this is due every news coming to a lawyer from berlin a reprieve for dozens of gravely ill people in one besieged syrian town an eight year old girl named will soon get the treatment that she urges we need she was one

of the first to leave a rebel held town east of damascus under a deal brokered by an agency also coming up. a large exchange of prisoners between the pro russia separatists and the ukrainian government is underway in the east of the country but why is it happening now. and detained in the air and more are up for orders to reporters journalists to be kept in custody over allegations they breached the country's official secrets act. i'm sara harmon welcome to the show and thanks for joining us. aid workers in syria have begun evacuating twenty nine critically ill people from a besieged rebel town held in eastern guta evacuations were agreed as part of a deal. between the syrian government and rebels government troops have besieged

eastern good us for more than four years u.n. has drawn up a list of at least five hundred people including children with cancer who need to be evacuated from the south part of francesco is the president of the international federation of the red cross earlier he told us more about those being a back he waited as part of the state. run with him yeah a concert or consequences of all of the coffee in their ads and she is well. we're very gritty some of them are. very some wide i was released over twenty nine and i there were very very urgent we did the last thing that we could access to that was that you can go on over there but only for. food for seven thousand people which was not enough when you are are facing about four hundred thousand

people stuck in the area but this is an encouraging sign that he's coming out for a very long discussion not only was she on that we may also we saw the she got a progress and maybe a big meeting on hoarding used by iraq but we both sides is not body a british government or one side with sides and that was the president of the international federation of the red cross speaking to us a little earlier u.s. secretary of state rex tillerson has expressed concern about the rising level of violence in eastern ukraine during a phone conversation he asked his russian counterpart sergey lavrov to make efforts to lower the bloodshed in the region it comes as ukrainian government forces and pro russian separatists began a prisoner exchange kiev is handing over three hundred and six captives to the rebels and is receiving seventy four prisoners in return. in spain called the largest prisoner exchange in eastern ukraine conflict david

stern david this is the first major prisoner exchange in over a year why is it happening now. it's a good question this could be a sign it's obviously a sign of progress the only question is how big of a sign of progress it is this is a very large exchange as you've said in fact exchange has been completed now and what we're being told is that all seventy four of the ukrainians have are now on their way back to kiev where they will actually be greeted by people crowds that are going to the main airport just outside the capital and on the rebel side on the russian backed rebel side a few some fewer than were originally reported the koreans are saying about forty three have decided to stay in ukraine but again the question is why is this happening now obviously this is a sign of progress but the fighting is still continuing in the east and as you said

at the top that there is concern about the level of fighting right now and indeed the u.s. secretary of state rex tillerson has asked russia to clamp down on the violence in eastern ukraine so is it fair to say this conflict is heating back up. well this is the question right now it is it has definitely heated up over the last week or week two weeks whether this is a temporary surge which we sometimes see before cease fires could be a possibility or it could be something a sign of something much more serious obviously the international community is watching very closely and also making statements not just secretary secretary of state tillerson but emanuel mcallen angle americal made statements over the weekend what they're hoping for is a cease fire for the holiday season which will hope which they hope will prove to be more lasting are some world leaders are watching this very closely but david put this in context for us what it all mean for the peace process.

we will see exactly how what the moment the momentum is whether we'll see more exchanges in the coming weeks or perhaps in months there is there have been indications or some statements by the rebels and we'll see what exactly comes from this on the in the in the bigger picture whether there is going to be a larger agreement between russia the united states and ukraine right that's david stern reporting for us from kiev thank you there's a look not the other stories that are making news around the world russian opposition leader alexina almost as he is organizing a nationwide rally on the twenty eighth of january in support of his boycott of next year's presidential election russia's election commission has barred the kremlin critic from running in the march election citing a controversial embezzlement conviction he says was politically motivated. the

french coast guard has rescued a polish sailor who says he spent seven months drifting in a broken down boat the fifty four year old was discovered near the french island of review known he says he set off for south africa in the cowrote islands back in may . the indonesian volcano mount sinabung has it ruptured again spewing ash almost five kilometers into the sky the ash rained down on several villages affecting thousands of residents the volcano also spewed searing gas more than four kilometers down its slopes officials say there were no casualties. south korea says the comfort women wrong with japan is unresolved despite two countries having reached a deal in two thousand and fifteen officials in souls they'll be agreement over south korean women who were forced to work in japan's wartime brothels fails to

meet the needs of the victims a court in myanmar has extended the detention of two reuters journalists for another two weeks authorities have charged the reporters with violating the country's official secrets act which carries a maximum sentence of fourteen years as a journalist reporting on the crisis in iraq and state where a military crackdown forced more than six hundred thousand rohingya muslims to flee the country. alone in the blue jacket hasn't seen his family in two weeks. even so as he and fellow journalist chose so-o. arrive to a courthouse scrum he protested their innocence. we're just carrying out our jobs we would never violate journalistic ethics he told the crowd. in the frenzy no amount of police or press could stop his wife.

the men are accused of breaking secrecy laws as they pursue the story of a military crackdown on range of muslims human rights groups and foreign governments have condemned their arrests observers say it's an attack on press freedoms. outside the hearing while loans wife called for him to be released who are on your own and i want my husband to be free soon and i trust him that he would never violate the rules of law he has good morals so he should be free soon. but not for another two weeks at least as the judge extended their detention cho so all had his say. we try to tell the truth. with the men being lateral rein while loans wife made one final bid to hold him.

a trial date has been set for january tenth. to the african nation of guinea now where many young people attempt the dangerous land and sea journey to europe in search of a better life those who don't make it and return home face the challenge of building their lives guinea's capital there's a project helping the reintegrate into society reporters on about hallmark and bob berry the details. it's early morning on a chicken farm near conakry. mamadou is working for a project for returned migrants. he himself tried to reach europe last year but he only made it as far as. he saw many of his friends die along the way and he was tortured by people smugglers and thrown in jail by soldiers after he was released the international organization for migration or i.o.m.

flew him back home. after i returned many people made fun of me because i didn't make it but i felt relieved i'm back home now and no one is oppressing me i'm living well in the share we have problems with the military and we were discriminated against. a total of three hundred people work for the e.u. funded project which was launched by the i.o.m. and a local ngo the most important aspect its members are made up of equal numbers of return and local residents that's to ensure there's no resentment women also play a crucial role in the reintegration of the return. not that i'm fun to to. our own children and not among the retina knees but these young people could easily be our children that's why we take care of them. soon the first chickens and eggs will be sold with three hundred participants though the first payment will probably be low

but at least earn some income. many young canadians have lost homes well paid jobs are hard to find and there aren't enough career options for many escaping to europe seems like the only way out so the local job office in the eye when have interviewed young people in conakry. they need to work. interviews helped us determine who is most likely to leave the country illegally. we then selected them for a total of twenty one projects such as the chicken and now we're supporting them. other young people will hopefully be spared the terrible experience he now lives with relatives and cannot create and is studying political science for now at least he's given up his dream of going to europe. all of my friends warned me before i left but i had to experience it for myself to believe them all i would say to my

friends now is don't even try it destroys even if you do survive either you feel so ashamed that you didn't make it or you go crazy. it's not clear whether he can really stop his friends from leaving the i.o.m. estimates that around fifteen thousand canadians are still waiting to be repatriated. russian deputy prime minister tell him what co has resigned as the head of the country's world cup organizing committee made allegations of state sponsored doping of russian athletes while he was sports minister fifo welcome the move calling it a responsible step on monday he stepped down as president of russia's football federation for a period of six months three weeks ago the international olympic committee banned what co for life for his alleged involvement in doping denies the allegations and plans to fight the ban at the court of arbitration for sport to sailing now in the australian entry wild oats eleven one the traditional sydney to hobart race

smashing the events record in the process while those was held by mark richards and crossed the finish line in hobart after completing the one thousand one hundred seventy kilometer course one day eight hours and forty eight minutes that beats the old record by over four hours but the epic contest may not be over yet with team comanche set to launch a protest against wild oats following a near collision while leaving sydney on tuesday. at the top stories we're following for you this hour aid agencies in syria have begun evacuating almost thirty critically ill people from a rebel held town east of the capital damascus evacuees include several children urgently need medical treatment the operation is the result of a deal between the syrian government and rebels. a major prisoner swap between

ukraine and pro russian rebels is underway at this hour in total three hundred eighty prisoners are being exchanged will soon be returning home. today don't forget you can always find the latest news on our web site that. dot com the business news is next with daniel wynter if you can obviously. change you know the banks. and so was the language of the.