minutes live60 around the world." these are the headlines. kurdish forces are fighting to retake an iraqi town from the islamic state group. the peshmerga fighters are being backed by the u.s.-led air campaign. lockleaders are hoping to in a deal with their african counterparts at the emergency summit in malta.

that gives african money to tackle the root causes of migration, like poverty and conflict. flights grounded, hospitals down to bare boned staffs, and many schools shut today in greece. unions there call their first year, backede in a by the left-leaning government -- against austerity backed by the left-leaning government. we will take a ride in a self driving car and find out how it is planning to rival google and others in the race to bring this technology to the roads. first, our top stories. first, a major offensive against the islamic state group is now underway in iraq. kurdish forces are trying to take back the strategic sound -- town of sin jar -- of sinjar.

the kurdish regional government says 7500 of its fighters known as thehe peshmerga are now movig in. arlier today, i spoke to journalist and he told us more about the strategic significance of sinjar. onsinjar is a border town the border between iraq and syria, a major connection hub between the two important cities iraq..s. controls in taking sinjar will deprive crisis of a very fast deprived of as -- will deprive isis very important road in terms of logistical supply. it is also symbolically a very important -- symbolically very

important for the kurds and the broader fight against isis. we all remember the tragedy brought on by isis and the yazidis who were massacred. children taken by the group. some of them have been forced into slavery. an important operation, strategically, militarily, symbolically. thompson took a closer look at the situation on the ground in sinjar. here is his report. mark: a joint attack against one of the islamic state group's prized possessions. kurdish forces, aided by u.s.-led coalition airstrikes, are hoping -- attempting to retake sinjar. it sits along the supply routes.

some 7500 peshmerga fighters are from threeinjar sides to try and cut off support for the islamist fighters. around 600 islamic state group militants are thought to be ready to defend the city, which is said to be littered with landmines and improvised explosive devices. most of the former is 80 residents -- the former yazidi residents left last year. thousands were trapped for weeks on the nearby mountain. dis have been- yazis returning to the surrounding villages in recent weeks, many joining forces with peshmerga forces to help retake their city. they have been preparing for the offensive. genie: after a year of relative

calm in greece, strikes and protests are back in full force. flights are grounded, hospitals are down to bare bones staffs, and many schools are shut. this is the first general strike since prime minister alexis tsipras came to power in january. people are angry over more austerity cuts from the prime minister they thought was on their side. over the summer, greece accepted the new bailout plan that seem to from crashing out of the fromone -- that saved it crashing out of the eurozone, but the conditions that came with it have forced the government to push through with unpopular reforms. reformers are among those striking today, and they will -- greek farmers are among those striking today, and they will be particularly hit by the reforms. >> dimitri is growing impatient. >> there is terrible unemployment. the people have less and less money, so we have less income. >> son and grandson of farmers,

he was forced to reduce the production. the recent government decision to double his income tax has hit him hard. bute all own family farms, we went from representing 20% of the country's economy to only 7%. it discuss me we have to import potatoes, onions from abroad that we could produce here. >> so he decided to mobilize other farmers against this reform. >> close down the country is necessary. the taxri has said that reform could be disastrous for him. >> look at this one, that one, they were all born in my house. i cannot abandon them. i've agreed to be taxed, but not this much. i cannot, it is unfair. >> just like his neighbors,

manolis is not prepared to give up. he wants to pass of his knowledge to his heirs and in tights -- to pass on his knowledge to his heirs and intends to fight to prevent it. genie: israel's internal security forces have confirmed a saying israeli forces fired when a man tried to resist arrest. that palestinian was thought to be close to a person who carried out a knife attack in october. european and african leaders have wrapped up day two of an emergency ration summit in malta. the eu -- emergency migration summit in malta. to payhas been hoping the way for thousands of migrants to be sent back to africa. the deals are being signed on a country-by-country basis. to an agreement

that would give them one at a alien euros to -- 1.8 billion euros to help them discourage people from leaving. >> at sharp focus was african of europeanervation proposals, among them migrant processing centers in africa, where economic migrants will be sent home. one has been set up in niger. the eu is considering it's handing the prospect -- expanding the prospect. they are afraid it could become breeding grounds for extremism and other dangerous. >> it will become the de facto detention centers that will constitute a serious violation of human rights. we fear women and children will

be a great risk of falling prety -- prey to rate and human trafficking. and humane trafficking. >> it is making it easier for their citizens judging mises -- their legal citizens to obtain visas. the influx has strained resources. europe's biggest economy, germany, is expecting the arrival of up to one million asylum-seekers this year alone. >> this plan will fight illegal immigration. and it will also help people to find legal work in europe. >> the plan also lays out a 1.8 billion euro trust fund for africa, money to tackle the root causes of migration, such as poverty and conflict, but

amnesty international says europe is essentially paying for africa to take the migrants back. europeanrance 24's" affairs editor is joining us now from malta. are leaders there addressing the accusation we heard at the end of the report, that europe is paying africa to send people back? eve: i think that is appointed unity among the two sides of the table. the african nations and the european nations agree that money is part of the solution. no question. they are happy that projects on --eloping economies across will be supported. some africans are questioning the amount of the trust fund, 1.8 billion euros. they have asked member states of the european union to match that . so far, a total of 70 ilion --

78 million offered from other countries. nigerresident of ne said this was clearly not enough money. theymount is an issue, but agreement money is part of the solution. the trust fund goal is to address the root causes of migration from the continent of africa to europe, to develop more job opportunities, entice young people to stay in their native country, also to work on reintegration measures, helping people who return from europe to their home countries, helping them start a new jobs, encouraging the -- start in new jobs, encouraging them to go home. they are encouraging them to get them to certain countries, like eritrea. it will be one of the countries who benefits from the development funds coming from the european union. genie: this emergency summit

between eu and african leaders has wrapped up, but there is another summit just between the eu leaders this afternoon. tell us a bit more about that. eve: it is the sixth summit among european leaders on migration this year. they want to look at what action has been taken on decisions already made by european leaders, this relocation of the 160,000 people. so far, less than 200 people have been moved from italy and greece to other countries. also, the 3 billion set aside promised to turkey, how much money is ready to be handed over? turkey, incidentally, will be hosting the g 20 summit on sunday, bringing the richest countries from across the world together and migration is officially on the agenda there. the european union will be hoping to get the problem push

-- hoping to push to get the problem recognized as global. recent movements on the borders of sweden pennsylvania will. be a talking point. -- of sweden and slovenia will clearly be a talking point. genie: fifa has released a short list for the candidates of its presidency. michel platini is once again not on the list. he was not among the seven potential candidates named last month. he was suspended from his job at the head of european football, went to the ongoing corruption investigation -- linked to the ongoing corruption investigation. for more on this story, i am joined by the head of international content from the --tball business website from a football business

website. firsti was originally the candidate to replace blatter. does this hurt his chances? >> it's not clear at all. they took the list from six people down to five because they declared the liability -- the liberian ineligible. they did not explain why they disqualified him. that hespeculation is was not allowed to stand because of a suspension by fee for -- by fifa in 2013. if that's true, that presents a problem for platini. how could they possibly overturn the candidacy of platini? explanation of why they declared him ineligible. they are leaving the door open

for the cheney to make a himself-- four platini to make a lazarus-style comeb ack. genie: is fifa dragging this out on purpose? >> i don't know. clicking is trying -- platini is trying to attack fifa. he is trying to get people back on his side. we got a letter this morning that we published. there were 60 people around french and european football that send a letter in support of michelle -- michel platini. there are a lot of european countries trying to gather support for him and get him back into the race. genie: do you think that support will bear its fruit? >> it's going to be really tough to tell. in terms of timing, the longer

fifa drags its feet, that's bad for platini. he needs the suspension overturned by november, early december. he is suspended now until january 6. fifa has two options. either platini wins his appeal and is allowed to stand, or they could suspend him for a further 45 days if they decide the case is still pending. if that happens, that takes him a week before the election. there is no way he would be cleared in time for the election. genie: thank you for sharing your expertise, brian. this is "france 24." let's take a look at today's headlines. kurdish forces are fighting to recheck the -- to retake the islamic -- the iraq town of sinjar. the fighters are being led by a u.s.-led air campaign. leaders are locking in a

deal with their african counterparts at the emergency summit in malta, giving money to tackle root causes of migration, life poverty and conflict -- like poverty and conflict. flights grounded, hospitals down to bare bones staff, and schools shut down. unions have called for a strike against austerity backed by the left-leaning government. news now -- business news now with stephen carroll. a bad day for rolls-royce. stephen: the business making engines is where things have gone bad for the company. shares down 20% after it warmed --sharply weaker demand after it warned of sharply weaker demand. rolls-royce said it was reviewing its dividend policy. that's what sent those shares

tumbling. this is the company's fifth profit warning in less than two years. it's already cost of thousand jobs to try to get its finances in order. genie: preparing a class-action lawsuit? newspaperhe french reported that a pair's longform -- a paris law firm affected by the scandal is seeking people to join the action against the carmaker. several lawsuits have already begun over the scandal. the lawyers involved in this case are printing to make of it -- are planning to make a criminal complaint under consumer protection law. the big french carmakers have joined the likes of apple and google in developing a self driving car. they have been testing their prototype in recent weeks. >> at first glance, it looks like an ordinary car, but this is the first self driving

-citrtype from peugeot oen. >> i just need to tap the brakes or steer the wheel. it's a vehicle that reacts aggressively. it's really nice. >> the car's accelerator and other technical elements are hidden in the boot. computers receive real-time information from six sensors which analyzed the surrounding area. the car also has two radars to track potential obstacles as well as two gps devices. cameras scan roadsides and adjust speed accordingly. the ability to overtake slow drivers is a recent ability for this vehicle, but it has yet to navigate itself in city traffic. the french carmaker expects to introduce the option of self driving cars in the next two

years. >> we want to introduce the self driving car system by 2020. it's actually for when you are stuck in traffic. what we need is to prevent the system -- to perfect the system. >> france's largest carmaker has now officially joined other car companies in the race to launch a driverless car. tole and google are expected release their highly anticipated options before 2020. stephen: let's take a look at how stock markets are trading. european shares are down across the board despite cb's mario draghi saying that recovery -- ecb'sard, despite the mario draghi saying that recovery has weakened. genie: one of america's most

expensive houses is back on the market after an upgrade. stephen: it's in florida. it's on the market for $159 million. the house is modeled after the palace of versailles. meters,und 5600 square 11 bedrooms, and a cinema. it was on the market last year, but it was taken off by the owner after he decided to add two guesthouses, an ice skating rink, a bowling alley. "the wall street journal" says it has cost millions. genie: it is time now for "the press review." minot --lorence villa florence with us.

athletics being rife with doping. florence: initially, the governments of the allegations were groundless and politicized. went so farinister as to say russia was being persecuted. repercussions of these allegations could be huge for team russia. the world anti-doping agency has recommended russian athletes be banned from upcoming competitions, inc. the next years olympics -- including next year's olympics in rio. genie: there's been a lot of focus on the fourth republican debate. singers, lots of buzzworthy -- of zingers, buzzworthy statements, and

spending -- and truthbending. carly fiorina and donald trump both really stretched the truth about a meeting that supposedly took place with russian president vladimir putin. do the republican debates actually matter? since august, there have been four of them and neither of the ist leaders -- debaters leading in the polls. instead, two of the not so good performers are still way out front. to the debates actually matter -- do the debates actually matter? according to "the new yorker" it's more about -- "the new yorker," it's more about entertainment. genie: one of my favorite stories, the drinking game related to the debates.

florence: it is called gop debate bingo. they provide these little boards. we will play again later. you can see a bunch of names or policy topics. when these came up during the debate, you are supposed to check the box and take a sip of something, whether it is alcohol or water, and whoever fills in the whole line in either direction wins the game. just to read a couple of these, jesus, andge, isis, a lot of mentions of donald trump." you can use this in the next republican debate, which is scheduled for december 15. genie: is there one about donald trump's hair? let's move on to "courier international," focusing on what democracies can do to establish ties with dictatorships.

-- dangerousocracy ties, a reference to a famous book. to guaranteethis, safety and security, democracies are finding themselves seducing dictators. it's happening now and has happened in the past as well. recently, the week's meetings between european leaders and african leaders -- some of the african leaders who have been invited, leaders of eritrea, cameroon, and sudan, who critics say are led by dictators -- critics say that european leaders are ready to turn a blind eye on these shady characters to guarantee their own safety and essentially to put a stop to the migrant crisis. this kind of behavior has its limits. "courrier international" has a quote from benjamin franklin, "those who give up essential

liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." interestingly enough, these words are engraved on the statue of liberty. genie: a quick word on the environment.

>> the type of world in which our ancestors lived for hundreds of thousands of years, women would probably have 4 to 6 children in a lifetime. half those children would die before they could reproduce, so the only thing we can be sure about in human population studies is that for the last 100,000 years, people on average had 2 children to succeed them, although we were in a population explosion 1,000 years ago. >> in just the last nanosecond