the operation to free the remaining captives in algerian gas plant continues as a military operation that sparked the hostage crisis intensifies with france helping retake central towns in neighboring mali. the u.k. could be drifting towards an exit from the european union according to the excerpts of david cameron's speech but the prime minister remains shaky on calling a referendum on the issue. dilution with the song good friday you're the results of what i could tell you and sincerely exhilarated right now. cans of thousands of people in russia including our very own pete all of earth to take the plunge for

the feast of a cliff any. good if any out of the russian capital you're watching joshing welcome to the program. algerian armed forces are continuing efforts to free a group of international hostages from libyan militants at a gas plant as many as six hundred fifty captives have reportedly been rescued with an unknown number of civilian deaths and manny still missing the insurgents claim their avenging french intervention in mali which is putting president francois hollande into an increasingly tough political situation probably boyko explains these a peaceful civilians from all around the world that were working at the facility they've suddenly found themselves in the middle of this very dangerous situation where the algerian military have apparently been criticized for going in guns

blazing you know the u.k. and the u.s. have already complained that they weren't really warned in advance that this rescue operation was taking place david cameron over in the u.k. has already warned britons to brace themselves for multiple casualties and for more bad news potentially on the way so many were very surprised at how quickly fronts wattle and jumped into this intervention just one week ago when the strikes in the north of mali began with the crisis in algeria the stakes are really getting much higher we've got a number of civilian casualties from the u.k. from britain from japan all in this very dangerous situation and a lot of political analysts saying that yes all the terrorist attacks in retaliation for the french military offensive in mali of very much a possibility now we've also got critics over in the u.k. and in the u.s.

saying that this is the place that the these allies of france are now paying for supporting this intervention that was quite a hastily planned and a bit of a surprise announcement last week so of course for a while and he needs to spin the crisis to suit his own needs and he said that the behavior of these militants justifies he says the french military intervention. in mali up until a few days ago almost two thirds of the french public supported this military intervention in mali but for francois hollande that could change very very quickly as we're seeing these civilian casualties pile up this is turning into a very sticky difficult situation for all and and of course this is a man who was very today in last year in france for the peaceful credentials he actually said that he wanted to cut his paternalistic ties with the former french colonies but we've seen him jump into this conflict very very quickly and

a lot of political analysts are also saying that it could turn into a real quagmire and that these islamist groups these al qaeda linked groups could actually be much stronger in the region then the french previously anticipated so it could turn into a much longer conflict than anybody thought france has meanwhile helps the mahdi army retake the strategic towns of qana and from al qaeda linked militants conducting air strikes to support its troops on the ground the french contingent in the west african nation has now increased to eighteen hundred troops with more on the way french and you want to socials have admitted that most are better trained and equipped than initially anticipated prompting fears of a drawn out conflict nigeria has meanwhile agreed to up its military presence two thousand troops as part of west african led support forces the un meanwhile says that up to seven hundred thousand people could be displaced by the firing one

hundred fifty thousand already having fled the country columbia university researcher dr yunus says that the french intervention is primarily sparked by the economic interests of the west. the economic crisis has shown that the western developed countries have. lost the economic competition against the new. players china russia south africa the great countries basically and now that tending to militarize this competition trying to expel the chinese from the region the natural resources are very important especially rhenium because it's a very necessary element and resource for france this is basically a new fight and competition over the resources of the african countries this is going most probably to spread into the region it's going to affect definitely libya because this is the largest border between mali and libya this and i see drug dealers jihadists and fighters going back and hordes we know that the two article

fox would conduct here are not backed with heavy weapons this could affect the whole west and north africa this is for sure we're not going to stop here but of course at the end of the day it's the population who paid the price and iraqis and a farmer has been looking into what could potentially drive economic interests of western countries to the region. potentially has a wealth of minerals that can be exploited as far as oil is concerned there is zero proven reserves however it is believed major oil fields have been discovered in the north of the country although that still has to be mapped on top of that mali is africa's third largest exporter of gold we can only why south africa and ghana and there are also some five thousand tons of uranium deposits the french have two major mines in the country already and extract extensive amounts from neighboring niger and would not want that jeopardized in any way as they rely almost entirely on uranium for their nuclear energy all this is led some analysts to think that big

economic incentives are also fueling the u.s. backed french intervention here's what the author eth william angle had to say the critical strategical goal of u.s. foreign policy so you meet all of us here present is to prevent the core he's expanding your region from russia or china to iran to northern africa and the rest of africa that could leave the united states has been just. so according to him the u.s. is fearful of china's increasing economic presence in africa in the figures seem to back up that argument china has increased its investment in africa exponentially over the last decade and they are catching america up fast despite the u.s. investing over one hundred billion dollars over the last two years molly it can't be denied does have significant geo political importance while the u.k. could leave the e.u. and this is the prediction of prime minister david cameron revealed in

a preview of his delayed speech on britain's status of within the block meanwhile he's been wavering about the idea of an in out referendum saying it could be held after the next general election in two thousand and fifteen now jail for are the leader of the u.k. no pants party told r.t. sarah firth that the vote should be held right now. due to the ongoing hostage crisis in algeria involving a number of british nationals amongst others the prime minister had to postpone that long awaited for speech on europe but nonetheless some extracts of what he was expected to say in that speech have been revealed to us more about that we're outside you are a powerhouse in london to talk to the leader of the u.k. independence party nigel for the party that says we're better off out the nigel and some of the excerpts are revealed quite a positive thing to that did that surprise you well positive in the sense of you know he's using euro skeptic language to pursue a euro agenda she exactly what harold wilson did forty years ago this speech is

happening because of the rise of use here in the rise of you could has led to massive discontent on the backbenches in the house of commons and amongst the conservative party in the whole country that's what he's responding to so that's why he talked tough and says we must renegotiate but the reality of what he says if you read the subtext is that the e.u. is very good for us but it serves our interests and i promise i promise god to do my best over the next five years to do everything i can to keep britain a member of that union so that's the game that he's playing ok i want to ask there's a lot of concern that if a person left the that this would massively affect our relationships our trade relationships certainly have a hit on the economy as a result of that what do you say to those concerns a classic scare tactics always employed by the status quo whether they're defending slavery or the called laws or e.u. membership you know transparent everybody with a whole series of shocks you know three million british jobs would be lost if we left the european union really really we import massively more from the unit we

sell to them would mislead is stop selling cars in britain and we have the e.u. well i think we all know the odds of about the new thing that britain should be looking to trade outside being well you know i think ok saying what i'm saying is this that europe is aging europe as a percentage of the world. for me quite sharply it is gripped by eurozone crisis which is likely because of their fanaticism to keep it together to last for up to a decade yeah ok europe is thirty percent of our overseas exports and it's an important market place but the rest of the world is more important to us impotent because we're stuck inside this old fashioned central concept of a customs union we can't make our own trade deals anywhere else in the world let's have a free trade deal with europe like the swiss do and let's reengage with the rest of the world we've obviously this latest postponement to take understandable reasons i don't see you seen a number of delays already what do you think about the fact that this is such a huge issue and we just had

a. you know i've been waiting for years for this speech not a couple weeks. thank you very much for joining us niger for us and the clear information about when exactly that big speech on europe will be delivered this summer mean is that it could be as early as next week and of course the latest place payment making that big speech on europe no less controversial. and human trafficking is on the rise in the u.k. once smuggled into britain manny become victims of sexual and domestic slavery we're reporting that later in the program stay with us. braving the winter waters russians take a dip to celebrate a penny and wash away sand while manny do just for the boss the stories coming up shortly after this break. with. science technology innovation all the least of elements from around russia

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carty dot com. welcome back this is our human trafficking one of the fastest growing forms of international crime as floor showing in the u.k. man a small world into britain become victims of sexual domestic and labor exploitation where the number of people trafficked into the k. rapidly rising or smith looks into what's behind this modern day slave trade. it wasn't a lot slower and. i was the one to know the claymore cooking or looking after the children. but i wasn't even allowed to take the kids to school i was locked inside the house and i was nowhere in the door side it sounds like something from an eighteenth century workhouse but it's britain today so it was trafficked to this country aged twelve now nineteen she's still too afraid to talk about her experience but the fact that she's played here by an actor doesn't make her

horrific story any less real i was getting beaten by them and i was slapped and right i kept getting right. things i was like a slave never a time i kept playing i kept trying to clean myself up and i kept getting called and she was shouting asking me to keep playing even the house was clean i still have to keep playing. eventually sarah's female employer threw her out of the house aged just fourteen with no way of contacting relatives at home she lived on the street for nine months begging until she eventually found help through ecpat an international group campaigning against child trafficking it's a story that all too common and it's not just about domestic slavery according to experts many people are trafficked to work on cannabis farms in the u.k. and they're often kept in a perpetual cycle of debt or through fear of repercussions for their families but

another sector that says is rife with trafficking victims particularly from asia is high street nail bars so next time you go for a manicure pedicure ask yourself who serving you and is the seller on their sell figures from the into departmental ministerial group on human trafficking show it's risen by thirty three percent compared to last year and victims come from all over the world africa europe and the far east. more than two. thousand victims there's a retreat. victims say they were just ten percent. twenty thousand. trafficked into this country. for organized criminal gangs this is the second most profitable thing to drugs and a lot less chance of getting caught that rice could be because more cases of being reported but chloe setter who works with trafficking victims including sara says

it's partly down to a lack of police awareness only eight cases of trafficking were successfully prosecuted last year trafficking is seen not just in the u.k. but worldwide as a low risk high profit crime those criminals who have previously been smuggling drugs or arms. may now be looking to also smuggle children and people because a child can be recycled a human can be recycled the drugs once they are sold. they have a one off crime so there's a number of ways that are controlled and once that happens they are literally sort of assigned to the traffickers and hospital time unless the authorities do something to intervene antony steen founder of a parliamentary group on trafficking is leading the biggest ever conference on the subject held in britain slavery. a modern day slavery is alive and well and ten times the size of what it was when it was abolished two hundred years ago but

prosecution relies heavily on hearsay evidence and testimony and huge numbers of victims like sarah never want to talk about their experiences again laura smith r.t. london. now some other world news making headlines this hour pakistan is planning to free all afghan taliban prisoners held in the tension that's according to a senior pakistani diplomat releases are expected to bolster peace efforts with the insurgents as the western military withdrawal from afghanistan draws closer the diplomat didn't specify the exact time of the move and whether the prisoners are to be transferred to afghan custody or freedom in pakistan the u.s. welcomed the decision despite its long lasting operation of against him battling insurgents who are now to walk free. as well and president hu of china this is reportedly been moved from the cuban hospital where he was receiving treatment to a secret location that's according to the univision t.v.

channel is rumored to have been taken to a bunker specially built for former cuban leader fidel castro the move was reportedly made to avoid constant leaks about the state of health of the president and to prepare him for his return to venezuela the ailing leader has not been seen since his latest cancer surgery in mid december and missed his own inauguration ceremony. brains jailed former premier you could be put behind bars for life the opposition leader is now being accused of ordering the murder of a prominent political figure and her business rival sixteen years ago was already serving a seven year sentence for abuse of office she denies the allegations and says she is the victim of a witch hunt by president victory on a college. now tens of thousands in russia celebrated the feast of of his many taking part in traditional bathing by immersing

themselves in icy waters the celebration commemorates the baptism of jesus christ and it's also believed to wash away the sins with manny's saying it keeps them healthy for the rest of the year well arty's peter all over braised the icy plunge . winter temperatures commonly fall below minus fifteen celsius in the russian capital perfect conditions for a swim say this lot they are part of a group who refer to themselves as a walrus club and they believe in the health benefits of taking a few subzero laps here to show them goes quite prange khaled's all my life until i turned sixty when i took up i swimming and i've never had any kind of a cold since then you know as i was acquitted i used to have terrible back pain but it's gone now i'm healed sure but let's talk about after i took up i swimming i regained my flexibility i could even do a proper like split and that's how it works i recommended to everyone it's the only

existing cure to all illnesses and they get this isn't a new activity in the tradition of the russian orthodox church will ship his mark the feast of the epitome with a late night submergence into the icy waters symbolizing the baptism of jesus to anyone thinking that they would like to give it a go i do have these woods from my own experience so when called. out say i did provided that the first day i put the article of the play read mission so the russian legs aren't girl tell you you're there exerting well i could say i'm feeling very exhilarated right now. the head walrus at this swimming hole is bloody me a good a being can he's the chairman of the russian ice swimming and cold water treatment federation and insists that there are genuine medical benefits if your the main way i swimming works for you is through blood circulation driven by cold and struggling to stay warm your body contracts its blood vessels so there's less blood pumped

around the system so where does the excess blood go it goes to the vital organs that is why it's good for the kidneys and liver they are constantly cleansed. blood to me is also trained thrill seekers who want to push the abilities of the human body to the limits. they have holds the record for time spent in icy water. spent sixty minutes in there and i helped him get out of that condition when he could hardly talk he couldn't even say mama he couldn't walk his arms wouldn't move but thirty five minutes later he was recovered and could talk to the press. the russian ice swimming federation has one and a half million members across the country and blood to me it does his best to drum up more support with his own personal guarantee for years for the little i jumped into a nice hole for the first time thirty four years ago i saw that people who did it are never sick and so i decided to give it a try now look at me fit as

a butcher's dog. well it might not be everybody's idea of a good time but be it for health reasons or for spiritual reasons there's no shortage of people willing to take the plunge feature all of a moscow i want to try it at least once in your life tell the stories now reports on our website the thousands of israelis are donating their right to vote in the upcoming parliamentary ballot in their palestinian neighbors via facebook. and russia no wait tsunami the countries witnessing relentless now fall with streets cars and buildings buried under drift in siberia thousands are battling the life threatening blizzards find out more power to dot com. the artistic director of the ballet company of russia's bolshoi theatre is being treated in hospital for severe burns following an acid attack sergei filin fillin was assaulted on thursday night outside his home and central moscow as are

discovered phil and i have spoken to colleagues of other incidents that had happened to him prior to the attack. i. think well the bolshoi theatre the pride and joy of the russian culture is celebrating exactly one hundred eighty eight years since it was created but definitely this birthday celebration has been marred by this gruesome attack on a statistic director so gay feeling was returning from work on thursday night when and not notified man called him out by his name sygate turned around to respond and the man reportedly threw a ball of acid into his face we know that sergei filin was taken to a hospital and the doctors have been battling to save his eyesight a prosecutor's office has launched an investigation a criminal case to determine who stands behind this attack and the bolshoi press officer said that sergei was intimidated for several months his car tires were

slashed human seed threatening phone calls and his facebook page was hacked as we saw in the hollywood movie the black swan definitely the big stage is certainly a rather conflict zone and there is some infighting happening behind the scenes the bolshoi theatre has never been an exception to that there have been stories of some serious infighting to get roles to get a prima ballerina positions we had heard many revelations from former artists of the bolshoi on that still we talked to the colleagues and employees of a feeling they were all shell shocked at what happened. and that's an incredibly difficult day for us the dons companies an enormous shock it's really hot speak as with always we're told to shoulder it's a brutal crime and i hope those responsible will be found and punished. because. the police should look into people who would potentially benefit from creating that sort of scandal and compromised the reputation of the theater just today surrogate

was telling me how a couple of days ago he got into his car with his children and realized to. his car tires were pierced he told me i feel as if i'm living on the frontline despite all the infighting and despite the fact us again was the one who was assigning all the roles in the bolshoi theater still the bolshoi never made criminal had lines and this attack is something completely outrageous for the bolshoi theatre but definitely everyone is waiting for the results of the investigation for some of these preliminary data from the security authorities to see whether this could have been inside job and whether somebody inside the bolshoi theatre could have been responsible for this terrible attack. and in just a few minutes abby martin examines the phenomenon of economic hitman and much more in breaking the set.

congress's approval rating has hit an all time low never has american record history been so disappointed with the lawmaking body the united states even former arkansas governor mike huckabee said that their approval ratings are just barely above a pedophile so i guess that's good news for the disgusting pedophiles out there soon you won't be the most hated group in america anymore but i don't think this statistic reflects the quality of government but so much the quality of the governed in some small country with a hard to pronounce name if the government became that unpopular the country would simply collapse but no matter how many wars congress gets involved in and no matter how many jobs are shipped overseas or no matter how much the american dream gets stamped out everyone still relative round obama and votes democrat and republican this popularity rating doesn't show how effective the government is it shows how

arrogant they are because they seem to have no fear whatsoever of getting reelected or being punished in any way for their bad behavior so you know congress i have to save you keep up the good work go for one percent popularity and maybe someone will actually do something about you but that's just my opinion. you live on one hundred thirty three. well suppose for food i should try it because you know how fabulous i had lunch i got so many i mean family and i believe that i'm. really not. the old story sort of. the.

worst cheaper to live through the white house to the. radio guy for a minute. i want. to give you never seen anything like that i'm told. by bob welcome to breaking the set i'm having martin i want to start the show by reading you a letter i'd like to send to congress and the post office sticks around long enough for me to send it to congress i'm writing to inform you that even though you survived most of the two thousand and twelve election and find yourself keeping your house or senate seat warm for another term i wouldn't get too comfortable you see seventy five percent of this country if given the chance would vote for term limits such really limiting the number of times your ass is going to hold on to seats in the capitol furthermore if any of you find yourself running for president

one day more than six out of ten americans will fall if the electoral college make it that much harder for you to occupy the oval office this is all according to a gallup poll released on the eighteenth day of january two thousand and thirteen plus just recently americans ranked cockroaches or whites and even brussels sprouts as more popular than you so basically congress you suck truly yours the majority of your constituents so let's keep it rolling and let's break the set. a little. you tell her she's going to be like her. have you ever stopped to think about how the first world and be able to maintain its status of being on top while the third world is constantly at the bottom or goes beyond innovation and technology what if i were to tell you this world order.