rules at home with renewable energy, with a goal of cutting the cost of power in half. the nation's energy planners are harnessing the rain forest rivers to power hydro plants like this one near kato, even in the capital of georgetown were going on. as oil boom is being felt, the most solar power is transforming the landscape and the power grid event boom, can continue. experts say the fossil fuel bounty of the guy and east coast has the potential to provide clean energy to the country's remotest regions and lift the fortunes of the next generation. we understand the differences and similarities of cultures across the world. so no matter how you take it well for you, the news and current affairs that matter to you. oh, arming ukraine, defense ministers coordinate, military aids and more is pledged. but germany's leopard tank remains elusive.

ah. hello them, james mcdonald. this is jesse are alive from london, also coming up and al jazeera joint investigation finds asylum seekers were forced to return from italy to greece in inhumane conditions. a wave of violence in east democratic republic of congo 7 people killed. and the latest attack blamed on the could deco i'm to group. i'm bridging the gender gap and sierra leone. the new line showing 30 percent of jobs are reserved for women. ah, a warm welcome to the program, a meeting of western military leaders at the ramstein u. s. air base it germany has concluded with the agreement to provide more military says support to ukraine. but the question whether germany's leopard 2 tanks make

their way to the battlefield remains unanswered on friday, the u. s. and i'm still in jail of further $2500000000.00 into keeps war effort, including armored vehicles and air defenses. ukrainian troops are currently bog down in a grinding battle with russia around the eastern city of buck mud. well all this is belinda and i's that it's blocking the delivery of lepper, 2 tanks from european countries. the new defense minister boris mysterious, says the decision would require consensus from all allies. well, the kremlin says the west is diluted. if it thinks the tanks will make any difference on the battlefield. on friday, russia claimed its forces had taken control of cliff cave, k. a settlement just south of back mos in easton, ukraine's the net screeching. today's meeting focused on ukraine's need for air defense and armor. we also pushed hard on how to synchronize those donations and turn them into fully operational capabilities. and that means every

step from donation to training to maintenance and then to sustainment or steadfast and has been following the meeting at ramstein air base in germany. it seemed that the secretary austin was really trying to hide his disappointment, but there must have been some feelings of disappointment, not only at his side, but also at utter nato partners about the fact that germany has the late this decision. the secretary often actually specifically flew to berlin last yesterday to speak with the new a defense minister of germany. and he was definitely hopefully hoping of some more progress today. but as the german minister announced earlier today, there will not be a decision today. and maybe he said it could be tomorrow, it could be in a week or 2 weeks, but it's such a delicate matter with so many pros and cons. he said that this needs to be

carefully wait. and it's not clear where the decision is now hanging on, but it was also said earlier this week that in a conversation on the phone between chancellor olive shoals and joe biden, there was some mention about sort of going to gather. so it shows apparently, asked biden, also to send thanks american tags, abraham tags. but the u. s. has already announced that that's not going to happen. these tanks, they say is, are much more complicated. the slap or 2 tanks are much more suitable for ukraine and short has always been concerned that this would escalate the conflict that nato could be a directly be in confrontation with russia. he has also internal pressure from germans, from people in his own party. not to go that far. well, natasha butler has more funky than what this announcement means for ukraine. well, it's clearly good news for ukraine, a dance,

one of the best pieces of news that come out of this meeting to day in germany that ukraine has this ongoing support from a 50 countries and organizations that met ramstein for he. what it is look for is not any support of course, but weapons. and it also has that a pledge of weapons and military aid from a number of european union countries, but also that huge military aid to plat package from the united states to point $5000000000.00 evil receive our tanks from the u. k. it will receive ammunition, it will receive vehicles, helicopters, drones, how it is from a number of other countries. that's all great news for keep. however, he will be disappointed that germany is decided not to send a leopard thanks for the time being. and it also hasn't a green lighted, sending those leopard tanks for any of his other european partners that actually

have them and have them ready to go. so that would be disappointing for keith. but otherwise, it has been a meeting that is, sony offered a some positive aspects of for the ukrainian president of the modem is lensky. he has said from the beginning, look, ukraine is fighting. this will not only for ukraine, but for europe, for the rest of the world for democracy. that is how it's very much seen here in ukraine that they would like to see less talk, less discussion over what to say and what weapons. and when they want those weapons now as soon as possible, especially as there is talk of russia, possibly launching a new offensive in the spring and alley hashem is in moscow with the russian reaction. much of concern for moscow. and we can see that in the lines coming from the russian foreign ministry that sees supplying a cave with more weapons, will escalate the situation as for the, for a ministry and will cause more casualties for missed. you also accuse the west of

hypocrisy for ignoring the casualties on the other side of the borders as for the russians. now also the, the criminal and warn that this the supply of weapons will take the conflict into another level and will put natal face to face with the russian that urged the criminal urge. the west and lions to take into consideration the concerns of more skill because this could help de escalate, however, that passcode them into prescott spoke, searching for for kremlin, said that nothing is going to change in the field. and this is, this is just create more targets for the, for the russians. and, you know, this is kind of escalating the, the rhetoric here in more school was school with the more with more concerns. and i was also taken into consideration the situation with respect to its public opinion

. so it's reaching to the foreign foreign countries trying to give up position a stance, but also trying to suit the concerns inside the country and try to convey a message that there are still options trying to raise the stake and say everything is going to according to the plan and in the last hour the u. s. isn't just it will designate the russian private militia company, the wagner group and international criminal group. well, for more, let's go live to white house correspondent. kimberly how good and kimberly. what more do we know? yeah, the national security council spokesperson john kirby announcing this just moments ago that the united states has made the decision to essentially designate the wagner group. this is a military group that provide support to the russian military inside ukraine as a significant transnational criminal organization. now the reason that it has

designated this is in order to try and paralyze its ability to operate inside ukraine. in other words, what this does with this designation is it freezes his assets and also prohibits americans from providing funds as well as services to this organization. the u. s. accusing it of committing widespread atrocities and human rights abuses. take a listen to what the national security spokesperson had to say just moments ago about the wagner group and it's leader. we continue to assess that wagner currently has approximately 50000 personnel deployed to ukraine, including 10000 contractors and 40000 convicts. our information indicates the russian defense ministry has reservations about wagner recruitment methods. despite this, we assess that it is likely that wagner will continue to recruit right out of russian prisons due to recent events. we assessed that it is likely there are mounting

tensions between russian officials and mr. production. now in addition to this designation, the united states also expects to take further action against the wagner group and its leader. i. it expects that next week it will impose additional sanctions against the wagner group as well. it does site that there is evidence that it has been provided in order to make this designation insights, evidence of images that were um, in terms of intelligence that it collected as recently as last november, showing arms shipments from north korea that it gathered that they say show images of rail cars that travelled from north korea to the region carrying shipments of arms. they say that this is just further proof of the coordination between russia

and north korea. they say this is once again, evidence of coordination. and they are saying that this, the united states is something that is in the united states as this is in violation of the un security council resolutions with respect to north korea, the u. s. as it will raise this at the un security council. once again, though, the headline in all of this is that the united states is saying it has designated the wagner group as a trans national, significant criminal organization. something that they say is also going to be in terms of amounting concern. they will be adding to this in terms of sanctions next week, and once again accusing it of supporting russia inside ukraine. kimberly how could joining us with the latest there from the white house? kimberly thank you. the frontline city of buckman in easton, ukraine has been the focus of intense fighting from on snow. ukrainian forces appears to be holding out though, against the russian military omar,

all harsh as the story. tracy of de la chateau fema. this is the city of buck move on. eastern ukraine. warplanes are part of ukraine's air defenses against russia's level armored vehicles, line the streets waiting to be deployed. makes shift. markets are set up in the safest areas for those who have money venture out to get what they need. those who don't wait for aid to arrive projects. ukrainian soldiers realize that they're at a turning point in the war. fierce fighting is happening across the city, suggesting no end is in sight. the most important items we receive are the torches . we also get bottled water. the city has no water or electricity. we are grateful to everyone who is helping. this is the 1st time at the station, but food in blankets are handed out every day. you click with your soldiers in the engineering units have started to dig trenches, set up fortifications in the heart of back moshe last friday. but others are

planting land mines insisting they will make rushes advance as difficult as possible. no, but all we prepare for grill over don't get to the but hope is not enough. we must be prepared. i think the work force is overwritten. group of dogs and criminals with racism, but the city is not besieged said the ukrainians. however, not in good shape and more reinforcements are needed for the inevitable battle beside the electoral. connie, it will, yes. why mccraney and forces are preparing for the worst case scenario in about 10 feet away. done. fighters are on high alert and watching the enemies every movement . mister hutton, in the recon command center, drones of various shapes and sizes are deployed and followed vigilantly from the screen. with time, the operators have become more experienced. their job is no less important than

those fighting in the trenches that people are work. she lives with our fellow soldiers. we do take any any movement using those drones. we enable our forces to move and penetrate their line safely. we succeeded in destroying heavy, weak artillery on the buck, what phone line the russians operate. similar units. the soldiers say both sides are equipped with artillery and tank them. however, quick decision making is what tips the scales in ukraine vapor, they say, cemented by the determination to defend their homeland 3 and 3 u. n. a trucks carrying food, water and medicines, managed to reach people on the front line in easton ukraine. the area around solid are in the dynette screech and has seen intense fighting between russia and ukrainian forces. recently, us is looking to increase the number of in convoys getting to the front line for the next few days and a week. so this half hour brazil's insurrection,

please carry out waves on people's faces, mega storming government hill. ah, it's been very warm recently in a bit of south eastern europe, radia bulgaria. but just coming in to that is cloud which has been brought a lot of rain recently to the balkan states, which have also had history of rather a warm winter. but unfortunately, recently more recently has been flooding in kosovo. ready and sudden serbia still water is largely rivers of overflowed their bank. now the rain has stopped falling now to be replaced by snow because the storms revolving the central missouri. this, the saturdays forecast is connected with or bringing cold air from the north was already produce snow for example, in poland. that was quite a lot in

a short amount of time. and that's all traveling now south and west through you. so the picture over italy in the balkans is a wet windy or snow. he wasn't a big change for some that warnings out of course. and the bigger picture is that cold snowy weather going across germany towards low countries. and that's with very cold air. coming in from the east that just touching the old nafrica at stormy stuff in the mediterranean. so for example, into this u. r. g of you windy in, wet weather and the refuse showers around west africa. but in between, it's remarkably quiet. and of course, sunny to inculcate a culture of knowledge, openness and pluralism, world wide, and to reward merit and excellence and encourage creativity. the shake ahmad award for translation and international understanding was founded to promote translation

and honor translators, and acknowledged the road and strengthening the bonds of friendship and co operation between arab islamic and wild couches. oh, a welcome back and quick reminder of our stories here on our meeting of western mill . she needed the ramstein u. s. air base in germany has concluded with the agreement to provide more military support to ukraine. the question of whether germany left the 2 tanks will make their way to the feel remain on us as designated rush, those wagner group as a transnational criminal organizations. white has national security and john curb,

he says, nor has about 50000 biases in ukraine, 80 percent of them drawn from prison. from 9 to the above. in easton, ukraine has been the focus of intense fighting for months and on friday, russia claimed his forces had taken control of could keep, which is a settlement just a few miles south. silent seekers trying to reach europe have described being forcibly moved from italy to greece on make shift prisons in fairies. i'll 0 as part of investigation with lighthouse reports and other media partners. as heard testimony by refugees being locked in small rooms without food or water, showing how reports from bar it's really some of the victims are miners across the adria to see from greece, the port of berry in southern italy. it's one of a number of ferry roots used by migrants and refugees from countries like iraq, syria, and f canister, who risked their lives stowed away in hidden compartments on trucks. the crossing

between different greek and italian ports can take between 9 and 30 hours. some di trying others are discovered on board and handed to the italian police liber sana, john laura con data. leave your latin. people have told us about violence and acts of force about being locked up about being dragged from the fairy one person. had an epileptic attack and was, let's say, dragged and kicked by the crew. one woman told us of invasive searches over intimate pass. it's alleged their offer not provided with translators as required by law, and that some prevented from claiming asylum before being returned to greece locked in the vessel. they arrived in occasionally leaving, assigning, they were there, edged on the wall. this man pictured himself in may last year, handcuff to the railings on a fairy bound for greece,

using his description of the vessel and its route. this storage space was located in the vehicle bay below deck and in the greek port of patrol we meet belushi from us, gunners stand. his story is all the more significant because his documents show that he's a minor aged 17. the home on monday given i'm, i've been here for 6 months and many games. once i have under a refrigerated truck and it went inside the big ship. and when it arrived on the truck left the ship, i was found and arrested. they did not question me about a seeking asylums. they did not take my fingerprints because they just put me inside a small room and sent me back to greece. it's not unusual for commercial fairies to have a small lock up room on board, sometimes used to secure unruly passengers. for instance, on this one, we found a holding cell. the crew were heard to refer to as the prison line approach you now the upper via the deck abyss, ferry, the shutters between the town,

the bolt of berry and the bree quotes upon us, and he believed suck. and here in the bow of the vessel is a metal box, angular, unprepossessing, a tool that is inside. there's nothing more than a sheath and cardboard on the floor. words identified as kurdish scrolled on the wall, but there illegible. responding to our investigation, the fairy company concerns said it fully complies with national and international law. actions, behaviors and practices such as these it wrote have never taken place on any of its vessels. and confronted with the evidence, the bowery police commissioner denied italian complicity as well. you got all the elaborate from shawna d d to get char. i wouldn't dare to say that doesn't happen. i've seen the pictures of that person handcuffed, but i don't know the context or where it took place. days,

the longer the rituals have minutes. we'll learn how that but out. yeah. and now my colleagues telling me that the police don't even get on the ship. this is an important point. we had the migrant to the ferry crew and he's then handed over to the ferry captain. a tacit admission that forced returns do take place. but a defense that activists find unconvincing. full a char stuck to talk with. i am certain that the italian police are aware, the border police. a lot of this is done by or in front of the italian police. we denounce not only that these force returns are illegitimate, but also that they take place without formal procedures with no record of what actually happened. in fact, the numbers are impossible to find out. in 2014, the european court of human rights found that italy had illegally detained and returned 35 asylum seekers by ferry to greece. the italian government has since

insisted the practice no longer occurs. yet our investigation has her testimony from 8 people who've been forcibly return from italy to greece in just the past 12 months. jonah whole al jazeera in bowery, italy. 7 people have been killed in an attack on a refugee camp, an eastern democratic republic of congo. it comes up to un peacekeepers discovered mass graves containing the bodies of more than 40 people and villages near the camp it to a province. malcolm webb has this report which contains images. some viewers may find obsessing dozens of people have been killed in a tory province in recent weeks. a rebel group called for deco, which operates in eastern democratic republic of congo, is widely thought to be responsible. i managed to hide myself when the militia started the mass killing in the village with machetes and bullets. after a few hours, as a militia withdrew from the area,

i came back to check around and i found the dead body of my husband, among others on the road sight. many of the relatives of the victims only found the bodies of their loved ones. days after kit echoes fighters left the area i went on my share day, the militias were carrying many machetes and summer guns. i saw them from well hiding myself in the machine. these were covered with blood after they finish killing all the people has. and i wanna buy my kid eco originated in a conflict. david grazing and farm land that we can decades ago fought on ethnic lines. now the group controls lucrative trade routes and gold mines is quin stronger in recent months. the u. n says attacks by ca deco and it's rivals i year should be investigated, is december 2022. the mission reports that at least 195 civilians have been killed . and $68.00 injured as well as $84.00 people abducted during several incidents attributed to good deco and the year armed groups. the recent attacks have

increased the number of displaced people to more than 1500000 inventory, and reduced access for humanitarians to those in need of assistance. un peacekeepers have been blamed for failing to protect people. recent talks between the government and rebel groups in kenya's, capital nairobi haven't stopped the violence malcolm web al jazeera, a prominent lawanda journalist, known for criticizing the government, has died. john williams. miss holly was the editor of the chronicles. the newspaper says the journalist died in a traffic accident on wednesday, or writing a motorbike in the capital kigali, some human rights activists. they're suspicious about the circumstances of his death. ah, police in brill have brazil have carried out wade song people suspected of being involved in the storming of government buildings earlier this month. for is he say they are looking to identify people who participated in or funded the ride on

january the 8th supporters of a former right wing prison jar bull snarl were calling from tool was election result to be returned the old. so ballston are defeated by left as president louis in our seal lula da silva. oh, monica anarchy of has worn out from rio de janeiro. well, so far, 4 people have been detained to day. they're accused of instigating our what the brazilian government is calling an attempted call. they're being charged with trying to are destroyed democracy in brazil, which was just back of brazil ended its military regime in 1985. so these 3 people, one of them is a truck driver. another person is our former, our public servant who was working for the government or former president, j able sonata, who is now in florida and has been there ah, since before lula and argue ration because he did not want to pass on the

presidential sash. and then there's a woman they have been on the proofs that they have against them is videos that they have posted on social media. one of them calling for the uprising and for the riots that happened on january the 8th. when the storm, the presidential palace, the congress and the supreme court, destroyed objects survive very valuable and historical objects destroyed all the windows and doors. they've been posting that all so they were calling for blockades of oil refineries. so there's a lot going on, but they're still raids going on now, but so far for people have been detained. public and private companies in sierra leone now have to reserve 30 percent of the jobs for women in a bid to tackle gender imbalances, but also guarantees women at least 14 weeks have been turned to leave equal pay and training opportunities. companies will be fine if they fail to reach the quotas. sierra leone is currently ranked a 180 seconds out of

a 189 countries in the u. n. 2020 gender development index. because spencer crocker is head of advocacy and movement building a purposeful that's a global organization promoting women's activism. she says the new law is a big step forward. we have a population that's 52 percent plus female. but the significantly less than that in terms of development, will be an education or presence in the workforce. and it's, it's to this governance credit that the political will, is there to do something about it. we, we know certain factors are represented and you know, better for women than others. right now we have a growing young population, a culture of young people who are going heavily into entrepreneurship and looking at for themselves, finding jobs for themselves. but in terms of the form or where women are in terms

of representation, the representation is grossly below 10 percent in terms of positions of leadership and, and governance. and that's the reason why this act, which has been decades in the making, by the way, if so historic for not just women, women girls, it's area, but i t as a whole of this, this government has taken a position led by our president, that syrian cannot develop and be a middle income economy. if it does not take the issue of the development of the women, if it's women and girls as a top priority, and that's come to with, you know, legislation and policies to do with education. and now specifically in terms of ensuring the women's participation in both public and private life is addressed with positive measures to, to change the current narrative that we do have google's parent company, alphabet is causing 12000 jobs worldwide is the latest tech firm to lay off workers

as rapid expansion, as following the coven 19 pandemic were off. the loss equates to 6 percent of school workforce google seals, and our pin shy says artificial intelligence will be a key focus going forward. earlier this week, microsoft announced 10000 job cuts, and amazon has also reported major cutbacks in new colony of endangered emperor penguins has been discovered in antartica, thanks to satellite imagery. image released by the british antarctic survey shows the brown marks of the birds droppings easy to identify amongst the white antarctic ice. emperor penguins need see ice to breathe and are hence threatened by climate change. they were put on the endangered list last year. ah. a quick reminder of our top stories now on al jazeera and meeting of western military leaders in german.