welcome to become "gmt" on b "bbc world news"." i'm steven sacker. raids and arrests across europe as police intensify efforts to thwart jihadists said to be planning more violent attacks. following a shoot-out which killed two suspects in belgian, there are new arrests in paris and berlin as europe remains on high alert. we'll be speaking to our correspondents across the continent, asking what can be done to stop terror attacks on european soil?

guinea says schools are reopening after the ebola outbreak. we report on the thousands of children left orphaned by the virus. and aaron's here with all the business. and it could be a rumble in the jungle for amazon. >> very good steven. yes, amazon has effectively been getting state aid from the government to help reduce its tax bill. that is the preliminary verdict by european regulators. so we'll take a look at what this means, not only for them but potentially hundreds of other big multinationals. very warm welcome to "gmt." midday here in london. police have stepped up their efforts to stop the threat of suspected jihadist terrorists. it started in belgium. there were a serious of raids

around brussels in the town of verviers. police in france say at least eight people have been taken into custody in connection with last week's attacks. and in germany, police have raided 11 locations in and around berlin arresting suspected members of islamist cells. >> we just stepped out of the room where john kerry, the secretary of state is about to talk in the next couple of minutes. he's been paying his respects today at the supermarket here in paris, where the siege ended last friday and also at the offices of "charlie hebdo." some criticism in the french media and, indeed in the media in washington that he's come here somewhat belatedly. because, of course, there was that million-man march on sunday, with world leaders standing soldier to soldier with president hollande but no senior figure from the american administration. but he is here today. he's been saying that he wasn't here last week because he was

in india, preparing a visit for president obama. but while he's been going around the country, lots going on around france today. they've rounded up 12 people in police raids overnight, three women and nine men, all suspected of involvement in the "charlie hebdo" attack either logistically or providing vehicles for the three gunmen. remember, they're still looking for a man they suspect dropped off coulibaly at the supermarket last friday. and perhaps the same man, who might have used a pistol to shoot a jogger in the southern suburbs of paris. so security in paris, still as it was last week with 120,000 soldiers and policeman, we're told, in place around the country. we've seen john kerry at the supermarket, laying a wreath this morning. i think he was quite moved by what he'd seen there. i was there last night and there were thousands of bouquets of flowers that have been laid around the supermarket, by

ordinary parisians, moved and saddened by what happened last week. and from there, he went to the offices of "charlie hebdo." while that was happening, they were burying the editor of "charlie hebdo" in the city of francois. a very moving ceremony there, because he was a man who had lived under these death threats for so long yet refused to be cowed. so we're expecting john kerry at any minute to come to the stage, alongside the paris mayor, ann hill hidalgo. he's been with her and the foreign minister this morning. just while we wait for them let me show you that holland has been talking about the threat level they face here in france. and i think those in the know have found it quite a sobering week. we found to the former prime minister yet, and he was saying still they don't have a full list of the people on the agenda, the intelligence agency don't know all the people they're looking for. and they're not sharing enough intelligence, he said with

other european intelligence agencies. what we can say, though having listened this morning to the foreign minister, is that america and france have been sharing intelligence in the past week. and he was suggesting although we still fear this from the belgium side that it's intelligence they shared that led to the round you in belgium. so perhaps they have managed to avert an attack there. yeah, we're still waiting for john kerry to take to the stage. so while we're waiting for him, let's cross over to belgium, because our correspondent, anna holligan is there. she's been sitting in on a press conference that's being held by a senior prosecutor from brussels. what have you heard, anna? >> reporter: we've been hearing some really disturbing and significant details from the authorities here in belgium, about what happened what they found inside the jihadi houses after those raids in verviers

last night. two of the suspects were killed and they found ak-47 machine guns, cash mobile phones and also fake police uniforms. they've also been telling us more about the style and nature of the planned attacks. they were planning to target police officers on the streets and in police stations. i think we should be able to hear from the prosecutor now. >> this operation was meant to dismantle a terrorist cell not only the terrorist cell but also the logistic network behind it. this investigation for the time being has shown that these people had the intention to kill several policemen in the street. the identification of the two suspects deceased last evening is still going on. >> reporter: and there has been lots of speculation on social media about the identity of the

suspects. nothing's been confirmed so far. we just heard from the police that they expect to confirm those two dead jihadi suspects' identities either this evening or first thing tomorrow. christian, back over to you. >> anna thank you very much. well, let's just cross to the pictures on the stage in the room behind me. we are seeing ann hidalgo woisho is the mayor of paris. she's been accompanying the secretary of state, john kerry on his visit to paris here this morning. let's have a listen. >> we rose up and said we do not accept this. we will never accept the attacks that hit the families of the republic and they are to have a special meaning. because in paris, it is not by chance, paris is a city where the dedication of the humorists was to receive, and paris is a

city where a huge number of the jewish community have been living here since 1930. when they were chased from other countries. and it is in this country where the citizenship and the organization of the jewish community has been recognized. so it's here in the town hall of paris. this city has a particular history with the families of the republic republic, we are not the only guarantees of these families, but we want to defend them in a strong way. and it is here in this city of paris, in this state, that weakness national revolution. and it's on this location in this town hall which was the location of -- at the time for secularism, and to men and to

women, and the equality of our citizens. all this is something that i wanted to remind you of because it unites us it creates unity among us despite the fact that we could have different ideas. and the beauty of democracy is to accept the other opinion, the other view that this city mr. secretary, you have come here to visit us and you paid homage at the sites, which are the sites of memory and will remain so. the city is a friend of the united states. once the world started to realize that this tragic acts events is happening, i found the mayor of new york he called me immediately to express his solidarity, his affection, and

the fact that he is, his thoughts were with us. and mr. kerry, i received a number of messages from american mayors, washington chicago, and new orleans. and i would like to say that there is a beautiful history of friendship between our cities. it is a result of cities french cities and american cities and i will -- there will be a meet inging and this adds most significance with your presence here. i would like to conclude to tell you that this asian friendship,

recently we have the honor to carry out together ceremonies which shocked our country, the world, and europe and i'm thinking about the commemoration and the liberation of our country and the commemoration of the liberation of our country, there was also a fundamental element, which is the liberation of paris. the liberation of paris on august 1944 which was the fluid of insurrection. it was also supported by the allied forces. and obviously the americans. i wanted to remind you of this because it is an element of our history that we have not forgotten, that parisians have not forgotten. and if we are here today, meeting and expressing this beautiful friendship, it's because this history, we are making it step by step.

it is a human friendship. thank you, mr. john kerry, for your visit. it is a great honor for me to visit me, the mayor of all parisians. [ applause ] >> well madame mayor, thank you for that very very generous welcome and thank you for reminding us of the extraordinary history that does tie us together. what an honor for me to be here in this historic building which the mayor just talked about and shared some of the history. a moment ago in her office she

showed me an historic photograph of the resistance members sitting there in her office in august of 1944, a reminder of the close historic, inescapable relationship between our countries. and i appreciate your very generous comments about all of our mayors. i know you have a warm relationship with them. and not only am i in an historic building, but i am with an historic mayor, because she is the first woman to serve in this office. >> thank you. >> and that is no small thing. >> thank you. >> so it's a privilege for me to be here with you. and i'm particularly honored to be with members of the law enforcement community, those who were so directly engaged and affected by the events. and you honor us and you honor me and my country by being here

today. and we thank you so much for that. on the day of the living nightmare that began at "charlie hebdo," i had a chance to share a few thoughts with you from back home in washington. and today, i just i really wanted to come here and share a hug with all of paris and all of france. i wanted to express to you personally the sheer horror and revulsion on the attack of lives. i want to thank president hollande, my friend laura, and of course the mayor. not only for their always generous welcome, but for the grip and the grace that they

have shown. i also want to thank our ambassador, jane hartley, for their hard work and the support to the french people this past week. and i particularly welcome these young kids who have come here to share a vision of the future. thank you. [ speaking foreign language ] [ speaking foreign language ] >> the secretary of state, john kerry, then addressing quite a large gathering of people in this hall behind me.

there are probably about 200 or 300 people. >> well we appear to have lost christian fraser there. of course john kerry is still in the paris mayor's hall and still addressing reporters there and we'll bring you more of what he says in just a very short while. but in the meantime we can cross to berlin and join our correspondent, jenny hill who has a story unfolding all across western europe at the moment. there were arrests in the last 24 hours in the city of berlin. and jenny, tell me what is the very latest you're hearing about the nature of those arrests and what the police have been telling reporters. >> well this is certainly a very significant and substantial operation this morning. 250 police officers, we're told among them three s.w.a.t.-style teams, raided 11 properties in

and around berlin this morning. the officers made twao arrests. one of those men, police say, is the leader of a terror cell here in berlin. that cell police believe was preparing to carry out some kind of attack inside syria. the other man arrested also in his 40s, also of turkish origin is accused of being the man who finances the cell responsible for making sure it has the money it requires. the group, police say, have managed to procure military equipment, including night vision goggles. the police are emphasizing that this cell wasn't preparing to carry out an attack on german soil. it was looking the to carry out an act of violence inside syria. but these arrests come just a day after the german chancellor angela merkel vowed to take strict measures against islamist militants here in germany. >> just give us a little bit of

background jepnny. in other countries we've heard warnings from security chiefs a ss about the scale of the problem, the nature of the alert they're now operating under, and the real fear that under months and years, the radicalization of some, a small number of young muslims, who have gone to fight in syria, could be a very dangerous new factor. are those the sorts of things that are being said in germany too? >> well, it's estimated here that somewhere between 500 and 600 people have gone to syria to fight. certainly, the german parliament yesterday spent some time discussing what the paris shootings mean for germany. the german cabinet has just approved measures to confiscate the national identity card of anyone who has gone to fight in syria, replaceing it instead with a territory i.d. card which would say in several different languages, this person cannot travel outside of germany. they hope that measures like that will help crack down on the extremist threat which seems to

come from within every country here in europe at the moment. >> jenny in berlin i thank you very much for that. i think we can now take you back to paris and to u.s. secretary of state, john kerry, who is talking alongside the mayor of paris. let's join john kerry again. [ speaking french ] >> translator: -- she finished by arriving in portugal, where she boarded a ship which took her to the united states. one of the memories one of the most vivid memories of -- is my first visit to france with my family, my parents. that was the first time that my mother came to france since she had to flee the country during world war i. i remember the destruction, the

noise, while we were walking through the ruins of her house that was destroyed by the bombardment. nothing was left. just some stairs and a chimney still standing. but only a few years later that myself understood the incredible price for peace and liberty that our generation paid. that is a sense and the soldiers who left the united states to safe the world from tyranny. now the nation knows that in france, that liberty has a price. because france is at the origin of the time of the -- the evolution of the human spirit

including ours. your engagement towards liberty and liberty of expression is an inspiration for the whole world. the words are not enough to describe the profound emotion that i have felt looking at a number of people coming from all over the world, from far and near, to come together and march together. >> so there we have john kerry, expressing his solidarity with the people of france. and of course expressing america's view that this is a security threat but faces not just europe but faces many nations, including, of course the united states itself. now, let's just think a little harder about what is happening in western europe right now. european officials have actually been warning for months about the unprecedented threat posed by returning fighters from

syria. more than 3,000 european citizens have traveled to syria to fight in recent years. most have come from france with up to 412 foreign fighters. but belgium has the highest rate per person with up to 296 foreign fighters. and that is around 27 jihadist in every million of the belgian population. now, our europe reporter duncan crawford, is with me. he's been based in brussels for several years. and he's been investigating belgian's problem with jihadists. so give us the context here. we've got these arrests and we've got overnight the shooting of two suspects by belgian police. give us the context in belgian. >> in belgian, you have got this issue, it seems, where there is this high proportion of citizens compared to other european countries, traveling to syria to fight where individuals is are often joining up with radical

islamist groups, such as islamic state and so on. while that is it's very difficult to know really some of the issues which belgian has comparable to other cities. you have very high youth unemployment in certain cities especially the outskirts of certain cities. certainly, local politicians say that some of the youth feel that they have no opportunities and that they feel marginalized. so that could be part of it. but what is different about belgian to other countries is that you have this organization called sharia for belgian, which was based in antwerp, established around 2010 and disbandeded in 2012 and actually part -- the alleged numbers of this group are part of the biggest terror trial, which belgian has ever seen which has been conducted over the last few months. it was due to conclude over the last few days. it's been postponed until next month, the conclusion of that trial. but members of this group,

sharia for belgian, are accused of recruiting and radicalizing dozens of young men and encouraging them to travel to syria. >> as you say, it is a major trial. we've now got in the last 24 hours, the news of the killings of two suspects and the arrests of others. what sort of political message is the belgian government now sending out? other european governments talking about new security crackdowns, trying to do something to stop the journeys being made from europe to syria. what are the belgians saying? >> similar. similar messages from the uk and other countries, that we are going to get tough on anyone who wants to travel to syria. and if you want to come back after traveling to syria, then it's likely you will face criminal charges of some kind. so they've talked about stripping the citizenship of citizens who come back. they've talked about taking away passports. they've called on the community, on belgians to notify the police

of anyone they suspect of potentially wanting to travel to syria. it's similar, like i say, to what's happening in france the uk the netherlands, other countries which are seeing citizens travel to syria. what's being done differently in other european countries, or one in particular is denmark, where the danish authorities are actually taking a slightly softer approach saying we will have de-radicalization programs and try to reintegrate people back into the community. >> duncan thank you very much. we'll keep tabs on john kerry in paris, keep covering all the different elements of this story in western europe. but just quickly, before the end of this half hour let me tell you on tuesday next week the bbc has a day of special coverage about democracy. and i'm going to be doing a live talk with the exiled chinese dissident wewer chi xi. you can send me questions that you might like to ask him via twitter using #bbcdemocracyday.

1630 gmt, on tuesday, the 20th of january. so, we are -- stay with us on bbc world news. we'll keep covering everything that's happening across western europe in terms of this developing security story. all of the other news too. so do stay with us here on bbc world news. ow... my scalp hurts. my hair hurts. this is what it can be like to have shingles. a painful, blistering, rash. look at me. she's embarrassed by the way she looks. if you had chickenpox, the shingles virus is already inside you. 1 in 3 people will get shingles in their lifetime. as you get older, your immune system weakens and it loses its ability to keep the shingles virus in check. well i had to go to the eye doctor last week and i have to go back today. the doctor's worried its so close to her eye. the shingles rash can last up to 30 days.

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welcome to "gmt" on "bbc world news." i'm stephen sackur. in this half hour the united states and the uk intensify cooperation on cybersecurity as computer hackers are identified as a growing threat. british prime minister david cameron visits the white house amid plans for new intelligence sharing and joint electronic war games to test cyberdefenses. the former french futboler ginola has a new goal. out to snatch the top job in

futbol from seth blacher. also in the program, aaron's back looking at a possible bailout. yes, we're talking bailouts again, for the greek banks. >> the bailout could be back. we're taking a look at the fragile state of those greek banks. there's a general election just around the corner and we now know two major greek banks have applied for emergency financial assistance. so could the outcome of this election lead to millions of greeks running to grab their cash out of those banks? . a very warm welcome to "gmt." so serious is the threat posed by cyberterror that it is a top of the agenda right now in talks between president obama and british prime minister david cameron in washington. they're going to hold a round of talks at the white house and a

key focus, we are told by officials, will be how to intensify cooperation to combat common cybersecurity threats. as well as intelligence sharing, britain and america are to carry out war games cyberattacks on each other, including on major financial institutions. from washington, naomi grimley has sent this report. >> reporter: inside gchq these are rare glimpses of life at the government's eavesdropping hub. in the age of gun attacks on paris and cyberattacks like the recent one on sony pictures, this place is very much at the front line. on his visit to washington, d.c., david cameron wants to make cybersecurity a number one priority for transatlantic cooperation. he wants the two countries to simulate how they cope with cyberattacks on key institutions like the bank of england. but he also wants the president

to get tough with social media giants, like facebook and twitter, now that they seem to be how jihadists communicate and inspire each other. the prime minister thinks these companies should be made to flag up dangerous material to the authorities, and there should also be limits to message encryption on their sites. >> we need to be able in extremists to interrupt the contact between terrorists whether they're using fixed phones, mobile phones or the internet. we both face the same challenge, and we need to work with these big companies. we have good relationships with them, to make sure that we can keep people safe. >> reporter: the prime minister though, may not have much luck on this. after all, america's big tech companies jealously guard their privacy, especially after edward snowden revealed the extent of u.s. government surveillance. >> but this visit also has an unspoken aim for david cameron. his very presence in washington,

d.c. helped him to polish his credentials as a global statesman. barack obama may not have sky-high approval ratings here in the u.s. but in europe he is regarded as something of a political rock star. perhaps with a british general election just around the corner david cameron is hoping some of that star dust rubs off on him. naomi grimley, bbc news washington. >> right. well, let's stick with the issue of cybersecurity, because with me is e.j. hillbert who is an issue on the subject, and he currently walks for crawl. they help big companies with their cybersecurity needs. he's also a former fbi special agent on cybercrime and counterterrorism. so, e.j. hillbert let me be very blunt about this. we hear obama and cameron, do they really know what they're talking about when they suggest there is a new level of cyberterror threat? are they right? >> the threat has been there for a long time.

the problem is that there's been a bit of fearmongering that's occurred on this thing. you basically have four cyberthreats. crime, which is about making money. espionage, which is about stealing secrets. warfare, which is about blowing things up. and activism which is "i don't like you so i'm going to put everything out there that i can." we've seen a lot of the last one in the sony attack recently. so these are the four things that have to be addressed, and they've been out there for years. >> which are the hardest of those four to combat? >> the hardest is the last one, because there's no motivation other than "i don't like you." so the point is, i'm going to lay bare all of your secrets and put them out there. the problem is when somebody does that those other three, the criminals, the espionage, the warfare guys are going to take advantage of that and utilize that against a company. >> how effective are the two things they seem to be talking about? one is more intelligence sharing, get the fbi and your u.s. intelligence services to work very closely with gchq and the british services so how effective is that? and then on another level, how

effective is this particular plan for war gaming? you know testing the defenses? >> intelligence is key. everybody understanding how things are -- have been done, how they're utilizing it whags going on with regards to it. and the u.s. government and the british government have been working together for years. when i was with the bureau, i came over and worked with them for a number of times. even in this position i worked with the home office. >> do they share everything? >> they don't share everything no. >> what do they share? >> the interesting aspect of it is, you can't share things you feel are going to be national security issues particularly if you don't feel who you're sharing it with is going to keep it safe. if i were to tell you exactly, you know, the launch code for nuclear missiles or something of that nature right, not that i would, but that's something we can't share, because i don't know how you're going to secure it. >> the second point, war game welcome does it really work to test your own defenses that way? >> the war gaming it's something that people have been working on for years and so on. unfortunately, you're hindered. you can't do what the hackers

would do. you can't do what the bad guys would do. if i were to launch a board game against a company or a country or something of that -- i would want open access. everything i could do everything i could throw at you. >> very briefly, who's winning this race right now? who's ahead in the game? is it the bad guys as the officials would put it or is it the government and states who are trying to stop them? >> unfortunately, it's the bad guys. the bad guys are about a step to two steps ahead, and in the european market they're probably about three to five steps ahead, because the threat awareness is just not here. >> e.j. hillbert thanks for being here. we'll go to straight to business now. aaron is here. and i think you're talking about one of the tech giants. >> there you are! >> amazon and greek-based. that is on the menu today. amazon has effectively been getting state aid from the luxembourg government to help reduce its tax bill. that is the blame narrow verdict

by european regulators who released this report earlier today on friday. now, they say luxembourg gave the online retailer an unfair advantage, which allowed them to operate almost tax-free across europe. however, amazon says it has received no special tax treatment from luxembourg. in fact, the company says it is subject to the same tax laws as other companies operating there. well patrick stevens is a tax policy director from the british institute of taxation and joins us. patrick, great to have you. can i start with this? am i right by saying it's okay for the eu to have lower tax rates, but what's not acceptable i guess, is to have special deals to attract certain companies. and that's what at play here is that correct? >> yes, the eu rules say that each country within the eu can choose whatever tax rate it wants. normal tax competition perfectly permissible. but if you go off to a particular company, because you want to attract that company into your country to do business

there and give them a special rate that's no-no. not permitted in the eu. >> and is it also a case of -- you look around the world and you see many countries who would do all they can to attract these multi-nationals. they want them there to build factories, set up shops, spend money, create jobs. there's global competition between countries. >> that's right. as our prime minister and finance minister has said on many times, it's a global risk. and most countries in the world, in one way or another, set up their tax systems to attract multi-nationals and big business generally in for all those reasons that you're talking about. it will do good for their citizens if those companies bring investment and jobs and such like into the country. that all-in competition. what the eu has said, that's okay providing you set up your tax system to be attractive to such companies and allow everybody to have a fair go at

it. if you choose particular companies and give them a particular deal, that's not permitted. >> so is that the allegation? because i'm trying to work out what amazon and perhaps luxembourg have allegedly done wrong. >> of course, it is only allegedly at this stage. but as i understand it the idea is that a company within the group in luxembourg has made profits by doing sales all over europe but the taxable profits come into the luxembourg company, and then they've paid out a big chunk of it by way of royalties. now, normally if the royalties are justifiable, there's nothing wrong with that and you only pay tax on the amount after you've paid out the royalties. but, of course if the country says well, effectively, you can pay out any size of royalty that you want within reason so there's a lower amount waiting for us to tax then that is giving special treatment to that company by saying we won't look at the size of the royalties paid out. we don't know that's what they're doing yet, but that's

what i believe is being alleged. >> all right. well it will be interesting to see what also this could mean for the starbucks and its relationship with the netherlands. i'll leave it there. patrick, appreciate your time. patrick stevens joining us there. let's move on to major greek banks have applied -- they've applied for emergency financial assistance from the country's central bank. now, let me explain. europe bank and alpha bank have both applied for what is known in the business as liquidity assistance. basically, they're asking for more cash as a precautionary move linked to people taking their money out of the banks in the run-up to the country's general election, which comes on the 25th of this month. bank deposits reportedly fell by 3 billion euro nearly $3.5 billion, and that's for the month of december, a month when they traditionally grow in the first couple of weeks of this month, january has seen more money flowing out of the banking system. europe bank shares oh, boy, they did certainly tumble. they tumbled 8%.

alpha bank fell 7%. certainly pushing lower. the athens banking index, of course it's an index made up of banks in greece. that's down by around 7%. let's get more on this one. lynn joins us. great to have you with us. we have this general election around the corner and yet wii seeing all these -- a lot of greeks pulling a lot of money out of banks. why? what are they worried about? >> you know i think, there is obviously, a little bit of concern about the margins, about potential exit from the euro zone. there's also the case that some foreign investors have been leading the bank t-bill market which sees greeks stepping in to buy these t-bills. >> so there are banks that are asking for assistance. really, they call it a precautionary measure? really, could this not be the start of things to come where we see other greek banks doing the same thing?

>> it wouldn't surprise me at all if other greek banks are forced to go down this route and take ela funding where the credit risk ultimately sits with the greek central bank. obviously, the ecb would have to sign this off. that's going to have to happen some time in the next couple of weeks. but for us our base case is that greece won't exit the eurozone. >> but overall, the greek economy continues to be a shambles. and what this story has done it's pushed the borrowing costs for the greek government up. that doesn't help at all. it's just making it more expensive for greeks to borrow money, if it needs to borrow money or if it wants to return to the market. >> yeah the greek economy has obviously returned to growth. it is running a primary surplus, but it has this huge overhang and massive debt stock. it's got a lot of redemptions falling due one way or another. it's got limited cash reserves. so if if the eurozone was to become about, it would have much

more to do with an accident than it would about the will of the greek people or the willingness of euro zone politicians to let it gone. >> lyn graham-taylor, thank you very much for your input. appreciate your time. don't forget follow me on twitter. tweet me i'll tweet you back you can get me @bbcaaron. i've got one thing to say? >> what's that? >> how young are these banking experts nowadays? >> yeah i think i know where you're coming from. >> yeah! >> but you know what because they're young, it doesn't mean they don't know what they're talking about. >> no, but i think they're starting at 12. see ya! >> a very grumpy aging aaron leaving the set. stay with us, still to come david ginola tells us why he wants to be the next president of fifa.

welcome back to "gmt." i'm stephen sackur. the top stories this hour. the number of suspected islamist militants have been arrested overnight in police operations in several european countries. and the u.s. secretary of state, john kerry, has paid his respects to the victims of last week's terrorist attacks in paris. in a show of american solidarity with the french people. now, if you're a football fan like me you may remember david ginola the french player known in the 1990s for his silky skills and, yes, even silkier hair. now ginola says he wants to be the next president of fifa standing against sepp blatter. it's not clear, though if he'll have enough support to stand. well, david ginola's in london right now and he has been talking to our sports correspondent, natalie parks, who's just raced from meeting

mr. ginola to the "gmt" studio. natalie, what have you learned about ginola's ambitions? >> well on the face of it he's incredibly passionate about it. he gave a very passionate speech about how he loves the game. how you can look into your children's eyes and see the love when they kick a ball. so far, so french very passionate. but i think there was a very healthy dose of cynicism from the press there. he's being paid a quarter of a million pounds by a very famous british betting company to run for president. >> so is this a stunt? >> well yes, essentially. i mean he is passionate about it and he feels that he wants change. he's calling it time for a reboot in futbol. he's calling on all fans to join team ginola. and the betting company has actually asked the public for money for this campaign. but the key problem is that one of the criteria that fifa brought in that each person

running for president has to have been involved in association futbol for two of the last five years. he says he's been a consultant at a french club in the south of france, quite tenuous. and also the key thing he needs five votes from the 209-member association. and they think they could get three of them but of course anyone with interest or knowledge of fifa politics means that three promised votes doesn't necessarily translate into three actual votes. he realizes the task is very daunting. let's have a listen to what he had to say a little bit earlier. >> it's going to be difficult, because most of the associations have been in place for a long time. with rules and regulation and i would have to work out to let them feel well. i quite like the man, what he's saying. i like what he's going to do for

us. it's great. so why not giving him our support. >> okay. well i detected from you, natalie, a real dose of skepticism about whether ginola has any real chance of giving a real challenge to blatter. but there are people in futbol who would like to see a real challenge to blatter and like to see his reign ended. where else could we look for a possible contender or challenger? >> i certainly think if the public were to vote for fifa president, he would get their votes. >> but it doesn't work that way. >> it doesn't work that way. at the moment we have candidated like jerome champagne. so we can probably discount him. the real candidate so far, someone that really could take over for blatter is prince ali of jordan. he's been involved with the jordanian futbol association for many years, a fifa vice president, a member of the royal family in jordan, he's well kektd

connected, of course, well educated, and he has already been singled out as being very credible. so i think he is the man to look to, for the man might be challenging blatter. >> but he doesn't have the same hair as ginola. we will watch this contest unfold. thanks so much for coming in to "gmt." now for something very exciting that's coming up on "focus on africa" here on "bbc world news." a new series looking at african stories through satire. the producer is kathy harkin from bbc focus on africa. we'll speak to both of them in a moment, but first, let's take a look at a clip from "what's up africa," the news review of 2014. >> what's up africa? >> and welcome to my exclusive "what's up africa" hall of fail! let's start with a pair who really outdid themselves last

year. nigerian government and military! seriously. our president. first you said the boko haram leader is dead, then alive again, then dead again, then a cease-fire, then no cease-fire. could it be that they're just no good at communication? this is abubacker. >> give us our own state, or we will shoot you! >> uh-huh! you want to roller skate and a blue suit too? >> boy, you're making no sense! repeat. >> okay. well, we've got the producer, kathy harken of "what's up africa" with us here "gmt" studio,. it looks really fresh and different. explain to me the idea behind the show. >> well a satirist who's been presenting a piece called "what's up africa" for about

three years on radio netherlands worldwide online. and he's been very successful he has a lot of followers. he looks at africa's stories through satire. so for us for the bbc, this is a really new and fresh form as you say, looking at new ways to treat the news to present our stories. and this is one of them. and satire is a really interesting way of doing it. >> i can't help but thinking that satire pushed to real extremes has been in the news so much recently which everything that's happened in paris and "charlie hebdo." now, this is tv satire but is africa used to and is it ready for satire? >> it definitely is. satire is you know, something that is very blurpopular on the continent. mostly on radio, but there are some tv programs as well. and i think the audience is very ready for it. and we can see that because it kind of has such a following already. >> how far is the camera going to push things?

>> he is quite cheeky. he really does push things quite far. but the point of satire is to engage people make them laugh. and i find when i laugh at something win tend to remember it more. so that's what we're trying to do. >> kathy, you cover africa all the time. you know much better than me that there are so many regimes and officials in africa who do not have the ability to laugh at themselves and who, frankly, tend to lock people up who push it too far. >> they do of course yes. but i mean the point of this is that, you know we want to encourage conversation. yes, it's provocative. yes, it's irreverent yes, it might annoy a few people. but the idea is to -- it's not just three minutes that it's going on tv. it's the start of a conversation that's going on online social media, afterwards. so increasing a younger audience as well. >> let's test your theory. because there he is joining us by skype. great to see you. kathy has been selling you very hard and telling me that you're very cheeky and you're going to

push this idea as far as you can. so how far are you going to push it? >> well yeah as far as i can. i mean i got some e-mails recently just saying yeah maybe we can -- you could have gone further. i'm like yeah i want to go as far as possible. and the whole point of what i do is to try to trigger a reaction. yeah, hopefully i get one. >> you've been doing satire for quite a while, aiming it at africa. do they get it audiences in africa? >> oh, of course! definitely. the continent has a rich history of satire. spoken and written, especially but more and more there are tv shows in kenya, organized in nigeria, and lots of comedians also obviously, touch on political topics. so absolutely satire is alive and well across the continent. >> all right. it's a great message. thank you so much for joining us. and we are going to watch what

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