twenty one year old us a doula started smoking heroin at university six months later he dropped out and does what he can to support his habit. he is one of the million addicts in this country the world's largest producer of opium. as i said my life rizzo's their own drug i know it's killing me but i can't stop anti drug measures of diminished output but a hit only costs two dollars providing an escape for addicts ranging from refugees returning from iran who fled the country's civil war to military veterans to teenagers with little to look forward to. the united nations says it's another threat to afghanistan's long term economic growth and security it's what we call the coca-cola effect i mean people always talk about the demand creating supply but people forget that supply demand and that's exactly happening in afghanistan i mean if you think about the health issues you think i mean activity is often starting

among injecting drug use it has as well to do what you security i mean security forces and the high levels of addiction the security forces means that yes you will corrupt your security system so all those elements together means that there's a heavy burden for this country and with the limited resources available it's one more of what they should not have within this country. local city that external and threaten them and the police do nothing more than chase them away or throw them in jail for a day or two then they come right back today there are an estimated sixty thousand heroin addicts in the afghan capital and that number is rising fast many of them say they want help but the government can do little for them in the handful of rehabilitation clinics that existed just a few hundred beds to offer. the u.n. funding to judge sensors the largest and best equipped facility in the capital but that's not saying much it can only handle about sixty patients at a time. to enter addicks must submit to

a two months detoxification but the center's director dr y. doula has shown this is a lack of post treatment prospects ensure that over half of the patients fall off the wagon. and we just. told them of the relapse is a huge problem there's not much we can offer these people once they leave here. as a doula got ten days treatment before running away to get high again. the international community is focusing on combating the flow of drugs leaving afghanistan but within its borders a battle just as important is being fought with addiction a major hurdle in the country's hope for future stability. in kabul for r.t. . russia's top anti-drug enforcer says if nato wants to stop the flow of opium from afghanistan it must target the drug lords at the top of the chain. because i mean you know. the size of the plantations hasn't changed this year they still cover one hundred twenty three thousand so the number of families involved in because of

ation has increased. and for these peasants the truth provides the most basic living simply struggling for survival and all the talk about the need to create economic incentives for them to simply put. they work as slaves for the families of the people we need. and what we're proposing. from the. international law and most national legal system. used for criminal purposes should be confiscated. christmas day thirty one years ago marked the outbreak of the decades long war in afghanistan and if you made a military tribute. discusses how a political standoff between cold war rivals spilled over into decades of conflict . takes several hours to get to. russia and as you can see. it's far from tourist areas and far from reality we'll look

at what's the idea of gambling in russia. but first a series of anti soviet cartoons have appeared in georgia newspapers the latest move in a campaign launched by president saakashvili a number of soviet monuments have already been dismantled across the country and schoolchildren have been obliged to watch a documentary likening the u.s.s.r. to nazi germany but. many georgians are nostalgic about their soviet past despite government attempts to wipe out their history. the destruction is savior at monuments a law banning savior symbols and now an anticipated documentary and a series of car teens in local newspapers part of an and he said it campaign currently being led by the government that both the timing and methods of implementation have led many to question its real. then you say it's

not just anti soviet propaganda but anti russian those conducting this campaign are trying to put russia on a par with the soviet union. it's been two decades since julian independence and just two years since children attacked so that's yet provoking an armed conflict with russia and history of tense relations and these recent events i thought likely to have a bearing on what's now happening. in a local newspaper the general bearing is kicked in. with the from this white. part of the anti favor campaign. being anti russian and of encouraging the public to live by the bigger picture. that many georgians particularly the older generation hold positive memories of saving the time. and saying what is a police officer in the save the union and jules harsh comparisons between the

situation then and today we are to be no more and order was much better in a small retirement today in the soviet union we had professional unions protecting our rights today we have nobody to take care much for being poisoned with the ideology of the current authorities. for people like angrily the destruction of monuments dedicated to save his soldiers many of whom were themselves in this particularly inflammatory they had to sit by and watch the memories of the past of a cheese to rubble. why do you think they dismantled these monitors we want us to forget our history but we should never forget. the national government is named for its provoked his stance towards russia. the controversial campaign take me up perhaps a step too far. that the history must be finest and true to the fact not one sided all nations united and soviet union are equally guilty for. problems.

but using comic books to facilitate this is appropriate i think. the strong emphasis on the negative aspects of. the present. not everyone. is happy we think of action. you can always find more on this and all the stories we're covering on our website here's a quick look at what's on. the right now. russia's president sums up the year's events in a t.v. interview what he had to say about his personal priorities corruption spy's freedom of speech and. that if you want to get a little mary with something more sophisticated than eggnog this christmas our. holiday.

as christmas arrives a lot of us media appears to be focused on whether or not the christian side of the holiday is being deliberately ignored many americans say the so-called war on christmas issue is simply a distraction to divert public attention away from more serious problems. investigates. tis the season to be divided i am just so enraged by these all these atheist displays in trying to push jesus to the back seat on christmas day but people like head humanist roy spec hard say they aren't trying to push jesus anywhere when they see these ads it does give them pause that it gives them a chance to think about the issues and the issues are plenty to wars record high unemployment and a budget crisis approaching apparently the real good or well that one atheist group

is putting a new spin on the war on christmas if you listen to the media this is the truth word of trying to to take a shot at christmas they don't have any guts if they did so and so they go after the muslims. and does they he's referring to is the quote unquote other america the folks who want religion out of public life. to a real growth and on the opposite side of humanity now with all the political correctness here in the united states like the fact that you can't call it a christmas tree anymore you have to call a holiday tree you can't say merry christmas you have to say happy holidays some groups are taking action like this religious group here god and america's leaders dot com this is the web site they created you can log on and take a question what about choice quiz about which founding father or politician said it which religious quote but with all that outrage and all the back and forth much of the quote unquote rest of america thinks things probable are politics right now we're focusing all these moral and religious issues instead of focusing on the

actual things like the economy and the wars and these like badasses distractions but for those americans who want religion any time any place anywhere it isn't just a distraction there definitely has been a war on christmas for a long time and brian fisher is part of the countless conservative christian organizations that are formed to send this kind of message the single most inclusive thing that you can do this time of year is wish people a merry christmas please think it's appropriate. to ask them to leave knowledge that jesus christ is the reason for the season and the division is particularly evident in the most powerful of places case in point democrats were pushing to work overtime even after christmas and republicans like senator john kyl and jim de mint were pretty much calling the proposal blasphemous causing this kind of reaction we need to rethink it does everybody call groups. may choose the good news rethinking and perhaps considering that the real battle is

much more serious. the. it's one that goes on all year around. this for r t d and the soft fixed. being bought from russia more than a century ago is perhaps another thing that many americans are unaware of this christmas yet the place itself is alive with a lot of memories of its previous settlers as we reveal in a special report coming up later. it's the secret incursion into the country. it's the invasion by means of. tradition the language is really. this the best compete. in culture. the thing is. the have the dozens are still unaware of what's going on in their

minds still asking what. it's like. i don't know do you but alas the great. introduced two years ago russia's gambling ban has been widely declared a failure the isolated locations of the four official gambling zones have meant that they failed to live up to expectations now authorities are looking at shifting casinos closer to tourist areas to combat thriving illegal businesses or he's dennis' polaski reports. stacks of cash and roofs of one armed bandits federal security service agents breed and illegal casino and most to eighteen months ago gambling law meant casinos in russia could only exist in four specials looms but it failed then the show idea to build gambling zones far away from residential areas just didn't work it takes several hours to get from the nearest airport to the casino in southern russia and as you can see the zone still doesn't

look like gamblers paradise. the distance according to regional authorities almost killed the whole idea. of transportation is the key factor initially today we have a steady flow of gamblers coming to this casino enough to make the project worthwhile but that's not the zone's full capacity plus months russian president medvedev approved a war relocating the only functioning gambling zone in the russian south now this will be closer to tourist destinations which travel to the city of the black sea coast which according to locals may very well become the new and hopefully more successful version of the russian vegas. in the winter time the place looks a bit depressing but i'm not as deputy mayor is certain that his city does have a potential for developing gambling industry. in the village obligations with its one thousand hectares of vacant land is just five minutes away from the airport there is also a railway line and

a highway passing around the bar resort hosting the gambling project there's a good opportunity to make a mouth accessible the year around these fields have been prepared for large scale construction by a peninsula with yellow sand beaches that attract thousands of the future golden sands gambling zone will also include a russian style theme park hotels shopping malls and restaurants authorities admit however that the news those will be war lists just like the old one unless the illegal casinos disappear and this may require more legislative work to stop because he knows from operating where they shouldn't be pushed the hammer was to push the point that you have come up with a proposal to introduce stricter punishment was the organizers of the underground gambling then this is what so far almost one hundred percent of these individuals have been able to avoid serious punishment like a few sly disguising their businesses as lottery clubs or internet cafes although there is still no deadline and the golden sands project is an especially stay just the region are optimistic they are certain that it may take less than three years

to. will this new gamblers their dogs on the black sea coast but with the huge and powerful underground gambling industry it's still unclear but that the news will be the right that for russia this is the wealthy are to cross the region this christmas marks thirty one years since the beginning of the soviet campaign in afghanistan the country was gripped by a civil war at the time soviet intervention came as a shock to the u.s. and the subsequent campaign change the life of the country for decades to come archie's military contributor you have any khrushchev who fought in afghanistan looks back at how it all started. the list expected guests of the christmas parties since nineteen seventy nine while this summer it spits not who commands the most successful special forces operation. back on christmas night nineteen seventeen ironically it was not only

a smashing success for the joint. task force it was a tactical success for their opposite numbers back in langley christmas party was celebrated as the beginning of the new era of entrapping this soviet union in afghanistan as a way to revenge for the united states failure in vietnam and as the beginning of this so-called war otherwise known as the anti soviet jihad and their proxy war against the soviet union in afghanistan conducted by the united states and their allies it's really symbolic that there wilson's war the war part one and part two the current u.s. counterinsurgency both those stages of personalized by robert gates who used to be of the cia coordinator of the anti-c. . again history and in this century presides over the pentagon infuse new

capacity merry christmas to you all who have been involved one way or another into the tragedy of afghanistan and its people. still to come this hour here on r t a way to escape the apocalypse. at the outside of moscow. st paul an invention has been laid which will save you money at the end of the world. called the do they cop to. our team needs a russian engineer who offers an unusual means of salvation from the end of the world some believe maybe not. turning out as some other stories making headlines across the globe at least forty one people have been killed seventy injured in a suicide blast in north west pakistan near the afghan border the explosion went off outside the u.n. world food program office in the town of car where locals were waiting for supplies

to be distributed the suicide bomber reportedly female from the two hand grenades into the crowd and then detonated an explosive belt he incident comes as the pakistan army announced it had killed forty militants in the neighboring region. in germany five trains have been halted mid track due to harsh weather after power lines froze leaving hundreds of passengers in cold carriages for hours police reported that ice and fog had caused almost two thousand road accidents with a fifty one car pile up in the central part of the country heavy snow continues causing havoc at airports across europe shortages of anti-freeze have grounded flights at france's biggest and busiest international hub hundreds of passengers have been forced to celebrate christmas in airport terminals due to severe delays and cancellations. the ivory coast opposition leader has called on the country's army to protect civilians against foreign mercenaries mercenaries and militias although our last sunday otara has been recognized as the

winner of last month's disputed presidential election incumbent laurent gbagbo leave the queues and to step down west african leaders threaten to use a legitimate force to remove babo with the region central bank cutting off his access to funds on hundred seventy three people have died in post-election violence in the country. in his christmas address pope benedict has called for an end to end wars and urgent israelis and palestinians to resolve their conflict ahead of the catholic church also targeted beijing accusing it of meddling in the affairs of his church called for peace in somalia dar floor and the ivory coast and offered the prayers for those hit by natural disasters in latin america the pope delivers to such addresses the pope delivers a threat such address as twice a year christmas and easter. and as the world is celebrating christmas some are more concerned with what they call impending armageddon one man who learned of the threat from ancient texts has taken it upon himself to guarantee the

survival of humanity failing that his invention can always be turned into an eighty thousand dollars sauna or takes a look. the ancient mayan calendar predicts that on twenty first of december twenty twelve the world will and. suffer cataclysmic events floods in the earthquakes that will wipe out almost everyone but some are getting ready to survive the apocalypse a few kilometers outside of moscow on an abandoned battery farm an invention has been made which will save humanity when the end of the world does not i behold the doomsday capsule a military engineer by training you gain your big says he's a genius and that the large trajan collider controls the world whether you admit that many loft when he showed us his proposal for the right capsule one year ago now he's built it he says people are taking him seriously yeah we can seek it's got

four layers of insulation you can float roll down here and learn upside down without being damaged. of course we can't be destroyed by trimmers. all make mistakes this is where the show will be and the air purification systems you can house people for forty days eighty thousand dollars b.k. has recruited a band of neighbors have already booked their places in the capsule but i was i'm scared of twenty two out we have to be ready. yeah there's a going to die out we will survive. and of the end of the world doesn't come into years you get in he says his capsules can be used as saunders or industrial fridges and recommends that the government orders several thousand immediately either there are no. more scary. stay with us here in our tayshaun us up next with the business updating from all of us here on r.t.

and a very merry christmas. great for the full stop we've got to. the biggest issues get a human voice face to face with the news makers. would be soon which brightened if you knew the song from stu christian. stance on t.v. don't. blow welcome to the business program i'm sure on a qian this year's christmas shopping has shown that russians are not yet spending

as much as they did before the crisis however russia has one of the longest winter holiday periods in the world a lot of retailers and restaurants to make fortunes during that period tatiana ploy a call reports. monday a russian start celebrating christmas with the rest of the world but it's a fifth of december. then move into the new year's fisted it is and then of course celebrates their own russian orthodox christmas on the seventh of january the ellipse will weeks holidays make for expanding holiday shopping in russia will booth retail sales by forty two percent this december which is ten percent higher than the same period last year clothing purchases and food retail will grow over fifty percent this month whereas toys sales will increase a whopping one hundred sixty three percent but russian shoppers are no longer as

impulsive as they used to be before the crisis. this year every version will spend an average around three hundred eighty five euros on holiday shopping which is just five euros more than in the prices year of two thousand and nine. but this is still twenty percent lower than for example german spend on presents and festive dinners additionally russians will still be on holiday for more than a week after the new year while most european countries return to full time work analysts say such long holidays are merely a luxury when considering that the russians do do people are capital is still very poor this drunken week as some call it cost the economy about one percent of g.d.p. annually but for now that last since peanuts compared with the only full two percent growth which most consumer sector is currently enjoying in russia that's you know pretty cool business are to you.

and russian stock markets had a quiet trading week my sex and a lot after closing marginally in red on friday down just under a half percent ending a fourteen straight week of gains yes fared better finishing in the black up point twenty three percent wrapping up a successful trading week trading volumes were light as investors prepared for the holidays. and russian markets hardly moved this week as investors were buying gas for christmas and new year rather than stocks maxime arlovski wraps up the week. this week was relatively calm and that's mostly because the majority of the market players do example large ones and brokers from europe and the u.s. on christmas holiday the indices have barely changed as we have treated volumes very little but also lowball tildes you are one of the interesting events of this week was the disclosure of terms from the alleged merger between. needs which lot

of the dump the stocks of these companies. and that's all the business for now but you can always find more on our website that's. stay with us.

download the official t. application. i pod touch from the i q saps to. life on the. video on demand on t.v.'s my old posts and r.s.s. feeds now in the palm of your. machine on the dot com. wealthy british scientists. time to.

market. find out what's really happening to the global economy with mike stronger or a no holds barred look at the global financial headlines. three thirty pm in moscow good to have you with us here on our t.v. your headlines afghanistan's cheap heroin depriving thousands of locals of a future besides flooding other countries the desperate situation is a reflection of nato for efforts to tackle the problem pointing to russia's top driving force. from dismantling historic monuments to comic strip propaganda soviet campaign in georgia gathers pace with russia's serious prime

target but a growing number of people say authorities attempts to rewrite history going to fall. and reported civil war being waged on christmas have been all over the headlines in the u.s. this holiday season but many americans believe the hype is just to the for the public's attention from more pressing issues. coming up r.t. talks with actress helen mirren about her role in the last station a film looking at the final days of leo tolstoy the movie reveals an unknown part of tolstoy's life but what horizons did open up for the actors themselves spotlight coming your way next. curious. about her experience as. a.