>> first, serious says it will allow what it calls innocent civilians to leave the besieged says ithoms -- syria will allow what it calls innocent civilians. it follows a deal between damascus and the united nations, which also cleared the way for the delivery of aid. here is what the u.s. ambassador to the united nations had to say about the deal earlier.

>> i know regime statements this morning describing the willingness to evacuate ts, given that the regime up to this point has describe just about anybody living in opposition territory as a terrorist and has attacked them as such, you know, we have reason on the basis of history to be very skeptical and, frankly, very concerned about anybody who falls into regime hands who comes from a part of the country that has been under opposition control. 's" she foreign editor is here with me. there have been lots of questions about how exactly the plan will be enacted on the ground. they are talking about innocent civilians, so who will decide who is innocent and who is not? the idea of families being split up, and of course, where these people will go. >> part of the reason, when we talk about the logistics, is that the united nations prefers to keep it that way it self.

it does not want to reveal exactly how it is planning to do this or what route it will take and so on and so forth, if those have even been agreed yet with the governor of homs, who has been the main party talking about how this happened. other aspects that are not entirely clear, as you say, this refers to innocent civilians being allowed to leave homs. no mention of men. specifically women, children, and the elderly. clearon, they made it that if men were leaving, they should be on a list with names , andddresses provided there's no reference to men in this, and that suggests they are not being allowed out. what this does suggest to me is that they will be seriously vetted by the syrian authorities, who will themselves

will provide those civilians humanitarian assistance. we suggest they're going to keep tight control over these things. as for the humanitarian aid that goes in, the united nations as everything is ready to go on has been ready to go for a very long time. the food, the medicines, etc., stored in warehouses nearby, trucks available to take it in, people's there to take the food and assistance in. >> the regime has been dead against any kind if you manage terry and eight getting in. in geneva, they refused point-blank to let it happen. why have they changed her mind on that? >> it's not quite as simple as that. in geneva, they appeared at times of being on the brink of and do it, go ahead and there were points at which they appear to be about to say yes, only at which to put in a technical obstacle.

behind the scenes, the russians were getting irritated by the way the regime was acting on the question of humanitarian aid, thatner releases, things the russians themselves had given their support to, and it may very well be that since the last negotiations a couple of weeks back, the russians have again been putting pressure on, bearing in mind that another round of talks is meant to start again next week. certainly today, the spokesperson for the russian institute said that the russians on civilianssing to cooperate constructively in these areas. >> all right, well, thanks very much. and iraq, security forces aren't illegally detaining thousands of women and subjecting them to torture and abuse according to human rights watch, which is women are often being held for months or years without charges. crimesstions over allegedly committed by their

male relatives. this comes amid another day of violence in the capital with killingpping through, at least five people. outcry in turkey now after parliament approved new legislation that would tighten government control of the internet. it grants the telecommunications authority the power to block and remove internet sites without getting a court ruling in advance. critics say the government is trying to undermine freedom of speech. >> protecting privacy or state censorship -- a law to tighten internet control is dominating headlines in turkey. for some turks, it's a clear violation of their freedom. >> turkey is becoming a more oppressive country. the liberty of the turkish people is being limited. >> it's a direct intervention in people's rights to obtain intervention. >> it's not only against the

constitutional court but also the european convention of human rights and all international conventions. parliament has approved legislation allowing the telecommunications authority to block and remove internet content it deems a violation of privacy without first seeking approval from a judge. the government rejects accusations of censorship while critics say it is trying to extend its already tight grip on the internet. sites like twitter and facebook were widely used to organize last year's antigovernment mass protest. the measure also comes in the midst of a corruption scandal, the primeseen minister's allies investigated for bribery. recordings of wiretapped phone calls allegedly between the prime minister and businessmen have been leaked onto the internet. the european commission has raised concerns, calling the legislation restricted. >> it's exactly a year since

tunisia's opposition politician was gunned down outside his home in the capital. his assassination led to mass antigovernment protests and months of political turmoil. -- earlier, i asked if authorities considered the case to be closed. >> on tuesday at the press conference when they announce the killing, they never referred to him as the presumed killer, but only as the killer, as if it was already a proven fact. that combined with the timing of , and itation itself

does seem to indicate that they see it really as a step forward towards pursuing those behind that crime and not as a potential loss of information tom a which could have been attained if he had been able to be interrogated by investigators . this is something we've been fine being critical of the government about. she says she's not looking for revenge or retribution but for proof. she is working with a team of investigators, but at a press conference today, they pointed out what they said were a number of irregularities in the .nvestigation they are calling for an international team to pick up the investigation because they inply do not have a government investigators' neutrality and transparency. >> the killing was a

,articularly shocking event however, today, we can say that the country has come quite a long way. of course, there was a new constipation -- constitution in place, and violence was going down. >> you mentioned that instability really only came to conclusion a few weeks ago with the naming of the caretaker prime minister, and the finishing of the constitution. it was really a clear sign that the polarization in any case between islamists and secularists had eased quite a bit, in particular, when you think of the scene on the floor of the constituent assembly where we saw the islamist embracing and congratulating each other for what they had there is at's true, greater feeling of optimism over all. tunisians are looking forward to elections at the end of the

year. all of that said, we cannot say that the instability has not taken its toll. over the course of the last few months, several ratings agencies have downgraded tunisia's sovereign that dating. tourism, as well, is yet to get back to its re-revolution levels, particularly in large markets like france, who has not been sending as many tourists to tunisia. it's hard not to see a connection with the instability. right now, tunisians are just hoping that this new political calm will lead to some economic growth that will start to make a change in their day-to-day lives. >> france has destroyed three tons of confiscated ivory as it to send a message that it will not tolerate elephant and rhino poaching. the ivory trade was banned worldwide in 1990, but more recently, laws have been relaxed to allow some limited sales. now environmental groups want other countries to all of the french example.

>> this warehouse in paris is an elephant graveyard. each item is all that remains of a victim of the bloody ivory trade. french authorities have seized 17 times over the last 25 years. part, the ivory goinging from africa been towards asia. france is particular because we have a very strong policy against ivory trafficking. the regulations treat ivory trafficking the same as drug trafficking. >> france will no longer be stockpiling the ivory it confiscates. the change in policy is to make cannot maketraband its way back onto the market. >> we have decided to strengthen all our trafficking fines, also to systematically destroy our ivory stocks, to show traffickers that we will not ease up on them. >> environmental lobby groups

have raised the action and are urging other eu countries to follow suit. the population of african inphants has have -- halved the last 30 years. 22,000 were killed illegally in 2012. hugecred to feed the demand for ivory in asia. >> at least eight people have drowned trying to swim from a beach in morocco to the spanish enclave. hundreds of people tried to make the perilous journey in an attempt to get around the six-meter land barriers. migrants came from sub-saharan africa. most of them were picked up by the moroccan coast art. for more, i'm joined by our same correspondent. the spanish territories are in the ee you, and this is precisely why migrants are trying to get there. >> that's absolutely right.

it's caused conflict in syria and the poverty in some countries mean i getting through to what is spanish territory -- mean that getting through to what is spanish territory is seen as a better life, but what more often happens is that people will be kept in detention where the authorities try to identify them and send them back to their home country, but if they cannot do that, in some cases, they do send them to the spanish mainland, and that many ofourse, what these migrants want. today, we know that the debt went up to nine people drown. of course, and desperate to -- anderate for solutions, really, people are continuing to do it as long as the possibility of a better life seems to be there. >> what are the spanish authorities doing to try to dissuade people from making this

journey. >> the spanish authorities are working very closely with the more rock and police authorities to make sure that those borders are police. for many years, there have been high sensors in recent months. what has happened is there has been extra razor wire put on top of those fences, and that has meant that some migrants trying fences haveover the been slashed and badly injured and left hanging on some of those fences in many cases. human rights groups have said that that is unacceptable, but the authorities say they have to whilee those barriers there are many people still trying to get through. >> thanks very much. the other destination for african migrants trying to make it to europe is the italian island of lampedusa, and today, in just 24 hours, the italian navy rescued more than 1000 people that were found in

vessels around 120 miles south east of lampedusa. among them, 47 women, or of them pregnant, and if the children -- 50 children. serbia has agreed to let civilians leave the besieged it willhoms and says allow aid convoys and. united nations has welcomed the agreement. and eight people drowned as hundreds of african migrants attempt to swim from morocco to the spanish enclave of spain just as italian authorities rescued more than 1000 people off the coast of lampedusa. those are our top stories this hour. let's bring you up-to-date with the businesses now. marcus, the european central bank will not be putting rates

up anytime soon, it seems. >> well, we don't know. maybe next month, but at least not this month in february because the european central bank says it's keeping it benchmark interest rate steady at .25%. it is resisting calls to bring rates down further to stimulate the euro zone economy. and a monthly press conference, the ecb chief said that the euro zone economy remains weak, but he played down fears that the eurozone is heading for deflation or falling consumer prices. he said, though, that the central bank would be ready to act if needed. let's listen in. >> as i've said many times, we have got to be extremely cautious with this recovery because it is still fragile and uneven. it really starts from low levels isactivity, but so far, it proceeding. >> mario draghi saying he is ready to act if need you there

and frankfurt earlier. we are going to move on now. car sector is attracting attention this thursday, and dime live is among the companies in the spotlight. they are revving up, saying they expect a rise in both sales and profits this year. the forecast came estimate cities maker reports today fourth-quarter operating profit of 2.5 alien euros, which is 45% the october to december quarter back in 2012. itsedes has fallen behind rivals, but it aims to increase sales. in the u.s., general motors fell short of expectation when it announced fourth-quarter earnings. million tom and 2% more than in the same time in 2012, but analysts were hoping for more. gm is doing well in north america in particular but is way down by weakness in the europe and south america.

sales have fallen men losses have been mounting, and the carmaker is trying to lure customers back to showrooms with a new lineup of cars. >> touting it as revolutionary, the company unveiled a c4 cactus in paris. the car brand is attempting to reposition itself as simplifying the bells and whistles on board. instrument controls are not spread out on the dashboard. instead, everything is screen.ed to a touch click simplicity is what is guiding us because we have a car that is easy on petrol but at the same time has value, which is a position that counts most with the client. >> the cactus has been billed as light weight and more fuel-efficient. using aluminum and other lightweight materials, the designers of the car were able

to shave 200 kilograms off its weight. the car has innovated features like air bumps on its sides designed to protect the body from light scratches and dents, and with a price tag of less than 15,000 euros, the company is hoping to cater to customers interested in savings. >> when we have less money available to buy a vehicle, we buy cheaper. we tried to be smart and how we buy. >> the move comes after the success of their arrival. the brand has grown to represent over 40% of sales. although they refute the low-cost tag, the company appears to be steering away from high-end technology. >> unfortunately, we don't have a lot of time yet -- left, but i can tell you the stock markets are having a pretty good day. the dow and s&p 500 are on track for their best day of the year so far. traders are looking ahead to friday's all-important jobless

report. we are seeing twitter shares down more than 22% this hour on the back of a pretty lackluster quarterly report. let's also talk you through europe. in europe earlier, we saw stock markets closing in positive territory as well with real .ains the euro was also's team to be trading higher as the ecb refrain from cutting interest rates. to hand iti'm going back to you, laura. >> thanks very much indeed. out what's gotnd people clicking and sharing and tweeting and liking over the past 24 hours. it's time for our daily dose of web news. >> hello and welcome to today's went news where we will be looking at some of the stories making the online headlines.

coming up, cartoonists campaign for the release of a jailed tunisian. ngo's alarmed by the humanitarian situation in south and a video of a french man's seven-month trip around the world. artists from a number of countries have come together to launch their online campaign. a tunisian man sentenced to seven point five years in prison for sharing cartoons of the prophet mohammed on facebook. dozens of artists have drawn pictures depicting the issues behind his imprisonment and calling for his immediate release. users are encouraged to share the pictures on social networks. the artists feel he should have been pardoned. the campaign comes ahead of the promulgation of the new constitution february 7, which will be attended by a number of

or in officials, but as the instigators of the online campaign say, the spending text is supposed to guarantee freedom of expression. and this is not the only online .nitiative several ngo's including amnesty international are regularly campaigning for his freedom. strong mobilization of the tunisian authorities have yet to give up the ruling. the red cross has reported that the humanitarian situation in south sudan has deteriorated further and is trying to draw attention to the plight of hundreds of thousands of residents affected by the crisis, which began around two months ago. the united nations estimates that 860,000 people have been displaced by fighting between government troops and rebels in

many are sorely lacking drinking water. humanitarian organizations are doing what they can to help. a statement on the oxfam website says it has helped 110,000 people in south sudan by giving them access to clean water. they have set up a water treatment system, for example, providing close to 210 meters of drinking water per day. the unhcr points out $20 will provide to families with cans to while $70clean water pays for separate kitchen sets for poor families to enable them to cook for themselves. ngo's in south sudan say the lack of medical supplies and access to treatment is also a major problem. some organizations have been trying to tackle the outbreak of measles and polio. unicef, for example, sent over

two lanes carrying 70 tons of supplies in order to vaccinate some of the estimated 300,000 children displaced by the conflict. facebook was launched in the u.s. on february 4, 2004, and in honor of the social networks 10 but they, it has produced an info graphic looking at its phenomenal success. facebook now has over 1,000,000,002 hundred thousand users across the globe compared to just 1,002,004. the average revenue generated by one facebook employee is 1,000,200 thousand dollars, a massive sum, which means facebook's overall global turnover stands at close to $8 .illion web users from her and they have been posting sharing their hope and expectations for the future as the country celebrates the 23rd anniversary of the chancellor of national unity. the movement was sponsored by

the team at this blog and has caught the attention of countless citizens who want their country to be prosperous, for example, or to have a successful education system, or to never hear the words, "where again.ndi?" ever few pen objects, a strokes, and an abundance of imagination -- this is all one brazilian artist needs to bring all manner of characters and animals to life. this project is called faces and shows how very basic items like matches or lettuce leaves can feed one's creativity. you can check out the entire collection on the artist's facebook page. the seven-month trip around the world summed up in four minutes. this video was posted online by

a french globetrotter, and you can watch it in its entirety on youtube.

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democracynow.org 02/06/14 02/06/14 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] >> from pacifica, this is democracy now! we begin with a fox news alert, there's a bombshell report that finds obamacare will be much worse for the economy improves the predicted. >> obamacare is a job killer. that was the message across the media this week after the release of a new congressional budget office report. but what does the report really say? we will speak with politico's