build a magickal who built a renaissance hotel ok rule suite from pacific so resort and spa. in this room look he's available in some hotel time derrius hotels your recent. former oil tycoon mikhail khodorkovsky found guilty of embezzling oil and cash at his second trial. russia's former richest man faces yet another sentence behind bars i'm catherine as are the outside the courthouse with the details in just a few moments. no job no joy of her millions of americans this festive season well bankers rake in benefits and swash out on lavish parties. and why tourists are the latest weapons being engaged by israel in lebanon as bitter rivals launch a competing war zone theme parks aimed at getting across their messages. and has

heated two and a hot mom time last december and continue to grow and that's predict the strengthening of the currency war in business in twenty minutes. two pm in moscow good to have you with us here on our t let's bring you up to date on the second trial of former tycoon mikhail khodorkovsky who's been found guilty of stealing oil and laundering the proceeds the former head of oil giant yukos is already in prison for tax evasion and fraud artie's catarina those are about joins us live outside the court with a local hattery you know so what exactly has the court decided so far. that so far the court has decided one thing that is definitely guilty of these latest charges so far we know that the judge was announcing the verdict as. he speaks still has

read about eighty pages of the first part of the verdict now we know that there are fourteen files each file contains around three hundred pages so far the judge is about just under one hundred so it is safe to say that today is definitely not the last day of this verdict but so far we do know that him and his former colleague glottal neighbors if have been found guilty of stealing over twenty billions of dollars worth of oil and embezzling the proceeds we also know that one of the charges that prosecutors. put the two were put against them has been dropped that charge is that charge was focused on stealing shares of a daughter oil company and it was drop because of the statute of limitations that had run out on not specific charge but the main focus of this latest trial of mikheil for that was a force the

a theft of millions of dollars worth of oil and on that charge me hope of his former colleagues have been found guilty we know. their lawyers have already said they will appeal this verdict and from what we've managed from the lawyers that we managed to speak to we gathered that basically they believe the verdict to be almost word for word with the prosecutor's closing statement which they believe to be an ironic fact they said that if necessary they will take this outside the country and to the european court if the appeal in russia fails to bring them justice as they believe it but of course prosecutors say that everything has been done by the book that every document and every piece of evidence that was presented to the judge was done in accordance with procedure and so therefore the appeal that the process that the defense is planning doesn't really have a chance now we don't yet know. exactly how long the health of that his former

colleague. will be staying in prison for but we do know that they have been found guilty and at the process of reading the verdict is still ongoing. and catarina what's next for. their good question matt of course the main question that everybody is focusing on right now is how long will they stay in prison what is their new prison term going to be like and that question doesn't seem to be. available to the public and it's doesn't seem to be doesn't look like it's going to be made available to the public any time soon because of course fourteen files three hundred page long files each of them and that's going to take the judge a long time to read of course the previous verdict in the previous trial. took two weeks so this verdict could well be announced only in the new year and this of

course is the latest chapter of the controversial trial and tribulations of. russia's once richest man and former c.e.o. of russian oil giant you. look closer at the man his life and his work. once russia's richest man he's now russia's most prominent prisoner so the end eighty attempts for the biggest tax fraud in the country's history in a second case against him the prosecutors are demanding food prison for him and his business partner. that he donated to the conviction for that i suppose his say he didn't break any laws. or was to blame because he had a whole team very experienced lawyers who used to tell him. everything he did was within the law it was the bloom of the laws that had those those loopholes in them the former tyco. soon rose to great wealth thanks to one of

the world's largest non-state oil companies ucas the company grew from the state selloff in the one nine hundred ninety s. when government assets were being hived off in often shady circumstances it became soon russia's fastest growing oil producer political task you could search for themselves who wasn't connected to the country's economy or the nation's robe that wasn't part of their charter for the company to work or russia's benefit song would bring others who started using state property for their own good. but the path to success had a dark side to a political associates well a defendant guilty of a number of murders the most high profile death being that of the mayor of new fifty two guns and oil town in the year olds in one nine hundred ninety eight he had insisted that a local taxes in full and was killed struck a certain political score the thieves place is in prison which khodorkovsky is

accused of stealing tax evasion and fraud and it's not about some trifling amount with the new charges he faces it's about stealing hundreds of billions and i'm not just talking about him his company security chief is in prison for murder they didn't like the mayor of nifty hugo sc so they killed him then there was another woman in moscow who refused to sell her little store to them and they killed her then they didn't like the hitmen they hired and he's killed as well for their cost he has always insisted he's innocent of the fraud charges which put him behind bars ever since his arrest in two thousand and three ignoring his past many in the west believe it's a political case and her course is a victim who suffering for funding opposition parties and pursuing his own energy policies the russian authorities say you can is purely a victim to the economic crimes of its management if the prosecution has its way because of that of course he will not be free and. twenty seven t. r t moscow.

everybody now of course waiting to see exactly how long the judge will give me that called ski and his former colleague london a visit that is the latest chapter in the very controversial saga of the your bus trial and we of course will be keeping you updated with the latest information as and then we get it all right artie's caterina's are the live outside the courthouse facts about report. or for more reaction on the how to koski verdict i'm joined by sergei stroke on a journalist from the congress on newspaper here in moscow good to talk to you so this is one of the highest profile court cases of the russia in a long time what do you think the russian public is feeling about it how do they assess this all when we speak about the russian political and business of and we definitely they were watching and the case with keen interest and debate in the days ready to go but at the same time i think it is equally true that many of the street rural fold that they can very tentative interest in this case because this

has very removed you know a well with connection to to their day to day life and moreover in russia ordinary people view rich people. with deep suspicion because for them those people see what synonym of course we can spare speculate one of the reasons for that maybe this is because of the market privatization deals which took place in the ninety's but all the all i think that most of russian public see smell and reckoned with you're all of those people like khodorkovsky and that's why i don't think that i'm on the russian broad public unlike liberals for whom he really is an icon he can find compassion all right and so these charges were brought against holocaust ski three years ago how do you think it took so long to get to a verdict well but this is the thousand warrior cases you understand on the dead.

it is in details and i think so that it took three years to examine the case shows that that was really not a sort of a calm going to court you know and. this was not the key case without trial so they had to examine the whole thing because of that they were the huge different positions of that embezzlement and fraud and whatever it is so this is routine. work which requires that in this way to three years so it's quite like logical. and you were talking about the reaction from when i talked earlier about the reaction from the common russian citizen to this but then you also mentioned about the business elite what do you think effect this will have on the business elite on the general business environment in russia i think this is of course a difficult question and as early as today my paper come or sunday later on a front page interview with weiss president offer as a. industrialist union he go to you against who was where are skeptical about possible. accusation or go deal to where you have heard it called he was

saying about threats and challenges just for in this environment but at the same time there are other people who say that those fears allegedly exaggerated and. they believe that well. this will not have any benjy will you see outcome for russia's business environment so i think that the most appropriate answer we would get if we would just talk in the studio next december and compare the border more from the west months at least here and that he and we'll see what effect it has because now it's too premature to speculate about all right and we'll hopefully we'll talk then sergei stroke on from congress a newspaper thanks for talking with thanks for having me. turning to other news we're covering here on our t.v. for millions of americans this year christmas joy is a little hard to come by this week that's because behind the turkey in the tensile for many of them is a struggle to land a job. lauren lyster reports even though welfare has been extended the clock is

still ticking. in the us is the season for holiday cheer charity and this year for some as millions of jobless americans despair now why did i work all of those christmases why did i give up that time with my family if now i have nothing and all of the work that i've done in my life for no reason for teresa kobo this used to be her busy season at work but she was laid off from her job in the gas and heating business more than two years ago and has been unable to find any steady work since i look for work every single day i feel like applications u.s. lawmakers reached a deal this month to extend unemployment benefits for millions of unemployed americans we're all going to have the best holidays we can but lost in that story are millions of jobless americans like teresa who don't even qualify for this help any more benefits expire at ninety nine weeks but

a job doesn't magically appear by their own accounts and activists buying on their behalf these americans no longer count in this economy left out in the cold and out of the statistical surveys when for many for example their phones are cut off they are not counted and no one can say that they are but they're struggling arguably the most to get by merry christmas you're fired their people like sixty one year old gabrielle a laid off veterinary nurse like a record one in seven americans eat she now relies on a government program that helps pay for food known as food stamps meanwhile no work is on the horizon it's very hard i mean. the truth of matters are really nothing out there despite the tough financial situation so many are facing these will be happy holidays first of all stream thanks for what the lavish christmas decor is just the tip of the iceberg big banks like this one are expected to post their second highest near. profitability ever recorded second only to last year and still

the average banker bonus may come out higher that means the average year end bonus would exceed last year's of more than one hundred twenty four thousand dollars a person but if banks are in this money what's so wrong with that many of the banks that are doing well are only doing well because the public bailed them out so we're seeing is a transfer of wealth from in a way the needy to the greedy is unemployment soars last quarter american companies posted their largest corporate profits ever recorded in u.s. history and while the rich may be taking those earnings to the glitz of new york's fifth avenue for holiday shopping in the shadows or those struggling to see a little light at the end of the tunnel we've been cut off and we've been practically ignored by almost everyone that's out here the people in our government and the people you know we're in the media they're looking for any hope despite a system they see is sympathetic to business and banks but stacked against them and

we're really living in a society where we don't count this is really marie antoinette. at the balls while the french people starved and that's no different and they're fighting in that society to have holidays that count as anything resembling happy there's a sense of joy that's supposed to be here and it's not here lauren lyster r.t. new york thank you very much. still ahead this hour join us for a trip on a troika find out why there are still plenty of horse power left in one of russia's most traditional some bold. first though powers return to one of moscow's main airports following a twelve hour block out more than one hundred flights to and from domodedovo were canceled while some or diverted after freezing rain ruptured electrical cables some sixteen flights were also canceled and dozens of the. late at moscow's sheremetyevo

airport as the runways froze over flights are getting back on schedule but there are still many delays more than four hundred thousand people in the moscow region were also left without electricity for hours some five hundred villages remain without power although temperatures are just below freezing it is unusually warm for this time of year and that's caused the rain to freeze on contact with power lines bringing down drivers are having a tough time having a tough time too as sheets of ice on the roads have made it difficult for assault to be spread to make them safer leading to more accidents and traffic jams. the bitter rivalry between israel and lebanon has taken a twist this time with competing theme parks each is showcasing their side of the propaganda war battle hoping to win over tourists and get their message across but as artie's policy or explains some are questioning the morality of displaying the spoils of war. it might not be quite the real thing but it sure brings one up close and personal dozens of tourists flocking to hizbollah strongholds deep inside

lebanon have. we decided to create and develop jihad tourism in order to thwart attempts to distort and falsify history. dubbed pallywood hizbullah and hamas would these theme parks offer through all of their own their appeal the danger here is all too real so how will we try to tell our visitors about real events that took place in this region many stories are about those who gave their lives for their brothers. and in the space of sixty thousand square meters all the trophies collected by hizbollah fighters are displayed captured his radio weapons and tanks alongside katyusha rockets and grad missile launchers. it's given us a chance to see firsthand how wars are fought. but what is jihad to tourism for one tourist is nothing short of terror tourism for another here and now under other side the bunch of criminals they don't they don't either they tell the world they

want nothing of their one of the neighbors. and so the battle to win the hearts and minds and pockets of visitors on the mop up operation after the real war in the arena of pop culture and entertainment taking people to those places is a very powerful event for those people to shape their mind and to convince them wasn't we convinced about this group of tourists is visiting the jewish state through a specially designed package titled the ultimate mission to israel in the course of one week we brought them to meet with. better officials will sound intelligence drove them to the defense ministry to weigh the border and gas that soviet eleven hours they live in is their forward positions and the highlights include a visit to an israeli unit that carries are targeted killings a tour of the. frontline and listening in on the trials of suspects i'm looking

forward to seeing the movie and getting a better picture. and i just don't see that you know that you know one of the generals as long as it's based on fic. is based on deception and. put as in. if there's more than ok when the problem hit home with photographs and maybe that fall from the usual snap shots these ideological hundred day may have a different experience to. point three. remember you can always find more on the stories we're covering along with analysis and blogs on our video and our web site r t v dot com here's what's online right now why the u.s. isn't saying no to naziism as u.n. members support a russian resolution to clamp down on the far right ideology and washington votes the other way plus. marking the date for doomsday a russian man who's preparing for the ancient prediction that the apocalypse is

coming in two thousand and twelve and refuses to be for oil by armageddon. turning to some other stories making headlines across the globe the severe weather conditions are causing massive disruption across the east coast of the u.s. thousands of travelers are stranded as the snow is forcing more than one thousand flights to be canceled states of emergency have been declared in maryland virginia and north carolina forecasters say the wintry weather is moving north with more snow and freezing temperatures expected. nine people are in court in britain charged with planning terror attacks in the country twelve men were arrested last week following dawna raids around the u.k. but three were freed without being charged it's alleged they were plotting to cause explosions and coordinated attacks on banks and government buildings around central london. ivory coast. supposition leader is calling for a nationwide general strike until the incumbent president steps down laurent gbagbo

refuses to leave office despite international calls while west african leaders say they will remove him by force if he fails to go babo warns that any attempt to oust him could throw the country back into civil war the un says more than one hundred seventy people were killed while fourteen thousand have fled the violence following last month's disputed elections. while cars may be skidding and sliding their way through the wintry snap but there is one russian mode of transportation that's galloping ahead once again the traditional troika has fans young and old even sars and soviet leaders have been big admirers through the centuries but he's your good note here is now about the horse power that's making a comeback it's not very often that the top of holes courage becomes the symbol of unthought a nation and there that's exactly what's happened with the troika a true symbol of russia come join me for a ride it was possibly the world's most exciting full of transport.

probably the reason the troika is so famous is because it looks like it shouldn't work but it does troika me three in russian so this carriage consists of three horses reversed amazing thing about them as they using different stats at the same time the whole of that in the middle is trotting with ones around that are galloping a troy can develop speeds of up to fifty kilometers to people right here who are controlling how destroyed operates and even desperately with it sometimes it's a skill that has to be trained for years and years and years old and my father used to ride the troika and he taught me what to do after serving in the country's main cavalry regiment i was sent to the communist party's leaders dutcher i had all the party officials in the back of my carriage british and if you have to go fast but now there's no one to take the reins from me. if you think about russia how it's different to say western europe the distances are longer the kilometers harsha so what we needed was some horses that could travel long distances without losing

death stamina going at high speeds and that's exactly how the troika developed first it was used for the postal service maybe sometimes the fire services after a while it became almost a symbol of decadence and luxury the troika stopped just being associated with the irish stock recy but became a sort of symbol for the country itself or russia wild untamed going somewhere really fast but where and why when the soviets came to power in nine hundred seventeen they rejected a lot of the symbols of old russia but the troika was one of the symbols that actually kept for a while during the time of the soviet union it was given to foreign dignitaries much like you know a pound as given by the chinese government now as the soviet union was collapsing the tradition of the troika's began to decline but quite soon they made a big comeback as a sort of status symbol for the note of a reach. well i could sit here all day talking about the history and the art of writing troikas but really you haven't experienced that until you read the

troika yourself eagleburger and of see moscow. and if you minutes meet the veteran british politician who's backing the country's protesting students even when they get violent first though yulia bokova joins us with a business update. hello and welcome time to get the latest from the world of business the ruble has hit a turn a half month high last december and continued to grow analysts predict further strengthening of the currency as well prices remain high with market watchers confident in the global stock exchanges but in a court of reports. the russian ruble strengthened two point eight percent against the us dollar and nine point four percent against the euro between january and the vendor twenty turn december has dragged yet more games rising oil prices and returning confidence in russia after the crisis are fueling the rally of the

forecast for the ruble remains flat even though it's hard to make predictions i believe the ruble will strengthen in twenty eleven and remain stable the central bank of russia says it may relax controls on the ruble further next year i said aims to make the currency free floating. this is key in realize the the government's ambition to promote it is an international reserve currency the importance of the ruble has also recently been giving a boost by the start of trading against the chinese yuan on the my six given all those factors you know slightly several of the chief economist from deutsche bank thinks the ruble has chances to strengthen in two thousand and eleven do not foresee complete. free float for the ball in the next several years i think given the dependency on oil prices given the volatility that we see in the markets the central bank is likely to be cautious although i have to say the flexibility of

the will of the volatility obols movements will certainly increase in the coming year but when it gets down to it the ruble is still have really depended on commodity prices to diversify the economy and slow in bearing fruit. many analysts expect commodity price inflation in twenty eleven particularly as u.s. authorities print more dollars and that bodes well for the ruble minds in the business r.t. . let's check on the stock markets in europe the german dax is trading in the red losing more than a percent now to motives and banks are among the biggest losers bargain there shedding more than four and a half percent while dime that is down three point eight percent if it sees quotes for a public holiday. and here in moscow the r.t.s. is trading flat to negative my six is just under half a cent lower most of the blue chips are trading in the red the girl bank was in

almost a percent on the r.t.s. . the imprisonment of former tycoon we heard that he will not significantly influence the appetite of strategic investors for russia that's according to ben iris from business new europe magazine. this is. also going down them in the strategic investors are still coming the the largest consumer market in europe. undeniable for them it's more the peripheral interest is the people who are looking at russia haven't quite made up their mind when they see things i thought of course unsettles them and so it will slow the whole process. that's all i have time for now but you can always get more stories from a website r.t. dot com slash business.

looks like some. industries are rapidly developing. goes to the land of those good strength. body. to the land developed by cossacks in ancient times and which became a premier destination for nineteenth century political exiles. this is the on screen closure closeout on oxy.