secrets of the u.k.'s nuclear tests. live from the new center here in moscow this is r.t. top stories now children kept underground and in isolation for ten years by an islamic sect uncovered in russia city of the shocking details this hour. the battle intensifies for the strategic syrian city of aleppo between government and opposition forces but at the repeating pattern adopted by foreign media in covering arab revolutions. tunnel vision a rare glimpse inside the smuggling routes into gaza following egypt decision to seal them off jujube border tensions. as our top stories the moment i'll be back with a news team with more on those in half an hour but a summary in fifteen minutes from now in the meantime we talked to phyllis bennis

director of the washington based institute of policy studies she explains where she thinks the alms flowing into syria are really coming from our in-depth interview next. thank you for joining us on r.t. the red cross and many other experts are saying that the situation in syria has descended into a civil war a full scale civil war. how does that how does that affect the positions of the positions of the west versus the position of other countries so far we have seen no indication that either the u.s. or any of the outside actors are taking seriously the consequences of the determination by the international committee of the red cross that this is a full scale civil war what it means among other things is that the international laws of war what's known as international humanitarian law apply throughout the region and it applies to the opposition as well as to the regime they are obligated

under the conditions of international law not to use certain kinds of weapons not to attack civilians not to hold prisoners without some kind of process all of those things are part of international humanitarian law and we have seen no evidence yet that any of the outside actors are taking any of that seriously what does that mean to the syrian conflict what it means for the syrian people is that the militarization of this conflict is escalating that can only be in my view dangerous more dangerous the notion that there can be a transition a regime that would not have the same kind of repression that we have seen from assad all these years is still possible the fact that hillary clinton is now reduced to acknowledging that that if assad himself arranges a transition safe haven whether it's in moscow whether it's in saudi arabia or somewhere else that's still possible then the question becomes who is going to be

in control if the escalation continues if the militarization continues what we will then see is that the post assad. government will be led by the men with guns just like what was so in libya it's like what was so in somalia and many other i don't want to make comparisons libya is a very different country than syria somalia is a very different country but the notion that the victors of a political struggle because this is still a political struggle in syria when the victors are those with the guns that always bodes ill for women for children for civilians syria is not libya syria has a long history of of civil society mobilization and organizations they have many things that was not possible in libya it's not the same i don't want to equate them but the danger is that you will have certain parallels certain similarities such as unaccountable militias who will not put themselves under the accountability of

a new government that is a very dangerous reality and as diplomats have already acknowledged if there is another bigger explosion in syria if the entire syrian body politic explodes it will be an explosion not an implosion as libya was there is the danger because it is becoming sectarian because of that sectarian character that is only now becoming dominant in syria in a country that was not traditionally a sectarian divided religiously divided country despite the use by the regime of the religious and sectarian divisions to maintain its power this was not a population that identified primarily by their religious affiliation as sunni or shia or alawite or whatever it was a possibility that if you were alawite you had a better shot at power but it wasn't the way people define themselves the danger of

course is that with that growing the sectarianism growing there is the danger that it will spill over the borders and by some congress. and senators calls to arm the rebels for the u.s. to intervene don't you think that's just going to make it worse any further intervention by further militarization is going to make things worse the original militarization has made things far more difficult further militarization is going to kill more civilians the choice of the syrian opposition to take up arms was contested from the beginning by other parts of the syrian resistance who said that we have a better chance of changing our government of overthrowing the government by nonviolent methods so certainly more escalation whether it's by the u.s. or any other outside power is going to be very very dangerous experts now say that the rebels in syria are very much dominated by there is an interest in the united

states for instance of downplaying the role of the islamists but it's become more apparent that there are islamist forces whether they are al-qaeda i think there is certainly not much evidence yet i think that it is a very dangerous for outside actors who are not on the ground who don't necessarily have good sources on the ground to assume that any islamist forces for instance are part of al qaeda that's a word that's designed to sow terror in the minds of anybody in the west anyone in europe in the united states it cetera i don't think we know yet what we do know is that the opposition in syria is very diverse there is a part of it that has an islamist framework the same is true of all of the the rebellions that have led to the arab spring we see the muslim brotherhood in power now in egypt that's not al-qaeda there were people claiming it then it was not true we don't know if it's true in syria diplomatically the efforts where do you think

that's had given that the escalate the situation on the ground is escalating the fact that the u.n. has. allowed the the monitoring mission to remain on the ground for at least another thirty days is the one bit of hope that i see right now kofi annan team led by general mood the norwegian general has begun the political process in which they have been able to use in one town another town in small areas from the ground up to make possible a kind of diplomatic process of local commanders of the military and local commanders of the opposition forces of the resistance to create small scale ceasefires in three or four towns the town of de sor is one town in syria where it's apparently working if that could be expanded if that mandate could be shifted from simply monitoring a non-existent national ceasefire to facilitating small scale local ceasefires

that could then spread and move up from the bottom bringing people with it rather than trying impose something from outside from the top down which certainly has not worked that might be the one hope for a diplomatic and less militarized solution but susan rice and other foreign diplomats at the u.n. said that they are willing or they will withdrew the withdraw the monitors if the situation on the ground is does not improve and so far it's not improving so is that is that is that them saying that this is the last time where expanding this pressure they are saying this is the last time they said that the last time they will change based on political realities not based on the realities on the ground the realities on the ground are not what is determining u.s. positions russian positions qatar's positions saudi positions anybody's positions

except for the people of syria what the outside powers are doing has virtually nothing to do with what actually is going on on the ground so what we're seeing play out of the united nations. is a power struggle between the united states and russia between nato and the gulf states on the one hand and other arab states on the other we're seeing a bunch of different battles playing out diplomatically almost none of which are taking into account the interests of the people of syria where do you think that's had you think there will be since susan rice clinton and other diplomats have talked about intervention on site they want do you think that's going to happen do you think that's a possibility that the west is looking at there is already intervention underway the western countries have provided the military of saudi arabia the military of culture that's where they buy their weapons from they buy american weapons so it is already western weapons that are going in it's not coming directly from the us but

it is weapons of the west the danger of that escalating is very serious the danger of further escalation involving other outside actors is very serious i don't think the us right now in an election cycle i don't think the obama administration wants to engage in a direct involvement in an air campaign for instance against syria of the kind they engaged in libya i don't think they want to whether what is known in the us as the c.n.n. factor the political pressure on a president in this case on a candidate in the election based on what people are seeing on their television sets becomes very important it's not impossible that even when the regime in power in any country and in this country when the obama administration doesn't want to engage directly if there is enough political pressure they may give in to that pressure that's happened before it could happen again mccain is trying to exercise

that kind of pressure on their congressmen and other senators if there's a number of senators there's a number of members of congress there's calls from the punditry in the mainstream media it's. there's a lot of pressure on the obama administration not because any of them have a proposal of what would actually work but simply because they're using this as a stick to hit candidate obama in the context of the elections that's very dangerous for the rest of the world what are the solutions that you think are best for syria and do you think there is still time for dialogue but when the government and the opposition i think there is still time i think the time is diminishing i think that the level of repression from the government has been so horrific and in response the opposition which i support as a principle of the right of people to rise up against a repressive regime the fact that they are using stronger and stronger military.

strategies and military tactics makes that kind of discourse that kind of discussion that kind of negotiation more difficult but there is still time i think the question remains will the international community help to make that possible for example by small scale community by community village by village city by city negotiating process is at the grassroots bringing together local commanders with local officials of the of the military to work out a cease fire and then the political process the best thing the international community could do would be to allow the u.n. to play that role rather than as a fig leaf of international involvement a fig leaf of multilateralism to cover the unilateral decisions of several different governments.

here. forty acres and in one thousand nine hundred three and decided it would be a great place to find the belle the home and retire. there she is what we call in our favor. we have seventy acres here and i can't convince them that they need to drill somewhere besides two hundred feet from our house. the needs of a growing economy also means expanding our domestic production of oil and natural gas which are vital fuel for transportation electricity and manufacturing this is the floor and problems of it before we do radical and then.

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are not teach children kept on the ground in isolation for you and islamic sect were uncovered in russia city of seventy people spread over ten years following a self-proclaimed prophet. the battle intensifies for the strategic syrian city of aleppo between government and opposition forces we look at the repeating pattern adopted by foreign media in covering arab revolutions. and tunnel vision a rare glimpse inside the smuggling routes into gaza following egypt decision to seal them off due to border tensions. i'll be back with a news team with more for you in the fifteen minutes from now in the meantime the sports news is next with kate.

and i welcome to the thursday for round up here the headlines. making history russian sufi actually god takes over in the first ever women's olympic boxing lightweight final world champion katie tell you that takes gold. wow thanks vos russia successful olympic judo team return how much credit there inspiring coach for their goal for. probably twenty sixteen double olympic pole vault champion a sitting by about talks to r.t. about her future after finishing third in london. so let's go straight to the summer games where two of russia's boxers a claim silva in the first ever women's and in big boxing finals and in the lightweights final something that you go about was runner up to world champion katie taylor who clinched islands first gold medal in london then in the middle of

white final russia's experience that there's a ton of calls always out for my seventeen year old american player shields walton . right britain's nicaragua has made history by climbing the first ever women's and then beat boxing title with victory in the flyweight off the stunning while champion red herring can offer china. while other russia took broughton's in the men's one thousand meter canoe sprint in juneau alexy. with three seconds behind when as peter crouch back to push a lot of germany defending champions brothers and i and alex on the boat down the beach from belarus to the civil. war russia's returning judo team credited their coach with their success in london after winning three gold one silver and the problems medal other russia emerged as the wall of judo pass house in twenty twelve after failing to take any medals four years ago in beijing osten golf breezed aust favorite. hit out of japan in the men's sixteen kilogram final to clinch an

unexpected gold while monsoon issiah have also won gold in the men's on the seventy three kilogram final by beating another japanese while champion. and peggy have won the one hundred kilogram gold and all three winners consider their new coach to be the main reason for that triumph. oh come on but because you can see the whole team has made significant progress six out of seven reached the semifinals these proofs and so gamble is a phenomenal coach thanks to his efforts at the pulse of what has become very strong and should come under so there's only paid attention to the whole team so our results didn't depend on the performance of just one person his goal was to have everyone bring back an island big medal so he worked with all of us he turned our squad into a family we've been together for four years three hundred days a year already built a good team where people get along great and as he said if there's

a team they'll be results because one of the meantime russia's swimming count was going to get to teach him has called the game's a success. after the team won four medals paid just by himself was second only to michael phelps in the one hundred meter butterfly after failing to claim a medal on two previous occasions he added that more russians who has reached the quarter and seventy finals that four years ago and said his own result that changed his future plans and. i had plans to retire completely from swimming after the olympics but because of my success i have now had to radically rethink my future i guess the next event i'll be focusing on will be the upcoming european championships. now in just over an hour you same both will be aiming to complete an olympic double as he tries to retain his two hundred meter title but what makes the jamaican superstar tick under pharma caught up with one person who has inside track on the welsh fastest man. now after his ban storming performance in the one hundred

meters the same boat will go for gold again in the two hundred meters on thursday and to talk a bit more about that is a person who does know him very well carol back to joins me she is the publicist for you saying both thank you for your time firstly after that one hundred he must be itching to get back on the track is knee absolutely and the two hundred meters is his favorite race and having you know come back from the disqualification day go and tramp so much in one hundred he's going all out for the two hundred and the four by one because jamaica currently has the world record for the four by one hundred meters now you know him pretty well certainly for the last four years just so he always seems so relaxed as in the. evening for one hundred meters is the hundred meter final he's smiling he's joking is that a carrot to you know yes he's saying he's happy he's excited about doing his job he sings that's the way to get people's heart and he said i was out of his physical performance he's here to do a show and he likes keeping the proto happy and based on the response i mean it was

overjoyed i mean after the race. half of his data driven out more were. shouting you say and you say and you saying he's always said he would like to. get another one in the two hundred well if the weather is right the sand doesn't like the cold it's not bad actually. a little bit of rain here and there he's going after it he doesn't go for records he just wants to wait whatever comes after that'll be a bonus i think in the four by one though he would be his would want to challenge the world record and watch his preparation for a race i mean he wakes up on the morning of the final you know he sort of routine. it depends on afternoon or morning race typical breakfast he has his beverages and so on that he takes no one to call it in names of anybody but you know he does his usually eats quite a bit. but not too much probably will talk to somebody his family his team

obviously his coach and his best friend n.g. . poverty's watches television he's into sports big time and now with their live pictures when we went to visit him he was watching boxing and cycling and he gets into it see the check says joy there he's now over a million fans wanted to say he's excited about that but he does want that typical twenty five year old does and these happy once he wakes up he's ready to go looking ahead if we can the world championships athletics championships are in moscow next year is not something he's looking forward to after all he will be looking to get his crime back there when he gets certainly i think after the disappointment with the one hundred meters anything is possible he's a defending two hundred meter champion and obviously we'll want to go back after that and can we see him in russia before then do you think i'm sure if if the price is right ha ha ha no but i think it's

a love children and i think if we can coordinate some kind of activity where you can interact with the people of russia he would be. excepted to come along ok with it carolyn speak to you thank you for your time and we can hope that your same boat we can probably expect the same bolt will get the gold medal in the two hundred few knows maybe a world record in the relay andrew farmer farty. and in the main so it looks like the sky is the limit for pole vault legend yelena isinbayeva the russian could only manage bronze in london but that seems to have fired his first formal glory as many reports. arguably russia's most recognized that around the globe to limping goals from athens and beijing have something to do with your stardom but it was a case of unlucky for the pole vault queen in the british capital and show how true condition was gone with the london wind well i was hoping i was hoping. it was i

was a risk to get any medals because of terrible weather conditions. to make qualification height but physically there was ready to jump higher than for fourteen so i was also afraid that rather. hard for them for the medal so i was. a bit of heartbreak person but that bronze also did at least one good thing it gave the russian a reason to put a full retirement thirty she wants to start a family and give birth to the first child and it isn't by the hopes of having a baby will help her deliver the goods through games in four years time for the moment the main objective is of all championships in moscow two thousand and thirteen is going to be a historical event for russia we're going to house well tempered. and after that service have some break. i think i hope for. the new family gives an

imitation the huge motivation for that is what is my mind that i don't know what's going to happen next. well whether she makes it to brazil or not bother has already achieved everything and the third the dream of she's a double world champion not to mention before titles the ball got native has also set a staggering twenty eight ball directors during my career and she's the only woman to have a clear heart of more than five metres. a tough act to follow. from the. train so maybe more years five meters it's incredible it's not easy it seems easy it looks easy but it's so difficult and first of all. you see by this confidence to speed which would be enough to earn her even more speech and glory watched the speech. to.

finance a football and despite being bottom and gold us in the russian premier league and our moscow have thrashed scottish side of the united five nil to go through to the playoff round of the europa league in the first game in charge for caretaker manager the midweek cloth contrie to form there are three a lot by half time thanks the eagles and shell from xander called in and out of and a late brace from exam the stoppage that sealed the route to send the russian side to seven two on aggregate while. aim to progress at the expense of vitesse arnhem after taking a two neil first leg lead to the netherlands and of the meantime jersey merino believes this rail hundred side will be pushed hard why arch rivals barcelona next season despite trashing ac milan five one in a friendly new york christiane are now bagged a second half brace and set up three against his former side for a hour also due to play scottish champions celtic in america before kicking off their new domestic campaign at home to balance here next sunday the league

champions recorded one hundred points and scored one hundred twenty one goals last season but marino thinks repeating this is highly unlikely. i don't see the champion. we will reach one hundred points against. i don't sing the champion will score one hundred twenty goals let's sing these are numbers to stay in the city for a long time i don't i don't think. we can do it. but everybody else will be equal sides in it in. my opinion but just my opinion.