>> hello. welcome back to the "france 24 newsroom. the opposition in ukraine lays its latest amounts on the table today and parliament. it wants the unconditional release of jailed protesters and cuts and the president's powers. a landmark trial here in france, a former rwandan army captain is in court, linked to the massacre of 800,000 people in rwanda 20 years ago. and it is a very happy birthday for the company that turned friend into a verb. facebook is now 10 years old.

on this world up cancer day, we will look at the worsening state of the disease around the world. and there is growing evidence that abuse of alcohol and sugar could be partly to blame. and the amazing story of a man who reportedly survived teen months adrift at sea. birds and ate raw drink turtle blood to survive. is his story true? 13 monthsived addressed. let's go to ukraine where a source goes to the president says he could call early elections to resolve the ongoing crisis there. that report comes from his party representative in parliament. the opposition is said to present its latest commands to the ukrainian parliament today,

including the release of jailed for testers. our reporter spoke to the relatives of some of the demonstrators still being held. >> on the night of january 22, her husband did not come home. the whole family had participated in the motorized protests outside the homes of ukrainian officials. alexander was one of the leaders of the group. he was with some 17 other members that evening. she found her husband in custody the following afternoon. they may then take off their coats even though it was -12. they kept him like that for nearly two hours. they ordered why husband do chant glory. >> alexander is now in pretrial detention. he is one of more than 100 prisoners that could be released of a new amnesty bill is negotiated this week. >> the authorities behaved like a sort of pirate organization that takes hostages in order to cut deals.

even the clearest proof of innocence will not influence the courts. the younger one says that daddy is a bad house because of bad man took him away. they miss him. they're waiting for him. they got a letter ending the father is a hero. >> it is not fair to say she is placing all her hope in the amnesty law, however. >> they might release him and they take him again the next day which would be worse. i was happy to find my has-been and the police station and not in the woods. people like my has-been are safer behind bars than free. >> the ukrainian government intimidation tactics are making opponents not so much afraid to resist but afraid to let it stay in office. >> russia says thierry could be rid of all its chemical weapons by the end of this month. -- russia says syria could be rid of all its chemical weapons. they brokered a deal to dispose of the chemical stockpile in syria, but the process has

already fallen behind schedule. i sprayed the u.s. asked the russian foreign minister to put pressure on syria to pick up the pace. begin today on the radio, the french foreign minister said just 5% of syria's chemical weapons have left the country despite the fact that the deadline for the entire removal was three days ago. meanwhile on the ground in syria, moderate and militant rebel groups are turning on each other while the regime army remains organized. it is gradually gaining ground and on the offensive. shows strength and eight damascus suburb. --porters of president assad the pictures are shown over and over on syrian state television. is protecting us, freeing us from terrorists. >> the national army is regaining ground three years up to the country's crisis began. the air force bombarded aleppo over the weekend.

tanks thought to take control in the east of the city where rebel fighters a been in control since july 2012. >> bishara al-assad's army is one of the most powerful in the middle east. it has dozens of conflict with israel behind us. we have drawn by experience. >> the syrian army is under the erect control of a thought in the defense ministry. in -- is under the direct the defensessad and ministry. the russians supply damascus with weapons and equipment. >> there are thousands of tanks, plenty of fertility -- artillery, and gunships. the equipment is there and in working order. the're putting supplies on official or black market for spare parts, so the hardware is there. and the troops, two, and the motivation. >> syrian men are joining the army. they currently have 200,000

troops. leading commanders have defected in the past. the number of desertions remains limited. iran'sport from revolutionary guard and lebanese hezbollah fighters, supporting to work with them since the 1980's. >> negotiators representing the pakistani government and the taliban are due to meet for preliminary peace talks today. there is much skepticism over their chances for success though. the taliban has been waging a violent insurgency in the region for the past seven years with a particularly violent month of january that left over 100 dead. and the opposition in thailand has officially demanded the annulment of last weekend's vote, saying it was not free and fair. the opposition lawyer has also the rulingsband party. the prime minister called that snap election sunday to try to calm the massive protests

against her, but other demonstrations at polling stations prevented thousands from going to the poll. this move comes as the u.s. warned against any move to stage a military coup. those are the most outspoken remarks from any major ally. and landmarke, trial is underway for the first time ever. francis putting a suspected perpetrator of the rwandan genocide on trial. france has long been accused of providing weapons and military s before to the hutu that genocide of 1994. today paris is still criticized for providing safe haven for suspected perpetrators of the genocide. france has refused to extradite any suspect to rwanda so far. so this first trial of a former intelligence chief is seen by many as a major turning point. for the past 14 years, one couple have given every spare minute to reading, researching, and trying to track down perpetrators of the genocide.

here is more from the courthouse today. is a historic trial, both for rwanda and for humanity. because this is a crime against humanity. it has taken way too long. the genocide took place on most 20 years ago. some of the lawsuits were filed as early as 1995, and those people have still not gone to trial. i hope this trial will be the first of a very long series of trials. >> our reporter is at the courthouse in paris. it has been 20 years since this genocide happened. why has it taken france so long to take legal action? trialeed, the very first of its kind here in france as the first case that was filed against the suspect at the rwanda genocide here in france was back in 1995. in 1996, it would enable them to

put forward such a trial, but almost 20 years on that and we're only seeing this event come to light today. france was even find by the human rights court in 2004 for its tardiness on one case. one can only look at the relations france have had with rwanda since the genocide. france was present in rwanda before the event of 1994, supporting the hutu president of the time and his troops. france has been accused of training and arming the hutu militias that took part in the genocide in the early 1990's. at one point accused the current president ever on wanda -- of rwanda on the attack him the president that sparked the genocide. since about 2009, we have seen a tolling of relations between these two entries. the outcome of this trial will play a big part on how they move

on from here. >> the trial opened today. what happened there in court? >> well, a historic trial. first one in paris. the loyal's desk the lawyers of pascal simbikangwa are calling for it to be canceled. they say it is a very unfair trial and they do not have the same access to resources as the civil plaintiffs. they do not have the access to witnesses or even to travel to rwanda. they say it is not a mark of weakness but a simple fact, and they want to put that fact to the court this afternoon. so far in the trial, they pretty much, matter of fact, first day of the trial, we have picked the jury. wascally the jury that chosen was given a history lesson of the rwanda and the power play between the minority tutsis and majority hutus. to the genocide

-- genocide of 1994. >> thank you for covering that historic trial in france on the genocide in rwanda. also in france, the socialist government has decided to delay its plan for a new family law for this year, at least. it has attracted massive opposition. the streets of paris were flooded again this sunday with crowds of conservative protesters angry about changes they see as an attack on traditional family values. here is explanation. hollande quit -- and chanted on sunday. because of the plans for a new family law. were angry at gay marriage legislation last year. it seems they have got the government this time to backtrack. we are delaying the bill because it is not ready. about the protests

have created an atmosphere of fear which is unfounded. it is worrying and problematic. >> the delay and apparent victory for the protesters has of set the left, the green, are not pleased. the government is saying the protesters are right, that their idea of families the right one when it does not necessarily reflect what families alike today. >> there are fears among conservatives in france at the bill may move towards legalizing surrogacy or medically-assisted reproduction for same-sex couples. but they say that is not the case. the u-turn boosts the opposition. >> one image you get of the government shows they are incapable of leading, being in charge or making a decision. theave never seen this in

french republic. >> the protest movement has the wind in it's sails and has vowed to maintain pressure on the government. >> a very happy birthday for the company that turned france into a verb. facebook is now 10 years old. charlotte has more on the low key and the latest celebrations for the internet giant. >> over the last 10 years, it has become a must for internet users. one point 23 billion active users spend an average of eight hours per month on facebook. >> i like that everybody uses it so i always know where to find friends. like that post about my daughter , get in touch with my family. its launch,on from facebook is currently worth over 100 $50 billion and its shares at a record high last week. it is still the most liked social network, but it is facing fierce competition. the number of teenagers using the site dropped by 25% in the

last three years. >> teens do seem to prefer instagram, snapchat, and other networks to facebook. teens are on facebook but are not as engaged and enthusiastic as they are about other networks. that is an ongoing challenge for them. >> so far, facebook has proved resilient. in 2012, shares were hit by fears facebook was not making enough moaning -- money for mobile usage which now accounts for 73% of its daily usage. but rising to the challenge, facebook announced last week that 55% of its revenue now comes from advertising on mobiles, and it is growing. for now, facebook remains one of the world's most profitable tech companies. last year it made $1.5 billion. >> it will either be an amazing story of survival or just a tall sea tale. a fisherman has been found alive in the pacific one year after he

disappeared from a mexican fishing village. he says he's spent all that time at sea only surviving by drinking the blood of sea birds and turtles. that not everyone is convinced that is the truth. >> it was supposed to be a one-day shark fishing expedition which allegedly turn into an incredible 13 months alone at sea. from el salvador claims he set off in late 2012 from the mexican fishing village where he lived. a storm blew his boat off course and it went adrift in the pacific. he says he survived by catching fish, birds, and turtles with his bare hands. over a year after being lost, he was found in the marshall islands, thousands of kilometers from his starting point. island,approached the the boat was caught up in waves. sea so i wouldhe

not be knocked out. the waves were coming from every direction. i swam and i crawled when i got onto the beach. i could not stand up. the president -- residents of his mexican town confirmed his boat went missing around the time he said. when he set off, he was accompanied by a teenage fischer who come according to him, died soon after the boat went edge left. many of his colleagues went out to search and to look for him. he left with another fisherman, but now we have heard that only he has reappeared. littlethe tale may be a too incredible. authorities have doubts about the claims, and he does not appear and missy aided and has no obvious injuries. doctors are expected to perform thorough examinations for his story to be confirmed. it would be by far the longest ever survival at sea. nations the united

security council has just wrapped up a fact-finding as part of ali broader effort to assess the situation in the african nation one year after the french sent in troops to drive out islamist insurgents. the u.n. ambassador -- u.s. ambassador to the u.n. was here in paris today, and she'd sat down with our international affairs editor. tell us more about your talks today. >> espoo to samantha powers, the recently appointed ambassador -- i spoke to samantha powers but she is a former journalist and billetsvery influential are prize-winning book blasting the west for its failure to act on genocide. she is with this u.n. delegation with molly and met with the president. a two-way warning to the country government to conclude talks with the rebels or face a big and present growing security threat. i began by asking her about that mission to mali. maddow map as header, you just got back from mali, on a fact-finding mission -- madam

ambassador. the french president francois frenche has ascribed the intervention there as a success. from the tweets you send from there, it seemed that mali has its work cut out and that reconciliation is far from over. >> two things, one, the people overwhelmingly grateful to the people of france and the french president for the leadership france showed. you think back a year and a half ago or 14, 15 months ago, the place was living under a ring of terror. two thirds of the country ,verrun by extremist, militants began amputations in the works. france intervened and stopped that. that is something the people of mali will remember for a long time. you're right that mali is at a crossroads now. it has come off a wave of about a year of consistent progress, ,anquishing the bad guys

holding presidential elections and electing the president who has made a commitment to fighting corruption and impunity, pushing a government agenda. at they have slipped behind little bit on the negotiations with the armed groups as was called for in the accord. >> the french cannot do it alone in mali and have made it clear they do not want to do it alone good basis -- they expect report. will the u.s. step up with logistical or other forms of help in mali? >> we are already providing intelligence, reconnaissance, surveillance appeared we're doing air refueling for french flights and so forth. we are training and equipping some of the country being countries deploying as part of the u.n. force. i think we all recognize that as the french redistribute their malince, drying down from and reallocating, we want to strengthen the operation and the

support that we offer, whether in terms of intelligence-sharing, which is so important as we think about dealing with terrorism in that of whatevern terms the french might need to move their forces around. we are looking at a host of things we might do to support. >> the geneva peace talks on syria are in an interim time right now. critics say they were over before they even started. they did not even managed to get humanitarian aid convoys through to the besieged town of homs. you are a very influential voice on the security council. be a resolution to force that aid through to the refugees in need? >> i think geneva showed actually how credible and .apable the opposition is of course, you know, we are working with them as the french government to try to spur their efforts to come together to represent all of the people of

syria. i think you saw the regime and the regime is exposed, not that it needed to be exposed after three years of slaughter, but the obstructionist actor that they are, obstructionist on the transitional governing body and also on something as basic as sending food parcels to children and women living in besieged areas. we're looking at a host of options now. i think in new york, for how we can step up the pressure on the regimes. clearly, sitting down at the called upon by the united states, by russia, by all of the countries that were gathered is not enough to cause them to list their barbaric sieges on these towns. >> you have pointed the finger of blame squarely at the russians for obstructing efforts to force bashar assad to step down. do you see the security council under these circumstances as

being dysfunctional and what sort of a forum would you like to see? >> we saw it work on chemical weapons. that shows it can be made to work where russia brings the will to bear, the will to put pressure on the assad regime. it has tremendous leverage over it. and the will to put the force of international law behind it. one of the reasons the people of syria are so frustrated as they say -- how come you can get a resolution out of the security council on chemical weapons but you cannot do that to feed innocent people who did nothing more than basically come out and say they want human rights? that frustration is completely understandable. but we are drawing and have been seeking to draw on the chemical weapons precedent to push russia to use the leverage it has with the regime. >> have you seen any shift in the attitude of the russian ambassador to the united nations, presumably you meet with them quite frequently, do you see any signs perhaps they are changing their stance? >> i think that the ambassador

is interested in new york in finding out where a spigot can be opened. you know, i think he operates, let's say, in good faith to sort of fact find and understand where russia can use its influence. but i think we will know when russia has put the full weight of the relationship behind it when we see these sieges lifted. >> you are a passionate human rights defender. you have been very outspoken on the issue of an aside. you wrote a will is a prize-winning book on the west's repeated failures to stop genocide. when we look at the central african republic, some people say it is a genocide waiting to happen. what do you propose to do about that? >> hats off to president hollande for sending french troops in there when the threat of genocide looms. you know, this is not

necessarily a politically popular mission for him to have undertaken, but he did with the welfare of the central africans in mind. and the french forces are doing a tremendous job on the ground in coordination with the african forces. we have got to get more african forces in there. the european union has stepped up with a commitment of 500 or 600 troops. deploying them quickly will be very important. and figuring out what we do next, whether it is a you and peacekeeping mission, you know, the central african state has basically vanished. it is not sustainable for the international community to be the finger in the dike. we have to work together, and through the united nations from the civilian side, the political mission, to build out the state again. supporting theon african troops on the ground at this time. >> that is the u.s. ambassador to the u.s. there, interviewed by our international affairs editor earlier today. a lot of interesting stuff in

that interview. let's focus on mali. she seemed to be very clear, the u.s. will help but it will not be sending troops anytime soon. >> yes, no earth shattering revelation in that spirit we have known that the u.s. has not been in a mindset recently about -- following its other middle eastern war advances or misadventures to get bogged down another conflict. troops on the ground are out of the question for the u.s. we have seen that even with the libya campaign with moammar gadhafi. mostly the u.s. has been focusing its efforts on recon, intelligence, air refueling, and surveillance, helping out on the more technical intel capacity. no boots on the ground. in a sense, you get the sense of the united states -- it is very happy to come i will not say take a backseat, but it is a leading from behind, as barack obama once phrased it. to let the french -- it is art at the french domain. you imagine in washington that

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