iranian state media has reported the country's military as saying that a ukrainian airliner was unintentionally shot down because of human error. this is bbc world news. 176 people died in the crash on wednesday, including more than 50 i'm james reynolds. our top stories: canadian nationals. iranian state television says officials in the iranian the country's military did shoot capital tehran had previously denied down a ukrainian passengerjet, any responsibility. blaming human error. the polls have opened in taiwan's presidential and parliamentary elections. incumbent president tsai ing—wen is going up against han kuo—yu who favours closer polls open in taiwan ties with beijing. for the country's presidential the pro—democracy protests taking election where relations with mainland china place in hong kong have taken centre stage. have cast a long shadow over the death has been announced of the sultan of oman, the longest serving the taiwan election campaign. ruler in the gulf. and, plants living the high—life — why vegetation is growing at higher the death has been announced of sultan qaboos bin said al said of oman — the longest serving ruler in the gulf. the sultan, who was 79, had ruled since 1970 when he deposed his father in a bloodless coup. altitudes in the himalayas. three days of national mourning have been declared. now on bbc news — africa eye: my bloody country. in the past hour, iran has

jamal osman, a somali journalist, searches for answers admitted it did shoot down to the cycle of violence that has ripped his country apart for the last three decades. this programme countains disturbing images. —— this programme contains disturbing images. this was meant to be a safe haven. a place where children could grow up in peace, away from somalia's civil war. a place where people could live their lives. but what happened here injuly shattered that illusion. explosion.

gunfire. 26 dead, 56 injured. lives changed forever. my name is jamal osman. i am a somali journalist who for years has been searching for answers to the end of a cycle of violence which has ripped my country apart for three decades. in kismayo, i thought i had found answers. a place which was secure. a place which was peaceful. a place which offered hope. but in my country, tragically,

nothing is ever that simple. another day in somalia. another fighting patrol to the frontline, by the jubbaland armed forces. young somali men gearing up to kill other young somali men, the way it has been for much of my life. these soldiers are going to an area controlled by al—sha bab, the most powerful militant group in africa, and al-qaeda's affiliate in somalia. among them is an elite unit known as the rohan, meaning "the unseen." made up of former al—shabab fighters, they know their enemy well. commanderjalid reminds them how they are expected to behave. but trust can be in short supply here.

some of these men could be secretly working for the other side. the fear is that they will inform al—shabab about the operation. sometimes the highest bidder trumps loyalty.

i am travelling with commanderjalid in an armoured vehicle. he is receiving regular updates from his informants inside al—shabaab. while they are not telling us exactly where, they are planning to attack al—shabab. chanting. this is al—shabab. i am no stranger to them, having interviewed them many times. they are a formidable enemy. formed around 2006, al—shabab controls large swathes of territory

in southern and central somalia, including parts ofjubbaland. they want to overthrow the somali government and establish a state based on their interpretation of islam. berhani village, 50 kilometres outside kismayo, jubbaland's regional capital. jubbaland forces search the area. they rush to a house where they are told al—shabab fighters are hiding. but they find nothing. it is typical of a frontline which is fluid, and of an enemy which is everywhere but nowhere. commanderjalid tries to win villages over to the jubbaland cause. residents must turn out, otherwise they will be seen as al—shabab members. but look closely. it is all old men, women and children.

the strategic port of kismayo exists in a bubble of security of around 50 kilometres circling the city. it is propped up by kenyan army firepower. today, the man in charge returns from a foreign trip. president madobe is popular here for creating a sense of peace and security.

there has not been a major attack by al—shabaab since he came to power seven years ago. by contrast, in the somali capital, mogadishu, major attacks are commonplace. the pomp and ceremony, coupled with the messages of security, is designed to remind everyone the presidential election is weeks away. and president madobe wants another four—year term.

this is a man who has become one of the most powerful politicians in somalia. when i travelled to kismayo earlier this year, i was impressed with the society madobe has created. he has his critics who say he is an authoritarian figure who favours his clan. he has also fallen out of favour with the government in mogadishu.

but madobe gave me hope that perhaps jubbaland offered a glimpse into what my country could be: a stable and peaceful place. on the plane here, i sat next to someone who agreed. ...and me, hodan nalayeh, the founder of integration tv and a proud somali, sharing somali stories all over the world... hodan nalayeh was a fellow somali journalist who grew up in canada but decided to return with the aim of highlighting developments in our motherland. in somalia, you just enjoy being an everyday person. i love it here. keeping kismayo safe is a complex politicaljuggling act, and president madobe needs to work hard, most especially in areas recently captured from al—shabaab.

military discipline is key to building public confidence in his rule. if soldiers kill a civilian — which has happened — they can't be executed. meeting with elders here is crucial. in somalia's clan—based society, these men hold the real power. if he keeps them happy he will keep this place safe, and more importantly, they won't give their sons to al—shabab. it is a dramatic transformation for a figure who was once an islamist fighter himself.

—— it is a dramatic transformation for a figure who was once an islamist fighter himself. he turned against his former jihadist comrades following two years of captivity in ethiopia. released in 2009, he went on to battle them for control of kismayo. in 2012, with the help of kenyan forces, he was victorious.

others here have taken this same path. the rohan, a special unit made up of former al—shabab fighters. i met them to find out why they turned against their former comrades. their commander is abdelkader. but being a rohan is risky. abdelkader says he was targeted by al—shabaab. today is abdelkader‘s day off, and he had time to see his family with some sweets and a new

football for the kids. his wife is pleased her husband has switched sides. he feels he has made the right move at the right time. he could have ended up here. this is kismayo‘s highest security prison. alleged al—shabab fighters are held here, some without trial.

jubbaland authorities say these men are all al—shabaab. mohammed and ilyas are accused of killing this man. sheikh abdullahi made his name as an al—shabab creature, —— preacher but he later turned against the militants, preaching anti—al—shabab messages. he was executed in broad daylight in the city three years ago. mohammed and ilyas have agreed to talk to us.

tonight, we are with the jubbaland police force. rumours abound al—shabab have smuggled three vehicles laden with explosives into the city and are preparing to carry out attacks.

it is friday, weekend in somalia. a day of family and prayer. the president is here. in the late afternoon, families relax. our cameraman, ahmed farah, films them. suddenly, he hears a loud bang, and the children start running, scared and shouting, "explosion, explosion." in that moment, seven years of safety and security in kismayo is gone.

this is cctv footage of the explosion. it was an al—shabab attack on the medina hotel, as people were taking afternoon tea. a suicide bomber rammed a car containing explosives into the hotel gates. moments after these pictures were captured, three al—shabab gunmen stormed the hotel and the slaughter starts. ahmed, our cameraman, sped towards the sound of shooting and grenade attacks with his driver and ourarmy guard. gunfire.

honks horn. the battle between the al—shabab gunmen and government forces lasted 12 hours. it ended with 26 dead and 56 injured. three attackers died. one was captured alive. one of the first to be killed was the lady i met on the plane, hodan nalayeh. she was heavily pregnant at the time

and left two young sons behind. hodan will never leave kismayo — the city she praised to the whole world. she was buried alongside her husband farid, also killed in the attack, on the outskirts of the city. the attack has undermined everything president madobe has worked for. his authority diminished. in the aftermath, he heads to the airport to oversee the evacuation of the worst wounded.

it is important to show he is in charge. president madobe has been urging somalis worldwide to return to kismayo, saying it is safe to live and invest. come, they did, but all it has taken is one bomb to unravel everything.

before the attack, you could see a lot of residents were going about their daily lives, which says this is a peaceful city, people were walking around, late in the evening. but since the attack, the mood has changed. in august, president madobe was elected for another four years. will he manage to restore security here? perhaps. but i question whether there will ever be a time when somalia's cycle of violence and revenge is broken.

this woman's husband is sheikh abdullahi, the man gunned down in kismayo. i had met two of his alleged killers in prison. she says her six—year—old son abdel is also bent on revenge.

i showed footage from her interview to mohammed and ilyas, the men accused of sheikh abudullahi's murder. woman talking on screen.

it remains to be seen what fate awaits mohammed and ilyas. i went to kismayo to highlight peace and progress in somalia but i left with a

different conclusion. hodan nalayeh‘s wish was to see the whole of somalia united in peace. it seems to me that dream may have died with her. what future for my bloody country? hello there. the wind is starting to howl again and drawing on some mild airfrom a long way howl again and drawing on some mild air from a long way south, howl again and drawing on some mild airfrom a long way south, mind you, so airfrom a long way south, mind you, so temperatures are rising but rain continues in scotland and northern

ireland, heavy over the hills, trickling down into england and wales, and heavy rains humbly and felt late into snowdonia and the rain turns showery in scotland as the winds starts to easily and in the winds starts to easily and in the day, still windy for england and wales. it may well be a drier and brighter day was eastern parts of england. a mild day, temperatures 12 01’ england. a mild day, temperatures 12 or 13 degrees. through the evening and overnight we will see the weather front sweeping down towards the south—east, taking rain with it. showers and sunshine following on sunday. the rain clears away from the south—east of england early in the south—east of england early in the morning and we have this cluster of showers into wales through the midlands adding eastwards, becoming fewer during the afternoon and further north some sunshine and some showers, mostly in the south—west of scotla nd showers, mostly in the south—west of scotland although they will be in wintry over the hills. the winds will not be a strong but we are back into cool airfor all of 00:28:47,838 --> 2147483051:51:08,634 will not be a strong but we are back 2147483051:51:08,634 --> 4294966103:13:29,430 into cool air for all of us.