iran fires long range missiles during naval drills as to iran threatens to close off a key oil route if the west continues to tighten its sanctions. fresh rallies player up in syria with opposition activists reporting dozens of deaths at the hands of police as arab league observers continue to assess the state of play parts. of. the year on the protests there as twenty one draws to a close we look back at how the revolutions and rallies made it what it was.

it is eleven am in the russian capital you're watching r.t.l. marina joshie welcome to the program iran is testing long range missiles as part of its stand a naval drills in the persian gulf the maneuvers come in saber rattling with washington tehran's promise to walk the vital oil supply route through the strait of hormuz if the west imposes sanctions over iran's alleged nuclear program has more. day after day we see the degree of tension rising iranian and american warships kind of brushed shoulders earlier as u.s. ships passed the area where terror on is holding a ten day military exercise the u.s. fifth fleet said they crossed the strait of hormuz unhindered and that he was a routine passage iran's right in to cut off the strait of hormuz which is the

major golf oil artery forty percent of the world's tanker shipped oil passes through that strait the u.s. said they would not tolerate any disruption of supplies which suggests that if you ran goes through with their threats we might see a military showdown there but now based on the statements that we hear washington seems to think that iran is bluffing but right now you won't find itself in a situation where its main source of livelihood namely oil exports is in danger because of the looming sanctions and the threats that are coming from iran indicate that it's ready to take action to protect its interests if attacked it's almost sure to retaliate right now with the rand is flexing its muscle showing off its capabilities doing their naval military exercises and as part of the exercise on saturday they'll fire long range missiles capable of reaching this world by the way by touching upon some of the latest decisions the u.s. congress passed a bill that would dramatically complicate transactions through iran's central bank

european and asian nations iranian oil and use its central bank for their transactions president obama has yet to sign the bill and that's going to be a severe blow to the uranium economy around eighty percent of its revenues depend on crude sales e.u. ministers say. a decision on whether or not to boycott iranian oil will be made in coming weeks the west says all the rand has to do to avoid sanctions is to give up their nuclear program iran says they are not doing anything wrong by pursuing a peaceful nuclear program for civilian purposes some experts believe cornering iran like that by sanctions creates a powder keg which could blow up at a slightest spark and the potential confrontation over the strait of hormuz can be that spark. they added her of consortium news robert perry says while neither ron nor the united states want the vital road to be blocked a war against iran could still be on the cards for washington. i don't think any

side here wants that to happen the iranians don't really want to see the kind of disruption to the oil industry that is their principal source of foreign capital the united states doesn't want to see that happen either because it would impact negatively on both the u.s. and european economies however sometimes when rhetoric reaches a certain level and tensions reach a certain level and people take in physicians' things can cascade out of control and that's the risk here and we could see a war we could see some some kind of conflict. there's been a propaganda campaign in the united states very similar to what we saw before the invasion of iraq not a major news organizations have been hyping up threats about iran. we've seen questionable allegations be given a great deal of weight here in the united states people have a tremendous animosity toward. the leader of iran so i think you have the kind of

climate here that can then lead to something else and of course you have israel which has been which has been making a point that it considers the iranian nuclear program an existential threat so you add those combustible elements together and one false move by any party a mistake or intentional or provocation could lead to catastrophe. violence has yet to gather rapid on the streets of syria stanza thousands have rallied against their regime security forces happy portably opened fire to stop the protestors activists also claim dozens were killed in the recent clashes in flashpoint cities all of which are being visited by arab league observers the u.n. says more than five thousand people have died in the ten month long unrest with damascus blaming armed gangs for the violence journalist ramzy baroud who used to work in the region says the conflict is being managed from the outside. this is

a real worry we do not know what the americans are cooking right now obviously they are of they are thinking of a much greater political context than syria they are thinking iran they are thinking the stability of iraq in the post american withdrawal and they are also and most importantly they are thinking so how will the political vacuum if such a vacuum is created in damascus affect israel israel's security and the northern border particularly the golan heights front israel cannot afford another security nightmare from their point of view force to be added to that of south lebanon and gaza and this is really mostly with the americans are very worried about they are worried about. israel's security and that it's a concern but democracy or human rights in syria or anywhere else in the middle east i think americans are yet to find a formula that would assure them that in the absence of assad there will be

a political rejean that they can trust and i think this is what the americans are trying to ensure right now. is gone there is going to be another alternative that america can work with and until the americans find an answer to this question we are going to have this this conflict raging on for a long time. still ahead here in r t with just hours til the new year what would you want to see twenty twelve. politics and twenty two make them do things good for the world to know just get to get really i would probably say that after. gambling you the world be a better place without those things you know i think from the lots of benefits. plus a look back at the turbulent twelve months of two thousand and eleven from the arab spring the worldwide protests started wraps up with events that marked the year our respondents were in the thick of the van so watch their firsthand experience on our

website our team dot com. this is. just history making. testimony. turn stories that shape two thousand and eleven on our t.v. . now some other stories from around the world more violence has erupted in nigeria following the church bombings on christmas day that killed more than forty people army officials say two civilians died in a shootout at a market in the northeastern city of my degree while witnesses report a blast hitting the local mosque the recent wave of attacks in the country has been blamed on the extremist islamic sect. tens of thousands of people have fled their homes across the country fearing more attacks. demonstrators have clashed with police across turkey in the second day of civil unrest following the botched government airstrike that killed thirty five kurds on wednesday in the city

of the r. but here thousands rallied after the funerals of the kurdish civilians killed in the attack police fired tear gas and used water cannons to disperse a turkish rise of groups have appealed to the u.n. to launch an investigation into the strikes the government has referred to as an operational mistake. the son of the late north korean leader kim jong il has been formally named supreme commander of the country's military forces senior government officials declared own head of the communist party on thursday following his father's memorial the move is seen as a twenty seven year old consolidating its authority over the nation. tens of thousands of protesters have gathered in yemen demanding president saleh be put on trial for the deaths of hundreds of armed activists protests flared up after so excited power transfer agreement last month granting him immunity from prosecution

in the wake of violent protests that also announced he would have he would leave you haven't for the u.s. demonstrations have racked the country for the past year calling for an end to selig's thirty three year rule. the u.s. says as agreed to hold raids on pro-democracy rights groups earlier soldiers and police stormed offices of non-governmental organizations including some of those funded by washington the groups accuse the ruling military of using the same tactics of repression as a previous mubarak regime documents and computers have been seized this part of investigations into foreign funding of organizations the military took power in the country after an uprising in fabulous which toppled president mubarak middle east professor lawrence davidson sask islamic groups which are expected to win parliamentary elections are turning a blind eye to the military is continuing hold on power. is the

most adamant element when it comes to the egyptian army turning over power to a civilian government the so far they're the most adamant and the egyptian army. does not want to do that it's a great prestige stake in this it has a great economic stake in this the officer corps and i don't see turning over complete control to the your government and my guess is that the islamists groups and. somehow made in the coming days should with that reality that present reality foreign policy analyst dr abdul shamu sas he believes the military government is making sure it stays in power but the people are determined for democratic change. this is part of the military the scout the supreme council on forces way of making sure the revenue share and basically is molded into the type of

government they want because that's those are the same generals by the way who worked for mubarak. so that's really basically his forte of the struggle is going to be using going to go forward or is that a who isn't going to be molded and subdued into some missive role to the minute thirty but really the military has to step aside and let you see the government come to power once the election are held and the election should be held as soon as possible they will not give up the body that easy but i think the egyptian people and and the arabs in general how mosaddegh feel from corrupt government and they have restored the dignity they were not following another minute that he dictatorship in the country i think all the evidence indicate that despite the sacrifices they have given. now don't forget our web sites also got more news

comment and analysis and here's a look at what's there. as ukraine iron lady finds herself behind iron bars after being moved from a detention center to a prison we cover the details of us parts ration. and a column called talking soda jobs in polar bears playing in chinese soon charmed viewers around the world get the full story and video of the adorable pair at r.t. dot com pots and watch all of our events we use on our you tube channel. is.

the official. called talk. video. well without words can be counting down to the new year and with celebrations gearing up in all corners of the world will remember what made two thousand and eleven it was a year of rallies and uprisings of people around the globe went out onto the streets to demand justice freedom and economic equality argue that he's now it looks back at the protests that shaped the past twelve months. as the most eventful year in years the killing of bin laden after

a decade long manhunt in libya's gadhafi after months of nato bombing and the death of north korea's kim jong il don't even begin to illustrate the twenty eleven. time shows the protester as person of the year and although there were different slogan signs and demanded solutions twenty eleven will ultimately be remembered as the year people came out onto the streets the arab spring bloomed into a european summer which harvested an american autumn from cairo to california moscow to madrid to korea or to occupy global rallies shared common themes but if one thing stood out in the middle east and north africa alone it was protests that lead down one road regime change.

tunisia and egypt got rid of their dictators without war but libya was not so lucky nato allies began a humanitarian mission with a fierce bombing campaign but critics called it a mislabeled invasion to take down gadhafi for benefits the only reason there is sort of where the libya is about the oil here anybody screaming and yelling about all those people last week they were killed in the ivory coast sudan gadhafi was brutally killed in october as the world watched the graphic video go viral thousands of civilians were killed over months of bombing and as twenty twelve neared syria found itself in a similar set up for intervention russia and china fearing a repeat of the situation in libya as civil war intensifies this is a direct. effect of that rhetoric clash between the u.s. and. one side and russia and china on the war in on the other side you know what

she wanted was in libya protests continue in egypt libya syria and many more arab countries as the year ends. the battle to save a drowning single currency left to board rooms and banks in twenty eleven and flooded the streets of europe most commonly and violently in athens greek dad became the centerpiece of the euro crisis protests ranged against desperate austerity cuts to qualify for i.m.f. bailouts germany and france fined for influence in the debt ridden zone i think we will see an exodus of three so given the situation in which the greek economy find itself it has become really unavoidable draining the economy of big brother germany can't go on forever greece and italy are now led by on a lark to brussels back technocrat leaders who are trying to curb the crisis coming into a new year critics say twenty eleven well out or bust was the beginning of the end

for the single european currency because every chance the euro is going to crash and. london burned for days in the summer of twenty eleven what began as a peaceful protests demanding justice over the death of a twenty nine year old man who was shot by police turned into days of riots and left a fardy as helpless talks of possibly bringing out the military bars the shops were looted the car set on fire and windows smashed across the u.k. the police the job center all the banks everything that's happening the recession and you know there's a lot of anger about that social experts also through a fountain multicultural program and racism into the mix and peace. on a sense of place institutionally again. and the power play institutionally racist as well as the riots faded but the problems are still passing some say only

a spark is needed to set the public off again. occupy wall street became a household name in the u.s. and around the world when the protests began in september if you were talking about it the mainstream media stayed silent until seven hundred people were arrested on the brooklyn bridge and that really based in the end of his roots of american politics but. this organized a look on as one of the protest nobody seems to know but negative coverage didn't stop o.-w. ass from spreading from small towns to huge ports occupied was not going anywhere rates on campus heavy handed police and burning pepper spray only helped occupy grow and spread their message of the need for economic equality and an end to

corporate greed their slogan became we are the ninety nine percent and they are the rich the one percent from oakland to boston the more people occupied the more brutality became more evident. yet. if you refuse to read our police forces have been militarized they are working more in cooperation with the pentagon there. and being given military surplus equipment that has been kind of designed for use in war and this is something that leads to treating the public as you would treat an enemy a public that has promised to come out in full force in twenty twelve. parliamentary elections were the push behind tens. thousands of people coming out onto the streets of moscow after allegations the december duma vote was raped.

and the protest at least fifty thousand strong the largest in recent history call for free and fair elections and remains peaceful ruling party united russia lost popularity in the vote with official results putting their numbers i don't most fifty percent but experts say a sixteen percent drop from two thousand and seven should be taken as a warning i think a lot of people want to punish. united russia for having power for so long and maybe you know doing everything they could protest organized by vast groups of opposition members are set to continue in two thousand and twelve next year russia along with the u.s. and france holds presidential elections which makes it a safe bet people will be out on the streets in twenty twelve in europe america and around the world and you see now a party moscow. and to watch our special new year coverage later on saturdays our

teams correspondents will be bringing you more on how they've seen two thousand and eleven. the obama administration is hoping to restore a momentum of the spring for peace talks with the taliban military contributors as

washington needs to work hard not to completely lose all possibility of trust in afghanistan as a did in pakistan. political will the u.s. military preponderance in afghanistan hasn't achieved any decisive victory nor it has managed to reverse the momentum and to retake the initiative from taliban have been at work and their associates neither you know afghanistan nor across the border in pakistan their western alliance attempt to attain a breakthrough and to reconcile revenge irreconcilables in afghanistan and pakistan hasn't achieved any tangible or long term results and just as was predicted the american replica of your i.q. surge in afghanistan hasn't impressed their military opposition to their ever going to government neither in pakistan nor in afghanistan in the minus another year and one hundred plus billion dollars the united states hasn't won afghanistan but it

definitely has lost pakistani cooperation. the new year is always a strong incentive for people to start something new and say goodbye to the old today our very own new york resident laurie harvest asks people in the big apple what they will be happy to see the back off the stroke of midnight. two thousand and twelve is now a rising what would you the world of in the new year this week let's talk about that big wall street protesting because it doesn't really help anything at all if you ask me i'm a business student it's my fifth year in college and i just i don't know what the point as i understand what they're fighting for and i grieve for but for me i'm like you just taking up space i would probably say that after gambling the

world be a better place without those things yeah i think we would probably be lots of benefits. i agree i think a lot of people would protest about oh i have no doubt a lot of people would protest differently including the government because they are acts of much money out of it would be occupy the liquor store tired of us are noble borders and more borders let's just all be one country. because it's so difficult to travel or. people trying to score points seem politics. would make clean up politics than twenty two out made into things that are good for the world to not just get to get reelected oh poverty for sure yeah so how do you think the world leader should go about starting that. well distribute the wealth intolerance you'd make everyone tolerate all different cultures yeah. that's a tall order i know well you asked if i could religion probably ban religion all of

a spiritual but religion as a religion we think the differences. own. control no matter what you'd like to abolish internationally let's just hope two thousand and twelve brings us a little closer to a better world. later in moscow our team recalls the most exciting entertainment advance over the past twelve months in the russian capital. as the main cultural symbol of russia twenty eleven saw the bolshoi theatre finally returned to its former glory. next up one of my favorite moscow out shows of the year was film the star city because i'm not training facility originally a secret apple space ventured off to russia's only school for cosmonauts and then i was put through a whole range of training procedures underwater weightlessness zero gravity i'm

being spun around inside a centrifuge. to celebrities in twenty eleven hour many a list this time around the world have made their way to the russian capital film premieres concerts and private parties moscow sees many of the world's top actors sing is impossible these come here every week. rushing crowds love them and they enter and seem to be impressed with the city. was. what's the best a mosque yard from twenty eleven next hour here on our team there we kept our main stories coming your way shortly so stay with us.

world with. its technology innovation all the latest developments around russia.

wealthy british. markets. find out what's really happening to the global economy with. a no holds barred look at the global financial headlines kaiser reply.