from some stupid. stunts on t.v. don't come. observers arrived the arab league's team reaches syria's most troubled city amid reports that government tanks are pulling out. three years as israel waves a deadly assault on gaza palestinians still struggling with its legacy turn to the courts to make amends. in our series on twenty eleventh's most significant events our correspondent shares personal experiences of explaining who is running the changes at the top in russia. and in business the us and marketplace today's trading session in nevada full details of me in the business but it's an end to plenty minutes of time.

seven pm in moscow trends are good to have you with us here on r t our top story activists say tens of thousands have taken to the streets of syria's third largest city homes apparently emboldened by the arab league observers visit to the country the city which has seen some of the fiercest battles between state and opposition was the monitors first destination is reported government ties with drawn from the area after about thirty people were killed in the latest violence the fact finding team plans to assess the situation on the ground and ensure president assad's compliance with the regional plan to end the bloodshed but there are doubts over the mission's impartiality. i think the disco mickie is not. objective it will not be objective it will be subjective it will be pressured by the united nations the united states and especially the dood. dunny commander is

already accused by the international court of justice oaf genocide and what crimes so i think it will be his opportunity to present something to the united nations and to the united states which is a manipulative report about the state of affairs in syria already. heavy pressure from outside is being applied as piled solely on the assad regime and though there are those who are in no doubt that armed insurgents are operating in syria the director of the play center for middle east studies says observers in his opinion can't tell the difference between armed rebels and peaceful civilians. no one can deny the presence of the answers are in syria even hillary clinton did recognize this and said they are well equipped and well trained except that act that many mass media as they mix between civilians and children because when they talk about

thousand of people killed and see the they don't mention that and they see civilians and also with cannot deny that. about two thousand. security men or so would get this you know that those observers are going to see the to see all of that and was going on and really the syrian authorities and the syrian government would give them facilities to accomplish their mission. the claim that the syrian opposition is being backed by extremist fighters is shared by foreign journalists on the ground there and the next hour r.t. hears from a french reporter who exposed the un rescue eyewitnesses. i think that to be the action to destabilize the country. we see a lot of people killed but this is not to see good war play told.

to interweave throwing troops inside and i'd be. using proxy for a good concept. probably because he's way before the. flood a mere putin pledges the government will do everything possible to ensure transparency during the upcoming presidential race the prime minister said it's actually in his best interest as a candidate artie's italian overcoat has more on the announcement of all the other developments in the world of top level russian politics so this is one of prime minister putin's last public sessions before the new year what did he have to say. well the prime minister puts in today suggested that the dukes should be held on the transparency of the upcoming presidential elections in the crunchie his idea was to build it to exclude the internets where people can freely express their ideas if they have anyone how to improve the electoral process in the that's comes

out the growing dissatisfaction. russian people believe the outcome of the parliamentary elections which took place on the fourth of december. if. it could be a good you're going to misstate the species because it is just i want to stress that we're the first to leave the transparency because we need to be sure that people support us of course there are forces to which it's not the development that . the. of course they have the right cheek but the problem is that they have neither a united programs and no means of reaching their goals they just want to deal legitimize the election that's the problem today when the new was most well speaking of suggestions and ideas premise it wouldn't also south that's the current opposition in the front changing its leaders don't seem to have any ideas old david schools that they're searching for this summer that introducing any programs on how they see this country should be changed and not doing much else but simply

protesting and opposing to the newly formed government i'm speaking to which credit is what he wants again stressed that the results of the parliamentary elections are not going to be a knowledge so just as the opposition is demanding. it's to happen and it only could happen through a court decision also today our bill just loves to pull we used to be the chief strategist told internal policies was made says the country's deputy prime minister and as he said himself he now will be responsible for wouldn't i say shouldn't innovations in the country now what will that comes together with the sets of three forms that it's a present we just gave a start to you. last week most of them have to do. with the parliamentary and presidential elections as well pulling

a number of opposition protests that gathered tens of thousands of people on the streets of moscow people who were demanding the council of the results hold their parliamentary elections or tell you know a lot why for us in the central moscow with that update thanks very much. and still to come in a few minutes here on our team we'll take a look at some of the most significant political events in twenty eleven's russia you can see a nice and nowadays first hand impressions as part of our premier series of reports . witnesses. to history in the making of. testimony. ten stories that shapes two thousand and eleven on our t.v. . but before we get to that palestinians in gaza are marking three years since israel set tanks and fighter jets to attack them the operation lasted twenty two days and cost almost fifteen hundred lives and tire families were wiped out for

some the battle story appears only now in the courtroom as our leader explained it . is unusual not because he laid a claim against israelis but because he won victory though is bittersweet. i'm a broken man the israelis say their army has morals what morals are they talking about . it was december two thousand and eight for three weeks israeli soldiers bombed the gaza strip killing nearly one and a half thousand palestinians for five was civilians at the same time hundreds of rockets fell on southern israel killing three israeli civilians and the government couldn't get to my home for sixteen days because the israeli soldiers were firing all the time and soon as they left i went down inside on the walls the soldiers had written you'll find the bodies fifty meters away i found the body of my brother buried in the sand and the body of my sister much to cover with some bricks.

solide took his case to the palestinian center for human rights in a precedent setting move they secured an out of court settlement with the israeli military it took so let's see weeks to achieve the bodies of his mother and sister because of continue fighting in the area these women military says this made the face since you know before justified with the way said sally was saved just under one hundred fifty thousand dollars compensation. if someone loses his leg or his hand up or a skilled or injury and all the money in the world in iraq. but what we're fighting for here is a financial compensation that will offer some relief from. the palestinian center for human rights has more than two hundred cases on its books but the heavy paperwork iraq received and expenses discourages many others from coming forward this man however is a rare exception he filed a claim three years ago and is still awaiting a response today. it was early morning there was showing

in the apartment above was on fire i want to outside with my hands up in the soldiers told me to pull off my shirt and trousers i did with a suit but they find a rock i would behind me my mother had been blown apart i recognized her by the ears of my two year old daughter my father my aunts my cousin my entire family was killed at that moment but convincing israeli authorities that compensation is due can be a major obstacle if it's and therefore. the military operation according to the israeli case flow. for. then the state will be exempt from. whether saddle up will have judges case will help other palestinians is not yet clear these radio army has also said it's opened an investigation into what happened but so far no indictment against any israeli soldier has been filed paula sphere r.t. . stay with us here. r t still to come memories of him the school days our

correspondent looks at the secret of the new mad at the helm of north korea by meeting a former classmate. but first a newly released report on the fukushima nuclear crisis says it was down to the plaza operators spill it being ill prepared and not responding properly to the quake and tsunami disaster a major government inquiry said some engineers abandon the plant as the trouble started and other staff delayed reporting significant radiation leaks to discuss more on this i'm joined by professor christopher busting the scientific secretary of the european committee on a radiation risks thanks for joining us so the report claims operators failed to respond properly and you said before that the authorities had been lax and slow in handling the situation to what extent do you feel the assessments been confirmed by these findings well i think my assessment has been confirmed one hundred percent but i do have to say that i don't think. that this inquiry has gone far enough

because there are lots of questions that they haven't asked in that lots of questions that still haven't been answered what are some of those well the main the most important one is it has to do with the the health effects of the contamination that it it's kind of assumed that everybody knows that they use health effects so i'm not going to be serious but i just like i said before that this was a much more serious incident than anyone. was suggesting that the time i'm now saying what i've been saying all along that the health effects will be very much more serious than anyone is saying now and i can tell you that they will probably be in some years time another inquiry which will show also that i'm right and this is really sad because actually if they did concede that there was a big problem then people could be could be moved out and other other activities could take place which would ensure that fewer people got sick than going. why do you think it's taken japan so long to admit that its response was inadequate. i think that there's an enormous of pressure from the nuclear industry and from the

people who stand to lose a lot of money with regard to the general nuclear expansion scenario that we've been seeing in the last year or two i mean for that for the nuclear industry this was an absolute disaster and it does seem to me from not only the way in which the japanese have been constrained to handle this this that this event but also the way in which people all over the world are handling this event through the media i have to say not russia today and i'm very pleased but that. does seem to be and enormous on grip on the media with regard to the effects of this of this terrifying accident this is this catastrophe the report also said the government published a understated thing here is on the spread of the radiation and i think justify when many as a lives are at risk well of course that really is a is a criminal event as i said before you know that this is criminal responsibility because if people had known the extent of the radioactivity had had the government

and also i have to say the international atomic energy agency come clean with the extent of the contamination people would have left people who would have got out and these people who didn't get on it will have been seriously contaminated in this will affect their health so so really this is quite a criminal affair and i would hope that eventually somebody would be brought to justice or at least there should be some court case about it the japanese officials claim the plant is now under control but there have been reports that many folk ashame evacuees remain reluctant to return to their homes do you think those concerns are valid i think that those people should not consider a return to their homes and i think that it's extremely unlikely that the that these reactors are in what they call cold shutdown i mean i think this is discourse manipulation the very recently isotopes are being released from those those plants and the xenon isotopes have sufficiently short off lives for us to know that fissioning is still taking place in those reactors right and very fleet what do you think should be done with the japanese nuclear network now. well you know the

japanese nuclear network was always dangerous it was always built on the coast in areas where there was tsunamis it was always built in areas where there were possibly going to be. quakes and so really i thought were the japanese people i would demand that the government close down the entire nuclear operation in japan and revert to some other form of generating energy what with that being a thing well there have been studies made that show that japanese in japan is very very rich in wind and there are lots of ways in which you can get alternative generation of electricity but the main problem of course is that there's too much electricity being used we are burning up the planet in order to continue with a lifestyle which is really not sustainable and i think that is the real answer to all of these questions about nuclear and fossil fuel and the rest of it we just just burning too much fuel all right we have to leave it there professor pressed her busbee of european committee on

a radiation arrest thanks for your time. north koreans finally allay their late leader terrestre wednesday but the world still wants to know what lies ahead in a post camera showing in all north korea has annoyed and successor and youngest son is now control but there is little known about him or his worry if an ocean away back to score to uncover more about the man who has an intense act to follow. the death of the north korean dictator has raised questions and hopes over whether the dictatorship one of the last in the world will follow or will this extremely close to society remain isolated hundreds and you lead to so little is known about the late leader's great successor his third and youngest son kim turning is a bit of a dark horse even his age remains subject of speculation his thought to be twenty seven or twenty eight his new ascension to power increases the media hunger for

information about him so he's expensive education in switzerland sadly tractors a lot more interest and entrepreneur in moscow with russian origins alys on how good she believes he could have been one of keams classmates when news spread that kim chani may have gone to an elite school in this week's margins in late ninety's the businessman brought out his all the book to refresh his memory there were quite a few koreans some quieter than others. with the last name kim. as kim is the most common name in korea alexander remembers the koreans always different from other students they were very disciplined very disciplined as a group of students. very serious for their interaction. they wouldn't always take part. for the games that the other students were very

hard studying to be top of the class they didn't like to do that although some think this is leaders son may be a figurehead overshadowed by his recently promoted uncle who is thought to wield the real power alexander says the three years channing has apparently spent in europe may change the country's future forever i think that. it will make him realize that he has to do something good for his people first country and make a change in terms of. past experience his knowledge of foreign languages and the skills that he went to to attain being able the outside world used to get most of the news from behind north korea's iron curtain through the country's strictly censored state run media covering the life of the security of society from the inside has been an almost impossible task for international journalists but the details now emerging about the new leader is exposure to the liberal west or for

a glimmer of hope that he may ease bag the rigid control over the terrible regime and begin to open north korea to the world and maybe their war old to north korea written off r.t. moscow. remember if you miss any of our stories you can always click on to our t. dot com the best place to get updated anytime and there you'll find some heartwarming holiday treats and check this out. no need to feel where this little bear the cute little cubs already captured millions of hearts including mine easy to see like look at his little and thinks there don't you just want to give him a hug tell you why he's being and reared in denmark instead of getting an unusual arctic bringing us. a toast in space therapist tiffany's aboard the international space station as the crew prepare repairs to c.n.n. not one new year but sixteen as the earth's spin.

on the focus now on the most significant news making events in the build up to this year's duma election as part of our series on twenty eleven key moments are he's a nice and now a cover the development shares her experience of the outgoing year in russian politics. well i think that day it became clear that russian politics are changing lots of people say that russian modern politics are stagnant and they're predicting bold but nobody that day expected that announcement to be made yes people expected there was speculation that they would run for president twenty two but no one expected it

as early as september. the first ten that this congress that united russia wasn't going to be as simple as just the platform for the duma lections being announced was glazier putin and. entering the hall on time exactly when it was supposed to start together and that's when the atmosphere inside the hall kind of changed everyone thousands of people at the same time you could feel the energy going something's going to happen today. first to come up on stage was putin and he made the big announcement which no one expected but he believes that. top of the list for the duma lections in december. after that everyone thought ok that's it this is the big news we felt something in the air that something was going to happen and now it's been announced to me through means of age of will be part of united russia if you believe the list that was in it. and then of course you have to me saying that he believes that. should run for

president in twenty twelve and there was just this uproar explosion of applause at least certainly in united russia people there i think were genuinely surprised like i said no one expected this to come today they thought they were coming to hear what their plans for the dumas elections were. the elections this year. were a big deal first of all because. clearly united. has lost popularity and the ironic thing is you have people who referred to the vote to demonstrate how much they lose popularity but then also refer to the same exact vote saying that it was falsified so how can you refer to a vote that you don't think was real to demonstrate this kind of popularity thing this was an interesting to thing to me as a journalist covering the elections. so we have a lot of western publications and networks referring to this popularity fall for

united russia which certainly you can feel it happened a lot of people i think went out to vote against united russia it's not a secret that the opposition in russia for twenty years hasn't really been able to get it together you have these figures like journal. who are very well known and and they're part of that whole stagnation because they've been around for years but you don't have any real opposition and i think that's what this young generation these so-called hipsters that that are part of social networking and are on twitter and facebook and trying to be part of politics that's what they came out to vote they really came out to vote to send a message to united russia and that became very clear they lost. you know two thousand and seven it was some sixty four percent and it's just under fifty percent this time around so clearly united russia has a lot of work to do in this became very visible in these elections also of course in the protests that we're seeing straight after the elections on monday we saw

people come out to choose to which is not very far from the from the kremlin thousands of people opposition members were arrested the interesting part about being in moscow at this time is to see how many different networks cover it differently you have. russian state television only covering it when it gets really big you have western media covering any little meeting that happens in the center of moscow many times exaggerating the situation. and then the saturday after the election you really had it's fair to say a historic day in russia you had tens of thousands of people who came out to my square just around the corner from the kremlin it was a sanction protest some fifteen thousand people is the most common number we have all the figures do vary depending on who you ask peacefully protesting for fair elections and you had the riot police and officials just letting them do their

thing and their symbol really i think a really strong example of this where these white flowers or these white ribbons and there's pictures of actual riot police holding these flowers and it was certainly a feeling that day for me that it's such an interesting time to be in russia and i'm glad to be someone. that can work on all of these stories and cover elections and cover protests and and kind of be really in the thick of it here in moscow not a far telling the story about russia from outside of russia but being in the center of it all. well every day right up to the new year will bring you a new personal view from our team of correspondents who reported the biggest news stories throughout two thousand and eleven and if you missed any you can always catch it again at our tea. time for the business update with katie stay with us. welcomes a business head on arts a while

a number of western economies are drowning in debt russia is on course to post a one percent budget surplus this year at a pre new year holiday meeting of the government prime minister putin emphasize the improvements that have been away from the energy sector in those. oil and gas deficit narrowed which is a very positive for improving your economy it shows that the effort to diversify is bearing fruit but it will be around nine point eight percent of g.d.p. which is almost two percentage points lower than the initial phone calls made at the beginning of the year. until the economic news russia's economy expanded more than five percent in november compared to the same period last year ministry says mining and electricity sectors mainly contributed to the question but it was a slowdown in construction and investment let's see what's happening in the markets and oil fast crude prices are flat to positive but swayed is that setting value no

one hundred dollars per barrel while brant is trading at one hundred and eight of us about and the inspectors' u.s. stocks are gaining up to consumer confidence index the highest level and i doubt on the nasdaq all both up around a quarter of a percent this hour european stocks are high as most traders returned from their christmas holidays but in london the footsie is still closed today while down is dice is gaining around point three percent the russian markets closed lower the l.c.s. all over a percent one of the my sex dentist a quarter of a percent in the red a little let's see what happens as far as the individual said there's a compound on my sex bed i lost almost two percent monopoly gas from also finished in the red the company says profit this year will be in line. full cost of for three million dollars and new call bank of a cent it's great to do it ben so with another all company pass nafta to develop brussels promising to utah football fields equal we all know the dark gives his.

big positions won't be opened or closed till the end of this year i think everyone already kind of done what they wanted to do in this year but i wouldn't exclude some speculative trading and maybe someone the trashing before the end of the year usually the last week of the year it's growing week so i would expect say ten or fifteen percent growth but i won't be surprised to see both five maybe six percent growth till the end of the year a muscle from a finale back in about fifty five minutes with all.

easy. easy easy easy easy. easy easy easy to. see. the but the be. the big.