>> tonight, the whereabouts of the president of sri lanka are unknown. today his brother was prevented from fleeing the country by border guards. ukraine has struck back against russia in an occupied city. in arms deppe has been destroyed. in dundas, ukraine is ready for an expected russian onslaught to take all of the donetsk region. space seen through the lens of the web telescope in orbit a

million miles from earth. images that give us the best ever view of stars millions of light-years away and perhaps clues about how our own universe was born. thank you very much for being with us. the whereabouts of the president of sri lanka are unknown. he has not been seen in public since last friday. this tuesday his brother was denied exit from the country by border guards. economic hardship has brought thousands of people onto the streets in protest against the government and a new election is scheduled this week. >> victory appears in sight for sri lankan protesters. two days after they forced the president to announce his resignation, they are still on the street and is still occupying the presidential palace. calm has returned to colombo but until he stands aside as promised on wednesday people are

staying put. >> people will not leave the president's residence or the prime minister's until the leaders officially resign. if they do not leave on wednesday the 13th, the people will storm whatever building they are hiding in now. >> on tuesday, sri lankan immigration officials said they had prevented his brother, the former finance minister, from leaving the country. a day earlier, the president was reportedly escorted to an airbase raising speculation he too would attempt to flee into exile. the president has vowed to resign to make way for a unity government to the main opposition is expected to nominate the son of an assassinated president as its candidate to become the next head of state. >> the people mandate of the

president, prime minister and the government is over. they got together and destroyed our beautiful motherland. >> we in the opposition are ready to lead and stabilize the country, to rebuild the country's economy. >> through law because parliament is to elect a new president on the 20th of july. >> this tuesday, ukraine says it has carried out a successful long-range rocket strike against russian forces in the south of the country. territory which he have says it is planning to -- which key have says it is planning to retake tiered accordingo ukraine, the strike hit a town killing some 52 russians. it came after washington supplied ukraine with mobile you tilt -- mobile artillery systems which key have says it's forces are using with greater

precision. >> it is one of the biggest explosions of ammunition depot in t region. it is onof the last of a series of ammunition depot explosions over more than 10 ammunition depot the past few weeks. thanks to as you said this high mobile system from the u.s.. currently there are eight operational according to ukrainian forces. eight operational on the ground. four are supposed to arrive soon and if eight are that much of a game changer when it comes to hitting and ammunition depot, they can only imagine what four more can do. that is why ukraine keeps demanding that kind of system because for ukraine, it could definitely change the war.

>> ukraine prepared for another russian onslaught in the donbass region with luhansk under russia's control. the focus is the section of the region which is still in ukrainian hands. the sources on the ukrainian side are warning pressure they will meet with resistance. >> fighting has relented allowing residents to leave their homes and collect food aid parcels but despite these few days of calm, they have no illusions. war will soon return to their city. >> always growing and developing. it was a living city but this is a pointless war. what good is it doing? i guess putin has just gone crazy. >> bore the war, it had a population of 150 thousand. 75% has now fled. experts say it will be the next

russianarget inheir slow donbass region.he eastern in one trench along the border, warned of a renewed offense not far off ukrainian soldiers are lying in wait. >> either way we will win but at what cost? the more arms we received, the less they wi attack. they're having problems wit ammunitions depots and they are shooting much less. >> elsewhere in war-torn ukraine, russia continues its incessant shelling. here for instance, early morning russian showing wounded 12 and struck two medical facilities according to local authorities. esther day brought the ukrainian announcement of a counter attack in the hope reclaiming a region from russian occupation. losing no time in the night, the cleaning army struck a russian munitions depot in the strategic southern region. russian sources say seven were killed and 60 injured. >> we are watching for all

developments on the situation in ukraine next on trial over his alleged role in the rwanda genocide, a former prefect told a paris court he is innocent but this evening he has been found guilty. will -- wheeled into the final case, he is accused of taking part in the mass slaughter that left at least 800,000 people dead. he is the most senior figure to face justice over the events that shock the world in 1994 and this tuesday evening, the paris court has returned a guilty verdict and he has been sentenced to 20 years in prison. >> a last chance to claim his end is inside of the courtroom before the jury retires to consider its verdict. a former rwandan prefect has been on trial since early may. he is the most senior figure yet to be tried in paris for allegedly participating in the genocide. speaking to the court, he insisted he had never been on the side of the killers.

he said he wanted to address survivors of the genocide to tell them he had never intended to abandon them. maybe it was a lack of courage. maybe he could have saved them heat told the court. adding those questions had haunted him for the last 28 years. but prosecution lawyers accuse him of complicity in massacre of tutsis in southern rwanda. at least 800,000 people were killed in 1984 between april and july. the majority of them tutsis. many of those thought to be behind the massacres took refuge on french soil. it has taken years of campaigning by activist to bring those accused of orchestrate in the killings to court. >> found guilty, sentenced to 20 years in prison for his role hit in the rwanda genocide. eight contenders have received the required backing to stand for the leadership of the u.k.

conservative party. the eight -- the timescale has been set for early september. september the fifth we understand when the new prime minister will be selected this is not an election. it is not a public vote. it is the conservatives replacing their leader. the party holds a clear majority in the parliament from the december 2019 general election. one of these eight politicians will be the next uk prime minister. let's take a look at the campaign of the former chancellor who resigned as boris johnson's finance minister last week in protest at his leadership. >> a pledge of honesty after a roller coaster ride of sleaze and scandal. former chancellor of the exchequer told the crowd of cheering conservative lawmakers it was time from charity and credibility as he launched his

bid to replace porcha johnson as prime minister. >> we need to have a grown-up conversation about the central policy question that all candidates have to answer in the selection. my message to the party and the country is simple. i have a plan to steer our economy through these headwinds. >> most of the remaining 10 candidates to take up residency at downing street want to lower taxes at he said if he is chosen, he would not do so until after he had tackled inflation, one of the key issues facing u.k. voters. >> it is not credible so promised lots more spending and lower taxes. once we have grouped inflation, i will get the tax burden down to it is a question of when, not if. >> the former finance minister has the widest support among his colleagues include deputy prime minister dominic raab. >> only he can be labor.

only he can win with the support of leave voters and remain voters. only he can win in the north and the south. he has got the economic leadership. he has got the values to bring us all together. >> candidates need 20 nominations from their colleagues to make a first-round round vote on wednesday. the field will be whittled down to two for a final vote. outgoing pm prime minister -- outgoing pm boris johnson is due to stay on in september but the opposition labour party once devoted -- once to force a vote of no-confidence to remove him earlier. >> a chosen to stand to replace johnson. we are watching for development from london. now to japan where a final goodbye was said to former prime minister shinzo abe. his funeral was held at a temple days after his assassination shocked the nation could the country's longest serving prime minister remained influential even after stepping down two years ago for health reasons.

he was gunned down on friday during a campaign speech in the western city of nutter. >> admirers came out in force to bid a final farewell to japan's longest-serving leader as his hearse made its way through tokyo. the motorcade passed in front of the headquarters of the party he led for two terms. then on to the prime ministerial residence, his home for eight years. the current occupant paying his last respects. and one last stop, parliament where rows upon rows of legislators stood by to see off the former premier. the funeral itself was a private affair held earlier in a buddhist temple but supporters cued in their hundreds to labor k's outside. -- to lay bouquets outside. >> this is really quite unfortunate. >> i came to thank him.

that is the only feeling i have. >> so abe was shot with a homemade firearm on friday during a campaign speech. a speech in support of his ldp and elections he has that his party has gone on to win. the suspect was immediately arrested. he has admitted to the shooting and explain his actions as anger at the unification church, a sect sometimes dubbed a call to. he believed shinzo abe had ties to this group. a group to which he said his mother made large donations in which he blames for his family's financial ruin. >> the assassination and the funeral of japan's former prime minister, shinzo abe. the most powerful space telescope ever is realing parts of the universe we could only previously dream about. bill and a partnership between nasa, the european space agency and the canadian space agency, the james webb space telescope was launched on christmas day

2021. it reached its destination nearly a million miles of earth a month later pit this telescope is expected to revolutionize astronomy by allowing scientists to peer further than before and with greater clarity into the cosmos. to the dawn of the known universe. catherine has this. >> it is being taught -- being called a new era of astronomy as nasa unveils a fresh wave of images from the james webb space telescope. >> we are ready to see james webb's first image of a star dying, a planetary nebula called the southern ring. wow. >> scientists are hoping to gain a deeper understanding of nebulas, of how stars are born but also how they die. this stunning vista of the cosmic cliffs of the karina nebula reveals new details about

this vast estella nursery. we see examples of bubbles and cavities and jets being blown out by these newborn stars. we even see some galaxies lurking in the background appear. >>cientists are auld by the powerful telescopes clarity which is due to its use of the infrared light spectrum. >> we are seeing these galaxies in a way we have never been able to see before. there is a sharpness and clarity we have never had. there are galaxies here in which you are seeing individual clusters of stars forming, popping up like popcorn. >> the telescope is positioned one and a half million kilomete from earth and is meant to capture a wide range of images from the cosmos for the next 20 years. as scientists seek to gain greater understanding of how the universe formed, they are also hoping to find habitable planets beyond our solar system and extraterrestrial life.

>> kathryn with that report. stay with us here at france 24. ♪ ♪ >> she is known as the queen of kapok. singer, songwriter and fashion icon has been pushing boundaries in a male-dominated industry for over a decade. as a part of 21 and now as a solo artist. >> watch my interview on france 24.

>> smashing stereotypes of the soft-spoken asian woman, she has gathered legions of fans worldwide peered after departing with one of the biggest using labels in the industry, she has launched her own company taking full control of her image and her music. i had a chat with her on her latest trip to paris. >> thank you so much for speaking to france 24. congratulations on your first solo studio album. how is the experience working on your own project from a-to-z? >> this is a very special project not only because it is my first solo album but it was a completely independent project for the first time because i was in kapop system.

>> did you find any difficulties running your own project? >> creative process always has ups and downs but i am proud of it and i am proud it came out and i am able to share it with the world. >> it is an eclectic mix of genres. you mix pop with r&b, hip up, some track beats, a lot of electro sounds. who and what inspired you for this particular album? >> i feel that kpop itself is a mix of a lot of genres and this is a very lpkpop album. ♪

>> you just released a music video and that was shot on a ranch in the u.s. there is this great scene where you play a korean card game. how important is it for you to a reference or diverse cultural background? >> it has always been important and when i released a first english single and when i went out touring globally for the first time, i think that is when i realized i want to embrace it more and introduce it to the world. it has always been a part of my purpose and i love and enjoy a melting korean culture, asian culture in my project because that is who i am. it was funny to do chuck at a ranch in california because i feel like that is exactly what i am or where i am right now and when i am there.el sometimes

so yeah, it was capturing that moment and just --yeah >> when i first heard the name of the name of the album, i'd made me think of alpha female. it is in your music. it is in your style paired was it ever hired as a woman to impose your own aesthetic or make your own life choices? >> i think elf is a character in channel and you know, i sometimes when i don't feel that way i wake up and embrace that character and i have been doing that my whole life and i wanted to share how to do that and make other women or anyone feel that way when they listen to the music. ♪

>> who are the alpha females in your life? >> my mother and every woman around me i feel like our healthful women and my fans are too. >> your music is not just always about being fierce peer there are softer sides like there is that sweet love song five-star. why do you vary so many genres and how do you make sure it weaves together on one elbow? >> i think we think if it is alpha or alpha female, you think of that one layer but it is all the love, softer side, everything collected that makes an alpha woman so that is why you have songs like five-star or my way. i think it is all that layer that makes you strong and

beautiful so that is why those songs are there. ♪ >> you are of course the leader of 21. arguably the biggest female kpop group in history. this summer you had that massive surprise for your fans at coachella. first time being altogether in seven years on stage. how was it? >> it felt amazing because i feel like we disbanded not in our true choices but it felt good to be back together with

our own will and power and it felt like nothing changed on stage and throughout the process with them. i feel like it is something i definitely wanted to do. it is like a checklist, life checklist which happened so i'm very happy about. >> it kicked off the festival season. and you just performed in seoul, in france as well so many more on your schedule. what is it like being back on stage as aerformer sce the pandemic? >> i call myself a performer because i started with dancing so it feels great to be back on stage and to connect with my fans and a new crowd and to feel that energy in person. >> what was the crowd like? >> it was amazing shared a lot

of energy and it was my first time there. it is so beautiful when they are singing along with me or dancing with me and it was pouring rain but embracing that moment was amazing. it was so much fun. >> terrible weather but you had a good time to >> i think that makes it better sometimes. >> fulfill's to mood. we are of course in the fashion capital of the world. you are here for the shows and balenciaga. do you ever find inspiration for your music from fashion? >> always peered i think fashion has always inspired me in life. ever since i was young and it is a way to express yourself and it makes me dream and create so i was -- i am very inspired. >> created by an italian

designer based in paris. the creative director is american. similar story for balenciaga. it is really about creativity without borders. do you feel that way about your music? >> always. now more than ever, i think there are no boundaries and to embrace that and because they feel like when i was younger and i first started music, there was not a genre called kpop and look at where we are at now. breaking those boundaries are one of my purpose so it is exciting this is happening all around culture. i think it is beautiful. >> you have a deep connection with france. very briefly as a child with your parents. we speak a little bit of french. what does it mean for you? >> it is like a cherry on top. because i feel like it is not an

everyday thing for me or my life but it is -- it has played a big part of my life. >> thank you so much. >> thank you so much. >> thank you for speaking with france 24. ♪ ♪

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07/12/22 07/12/22 democracy now! is looking for feedback from people who appreciate the closed captioning. e-mail your comments to outreach@democracynow.org or mail them to democracy now! p.o. box 693 new york, new york 10013. [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from new york, this is democracy now! >> the people will not leave the presidents house. the president's office. the prime ministers official residence until leaders announced the resignation. if they do not leave, what will happen? people will cide to storm wherever they are hiding now. amy: thousands of p