an. the latest news on the week's top stories in syria the decisive battle for aleppo is escalating as international peace efforts stumbled while mediator kofi anon heads for the exit. the trial of the russian punk group posts you write evokes a chorus of responses from all around the world the three members could spend up to seven years in prison for performing an anti putin stunt in the country's main cathedral. and so regime protests are gathering force in the gulf region with saudi arabia's crackdown on protesters claiming more lives plus dozens were arrested and injured in clashes in bahrain this week.

hello and welcome to our team karen taraji it's sunday which means i've got your top stories that made headlines on the weekly beginning with syria where hundreds of people have reportedly been killed this week in fierce fighting between government and rebel forces the battle for the country's most populated city is escalating with the insurgents making a crucial stand they now claim to control more than half of aleppo as districts while assad throws more troops and tanks at the front line fresh fightings also being reported in damascus where forty eight iranians have been kidnapped by the rebels look use them of being militia men international peace efforts have suffered a setback after a mediator kofi anon threw in the towel while the u.n.

general assembly passed a resolution that slammed to the security council for failing to unite to solve the conflict journalist patrick hayes believes the countries behind the motion are pursuing a short. i think in general it's being used to try and step up the pressure on both russia and china to start to take a stand against the sides and effectively what it's doing is saying that we disrespect the sovereignty of syria and we don't want the syrian people to determine their own future as william hague suggested he's going to offer non-lethal aid he hasn't given specific details of this yet but it does seem like it's going to be intelligence it does seem like there's going to be an awful lot of support announced for the rebels over the next few weeks and of course this comes just after president obama has announced well it hasn't been announced but it has been revealed that there has been a secret plan basically allowed the cia to assist the rebels as well the thing i

find very striking about this is that there's a real historical amnesia that's taking place among western leaders where they don't really know who the opposition is there are a lot of concerns about the makeup of it you have you elements there are a lot of people who would not like to be dismissed with their stuff into this mentality that they draw the help anyone get into power there drove a sports any of the opposition in syria then they would support assad's assad has become this bogeyman just like it before him and they just see we need to get rid of him and everything will be ok it's a naive approach that would you know hope. the information war surrounding the conflict is also in full swing meister media outlets are racing to blame damascus for the lion's share of the killing often turning a blind eye to rebel atrocities such inconsistency has infuriated some syrians reports. i shudder i'm not pursuing a story joining but when a japanese journalist traveling with syrian rebels converted to islam it was only.

for those around. the complexity that he became one of the. places when i come back. my religious conversion of which is rare on the semen front line becoming political disciples on one side the rubble is almost the norm for many reporting to the world in the past week of coverage c.n.n. has the earth five exactly just from the syrian frontlines people all detailing the plight of those fighting began on monday and while the regime has always come down to use of force against the militants is a government onslaught killings by the rebels barely get a mention what happened to the go you capture this room he died the rebel commander says god willing he went to hell usually open and talkative syrians are now afraid of cameras those who agree to be interviewed often ask for their faces or names not

to be shown reprisals satellite dishes or household commodity syrians do watch western coverage of the conflict and many feel that their concerns that fears their losses are intentionally lost. but you don't you're not getting this just because you know what this is you know we've even first time i've been able to come to syria you know why you might want to get away before you don't have a visa. we've been waiting for a visa you know you're sort of there really don't come to get these are the usual claim that the syrian government doesn't love western reporters into the country is not accurate currently there are around eighty foreign media outlets accredited in syria a sizable number of them european or american but there dispatches not always welcome to tall christiane sun is an independent belgian writer. if. india wants to bring a certain about syria to. the evil

tree the use of force or selective editing is hardly a new invention the war war's has long become a cliche but in syria one sided coverage keeps the war going and shooting for t.v. really killed. journalism schools no longer teach their students to be objective it's considered impossible rather they're told to strive for balance and integrity and to put humanistic values above elated but syria is once again a special case in this bloody conflict western media rarely calls. political dialogue rather it's for arming the rebels and for the war also known as freedom fighter to go on a summer break artsy reporting from syria coming up here on our team in a few minutes an ugly trend. it's not to bomb center who is your enemy driver the politicians who are at the wheel of the country we'll look at the spike of anti

immigrant anger in germany and investigate what's behind it. also extradition or asylum the fate of the wiki leaks editor julian assange hangs in the balance with critics saying the u.s. secrecy leaves him in limbo find out more on this story coming up in just about five minutes here on our team. three members of the russian female punk group pussy riot went on trial on monday for staging an anti putin stunt in the capital's main cathedral in february hearings lasted all week before being adjourned for the weekend parties jacob greaves has details. throughout the course of the week this trial and its proceedings have been somewhat dominated by the prosecution they've mainly been having the opportunity to call witnesses to the stand and testimonies been very emotional much of the time she been involving those who are witnessing the events that date back to favoring price

a victory for the show the so-called home prayer how it was politically motivated but it took place in a very sacred and religious spots the symbolic head of the russian orthodox church as such it offended many of the believers out of fairness have been very outspoken throughout the course of proceedings this week and six occasions called for the judge to be are placed on different grounds some of them including their detention facilities the conditions of which they're being detained at the moment amounts allegedly to torture i mean the price of food access to drinking water and sleep as well they also think the judge isn't allowing them is preventing them from properly cross-examining the prosecution's witnesses so far in this trial so there's also this issue trashed the art of many human rights organizations international musicians as well calling for the release of pussy riot members and it's been some

it's galvanized the international press and most lately we've heard from the president speaking out on this issue. as well i hope the court will rule with a just decision if the bond let's say defiled a secret police in israel who drove a vehicle put some trucks guys there are many of them to do these difficulties in attempting to leave your country was really for example they were to be accomplices and deceased a muslim shrine security wouldn't have enough time to protect them from the public anger. nevertheless i don't think we should judge them too strictly when they're going to what you need some important inclusions themselves anyway the final decision rests with the cult so we're going to get a bit lonely in a sense she calling for some degree of leniency when it comes to this trial and perhaps the most controversial part of it so far has been the potential prison sentence that could await these three defendants on charges of hooliganism that's potentially for seven years if the maximum sentence for to be handed out.

you can also follow up on the stories that are t dot com we've got plenty more in store for you there including israel is flexing its military muscles by upgrading its ballistic missile shield on one of the country's neighbors have to say about it on our website. plus the white house scrambles to explain the latest photo obama snapped while he was talking on the phone about a delicate international issue go to our team dot com for the details. welcome to our teens ten minutes past the hour and a protester and soldier has been killed in a shoot out between demonstrators and an army patrol in saudi arabia it's the

latest violence in the country's a region that's home to a minority shiite muslims who demand social reforms the opposition has been calling for an end to discrimination by the sunni monarchy since march last year and to neighboring bahrain activists say dozens have been arrested after an evening riot on thursday the clash of left forty five people injured after security officers used tear gas and stun grenades to disperse protesters demanding political freedoms and an enterable oil rule political analyst patrick henningsen says the situation in bahrain is being ignored because of entrenched u.s. interests. in bahrain where you have is a genuine uprising a genuine political movement but revolution wheeling is being completely inboard for two reasons the main reason is bahrain posed the united states naval sleet it's a very important strategic these on their chest or especially. in terms of looking

towards intentional aggression against iran so as bahrain has a role family the clique of society locked down because the fifth fleet is there there's no way that the u.s. wants any kind of a democratic uprising in that country because it will make the government's policy unstable towards hosting the us military presence in the country which they need so badly the difference between syria and bahrain is that syria refuses to be an alp host for international western imperialism and bahrain is an outpost for that so maybe hillary clinton should be having friends of bahrain meetings to help the bahraini people but of course that's not going to happen. situation in bahrain is grave if you're on the side of reform if you're with the royal family everything's fine. coming up the art of throwing money out of the window. find out how much

washington wasted and cannot account for after crashing in to reconstruct iraq and afghanistan. and making a tough haul arab israelis who could find themselves hauled up for the army risk of being branded as traitors. the former top spanish judge who's now representing julian assange has said he has information to suggest proceedings in washington are advancing to have his client extradited for spilling u.s. secrets assault fears he will face torture and even execution if deported and his lawyer believes the case is politically motivated the wiki leaks editor took refuge in ecuador's embassy in london over six weeks ago breaking his bail terms to request asylum he's wanted in sweden over a sex crime allegations which he does deny he says there are a pretext to hand him over to the u.s.

to face trial over leaking secret cables meanwhile the whistleblowers mother christina sollars met ecuador's president on wednesday who assured her the country's decision will not be influenced by external pressure in an exclusive interview she told r.t. and she is proud of her son and supports have. to have one is the mother of course and we should do the donor. but is this isn't this because the key is. to transfer the will that these should keep the school. informed in both to be fun and to institutions of course please for my son. to can watch artie's exclusive interview with christina songe that's on our website r t dot com anti-war activist and journalist don de bar believes assad is correctly taking up his time to weigh

up washington's plans well they're not interested in questioning him they're interested in you know obtaining control of his person and i think he correctly assesses that that's so he can be forwarded to the united states the process that's being used to bring him to the united states is a ready for two and those who are whistleblowers have come under particular attack from this administration from the obama administration in fact much greater attack than even the bush administration was able to muster on whistleblowers earlier so the outlook is not good for a songe as one of the preeminent whistleblowers of our time this country in general is hostile to the idea of free speech and particularly disclosure of state secrets particularly when they reveal that the government has been doing illegal things so i don't think that the prospects for a fair trial are very good at all so far right national movements and parties have blossomed in germany along with an upsurge in attacks on immigrants nationwide

analysts say it's linked to the growing number of foreign workers being attracted to europe's economic powerhouse but as peter oliver reports the germans should have more reason to be angry at their own government. this sleepy town in saxony seems idyllic however even here right wing extremists have made life hell for people who came to this country to set up businesses mohammed came to this town in the east of germany from pakistan to open a pizzeria pete and those working for him suffered abuse and attacks would be hands of local youths on by police every time we called the police and the police came every time we called them but until now they haven't found anyone they threaten to kill us and now we have a real fear that we cannot continue like this anymore. the pizzeria is now closed after the last attack in early may mohammed explained to me how

a group aged between eighteen and twenty five gathered outside the shop near closing time they broke windows and taunted the terrified staff telling them to go home a small explosive device was detonated which fortunately didn't cause any injuries but means the pizzeria is having to undergo an expensive refit. the country saw a rise in extremist violence after reunification in one thousand eight hundred nine followed by an economic slump in the east which caused people to look to the far right and the fascist campaign as a warning that jus to europe's current financial predicament we could see a similar rise again our d's a problem i think today we have facing developments in the i would parts of the germany a lack of jobs leads to helplessness and despair which are the main ingredients the trend is young handsome flour right ideology that there is a belief among activists that the issue of right wing extremism is being ignored by

large numbers of the german people. education is only part of this problem of the need citing as a how to pay more attention to it that there needs to be more options for cultural integration especially for young people. germany's far right national democratic party or n p d that faced calls for them to be banned from politics the n.p.t. say that they'll be imminently opposed to any organization carrying out violent attacks and are working with young people to try and educate them and they don't loiter our message to young people who come to our seminars is that it's not the kabab center who is your enemy but rather the politicians who are at the wheel of the country and whether those words words reopen mohammed's pizzeria his isn't the only business in this town to face this type of attack but. i came here seven years ago from vietnam and i've been targeted choice use throwing rocks through my window

years by as even germany's rebel stick on me starts to really feel the pinch of the eurozone crisis there are concerns that we could see a the rise in social problems in the country areas. between all the. genny. us hollanders a say more than two hundred million dollars were wasted by washington on a police training program in iraq the money was used to build two facilities in the post conflict country but both and that upping and wanted for baghdad the revelations add to a recent report that suggest that billions were spent in vain or went missing during the reconstruction of iraq officials at met the precise amount lost to fraud and waste can never be known huge sums are reported they also being squandered on rebuilding another country the u.s. invaded afghanistan anti-war activists jason ditz the says washington's quick to

spend money abroad without thinking about the consequences. you know afghanistan we've got the same problems we have in iraq but we also have the problems of government corruption being much worse throwing money at it with very little idea where it's going to go or if those programs are going to be successful is it is just a recipe for that money being stolen or wasted or just disappearing a lot of these programs that just sort of get added ad hoc to say the occupation in iraq or the occupation in afghanistan the administration will come up with something that they think is the reason why the war is going so well and they'll throw some money at that and very rarely do they ever consider it if that program is even needed or wanted so hundreds of millions of dollars go wasted some other news in brief for you this hour at least nineteen people have been killed after kurdish rebels are stormed

a border post in turkey southeastern cari province the army immediately launched a counter offensive on the militants with jets bombing there a scape or its violence has recently intensified in turkey southeast with kurds seeking autonomy in the region several thousands of kurdish rebels are believed to be based in hideouts in neighboring iraq. a suicide bombing at a funeral has left forty two people dead and more than thirty injured in yemen's southern city of jar the attack reportedly targeted local militia men who had been siding with the army during their offensive against al qaida insurgents earlier this year the blast came only hours after a u.s. drone attack killed five suspected members of the islamist militant group in the country's east. egypt's president mohamed morsi has praised the army for its role in the run up to his presidency in a speech before hundreds of troops and the military council his words mark an

attempt to compromise with the military which took control after the ousting of president mubarak last year the generals still hold legislative rights and powers to draft the country's constitution which they granted themselves just hours after the presidential elections in may. rainbow colored flags have been flowing brightly in the capital of vietnam as hundreds attended its first ever gay pride parade the demonstrators across the city in style on bicycles and motorcycles charging slogans in support of gay marriage this comes as the vietnamese ministry of justice proposed adding same sex couples to the country's marriage law the legislation would make vietnam the first asian country to allow gay couples to join in matrimony and adopt children in. the u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton is in africa for an eleven day marathon across

the continent which kicked off on tuesday in senegal promoting democratic values and washington's commitment to partnerships with african nations were highlighted as the key objectives many analysts though believe washington's concern over china's growing influence on the continent is what's actually pushing the obama administration towards. action clinton warned of the consequences of striking foreign business deals that take advantage of africa's vast natural resources while she never directly mentioned the asian economic giant and her statements beijing was quick to head back saying it's none of washington's business the editor of the pan african news wire. he says the secretary of state made it blatantly clear who she was driving at. one hillary clinton went to africa last year she expressed some trepidation about the growing relationship between africa and

the people's republic of china but it appears as if most of the states in africa have a very positive view of the burgeoning relationships between the african states and china and i think this is something that's very very frustrating for the united states the u.s. has been heavily depended upon all that comes from various parts of africa there has been huge discoveries just recently of both oil and natural gas in east africa off the coast of east africa and these of course are providing new opportunities for the people's republic of china to enter into economic partnership with africa and because of the economic crisis in the united states it's going to pose a challenge to the u.s. state department i don't believe that hillary clinton is going to be successful and discouraging this growing relationship between africa and china in fact she may bring about some resentment for involving herself in the internal affairs of africa

and africa as a relationship with china arab israelis who have been exempt from having to serve in the israeli defense forces could now find themselves summoned to the military but those eager to join the forces risk being branded as traitors artie's possibly or reports. a monument to israel's fallen look more closely and you will see many of the names are of arabs all just fighters who joined an army that many of the birth one here call the enemy. but in meetings like this across the country the mood is changing most arab israelis are saying no to being drafted into the israeli defense forces the issue is up for debate as israel will views current military draft laws that allow orthodox jews and arabs to avoid national service when mosque the israeli military wants to make a server not because they need us to and because we want to control the arab states of mind and divide us. any time for the army generals will call it our teenagers

and against whom will they fight against our arab and palestinian brothers. but remarkably some arabs actually choose to serve in the last two years those volunteering for the i.d.f. doubled to four hundred. i volunteered because this is my home away and i don't have another land and i live here and so i feel it's my responsibility to contribute to the country without the right of of them let their supers two brothers also serve an idea if it means their family has been branded traitors people who have sold out to the enemy for money. i'm not a traitor i am an israeli arab i think it's high time that the arabs of israel shoulders some of the responsibility and volunteer for the army and i'm not saying there's no races no liberation but chill me a country that's perfect. the i.d.f. is working hard to recruit from the ranks of the country's one and

a half million arabs one of the recruiters as colonel is made from the druze minority. when the i.d.f. is composed of the full spectrum of israeli citizens with becomes a more moral army but the issue of culture is very significant we are so-called disconnecting the soul just from their culture and immersing them in another. which is really integration is difficult. but the voices of criticism from within the arab community are loud not in a shift since the i.d.f. is an occupying force and those arabs who choose to serve in that cross the line. of the world then why are you going to i mean there's a vast majority of our community sees a. thing to do. with the town or city to expire on august the first arab israelis and ultra-orthodox jews who until now have been exempt from military service may find themselves forced to do so regardless of

their beliefs each israeli prime minister has said to the arab community first serve in the army and then you will be treated as equals but arab israelis are asked what kind of equality is it when regardless of whether they serve in the army or not israeli jews will always be more equal than them r.t. television. right now let's cross over into our sports presenter union or nail to find out what he's got in store for us in less than twenty minutes so you're not exactly a day to write home about fourteen russia yeah that's right day eight car and brought five medals three silver to bronze any other day were being regarded as a pretty successful one but those twenty three goals on offer russia winning none of those including in the women's tennis were maria sharapova she got to the final which was an achievement in itself of course but she lost are two serina williams big style but. here in her own twenty minutes time with more on all the sporting action you really don't want to miss it all right we look forward to it and i'll be

back with a recap of our top stories in just a few minutes. the be. the be. the be. the be. the big.