spanish police claim to keep your hands free that there is no heat in their classrooms thanks to the sturdy plans of major credit rating agency downgrades greek debt again saying it is all but an employee can avoid it all. and around nuclear program must be targeted with a military strike that the reported view of israeli intelligence following a u.n. inspection not failed to result the deadlock. hears in common coming true law broadcasting from the heart of moscow this is our team washington says it isn't ruling out what it calls additional measures in syria that seen as a hint it could soon be ready to army anti-government militia the shift in rhetoric by the obama administration it previously excluded this possibility comes despite reports that al qaeda has joined the opposition that could put the u.s.

and the terrorist group at hunts around the world on the same side. and meet bloodshed in syria more extremists are penetrating the country to help bring down all sought that's according to u.s. intelligence which says all cargo feeley fighters were responsible for a series of deadly suicide bombings in damascus and aleppo targeted at syrian military and intelligence the syllabi seen evidence of. extremists sunni extremists can't we will them specifically as outside observers more will cool or infiltrating the opposition's groups. while fighting in syria continues the violence in neighboring iraq has dropped in some areas by as much as fifty percent in the last few months this as an al-qaeda leader. i'm on al-zawahiri as called on his supporters around the world to back the

uprising in syria. that these men who call themselves the mujahideen say they're on their way to fight a holy war against our song. in washington senators asked the head of america's intelligence james clapper to think what happens if thoughts are we prepared for the situation of a possible field state were al qaeda or enjoys a safe harbor and refuge. from which to coordinate attacks his response bears no optimism there would be kind of a vacuum i think that. would lend itself to. extremists operating in syria which is particularly troublesome some as the different question is the u.s. on the same side as all cried it in syria and whether its policies are indirectly aiding the terrorists or american strategists would have to be fools not to see

what al qaeda is doing not to ask the question if it's good for al qaeda can it be good for us and not to look at it and say he may be a ruthless dictator and what he's doing and what comes after him when he falls i think al qaeda does its best work or it works best when it finds a country that is fundamentally a failed state this is why i'm against plan putting weapons in and aiding the anti assad resistance because an all out war there could be a disaster which leaves a failed state and syria even for many of those syrians who are not supportive of their president the fear of the alternative is far greater why are they sitting on the fence or why they are not in the streets with that it would be supporting the process movement and are often two figures is that one is that poses to be this not . and was i thought that would be the key it was the opposition in syria is very

fractured they don't seem to be under anybody's control despite concerns voiced by talk u.s. intelligence officials about anti assad explain mr washington has failed to widen its ceasefire calls to include armed opposition therefore basically ignoring the fears of a huge part of the syrian population who don't want radicals gaining momentum and dragging the country into chaos i'm going to check out reporting from washington i keep. iraq has admitted that weapons and fighters are seeping across that six hundred kilometer border with syria to fight the assad regime the army of free iraqis which once fought u.s. troops and iraq is now heading to syria the masked gunmen claim their aim is to monitor the border for any sign iraqi government is helping the beleaguered syrian regime baghdad has tightened security along the area which has become a sucker for arms smugglers lawrence davidson professor of middle east history and

west chester university says this fits with the theories that the uprising has driven from outside. i think that. the people were picked up to go in syria are largely foreign funded and some of them are in fact foreigners and some of them are in fact deserted errors from the syrian army who have no real option of going back now so i don't think that there is going to be much room for negotiation between that group and the government what the constitution or document is an attempt to do is to satisfy the vote really large numbers of nonviolent protesters which seem to be in iraq to now who are displaced by these armed groups so this syrian government wants to essentially. get those people off the streets and accepting the bearer of the

government's scenario for a solution to this but the others are going to have to be hunted down and killed or captured because they're not going to surrender to foreign journalists have been killed in syria's flashpoint city of homes that opposition claims the american and french citizens died when an army shell hit a makeshift media center the same accusations were leveled against the regime just over a month ago camera man was killed in a similar incident but later it turned out the anti-government rebels were behind the attack has been the scene of fierce fighting between the army and the rebels for more than two weeks now however it's hard to verify which side is responsible for civilian casualties there. the friends of syria group set up by america and its allies meet some stranger on friday their openly seeking president assad's downfall

has dismissed the gathering as a bias of her to resolve the crisis the head of the foreign affairs committee in russia's lower house of parliament told r.t. the meeting will paint an accurate picture. judging by the statements we have been hearing and the format of the so-called friends of syria one of the sole purpose of our conference is not afraid that we heard of the current situation but to promote the idea that the conflict can only be resolved if assad behaves this way more secure refused to take part in the region i've met with mr assad and with representatives of two opposition organizations i did not get the impression that it is a people person in this conflict the situation is different a faction of the people as it was in the regime well another party supports mr assad well yet another faction does not want syria to fall into chaos be support the regime possibly they do not support the idea of a state interference it is not black and white it is not a scenario where a whole nation rises up to overthrow a government you don't like the believe that the situation cannot be resolved

without the regime in representatives of the governments which do not have a single democratic institution start complaining about assad's regime being america i believe but that undermines the political and moral legitimacy of the friends of syria is it a club or city its trends or a club of people who want bashar assad gone that's a question you have to ask. you can see about the interview right here on r t this thursday on what do you think will happen if the u.s. and other western powers start supplying the syrian opposition fighters with arms to log on to r.t. dot com to share your so for the majority of those who are taken part in our survey think this will only trigger a civil war between rival level perhaps in syria. just over a fifth believe the weapons will kill an. eleven person say western arms will help the opposition defeat the assad government while the rest think this is unlikely to

affect the syrian crisis as the rebels are not strong enough to have your say or to dot called. the enemy the turn used by the spanish police to justify their most brutal crackdown yet on thousands of protesters angry our government cuts on going for five days now it all came to a head in the city of seattle where a baton wielding riot cops charged crowds of teachers students and even schoolchildren beating and arresting as they went to sarah ferguson madrid with more on the. scenes almost thirty anger on the streets especially in valencia clashes broke out between riot police and university students and young protesters as they demonstrated against education budget cuts which they claim have left many classrooms without even basic he say the scenes of riot police chasing driving and hitting the protesters in claims of arrests being made in some cases involving minders the spokes widespread criticism here in madrid

a small group of protesters by the education ministry in support of the protesters in philadelphia but this is just part of the why did demonstrations we've seen taking place across the country in recent days the need conservative government's been in power just a few most cases with its first must've union phrase has a for the weekend and the government had introduced tough measures they say were necessary to both the spain's economy hits the public sector hard including health and education and face the full largest yuri's a member that has the highest unemployment rate shockingly more than knowing the said strains are now unemployed sixteen to twenty four age group finding it extremely hard to get jobs in the adults not very much better twenty two percent unemployment amongst the adults in space and people here in the country in

increasingly desperate situations i left asking willie just how much worse the situation can get. talking about the situation in spain professor philip that one of the re juan carlos says the government is only following orders plane is basically doing. the e.u. commission wants and wants them to look you have to reduce downsize the public think that it's just too big to constrain the private. so they're not giving enough thought of the figure when you see something. and it's the same time the it increase in taxes. if you decrease this. news trainer would produce an even more and this is what the spanish government actually did see. some pics. greece has just been thrust a further into junk status by the fitch credit rating agency which is predicting a great default soon as the government

a nap and rushes through its most punishing package of cuts yet there are a precondition for the next one hundred thirty billion euro bailout which will be handed over only once athens eales to the last of these demands but unions are wary of years of austerity are already mobilizing from the rallies today and tomorrow it's expected that the battle zones will surround the greek parliament for more on what they may or may not let's now talk to george cottle goggles a lawyer and professor of constitutional law live from athens thank you for a professor for being with us the reason given for this latest downgrade is that a greek default is likely in minutes so why would they downgrade our plans now when the bailout is all but secured well it is not a surprise because that well here you know both that buying and so the greece and the greece during the aftermath. even though the previous day indeed it was the same group this or the ministers it was worse as it was also this claim gets

a little of that you know. i'm not the only source of being fed up completely in a few seconds and they're actually being asked to us a little bit. well one of the painful measures that your parliament is expected to adopt as a permanent e.u. surveillance measure to watch out for the greek government what are your thoughts on that were i think the observances so you can use the thought already on a double speak because they're not just the going to. be good on the import do this is use we're not good to be actually observers but google maps of this lake in new. york would go over the term and go like this i don't think that that we're going to tolerate that and of course now we have a majority of them and let me he's going to accept the modern pervis majority he's not the correspondence with of

a permanent thing going to we're going to have elections you know less than two months and there are thirty unsettled is going to be quite different but of our all of this instead of. speaking of the people there are also more rallies slated for today and tomorrow but after all the protesters have been through and maybe the lack of impact that they have had what can they hope to achieve will we cannot sit and there are so easily oh sure so their oats. and. all our nationalists already so we're going to do is that when we have a feeling that we're not a little bit it is now i think of experiment the people of europe is going to see we are in a way i kind of mirror for the future of the europe if we do not lose east and we will be a better future which is going to be quite different and that the european social model is going to impose their will in the lake other poems i think of the good that he's just been there for

a front or for. the fall of europe is going to see in the future and greece's government out prior to this crisis had been notoriously populist once this bailout is secured do you think greece keeping. end of the bargain with regards to the cuts worley does not want to keep. this hour. what do we expect or ask for this improvement but even the enemy of problem or system is that the system but it isn't a person would expect from an economy that the people you associate to call them people. even harder or stupid most of the except for us for mostly a bunch of them. to our always use you know for people that the european know she deserves and accept. and finally i think it's pretty safe to say that greece really has only tourism as a major export how can a country get back on its speed without the euro zone. where the this is that we

further to is also. a mode. where the number one but we mostly organize our own production and this is before greece for that economical action but exactly for these reasons these are stupid measures but they are going to. be treating the decision and not the lunacy it's a much more learn a disease it is expected to cure and charge capital girls a lawyer a professor of constitutional law thank you thank you very much. remember to check out our website for the latest updates and analysis r.t. dot com here's some of what's lined up for you there now. allegedly thieves whistleblower and nobel prize nominee bradley manning finally gets a trial after spending nineteen months in custody. and looming success russian

scientists are a viable prehistoric plant al see a thriving path to thirty pounds a year is locked in her room for us. israel's intelligence service has reportedly said that iran's nuclear program is beyond the point of no return and must now be stopped through military action that's after an i.a.e.a. mission to the islamic republic failed to resolve any of the controversy surrounding tyrants alleged atomic weapons ambition the experts report they were not allowed to visit key military sites suspected of hosting nuke related activities tapper on insisting on the purely peaceful nature of its atomic program says the i.a.e.a. visit was for the purpose of talks not inspections the islamic state has stressed its readiness to return to the negotiating table a failed mission may well lead to more sanctions against iran but as artie's ivor bennett reports those penalties anything backfire on the countries imposing them.

pulling up a go i two years ago would have cost me around seventy five pounds if think that some of it now costs over a hundred because petrol in britain's never been more expensive the average for a liter of diesel sots over one pound forty three two dollars twenty five cents the previous peak was during the libyan conflict last may and it's people at the pumps who are paying the price again this is a disaster again for motorists and not only are they being stoned month after month now by these fuel price rises but there's also a concern that this is going to spread to the cost of everyday items such as food because those transportation costs to get the foods to school will be passed on to businesses and then the consumer it's a result britain hadn't banked on when threatening to block iran's oil exports to the e.u. although the books of major customer individual members aren't britain imported

just eleven thousand barrels last year not even one percent of its total imports but in practice the tough talking xp backfired iran struck first by freezing deliveries to british and french companies a move not harmful in itself but one that stoked fears in an already nervous market that iran's saber rattling could be for real it's already threatened to block the strait of hormuz a vital trading route iranis is trying at the moment before these sanctions come into effect to to do what. to talk up the price of oil without actually sacrificing any production so it's seeking to to benefit from maintaining its exports part of learning a higher price for each barrel that it's the timing of sanctions couldn't be worse a loss of production in south sudan yemen and the north sea already driving prices

higher with the rainy. crude still in demand in asia it's the u.k. and it's motorists that are the hardest heat we are told that either come very. forward or much so. they go harder to keep. people driving thanks so much. yes i think it probably does i think that's why don't you hold dear it's hope the threat of sanctions will bring iran to the negotiating table over its nuclear program but so long as the numbers are rising here in may not be iran has the first to buckle and what's become a dangerous game of brinkmanship experts predict the ongoing tensions could add twenty five percent oil prices by easter either bennett r t london. fears of a military confrontation involving iran are becoming ever more prominent with a top general threatening a preemptive strike if its national interests are in danger but christopher

chambers journalism professor from georgetown university told r.t. the rhetoric is being hyped by the american media. you have to have a symbol of fear you have you have a presidential campaign now that is definitely a soap opera. worst you know just fun to watch at best people are searching for issues integrity issues or red meat issues that they can feed their constituency with mainstream media and i'm here i mean television now i mean what it is is they're not covered they don't do nuance terribly well they do the the fear factor kind of shows very well and this is a great item for fear you know and what you have here is is people ginning up coverage of of new people understand nukes people understand military exercises in the gulf it will understand us responding to it and then i'm

a diligent calling the military exercises god's vengeance that gets people crazy what we aren't talking about are the you know the assassinations the overt war the drones etc any intrigue that might be going on with israel they don't do that particularly well and that's the devil in the details that could get us into trouble. now look at some other news making headlines around the world. some people have been killed and twenty injured down for police opened fire during a second day of protest outside a u.s. military base in the afghan capital demonstrators angered by the in unburden burning of the koran by u.s. troops had been throwing rocks and petrol bombs a senior commander apologized for the destruction of the muslim holy books and the u.s. embassy in kabul has been put on lockdown while an investigation is. the president of the caucasus republic of up kasi ali hassan the volga has escaped an

assassination attempt on injuring two of the leaders his bodyguards were killed and three others were injured when a gunman opened fire on his car near the capital it's the sixth attorneys on his life for the past seven years and the first since he was elected last summer valid to strengthen the republic after its long struggle for independence from neighboring georgia. egypt's former president hosni mubarak has declined a chance to address the court in the final such another seven month trial later today the judge is expected to set the date for the verdict to be announced prosecutors want the death penalty for mubarak was accused of being behind the deaths of eight hundred protesters during last year's uprising that ended his three decade rule elling former leader denies the allegations. and i'll be back shortly with the news but business news is coming up next with katie.

thank you karen welcome to the business program gas problem is accusing ukraine of siphoning off gas bound for europe during the cold snap at the beginning of the month alexina says ukraine illegally took as much as forty million cubic meters a day at the time european customers are asked to increase supply and then it says gas did what it could to meet demand the absolutely actions over ukraine caused homage to the russian company's reputation and balance sheet. separately from says it's ready to start construction of the subtle strain into some of that shit the pipeline is intended to transit gas to southern europe but also new right the project is expected to cost around fifteen billion euros. let's take a look at the markets european markets how to rise that. raising agency fitch has downgraded these these credit worthiness that is a junk status to see come true see any agency is only was this means

a default on its gold payments is highly likely in the. us you could say the puts his about a quarter of them said down point six percent down. and here in washington all these are hoping for a negative finish to the day as you can see beyond ten point six down mice it's over i've sent down one of those closing figures for you in the next hour to see how the individual there is all looking to close the most blue chips are trading in the razz gafcon is it armed up or so while you call is still around to one of all was said to block our financials us a lot of the perhaps a reason b. is now owned up to send down. a dispute between europe and the rest of the world over a new carbon tax on flights is coming to a head diplomats from opposing countries are in moscow to discuss counsel measures possible retaliation to mend it enco is that the eventual business altie. the e.u.

is have several green initiatives and one of the latest is including airlines in the emissions trading system so basically means airlines will have to pay. a certain tax of fifteen percent on all of their carbon emissions by purchasing quotas on the emissions trading system basically concerns all flights to and from europe and charges not only the segment of the flight which goes over european air space but the total flights so a declaration has been signed by twenty nine nations including russia china india brazil and the united states today which although does not stipulate unique your counter measures but gives carte blanche to all the nations which have signed is that gratian to take any countermeasures that they deem necessary in order to protect the national interests and the corporate interests of their airlines now the charges on the flights will not be significant at first glance for example the

flight from moscow to frankfurt will only become around to your as more expensive but over all we have heard from by leading okola deputy transport minister that this financial burden will all in all be very heavy for airlines involved and this is what we have to say about this recently business. the aviation business has extremely low profit margins here carry a c. profit of one and a half to two percent in a good year that's why any additional financial pressure hits the stability of the company's east coast loading will not help industry improvements below the moon this passengers will be the ones to pay the burden but we have to remember that there is a lack of dialogue between the two sides and neither the e.u. nor the nations opposing the move want to back down and this could all drag on for more than a year now because the deadline for companies to pay for quotas for two thousand and twelve is june two thousand and thirteen so this process of argument can drag

on for at least another year. i'll be out monitoring the closing figures for the boston market so join me in about fifty five minutes the guys. believe it will be.

six thirty here in. south africa.