>> hello and welcome to the france 24 newsroom. -- looms fornews russian separatists in eastern ukraine in the standoff. the country's prime minister heads to the region and we get an update from our correspondent. the united nations gives the go-ahead to send a 12,000 strong peacekeeping force to the central african republic. the country faces mounting sectarian violence. mounting ties between france and mexico.

the president of france is in mexico in a bid to relaunch relations between two -- the two countries. ♪ coming up in the program, we had to the east democratic republic of the congo where former enemies are being reconciled through farming. years of renovation, the paris zoo is finally reopening it doors to the public. the ambitious revamping hopes to a more stress-free environment. we take a closer look. it's "things in the eastern ukraine and the standoff between the government and separatists. wednesday, ever given a 48

hour ultimatum to stand down or face removal by force. that deadline is now coming to an end. for the latest, we go to our correspondent covering events for us. julia, the protesters have held a sort of meeting. you were there. what came out of it exactly? protesters are holed up in the regional government building. started byonference remembering the group of seven that died. the group,leaders of the self-proclaimed republic [indiscernible] they are demanding a local .eferendum

they say the legislation for has beenl referendum dropped at the moment, but they have not given details when this might take place. they don't want the rule of an oligarch and they say the people should have a say. also, talks between the group and the local government are underway. moment, we understand there is no consensus between the two. is demanding that the group leave the building and all that they are occupying at the moment. the protesters are saying that [indiscernible] so they have not found a consensus on this. the prime minister spoke to

thel leaders, but not protesters at the building. >> the prime minister was there a bit earlier, but all eyes are on the city and this region, had akey have -- which deadline handed down to the protesters. >> the 48 hour deadline has passed. while the original building has been occupied and under control of these people -- some call them protesters and some call them separatists. the building is actually barricaded with tires and wires to tell howfficult many people are in this building.

most of the people are wearing masks. they are not generally talking to people. ladies at the bottom of the building were actually handing out tea and sandwiches. not intending are to injure anybody. the young men outside the building say they have a surprise for this group. >> we will check back in with you as things develop. meanwhile, there are increasing concerns in europe that the ukraine crisis could lead to an energy crisis. on thursday, vladimir putin warned that the flow of russian gas to europe could be disrupted if ukraine does not pay its bill. the threat from to the u.s. to accused the kremlin of using

energy as a tool of manipulation. andhursday, barack obama, spoke chancellor merkel of further actions over russians actions in -- over russia's actions in ukraine. the u.s. secretary of state john kerry will head up the u.s. allegation and thursday. should delegation next thursday. nexte u.s. delegation thursday. force willng u.n. to the central african conflictto deal with on the ground. troops on the ground, with a strong mandate to use force if necessary.

the u.n. voted to create it peacekeeping mission, including soldiers and police officers. they will join the met -- the french troops currently deployed to the country. but the question remains how fast they will mobilize troops. >> we will generate the forces as soon as possible, so this into a full,formed regular united nations peacekeeping operation by september. be sworntra men are to in by september 15. will -- those on the ground will simply switch to a blue u.n. beret. they will deal with sectarian violence, including lynchings and sexual assault.

the head of the african michigan of the african mission will help with the state building process. >> with regard to the building of the nation, with regard to the building of the central african republic and the rest of the authority, the united nations certainly has an undeniable advantage. >> the u.n. troops will come in as replacement for the 815 chadian troops that started with drawing earlier this month after being accused of killing dozens of unarmed civilians. >> the german chancellor is in athens this friday. her brief visit comes a day after the austerity in the country successfully returned success to the bond markets. for more on the days visit, we natalie in the's greek capital.

politicians are turning the page on the country's economy. would angela merkel agree? what is her message during this visit? much tonk it is very bask in the tramp that was yesterday on the one hand, but on the other hand -- the triumph of that was yesterday on the other hand, a message to the greek people that we brought you out of this mess. it is an impressive comeback for greece in the capital markets. it is very much one of support, and of sharing real joy with her counterpart. and on the other hand, urging them to stick by these very painful austerity reforms that unemployment28% and wiped out one quarter of the economy. nonetheless, angela merkel will be here to show support and urge for more austerity. >> that message of more

austerity might not go over well. the last time which german chancellor visited in 2012 come a she was meant with violent anti-austerity protests. are we expecting a repeat of that? exploded a bomb that yesterday morning, and i think that is a pretty ominous message . although the police are massively deployed, over 6000 policemen in the city center. public assemblies have been officially put -- officially banned. they're calling on trade unions to pour out into the streets to show their hostility to the chancellor merkel. have a greek newspaper that published its front page in merkel, "why are

you destroying us?" , the protest will culminate in just a few hours at the same time as german chancellor merkel's meeting. >> thank you for that update. in northern ireland, the country is inemanded a bombing court. the member of the ira is in court, accused of killing 28 people. it is the deadliest bombing of the entire northern ireland conflict. authorities have failed in the past 16 years to successfully prosecute anyone involved in the conduct -- in the conflict, which came just 16 months after the peace accord was signed. now to the latest in the oscar pistorius trial. he took a pummeling on the witness stand on thursday.

the prosecutor called him a liar over his version of the night he shot his girlfriend. the prosecutor even laughed at a response from oscar pistorius, prompting the judge to step in. they are accusing the track star of giving contradictory evidence about the alarm system in his home. >> this is now the biggest indication of the evidence. it is impossible to do. i'm asking you, why did you make a mistake echo >> i did not make a mistake. >> you cannot make the mistake -- explain the mistake the way you do it. you have to keep explaining. wayuse really, there is no you could have misinterpreted my question. trouble and now

you are giving an explanation that is nonsensical. why are you doing that tackle -- why are you doing that? >> the french president is in mexico on a two-day visit. the countries are looking to kickstart a new diplomatic phase energy,ng agreements on aerospace, and education. jailed inman is would before she allowed to return home. the scandal is a fresh bump in the road. bedroom.s my son's he's one of my twins. he has just turned 10. >> the mother has not seen her children since christmas, 2011.

their father has helped the children in mexico, his country of origin, for more than two years. he is none other than the governor of mexico state and a relative of the president. she said her husband refused your legal right to visit the children. >> i've been fighting this battle for the best i can for the last two minutes -- the last two months. winning. chance of the man has a lot of influence and money and power. >> the money -- the mother has tried win custody in mexican law court to no avail. she speaks to her children a few times a month over the telephone. present blonde -- president visit is her only hope. >> he is my only hope.

seek toe two countries strengthen ties, both france and mexico argued the issue is for local authorities and not politicians. the pollsns go to next thursday to choose a new president. for the 800,000 voters registered right here in france, pulling starts next saturday. organizers are hoping to turn out none other than eight pulling stations into -- in the south of france. >> algeria's presidential elections are set for the 17th of april, but here in france, they begin on saturday. this polling station in paris has staff making final preparations at -- after months of work. they are giving voters every last detail on where and how they can vote. >> we tell them the means of

can get offre they the stations to make it as easy as possible. some 200ave opened voting stations around france in the hopes of attracting more voters to the ballot boxes. there are some 800,000 algerians registered to vote in france. more than half of them have dual nationality. is widely expected to win another term, despite his ailing health, which means he is unable to campaign. the opposition says he's not fit for office. >> you are watching live from paris. here are the headlines. the deadline looms for pro-russian separatist in eastern ukraine to end their standoff. they have threatened to forcefully clear the building as the prime minister visits the region. a unanimous yes from the united nations. the body gives the go-ahead to

sunday 12,000 peacekeeping force -- to send a 12,000 man peacekeeping force to the central african republic. and strengthening the ties between france and mexico, the french president is on his final visit to mexico in a bid to between theations two countries. we take a look at what is grabbing headlines around the warm -- the world. we will start off by talking, of course, about this ongoing crisis between russia, the west over ukraine. >> let's start off with this international cartoon was a beacon to president obama .ozying up and a very mixed -- muscular flexing hisin

muscles, putting a little sand in obama's face. i have also been exploring media coverage of the crisis. it is interesting to see how the western media reports on it and russian media reports on it. this is an article in the guardian by a russian. prudent -- called vladimir putin's chief robert .enatar is -- chief propaganda the west, rather than the east, is putting free speech under question. this has led him to say that the east and the west appear to be trading places. >> a very interesting opinion. let's talk about the largest elections taking place in india. >> the turnout so far has been very high.

there are a total of nine faces over six weeks. this is the third phase. >> and they are focusing on one politician. >> that is right. he is currently leading opinion surveys. he could very well be the next prime minister. this article in the guardian points out that a dozen of well respected academics have written a letter worrying about him winning. a callouse embodies and dangerous ideology that they thatve opposes the values founded india. he has beenut him, touting his bachelorhood throughout the campaign. he says because he's a bachelor, this is a sign that he will be

corruption free because he has no family to support. but check out this article. it turns out he was married. he had a short-lived marriage 45 years ago that he abandoned just after the wedding. this was an election surprise, and they wonder if it could affect the result. >> let's move onto something a little different, but not necessarily new, because the french work ethic is being in an into question article from abroad. >> that is right. lots of different articles. it started out in the guardian. very prestigious articles are talking about this. the french are saying, oh, my god. what is this about? this is a bunch of articles abroad reported this week that the employers federation and unions legally signed a labor agreement with an obligation to disconnect after 6 p.m. this is saying that french

cannot read their e-mails after 6:00 p.m. this is not a formal law and does not specify an actual time when they need to cease exchanging work e-mails. don't worry,ng, french people will still work after 6:00 p.m. work, -- talking about work, there's another article that says work is bad for your help health because it makes you fat. this is a very serious study out today. they50% of people say gained weight since they were hired. they are basically glued to their chairs and don't get exercised, and may stress eat. need another excuse not to come to work. that is not encouraging. with rio dep janeiro and its crime problem. but that has been caught on tape. this is an incredible story. there is a link to some footage.

the street to hit report about crime in rio. you will see the journalist is interviewing a woman on the street about crime and this from -- this young mother comes up and rips her necklace right off her neck on camera. you can look at the footage on that link. here you go. he runs off right behind her and down the street. casecould not be a better as she's reporting about crime. with the world cup just around the corner, there is a sense of urgency to get a handle on it. >> indeed. unfortunate there. thank you very much for that update. now from paris continues with all the latest sports action. a difficult first day at the 78th masters in other stuff.

americannot stop the bill haas from shooting a three under and he takes a first lead in the first -- takes a lead in the first round. chasing him hardest is the 2013 champion, adam scott. >> tomorrow, it's a new day. i was reading last week after the first round and then finished 37. i know very recently that there is tons of golf left. i know that i cannot expect too much. i just got to go out there and keep playing golf. i will try to get that fairway number one tomorrow. >> i certainly feel like i prepared very well for this event and i was comfortable with my game anyway. but having one last year -- year took somet

pressure off today. i kind of felt like, what is the worst that can happen? i will still be a masters champion the. tied 2-1 in italy. valencia overturned a deficit to el and overcame to beat the semis. >> to tell you, really, we were close. i have nothing to reproach the players for tonight. we could have come up with other solutions in the last few days. our last two games may be, we

might have had a bit more energy. >> we will carry on with the idea that we can rival teams ventes. it doesn't mean we are quite at the same level. we are disappointed because he could i get through. >> a superb solo victory on tour. five writers had a one minute kilometershe few remaining. naturally, the breakaway riders could not hold on and would -- and it would not take long before they were caught. the writers knew that the day's would be difficult. a two-time tour de france winner would eventually finish 10th.

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>> hello and welcome to "the health show." today, some new and old thinking is transforming health all around our planet. coming up in the program, caring for newborn babies in a hospital built entirely of the shipping