage where they have given up on peaceful compensation to try and reconcile . instead everything is being played out on the battlefield. we have even gone to the extent where the federal government has classified the ruling party into gray as a terrorist organization. now, unless to have some reverse of these positions and an attempt to reconcile, hold in some form of inclusive dialogue, then unfortunately, it looks like the situation is going to deteriorate. and all of these continual calls from us at crisis group, but many of the active for rethink and to try and get back on the path of peaceful politics. okay, we'll have to leave them any things william davidson, they're talking to us from cambridge in the u. k, thank you. the global demand for allie minium is expected to rise in the coming few years. the metal is used to make everything from cars, to cutlery, but a report from human rights watch. such large scale mining projects in several countries are harming local communities and the environment to guinea has the

world's largest reserves. a box site that's the raw material needed to make aluminium. the report says excavations or destroying land and limiting access to food and water. the report says, ethically sourcing, the metal has become a problem for the car industry, which is expected to nearly double its demand by 2050. china has invested billions of dollars in box light mining with limited regulations, entire communities have been pushed out to make way for mining projects. nicholas hark has more on that story from guinea. this is what is left of bulky in guineas, maritime region. gone. are the mahogany trees is the rare species of chimpanzees and the patty fields, the industrial extraction of box nike or for aluminum, has turned a when's green oasis into a lunar landscape void of life. the water is poisoned by industrial chemicals. this destruction in pollution in one of the world's poorest countries,

is to extract aluminum to manufacture where the automobile industry called clean green powered electric cars for rich nation. as a result, thousands of villagers in book you have been forcibly displaced from their home. among them, mohammed summa, or rice farmer, now living in the city in what feels like a prison cell. he says, congress, you know, there is nothing left but dust to eat. we have lost everything. we sometimes go 2 or 3 days without food since the chinese took our land. our life is misery. human rights watch says that the displacement of people constitutes a violation of human rights. they hold car manufacturing companies responsible thing. they have failed to address the abuse with their aluminum suppliers. mining has taken farmland destroyed, feel cut off water sources and coated houses and fields and dust as guineas, mining industry, expand the governments capacity to oversee the industry must keep pace. guinea has

the largest reserve of boxes in the world. much of it is untapped. it could be a formidable source of revenue for a country where most live on less than $2.00 a day. critics of the government to cues politicians of turning a blind eye to the environmental damage in exchange of kick back. some people within the let's be clear, we'll poor country. we are with money. companies are not complain with the social and environmental regulations, but it isn't so easy for us to shut down this industry for the violations that to me. last week, the european commission voted to band the sale of vehicles that run on gasoline or diesel by the year 2035 electric car sales are already on the rise. so is the demand for bach site in trying to solve an environmental problem. it seems automobile in mining companies, are you reverse of li, harming the environment, altering this precious landscape. nicholas hawk al jazeera. let's bring in jim

worthington, he's a senior research in the africa division of human rights, what she joins on skype from washington. gym, welcome to the news out. i don't want to name and shame, but how many call me because protect the communities involved in this industry? very few. so in the course of our work, we spoke about 9 of the world's biggest companies, ranging from bmw w to forward to g. m to tell you and aluminum. it's really a blind spot for the car industry. it's been a lot of focus on other materials that you need to make electric vehicles like cobalt and lithium for electric batteries. very, it'll focus on the human rights impacts of aluminum. and we think that needs to change because the car industry has a huge amount of influence over mining companies and the facts and more broadly. and if the car industry starts to take the human rights, environmental impacts of aluminum seriously. so we'll mining company. there must be vast areas in the african countries. we're talking about guinea in our report there

from our corresponding to cog where given climate change and global warming, the last thing we need is more tens of thousands of square kilometers of land being turned over and left as it is when the industry has finished or does the industry make the land good and return it to what it was before? yet it's an extremely difficult question because of course, in a country like guinea, which as your report, fatty is one of the world's poorest countries. the revenue from mining in the government's eyes is something that could be really essential to the country's development. but at the same time, the mining companies and the car companies that, that ultimately use the material have an obligation to make sure that if mining is going to happen and needs to happen in a way that actually meaningfully benefits, the communities and the environment where mining is happening and what we're seeing in getting a moment, as you said, is we're seeing a huge amount of land that communities have relied on for generation being

destroyed. and very little government oversight of how mining companies actually act. so once land has been taken, it's not returned to the families to use that previously. it's not rehabilitated so that they can use it again for forming one mining has finished and it needs this kind of devastating like landscape that really is as you say, just a scar on, on, on the environment. and so that's why, again, we see that role of car companies is putting pressure on the government and on mining companies to drive up standards. here's the thing, i don't understand, jim, you were talking there about electric vehicles, so called e v 's. but the demand for allie minium is going to double between now and the 2050 . how can that be? as the world does move, perhaps too slowly towards more of us driving electric vehicles. i mean, the car manufacturers behind t v's the green credentials are inside their product. we're told it's super lightweight, it's super flexible, super strong as good for the planet is all sustainable. and yet the demand for

allie minium is going to carry on going up and up and up. yeah, and that's the contradiction with many new technologies that we need to fight climate change, including electric vehicles. the reality is that like going to produced for more materials that rely on mining. we see that with aluminum, we see that with cobalt we see that in. and it's the story that the car industry isn't very willing to tell which is that as they build more and more so called green vehicles, they need more and more materials that come out of communities and, and come out of land and say, what's the essential as that transition happens is that we will have a conversation about how if we're going to have more mining, you can have mining and responsible in human rights protecting way. and then i think it's going to be one of the biggest questions that we at, you know, as a, as a group of people have to answer in the next 3040 years. jim, thank you very much. jim lemming to networking to us from washington into ranch, drug manufacturer, johnson and johnson, and 3 distributors have agreed to pay $26000000000.00 to resolve thousands of

claims for their role and the u. s. opioid epidemic escape elizondo. robert canter was addicted to opioids for 3 years. it nearly killed him, all my relationships collapsed, my finances, clap, my health, everything on wednesday faced with mounting lawsuits. johnson and johnson, the largest maker of prescription opioids, plus 3 other of the largest distributors, agreed to a proposed $26000000000.00 settlement announced by coalition of state attorneys general. today's actions sends a message to drug distributors and pharmaceutical companies. we simply will not accept this type of behavior opioids or a class of drugs naturally found in opium. poppy plants that are then used in illegal street drugs like heroine. but also in some prescription medicines, like highly addictive painkillers, such as oxy, cotton and bacon and fentenol,

a synthetic opioid as much as $100.00 times more potent than morphine. america in the middle of an opioid epidemic, a half 1000000 people died from opioid drug overdoses in the last 20 years. 93000 last year alone. and state say, it's the pharmaceutical companies. they produce the opioids that are mostly to blame, not only for the loss of life, but also for the huge financial strain that it puts on local governments and their health systems. in a statement, the company said it had deep sympathy for every one affected by the opioid endemic but added. the settlement is not an admission of any liability or wrong doing, and the company would continue to defend against any litigation that the final agreement does not resolve. i don't think that 26000000000 is announced just

to end the town to the united states has with addiction and overdose, but it could save a lot of lives as for canter. he feels a settlement now is better than going through more lengthy litigation. it's a victory because we have to balance the amount that these distributors and johnson johnson are willing to pay versus the amount of time that's going to be lost. so we can get these dollars for treatment. it might not be the end of the settlements. prosecutor said they are investigating other companies with involvement and, or boys and are leaving the door open to filing more lawsuits. gabriel's ando jazz eater, new york fella had here on the l 20 news. we look at why the 1st protest by athletes at the tokyo olympics, the causing us gamble. that story coming up with flora. when we come back a

ah ah ah me . oh,

a a time to international sports news is star, peter. thank you so much. the opening day in competition ad, tokyo olympic saw a number of women's football players neil ahead of their matches. the international limbic committee has allowed athletes to protest this year ahead of their events. but similar action is banned during metal ceremonies. despite there's the i o. c, social media team was reportedly banned from posting pictures of the players kneeling on wednesday. that decision has now been overturned. that was, you know, a moment to kind of reflect on this past year. you know, there's been a lot of strides made in the u. s. and across the world with

regards to racism and social injustice. and so i think it was really great to be able to show that bit of solid arity with our team. and we don't seen before the game and at a world stage like this, that has been a, been a year in the making those really nice to have those couple of seconds before the game to just reflect on where we've been. journey once again is andy richardson who is live from tokyo. these acts of protests seem to be causing quite a stir already among c i o c yeah, the whole thing has been tying the i see up in knots for the last couple of years. he's actually change the rules and all of this 3 times during that period. it's to do with article 50 of the pic charts and she'll just read out to you now. sports is neutral and must be separate politics, not one point any sort of protest by athletes was banned by tracts on that somewhat

to allow, for example, taking a need before games. but podium protests still very much against the rules. and if something of a, of an already in a contradiction, a, when you consider that the most famous all give him a arguably the most famous bit of athlete activism, middle lympics came in 1968 when told me smith and john carlos raised their face. the blank power salutes at those games at the time that would kicks out of the games. they will ostracized by the us olympic committee. subsequently, their efforts have been champion extended. the official, i see museum in law is an work on human rights is now champion then their actions of the games is now celebrated, but still here we are in 2021. such an action is still banned. so it's going to be very interesting in the coming days to see how far athletes are prepared to push that particular rolling. ok. and now the south african men football team have had a nervous way ahead of their opening match against japan. what more can you tell us?

it was a game is now actually going ahead. south africa's football team have had a really sorry time coming into these olympics. they lost players in before they traveled to, to carry you to positive covered 19 sets on saturday to play as and part of that coaching staff tested positive. it meant a team players with an identified as close contacts. they have to train in isolation. i've been going through daily p c r tests, they needed 13 players to come through those test. the last p c r test was taken today. and it seems i have go to a workable team that, that can go to the field for that opening match. but fall from dale and really it brings into sharp focus. the wider issues are, these are lympics where through no fault of their own athletes could test positive way. i tend to thought as a close contact. and suddenly 5 years of work towards his olympics comes crashing down in just a few minutes. so with all these concerns in around the games,

talk us through the politics of why he is a lympics, are still going ahead it's a very good question. it would appear on the face of it that bringing together thousands of athletes in one city in the midst of the global pandemic, isn't a great idea. so we've been taking a look at why organizes have been so keen to push ahead with these olympics. athletes will have to get used to the sound of their own efforts in tokyo. these olympic have already cost the host nation, at least $15000000000.00. much of the money spent on venue, the fans, and now banned from attending you to rise in cases of cobit $19.00. the cost, you know, being shouldered for the great part by the people and not review by the government . and so people are really getting sick and tired of having to make so much sacrifice. so you really do have, you know, very well divided society. and maybe i honestly, you know,

united in opposition against the olympics. this is about as close to the sporting action as tokyo residents will get in a city where cove at 19 infection levels, the hitting heights. not seen since january, dan animal, united. to hear it. i don't know what to say considering how much the virus is fried athletes have been training so hard for this. i would feel sorry for them. if it doesn't happen. he didn't even notice. well, i wouldn't who wanted to take the risk of watching it in the stadium, but it's enough for me to see the games on t v. while last ticket revenue is set to cost the hosts hundreds of millions of dollars. a made for tv events does make financial sense for the international olympic committee. the, i see makes approximately 75 percent of its income from selling broadcast rights to the games and around full $1000000000.00 could have been lost if the olympics had been cancelled. and the legal, small print will tell you, it was always the i o c. you have the final say as to whether or not these olympics

went ahead, organizes will be hoping the public mood shifts in their favor. once the games are up and running, we'll have like a very, a negative agenda across like different media outlets before the games. and as soon as the games are going to have like a fair me like the mind of everyone like congress tends to be like more positive and focus more on the stories that are taking place within stages. in support of the games can be found with the host. now, banking on sporting dramas, rather than medical. rubbing the headlines in the days ahead. i mean richardson, al jazeera, tokyo olympic gold medalist mohammed soupy. he is said to make history on friday by becoming the 1st muslim to carry the british flag at an opening ceremony. the 33 year old rowers says he feels immense pride and hope to be a source of inspiration from awesome children in great britain. british sailing

gold medalist hannah mills will be the other flag there. all of us men's basketball team or beefing up the roster ahead of their 1st game on sunday chicago bulls vac levine has cleared health and safety protocols and will join the team on thursday. the reigning olympic champions trained in tokyo for the 1st time on wednesday. the teams preparations have been hampered by players having to withdraw due to coven 19 related issues. and finally, a gun, an athlete who disappeared during pre olympic training, and japan has now left the country 20 year old weight lifter. julia's secret lack of fled. has some talent osaka, a week ago, it failed to me to lympics standards after entering japan and was due to return home when he didn't appear for a mandatory corona virus. ok, that is all your sport for now. back to you. peter ferrara. thanks very much. last minute, whenever you want it on the website out to 0 dot com. hello, we'll be here with 30 minutes of bang up to date out as well. hughes from 11 g. we

have another news out for you. at 13 g, we will see you face it about the news news, news. news, frank assessments isn't argument suggesting that the martin and ministrations playing alone game. it's very much of a warm embrace of iran nuclear deal because of us domestic politics informed opinions, schools, and shelters of been reduced to rubble. how do you think this shapes a generation and the politics then, is that life has been shape why vitamin in depth analysis of the dates global

headlines inside story on our jazeera, besieged by violent crime and drugs. confronted by racism and integration era traces the history of 1st generation lebanese australians. exploring the conflicts and the struggle for except me. once upon a time in punch bowl, on our just 0, i me the conflict between the government and the regional take great people. the duration fund has killed thousands and internally displaced more than 2000000 over the past 7 months . 350000 people in the region are facing famine, according to the united nation, which says that starvation is being used as a weapon for those who managed to cross the border,

say it's not because conditions have improved back home. they say to continue to be targeted because of that and many properties are being reported and when they come taking refuge conditions here. last time the the corona virus pandemic gets worse insanity asia, with numbers of dense and infection soaring across many countries. ah, i'm have them hitting and this is al jazeera life and also coming up central china, worst floods in recent years, provoke anger and scrutiny event. the government's failure to prepare for the disaster.