what, yes, sounds of hold me one and the coach in africa direct on al jazeera when the news bring, when people need to be heard. and the story told incredible what more people, what injured or killed this is. mary's eve on the ukrainian capital with exclusive interviews and in depth reports. i did a lot more than $2000000000.00 that my grub address nigeria is going by the visit. and what sprint al jazeera has teens on the ground to bring you more award winning documentaries and live lives ah 2. ready ah, nato allies, germany and the u. s. ditch their hesitation. legend to deliver battle ties to

ukraine in its fight against russia. isn't joe biden insists. it's not meant to escalate the patio to super helpful ukraine. defend to protect you cruelty live. it is not an offensive threat to russia. ah, well, and carry dogs to mrs ounces. they're alive from doha also coming up. facebook's parent company matter says it will restore former us president donald trump's accounts after a band of 2 years. lebanon's top prosecutor orders the release of all suspects detained for the bay route port bloss dealing another blow to families seeking justice. oh and back home after 5 years in exile, townsend is opposition, lee, that promises a new chapter for his country.

ukraine's military campaign against russian forces has received a major boost from its western allies. the u. s. has confirmed it sending 31 abrams tanks earlier. germany announced it would provide 14 of its most advanced leopard to tax, but in will also allow other european countries to deliver the german made combat vehicles from their own arsenals, spain fealand and the netherlands have suggested they're open to doing sec. you kay's, also sending 14 of its challenger to tax the kremlin, has dismissed the deliveries as disastrous and costly will go up in flames. ukraine's command as an analysts have said they will need $300.00 western tanks to make a difference on the battlefield. our white house correspondent, kimberly how could begins our coverage do after days of deliberation. u. s. president joe biden made the announcement ukraine has long hoped for today. i am announcing that the united states will be sending $31.00 abrams tanks to ukraine.

the equivalent of one ukrainian battalion, according to the pentagon, it'll take months, not weeks to get the tanks to the battlefield, widen says he made the decision after securing similar commitments from the leaders of france, the u. k. ad following germany's decision wednesday to send leopard 2 tanks to ukraine. russian officials have already denounced this latest move as an escalation . something biden was quick to counter today's announcement. bills on the hard work and commitment from countries round the world, but by the united states of america to help ukraine defended chavez is territorial integrity. that's what this is about. helping ukraine to fan to protect ukrainian land. it is not an offensive threat to russia. the move marks a major policy reversal for bided overriding the advice of u. s. generals who resisted sending the maintenance heavy machines. the abrams have

been in use for a half century at russia's aware of the tanks vulnerabilities. since february, the u. s. has provided ukraine with more than 27000000000 and security assistance. the white house insists issues of training and logistics, including getting the jet fuel needed to operate the abrams tags to the battlefield could be overcome through training. it means to be seen how well the ukrainians will be able to absorb this hardware and use it. it may take at least a quite a while before they they can do it in before it has an impact on the battlefield. still, president biden insist the addition of the abrams tanks will make a strategic difference as ukrainian forces rapid to defend territory in expected spring counter offensives. kimberly held hit al jazeera,

the white house of germany decision to send tongues to ukraine, follows weeks of intense pressure from its allies. dominic cane explains more from berlin. the letter too, is one of the most widely used tanks in europe, manufactured in germany, but exported around the continent. it is the weapon system. the ukrainian government believes it needs to fight russia and for weeks ministers and key of have called on ministers in berlin to allow them to use the leopards in their country. now that coal has been answered, 14 german tanks will be sent to the crane and other european countries will also be allowed to send this from the seo. our goal is to quickly make 2 tank battalions available together with our allies. but there are a lot of countries which would also like to contribute in the deliveries and we will coordinate and ensure that it becomes possible step by step the i'm, it seems the chance of assess, he understands many germans are deeply concerned by his decision. but at least for

other european countries already said they are prepared to use their leopard twos to help you crane you're ready to participate in one or another way. those, there are many ways to do it because we know that at this low part issue or so need training for the drivers for the maintenance and so forth. it need spare parts, it needs the whole ecosystem after you, but tanks and b, b, b. consider what is the best part for us? here at the russian embassy in berlin. the reaction has been quick and condemning. the ambassador says that germany has abandoned its historical responsibility to russia, brought about by nazi crimes during world war 2, calling the decision extremely dangerous. he says it takes the conflict to a new level of confrontation. and yet some analysts believe that with russia reportedly building up its forces for a spring offensive, germany felt there was no alternative to allowing leopard twos to be sent to ukraine. everyone, all the military experts are expecting that russia is preparing for spring. um and

the europeans now want to back ukraine in the ukraine government and ukrainian army to be ready to defend the country. in sending his country's tanks to ukraine, olaf shots is done something. no other democratic chancellor here has done allow another country to use german tanks to fight russians in a war in europe. and so while schultz is stated, goal is to prevent an escalation between russia and nato. it may not be too long before the heavy weapons of both sides are in use against each other. in ukraine. dominant came al, jazeera, berlin, ukraine's president. what amanda lensky has hail decision bother you s and jamie to send the tags as an historic achievement sheet on what she might, i thank mister chancellor, all german politicians and public figures for their willingness to strengthen the defense of europe side. this is also

a very powerful step by the united states. ukraine will receive abrams. thank you for this decision. you know, i thank mister president biden personally. i thank congress. i thank every american family for the tangible strength of american global leadership glitch lead to beschler the key now as speed and volume. the speed of training our military, the speed of supplying tanks to ukraine or the amount of tank support. we have to form a fist of tanks, a fist of freedom, which will not allow tyranny to rise again. my moscow kremlin has dismissed the plan as absurd spokesman to meet you press. goff says it keeps alive overestimating the benefits of sending tanks to ukraine's armed forces. he should know the blue again. touch blue book. damn good, good, good, good, good, great, new richmond, oregon should toyota to was with the pledges committee,

conscription manual where you can brush well, you've all, whether is a research assistant professor at texas and bush school of government and public service. he says, russian troops may struggle the accounts of the west and supplied vehicles. but i'm practically seen in the course of the past year in the very poor state of readiness of russian tanks and especially the russian military in general. as well as the troops, the troops are basically very poorly trained, particularly because the professional soldiers, so large extent, those are the ones who are killed or otherwise used in the beginning stages of the war. as a war has gone on, it's more and more conscript, very poorly equipped and trained individuals who are trying to work machines that are also too complicated for them. so to the extent that we can observe what might happen over the next 6 to 8 months, it's a question is, can ukrainian, you know,

basically their armor division basically get trained on these lepers and other platforms. and can the russians get trained on their own platform? and so far, what we've seen over the course of the conflict is that ukraine has been much better as a learning and training organization than the russians have, even though the russian are using their own stuff. on the front lawn, ukrainian forces have withdrawn from the ton of solar, done eastern on the screen and the mining town, the scene, fist fighting for months. ukrainian military spokesman says they withdrew to save lives. it comes almost 2 weeks off. the russian forces led by the wagner, merced said they had seized the town. they were being courts of human rights, has announced that we'll hear a case against russia over the downing of flight and age 17. well, 298 people on board. the malaysia airlines aircraft were killed when it was shot down by russian. they may fall in 2014. it was launched by ukrainian separatists

backed by moscow. russia has always denied involvement. at least one person is dead and several others are injured. after an attack on 2 churches in southern spain, a man armed the machete, establish priests in the fort seat of our thrace. a suspect has been arrested, and an investigation is underway. spanish authority say the attack has been treated as a possible act of terrorism. our former u. s. president donald trump will soon have as a facebook and instagram accounts reactivated social media, john matter says the accounts will be reinstated in the coming weeks. trump was suspended on facebook and other social media platforms after the jerry the 6th attack on the u. s. capital in 2021. hi, jo. castro has more from washington dc. there was a long explanation posted by met as president of global affairs in his effort to be transparent. he said that this was because the public should hear from their politicians, quote, the good, the bad, and the ugly,

particularly so that the public can make an informed decision at the ballot box. and of course matter here is referencing the upcoming 2024 u. s. presidential election and this decision to allow trump, should he choose to reactivate his accounts, it could be a significant one that shifts the dynamic of that presidential race. given that trump heavily used tools like advertising on facebook, creating lists of quarters, which she relied on in his previous campaigns. now if trump comes back though, there will be guard ruin guardrails awaiting him. these are specifically developed after the january 6 insurrection of the u. s. capital by an independent oversight board that was created after trumps initial ban. now these guardrails will entail specific rules for public figures in which meta says they will weigh what potential there is for real life harm. to result from this speech of these public figures,

johnson is a former presidential candidate, turned to this soon as returned home from exile. he survived an assassination attempt in 2017 and later fled to belgium. walter general election in 2020 of the sous return comes off to president of somebody else who has sun lifted a 6 year ban on opposition rallies. catherine story report ah, to lease who is welcomed home by hundreds of he supported in the wrestling. he fled tanzania, soon after general election. in 2020 i was our blog demand. we now want a new constitution. lisa will stand firm when it comes to constitutional and election reforms. that's what we have been fighting for. we want an independent electoral commission. what we're seeing changes politically, we're seeing more freedom. our media space is becoming bold. we have no fear when we are being interviewed by the media. least who competed against former president

john, palm bay mug fuller, who died just months after winning his 2nd tom. he came 2nd but rejected the result saying it was marked by regularities. in 2017 he was shot 16 times by and known attackers in the capital to toma. that case has never been resolved. during that period, several politicians activists and journalists walked jailed a pin. yet, but engineers 30 year journey as a multi party country was not easy. it was not decorated with marble, but it was decorated with stones. there was blood spilled and people have suffered ha ha, ha ha. c but things have since changed politically. president, some me, us lou who hassan recently lifted a ban on gathering of political parties imposed during that election opposition. leaders have been calling for electoral and political reforms for men. yes. and an

independent electoral commission. they say they also want the head of state to be held accountable once a presidential pam ends. 20000000 in our country. the president is like a god who has all the powers to elect and appoint all judges. the president selects the chairman of the to mention one little bit hesitant, has had talks with the opposition and promised to talk about reforms. maybe some political analysts say the president is came to break with some of the ha predecessors, hard line policies and restore democracy tanzania goes to the election in 2025. and men here are hoping the president will not go back on her words. as the election, drew's nearer, catherine, sorry, i'll jazeera, was still ahead here in al jazeera o'clock,

reporting from australia with thousands of people who rally across the country on the study day cooling, to change an amazon workers whole, the 1st ever strike in the u. k. demanding wages that match the spiraling cost of living. ah now that the showers in storms have cleared away from the northwest of india, hits the return to cold and foggy conditions. hey there. i think actually though a few showers for maha roster estates on thursday, not too far away from him by with a hive. 29 degrees and somewhat weather for that southwest corner of sri lanka, off to off hon. his son and pakistan. things are quiet, temperature is low in karachi for this some of the year, but no real major precipitation to speak of here. so when you say we go to the philippines where it has been pouring rain for days around sabu city. so there are

some flood alerts in play here. now for china, i would say south of the yangtze river valley temperature is pretty well where they should be for this some the year. okay. things a little below average in hong kong, fairly cloudy day there with a high of 16 degrees, quite the vigorous storm system that swept through japan. so i put the iso bars on this map, the closer they are together, the more powerful there was winds. and certainly we set some records here, not only for wind, snow and low temperatures, but this system now sweeping out toward the pacific. so some commer conditions here, but still seeing some snow for that western side of honshu and ho cato. and those steps are, is coming up a bit through the korean peninsula. so we're plus one in pyongyang on thursday. okay. got a dash soon a bit. ah, ah, a decade change. the 1970s in the middle east and north africa

in the 1st 2 bought out, is there a well talk to some of the decade, pivotal events and the 73 arab is rated with peace talks, military, coups and oil and bugs. the seventy's in the arab world. politics on al jazeera lou o watching out here a reminder about top store is now a crane has received a major boost smith's western eyes. the u. s. has announced it will be sending at $31.00 abrams battle tax with defense against russia. earlier germany said it would

provide 14 of its leopard to tax or the criminal has dismissed the plan as absurd spokesman to meet your per scoffs said. keys and eyes were over estimating the benefits of sending tanks to vehicles, but like others have before social media, john meta says will reinstate to form a u. s. president. donald trump's accounts in the coming weeks. trump was suspended on facebook and instagram. awfully johnny the 6th attack on the u. s. capital in 2021. he says the ban should never again happen to an american president. australia was mocking its national day. it's a proud occasion from betty, but in recent years, rallies against the celebration have gained traction. hundreds of protest isn't included. indigenous groups have gathered in sydney, original australians, i see it as a day of boiling, saying it glorifies an invasion. let's get more on the star from sarah clark, who joins us live from prison. so were australian day. how is it usually recognized

then we'll gather rallies around the country out on the society by january 26th. so basically it is a large portion of people is doing, celebrates out of the beginning of what they called modern australia. that was a genuine 267090 i, wendy 1st flight written space flight style interested because, but we also have a lot of mental group of people who are holding these invasion dice. i'm not celebrating at the beginning of the colonization of strategies happened on january 2670 not yet. where i am not. this is one of the a number of rallies around the country where people are a marking is die is a dive. morning recognition of this place, but of the 1st night people in australia as opposed to celebrating at the beginning of modest value or the colonization. the government, federal government is also appears to be acknowledging the momentum for change at that being allowed for the major employers as well as government stop to work on this public holiday. and that's for those people who don't want to celebrate. this is julia, i need a big employ is like my just supermarket, soc wortham, telstra,

and this is oxy being flexible, but it's also in the prime minister and the federal government trying to mirror that national sentiment, the change as a people to acknowledge running to acknowledge the displacement on the 1st national paypal on january 26. serra that does appear to be some movement though it's a federal level to acknowledge 1st nations people through a referendum. can you explain what that would actually entail? b, b, o. acne albanese has a grades to hold a referendum this year, i think, called, at the voice department, and that is acknowledgment and the 1st actions people, i ain't not only in the constitution but at a national policy making level that moment there is no recognition. now i should not, this is just a referendum of the people here. i've spoken decided to simply lip service. it's not acknowledgment of change advert actually to people being recognized. the constitution doesn't make any think differently at the voice a pound is,

i mean to give it digital astray. am i correct to voice? it's well known that and digital strategy and don't have access to education, often poor incomes. and i don't know that they help the best like poor health. this is basically a 1st step and what many a thing as recognition of a national level. but there has been some resistance, not just from some very nice people, but also some from some of the minor parties and federal do expect that referendum to potentially be held in august this year. i forrest and brisbin no. sarah clark. thank you. the judge investigating the barret's port explosion in 2020 has been charged with miss handling. the inquiry was refusing to step down lebanon's top prosecutor also order in these all those details. in the case, the move de rails an attempt flight judged it out to resume the investigation. it was suspended a year ago following high level political interference, or more than 200 people died in the blast when improperly stored chemicals ignited

. a hammock zuber is the deputy director for the middle east that amnesty international. she explains why the investigation into the blast is significant for liberty. we see this as really a battle for 11 on the future. are we going to have a kind of country where those individuals who are responsible for blowing up the country are held accountable or one where they're allowed to escape accountability . as you know, the invest the domestic investigation into the group last has been suspended now for almost 13 months. on monday, the lead investigator issued an opinion, legal opinion that he said would allow him to move forward with the investigation. and on that basis he charged 8 individuals, including the top public prosecutor of a son that's in relation to the blast. and he also ordered the release of 5 of the 17 detainees who currently remain in detention since august and september of 2020.

obviously the political establishment and all rally around him, they said that he did not have the power to move the investigation forward. that the investigation was still stalled and just culminated with the public prosecutor who him health is charged in the case and who had refused himself from being involved in the last case due to his familiar relations to some of the defendants. previously, he issued a decision to remove, to reduce all of the detainees in the case. effectively bypassing judge started the type you'd investigate the case, a very complicated legal situation. but we in august to say, is that the political establishment, the ruling establishment, are doing everything that they can to prevent judge time from moving forward with the investigation. they are doing everything that they can to prevent the truth from coming out. and for those high level officials responsible for the last to be

held to accounts. and these 20 people have been entered in a bomb blast and eastern democratic republic. a condo explosion took place, sat a market in the town of penny in north kiva. province. witnesses told al jazeera that a man detonated the bomb inside a plastic bag. no group has claimed responsibility beneath keeping inflation lower than most west african countries, the subsidies tax reef and price controls. the governance measures are being criticized. people say hi philip price is a forcing families to skip meals and businesses are closing. that interest reports from caterine believes because say their industry is close to collapse. copied 19 and the war in ukraine have pushed up costs and shrunk. profits and they blame government price could cool. so making business harder. the price already to is vis . okay. we cannot, i live on the be prized off off. that's him in boots we are using is our globally

redid. so it's way are difficult for us to continue to survive, but businesses of received, relieve the wilma ed bill is under of industries received a lot of support from government to back them up after the economic fall out of covered $19.00. in fact, the rising cost of living since in 2021 came down last year, especially towards the end of 2022. for others, government subsidies are helping to keep the price of goods down. the government is largely able to control prizes of many items, especially important food that has helped to keep hold price inflation via lower than the most west africa countries. but officials are unable to cut prices of locally grown for but the high cost of local produce and transportation remain a source of worry for many i went by there, i can look where your money is running out and you feel like it's been stolen from

you the thinks an expensive in the market, we wonder how to survive. traders like salvage reforms, say to bring down inflation. the government needs to help small businesses say relax price control measures only benefit the wholesalers. sometimes we don't make profit at all. for now. 1000000000 has been able to avoid the social and economic and rust seen is some african countries due to rising cost of living. but many say keeping it that way will depend on how long and how far the government is willing to go on, subsidizing import and local produce. how many trees al jazeera got little hundreds of amazon warehouse workers in the u. k. of gone on strike for the 1st time to demand better pay. the online retailer says it's offering competitive wages. when employees say they're struggling to make ends meet for their marks report. for many

amazon workers in the english city of coventry, the company that called itself the everything stool has fail to pay them anything close to what they deserve or need. the time you added your rent, your mortgage, your food, your bills, your bicycle, nothing that i dislike will tobacco for months, multiple strikes across many british sectors have reflected a rampant rise in the u. k. inflation rates. amazon's always sought to keep customer prices under control and says it's employees pay remains competitive medicine slight on today. but while britain's minimum wage will rise in april to $13.00 an hour, amazon guarantees only a fraction more than that to some employees. i think the g and b union signed up more members on top of the half a 1000000 already on its books. and hundreds of star formed a picket line to push for far more money following the example of counterparts overseas. we've taken that from what's happening in america,

we saw amazon. so came around trying to persuade work is that they didn't need a union because i was paying $15.00 an hour. and they've now raised that to $18.00 an hour. but meanwhile, worth is in the u. k. lagging far behind their on 10 pan 50. it is warehouse at the moment. what we want to do is bring them up closer to the american colleagues with britain's cost of living crisis set to continue the company may soon struggle without further action to maintain loyalty among its thousands of warehouse workers . the remarks al jazeera, now in tennis, $21.00 at time, a grand slam champion of that junk, of which remains on track to win a record extending 10th australian open title history to the semi finals after straight sets whenever andre we've left. so how many reports if novak jock, which is hamstring injury is still bothering him, it didn't really hampers court fine performance than melbourne. taking on 5th theed andre rube left jock which looked in total control from the start. taking the 1st

set with ease 61 the 2nd wasn't that much more challenging for the serbian star who's chasing a record extending 10th australian opened title. he took it 62. ah. and despite a little bit of resistance in the 3rd joke of which sore off his russian opponent with little trouble, he took the set $64.00 for the match and heads into the semi having dropped just one set all tournament. i think that this core line in the 1st 2 sets doesn't speak the truth of the reality of the, of the matcher. and i was some, some really close games. her is a great upon and is a great player with tons of respect for him. jock, which is now just to ins away from equalling rough l adults. record of 22.