welcome back to "live from paris." our top stories this hour. democracy will be stronger than .arbarity france well along how to stamp out terrorism and protects france's social model in an hour-long speech that analysts say is the biggest hint yet he will stand again for the presidency. the man once dubbed europe's most wanted makes his second appearance in court, but paris attack suspect salah abdeslam refuses to answer judges' questions about how his terror cell carried out the bloodshed and how the islamic state group operates. leaderbon's opposition

jean ping takes his claim of presidential election fraud to the country's highest court. incumbent leader ali bongo won the vote by a hair's breadth, but international observers have long been calling for a recount. ♪ not let the image or influence of france deteriorate -- those are the words of france along today -- francois hollande today, offering the clearest hint he will run again for the presidency. the mosta speech, unpopular french leader in modern times said that despite fear and agony and suffering, france will be victorious in its fight against terrorism, adding

there is nothing within the country's principles of secularism that opposes the practice of islam, provided it respect the law. catherine clifford has more. catherine: going to the french roots of secularism, the french president reminded that the state guarantees every citizen the right to believe, or not believe, and practice religion as long as they do not disrupt public order. thesident hollande: principles of secularism laid can theyntury ago, still be relevant now that islam is the second religion in france? my answer is yes, absolutely. the huge majority of our muslim coast citizens prove this everyday, practicing their religion without disturbing public order in the slightest and showing their attachment to french values after these attacks that have shaken our country. catherine: hollande also said

secularism is "not a state religion against other religions," this after politicians across the french medical spectrum used the principal asked an argument swimwearhe burkini, favored by certain muslim women as a means to cover up on the beach. many politicians have described it as a provocation in the wake of attacks by extremist islamists. alluding to this, hollande firmly stated they would be no legislation to back local bands against the burkini as long as he is in charge. president hollande: our existing laws must be applied. i don't want to let fundamentalists pressure us into testing the limits of our country's values, and i will not provide them with the pretext of muslims being stigmatized. catherine: hollande describes the recently formed a secular body, the foundation for islam in france, as a key tool in fighting against intolerance and extremism, a battle which he

underlined is not a religious one, but a french one. thomas: earlier, are political editor had this to say about hollande's veiled message that he could be seeking office once again. mark: officially, it was a presidential speech. but in effect, it was also may be the first speech of france while holland -- francois hollande's candidacy. he has repeatedly said he will make an announcement at the end of the year, but clearly, in addition to talking about grand ideas about democracy, terrorism, secularism, this was a very political speech. he repeatedly attacked the far right, but also the conservative party, saying they were only concerned about their own primary taking place in a few weeks to designate the presidential candidate, and that they were maybe going to attempt to curtail civil liberties, cut

down social benefits, and so on. so in a way, he was saying, i'm the person who will guarantee france will remain a cohesive country, that there will be no more divisions. i will save the welfare state. so in effect, essentially indicated he was ready to fight for reelection, and that was the message that he wanted to put across. not so much any announcement, but just to give the french the idea that, despite abysmal polls, he was ready to throw his hat into the ring. thomas: that was our political editor speaking a short while ago. also in the speech was a reference to terror plots foiled on french soil in recent days. four people remain in custody after police found a car filled with six gas cylinders just a stone's throw from paris's notre dame cathedral. two suspects aged 20 were

detained. the two women are said to be the daughters of the peugeot's owner, still being tracked down by authorities. both were described as being radicalized. it is still not yet known o what the intentions were of those arrested. the only surviving assailant from last november's attacks in paris was back in court. it was salah abdeslam's second hearing in france, but despite repeated questions from judges the 26-year-old refused again to make any comment. his lawyers claim abdeslam's silence is linked to his frustration at having 24 hour surveillance cameras in his prison cell. alexander: leaving his prison cell at dawn in a convoy of flashing lights, the only surviving suspect from the november 13th carries a tax was transported to court for his second hearing. salah abdeslam was heard at

paris's central courthouse by antiterrorism judges. but as in his first hearing, the 26-year-old refused to talk. tohe exercised his right remain silent during the questioning, which lasted an hour and a half. for the third time, he chose to remain silent when questioned. we don't have a great deal more to tell you, apart then to say that the magistrate will carry on with the investigation, chooses toeslam speak or not. at the time, he wishes not to speak. alexander: it is believed that the night of the assault, the belgian born suspect dropped off three suspects at the stade de france and left the car. an unused suicide belt was found, but it is unclear whether he backed out of an attack or if the belt malfunctioned. would give hise version of events before the trial, but that is months away.

investigators are keen to see what role abdeslam may have had in the brussels bombing and the extent of terrorist cells in europe, but those questions remain unanswered. thomas: opposition leader jean ping and his party have filed a request for a recount amid a request -- claims of electoral fraud. results from last week showed incumbent leader ali bongo beat ping by fewer than 6000 votes. some ping supporters took to the streets in protest, torching the parliament and clashing with police, leaving at least six people dead. meanwhile, african union mediators have delayed until further notice their mission to the country that was set to begin this friday. earlier i spoke to our international affairs editor, with the latest from the international court in gabon. >> i have had confirmation from

a source close to jean ping that his lawyers have lodged an appeal against the election results. we have also learned from the source that the opposition is asking for international supervision of the work of the constitutional court from now on as this process goes forward. and that request reflects a deep distrust among the position of their constitutional court, because of course the opposition believes this court is not objective, that its presiding judge is a staunch ally of president ali bongo, and that this court protected him, clearly, back in 2009 when he was hit by a controversy about his birth certificate and his eligibility. in terms of what happens now, nine judges have two weeks to examine these complaints. at the end of that period, they could either declare the results

to be definitive, or order a recount. thomas: and what can we make of this statement issued a few hours ago from the african union, that its mediators are delaying their mission to gabon? >> we heard a little more about this from the foreign minister of gabon. he told a press conference that there was no need for this mission now. he said, and i quote, "there is no danger here, no explosive security situation." i supposed some might take issue with this idea that there is no danger, given that violence erupted a week ago when the election result was first announced, and that 1000 people or more were arrested at that time. one can only speculate as to whether the impending arrival of the african union mission was perceived as some kind of threat to ali bongo, and whether his people thought that perhaps this mission would force him to make concessions to jean ping. we don't know.

that is just speculation. campin any case, the ping said it had no problem with this planned african union intervention, and that was confirmed to us by the same source that was close to jean ping, so clearly it was the issuecamp witch had an with this planned intervention by the african union. thomas: to other world news now. as close temperatures to 1.5 million muslims have landed in saudi arabia for the annual haj pilgrimage which begins this saturday. many have artie entered mecca's grand mosque complex to walk around the sacred black cube that muslims around the world face when they pray. security has been shored up, with new measures to avoid overcrowding. close to 2300 people died in a stampede during the haj stoning ritual last year, the majority

of them iranian nationals. for the first time in almost 30 years, iranians will not join this year's pilgrimage after talks between tehran and riyadh on security. for more, we can speak to a professor in international relations at john hopkins -- johns hopkins university. thanks for being with us on france before. first of all, on the eve of the pilgrimage, saudi arabia's top religious authority said iranian leaders are not muslims. how has that been received in tehran? >> i am sure it has been received very poorly in tehran. of course, this insult by the grand mufti of saudi arabia is really an answer to comments by week, sayinglast saudi arabia was not able to maintain, to organize the pilgrimage, and that those

rights should be taken away from saudi arabia. it is a very tense situation, in the insults keep flying back and forth -- and the insults keep flying back and forth. i'm not sure this will be resolved in the near future. thomas: why is the haj pilgrimage such a source of difficulty? , ultimately we can boil down the problems of syria and yemen and so on to who is in charge of the holy sites. he firstmenei, when came back and overthrew the shah , the supreme leader today, it is an effort by the iranians to going back to being the leaders of the holy sites, and they are really trying to discourage, to tell the saudis that they are n ot capable of handling two m

illion pilgrims every year. it as part of the political game of who is top dog, and in this case the iranians would like to be at and the saudis have been it for 80 years, 90 years now and want to remain that way. thomas: is it fair to say, given --t both sides are using the is it fair to say that both sides are using the haj to stir up old tensions? >> definitely. but if you are talking in the iterest of the country's, think it is the other way around. the economic interests are used to stoke up ideological differences, and the ideological difference is extremely profound. the saudis know that they have the absolute truth, but so do the iranians, at least the present leadership. there is no negotiation on that. on the economic issue, i think there could be some arrangement,

but i'm not sure it would help. it would limit the tension, but not really resolved it. thomas: will be see any reconciliation before next year's events? >> i would say so, because i think if we keep going down this path, we are going towards war, and i think everybody is going to be afraid of that. nobody can afford a war. whatever it is that they feel in terms of ideology. it is a game of chicken, who is going to blink first is really the key here. is saudis are pushing their luck in syria, in yemen, and so are the iranians, and somebody will have to give up, or somebody will have to say to be more realistic. the minister of oil in saudi arabia is talking about negotiating with the iranians, and vice versa, so there might be some very small light at the end of the tunnel, an arrangement on the economic

issues, the oil issues soon in algeria. but the tension is so big on the ideology, especially at this time of the haj, i am not optimistic. thomas: from the johns hopkins university in the united states. thank you very much for that insight. moving on, president erdogan says he will push on with turkey's military operation in syria, with the aim of securing his country's borders. operation euphrates against kurdish militants and the islamic state group is now two weeks old and has already seen the city of jean ping recaptured from islamists. on wednesday 290 syrians returned to their homes, but food and power shortages have prolonged their suffering. reporter: on entering the gates --jarablus, a sign of the

past, a sign welcoming the islamic state. but they have fled the town and the first wave of civilian resettlement has begun. hundreds are heading back to their homes after seeking temporary refuge in neighboring turkish towns. >>. thank god, people are returning. the situation is good. but we are suffering from a shortage of services. the main problem is water, bread, and electricity. these are the things we need the most. 'eporter: as the residents lives resume, they take stock of the turmoil they endured. the islamic state group was in control for three years, but a collaboration between syrian rebels and the turkish army took just hours, using tanks and airstrikes to liberate the city on august 24th. took us it -- turkish officials say the border with syria is now completely secured. >> after jarablus was liberated,

we moved our military base out of the city to the front lines. local security is working to save people's belongings and secure public places. reporter: hallmarks of the islamic state group's rule still haunt the streets of jarablus, but its people are no longer living in fear. thomas: a row between rival fatah and hamas over candidate lists has led a palestinian court to suspend me missable elections slated for october 8th, the first since 2006 to involve both parties. it is still not clear when they might be rescheduled. with more, here is catherine clifford. catherine: it was to be the first democratic vote in the palestinian territories in a decade, but a court ruled that elections planned for friday cannot go ahead, at least for now.

>> there was a decision to freeze the process, but that doesn't mean it is the end of the process itself. the court will continue, and come up with further findings when they have the second hearing. catherine: the court will discuss the issue again on september 21st, but legal experts say that their decision is unlikely to be overturned. it comes after submissions were brought by islamist leaders hamas against fatah's list, revealing divisions between the palestinian authority and hamas, which has controlled the west bank since 2007. local authorities are angry and frustrated by the last-minute cancellation. >> it was our only hope for a better country. this will make the division stronger. i hope that the authority will revise the decision. >> it is a violation of

citizens' writes. it is breaking national unity and democratic laws, which are supposed to rule our society. catherine: it had been seen as a proxy vote on the popularity of president abbas and his fatah party versus hamas. opinion poll say the antern-backed abbas is unpopular leader, but there has been no move toward new presidential elections. thomas: 9:20 p.m. in paris, and these are the latest world headlines for those of you just joining us. democracy will be stronger than barbarity. llande those to stamp out terrorism and protect the social model in an hour-long speech that analysts say is the biggest hand he will stand again for presidency. the man who was once europe's most wanted makes his second appearance in court, but the paris attack suspect salah

abdeslam refused to answer a judge's question on how his terror cell carried out the bloodshed and how the islamic state group operates. gabon's opposition leader jean ping takes his claim of presidential election fraud to the country's highest court. incumbent leader ali bongo won th, vote by a hair's bread but international observers have long been calling for a vote recount. it is time once again for the business news. you are starting out with apple. the latest iphone, the iphone 7, has been unveiled, but it's not getting quite the reception it was hoping for. reporter: apple's stock has been sliding, down more than 2.5% today following the big review of the iphone seven. it is the company's main earner, but sales have been falling in

2016. there were some innovations in the new model, but experts are not quite certain it will be enough to create a fresh sales boom. >> making the world fall back in love with the iphone. that is the ambitious target set by apple's ceo, tim cook. >> we are so excited about iphone 7. it makes all the things you do every day so much better. >> the new phone features a faster processor, longer battery life, and high resolution cameras. it is also water and dust-resistant. but more notable is what it lacks, a headphone jack, an absence causing some grumbling on social media. apple has overcome customer skepticism in the past, but this latest release comes at a time when the company's biggest moneymaker has become its greatest worry. at the start of 2016, iphone sales saw their first year on year decline since the product's

launch in 2007. apple is facing increasing competition from lower cost rivals. the company hopes to reignite sales by convincing loyal fans to upgrade. >> worldwide, the smartphone market is definitely slowing down. and companies like apple are facing tough year over year challenges because people are holding onto phones longer. >> so far, markets are not sharing apple's enthusiasm for the new iphone. the company's shares have dropped more than 2% since the product's launch. >> the european central bank announced today it will keep its interest rate at zero for another month. the european central bank president mario draghi said he had not considered extending the bank's 80 billion euro a month bond buying scheme passed marched the 17. he warned the economy would be more time to recover. let's take a listen. we draghi: looking ahead,

continue to expect the economic recovery to proceed at a moderate but steady pace. however, the economic recovery in the euro area is expected to be dampened by still-subdued foreign demand, partly related to the uncertainties following and the referendum, necessary balance sheet adjustments in a number of sectors and the sluggish pace of implementation of structural reforms. reporter: that news from the european central bank immediately has been felt in the markets. many analysts hoped for signals the bond buying program would continue. u.s. stocks traded lower, despite a surge in oil prices after reports showed u.s. crude inventories tumbled by the most since 1999 just last week. wti crude up more than 5%. in europe, we can also feel the effects of the ecb announcement. dax and the cac 40 are trading

down. ftse 100 closing higher after big news that software firm micro focus is buying the software arm of hewlett-packard for $8.8 billion. that stock ended the day up 14.5%. some more business headlines. twitter's chief executive jack dorsey is being given more time to turn things around at the social media company. sources told cnbc his management will not be questioned when the board meets today. the company will be discussing whether to put itself up for sale, though. there are no bids on the table right now. twitter down 6% just a short while ago. bankrupt south korean shipping n is seeking a way to rescue $14 billion of cargo stranded in international waters. there are 90 ships owned by the company out at sea, almost two thirds of its fleet. many of the goods on board are destined to be sold during the

holiday season. samsung has about $30 million of goods on hanjin ships. the parent company is considering a loan offer from the south korean government to make sure that goods reach their destination. the developer of pokemon go, niantic, will launch a wristband accessory for playing the game next week, which will connect to players' phones by bluetooth and will vibrate when the user is near a pokemon or a pokestop. the augmented reality game is now the most popular mobile game in history. u.s. vice president joe biden called on congress to schedule an up or down vote on fighting the zika virus, calling it a national emergency. pressure is building from her presented is in florida, so far the only state where the virus has been transmitted. that is good news for bioengineering corporations, like one that has created

genetically engineered mosquitoes that can eliminate the carriers of the disease. they are not the only companies benefiting. > the virus has spread rapidly since it was first

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09/08/16 09/08/16 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from pacifica, this is democracy now! pres. obama: for people of laos, the war did not end when the bombs stopped falling. 80 million cluster munitions did not explode. they were spread across farmlands, jungles, villages, rivers. , theye last four decades lived under the shadow o of war. amy: as president t obama becoms the first u.s. president to visit lalaos, we look at the legacy of the s.