shattered hopes washington dashes libyan rebels expectations of official recognition and seems in no hurry to give the opposition more. nato planes colonel gadhafi says time is pledges to make him stop fighting but the libyan leader says the foreign forces will never leave. and the countdown starts to the world's biggest multi-sport event to be brought to russian soil. plus they're celebrating a very important milestone just one thousand eight hundred until the olympic torch concert rush to the second winter olympic games big games inside she can win that

seat find out more. midnight in moscow i match reza good to have you with us here on r t our top story the u.s. has denied libyan rebels official recognition this after a visit to the white house by a senior member of the opposition council which is pushing for international support the libyan on the way he says rebels are having trouble getting russians into release credit off these frozen assets the u.s. side earlier promised to hand over some of the multi-billion dollar funds to aid the opposition anti-war activist john aris believes any revolution is on shaky ground when the government turns to western countries for aid. the us are interested in stopping the revolution but no helping the revolution nothing you can do venture and was meant to corrupt and control the revolution for us fans of the north through here with any real. a life of its own or any capacity to actually

alter the situation in libya in the way that the truth is you know if you can revolutions do it the object for us is to keep the libyan rebels on a very short lead not to allow them any real independence autonomy and to use them for us foreign policy ends the rebels were naive if they ever believed that the west was going to have an open hand towards them there was going to help them freely assist them in completing their revolution as soon as you start appealing to the imperial powers for assistance they are going to demand a price for that assistance and it was always going to be the case that once the west intervened the logic which was running before that but the people would see western intervention as a reason to support who perhaps had absolutely no other reason to do so you can see now the people who even detest the gadhafi regime detest the western intervention even more what is clear is that the west is now engaged on regime change is no engaged on raids from sameas to kill gadhafi so revolutions either succeed by

mobilizing their own people against the hated unpopular regime or they don't succeed at all there's no easy route to the revolution using the assistance of the western powers more nato air strikes have hit libya's capital tripoli following a defiant broadcast from colonel gadhafi saying he's beyond the coalition's reach washington insists the u.s. what in ten u.s. campaign in a country as long as the libyan leader attacks his own people as artie's are in los to reports the motivation of the u.s. led alliance is also wanted scrutiny. well. several decades and wars later it's still the question that's top of mind when it comes to the world's largest military alliance many people i think today wonder after the end of the cold war why nato lo and behold the reality is that nato is busier than ever. to counter perceived threats from the soviet union the north

atlantic treaty organization has plowed ahead without an enemy after the end of the cold war some ferrites that the alliance lost its reason to exist instead of what happened in fact and in violation of even the accords and the agreements at that time was nato aggressively expanded. and a larger alliance that once promised peace has instead pledged bombs in troops to afghanistan going on a decade and in its latest endeavor lobs air strikes into libya this fight uniting a new strategic goals back in november libya has launched allies aided dischord some countries don't want to actually you know shoot ground targets some hit air targets which are in our. midst in fighting it's unclear what motives are really behind the planes flying in the name of nato over the african country is

that the personal aspirations of a leader france was among the first to push for intervention france wants to get in on what i call the come the minium a really kind of africa is it to showcase in a new arms race military buyers love to have weapons sort of test and war if your weapon system does very well in the war you can count on sales going up in fact the only two planes now in contention for a ten billion dollar order of one hundred twenty six planes from india are the euro fighter typhoon and the french for fell the very ones french and british. lies have been flying over libya. is it the opportunity to oust that could not be regime it is u.s. policy that gadhafi needs to go and prop up one more favorable to us foreign policy interests. such as it was to push through. a

so-called humanitarian intervention that critics argue was never warranted but which now may be causing a humanitarian crisis we didn't stop a bloodbath but we are prolonging and perpetuating the suffering of civilians in libya is suffering that is now washing up on the shores of nato allies by the boatload of refugees though the united states has seemingly stepped back from libya he was the number one contributor to nato and therefore many would see the u.s. really as being nato now this comes at a time when the conflict in libya on the ground more and more people are calling a stalemate and amid the allied and fighting as well as rising costs in every sense that fame question people have been asking for decades comes to mind at the end of the cold war yeah nato lauren lyster artsy washington d.c. stay with us here on r.t. still ahead this hour until the well runs dry outside the land of india's bollywood capital of mumbai thousands are caught in a daily battle for clean drinking water. every day to

a russian city on the banks of europe's longest river to explore how the waterway brings both vitality to the region's folktales and its economy that's coming up. but first russians are in high spirits with a thousand days to go before the next winter olympics come to sochi huge festivities are being held across the country culminating in concerts in the black sea resort and here in moscow parties caterina's are about has been following the celebrations. as you can see it's cold air national raining here in the russian capital but that has not stopped all of these people from gathering in the very heart of moscow to celebrate a very important milestone with the final stretch just one thousand days one thousand days remain private until the official start of the twenty second winter olympic games which of course will take place in the russian coastal town of sochi

age was concert here in the russian capital to celebrate this event and of course moscow isn't the only one in a very festive mood in sochi the host city for the twenty fourteen winter olympic games the official countdown began today with the unavailing of the official olympic omega watch that will of course be keeping the clock counting backwards all the way up until the very start of those olympic games in twenty fourteen in moscow various other events also took place we had a rollerblade for a lots of students celebrating also had the little kids taking part in the festivities as well they drew olympic mascots in parts of all over the city of course a lot of work has been done a lot of work on russia's flights ever since it won the right to host the twenty fourteen olympic games saw it she has been very busy and my colleague that has been

lots checked in on the progress. a miracle in the making the construction the suit you still show you are still a suspension ring its final stage sick less than two years to record this joint structure like most of the venues here in sochi it's being built on schedule. and all of facilities here except maybe for the main olympic stadium well have to be completed by two thousand and twelve so that they can be used during test competitions. and most of construction effort was launched in two thousand and seven. so she won't be a little pig bit believed to construction sites no consume more than half the region's cement supplies over three hundred fifty thousand plants more than eight and a half thousand workers take part in the project three hundred of them are foreigners the good news besides stadiums and ice rinks include broods normal's bridges together with new schools and hospitals they will leave a lasting legacy for this tropical black sea resort so there's great excitement and

high hopes this of the russian city resting at the big event tonight you can see the preparations you will there again bill the streets are cleaner. more tourists will come they'll impacts will bring festive mood into town. i think the medals rubio was and was this team will be formed better at home than a. cooler player hair and snow leopard have been recently picked as the olympic mascots in less than three years' time this dream team will greet the athletes and visitors of the two thousand and fourteen sochi winter games. one of the greatest sporting spectacles on the planet is just one thousand days away but if the want to win big vision is going to be as grand as russia imagines every minute now in two words completing the mammoth construction after a long time and in budget there is also the r.t. sochi as you can see russia is on track with all the work everything will be ready

just one thousand days laugh and tell that olympic torch arrive in russia that's why the second one tell him to games well finally began. to. take clean water for granted for millions fighting it is a daily struggle in india's mumbai many local families rock adequate water supply even though they say some have enough to pour away archy's career free to find out how difficult the search for water can be even in the country's glitzy economic hub . mumbai india the financial center for one of the fastest growing economies in the world. and the heart of india's beloved bollywood film industry well beyond the glitz and glam there is another story playing out on the streets of india's most populous city. i.v. cup at six am and walk to a village that does one in half every two get to book itself drinking water oh. this is shine i'm on a guy she's twelve years old and her life in mumbai literally revolves around

finding water is the myth that i don't go to school because i have to work at home my mormon dad work as liberals and they have to go out so i have to stay back and what better home from morning to evening in this slum it's actually more common to see a satellite dish bringing these people cable t.v. than it is to see a working tap to bring them water one point two million people in mumbai live in an authorised slums and are entitled to government services like water even after walking hours to get to a tap the water only runs at specific times for sometimes as little as ten minutes . while the people in the got community have managed to find a broken pipe in a gutter not far from their homes many indians are spending up to ten percent of their salaries to buy usable water water access isn't just a problem that affects people living in the slums actually thirty five percent of households in mumbai receive less than the desired one hundred liters of water per

person per day and many of those people live in middle class communities. so one is in mumbai housewife despite living in a more modern apartment so wants to has to schedule her day around when she can get water well not only if. we get water at four am for one and a half us since we just get it for just one and a half or we have to wake up early and get all the work done so want has to fill the two. bank on her roof during the time the city gives her access to water and if she needs more than the tank of water she's able to fill she's out of luck barter is an issue that seems to affect everyone here and five there is a one man the chance to escape the problem is name is no pay somebody is worth twenty seven billion u.s. dollars and house there are hydroponic hanging gardens swimming pool. and he reportedly uses five hundred thousand years of water every month it's something that angered many here well most are used to seeing the great contrast between rich

and poor on a daily basis they believe that it's access and waste that is unfair. you have come to give money memorandum and want to collect it from being used if there is a shortage of for a grilling to give him or he came here to tell him this and produced it and for those who have no choice but to plan their day around water retrieval it's a painful reminder that even when it comes to basic necessities the wealthy elite still has the advantage. but i love that i feel bad in the house we get water for only one and a half us whereas they have enough want to even to waste it a constant battle to meet their daily needs preassure either r t mumbai india. and if you want to take a break from watching us on t.v. you can always find us online with plenty more videos to watch. more and more a click away at our team dot com here's what's online april fool's joke sparks the

web had a fight over a comment believed to be an alien spaceship we've got the whole story online plus. the world will set you free of jail in south carolina bans are all bought so except for the christian bible all these stories and more are going dot com. at least three people have been killed as well as a roadside bomb hit a bus in eastern pakistan this a day after a taliban attack avenging osama bin laden's killing left eighty seven people dead islam about has criticized the u.s. operation that killed bin laden or his military contributors says washington should have been more careful when planning the raid. nobody can be the us administration unique capability to model the waters and bungled the message last week

the u.s. president obama deployed to top u.s. officials to negate the negative impact from the older keel verbosity of that has come from the white house first it was u.s. attorney general eric holder who tried to change that perception about whether the direct orders for the ugail rage war to kill or capture and then as ministration dispatched u.s. national security adviser thomas danny. both did their best to cover political interference into cold very special forces missions in pakistan but inadvertently compromised the whole nature. this was designed first and foremost as a political campaign not as this special operation authorize somebody to step up and talk to media make sure they get together hold your national security teams and

delegate just one person who will have a whole necessary information and authority to speak on behalf of the u.s. president a former belorussian presidential candidate it's been sentenced to five years behind bars for organizing a mass protest protest in the capital men's last year and race on a golf pled not guilty and so the whole case was highly politicized last december opposition supporters held thousand strong demonstration protesting what they called the rigged reelection of president alexander lukashenko arrest was violently put down by riot police more than six hundred people were detained dozens injured by rubber bullets the e.u. strongly condemned the violence and impose sanctions on the president many europe. stay with us. here on our team more coming your way including this a night to remember moscow vice opt for

a cultural outing as the capital's many museums and galleries open their doors to all are in free entry and a variety of special exhibits. are turning first to some other stories making headlines across the globe new violence has flared in syria with three people reported killed near the city of homs this comes a day after authorities said they're ready for dialogue with the opposition to international pressure mounting on syria over brutal crackdowns on protests with some eight hundred killed more than a thousand arrested in two months you and us have imposed sanctions on a country washington is said to be considering declaring president assad a revenue rule illegitimate. egypt's former first lady said to be recovering after treatment for chest pains suzanne mubarak became ill after authorities ordered her detention for fifteen days on charges of illegal acquisition of well former president himself mubarak also accused of illegal gains as well as ordering the deaths of the anti regime protesters and is currently under detention at

a military hospital. singer michel martelly has been sworn in as haiti's new president the new leader now faces the huge task of restoring the country after one of the deadliest earthquakes in its history that also left hundreds of thousands without homes on friday police and protesters clashed outside the presidential palace as demonstrators marched carrying off a coffin bearing the name of the outgoing president. the u.s. envoy to the middle east stepping down after two years on the job senator george mitchell reportedly resigning proposal reasons this growing frustration that the talks between israel and the palestinians accepting the resignation president obama called him a tireless advocate for peace mitchell also helped broker an accord in northern ireland in the late ninety's. with the u.s. debt ceiling at an already staggering high almost half of americans are now

refusing to buy proposals to raise it any further and while the government struggles for a compromise our resident in new york laurie harford asked people on the streets of the big apple what they would do. if the us stops bearing money it could negatively affect the whole world economy if it continues to borrow money it could accumulate a burden that's too heavy to carry so as the us fast approaches the debt ceiling of over fourteen trillion dollars that congress just put into place in two thousand and ten should it can fit or raising that that feeling even more this week let's talk about that do you think they should raise the debt limit again i'm not sure the issued but they will because they really have to that's how do we get to a place where we have to keep doing it. to unlink o two which expenditure if you have to cut out national parks if you're. saving the turtle or

you have this that cut out some teachers jobs maybe three percent here three percent or three were just small percent off of everything have to cut everyone has to give up something would you be willing to give up two more percent of your salary no tax no tax raises at all be willing to pay more in taxes yeah a little bit i think it's patriotic i do too what's with the people you know that say that they're so patriotic and that they're american and they stand for america but then they're not willing to pay more taxes for the country but i think the only political system that's kind of relevant to christianity is socialism and i don't think jesus would be very happy with us not sharing it's a shame look at what's happening middle america is disappearing this should be happening do you think middle america is aware of the corporate side of a given merica it seems like people don't even realize how enshrines they are you know i would agree with you i think middle america they're such good citizens nobody wants to make it any way they want to be rabble rousers you know they want to be included in the whole process but when you see people from the economy you

know any three million dollars or seventy million or whatever or a.b.c. making forty thousand and i mean what happens if you make five going to put that money back you and hire people the people working there what i would think would have much more value for everybody in the world economies and so. situation you look at what's happening with trying to. get to be economic situation for the time being in a pretty bad there so to regroup all system just me it's a deal whether or not you think the u.s. should raise the debt ceiling the bottom line is given the fact that we've done it seventy four times since nine hundred fifty two i think it's safe to say that it's going to be raised again very soon. come with us now want to trip across russia but don't bother packing your bags just join the close of team as they bring you the most exciting stories of life in the world's biggest country.

this time around we continue exploring the volgograd a region of russia's south that lies along the banks of the volga river europe's longest which also gave the area its name the river played an important part in the life of the russian people in the country's folklore it's known as mother of all the organs tom barton explains why the giant waterway is so precious to the russian heart and its belin. the mighty volga that runs deep through the russian soul it has provided inspiration for songs and poems and is the country's main north south artery and decades ago she mn ingenuity connected it to the dawn river to the west an image of raids over centuries people dreamt of connecting the two rivers now this canal essentially joins distance east again. the volga dawn canal is an engineering marvel within a day

a vessel can pass the canals thirty blocks ten million tons of shipping does so every year. another concrete giant is this finished fifty years ago it's the biggest hydroelectric plant in europe it cowers the local city of volgograd and sends lots more electricity to. the hydroelectric plant behind me is a potent example of how much the volga can provide but harnessing a riddle like this isn't without its cost. fishermen have been watching fish stocks for years they see the slow damage the downing of the river has done especially to russia's prized sturgeon the source of caviar but in the president of the hydroelectric plant has done significant damage because it stopped fish swimming up the river to this morning grounds they turned back and start swimming downstream and now we don't know where they are. within a year all these houses would have gone full into the river. to pentagon how many

of the hydroelectric plants turbines are on the water level can change suddenly and dramatically too suddenly for the banks to absorb it plays havoc with the canals who. so that's this if you do a little we can only let three ships we have enough water for last year the water level dropped because of this hydroelectric plant and it caused big problems you could only look through smaller ships or half loaded ones. control of the river flow by the plant has made building the boulders for the plane more attractive serious floods are less likely but the water that is put into the drains is taken away from the fish that need it. when people started building on the floodplain the places where the fish pond didn't flood anymore most of the spawning grounds are now gun and now i lost the voice of the boulders ecology might start being heard after fifty years of damage the plant may change its regime to release water for

the rivers benefit not just its own but the first time in fifty years the rules will contain a point on maintaining biodiversity in the river will still have a chance to bring the boulder back to life meaning that the mighty vulcan is treated with the respect it deserves to martin. finally in his news walk more than half a million muscovites are expected to spend their saturday night in a museum while the lines are gathering in front of galleries taking part in the nearly museum named to take advantage of free entry parties can really graduate join the fun. just as if it. was good because i know that. sounds a lot of profit museums. the retail shop.

rationed all these national museum the official. seemed. to satisfy each week of the bill the tactic that it. has to be that is part of the. whole some people are just that it's a system. by not rushing seems to be a part of their reputation for being a little bit soft sided. subsidies by museum style or sometimes no possible visit is or is standing too close to where it's a lot for paintings and. museums. galleries still much more. with the nice feature museums are open only this night and day to wondering how on earth you know who is getting around that film's movie because the nicest have. several scenery

systolic you live your beliefs and also some big bosses of different music specific eating into nice of the few ideal museum nice hells in the rush. and coming up we'll bring you more on the cultural life of the russian capital as our moscow allowed team visit some of the weird and wonderful displays in the city's modern art gallery on your way in a few minutes but first we'll be back with a recap of the headlines the away.

repairing a broken ancient. highway construction and humanitarian aid. but as shady officials market the spoils of war it's the people who pay the price. profiteering here is no longer just down to drug trafficking the big afghanistan and the dollars. on the tube hungry for the full story we've got a first hand the biggest issues get the human voice face to face with the news makers . wealthy british style rolls in the basket on its side.