the internet thousands of websites including wicked p.t.o. went black in protest this week patrick hayes a reporter from line magazine spiked believes the proposed u.s. legislation might make the web as we know it cease to exist we could see much more regular occurrence of this. if these acts are put through also i think we could see the u.s. government designating other sites as sites that he doesn't like and pursuing them internationally they could mean that they could effectively have jurisdiction to close down sites worldwide is actually far more easier ways than they've managed would make or uploads the web as we know it's web two point zero which is the fine by user generated content where people put up their own material could effectively disappear it could mean that what you have is a much more tightly regulated internet which could have massive implications for freedom of speech for file sharing for the sharing of information worldwide i think it's really important that we don't take the internet as it exists now for granted

and we resist all of these attempts to regulate the web and to say hey a lot of these pirates a lot of people putting out web sites are actually doing something really quite innovative and dynamic that's why they are getting a real audience for its nice work with these people let's put this develop a more dynamic way of in collaboration with people rather than just trying to shut it down strangle it and stifle what is one of the most democratic initiatives of the last decade or two. well in about thirty minutes our teams cross talk host peter the bell debates with his gas the reason behind the proposed u.s. online legislation. the fact is what we're trying to do is enforce u.s. copyright laws on foreign companies whose copyright laws may be different from ours and what we're saying is if you don't follow u.s. law in terms of copyrights then we have the right to shut you down and the other part of the problem is affectively is that's going to do some of it is another way to essentially you're objecting to the fact that people are trying to stop sites

that are pirating american american intellectual property and it's not always just movies and music it's also physical goods that are kind of you know these are counterfeit drugs you know there are also maybe a little written but it's really keeping an eye you know harm in first harm children harm adults this is serious so there are serious consequences. now to syria where the opposition is holding rallies across the country in support of prisoners help the start of anti-government unrest that's just a general amnesty granted by president earlier this week that has seen almost two hundred detainees released parties where if a notion i looked at who's calling the shots in the protest movement. people taking to the streets may look like

a real force of power and indeed be one but not in syria protest has apparently failed to prove that months of bloodshed with no sign is going to stop anytime soon. how it hold jeff from the syrian national council the country's main official opposition body says making the people's voice louder and bring in an end to the violence is what the s. and c. was created for our main goal is to help the syrian people there present them and their to national community in order to reach this syrian people's freedom although it's been run by paris based exile but hamdani in the absence he has been recognized as the country's legitimate government by the new libyan authorities and supported by some and nato countries which has made some doubt the council's innocent intentions with regards to libya the promise that nato made to the

national transitional council perspective leaders was that they be given a major seat at the table in a new libya so there is power broking going on behind the scenes and i absolutely wager that the same thing is happening with syria they've either been bought off financially or they've been promised a major role in a new syrian regime the national call was in there are clear is national transitional council and the syrian national council well it's not just their names they have in common support and sponsors from abroad think he likes opposition forces and their major goal is to overthrow the regime but there is a difference to the absences huts courters are not in damascus but here in istanbul we are not talking about democratic regime if i go to syria now we have. you know. we have to be executed there howlett says he spent fifteen years in jail in the one

nine hundred seventy s. and eighty's just because his father supported the opposition he claims nothing has changed since than and the oppression has to stop but how is another matter his addicted terrorism we cannot be most of without any pressure claiming they're only going to rely on political and diplomatic pressure the asson see to is now carburetor in with the free syrian army fighters who have defected from assad's military in was a clear shift from the essences initial entirely known armed peaceful stance. the cows who also sees humanitarian corridors and buffer zones as options to protect civilians in syria even though these might mean foreign troops arriving this isn't a top is that all parents operation where this year that the gas has been used throughout yes and i just need to watch it because they don't want they want to

destabilize syria because they want syria to be part of nato at least leave it to label the opposition claims is just a matter of time before the joint efforts sooner or later will force president assad out his a term and to stay but the question remains exactly how long should these people have to wait for the bloodshed to stop and how many of them will actually see the end of it. turkey. when meanwhile the arab league prepares to hear the final report from the observers that santa syria expected to determine the future of its expired mission there but the next worth believes some members want military involvement launches observation missions and the media coverage is supporting them . the arab league has been playing a little bit more of an object some arab countries aren't too happy with it so we can expect them to push for their objectives of regime change in other ways and this continues to happen through the media and media you know what the syrian

government supports of us winning the media war here yesterday asked or any songs about myself some reports about the area of. the lebanese who had been taken by the free syrian army and i went there myself last night and i as i drove to see but i was very surprised to find no checkpoints by the syrian army on the way and i actually was allowed to go inside and despite having seen footage on the television of convoys of free syrian army fighters i found out there was actually nothing and when i left i was told by the syrian army that i would be free to travel through is a bit on and on to the lebanese border. still ahead for you this hour scotland makes this push for independence but london valves to make any split from the u.k. a costly move for the modern day bravehearts wanting to go it alone. and israel pushes for you're up for an immediate embargo on iranian oil

a decision that quickly of other nations scrambling to find an alternative energy source. a multi-billion pound london court duel between russian tycoon and chelsea football club owner romano but a mortgage and fugitive russian billionaire. is close to conclusion but the judge is considering her verdict in the financial battle after armies of expensive various theirs went to battle for their clients exposing some juicy details of the way party's correspondent in london ira bennett has more on those. it's been dubbed the trial of the century for two reasons really firstly because of the sheer money involved there's six and a half billion dollars at stake here making it the most expensive civil lawsuit in u.k. legal history but more importantly perhaps is the subject matter it's really laid bare all those dodgy dealings of ninety's russia in the wild east reaffirming all those stereotypes there are that i don't think anyone actually thought because could possibly be true but it turns out they are and what makes it even more

unbelievable is that they've come from two of the main players in those turbulent times remember move. to former friends now arch enemies as for juicy details will some of the really big or believe the recent claims we've heard are that he actually turned up to meetings wearing nothing but a dressing gown that he frittered away millions in the flash of a private jet that even signed off threatening text messages to his rivals with the words i'm watching you i'm dr evil as for sure he's been accused of every dirty tax dodging trick there is in the book and we also know that he was involved in the murderous alamy wars of the ninety's where you now know for sure. through his own admission that one person was killed every three days in that kind of grab for for wealth but what this dispute really boils down to is the relationship between the two main there is also he claims that they were business partners and that he was blackmailed by a remote village forced to sell his stakes and shares even in the oil company sit

there for a fraction of their true worst ever move he dismisses that payment as purely protection money paid to his political godfather of the stakes for his mentor ship a severance package now i know it's up to the judge to decide whether if anything all of this is true regardless of which actually survives this battle i think it's safe to say the real winner here is the british court system that is believed to be raking in as a result of this trial eighty dollars a second well london has another conflict to resolve with russia after a former senior official admitted britain was caught snooping find out how moscow uncovered the secret of the spying going on our website r.t. dot com complete with more pictures and videos for you. the battle over scotland split from the union is splitting opinion in an increasingly disunited united kingdom scots have been told they can hold a referendum on independence but only if london gives its blessing arches more

smith explains. britain a three hundred year old union that once ruled the waves and tough the known world but on home soil the country is closer than ever to a messy divorce. this is the man who wants scotland to go it alone nationalist party leader alex salmond's promising scots will get a say on being single but london wants to call the shots and get it done and dusted . very soon they don't want to talk about the substance i sometimes feel when i listen to them it's not a referendum they want it's a never ending question of the debate and that's keep our country together but why would scotland want to separate itself from a britain that still among the world's richest economies scotland always retained its own distinct national identity and the s.n.p.

feels it's almost time to take that one step further i hope yes from the scottish people would mean scotland would gain control over its own north sea oil and gas and represent it well for the international stage but it doesn't want to hold a referendum until two thousand and fourteen and that delay is letting london ramp up the scare stories telling scotland it'll have to pay the price such as the billions of pounds british taxpayers spent keeping scottish banks alive that it would have to find its own currency and lose thousands of jobs when the navy heads south not that it seems to bother scots who see their country as having been strangled for long enough i don't think it's any of his business if we present a strong enough case to be independent then i don't see that he can argue against that because if shocked i think a shutter i don't think you have an easy the fires of. scots have never taken

kindly to hearings. and words from the mother of all parliaments down in london but for the nationalists it's a boost to the lack luster thirty percent support for a split was to come when he was he had to teach the initiative but it's completely but. he's actually been the best recruiting sergeant the s. and p. i think is of a hundred simple certainly says margaret thatcher. in the last seven days we've had over the bush. so you know up to now the u.k. and scotland's key players will continue to cross swords at stake but alex salmond is a reputation built on restoring a proud scotland for prime minister cameron is the potential to become the man who let the united kingdom come apart laura smith altie at imbra. still to come on r t with less than fifty days to go we look at the current political climate in russia had a market presidential election. but u.s.

officials use war tactics to fight crime on home soil to many of the citizens claiming an invasion of privacy. the u.s. has strengthened its presence in the persian gulf with the aircraft carrier abraham lincoln selling into waters off iran on thursday the move is seen as a test of tehran's result after it warned america not to send more warships through the strait of hormuz tensions between the u.s. and iran intensified after the of public threaten to block the strait of vital oil transit route in response to further sanctions over its nuclear program washington vowed to retaliate if you ron did cut off the passage workout of martin from antiwar group international action center says the u.s. really wants to regain control over iranian oil that it wants decades ago. the motivation for the us to continue repressing the iranian people to assassinate

nuclear scientists it has nothing to do with any love of democracy it has everything to do with the fact that the. people rose up in one nine hundred seventy nine and took control of the oil resources and they have never ever forgiven them for that and the u.s. has never wanted to tolerate the fact that the iranian people and not shell oil and not and not texaco control of the oil resources in iran and any threats of war is must be strongly opposed because these kind of wars serve the ruling elite they serve the wall street bankers and they don't serve working class people or millions and millions of unemployed people in this country if they cut the military budget they could put people to work there could be jobs but there's not jobs there's war there's continued threats of war and our enemies aren't in iran they're here in the united states in the halls of power in congress and on wall street and don't hesitate to log on to our website for the latest videos comments and analysis all at r t dot com and here's what we've got lined up for you there today gas versus molotov cocktails romanians join the global wave of protestors seeking the resignation of their leaders but the country facing its worst demos in decades.

and the brutal killing of the ousted libyan leader is still not being investigated for two months on we give you one lawyers opinion why head to our team dot com for more details. as well as russia's presidential candidates are busy ramping up their campaigns ahead of the march election some members of the public are increasing their efforts to ensure a transparent vote in light of massive rallies against the parliamentary election in russia last month both authorities and protesters admit they need to talk more archies arena collusion gauges the temperature of russia's political life. with just under fifty days before the march presidential election and major campaign is

still simmering in the candidate's headquarters mr putin decided to unleash his powers of persuasion on the electorate and nonpublic speak for change he's decided to be more scholarly picking up the pen for the first in a series of articles outlining his vision for the future of russia what he's calling for new economy to be built. the gravitation away from dependence on oil by standing welcoming political dialogue in the strengthening of civil society in russia putin however said people should concentrate on just what candidates are promising to do rather than the theater of personalities we need extended dialogue about priorities about long term choices national perspective and development this article is an invitation to such dialogue it's important to say that prime minister has never deny the possibility of establishing such a day and i just recall him from his ravenous and this is what is making people

take the initiative into their own hands this week some of the most prominent participants of december's post-election protest pulled together to form the league of constituents so they all know where should the new public mood has blossomed people are showing a desire to make an educated vote to know where their votes are going on the understanding that the country needs competitive politics those behind the new group are quick to point out they're not going to turn into a political party but do hope to become a major support group for anyone wanting to make a difference with their vote i didn't have the political activists are nothing without this type of newly found public support there to help boost them the key to public support is the media and that's where computing found himself too in the crowd while criticizing one of russia's most popular radio stations and go from being to pro western in its coverage. the prime minister's. chief good sense of his

words since you don't get mad when you come to me with liquid crap from. the government the opposition and the electorate all seem to realize they have to think fast and act quickly in order to get the ball rolling with the presidential election just around the corner so after hunched down which some say lasted for years the political life in russia and roaring in will go it goes go r t. let's not check out some other stories making headlines around the world this friday french president nicolas sarkozy says his nation is suspending military training operations in afghanistan after four of its soldiers were killed in a gunfight broke afghan soldier who have since been detained was behind me attacked but also injured a dozen more soldiers attacked by afghan troops and police on their foreign partners now becoming increasingly common something sarkozy calls unacceptable so far eighty two french soldiers have been killed in afghanistan since two thousand and one. rescue operations at the spine of the costa concordia cruise liner

disaster have been suspended after the ship shifted again overnight twenty one people remain missing eleven were killed when the cruise liner ran aground a week ago and the ship's captain is currently under house arrest and you want to taper appears to show the crew downplayed the extent of the catastrophe only reporting electrical problems for and an hour and a half after the vessel hit. america's use of spy drones are causing a stir on home soil they are becoming a common tool for domestic law enforcement authorities were in a port i explains the extra set of eyes in the sky is upsetting many americans. they are the cornerstone of america's military arsenal dropping bombs on bosnia pakistan afghanistan libya and yemen a manned aerial vehicles known as drones have become the trademark of washington's war missions targeted assassinations and spying operations overseas but today

a local police department using unmanned spy plane said to catch suspects the remotely piloted more weapon is flying domestic u.s. local police and federal officials are increasingly using drones under the auspices of keeping citizens safe police departments are using them in the united states or even i think almost two hundred sixty six applications that have been approved for police departments to use drones as aerial surveillance devices drones can be armed with a wide range of surveillance technology as the u.s. government flies prying eyes through the sky lawmakers have neglected to create any privacy protections for american citizens the agencies keep using more and more of these to justify their existence so they can say we need this to crack down on drugs we need this because there are a lot of robberies in this neighborhood the united states is not only now

a military industrial complex it's a homeland security complex. the newest and smallest invention is hummingbird a palm sized q looking spy plane weighing less than one pound there can be a very lucrative market in the united states for drones with police departments who are already militarized the modern police looked like the military and so now they're going to be using military women a first lawsuit has been slapped against the u.s. department of transportation for allegedly withholding records pertaining to the domestic use of drones currently the american public. cannot find out why drones are being used or who is controlling them every corner there is a closed circuit camera watching what you're doing so now we don't only have on the ground we have them from the air and this month the federal aviation administration

is expected to be. making it easier for law enforcement agencies to fly drones through american democratic stock more weapons used overseas to keep us safe now being considered a serious threat to u.s. freedom and home marina port art scene new york. let's get the latest now from the business fast corrina joins us there with our team. hello and welcome to our business update this hour goes straight to our top story another twist has emerged in the gas dispute between ukraine and russia over supply deliveries kids has come up with a blueprint of what it sees as a way out of the deadlock it wants its gas transportation pipeline to be jointly operated by russia ukraine and the european authorities this will help it keep a neutral position in talks and attract funds to overhaul the pipelines russia had

earlier pushed kiev to sell the gas pipeline in exchange for cheaper prices ukraine will be happy to keep it but claims high gas prices may do whale its economy. and russia is pushing so fast to fast track construction of its southern energy link to europe the south stream pipeline the green light for the natural gas link from the black sea to central europe will be given in december this year ahead of the gas exports and hopefully alex and miller says the company has all the sources to meet new deadlines to remind you the stream pipeline is a project developed jointly like gas pump it's in these any provinces and japanese with their small. europe's been coming passenger jet the air bus three hundred twenty neo will soon boost russian titanium the country's titanium monopoly reassessing poa bismarck sealed the deal with air bus to deliver a trial shipment of its production if the quality of the product meets the standard

of the european plane maker a larger order will be placed however there's no report on the value of a contract. and let's look at the markets now all is a raising early game that is now trading in the red prices and suffering due to negative news coming out of the euro zone to the usual weekend as the dollar while talks continue in greece and added to that fuel consumption in the us to up to its lowest level since september two thousand and one stocks in the u.s. start off on a cautious note said half to three straight days of gains weight by knees over greek debt talks stocks are also a affected by disappointing earnings results and european stock markets are mixed as investors keep an eye on the debt swap talks in greece chinese manufacturing activity that showed signs of contraction is also focused to put serious fluctuating from positive to negative so as to taxed. and here in moscow stocks decline as will slips into the red the my six is losing point eight percent the

r.t.s. is half a percent in the red star and now let's have a look at the biggest movers on the rise x. levy is edging lower was selecting the sentiments in the eurozone coal miner response is among the main losers the company is about to finish taking bids from minority shareholders for a buyback of its shares and annoyance clinic has slipped into the red at the company plans to cut production to adapt to a slowing global demand the mine also expected to report a fifty percent increase in net profit for the year two thousand and eleven. other back with more in less than one hour drive. to. the be. the big.

boobs. the in the in the bomb the be. culture is that so much

a moment taxpayers' money meant is a shame it means so much evil and airy and supporters of the stump mind piracy act claim they are losing billions of dollars a year to stamp on the internet opponents of sopa worry big engine. they're watching our team live from the russian capital our top stories this friday hackers strike back. anonymous cripples major u.s. government and corporate websites in response to a crackdown on a file sharing service and pending antivirus to bomb the. syrian opposition hold more massive protests demanding prisoners released by the general amnesty granted by president earlier this week critics say no matter how many concessions the government makes the opposition will settle for nothing less than regime change.

and a multi-billion pound battle between russian tycoon opera motorists and putative mobile bodies berezovsky in a london court finally approaching completion. of next peter the bell and his gas debate the rao overplanned us anti-piracy legislation which critics say could censor the internet worldwide. and. we welcome to cross talk on futile though it's a contest pitting silicon valley against hollywood with washington in the middle supporters of the stop online piracy act claim they are losing billions of dollars a year to staff on the internet opponents of sopa worry the internet as we know it today could be hijacked.